Stephen Bishop’s latest book, the second under his own label, follows the same format as his previous one. Its 31 short chapters are suitable for private daily devotions or for group discussions (each chapter ends with two or three points to ponder).

The enigmatic title is clarified by the subtitle, ‘Finding God’s Encouragement’, and more fully explained in the introduction, where the author recounts an experience of his journey to work being interrupted by “two parent ducks and several ducklings running around the road in sheer panic” (p5). What struck Bishop was how commuters and bystanders took pity on the errant creatures and spent time helping them get back to a safe environment.

Like these ducklings, we can all at times feel confused, threatened and disorientated, especially in the spiritually darkened world we inhabit. What we need is to be gathered up in the reassuring hands of our loving Heavenly Father and receive his encouragement to keep going.

Biblical Snippets

To this end, Bishop provides biblically-inspired snippets, assembled into four main sections whose headings all begin ‘Where is God…’ and continue with themes such as ‘…when I feel…’ and ‘…in my life…’. Each section then has several chapters with alliterative titles. For instance, ‘when I feel…’ ‘afflicted’, ‘assailed’, ‘anxious’, ‘alone’, ‘abandoned’, ‘alarmed’, ‘adrift’, ‘afraid’, ‘ashamed’.

Each chapter starts with a Bible verse and invites us to read the passage from which it is taken. What follows is not deep theology but a simple point of encouragement, often illustrated with examples from real life. The author is content to keep reminding us who God is and what he is like, leaving us to reflect further as needed.

We all at times feel confused, threatened and disorientated, and need to be gathered up in the reassuring hands of our loving Heavenly Father.

Invariably Thoughtful

It could be said that the book is slightly repetitive but this only comes across if read in a single sitting, which is not its main purpose. Bishop always expresses himself well and his writing is invariably thoughtful and occasionally poignant. The reader will feel at ease with him as he shares and brings God’s encouragement into our lives. There could even be one or two surprises for the more seasoned Bible reader as he uncovers some interesting details in the passages he has chosen.

The book concludes with an epilogue which those who have read his previous books won’t be surprised to find is football-based. The author is a lifelong Leyton Orient fan – so no stranger to the need for constant encouragement!

Overall this book will bring you closer to God when drifting, revive you when flagging and give you fresh heart when weakening.

‘Gathering Up Ducklings?’ (133pp) is available from Amazon for £5.99 (paperback) or £3.99 (Kindle).

Stephen Bishop is author of a number of books reviewed elsewhere on Prophecy Today UK including ‘Time: Full Stop or Question Mark?’, ‘Two Minutes Added On’ and ‘Finding a Place to Settle’. He is also a contributor to Prophecy Today UK’s ‘Thought for the Week’ page.