Reviews/Testimonials

Reviews/Testimonials

“We should all enjoy ‘getting to know Jesus’ more every day. Eric Kampmann’s book will help us to do just that.”—Dr. Alveda King, Commentator for Fox News Channel, Niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Kampmann’s fully rounded narrative helps Christ followers know Christ better not only as the risen Christ, but as a boy and then as a man living on Earth. Every aspect of human nature can be seen in Kampmann’s fascinating daily readings, and even longtime Christians will discover fresh insights.”—Publishers Weekly

“Walking with Eric and knowing his story has reminded me of the power of the Word in itself. Eric’s testimony points to the power of God’s Word.” —Pastor Chuck Davis

Getting to Know Jesus is filled with lively and insightful commentary on the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life. Read this book. Take the journey, and make Christ the Lord and Sovereign of your life!”—Reverend Frank Pavone, National Director, Priests for Life

“Eric Kampmann’s writing is clear, simple and faith-filled, and will help you to do exactly what the title says — get to know Our Lord is a very intimate, personal way.”—Anthony DeStefano, author of A Travel Guide to Life

“This ground-breaking readable volume will compel the reader to unlock the complexity of prayer with a treasure-trove of creative insights and practical wisdom. . . A gem to be treasured.”—Rabbi Earl Grollman, author, Living When a Loved One Has Died

“This highly readable and lucid book selects passages from the four gospels and provides short comments that can be read as one continuous story of a faith that continues to inspire and energize the vast majority of the human race to this day.”Mordecai Schreiber, author of The Man Who Knew God: Decoding Jeremiah

Foreword to Getting to Know Jesus

by Pastor Chuck Davis

I do not remember how we got started. But there we were, in my son Jordan’s bedroom, which he had converted into a basic sound studio. Eric and I would read a passage of the Bible from the wisdom literature of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). Then we would have a three to five minute dialogue expounding on the text from the larger

context of the entire Bible. We would complete ten to fifteen recordings per session staying a couple months ahead of the podcast schedule.

Then, one day, Eric revealed to me something that was so engrained in my methodology that I never really thought about it. What made my message unique was the emphasis on bringing it back to Jesus—the Centrality of Christ. This led to our second year of podcasts, “Walking in the Footsteps of Jesus.”

So what has the process been like for me? Friendship, gratefulness, and renewed commitment.

First, friendship. The recording sessions moved from my son’s bedroom to the church basement or my study. We added Scott, a member of our church, as our new recording technician. Our friendship grew. We laughed. We rabbit-trailed. We shared life. We prayed for one another. We grew together as Christ followers around the Word and the life of Jesus.

Second, gratefulness. As Eric would ask me spontaneous and unrehearsed questions on the biblical text, I was amazed at how much of the Word of God was deep inside of me. The Holy Spirit would open files in my mind that had been stored over the past fifty-plus years of being in the text. And it was not just knowledge but heartfelt living Word. My gratefulness is rooted in my heritage of being raised in the Word. My parents, my Sunday School teachers, my pastors, my College and Seminary professors, and my distant mentors through books, have all instructed me in the Word. And, maybe most importantly, daily reading, study, meditation, and memorization of that Word, almost every day as an adult, has transformed my life. I am sometimes brought to tears in my morning quiet times in appreciation for the life that I have been given—set apart in and unto Jesus and saturated by the Word of God.

Third, renewed commitment. Walking with Eric and knowing his story has reminded me of the power of the Word in itself. Eric’s testimony points to the power of God’s Word. Without help from all the crutches that I was given, Eric one day picked up a Bible, and through the reading of that Word, was transformed. This is why I daily recommit to the preaching, teaching, and simple witness to the Word of God. Eric is an incarnational reminder to me of the value and outcome of giving my life to this calling and passion.

As the prophet Isaiah declares—“as the rain brings forth a harvest, so the Word of God will not return void.” Or as the writer of Hebrews declares – “for the Word of God is living and active . . . able to shape and correct us.” Or as Paul reminds, the Word of God is “the sword of the Spirit” and that all “Scripture is God breathed and profitable for transforming us.” And especially as Jesus reminded us, “people who build their lives on a solid foundation that will not crumble in life storms, are those who not only hear the Word but do it.” Those are all my quick paraphrases of favorite declarations of the value of the written Word when experienced through the lens of a relationship with God through the Living Word, Jesus.

May your journey be as rich as mine has been through your discovery of a vibrant relationship to God the Father, through knowing Jesus, and made alive by the Holy Spirit.