While we were in Disney a couple of weeks ago I took “The Sweet Taste of the Bilge” with me on my kindle.  I was looking for a good summertime kind of read and I got it.  If you are looking for a book that will transport you to palm trees and the lapping ocean this would be a good pick for you. M. T.  Harbor has an easy to read style that grooves with his roll with the tide outlook on life.  He sprinkles in some satirical jabs here and there that are sure to make you smile.

The book follows George Forder after getting let go from his longtime employer.  In the search for work he finds himself connecting up with his previous employers and being courted to be a part of some “big project”.  George takes the plunge and finds himself trying out SCUBA and sailing on his dream boat. The book is full of colorful destinations and characters.

This is a perfect read while swinging in a hammock, dipping a toe or two in the water or just dreaming about doing so.

Check it at at amazon here

Rob Bell just released a new book a couple of weeks ago.  It is all about Heaven and Hell.  It takes some of the thought about both and examines them and then moves into some new territory for most.  I don’t want to post a review here, or my thoughts about where Bell goes with the book because I don’t know that this is the best part of this book.  Bell throws out the thought that though there is a hell there is also a possibility that there is no one in it.  That God’s love wins totally and completely.

I don’t think that this is the strongest book Bell has written.  And I am a Rob Bell fan.  I loved Velvet Elvis and Sex God was a great book too.  But I thought that this one fell short on writing style, but given the topic I am sure that it may have been harder and less seductive than say, Sex God.  But, I have notices that there have been a ton more blogs and rants flaming Bell for his views on this.  They blast him for the universalism that this text treads on.

My hope is that this book is not a time to take sides and throw verbal grenades at one another.  But, that we are able to come together and use this a a jumping off point for conversation.  Bell gets us away from the little red guy with a pitchfork images of hell and the heaven where we all just hangout in the clouds and play out harps.   He paints a picture for many of a heaven worth wanting, a hell worth fearing and a God worth trusting.

Bell has asked the hard questions and taken a stab at answering them.  He has given us something to work with.  Lets use it for a platform of conversation and not as a foundation to draw up battle lines.

Get a copy and take a read for your self or borrow my kindle copy

Have you grown up in the church and want to see it succeed in the years to come?  Have you been hurt by the church or people who call themselves Christian? Are you tired of searching for a faith community, but only finding worship and churches that seem to be out of touch?  Have you ever had a conversation about the future of the church and someone said “we just need more technology and guitars to get young people to come?” If you answered yes to any of these questions then it would do you well to pick up a copy of Gabe Lyons book The Next Christians.

Pretty much read this unless you think that the church is perfect and doesn’t need to change a thing.

I received my free copy of Lyons’  book The Next Christians in late January from Water Brook Multnomah Publishing Group. Because of work being crazy I haven’t been able to get the review out as soon as I would have liked, but also it took longer than expected to read the book because it was packed with great stuff.

In the text Lyons looks at some of the traditional ways that Christians have addressed the tension between living a life of faith and the stumbling blocks that society places in front of us.  Lyons outlines two main schools of thinking when it comes to this topic.  There are the “Separatists” who distance themselves from society.  I feel like this group has a very “us” vs “them” view of the world.  This insider/outsider view is not at all helpful in sharing the Good News because the mentality to some degree is that I am saved and it would be nice if you were too.

The second group are the “blenders.”  The blenders engage culture and blend into it.  The danger here is that theology and beliefs get sacrificed and watered down because of the blending.  I would say that this is where many young people would place themselves after reading the work of Christian Smith (Soul Searching) and Kenda Creasy Dean (Almost Christian).

Lyons then proposes that both views fall short and then says that there is a third way that is emerging.  The Next Christians are Restorers.  This group works hard at restoring the church back to what it was meant to be.  Throughout the years the church may have lost its way and has been missing the mark.  This new group understands that faith in action and service is essential to restoring the church.  Lyons takes a good chunk of the latter part of the book to give real examples of restorers in action.

From my perspective as a Methodist pastor this new way would make John Wesley proud.  He said that “there is no holiness apart form social and personal holiness.”  As a practical theologian I feel like John would have fit right in with the restorers.

Well, that’s enough from me about the book.  Go and get a copy here

I am reading another book for the Blogging ofo Books program that I am involved with.  This is actually the very first non Mark Batterson book that I am read.  It is entitles The Next Christians by Gabe Lyons.  he is the author of the very good book “Unchristian.”  I am loving this book so far but it is taking me a lot longer than i thought to read it because it is so darn rich with content.  Lyons writes about the emmergance of a new kind of Christian that has a vision for the restoration of the Christan faith.

If you are a church leader pick this book up now rather than waiting on me to finish it.  There is a ton of stuff going on a t work right now for me and I have 3 other books (one month to live, communicating to teenagers, momentum for life…and the Bible) I am plowing through right now in my spare time.  I am also devouring new church development stuff on the web too.

I will post a review when I am finished, but hold tight.  Thanks

I received my free copy of mark Batterson’s new book Soulprint a on Wednesday December 29th from Water Brook Multnomah Publishing Group.  I had set a goal in my mind to have it read and a review posted by the beginning of the year. Batterson made it easy to meet that goal.

In this book readers are seeking to answer the question of “Who am I?”  As we seek to live lives of purpose and fulfill the plans God has for us we must first answer this question.  Sure, we are all called to live lives devoted to God, but that is only half the story.  Each and every one of us is unique and different from anyone else on the on the planet or who has come before us.  With this in mind Batterson writes of each one of us having our own soulprint, like a finger print that is at the core of who we are.

Throughout the book King David is a companion on the journey.  Readers take a closer look at some of the defining moments of David’s life.  These are moments where David discovers his soulprint and lives into being the person he was made to be.

This is a great book to take a look at in the new year.  With resolutions flying about this book may give some guidance to discovering your soulprint. Batterson writes that he felt like he was at a loss as a preacher because he has to use a manuscript.  Because these carefully written sermons make up the foundation of the book it is easy to read, filled with practical application and contains wonderful illustrations.  The discussion guide in the back of the book is great for personal reflection or group study.

I was expecting a lot from this book as I have grown to like Mark’s writing more and more.  Soulprint didn’t disappoint.  Pick up a copy. It is set to release January 18th.

Click here to check it out on Amazon

I recently picked up Brian McLaren’s newest book again.  I had started reading it a couple of weeks ago at night and now it has made its way to the daytime reading list (more or less because I have a really bad book that the conference is requiring us to read and I am putting it off).

I have always thought that McLaren’s books are accessible to someone who is not a churchgoer, and at times they would favor some one who is not steeped in the language of the church.

This book is no exception.  As you read through the pages (I am only 100 pages or so into it right now) one can see Brian’s heart for reform in the church.  I love they way that he seems to address issues from an angel that I have not thought about before.

McLaren seeks out to answer 10 questions that are transforming faith.  Some of these questions address how we read and understand the Bible, is God violent, how we can address human sexuality in a real way, how Christians can relate to other people, and so on.

I have been looking at doing a Bible study on one of McLaren’s books and this might just be the one.

If you have read this or have thoughts on Brian’s work let me know I would love your feedback.

Over the past week or so i have had the opportunity to read Mark Batterson’s new book entitled Primal:A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity.  Batterson is the lead pastor of National Community Church and the author of Wild Goose Chase and In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day.

In his newest book Batterson invites readers to journey with him down the stairs of an ancient catacomb where we are able to strip away some of the superfluous layers of Christianity and come back to the primal heart of the faith.  Throughout the book Mark explores the what that we are called to learn how to love God better (with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength).  This is his take on how we live out the Greatest Commandment that Jesus reminds us of.

Batterson is a passionate follower of Jesus that offers up practical ways to put faith into action.  Throughout the book i found myself captured by his stories.  Truly the highlight for my personal reading was the section about loving God with your whole mind.  Mark makes the point that as faithful stewards.that we must keep learning all that we can so that we may come to know God more fully.  As someone who ministers to youth and young people I appreciated the way that the door was flung open on creativity, innovation and taking risks for the Kingdom.  I found myself shaking my head after reading Mark’s words about the Church as a place where curiosity thrives.  he writes:

The church ought to be the most curious place on the planet.  We ought to be a safe place where people can ask dangerous questions, but all too often we’re guilty of answering the questions that no one is even asking. we out to be challenging the status quo, but all too often we are defending it.

I think that these words get to the heart of why people feel like the church is such a minor detail in their lives: it is not a place where they feel they can be vulnerable and ask the hard questions (it anything they feel like they need to wear a mask), and it is all to often not relevant. 

I feel  like this would make a great sermon series for my congregation or youth ministry.  I could also see where it would be a great small group curriculum too. All in all Batterson does not disappoint and I feel like it is a book that I would love my leadership team to read together in the new year. 

If you would like to check our his other books you can find them on Amazon.com through these links:

As i have been thinking about the books that i have found useful there has been a torrent of books that i have thought about as I have begun to try and resource youth workers with some of the better youth ministry books. 

Unleashing God’s Word in youth ministry had been a really great resource for me in developing studies for youth, young adults, and adult study.  Also Shafer has some really great and unique thinking about ways that we can invite students to inductively study God’s word.  He outlines a number of different ways to read through scripture so that you can digest the text layer by layer. 

He also has a number of different suggestions for a scope plan so that you are not just studying the parts of scripture you or youth group prefers. 

Barry also has put the tools into practice through a collection of inductive studies.  I have the one he did on the gospel of John and it is very good.  I am always skeptical when there is a book about how to study the Bible because I tend to look for the author’s hidden agenda or theology. 

I would suggest that you check out this great resource. 

Final Grade: A

I just picked up the new Andrew Root book the other day called Relationships unfiltered. His first book, Revisiting Relational Youth Ministry, is a great read.  This new book is a more accessible version of the first.  It is not better or worse just “condensed” as root puts it.  I am going to be trying to write reviews of some of the books that i have read as a resource for youth workers.

This book looks to take an honest look into why we want to be in relationship with youth.  The first one compared this with some of the theology of Dietrich Bonheoffer.  This new book doesn’t have that comparison, but I am looking forward for  “Relationships Unfiltered” to be a resource for my volunteers. 

I will keep you posted with another post when I finish. 

I have a huge stack of reading right now on my desk. I am reading one right now called “Unlearning Church”. I the first chapter Michael Slaughter is talking about what thing the church has as a “radical product”. He says that

revolutionary people are this product of the church.

Now this sounds great!! Especially as today is election day…woot. We are going to flex our voting muscles and have a voice. We are going to vote in a way that we think would be best for our faith, the country, the world and all of creation.

However, what happens when people don’t show up to the voting booth? Your views aren’t counted, or worse nothing happens. Even worse is that you can’t complain when things go your way because you didn’t vote.

Now turning back to Slaughter’s comment. What if the church just sits in the chairs, but doesn’t act upon the message. The church needs to be in the streets voicing, revitalizing and causing a revolution.

What are we doing to live our faith rather than just being culturally Christian?