"Claire
was wrong about one thing. It wasn’t ‘just a race’. This triathlon was
his one shot at making up for his mistake – no, his sin – that led to
Dad’s death. But he couldn’t explain that to anyone, especially not
Claire."
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Target Audience: Boys 15+
Subjects: Pornography, Friendship, Guilt, God’s Forgiveness
Summary: What’s the limit for a blind boy? Steven is determined to not let there be one. In his mind, being blind is no reason whatsoever for not participating in a triathalon. Can a blind person ride a bike, swim laps and run? Well, it takes some adjustment and support, but yes, Steven intends to do just that. His time at camp this year is focused on trying to weigh the scales back in his favor. He wants to make up for the sin that he committed the day his dad died, the sin he was participating in that kept him from being able to hear his dad call out for help. When a friend at camp begins to struggle with the temptation towards the same lust that caused Steven’s downfall, Steven seeks to help hold his friend accountable. But can he do that without getting pulled back in himself?
Notes: See No Evil is the 3rd in the Rusty Knoll Bible Camp series. The first book introduces a group of about six campers and each of the three books in the series tells the story of one of the boys at camp and experiencing life change through his experiences at camp and the nightly chapel messages.
A blind teenage boy in the summer between his junior and senior year of high school faces the temptation of pornography but in a different way than others. Since he is blind, Stephen listens to erotic messages instead of looking at inappropriate images. He did this three years ago and made the decision never to do it again, viewing at truly wrong and inappropriate. He even counsels his friend to treat girls with more respect when a girlfriend sends him a picture of herself topless. The book deals heavily with the issues of pornography, sexting, and phone sex. But it also ties in the issue of guilt as guilt is the natural companion to actively choosing to do things you know to be wrong. Stephen’s guilt is even worse since he fears that while he was listening to the phone sex his dad who was having a heart attack in the next room could have called out for help and Stephen would not have heard him. The book does a good job putting a Biblical spin on it – Stephen did make a wrong choice, but God is not holding this against him, waiting for him to earn forgiveness. Tied in with all of this is Stephen’s view of himself. Due to his being blind and weighed down with guilt, he has a distorted view of himself. The chapel messages talk about seeing yourself the way God sees you – making sure you are looking at yourself using a perspective that can be trusted. A side story in this book is a character who, due to a tough recovery from an illness, feels useless and worthless and has to learn to see herself correctly.
Spiritual Content Recommendation Scale: 5/5
Reviewer: J:-)mi
Colossians 3:1-12 - Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Thank you to the author for providing me with a free review copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. I enjoyed it!
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