I Will Raise Up For Them a Prophet

Deuteronomy 18:18
I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth.  He will tell them everything I command him.

It is always a deliciously refreshing experience to bury myself in a compelling, engaging story, where characters jump off the page to sit next to you like a best friend, and the plot thickens with unexpected twists and turns.  And that is precisely what happens when I have the privilege of reading Book Four in Glynn Young's Dancing Priest Series, Dancing Prophet.  Although Young masterfully crafts this novel as a stand-alone read, I can't urge you enough to order the first three that you can find at Young's blogger page, Faith, Fiction, Friends.

Once more, we are ushered into the lives of a young King Michael of Britain, his American-born Queen Sarah (Was Glynn somehow predicting the recent wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle?), their two adopted boys, Jason and Jim, and their toddler son, Henry, as they adapt to their new lives of royalty.  In spite of all the routine demands that come with the territory of being a country's sovereign, King Michael, and ordained Church of England priest, finds himself facing some overwhelming and horrific odds, as being Head of the Church places him in an unexpected and heinous scandal that, if not properly addressed, could mean the complete destruction of Britain's religious institution.

It is the courage of one young man, Robert, emboldened by the compassion he feels from his school's prayer group, which starts the shocking ball rolling.  It's a confession no one wants to hear, nor do they want to believe.  But Jason, taken in off the streets by Michael and Sarah, knows all too well about Robert's heartbreaking situation, and stands up for him.

Robert has endured repeated sexual abuse at the hands of an Anglican priest.

The cat, a most evil and sinister one, is finally out of the bag.  Robert's admission, Jason's confiding at last in Michael and Sarah about his own abuse, and another young man, Elton, coming forward as having had been the victim of unwanted advances by his priest, reveal not only the rampant and willful exploitation of boys that exists in the world, but now focuses on the abhorrent activities going on within the church, a network that has thus far been successfully hushed up by the ecclesiastic powers that be.

When King Michael took the throne of Britain, one of his aims was to reform the Church of England.  This was not greeted warmly by the Archbishop of Canterbury, and others in his camp.  And as Dancing Prophet unfolds, their worst nightmares are about to come true.

A theme Young repeats in all his novels is that God puts people in places and situations where He knows they are exactly right for the task at hand.  King Michael is no exception.  Neither are those with whom he has surrounded himself.  No, I'm not going to tell you how the story ends because you absolutely must read it for yourself!

And on one more note regarding prophetic premonitions, Young wrote this manuscript long before the Catholic Church child abuse scandal became front page news.  Wow!  No doubt about it, God's Holy Spirit is alive and well in this most talented author.

My recommendation to you is to give yourself, and your loved ones, an early Christmas gift.  Order all four of Young's incredible novels today!

Amen!