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113. What If You Learned Bible Lessons from Singing Veggies and Dead Sea Squirrels? | with Mike Nawrocki
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When The English Fall
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Vivid, Ashley Bustamante
My Soul to Take, Bryan Davis
Into Shadow's Fire, Mark Castleberry
Deceived, Madisyn Carlin
Arena (2022 edition), Karen Hancock
Kurt Nickle-Dickle of Whiskers, N. J. McLagan
"In a city where debts are paid in blood, one young man will learn that everyone needs help sometimes if they want to survive." New in the Lorehaven library: A Matter of Blood, Lauren H Salisbury
Son of the Shield, Mary Schlegel
Maxine Justice, Galactic Attorney, Daniel Schwabauer
Mordizan, Alyssa Roat
Prentice Ash, Matt Barron
Etania's Calling, M. H. Elrich
The Choice, Bradley Caffee
The Obsidian Butterfly, Lani Forbes
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When The English Fall
“When The English Fall tells a bittersweet tale of community and commitment that plunges fearlessly into hard questions about the end of the world.”
—Lorehaven on May 20, 2022

Clawing Free
“Clawing Free is an absorbing tale that seamlessly joins modernity and myth.”
—Lorehaven on May 13, 2022

Vivid
“Ashley Bustamante’s Vivid paints a world built on secrets and carefully controlled color palettes.”
—Lorehaven on May 6, 2022

Prophet
“If great fiction dares explore culture wars, it must show more than perfect people smiling before a flat backdrop. Frank E. Peretti’s 1992 novel Prophet reflects this reality.”
—Lorehaven on May 4, 2022

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113. What If You Learned Bible Lessons from Singing Veggies and Dead Sea Squirrels? | with Mike Nawrocki
Fantastical Truth, May 24, 2022

112. How Does Fiction Help Us Love Our Enemies Even If We Must Defeat Them?
Fantastical Truth, May 17, 2022

111. Why Do Your Kids Need Fantastical Stories for God’s Glory?
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Yes, Speculative Faith Is Closed, At Least For Now
E. Stephen Burnett, Dec 30

Last Stands, Custer, General Gordon, and Being a Christian Warrior
Travis Perry, Jul 2

How Christian Must Christian Fiction Be?
Rebecca LuElla Miller, May 24

Gender In Fiction: The Implication Of Failure
Rebecca LuElla Miller, May 10

Making a Story Visual UPDATE: Behind the Scenes of the Animal Eye Comic
Travis Perry, May 9

What Does “Woke” Culture Have To Do With Christian Fiction?
Rebecca LuElla Miller, Apr 26

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Lorehaven helps Christian fans explore fantastical stories for Christ’s glory: fantasy, science fiction, and beyond. Articles, the library, reviews, podcasts, gifts, and the Lorehaven Guild community help fans discern and enjoy the best Christian-made fantastical stories, applying their meanings to the real world Jesus Christ calls us to serve. Subscribe free to get any updates you choose and to access the Lorehaven Guild.
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Review: ‘Of Games and God’

One author thinks Biblically about gaming and addictions.
E. Stephen Burnett on Mar 7, 2013 · 1 comment

Video game retail displayA nonfiction author hopes to explore video games for God’s glory. From Gospel Coalition book reviewer Richard Clark:

The debate about the nature and validity of video games has been, for the most part, bungled by both sides. Knee-jerk reactions depend on secondhand impressions and assumptions. Many Christians see video games as a waste of time with no payoff, a series of murder simulators, or an insipid means of escapism that distracts from real-life problems. Those who play them often respond to these sentiments defensively, countering with thoughtless insistence that violent video games are “just games” and that those crying “addictive” and “escapist” are merely voicing fear based in ignorance.

[…]

In his new book, Of Games and God, Kevin Schut, associate professor and chair of the department of media and communication at Trinity Western University in Langley, British Columbia, deals seriously with criticisms like these, addressing not so much the overreaching language but the assumptions behind them. And he does so with a large measure of grace, humility, and nuance.

The simple truth is that those not significantly invested in the world of video games often lack a point of reference to understand and interpret this artistic culture. Rather than condemning those who have genuine concerns about this new medium, however, Schut takes the time to work through what they may have missed—as well as the places where their impressions may be correct.

Clark also name-checks Seattle pastor Mark Driscoll for Driscoll’s markedly unthoughtful and, frankly, immature reactions to games.

(I only rarely enjoy games myself, but Driscoll’s “basement dwelling nerd” stereotypes are easily spied from my happily married, above-ground, independently financed home.)

Read the full review here, or explore Of Games and God on Amazon.

E. Stephen Burnett
E. Stephen Burnett creates sci-fi and fantasy novels as well as nonfiction, exploring fantastical stories for God’s glory as publisher of Lorehaven.com and cohost of the Fantastical Truth podcast. As the oldest of six, he enjoys connecting with his homeschool roots by speaking at conferences for Christian families and creators. Stephen is coauthor of The Pop Culture Parent: Helping Kids Engage Their World for Christ from New Growth Press (2020, with Ted Turnau and Dr. Jared Moore). Stephen and his wife, Lacy, live in the Austin area, where they help with foster parenting and serve as members of Southern Hills Baptist Church.
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  1. Austin Gunderson says:
    March 8, 2013 at 10:43 am

    I haven’t played a video game in about ten years.  So I’m pretty certain the evolution of my perspective along the spectrum from “What a waste of time!” to “Hmm … maybe there’s value there after all” hasn’t been motivated by a sense of defensiveness.  Here’s the question that’s forced me to reevaluate my prejudice:

    What’s the effectual difference between a video game and a book?

    The answer is, I’m afraid, “Not a whole lot.”  Yeah, yeah, I know that books force the mind to develop their own imagery rather than passively ingest a previsualized world, that the reading of books increases literacy, and that the works of countless authors can enrich humanity’s understanding of itself and of its Maker.  But really, aside from that last positive (which is not a given — indeed, is a rare literary exception), what are these qualities good for other than more reading?  As far as I’m aware, the argument for reading basically boils down to something along the lines of “You’ve gotta read so you can be a better reader!”  Circular reasoning if I ever saw it.

    And addiction?  Ha!  I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’m not so self-unaware that I can’t admit how powerful my reading addiction can be.  It blacks me out from human interaction for hours — days — at a time.  The pull is strong indeed.  And, being as I am a spec-fic fan, what am I doing during those hours and days?  Why, living in a fantasy world!  The exact same thing for which I hear gamers being constantly reviled.  It’d be the height of hypocrisy were I to join the chorus.

    Now, I still believe the ability to read and write is vastly more important than the ability to navigate a virtual world or even to create such a world.  And I believe our society is worse off now that it’s almost completed its transition from a word-based culture to an image-based culture.  I believe we’ll regret exchanging a shared emphasis on meaning for a shared emphasis on appearance.  But those are tentative, theoretical beliefs, and they have nothing whatsoever to do with violence, laziness, or addiction — the supposed demons of video games.

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Lorehaven helps Christian fans explore fantastical stories for Christ’s glory: fantasy, science fiction, and beyond. Articles, the library, reviews, podcasts, gifts, and the Lorehaven Guild community help fans discern and enjoy the best Christian-made fantastical stories, applying their meanings to the real world Jesus Christ calls us to serve. Subscribe free to get any updates you choose and to access the Lorehaven Guild.