Book review: Stand Strong – 365 Devotions for Men by Men

Book cover for Stand Strong: 365 Devotions for Men by Men by Our Daily Bread Ministries

As part of my daily routine, I read from a devotional. It’s a practice I added a few years ago, and one that I’m happy I did. It has helped me to strengthen and deepen my faith. For this past year, my daily devotional was Stand Strong: 365 Devotions for Men by Men by Our Daily Bread Ministries.

While I enjoy the passages in the devotional, these aren’t its primary purpose for me. Reading the devotional serves as a jumping off point to read a chapter of The Bible every day. The passage in the devotional merely sets the tone and can provide context for my reading in The Bible.

Given how I use a devotional, Stand Strong suited my purposes. Depending on how you intend to use the devotional, it may or may not fit your needs. For starters, as you would expect from the title, the passages are directed toward men. Second, there are some discrepancies where the quoted verse does not match the verse discussed in the daily reading. Finally, I found some of the readings to be more topical than instructional. Given my experience with devotionals, I didn’t find this odd or unusual. I don’t expect that every daily reading is going to speak to me. Basically, some readings are more applicable to my circumstances, and the ones I find useful would likely be different than the ones you would find most applicable.

Overall, I would consider Stand Strong a good devotional if you’re looking for something that is directed specifically towards men. While it can stand on its own, I feel that you will get more out of it when used as a prompt to go deeper in the Scripture. In my mind, that’s what makes for a good devotional and should be its primary purpose – to encourage you and inspire you to explore The Bible at a deeper level.

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