Wherever the River Runs: How A Forgotten People Renewed My Hope In The Gospel

The surprising thing about Kelly that I learned in this book, is that she is hilariously funny. I already knew she was theologically sound and could take a reader or listener to deeper levels spiritually with God our Father. I laughed throughout the entire book when I wasn’t crying or shaking my head in pain or disbelief at the circumstances of which she detailed the Amazon people and their lives. You will never be the same again if you read this book and take her words to heart. I myself have been to other countries on mission trips, where the people are not as “fortunate” monetarily as we in the US. It does make you think about your excess when you return home and how much we as Americans have compared to those less fortunate third world countries. We take much for granted. Kelly Minter is masterful in writing a story that is engaging, entertaining and compelling all at the same time. If you haven’t read this book, do yourself a favor and get it today! You will be blessed by her inspiring words that point to God’s Word and you will learn more about a people that it seems have been forgotten. Everyone needs to read this book because it is a message of love and compassion for those who need it most.

Kelly Minter took me on a journey down the Amazon river I will not soon forget. Wherever the River Runs kept me reading late into the night and during lunch breaks at work. Minter had me laughing out loud, feeling convicted, and wiping away tears falling down my face. She shares her story of how God took broken dreams and a struggling music career to only take her on a journey of a lifetime. God tossed her into a double decker boat called “The Discovery” where you string your hammock up and settle in for a ride down the Amazon river. Here God introduced her to pastors who traveled all day just to share the good news, a pastor who lives in a house that floods half the year just because there are people there and many women who have lived a life of hardship. When Kelly asked one woman how she survives the difficult days she replies, “I don’t know, I guess I don’t have any difficult days.” I don’t feel called to stop everything and head for the Amazon, but this book is convicting and I love Kelly’s authenticity throughout the book. She does not sugar coat her adventures, there is loss and pain. God does amazing size God work. I strongly encourage you to read Wherever the River Runs by Kelly Minter.

An poignant odyssey depicting the way God intervened in the life plans of a devoted follower of Christ, taking her on a journey and a future and to a "place" she could never have conceived for herself. Kelly Minter writes with transparency, humor and pathos. The reader experiences the "feel" of the Amazon River and jungle as well as overhearing the dialogue happening within her own soul as she attempts to unravel and interpret her encounters with people of another culture, inhabiting a beautiful, but potentially lethal environment. Wherever the River Runs exposes us to a forgotten people among whom God is revealing Himself in ways that are as mysterious as the Amazon itself. It affirms the way God can use a single individual to create change. But it also is a testimony to how He uses those in need to deepen the lives of those who imagine themselves to be solely benefactors. It is that mutual exchange of grace that is the essence of life in the Kingdom and, I believe, the profound genius of Kelly's book. Further, she points the reader who is ready to respond to the call of such an adventure, a tangible way to become personally involved. In short, a great and accessible read. Better, a book that will read you!

I enjoyed this book from start to finish. This book is so much more than I thought it would be. I was expecting cool stories about a trip to the Amazon. The end. Instead, I was caught up in the wonders of what God is up to in a place I didn't know much about prior to reading this book. By the end, I felt like I knew the people she wrote about and couldn't wait to get to the end to see what happened! While I enjoyed hearing about her adventures, I was most impacted by Kelly's honesty about the work God was doing in her heart: stripping her of pride, selfishness and many other things that keep all of us from seeing Him more clearly. I have so much respect for her and her bravery to bare her soul and share things that I struggle with deep down but probably wouldn't have the guts to say out loud. This book has given me much to pray about, and I'm thankful I got a chance to read this book. It is well written, easy to read, and I thoroughly appreciated her sense of humor :o). Look forward to reading the next book---keep 'em coming Ms. Minter!

Loved this book! Kelly Minter is a great writer and has an incredible story to tell.

I am sitting here reading this Scripture, on a comfortable couch with my airconditioning running, and very little connection with the poor. I just finished this book last evening. It could have been entitled: "True Worship". A man named John Paculabo, manager of Integrity Music and Kingsway Distribution was responsible for producing hundreds of Praise Music albums. John understood and believed that worship should never exist to serve itself; this belief inspired songs of substance that in turn fed the church with a message that changed the world. But then he took a boat trip on the Amazon river and it changed his life. It further fleshed out his understanding of true worship: "Religion that God our father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." He fell in love with people hidden along the vast Amazon River: difficult to reach, desperately poor, and he also found many itinerant and localized pastors trying to minister out of their own poverty. John made personal connections, and introduced Christians who were desiring to publish their own Christian music to these people he had met in the Amazon, taking them with him to meet these people in a boat down this mighty river! (And the author of this book, Kelly Minter, was one of them). From this kind of worship a ministry was founded called "Justice and Mercy Amazon". It is responsible for building schools, bringing food and supplies, getting pastors together for teaching and fellowship and bringing the Kingdom of God into the Amazon River basin.

I truly enjoyed Kelly Minter's book; Whenever the River Runs. I believe that what I liked most about this book was the way that Kelly Minter's describes how we are to help the least of these in the world, as Jesus told us to do. In the church in the USA, we can find ourselves getting comfortable in and with our lives. And there is nothing wrong with this. But our Lord wants us to go beyond comfortable and to reach out to those on the, as Kelly writes, "the fringes of society, the spiritually hungry" whether this includes people in our own backyards, or orphans in China, sex-trafficked boys and girls around the globe, the starving in Africa and other parts of the world, those in the Amazon area. We are all called to reach out to those who are hurting in our world, like I said, either in our neighbors or around the world. As far as what I liked least about this book, I honestly cannot think of anything. Kelly Minter has done an excellent job of writing from her heart and her words have touched my heart and have a very positive impact on my life. I would highly encourage those who would like a heart change or heart adjustment to consider reading Kelly Minter's book. You will be truly blessed!

I just finished reading Wherever the River Runs. While there are still a few months left in 2014 this book will undoubtedly be at the top of the "best books I read this year list" come Dec.31, regardless of what I read between now and then. There are many layers to this book. On the surface, a story about the Amazon and it's people. Kelly does a great job of describing the river's majesty and beauty and danger. Likewise she vividly captures the people, their struggles their joys and their depth. This layer alone is worth the read. But it's the deeper layers that will resonate, I think. Stepping out of one's comfort zone, both physical and mental, seeing the needs around us, discovering the real meaning of worship, and desiring to see and love people, all people, as God does. Some who read Wherever the River Runs will want to immediately get on a plane fly to Brazil and begin ministering to the Amazon people, and that's great. But Kelly never encourages that. Rather, she encourages the reader and herself to look with new eyes at the people around us, right where we are, especially the poor, the lonely, the marginalized and to really see them and look for ways to come along side with the great good news of the Gospel. Highly recommend!

Loved the book. Most interesting to see how people from the Amazon live.

What a great read, written with an honesty and openness I have rarely encountered. You almost experience the Amazon through the authors experiences. Well worth the time and money

Great book !

Excellent service and product .Thank you