16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
good ideas poorly written, September 11, 2002
This review is from: Every Saint Has a Past, Every Sinner a Future: Seven Steps to the Spiritual and Material Riches of Life (Hardcover)
The seven steps are listed on the dust jacket in seven lines. It takes 348 pages to explain those seven lines.
The first two chapters give background on Cole-Whittaker's life from age 6 to 17 (with a pretty big chunk missing in the middle) and explain how she came to the spiritual path of the seven steps. The next seven chapters are devoted to the seven steps, one per chapter. The last chapter covers the ending of her television ministry and her continuing search for truth (after she had perfected the seven steps?).
Nothing in these steps is new or unique, but Cole-Whittaker organizes them into a cohesive plan, and supports them with extensive examples. The ideas she presents are inspiring and well illustrated.
Cole-Whittaker uses numerous examples in her book, many from her own life. The examples from her own life seem to be roughly chronological through the book, but huge chunks of her life are seemingly ignored, and I wondered why they were left out. On page 27, purportedly talking about things she learned at age 17, she says, "A person who desires to have a happy marriage must have the consciousness, skills, and knowledge of someone who is happily married. Because we can learn, anyone can learn to develop the right consciousness to obtain anything he desires buy building the mental equivalent in consciousness..." That might indicate that she is able to be happily married--she learned the secret at 17. Later in the book we learn she is going through a divorce. No mention is made of the marriage, though, just the divorce. No mention is made of other husbands. In the last chapter she says, "Three things were missing from my life: the topmost unknown treasure, a mission and a husband." Then she explains how she met and married her (unnamed in the book) husband, presumably the husband, Sergy, to whom she dedicates the book.
The implication seems to be that she was single from the time she divorced her first unnamed husband and the time God sent her the riches of her current(?) husband. The Wall Street Journal says differently. An article dated August 23, 1984 said she married after college, divorced in the late 60's with two daughters (who are NEVER mentioned in the book), then married and divorced four times. My internet searching didn't uncover any information about any marriages and divorces that may have occurred between 1984 and Sergy.
While there are many examples from her own life, there are also many other examples. She frequently gives first names and then describes a problem and solution in the life of that person. She rarely tells us how she knows of these situations. Occasionally she says she was the person's minister, but most of the time no source is given. There is no disclaimer anywhere in the book that names have been changed to protect privacy, no indication that the examples have been used by permission, and there is no reference list in the back of the book. Maybe these people exist, but the reader has no way to verify that they aren't just made up.
Cole-Whittaker talks about books she has found that have helped her on her journey, but she never gives enough information that the reader could also find the books. On page 42 she says, "...I found an old book in the school library....The author of this particular book told the story of a certain person who was seeking wealth. The man...sold his land in South Africa and...moved to the city, which he thought to be a place of great riches. One day...the new owner...saw something shining from what looked like a rock. Further investigation revealed the rock to be a diamond in the rough. Under his feet was an immense diamond mine." This book sounds a lot like ACRES OF DIAMONDS by Russell H. Conwell, but it has a copyright of 1979, and Cole-Whittaker started college in 1957.
Cole-Whittaker also has a tendency to change persons needlessly and to no purpose. This is illustrated by an excerpt from page 4l. "Every time we give in to our fears and quit, or refuse to enter the game, we have failed the test. The test is not whether or not you win the race, for there are many variables that are not under your control, but whether or not you were in the race and gave your all. There is no way to escape oneself or the lessons and challenges that each of us must face and conquer." She starts out in 1st person plural with "we." Then she shifts to 2nd person "you/your." Then, in one sentence, she changes to 3rd person, "oneself" and back to 1st person, "us." The entire passage could have been done in any of the three persons.
While this book is worth reading, it seems to be poorly written and poorly documented.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Words to the Wise, March 16, 2002
This review is from: Every Saint Has a Past, Every Sinner a Future: Seven Steps to the Spiritual and Material Riches of Life (Hardcover)
Extremely helpful book - clearly written and easy to read. The exercises offered are simple and take only commitment, desire and some degree of determination. This book reminds us of the many ways in which we can enhance our worldand live richer fuller lives. These are not new principles - many other writers address them - some more compelling than others. This just happens to be among the more compelling presentations of the principles.
Great read.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best books I ever read, September 20, 2005
This review is from: Every Saint Has a Past, Every Sinner a Future: Seven Steps to the Spiritual and Material Riches of Life (Hardcover)
I have been reading books an the subject for a long time, and I have to say that this is one of the best books I ever read.
The book is great because it's not just a laundry list of 'do this' and 'do that' and this is what you do wrong - but the stories and the examples made me stop in the middle of the page and think. I easily recognized my own way of thinking, I recognized the 'fear' that you are not even aware is in you and it block you from reaching your goals.
Once I read this book I started to use more positive reinforcements and mantra. I surprised myself thinking 'positive' thought. Terry teaches us in this book to 'feel' the joy after we have reached whatever goal we dream of reaching. So you start experiencing the joy of success before you are even close to it - but by 'feeling' the joy you raise your vibration and your subconscious - and voila soon enough your attitude changes, your point of view changes and surprise! you find yourself doing something to attain your goal. This book thought me to pay attention to the 'fear' - its always there hidden inside eating at your determination. This book gave the impulse to look within - and no other book ever made me discover myself as this book has. I truly believe this is one of the best books I ever read. I know that I will go back to this book over and over again.
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