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Excerpt from China's Millions NE thousand eight hundred and ninety! Thoughtless indeed should we be if we could enter upon the last ten years of this century without a solemn feeling Of awe. It has been a wonderful century, the most wonderful on record. Progress in many ways has been very rapid, and the world seems going on at an almost maddening rate. Steam has superseded the slow and cumbrous posting system but even steam is not quick enough for our correspondence, for which the telegraph and the telephone are increasingly in request. Parts Of the world that were unknown at the beginning Of the century are now linked to us by the electric cable. Roman Catholic countries Of Europe and long closed heathen empires, like India and China, have been marvellously opened to the missionary. But Satan still reigns the god of this world is not dethroned. Increasing knowledge of science has increased the fearful power of our weapons Of destruction, and the armed millions Of Continental Europe indicate but too plainly that man fears man no less, and loves man no more, than when the century commenced. Who can foresee the events and the changes which a few years may now bring should our lord delay His coming We truly live in perilous times, whether we look at things political or things religious. Never was there a time in which it was more important to walk with god and to abide in the secret place Of the most hrch, nor in which it was so urgent to be up and doing; for our master is at the door, while the Church is only now beginning to wake up to the realisation that the work of evangelisation for which she was left in the world is yet but barely commenced. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

What is the purpose of studying history? How do we reflect on contemporary life from a historical perspective, and can such reflection help us better understand ourselves, the world around us, and the God we worship and serve? Written by an accomplished historian, award-winning author, public evangelical spokesman, and respected teacher, this introductory textbook shows why Christians should study history, how faith is brought to bear on our understanding of the past, and how studying the past can help us more effectively love God and others. John Fea shows that deep historical thinking can relieve us of our narcissism; cultivate humility, hospitality, and love; and transform our lives more fully into the image of Jesus Christ. The first edition of this book has been used widely in Christian colleges across the country. The second edition provides an updated introduction to the study of history and the historian's vocation. The book has also been revised throughout and incorporates Fea's reflections on this topic from throughout the past 10 years.

“One of the most profound and illuminating studies of this century to have been published in recent decades.”—John Gray, New York Times Book Review Hailed as “a magisterial critique of top-down social planning” by the New York Times, this essential work analyzes disasters from Russia to Tanzania to uncover why states so often fail—sometimes catastrophically—in grand efforts to engineer their society or their environment, and uncovers the conditions common to all such planning disasters. “Beautifully written, this book calls into sharp relief the nature of the world we now inhabit.”—New Yorker “A tour de force.”— Charles Tilly, Columbia University