The Ultimate Christmas Wishlist: What If You Could Get What You’re Really Hoping For?

by Rico Tice

Outreach book sharing the hope of Christianity at Christmas. We all need hope in our lives, but many struggle to know where to look for it. This short, warm and profound book by well-known evangelist Rico Tice makes a compelling case for Christianity and the hope that it provides. Based on Isaiah 9:6 (a passage often used in Christmas services), readers will see how Jesus – the Mighty God, Prince of Peace, Everlasting Father and Wonderful Counsellor – is the ultimate gift as he delivers what they really hope, peace, purpose and guidance. This gospel presentation is ideal to give away at Christmas.

Genres: Christian

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2022

About the author

Rico Tice is Senior Minister (Evangelism) at All Souls Church, Langham Place in London. Born in Chile before being educated in England, Rico spent a year working at a church in inner city Liverpool and then studied history at Bristol University (where he was captain of the rugby team). He went on to graduate from theological college at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. As a passionate evangelist, he has spent the last few years developing the Christianity Explored courses. He is a regular speaker at missions and evangelistic events around the world, and is the author of Honest Evangelism: How to talk about Jesus even when it's tough.

Reviews

[Panda Incognito · Rating 4 out of 5]

This brief book addresses the core things that people desire, showing how hope, peace, purpose, and confidence are central to our ideas of the good life even when we disagree about how to get there. Evangelist Rico Tice shares brief anecdotes and stories from the gospels to illustrate these different ideas, showing how Jesus provides all of those things and more. Unlike in some Christmas books, Tice doesn't mainly focus on the Nativity story, but gives a sense of the scope of Jesus's life, earthly ministry, death, and resurrection.

The Ultimate Christmas Wishlist is a great book for people who are curious about the Christian faith and want a short, highly readable way to explore ideas related to Jesus. It can also encourage longtime Christians, exalting the hope of Christ even when life is difficult and never lives up to our best hopes. I appreciate how many recent Advent books face sadness directly, instead of trying to help the reader drum up festive and joyful feelings that may be out of sync with their circumstances.

This is a great book for adults and teenagers, and because it is so brief and inexpensive, churches can buy it in bulk to hand out at an event. I would definitely recommend it for that purpose, because it covers so many universal themes that anyone will be able to relate to it, regardless of their specific background and life circumstances. This book is so short that busy people can feasibly read it during the holidays, and it can serve an evangelistic purpose and encourage people who are already Christians.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Beth Bruce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rico Tice effectively explains what we ultimately long for at Christmas time, when the presents and family gatherings don't quite cut it; a Mighty God, Prince of Peace, Everlasting Father and Wonderful Counsellor- all revealed in the person of Christ.

[Rob Seabrook · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is just a short little book presenting the gospel, the greatest story ever told, in which Jesus is the bringer of hope, peace, purpose and confidence ... and there could be no better Christmas list to make our lives complete.
It is an ideal gift for someone who is searching, perhaps a stocking filler for a loved one or a giveaway at a church Christmas service.
It clearly shows Rico Tice's heart as an evangelist ... the intent being to simply communicate the good news that the birth of Jesus means, and bring the reader close to faith. To know a truer meaning of Christmas than the one we often hear of.
Rico uses various Bible stories to show us who Jesus is and why He can be relied on to bring us hope, the hope that is embodied by Christmas time.
It sets out the full extent of what Jesus achieved for us, through his life and death. It tells us why He came, lived and died and this is what we remember at Christmas time.
It is accessible and real, understanding the sort of life pressures that people deal with, the reasons why they may need to know the true depth of meaning of Christmas, and it highlights that faith in Christ is a way to see past it all.
It is well structured, linking the Old Testament prophecies from Isaiah to the New Testament fulfilment of them in the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
See more Christian book reviews at https://www.robseabrook.com/category/...

[Elliott Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend! Full of Scripture (primarily Luke), humor, and great illustration. This book explains the gospel clearly. Similar to Hope Explored.

Summary: “The birth of Jesus means this: that at Christmas, and in life, you can have what you would most like: hope, peace, purpose, and confidence” (p. 10). That is because 1. Jesus’ power offers hope. He is Mighty God he has power over chaos, evil, grief, and death. So, he is able to deliver what he promises. 2. Jesus’ death offers peace. He is the Prince of Peace. We all try to make God follow our rules, and we deserve judgement, death, and Hell for that. But if we acknowledge our sin, accept Jesus as king, and ask him to rescue us, he forgives and brings peace between us and God. 3. Jesus’ resurrection offers purpose. Jesus is the Everlasting Father. We don’t have to deny, downplay, or despair death because Jesus defeated it. He will raise those trusting in him, so our lives will matter beyond death. 4. Jesus offers confidence. He is the Wonderful Counselor. So, trust him to guide your life.

[Gary Ellison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rice Tice offers us another brilliant little apologetic book that is designed to be a giveaway at Christmas. He shows how the message of the incarnation, the gospel and the Bible is deeply relevant for the human experience today. I particularly liked the application of Isaiah 9:6 as hope, peace, purpose and confidence, these formed the chapters headings. I feel the book would have benefitted from more neutral illustrations. Rico Tice is writing from England and a British perspective which is reflected in a number of illustrations which may limit the effectiveness of its message in other English speaking countries. This was not so apparent in previous Christmas giveaway books published by the Good Book Company.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

In The Ultimate Christmas Wishlist, Rico Tice asks: What if you could get what you’re really hoping for?

Hope, Peace, Purpose, and Confidence

In this accessible booklet, Tice uses Isaiah 9:6 to show that Jesus is the one who can truly give us hope, peace, purpose, and confidence. Tice references Bible verses throughout, ensuring that the reader encounters the Word of God.

This gospel presentation can be easily gifted this Christmas season. With warmth and winsomeness, this books makes a compelling case for Christianity and the hope that can only come from Jesus.

I received a media copy of The Ultimate Christmas Wishlist and this is my honest review.

[Edy Gies · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic little book that perfectly summed up the why of Christmas. This book contradicts the "just believe" message of semi-secular Christmas marketing. This book describes the longing we feel at Christmas and how only Christ can match that. The lights, the greenery, the gifts all point to one thing and this book keeps the message of the promised Savior at the center of the Chritmas story.

[Annie Jeshrun · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘After all, you can’t wrap up hope, or peace, or purpose, or confidence and make a gift of them. No one can deliver those. Except someone did. And they did it at Christmas’

The author quotes and goes on to explain how by using Isaiah 9:6. Such a short, accessible and delightful read.

[Carlene Pryor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this!!!

[Daniel Pass · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great short book. A lot of similar content from the hope explored course about peace hope and purpose.

[James Tidd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rico Tice uses five chapters on the ultimate Christmas wishlist:

1) What would you like for Christmas?
2) Hope
3) Peace
4) Purpose
5) Confidence

[Dougal Burrowes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, readable, slightly too long and font too small for seniors

[Gareth Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful little Christmas gospel primer.

[Bethan Edge · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short, interesting read. A brief outline of the hope we have in Christmas.

[Adam Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

"You can't wrap up hope, of peace, or purpose, or confidence, and make a gift of them. No one can deliver those. Except that someone did. And they did it at Christmas."

Taking the titles of Isaiah 9:6, Rico Tice shows how the birth of Jesus means we can have real, lasting hope, peace, purpose and confidence. Rather than focussing on the traditional Christmas narratives, Rico takes us to scenes in the later life of Jesus, to show why he came and why this is good news for us.

This is written accessibly, and assumes very little background knowledge. And Rico's evangelist gifting is on top form in his use of illustrations and engaging sentences. The length, though, probably limits its audience (64 pages) - the book covers a lot of ground, and could work as a few separate shorter books instead!

If you're a preacher, this is a great book to get hold of as an example of communicating the Christmas message clearly, freshly, and engagingly. And order some extra copies while you're at it, because I'm sure this book will be a great help to others who read it.