Review: Faithfulness: No More Excuses by Lou Priolo

Lou Priolo. Faithfulness: No More Excuses.  Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, June 30^th, 2016. 48 pp.

This is an excellent resource on Christian living using biblical principles and God centered motivation.  I realize the term “faithfulness” can be rather broad and my only real critique of this book is that it might have been better titled “Responsibilities” or something along that line so readers understand right away what the book is about.  I totally enjoyed this book and found it immensely practical and helpful.  Even for those who would say they are quite responsible would benefit from this book as the beginning of this work made clear that the more one grows in responsibilities, the more one sees one’s shortcoming and need for grace for improvement.  With such an introduction I was compelled to read this all the way through.

The author Lou Priolo manage to pack so much in such a small little book!  The book define what responsibility is both in the beginning of the work and at the end.  There are many Scriptures cited and quoted.  For instance, Priolo notes that few people are actually faithful according to Proverbs 20:6 and present to the readers how biblically unfaithfulness is described: “Like a bad tooth and an unsteady foot Is confidence in a faithless man in time of trouble” (Proverbs 25:19). The book goes over three elements of faithfulness and three tests of faithfulness that comes from the Scripture.

While this work is saturated with Scripture, it is not just a Bible study that’s theoretical; it is quite practical.  I appreciate the lists of probing questions that are perfect for diagnostic of one’s own life.  For example the author in the book asks readers to list out the top responsibilities one has and then to put them into categories of those one like to do and those one doesn’t want to do.  Yet is one faithful even if one does not enjoy the task?  He also presents evaluation for one’s excuses and makes readers think what kinds are they.  I thought it was insightful of how the author observes from the Scripture the correlation between making excuses and being afraid.  I don’t want to give too much of the book away but one should definitely get this book if one loves God and want to practice and renew biblical living.

NOTE: This book was provided to me free by P&R Publishing and Net Galley without any obligation for a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

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