Wondrous, inspiring, encouraging insights. I found myself pondering on what I had read. Will be going through this book slowly and making notes. A great book to study the epistle with.

I enjoyed this look through Ephesians and what it means to be alive in Christ. It isn't a traditional study, however, the author had some good incites.
I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of an honest review.

I read Missional Motherhood last summer and enjoyed it. I've had Alive in Him on my kindle forever and decided it was finally time to read it. I'm so glad I did. Gloria is a wonderful author who does a great job of letting the Bible speak for itself. I love that she gives you the gospel with minimal stories that you get a lot of in other women's christian nonfiction. I can do without all the y'alls, can I get an amens, and "witty" stories that maybe, kinda deal with the topic. Thank you for knowing that the Gospel is enough!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Gloria Furman has amazing knowledge of the Bible. I am always in awe of the beautifully crafted sentences she writes in her books. I must admit, however, they often go above my head and I find myself having to re-read passages several times before I completely comprehend what she is trying to convey. Her study of Ephesians was not a verse-by-verse study, but rather a thematic study of the text. I enjoyed the study and learned a lot from her teachings. I will continue to pick up her books in the future, but just know going in, her books are meant to be savored, not plowed through.

* I received this book from the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review *

Very enjoyable and well written book on strengthening our walk and a great companion piece to the book of Ephesians, one of my favorites.

an inspirational read...especially during the easter season.

Furman likens the Christian life to an improv. “Improv is not a free-for-all where actors may do whatever they please. Improv discerns what is already at play and follows along with creatively faithful interactions” (location 410). As believers we follow Jesus’ lead as He lives out the Father’s will perfectly. While it’s not helpful to take analogies to extremes, I found this helpful. We read the Word so that it shapes the way we think about and order our lives. As we come to know Christ more in the Word and with the Spirit’s help, we are able to go more with his flow for our days.
She presents a beautiful picture of the church and what it means to be a part of the body of Christ. She states, “The presence of God is among us in the world through the presence of the church” (location 592). She quotes Mark Dever who said that while one godly person can catch someone’s attention, a body of believers (the church) “creates a picture of humanity that people have only dreamed of. “ My family found this to be true when my son was in the hospital for months. Our church family took such good care of us, covering our walls with cards, praying for us around the clock, delivering meals to us and more, that our caregivers were astounded. They had never seen anything like it. It was a powerful testimony of God’s goodness and care of us through the local church.
This book has a different feel or tone from other Furman books I’ve read. While not quite a commentary, this is a study of Ephesians rather than a devotional or a meditation on a topic. It would be great to read each section right along with the corresponding passage. It was gospel saturated and rich. If you want to go deeper into Ephesians, I’d highly recommend it.
Thank you to Crossway for providing me with a free e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

As soon I saw Gloria Furman had a book about Ephesians I added it to my wish list. Her books are always filled with gospel truths and practical application. Gloria describes this book as a travel guide, whetting your appetite for the real adventure. This book certainly made me hungry to want to study Ephesians more. I would love to go back and do this a group study or a friend. This book would be enjoyable for personal devotions.

Some Quotes I enjoyed..

~We need to lose the mental image of our pre-Christian state as a drowning person helplessly flailing about in the water, hoping upon hope that someone might throw us a life preserver. Outside of Christ we are, in fact, spiritual corpses rotting on the ocean floor among the silt and sludge.
~In other words, we grow in the garden of the local church, not in a vase all by ourselves.
~We have no alternative but to be dumbfounded that God would elect guilty sinners such as ourselves to be the recipients of Christ’s riches. God is the one “who does great things and unsearchable, marvelous things without number” (Job 5:9).
~Though our growth can be slow, awkward, or only slightly perceptible with a time-lapse lens, we know by faith that the garden is growing in such a way that the gates of hell must retreat.
~A motley crew of racist, sin-sick, spiritual zombies is now one body under Christ. And individually they are new creations walking in humility, gentleness, and patience.
~We don’t exist for ourselves but for others. Gifts are given to us to be given to others. Gifts are for the benefit of all, not the personal fulfillment or boasting of the gifted.

*This is an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley. No review, positive or otherwise, was required—all opinions are my own.*

The message of Ephesians jumps off the page in new ways as I read it side by side with this book. Alive in Him is like a commentary of sorts but full of references to old and New Testament scripture, details about what things mean and also personal illustrations and application. The author dissects the book of Ephesians topic by topic going through the book of Ephesians in small sections. She explains practically speaking how it should impact our lives. I have a much better picture of not only what Paul was trying to say to the Ephesians but also how this impacts me as a believer today. So very practical and applicable. This book will be read and reread. The depth of information is astounding. It is presented in a way that's easy to understand. Reading this book has really helped me process who I am in Christ and what's a God has done for me. Some great times of meditation and worship have resulted.

"Alive in Him" is a thematic study of Ephesians. Rather than studying Ephesians verse-by-verse, the author took a section at a time and explored its theme. She assumed you will read the text in your Bible before reading this book. The first half is about what Christ has accomplished through the cross, and the second half is about how we can walk in the light of that reality. I liked how she pulled verses in from other parts of the Bible to help us better understand the points made in Ephesians.

While the author is very enthusiastic about the topics covered, this is a dense book as she didn't use many stories to illustrate her points. I normally prefer this style, but there were times I'd have to re-read sentences and was still left unsure exactly what she meant. It sounded profound but needed more or clearer explanation. Overall, though, I enjoyed this study of Ephesians.

Ephesians is one of my favourite books of the Bible, so I really appreciated Furman's approach to this gem hidden in the New Testament. "Alive in Him" is a thematic study of Ephesians. Instead of plodding through verse-by-verse, Furman takes one chunk at a time and goes through it's topic, and it's theme. Her subtitle - how being embraced by the love of Christ changes everything - is well suited to this book, and really brings to light the magnificent work Jesus did on the cross. This is a lovely new book for devotion times or quiet times, while working through the book of Ephesians.

I received this book very graciously from the publisher in return for my fair and honest review.

I enjoyed this look at the book of Ephesians in the New Testament. It was an easy read in an afternoon to reflect on Paul's words.