Book Review
I think I felt a surge of testosterone as I turned each page!
How do I begin to sum up and put into words?
Powerful. Real. More than thought provoking. Beautiful and raw. Full of hope and truth.
There have been but a few books that I have had a very difficult time to put down, and without a doubt, Author Jeff Tiegs‘ book, Where Have All The Heroes Gone?, is one such book.
As I read nearly 200 pages at my first sitting, I think about all the different backgrounds of people who will read this book – and I firmly believe that Tiegs has nailed the layout, conveying his thoughts and stories precisely on target. This book is formatted with absolute genius, beautifully composed, with real, raw, and on-point truth.
“What is the value of a child or a young woman?” Pg. 191
Tiegs takes you into an interweaving of stories with vivid imagery putting you along side him, both in wartime missions and in pondering the truths of the Bible and hope in Yeshua (Jesus). He integrates not only personal and biblical stories but takes you further to consider application in living authentically.
“Any man of honor would lay down his life to protect women and children.” Pg. 122-23
Whether you are a fighting soldier or a civilian, one looking into the ideas of faith or a devoted Christian, a leader in the church or new to faith, I highly recommend, men especially, reading this book. And although I am not a fan of the Message (MSG) or New International Version (NIV) of the Bible, however, Tiegs beautifully uses these to illustrate the main points within each chapter which can be especially helpful for those who have never read the Bible at all.
I recommend reading this book in a ‘gleaning’ fashion, meaning, as Jeff has intertwined his stories with accounts and applicable lessons from Scripture, looking deeper than just the surface, we too would glean the ‘gold’ found within. For me this starts with gleaning down to the ‘Chief End’ of all things, Jesus and how I might be drawn closer to Him. Then I glean the stories and lessons of men who have walked paths that I have not, in this instance, Tiegs stories, trials, battles, learning, failures, humility, and especially his turning unto the Lord of glory. In this way there is so much to glean from Jeff Tiegs. There is no wonder that Tiegs is the President of Skull Games and devoted to hunting down child and sex trafficking monsters.
Finally, a book for men (women too!), men everywhere; men outside of knowing God and men in the Christian church. A book not just telling me more facts and telling me how to do ‘XY and Z’, but real and encouraging, yet not overbearing and intimidating. One that must be read by the upcoming generations of young men struggling to find their way. There is so much for a man to glean from Tieg’s book!
I love reading works from the 16th, 17th, and 18th century, and there are many men of years gone by such as George Whitefield, C.H. Spurgeon, George Muller, Jonathan Edwards, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, John Piper, R.C. Sproul, and the list goes on. However, in this time of my life, men such as Victor Marx (All Things Possible Ministries), David Eubank (Free Burma Rangers), and now Jeff Tiegs (Skull Games) are men of which are an inspiration in our age. These men, who love their God, obey in the most difficult of situations, press on in the love, grace, and mercy of God, fighting (literally) for the widows and orphans, the oppressed and abused, and encourage me to do the same.
“Right at this minute, you can order up a girl on the open Internet and have her delivered to wherever you are, just like you would order a pizza. What type of ‘toppings’ would you like? These girls can be purchased for around $100, even less if you haggle well.” Pg. 191
And although I do not have the same exact skill sets as these men, I can heed the words of Paul Washer (Founder of HeartCry Missionary Society), “You either go down in the well yourself, or you hold the rope for those who go down. Either way there ought to be scars on our hands.” So, I know there are three things I can do to support the mission / battlefield: 1.) Pray. I mean authentically and often. 2.) Support monetarily as I am able. 3.) Share this with others by the means the Lord has given me. And should I be able to do more in the future – then may the Lord’s will be done. Amen.
What shall you do?
Some Gold
“These were not random men the angel happened upon; they were not simple, lowly shepherds. These where specifically selected and specifically trained temple shepherds, known as the Levitical Shepherds, who were watching for the unblemished sacrificial Passover lamb.” -pg. 164
“Zachariah means ‘the Lord (Yahweh) remembers.’ Elizabeth means ‘God is my oath.’ When you pair them as a couple, their names reveal ‘the Lord remembers His oath.’” -pg.224
“We can’t let busyness and lack of focus inhibit us from seeing what is right in front of us. We must not let fear and confusion inhibit us from seeing that Yeshua is right in front of us. We can’t be so distracted that we miss what God is communicating to us.” -pg. 229
“Too often we have an image of ‘laid-back Jesus.’ That is total nonsense. Yeshua’s coming was announced in the Garden of Eden, moments after Adam and Eve sinned. For thousands of years, prophecies were shared that would allow the Jews and ultimately the Gentiles to recognize the Messiah when he arrived. For thousands of years, the Jews follow meticulous customs and excruciatingly detailed rules and laws in preparation to receive the Messiah.
“Yahweh laid out the exact dimensions of important items throughout the Bible; Noah’s ark, the tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, the temple, the exact dress of the priest.
“He gave extreme specific details about notable events throughout the Bible: take this many men, say this, blow your trumpets here, wait until I give you a sign.
“So why do we have this sense that when Yeshua came, He was mostly winging it?
“Yeshua came with a very specific purpose, and had only a couple of years to get it done. There was no time to wander about, get lost, and waste time trying to find food or lodging.
“He was on a mission.” – pg. 288-9
Some Humor
Jeff’s “quick prayer” on pg. 88
“If you don’t know who the weird cousin is in your family, it’s you.” -pg. 237
“If I hadn’t also had to pee so badly, I would have thought we were assaulting something.” -pg. 355
“For some reason, I doubt it was Peter. He doesn’t strike me as the culinary type. Cutting off ears seems to be more his thing.” -pg. 386
Be sure to check out Jeff Tiegs’ website.
Peace and blessings,
Jeremy B. Strang
Philippians 2:3
Jeremy’s new book, Weapons of Our Warfare, is now available via paperback or free
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Jeremy B. Strang 
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