Growth Groups - review

Growth Groups by Colin Marshall (Mathhias Media) outlines important aspects of leading a small group.

Marshall uses a very broad purpose statement for small groups (receive Christ as Lord, live with Christ as Lord, p 12) and then outlines the dynamics of this group. The book gives some excellent discussion on the practical parts of a Growth Group but doesn't spend as much time providing a comprehensive vision for these groups in the context of the broader church.

This is a simple and easy to use book. There is a training program at the end so that you can begin training your new leaders. Excellent for what it does.

In a Sunburned Country - review

In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson is humorous travelogue on Bryson's trip throughout Australia.

Bryson journeys to the corners of Australia detailing the various sights, local history, and his own humorous encounters. He is quite entertaining (a bit crude at times), but much of the book is about Bryson himself on this journey. As an author, he moves you along quite nicely.

A snippet from a conversation between Bryson and a park ranger about the disappearance and presummed drowning of former Prime Minister Harold Holt (they were at the beach where he was swept to sea):

But as I (Bryson) was leaving he called to me with an afterthought. "They built a memorial to him in Melbourne," he said. "Know what it was?"

I indicated that I had no idea.

He grinned very slightly. "A municipal swimming pool."

"Seriously?"

His grin broadened, the nod was sincere.

"This is a terrific country," I said.

"Yeah," he agreed happily. "It is, you know." (p 143)

Life as a Vapor - review

Life as a Vapor by John Piper is a series of 31 meditations about our life in light of eternity. Piper tells us clearly the purpose of this book: "my prayer is that these meditations on the Word of God will link you with eternal joy, and make the vapor of your life an everlasting aroma of praise to the glory of Christ." (p 12)

Excellent stuff here folks! In doing many of these together as a family, I greatly appreciated the prayer at the end of each meditation - succinct, meaningful, passionate. Here is one to get a taste:

"Lord, You have been our dwelling

place in all generations.

Before the mountains were brought forth,

or ever You had formed the earth and the world,

from everlasting to everlasting You are God."

But we are like grass:

we flourish for a moment and then wither.

We are like a vapor:

we appear from the mouth,

and two seconds later we are gone.

Give us a mind to know the past,

lest we waste our fleeting lives

repeating its mistakes.

In Jesus' never-changing name,

Amen. (p 97)

groundswell - review

groundswell - winning in a world transformed by social technologies by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff answers three questions: (1) what is groundswell, (2) what to do about it, and (3) how you can use it to succeed in your company.

So, what is groundswell?

Ans.: a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like corporations. (p 9)

Ex.: Brian Finkelstein filmed a Comcast technician who fell asleep on his couch in 2006, waiting on hold for help from the Comcast home office to fix an Internet problem. Now this video is the top result when searching "Comcast" on YouTube. (p 7)

Some of the technologies that create groundswell are blogs, social networking sites (Facebook, MySpace), wikis/open source, forums & ratings, and rss. The authors then go through describing the impact they have on the groundswell. They then detail how this can be used to a company's advantage.

The examples are excellent (Digg and the HD-DVD key, P&G's beinggirl.com, Loblaw and the BBQ cap), but it tended to get a bit dry by the end (a Social Technographics Profile isn't the most interesting thing in the world). Clearly pointed for business people and not just theoretcial ponderings about future of technology. This book either educates those who are newer to some of this tech or it helps bring focus to some of what we already experience. This is a valuable resource for those that interact with the outside world.

The Holman Illustrated Study Bible - review

The Holman Illustrated Study Bible combines the Holman Christian Standard with maps from the Holman Bible Atlas and lots of photos.

Each book begins with an overview including major themes, purpose, Christ, canonical setting, and literary features. Notes, aside from the few text critical footnotes, are topical and sporadic but the photos and vivid maps are quite helpful. There is an appendix that has various charts (millennial positions, canonical lists, measurements) and an abridged concordance.

What really hinders this study bible are aesthetics. The deep yellow for the footnotes is very distracting and the colors for the charts can be a bit grating. The first few pages include space to record births, deaths, etc. To me, those kinds of pages are curious enough, but there is a fake Hebrew type writing underneath each heading.


Notice how they make the Hebrew letters look like the English equivalents above. There is a mutilated Qof and several upside down Shins, to note a few of the errors. This is a perplexing choice - you wouldn't appreciate the line underneath unless you realized that they are Hebrew letters. But, if you knew they were Hebrew letters, you would know that Hebrew is read right to left, Hebrew letters (or words) don't simply correspond one to one with the English phrase above, and that many of the letters are adjusted, flipped, and twisted. If you didn't realize the silliness immediately, you'd figure it out with the helpful Hebrew alphabet acrostics printed with Psalm 119 and Lamentations.

If you don't mind a few visual quirks, this isn't a bad study bible. Unfortunately, there isn't much in the way of content that separates this from better study bibles. My recommendation is the ESV Study Bible - great content and helps.

Silmarillion - review

Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien fills in the history of the events before The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.

This was for pure fun. I liked it, but I can't imagine many that would - lots of names and relationships to keep straight. If you don't like pouring over a map, this is not the book for you. If you didn't like LOTR, then this really isn't the book for you. You might even like maps and LOTR but still not get into Silmarillion.

However, I did. Thanks Carrie!

The Shack - review

The Shack by William Young is a fictional story about Mack: his loss and his subsequent encounter with God.

Well I read it. If you want a detailed review, you can look here or here or even here (with a few disagreements). If you'd really like a deeper look, I have a friend that has corresponded with author about his concerns with the book. Yes it is fiction, but the author is trying to say something true about God. That's why you have people getting all up in arms about this book.

Actually, I didn't really enjoy it, but it is so popular that I felt I should read it. The hype didn't help. The event that precipitated Mack's journey to the 'shack' was so awful and random that it lost a real connection with me. Parts struck me as hokey. Yes, some things were good, but certain notions were just wrong. Others have said this in a much more eloquent and convincing manner.

If you'd like to read fiction, you could do better. If you'd like to read about God, you could do quite a bit better. For some better books on evil, God, and our response, I'd recommend How Long O Lord? and Where is God? (a true account).

Don't Let the Goats Eat the Loquat Trees - review

Don't Let the Goats Eat the Loquat Trees by Thomas Hale is about a missionary family's journey to Nepal.

Thomas and Cynthia Hale felt the call to serve in Nepal as medical missionaries from 1970 to 1980. This book tells of how God provided for their trip, some of the unique challenges that stood before them, successes, failures, and sitting on long bus rides.

This is a very enjoyable book. It isn't a hagiography, but an honest take on their time (with all of the messy details) while serving in the missionary hospital. It was very real and motivating. Serving the Lord is humbling, it shatters our expectations, and it is the most glorious we could ever be blessed to do!

Hale writes in a readable manner - this is no chore to get through. Personal stories aside, the observations about Nepalese culture make this book worth picking up. Reading this is time well spent.

The Pursuit of Holiness - review

The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges is a book about the holiness of our Lord and the holiness in the life of the believer. Originally written in 1978, this book has not lost any luster.

Bridge's classic addresses the issues surrounding holiness: holiness of the Lord, understanding how holiness works in us, obedience, faith, joy, etc. Straightforward and lucid, Pursuit of Holiness guides the reader through the text of Scripture with great impact.

Some excerpts:

Acknowledging His holiness is one of the ways we are to praise God. (p 24)

Holiness does not consist in mystic speculations, enthusiastic fervours, or uncommanded austerities; it consists in thinking as God thinks and willing as God wills. (p 47, quoting Scottish theologian John Brown)

We have to learn that we are dependent upon the enabling power of the Holy Spirit to attain any degree of holiness. Then, as we look to Him, we will see Him working in us - revealing our sin, creating a desire for holiness, and giving us the strength to respond to Him in obedience. (p 76)

Joy not only results from a holy life, but there is also a sense in which joy helps produce a holy life. ... And as [the Christian] hopes in Christ, he begins to have joy. ... He then finds that the joy of a holy walk is infinitely more satisfying than the fleeting pleasures of sin. (p 151)

Definitely recommended.

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking - review

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell investigates how some people can make highly accurate split decisions. And how our intuition can really let us down.

This book really gets you thinking. There has been some critique about Gladwell's analysis of what forms our thinking, how he sees this phenomena working, or that he just pulled together various articles and try to make a book out them. These accusations may be true, but this was a FUN book to read!

Gladwell looks at so many things: predicting divorce, picking out a fake sculpture, Tom Hanks, racial bias, Marines in Vietnam, Coke vs. Pepsi. The concept behind the show Lie To Me is addressed. You learn why orchestra auditions are done with a screen separating judges and applicant. The list goes on - awesome stuff!

Truth. - review

Truth. by Dave Bordon has 100 contrasting statements between what popular culture says and what Scripture says. Written in a style that allows someone to easily read a page at a time, the book is meant to highlight some of the messages we get bombarded with and confront them with the truth.

While I was a bit skeptical at first, I actually enjoyed this book. Yes, there is a bit of Christian sloganeering and there are few chapters that I would have said a bit differently. Arguments and analysis are not that in-depth. But the intent is to confront some of what is been told to us with Scripture. Truth. does that in an accessible, entry-level fashion.

A word of warning: this book is meant to be read in parts. There isn't any real cohesion between the sayings, so it is good for people that really don't like to read more than just a little bit at a time.

The Kite Runner - review

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a novel about the life and redemption of Amir, a kid growing up in and then returning to Afghanistan.

In short, I enjoyed learning about Afghan culture and history, but the story was disappointing.


SPOILER ALERT!!!

SUMMARY OF THE STORY: This is a novel about a rich(er) kid, Amir, that grew up in Kabul. They have servants in the house and the servant boy, Hassan, is very fond of Amir, but he is a Hazara, an unpopular minority. One day Hassan gets a special kite for Amir, but a local bully, Assef, rapes him because he is Hazara and Amir, who sees it happen, does nothing. Amir, ashamed of his cowardice, drives out Hassan and his father out of his house and into a very desperate life.

Amir and his father eventually have to flee the country and they go to America. A relative of Amir, Rahim, asks him to come back to Afghanistan (during the Taliban era) and retrieve Hassan's son, Sohrab, from an orphanage. Amir finds Sohrab in the clutches of the same man, Assef, that raped Hassan - a druggie, a pedophile, and an executioner for the Taliban. Amir gets beat up by Assef, only to be saved by Sohrab before he dies. Though free from Assef, the Taliban, and Afghanistan, Sohrab never really recovers psychologically, even though he winds up getting adopted by Amir and living in the US.

The positives of the book: The author tells a very compelling tale. It grips at your heart. You feel anger and despair. You gain some insight into a culture that you might ever know about.

What did I not like about this book? This is essentially a story of the redemption of Amir for his cowardice when Hassan needed help. It seems that since Amir almost dies at the hands of Assef and he (reluctantly) adopts Sohrab, all is well. Everyone else dies before the truth of the whole situation comes out. It seems so trite; the events, though perfectly laid out, do not yield redemption for Amir. How does Amir's pummeling make everything better? How does Amir caring for a child that (seemingly) could have had a happy life with his real dad make the first act go away? It doesn't.

And having the villain as a doped-up, Nazi-loving, pedophile with John Lennon sunglasses who also happens to be a part of the Taliban(!) is a real stretch - even in this novel. I'm no friend of the Taliban, but that sort of portrayal seems to run contrary to Taliban values (like eradicating opium production, hating Western culture, enforcing sexual mores - you get the picture), which they conveniently disregard in the case of Assef.


The book is a page turner, no doubt about it. If you think that a certain amount of personal suffering can atone for very evil deeds, then you'll enjoy the flow of this novel. If not, you can learn a bit about kite fighting (which actually sounds kinda cool).

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God - review

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan is an audio book that talks about what it means to be a follower of Christ.

First, the book is deeply challenging. Looking through the lens of Scripture, Chan confronts mediocrity in the church without seeming whiny. Convicting. Inspiring. One of the better books I have 'read' this year.

Secondly, this is not a great audio book. For one, Chan reads it and his reading seems a bit dispassionate. Also, this is a book you want to go back to. He makes these annoying comments about putting down the book (to stop listening) and check out a particular video online or fall on your knees and I'm like, "Dude, I'm driving as I listen to you."

So buy the book. It was worth listening to, but I'll still need to go back over my own copy. (And set aside time to check out video, reflect, and seek my God.)

Who Is Jesus? - review

Who Is Jesus? by N.T. Wright evaluates three contemporary (1994) claims of who Jesus really is. The unfortunate (but deserving) victims of Wright's penetrating analysis are Barbara Thiering, A.N. Wilson, and John Sprong.

Barbara Thiering claims that Jesus was a figure in the community that wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Gospels are code (she claims pesher) for the happenings within that community. According to Thiering, Jesus is drugged on the cross in a trial and awakens in a cave. He eventually marries Mary Magdalene, has a daughter and two sons, divorces her, and marries again. Easy breezy for Wright to dismantle this mess.

A.N. Wilson claims that Jesus, as we know him, is mythical story. According to Wilson, Jesus actually died, but the people thought that James (Jesus' brother) was actually Jesus resurrected. Wilson's problems in his assessment center around two issues: (1) even though he is a good writer, he isn't that great with facts and using scholarship and (2) he has admittedly given up his Christian faith and (surprise, surprise) Jesus wouldn't have approved of the Christian faith either, all the while calling the NT writers biased. Wright shows his ability as a historian and Wilson readily goes down as well.

John Sprong attacks the birth of Jesus and calls the Gospels fanciful stories which aren't meant to be taken literally (calling them Midrash). Wright deals with Sprong skillfully, but this is a more intricate argument.


Wright is very easy to read; for a book reassessing the historical Jesus, it was a page-turner. There are a couple of comments Wright makes that get under my skin. While N.T. Wright takes positions that I do not hold, they are outside of this volume; this book is a keeper.

The Gospel and Personal Evangelism - review

The Gospel and Personal Evangelism by Mark Dever is a short volume on our individual responsibly to see the Gospel spread. The core of the book is found in these seven chapters:

1. Why Don't We Evangelize?
2. What Is the Gospel?
3. Who Should Evangelize?
4. How Should We Evangelize?
5. What Isn't Evangelism?
6. What Should We Do After We Evangelize?
7. Why Should We Evangelize?

There are some final words on the "closing the sale" mentality, a recommended reading list, and a word to pastors.

Excellent stuff by Dever. Simple, biblical, clear. The intro about John Harper is worth having alone.

Yes, it appears that the dude pointing on the cover has been in the weight room.

How To Pray - review

How To Pray by Reuben A. Torrey (1900) is a straightforward guide on the why's and how to's of prayer. The chapters, correspondingly, follow in this fashion:
1. The Importance of Prayer
2. Praying Unto God
3. Obeying and Praying
4. Praying in the Name of Christ and According to the Will of God
5. Praying in the Spirit
6. Always Praying and Not Fainting
7. Praying with Thanksgiving
8. Hindrances to Prayer
9. When to Pray
10. The Need of Prayer Before and During Revivals

Some summaries and excerpts:
We are to pray, as Christ did: a great while before day, all night, before great crises, after great events and crises, when life was unusually busy, before great temptations, and as a habit of life.

A wife's prayer for her husband to be converted is selfish when it is because she wants a more pleasant life or even because of the pain she might feel knowing her husband is lost. Why should a woman desire the conversion of her husband? First of all and above all, that God may be glorified; because she cannot bear the thought that God the Father should be dishonored by her husband trampling underfoot the Son of God.


One might take issue with Torrey's concreteness, but this is a helpful work. There are a few places where I took issue with his presentation of Spirit baptism and how God responds to our efforts, but he offers some sound wisdom to the would be intercessor. Plus, it's free.

Frankenstein - review

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is the classic fiction novel about Victor Frankenstein and his monstrous(?) creation.

This is a fun read that brings up all kinds of ethical issues. Chocked with detail and dialogue, Tom Clancy fans may be a bit disappointed. Nonetheless Shelley is a great author (it is a classic) and pulls the readers through to the very end.

Sticky Church - review

Sticky Church by Larry Osborne attempts to close the proverbial back door to churches.

The concept is really quite simple - plug new people in constantly forming sermon-based small groups. That's it. The rest of the book is why's, how's, and who's of implementing this plan.

The simplicity doesn't make this a bad book. Osborne has great insights into people and church dynamics, not to mention fine supplements in his appendices. Plus, he writes a book that is easy to read. Good stuff.

Total Church - review

Total Church by Tim Chester and Steve Timmis presents how the gospel and community should shape our churches.

The authors first argue why the gospel and community are the two key principles that need to shape our churches. They then spell out the implications of gospel and community in practice: evangelism, social involvement, church planting, world mission, discipleship and training, pastoral care, spirituality, theology, apologetics, children and young people, and success. Chester and Timmis conclude with some thoughts on having a passion for God.

While the personal experiences of the authors' was insightful, the way they brought the reader through the Scriptures was the real strength of this book. The concepts were simple, useful, and well grounded.

A personal favorite was the distinction between a personal relationship with the Lord and an individual relationship. The gospel is retold from an individualistic perspective and then contrasted with a more corporate (and comprehensive) perspective. (pp 148-149) The comparison is incredibly perceptive! (You'll have to get the book and see it for yourself.)

IMHO, this book is one of the better volumes that talk about how to do church.

On the Incarnation - review

Athanasius, St. Giles', Cambridge
Originally uploaded by TheRevSteve.

On the Incarnation by Athanasius is a defense of Christ's physical dwelling upon the earth. This defense includes responding to attacks from various groups of people, which is actually quite enlightening.

Athanasius moves in the following fashion:
*Creation and Fall
*The Divine Dilemma and its Solution in the Incarnation
*The Death of Christ
*The Resurrection
*Refutation of the Jews (OT review)
*Refutation of the Gentiles
*Conclusion

"Christ alone, using common speech and through the agency of men not clever with their tongues, has convinced whole assemblies of people all the world over to despise death, and to take heed to the things that do not die, to look past the things of time and gaze on things eternal, to think nothing of earthly glory and to aspire only to immortality."

A profitable read for any believer - I especially enjoyed some of his final thoughts about the profound difference Christ has made on so many different types of people.