How do you read?

I blog I read occassionally had these insightful questions:

      How do you read?
      I don’t mean how do you comprehend words on a page. I ask in a much more practical manner:   
      How do you actually go about the act of reading a book? There is a great deal of diversity in  
      how people read these days.

• Do you speed read?
• Do you have to have complete silence or can you read in a crowded, noisy room?
• Do you use an e-reader or are you a dyed-in-the-wool paper-and-ink person?
• Do you skim or thoroughly comb through each word of each sentence of each paragraph?
• Do you read with a pen in hand, marking up the book as you go?
• Do you prefer reading in large chunks of several hours at a time or do you read ‘on the fly’ with a few minutes here and there?
• Do you take notes?
• Do you go back and re-read books months and years later if its good enough or is one time sufficient?
• Do you have to read a book a few times before you retain the information or can you grasp it pretty quickly the first time around?

In the times of e-readers and such, this is an interesting question. Here are my answers

1. Do you speed read?

I do not speed read. I do, however, do a lot of skim reading. Especially with the books I review

     2.  Do you have to have complete silence or can you read in a crowded, noisy room?

I can read in noisy spaces unless they are full of people I know. If they are, then I have a hard time reading when there are people I could be spending time with. For instance, I read a good chunk of a book on preaching lately waiting for doctors appointments.

     3.  Do you use an e-reader or are you a dyed-in-the-wool paper-and-ink person?

I  am a dyed-in-the-wool paper-and-ink person. If I ever use an ereader, it will be for different kinds of material than paper and ink,

    4.   Do you skim or thoroughly comb through each word of each sentence of each 
          paragraph?

Both. Depends on the book and my purpose for reading it. I skim some review books, and sometimes I skim research books while looking for what I need. Books I am more passionate about I read cover to cover

    5.  Do you read with a pen in hand, marking up the book as you go?

Always. Books are tools to be used not items to be worshipped.

    6.  Do you prefer reading in large chunks of several hours at a time or do you read ‘on the 
         fly' with a few minutes here and there?

Both

     7.  Do you take notes?

Yes. It is the only way I can remember what I read years later. Otherwise I am like..."I read somewhere that......."

      8.  Do you go back and re-read books months and years later if its good enough or is one
           time sufficient?

I reread about one book a year. Most often when I am teaching on some material presented in it.

        9.  Do you have to read a book a few times before you retain the information or can you
             grasp it pretty quickly the first time around?

I reread sections, but not usually whole books.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? WHAT WOULD YOUR ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS BE? WHAT HABITS IN READING DO YOU BELIEVE MAKE GOOD READERS?

Resources for this Sunday's Sermon on Sabbath

On the Ten Commandments:
Smoke on the Mountain by Joy Davidman
The Ten Commandments from the Back Side by J. Ellsworth Kalas
The Ten Commandments by Patrick Miller
The Truth About God by Stanley Hauerwas and Will Willimon
Exodus by Timothy Freitheim
I Am the Lord Your God by Carl Braaten and Christopher R. Seitz eds.

On Sabbath:
Sabbath: The Ancient Practices by Dan Allender
Rest of God: Restoring Your Soul by Restoring Sabbath
Keeping Sabbath Wholly by Marva Dawn
Living the Sabbath by Norman Wirzba
Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner

On Spiritual Disciplines
The Good and Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith
Sacred Rhythyms by Ruth Haley Barton
Downtime by Mark Yaconelli
Growing Souls by Mark Yaconelli
Wonder, Fear, and Longing by Mark Yaconelli
Soul Shaper by Tony Jones
Practicing Our Faith by Dorothy Bass ed.
O2 by Richard Dahlstrom

Confessional Documents
Westminster Shorter Catechism
Luther's Short Catechism

Book Review of Paul through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in I Corinthians by Kenneth E. Bailey

A couple of weeks ago I received a promotional catalog promoting forthcoming books that were due to be released. I saw Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes and I had to have it.

Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes is written by Kenneth Bailey. For decades, Bailey has been known as an expert in Middle Eastern culture. He has lived and ministered as a missionary, pastor and professor in the areas the Bible people lived in. Along the way, he picked up new insights about the cultural context that God's Word was written in, and how the original hearers might have heard those texts.

His classic text was Poet and Peasant and Through Peasant Eyes. These texts helped readers see the parables in the gospel of Luke in a whole different light. Recently, Bailey compiled Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes, which offered unique perspectives on prominent passages in the Gospels. Now, in Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes, Bailey focuses his considerable intellect on the epistle of I Corinthians.

The book does not disappoint. Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes is deft at using literary analysis and cultural insight to communicate the essence of what Paul is trying to say in a simple and easy to understand way.   Instead of simply going verse by verse through the book of I Corinthians, Bailey also takes on the book issue by issue. Thus, while covering the whole book, he gets to address hot button topics such as sexual ethics, the place of men and women in the leadership of the church, freedom and responsibility in the Christian life, and the centrality of the cross and resurrection in true Christian experience.

I particularly enjoyed his egalitarian insights on men and women as partners in marriage and leadership of the church. In this section, he interspersed deft analysis with personal anecdotes of his experiences working among Mediterranean people. His perspectives on the commands for silence, and what that command did in fact mean  were both intelligent, and easy to pass on to others as I teach this passage.

First Corinthians is a popular book for many scholars to study and write about. There is a lot of work out there on this important book in the New Testament. Yet, none of what is out there in commentaries and other analysis is comparable to Bailey's unique perspective. I would recommend every pastor, teacher, and serious student of the word grab this book, purchase it, and add it to their bookshelf.  It is well worth the money!

*IVP provided this book for me in exchange for an honest review

Book Review of Excellence in Preaching by Simon Vibert

Information on Book
Excellence in Preaching: Studying the Craft of Leading Preachers
by Simon Vibert
ISBN 978-0-8308-3815-8
IVP Books
Reviewed by Clint Walker
 
Overview
Simon Vibert has written a unique text on preaching. In Excellence in Preaching, Vibert chooses twelve well-known, leading evangelical English-speaking preachers from three continents. He analyzes one or two of each of their messages, and points out the strengths of that particular message. Then, he has some take-away tips for preachers to better the execution of their craft.

Personal Response
I enjoyed reading through Excellence in Preaching. There is a lot to learn from this text. There is also significant room for improvement.

As I read through this book, I found a lot of helpful hints and tidbits about good preaching that I needed to hear. Some of the information was helpful because it confirmed my experience. This is especially true of David Cook's description of beginnings and endings.

David Cook likens preaching to an airplane journey. Most energy and concentration are required at the beginning and the end. The takeoff and landing are the most dangerous and require the most engine thrust. In between, while airborne, the plane may cruise along. In preaching beginnings and endings matter the most. 'Maximum thrust at the beginning. Maximum thrust at the end,' he says (p. 93)

Other information was helpful because it gave me a needed admonition. Such was the case when Vibert discussed John Ortberg when Vibert surmised, "Don't feel like you have to say everything every time you stand up to preach. God's story is a big story, and full explanation requires a lifetime" (p. 117)

Despite the helpfulness of this text, I thought it was rather narrow in its scope of preachers. President Obama's speaking style was referenced at the beginning of the text. His speaking style has some roots in the African-American preaching experience. Yet, there is not one African-American preacher on the "leading preachers" to be analyzed. There were no women on the list, and yet Beth Moore, Anne Graham Lotz and Joyce Meyer have had a huge impact on women around the country and around the world. There are very few preachers on this list that are not both conservative and evangelical. It would have been nice to see someone more thoroughly mainline who is also recognized as a great preacher.

Having said this, this book will sit on my shelf, and I will refer to it many times when I need a little kick-start or a fresh breeze in my preaching.

.

The Jesus Way vs. The American Way

Eugene Peterson is one of my favorite leaders and theologians. HERE is another excerpt from his writings:

Below is a teaser:

And here is how we are in on it: we become present to what God intends to do with and for us through worship, become present to the God who is present to us. The operating biblical metaphor regarding worship is sacrifice — we bring ourselves to the altar and let God do with us what he will. We bring ourselves to the Eucharistic table and enter into that grand fourfold shape of the liturgy that shapes us: taking, blessing, breaking, giving — the life of Jesus taken and blessed, broken and distributed. That Eucharistic life now shapes our lives as we give ourselves, Christ in us, to be taken, blessed, broken, and distributed in lives of witness and service, justice and healing.

But that is not the American way. The great American innovation in congregation is to turn it into a consumer enterprise. We Americans have developed a culture of acquisition, an economy that is dependent on wanting more, requiring more. We have a huge advertising industry designed to stir up appetites we didn’t even know we had. We are insatiable.

It didn’t take long for some of our Christian brothers and sisters to develop consumer congregations. If we have a nation of consumers, obviously the quickest and most effective way to get them into our congregations is to identify what they want and offer it to them, satisfy their fantasies, promise them the moon, recast the gospel in consumer terms: entertainment, satisfaction, excitement, adventure, problem solving, whatever. This is the language we Americans grew up on, the language we understand. We are the world’s champion consumers, so why shouldn’t we have state-of-the-art consumer churches?

Given the conditions prevailing in our culture, this is the best and most effective way that has ever been devised for gathering large and prosperous congregations. Americans lead the world in showing how to do it. There is only one thing wrong: this is not the way in which God brings us into conformity with the life of Jesus and sets us on the way of Jesus’ salvation. This is not the way in which we become less and Jesus becomes more. This is not the way in which our sacrificed lives become available to others in justice and service. The cultivation of consumer spirituality is the antithesis of a sacrificial, “deny yourself” congregation. A consumer church is an antichrist church.

Quotes from the founder of Apple (and Pixar etc etc)

Scot McKnight's collection of Steve Jobs' quotes is just stellar. My favorite:

“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.”

Formation in Christlikeness Conference by Aprentis Institute: Day 2

Now, to discuss day two of my experience at the Formation in Christlikeness event:

General Session Speaker: Scot McKnight

I really enjoyed Scot McKnight's talk. I was hoping he would have spent more time talking about the content in the King Jesus Gospel, but instead he basically did an overview of some of the material about spiritual transformation that was in his book Jesus Creed.

In his talk he spoke especially about Peter's spiritual transformation, but also the transformation of Mary (moth of Jesus) and John (beloved disciple). He often spoke about how his perspective on spiritual transformation differed from the Willard/Smith model. As far as I can tell this took place in two specific ways.

1. McKnight believes that most meaningful transformation comes through the "crucible of events" as "in moments of crisis we respond". This varies from the attitude of Willard, Foster, and Smith, who attempt to help people transform through the ordinary moments of their lives.  I favor the necessity of the Willard/Smith approach, but believe in truth most meaningful life change comes either through crisis or transition.
2. McKnight feels it is less helpful to be conscious of our transformation, giving constant analysis and feedback to the transformation process. He instead believes that we should live through the transformation process in a more natural and organic way.

What I enjoyed most about McKnight's talk was his sense of humor. He was bright and witty, but often had us laughing outloud during his presentation.

General Session speaker Mindy Caliguire

I have nearly every book Mindy has ever written so I was excited to hear her speak.

To be honest, she was hard to follow at first, and my notes are not good for her presentation.

I wanted to get a lot out of it, but her notes she included were not existent.

She shared a lot of information about burnout with ministers, and how God is eagerly pursuing us, even as believers and pastors. And that he longs to spend time with us and be around us.

Worshop: Mark Scandrette and the Jesus Dojo

I debated on whether to attend this workshop. After all, a workshop titled after a karate studio was perhaps a little too trendy for me. I attended the workshop anyway. I am glad I did.

What was insightful for me in this workshop was its emphasis on "communities of practice" as a model of spiritual growth for the church and for individual believers.

Scandrette believes the church should resemble a dojo more than a college lecture hall. A place where we learn something, and then immediately put it into practice, and then have instructors and a group of practicioners of what we are doing be able to give us feedback and insight into how to do the spiritual life.

While the style in which Scandrette ministers does not necessarily fit my current context, the means for spiritual transformation may be a helpful way of helping people grow spiritually.

Having went to this workshop, I immediately went and bought his new book from the bookstand. His methodogy of doing the spiritual disciplines makes sense, both for outreach and for personal growth.

General Session: James Catford

Interestingly, this session seemed to focus on getting the message of spritual transformation and God's presence out into the world, instead of just keeping it in the church. I loved the evangelistic emphasis.

An evangelistic emphasis in a "Renovare" style is less about decisionism, or recruitment than it is helping people be aware of God's presence, and join him by faith in his Way and his Purposes. Catford explained this very well.

He also explained how believers have an opportunity to transform culture by their presence in it, and how necessary this ministry is.

General Session Eduardo Pedreira

Being from Brazil, I found Eduardo difficult to understand at times. But as I listened to what he said, much of what he shared was very transferrable.

He shared a lot about how if we are going to truly help people be transformed, we need to be incarnational. We need to be where people are, going through what they are going through. Then we need to show them a different way.

He shared how much of our congregations and pastors are in a cycle of behavior that leads to spiritual death. Thus, many people in our church segment their lives, surviving their weeks, and coming to church with a different persona. Then, we have a hard time reaching them.

He shared that in order to impact people, we need to impact their negative spiritual cycle, which moves this way: Competition--Effort toward Accomplishment--Exhaustion--Entertainment. In order to do that, we need to move into the world where this cycle takes place, and offer an alternative that makes life more meaningful and intentional than the "cycle". Specifically, we need to help people move from narcissism to selflessness. Interesting stuff.

Overall Observations

• Loved having both the publishers and the 8th day bookstore at the conference
• Enjoyed the messages, especially in the first two sessions. Thought they should have mixed in the final two presenters. They kind of felt like add-ons
• Would like to see more worshop time at this conference.
• Would have liked to see speakers and presenters more accessable to the relatively small number of attendees. In this sense, the conference should take its model from Youth Specialties conferences
• Thought the curriculum presentations were especially helpful
• Loved the Friends campus
• Am thinking about implementing the Aprentis curriculum in the near future

Sermon on Third Commandment on 10/9/11

Thou shalt not take the Lord’s name in vain--The third commandment. What does that mean? Many other versions besides the King James phrase it differently. The New International Version says “misuse the name of the Lord”.  The New Century Version says, “not use the name of the Lord your God thoughtlessly”. The Common English Bible says, “use the LORD your God’s name as if it were of no significance”. And perhaps the New Revised Standard offers the best translation when it says, “You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God”.

But again I must ask, “What does that mean?” What exactly is the third commandment talking about, and why is so very important to God, and why should it be so important to us.

Most of us grew up with the understanding that taking the Lord’s name in vain referred to an excited utterance of the divine name in a moment of frustration or great excitement.  Probably the best illustration of how this kind of behavior is demonstrated by a story a pastor friend of mine told.

Pastor Mark accepted Christ when he was 17. He grew up in Jerome, Idaho. Jerome had a strong Mormon influence, and this pastor friend of mine loved to play basketball. It so happened that the Mormon church in town, like most Mormon churches, was built with a gym inside it. And in the summer it is where most of the kids in town would play in the evenings.

Well, soon after his conversion, Pastor Mark made a strong effort not to exclaim the divine name unnecessarily. Especially while he was playing sports (If you have ever had to struggle to give up cussing, the athletic arena may be one of the hardest places to exterminate the habit).

Well, most of the LDS kids were taking the Lord’s name in vain while they were playing ball. And he decided he would do something to make a point. Every time he missed a shot he would shout, “Joseph Smith” or “Brigham Young”. Needless to say, my friend did not make many friends, but he did make his point.

I was a spirited, strong-willed child as a little one. A fact that I am often reminded of. Because I was a spirited child, and because I was raised in a traditional, old-fashioned manner, I was often spanked as a child. I do not remember all my beatings, but I do remember a few. The first one I remember was from my father for pushing my sister off of the top bunk after placing her inside a cardboard box. I had told her she could achieve space flight. She did not. She got a bloody nose. I got a very sore rear end from a very spirited spanking.

The second spanking I remember recieving was for utterance of the divine name upon entering our home. Our dog had gotten into toilet paper and strewn it all over the house. I walked in and uttered the second person of the Trinity’s full-name. I was promptly swatted by my mother and sent to my room. She washed my mouth out with soap. She asked me where I learned to talk like that. I told her I had learned such language from her, which she firmly denied using. It was such a strange question in retrospect. All of our family friends were redneck loggers, who spoke the Lord’s name as often as took a swig of cheap beer. Which was quite often.

Certainly, when trying to understand what it means to use the name of the Lord in vain, such uses of the divine name as if it were a cussword are an appropriate example of how people treat the name of the Lord as if it is worthless or useless. But, it certainly is not the only way a person can take the Lord’s name in vain. It may not even be the primary way this is done.

As I began to study this issue, I discovered that many of the Reformers and early commentators on this commandment understood taking the Lord’s name in vain quite differently than we do today. Both Luther and the early Presbyterians in the catechisms of the 1500s and 1600s related the third commandment to taking oaths.

Haven’t you ever heard someone say, “I swear to God”? Or seen someone swear that they are going to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth with their hands on the Bible? Or say, “God as my witness”?

Have you ever seen someone do all of this, and then go ahead and do something false?

This is, in many ways, the way that several people have interpreted the commandment. They have believed that making dishonest oaths and living dishonest lives before God is a violation of the third command.

I agree that this also is a form of taking the Lord’s name in vain. I do, however, think taking the name of the Lord in vain is about more than an excited utterance, or a concern about oaths.

When one digs into this verse and does a little bit more of a word study, then one discovers some interesting insights. You see the word for “vain” is an interesting word. You might have guessed that from the varieties of translation of that one word that I read earlier.

The word “vain” is related to several concepts. One is a “lie”. The other is related to “emptiness”. It also has the connotation of being narcissistic, that is overly-concerned with self.

Thus, one of the ways that people have also understood taking the Lord’s name in vain is misusing the Lord’s name for personal benefit. Certainly, Jesus says this is especially common among church leaders. Jesus said that many people will come to him and say, “Lord, Lord….I cast out demons in your name.” and that he will have to say, “depart from me, I never knew you”. They acted like they knew God. But, they really did not.

Certainly, in our world we see people who use the name of God to shadily garner business through the name of Jesus.  I see it all the time. Especially once people find out I am a pastor, or are eager to do work for the church. Either way, they tend to visit a lot about how godly they are, or what church they go to, or how they govern their company on Christian principles. I remember when Craig Manchego and I were out trying to get some exercise. We came around the corner to the house. And we saw the man making his way down the street. He was going to be at the parsonage about the same time as I was. We knew what he was. He was a guy hired by a roofing company to go door to door and rustle up roofing work for some company based out of town. We visited with him.  Before he left, he shared he was utterly surprised that the parsonage was in fact a parsonage. He also shared that he was studying for the ministry, and that his school was named “Charis” just like our daughter. In other words, he was pimping Jesus for his own benefit.

It gets to the point that if someone is trying to sell me something, and then they start talking about their faith, and how Christian their business is, and where they go to church, I immediately view them with suspicion. I believe that they cannot be trusted. I believe that they are using their supposed Christian faith to sell me something for selfish gain. I am usually right. A lot of people take the name of God in vain in this way.

What about those people who protest military funerals, seminary graduations, and people being put on trial for murdering homosexuals? You know who they are. They are from Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka. They are all trained lawyers, which means that they are very skilled in their abilities in suing people. And so they go to funerals saying God hates soldiers and gays and about anyone else they can think of. They speak the name of the Lord. They decide to speak for God is ways that do not honor him, and that allow them to have substantial financial gain when people touch them, bump into them, get angry with them. They say they are God’s voice. In fact, they are taking the Lord’s name in vain. They are using the Lord’s name for empty lies and selfish gain.

In the New Testament, there was a couple named Annanias and Saphira that conspired to lie to the church by selling their land, and then telling the church they had given all their money when in fact they had held some back for a rainy day. When they chose to come into the sanctuary and lie about it, each of them were struck dead right on the spot. Don’t think that this is just an Old Testament concept. The commandment to not take the Lord’s name in vain makes its way to several places in the New Testament as well.

Besides the word “vain” the other word we obviously need to look at in this commandment is the word “name”.

One thing we know about the word “name” is that names actually meant something in Bible times. How you named a person had power. It is not like our time, where we often choose a name because it sounds cute, or because it is common or popular, or the same name of a favorite sports star or actor.

Knowing someone’s name gave you power. And the name you had branded you one way or another for your entire life. Thus it is interesting that God changed Abram to Abraham, Sarah to Sarai, Saul to Paul. It is also evident that a name is more important to us than we might expect.

One’s name also spoke of one’s familial identity, as it still does today.

My last name lets people know that I am descended from Walker men.

But one’s family name can also mean something very special and powerful.

One’s name can establish a culture. For instance, at one point I will probably say to my beautiful daughter, “That is not the way we as Walkers do things’

Taking on a name implies ownership and power.

Also, we can sometimes in business authorize other people to speak on my behalf. To do things in “our name”. We give them power to speak for us and to be our representative. When we do this, our good name depends on the reputation of those we have given the power to do work in “our name”.

As the people of God, we are people of God’s name. As believers in Jesus, we call ourselves Christian. We take on God’s name. As a church we are called to live and work on God’s behalf, as God’s representitives in this world.

Throughout the Old Testament, God keeps telling the Israelite people that they were called by HIS NAME. Jesus says that we need to minister and do things in HIS NAME. What they are saying is that we are called to live in this world as his children AND his representatives.

Thus, when we are commanded to “not take the name of the Lord in vain” a big part of what we are asked to do is to not take our role as God’s children and as God’s representatives in the world for granted. Instead, we are to live and speak in a way that brings honor to God. We are to make commitments that bring glory and honor to God. We are to uphold our family name as Christians in word and action.

We are coming here today, in part, to gather together to support Shelby and Macenna in baptism. They are having the courage to stand up in front of everyone, and say that they are not taking God’s call to be obedient disciples for granted. They are not taking the Lord, or his work, in vain. They are taking on the name of Jesus, in public. They are saying, yes, I stand with Jesus.

Both of them have accepted Christ a few years ago. They have quietly taken time to listen and learn. They have not rushed to be baptized. They have prayerfully made the decision to follow Christ in this way. Now, they are standing up and saying that they are committed to publically take on the name of Jesus. To not take his gift of salvation for granted. And thus, they have to obey the call of Jesus to be baptized publically. They have chosen to claim Jesus, and to let him claim them.

As Shelby and Macenna are baptized, we are challenged to remember rightly. To not take our faith for granted. To not take God for granted. As they are baptized we are challenged to remember who we are. We are God’s children. We are people he has given his name to.

And as they are baptized, we are prompted to remember who we are. We are Christians. We are people who have taken on the name of Jesus. We are people who have been called to be his hands and feet here on earth. To live and work on his behalf as long we have breathe.

In this tender moment, we are reminded to not take our faith for granted. To not take the name, the name that is above all names, the name that has saved us, the name that has freed us, the name that has mended our brokenness, and found us in our lostness, we are encouraged not to take the name of God in vain. Instead we are called to honor God’s name by how we live, love, trust and follow the one in whom, as Paul said, “we live, and move, and have our being.” Amen.

Interesting Article by a Well-Known Minister's Offspring

There is an interesting article about a Pastor's Kid who shares about the mixed blessing of growing up in a family of ministers in a mega-church:

I’ve always hated the term “PK.” All my life, people have felt total license to use it with my siblings and me — a knowing glance, a faked camaraderie. “You’re a PK, too? Isn’t it the worst/best?”

Well, yes. And no. And why are we having this conversation in the first place? We never, after all, refer to a dentist’s child as a DK or the child of a homemaker as an HK. Why do the children of clergy get such special designations — and such a specific template into which they must fit?

We PKs have two choices, according to television and popular belief. Either we grow up sanctimonious, carrying the mantle of our fathers — in the mold of Martin Luther King Jr., Reinhold and H. Richard Niebuhr, and Franklin Graham — or, we are Katy Perry or pre-conversion Jay Bakker, tattooed and seductive and rebellious and raising hell in ways specifically contrived to reject our parents’ beliefs (call it the Pastor’s Kids Gone Wild trend, as Jon Acuff recently did).

Supreme Court decision that will effect the church....

A Tony Jones post on the "ministerial exception" being under scrutiny by the Supreme Court. Here is an excerpt:

 .
America’s religious institutions have long been able to stand apart from federal laws in the hiring and firing of employees crucial to their mission. Churches with male-only clergy, for example, can exercise that right to religious freedom despite the gender bias.

But on Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear a case in which, for the first time, the justices could lay out rules for government to decide if a group’s theology and practices are out of step with laws that bar discrimination.

The case involves the dismissal of a fourth-grade teacher by a church-run Lutheran school after she took a leave of absence for a sleep disorder. Concerned about her condition to teach again, the church asked her to resign. She threatened to file a discrimination case under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The church then fired her, claiming she had violated church teachings on resolving resolve disputes internally with Christian principles.

A district court judge ruled against the teacher, Cheryl Perich, who was “called” by the church as a commissioned minister. But an appeals court found the Hosanna-Tabor Lutheran Church can be charged with retaliation under the ADA, claiming the teacher’s job was mostly secular – despite her duties to also teach the Bible and act as a Christian role model for students in teaching secular topics.

Book Review for THE GOOD AND BEAUTIFUL GOD by James Bryan Smith

As most of the regular readers of this blog know, I have recently attended the Aprentis Conference in Wichita, Kansas. The Aprentis Institute and James Bryan Smith have developed a curriculum that takes much of the theology and spirituality that Renovare has been teaching for a number of years, and distills it into a series of books that are designed to be used as a curriculum for spiritual formation in the local church.

This curriculum is called the Apprentice Series, and every book in the trilogy begins with the phrase "GOOD AND BEAUTIFUL" in the title. While at the Aprentis conference, I was able to pick up the book GOOD AND BEAUTIFUL GOD on audiobook. I listened to it with my wife on our little mini-vacation this week.

Much of the content in the book is summarized by the subtitle which says, "falling in love with the God that Jesus knows." Thus, what much of the book does is address mental narratives we have accepted about God. It addresses false narratives that the world around us or we create, and replaces them with a new narrative that Jesus taught about that runs counter to those false narratives. Then, at the end of each chapter there is a "soul training" exercise that reinforces the lesson through the taking on of a spiritual practice for a week.

The soul training exercises may be challenging for some of us, but Smith is very realistic about how to integrate them into our lives. He takes his time, and he goes slowly. He explains them simply, and attempts to calm his readers anxiety. He begins his soul training exercises by encouraging people to sleep well for a week, which I thought was absolutely brilliant.

After listening to this book, I am eager to try it out in a church setting, and I am eager to read the next books in the series. I would also be excited to use these books in a together in ministry group at some point.

The difference between admiration and imitation

Timothy Dairymple, on his philosophical fragments blog, had this to say...which I found quite intriguing,

The Danish religious writer Soren Kierkegaard — on whom I wrote my doctoral dissertation — draws a helpful contrast between imitation and admiration. Christ calls for us to take up our cross daily and follow him. Following, in this case, means to put our trust in him and his guidance and leadership, and to become like Christ in living a life like Christ led. Christ calls for us, in other words, (and among other things) to be imitators. Christ does not ask for admirers. In fact, when he has admirers who have no interest in becoming imitators, he tends to drive them away.

Yet too many people, Kierkegaard says, want to admire Christ but not imitate him. They suspect that if they admire Christ enough, speaking movingly of how important and wonderful and beautiful he is, if they can summarize Christ’s teachings and the significance of his life, then they may be excused from the call of Christ to take up our crosses and follow (imitate) him. Admiration becomes a refuge against imitation, and Christ becomes an object for our appreciation instead of a Person who rescues us from sin and calls us through an intimate relationship to be his feet and hands and lips to a perishing world.

What was the Aprentis Conference Like: Day 1

A mentor/group leader/ friend of mine asked me to share more about my experiences at Aprentis. I thought it was a good idea to share some of my gleanings from the conference, and think through why I liked it so much. Also, since it is a first year, it might be helpful to think through what I would like to see done differently.

FRIDAY

Conversation with Dallas Willard and James Bryan Smith--This was mainly Dallas speaking. I thought it was helpful, but I was discouraged that a lot of what we got seemed to be more "stock" answers and talk. I thought Dallas was insightful with a lot of what he had to say though.

Some thoughts that stood out to me:

• Are we practicing spiritual disciplines as a means of spiritual transformation, or is the experience an end of itself. It should be the former rather than the later.
• We need to train our bodies in disciplines that we form our spirit.
• "In the living of life one of the most important things is to do without the things you want....this is central to true spiritual formation and transformation"
• Evangelism is most effective when it is done by transformed people
• "Instead of asking 'if you die tonight' ask 'if you don't die tonight' when you are attempting to reach someone for Christ

Ministry Demonstration--Aprentis. I found this workshop to be enormously helpful. In it, a church that used the Aprentis program sucessfully demonstrated and explained how it was used by their church to grow believers into Christlikeness. I got a feel for how the series came about, how it was designed for small groups in the church, and how it could be a great tool in the church I served. Since this meeting, I have listened/read about half of THE GOOD AND BEAUTIFUL GOD on CD. I think I am going to use it with our church after the beginning of the year.

General Session--Dallas Willard--For me, this was helpful review. Dallas presented his vision-intention-means understanding of how true spiritual transformation takes place. This is written about in depth in his book RENOVATION OF THE HEART, which I read several years ago. I needed the VIM reminder as I look at my own life, but also as I look and where I am leading others. Dallas pointed out that churches often move past vision and intention, and try to push "means" (i.e. program or system) on people in order to grow them. This, he suggests, short circuits the VIM process. A great quote during this talk, "Spiritual formation is not a set of practices, it is what happens as a result of participating in those practices." For several of the chats after the talks on the stage, Willard kept asking the question, "Does God let us 'get away' with anything? It was a thought-provoking question as we probed deeper into the issue.

General Session--James Bryan Smith--A great speaker, Jim Smith has a top notch mind, and a youth pastor like charm when sharing what he knows with people. One of Smith's helpful approaches, both in his books and in this speech, is that spiritual transformation does not happen unless we have healed and healthy narratives about who God is, who we are, and what our role is in the body of Christ and the world. His system for helping people grow spirtually is great, and I am appreciating a lot.

Well...that is all I have time for. Maybe I will try and share more later in the week....

Battle of the Bulge: A Day Early post

I have simply been slogging along for the last month or so with weight loss. I got down to my best weight at the first of August with a loss of 91 pounds, and reached that again last week. I believe I am almost certain to gain or stay the same this week. It makes me wonder...what is wrong with me? Why am I so...stuck?

I have pondering this concern a lot lately, and while I don't have every answer, I do have some.

One reason that I am struggling is that significant weight loss takes a significant amount of control of my time and environment. The last month and a half for me has been full off a lot of stress and a lot of struggle. Over and over again, circumstances have taken my eating environment, my eating experiences, and my eating choices out of my control.

Another reason is this busyness has pushed me away from making taking my medication a priority. I think when I fail to take my medication, I struggle.

More than anything though, I think that I am struggling because I need to step up my weight loss game. I need to exercise more. This is hard to when I am overwhelmed with a crazy schedule. It is also difficult because I need someone to exercise with me, to keep me accountable, and to make my exercise a social event instead of a drudgery. It is actually quite remarkable that I have lost 91 lbs with little or no commitment to exercise.

So, tomorrow I will swallow a bitter pill of weight gained. Then I will begin again to try and lose a few more pounds. And hope that at some point I reach my far off goal.

Book Review of From the Garden to the City by John Dyer

  FROM THE GARDEN TO THE CITY


By John Dyer

ISBN 978-0-8254-2668-1

Published by Kregel

Reviewed by Clint Walker



I vividly remember my first visit to the OB/GYN with my wife. We had just discovered that she was pregnant, and we were sitting down with the doctor to allow him to define our relationship with him for the next nine months. I expected him to sit facing us, look at us, and possibly even perform a physical examination on my wife. Instead, he went to his computer, and talked through a series of questions that the computer prompted him to ask us. At least half of the visit had him facing away from us, so that he could look at his computer screen. I could not help but think this kind of doctor visit was qualitatively different than the doctor visit my mother had with her doctor before I was born.



Certainly, as Jennifer’s pregnancy had complications, we became thankful for the technology that God had given us in obstetrics. Still, sometimes you have to wonder, is all technological change a good thing? How does technology change us? How do the gadget that we feel we cannot do without form our souls?



This is the kind of question John Dyer loves. In his book From the From the Garden to the City he attempts to explain how technology is neither value-neutral, nor is easily placed in categories such as “good” or “bad”. Instead, the use of technology calls for discernment and wisdom, as well as constant vigilance. This is especially true in the life of the church.

From the Garden to the City is well-researched. Albert Borgmann, Marshall McLuhan, and Neil Postman are cited, among others.

Dyer also writes in a way that is easy to relate to. In his book, he gives many personal examples from his own life. He is honest about his struggles and his questions. From the Garden to the City is an excellent, thought-provoking book that will be a challenge for nearly every individual or church that reads it. I highly recommend it.

(thanks to Kregel Publishing for free book in exchange for an honest review)

Book Review of The Liberating Truth by Danielle Strickland

The Liberating Truth: How Jesus Empowers Women

By Danielle Strickland

ISBN 978-0-85721-019-7

Monarch Books

Review by Clint Walker

Over the last few years, I have been amassing a several books just on the issue of equality for women in the church. I live in a community where my commitment to Biblical equality is not always well-received, and I need to be well-versed in why I believe what I believe about women’s equality in and out of the church. Recently I was able to add The Liberating Truth by Danielle Strickland to this section of my library. It is a great edition.

Danielle Strickland is a skillful and passionate writer. She is an officer in the Salvation Army, and has spent much of her ministry reaching out to women in an intercultural and global manner. She communicates several cases of gender injustice that most of us should be shocked by, and shares anecdotes on how she brings Jesus into those extreme situations with her.

Her global observations about the oppression of women make Strickland keenly aware that oppression of women is a huge global problem. As she sees these situations, she finds clear hearings for the good news of Jesus, and how his gospel is a call of good news and equality for women.

Unfortunately, she is also able to notice that there are many anti-gospel messages in Christian circles. One of those anti-gospel messages are the messages that women are to be meek and subservient, supporting their men in their dreams but never submitting to the callings God may have put on their own hearts to preach and to lead. She challenges these anti-egalitarian viewpoints Biblically.

Throughout The Liberating Truth, Strickland tells many interesting stories about experiences she had while she was in the ministry. She writes captivatingly, and with true passion. The Liberating Truth is a tour de force in what God calls the church to be, and what God calls the church to do in relation to this call. An excellent book that I will return to again and again.

Book Review of the Beginning and the End of Wisdom by Douglas Sean O'Donnell

It is obvious that Douglas Sean O'Donnell loves the Word of God. It is obvious, in particular, that O'Donnell loves OT Wisdom literature, and relating OT Wisdom literature to the work and person of Jesus Christ. The passion of O'Donnell is obvious from the beginning to the end of his new book THE BEGINNING AND THE END OF WISDOM, which focuses on preaching Christ from the books of Proverbs,Ecclesiastes and Job.

The first six chapters of the book give examples of preaching OT Wisdom literature from the first and last chapters of Job, Ecclesiastes, and Proverbs. The final chapter of the book discusses the hermeneutical task of connecting Wisdom passages to the words and work of Christ.

Then, nearly half of the printed texts are notes and appendices. The book is heavily footnoted. There is a guide to preaching Hebrew poetry. One appendix simply focuses on summaries of each of the books covered in the text. The bibliography and notes are both extensive.

While I enjoyed the book, and will use it as a resource, I did not think THE BEGINNING AND THE END OF WISDOM accomplished the goals that are communicated in the title. I thought the book was thorough in offering guidance in interpreting texts in Scripture, but it did not offer near as much help in crafting the actual preaching event. For example, should one preach through these books verse by verse, or select certain passages that summarize the whole book? Should one preach Proverbs topically? Am I supposed to glean how to preach the passages simply by reading these rather lengthy sermons?
So, grab this book. But realize you are buying a book that is more about the hermeneutical task than a text on preaching methods and techniques.

Book Review of King Solomon by Phillip Graham Ryken

Israel was never more powerful than in the years when Solomon was their king. Having had his predescessor and father David establish the kingdom, Solomon was able to grow the nation of Israel in power and wealth. Yet it is the lust for power, wealth, and sex that ended up poisoning Solomon's life, and diminishing the kingdom for each generation that followed.

KING SOLOMON chronicles the life of Solomon. It in author Phillip Graham Ryken shares about how blessed and gifted Solomon was by God as a leader of Israel. He shares the different ways that Solomon starts well in relationship to God and his subjects. Then it shows how Solomon's life was diminished by allowing himself to be subject to the desires for wealth, power and sex.

This book, while telling the story of Solomon, makes quick work of drawing parallels between the life of Solomon and the temptations he faced with the plight of Western Christians and Western Christendom as a whole. Many in the church, and much of the church as a whole, is also easily tempted to surrender their mission in order to be sucessful, powerful, and financially secure. KING SOLOMON teaches us that comprimise to these temptation ultimately destroys lives, kingdoms and cultures, so we better be beware.

In the book KING SOLOMON, Ryken has written and intelligent and prophetic book that will challenge many of us. With a study guide in the back the book would be great for individual study and for group study. The book is an easy read, but its message is not easy to hear. We would, however, be wise to heed it.

Book Review of MOVE by Greg L. Hawkins and Cally Parkinson

Move: What 1,000 Churches Reveal about Spiritual Growth
by Greg L. Hawkins and Cally Parkinson
ISBN 978-0-310-32525-3
Published by Zondervan
Reviewed by Clint Walker

This year, when I attended a simulcast of Willow Creek Church's Global Leadership Summitt, I heard the leadership of the church talk about this recent study they had done about spiritual growth, and how the people at Willow Creek wanted to share what they learned about spiritual transformation with leaders everywhere.

Now, they have recently released their gleanings of their study on how people grow spiritually in the new book Move. Move shares about a well thought out, revealing, and somewhat surprising picture of how people grow. One thing the study revealed is descrete describable phases of spiritual development. Another thing that the study revealed were best practices of churches that effectively help people mature in their faith, instead of feeling "stuck" in an immature, stagnant faith journey.

Many churches feel stuck. This fine book will be helpful for many leaders in identifying where their church has stalled, and it will help those leaders to think through how to wisely lead people to take thei next step(s) in their faith. A great purchase for pastors and churches across the country, and well worth the cover price.

Book Review of Sanctuary of the Soul: Journey Into Meditative Prayer by Richard Foster

SANCTUARY OF THE SOUL
By Richard Foster
ISBN 978-0-8308-3555-3
Published by Intervarsity Press (Formatio Imprint)
Reviewed by Clint Walker

I love just about everything that Richard Foster writes. So, when I saw that he was writing a new book on meditative prayer I pre-ordered it immediately. It came out a little early, and I have been slowly plodding away at reading this book. I just finished Foster's book, and I have to tell you, it exceeded my expectations.

Sanctuary of the Soul is a guide to help believers in understanding and practicing meditative prayer. I have always found meditative prayer and contemplative prayer difficult. This is because I both have some emotional discomfort with the practice of mediation in a secular/interfaith context, and because I feel like a failure when I attempt to understand and practice contemplative prayer.

Many of the practices of slowing in meditative prayer that people find helpful are true across religious groups. These practices include manipulation of one's posture, the use of relaxation techniques, the intentional slowing and measuring of one's breathe, and other similar things. Having been exposed to transcendental meditation, and believing it to be a non-Christian form of worship, and seeing similarities between common practices of TM and some forms of what Christian leaders call meditative prayer, I find myself immediately off-put by the way I have been led in "contemplative" spiritual exercises in a Christian context.

Also, I have studies several books on meditative prayer, and I find the descriptions of these kinds of prayer difficult. Books like The Cloud of Unknowing, Madame Guyon's Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ, and Merton's Seeds of Contemplation make me want to give up on the contemplative journey altogether.

Thankfully for me, God has raised up men like Richard Foster to write books like Sanctuary of the Soul. Foster's brilliance in his writing is that he makes challenging spiritual practices understandable, and in a small way attainable. Often as I read Foster describe a spiritual practice, I recognize that I have already prayed in that fashion. Then I read on, and I find that he often gives me very practical help in how to pray better and more meaningfully.

I found this process I described happened often as I read through Sanctuary of the Soul. For instance, Foster gives clear instructions in how to enter into meditative prayer effectively. Specifically he speaks about walking your way into meditative prayer, or reading poetry as a way to slow your mind into a more contemplative state. These are basic instructions and helpful advice in the life of prayer, but they are also things we ofen forget when we want to become more prayerful.

I discovered that there were several times where God was leading me into meditative prayer, and I did not know it because I did not have the words for it. I felt less discouraged that I could not "do mediative prayer" right, and I felt encouraged to do it in my own way. The result is a sense of grace and peace in my walk with God, and that a new way of praying can "make sense". And this is truly a gift.

I recommend many of you go out and purchase this fine book. It will be treasured in my life and on my shelf.

Two Songs I Someday Hope to Hear Sung in Christian Worship

ALRIGHT BY DARIUS RUCKER

Alright, Alright
Yeah it's alright, alright

Don't need no five star reservations
I've got spaghetti and a cheap bottle of wine
Don't need no concert in the city
I've got a stereo and the best of Patsy Cline
Ain't got no caviar no Dom Perignon
But as far as I can see, I've got everything I want

Cause I've got a roof over my head,
the woman I love laying in my bed
And it's alright, alright
I've got shoes under my feet
Forever in her eyes staring back at me
And it's alright, alright
And I've got all I need
And it's alright by me

Maybe later on we'll walk down to the river
Lay on a blanket and stare up at the moon
It may not be no French Riviera
But it's all the same to me as long as im with you

It may be a simple life, but that's okay
If you ask me baby, I think I've got it made

Cause I've got a roof over my head,
the woman I love laying in my bed
And it's alright, alright
I've got shoes under my feet
Forever in her eyes staring back at me
And it's alright, alright
And I've got all I need
And it's alright by me

It's alright by me, yeah yeah
When I lay down at night I thank the Lord above
For giving me everything I ever could dream of

Cause I've got a roof over my head,
the woman I love laying in my bed
And it's alright, alright, alright, alright
I've got shoes under my feet
Forever in her eyes staring back at me
And it's alright, alright, alright
And I've got all I need, yeah
I've got all I need
And it's alright by me
Oh yeah, it's alright by me

WONDERFUL WORLD BY LOUIS ARMSTRONG

I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom, for me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

I see skies of blue, and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, dark sacred night
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky
[| From: http://www.elyrics.net/read/l/louis-armstrong-lyrics/what-a-wonderful-world-lyrics.html |]
Are also on the faces, of people going by
I see friends shaking hands, sayin', "How do you do?"
They're really sayin', "I love you"

I hear babies cryin', I watch them grow
They'll learn much more, than I'll ever know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

Yes, I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Oh yeah

Flashes of Insight

One of the things that I started this blog for nearly 7 years ago was to capture thoughts that might otherwise escape me. Sometimes these were flashes of insight, other times pithy quotes, and still others were beginnings of lessons or sermons. I got tired of saying, "I was thinking about that the other day, and I had some good ideas, but I can't remember what went through my mind now." Thus the name FRIAR TUCK'S FLEETING THOUGHTS.

Today I carried a notebook with me. A little moleskine in my pocket that would help me remember stuff to think more about later.

Here have been some of my thoughts as I moved through my day:

• Why do I often find ways to make things easier and less costly for people, instead of calling them to greater and more meaningful things?
• Why do I spend so much of my time running errands for my congregation (making copies, cleaning and setting up classrooms, running interference for people), and so little time becoming to person and the leader God calls me to be and the church needs me to be?
• How do I unite my calling to be an invested and godly father with my calling to be a thoughtful, yet industrious pastor for my congregation? (still have not figured out the work/family balance in relation to the ministerial life)
• I am moved by the culture of kindness at this conference. I am moved because I don't really experience this in the same way at home even though I live in a small town where nearly everyone knows my name. I think this is partly because we are at a conference about being formed by the Holy Spirit. I think this is also partly because although I hate midwestern humidity and propriety, I honestly crave midwestern kindness and hospitality. Kansans are good at kindness and friendliness. Better than us Rocky Mountain folks and West Coast people. I also think part of this is my role as a religious functionary, which in my context means  that it is my job to care for my church and community, but not their I found myself getting emotional because someone stopped and asked ME about me, smiled, acted interested in my thoughts and feelings. Other than my wife, does not happen very often in my life.
• Today, while at the conference, I felt myself experiencing this happiness and joy for no reason. I just could not help but smile. Can't tell you why.

Quotes from Dallas Willard at the Formation in Christlikeness conference

Today and tomorrow I am participating in a conference on Spiritual Formation called Formation in Christlikeness: The Process of Change. It is a discussion of how people grow to be more like Jesus.

Tonight, we had two speakers in the general session. The first was Dallas Willard. Dallas is the scholar and one of the "founding fathers" of the contempoary movement in churches toward spiritual formation. He spoke on the "VIM" (Vision, Intention, Means) process of change that is most directly taught in hsi book Renovation of the Heart.

Dallas is rather difficult to take notes with. The outline for his talk was given to us, but as I tried to fill it out I discovered he didn't fit into my structured notetaking method as well as I hoped he might.

What I did garner were several pithy quotes from his talk, and his conversation with James Bryan Smith afterward. Here are some of the quotes:

• "A sure way to be miserable is to try and be happy" (I think this is so true!)
• "To much of our time (as Christians) is spent answering questions nobody is asking"
• "Why fast? Fasting trains you to be sweet and strong when you do not get what you want"
• "Don't worry about perfection, work on progress"
• "There is not a single problem in the church that discipleship in Christ will not cure"
• "The Church is in the business of character transformation"
• "The Romans Road--and similar methods of evangelism--are designed to deliver us from guilt, and not sin"

Book Review of On The Verge by Hirsch and Ferguson

ON THE VERGE
By Alan Hirsch and Dave Ferguson
ISBN 978-0-310-33100-1
Published by Zondervan
Reviewed by Clint Walker

What is the future of the church? How is the church going to reach coming generations for Christ? And what does that mean for the congregations we see today?

These are the thoughts and questions that Alan Hirsch and Dave Ferguson attempt to address in their book On the Verge. Written in part as a missiologial guide for church planters of missional churches, the authors attempt to craft a guide for church leaders to help them establish and maintain an “apostolic” vision for their congregation. While created by and for church planters, this book has excellent insights to think about and ponder for pastors of established churches as well.

Alan Hirsch is one of the leading voices in the missional church movement. As he has grown in influence, he has become less of a practicioner of congregational ministry, and more of a scholar/leader/visionary for missional churches as a whole. This is why he writes with Dave Ferguson, who is a church planter and currently trying to lead his congregation to continue their thrust toward reaching and influencing their communities for the Kingdom of God. The blend of consultant and practicioner, theory and hands on ministry is ingenious, and a good reason why this book is not only inspirational, but has the possibility of presenting a vision that actually works.

At the heart of the book is a four step system for establishing a continuing culture of innovation for churches that want to maintain their missional integrity within their ministry context (p. 46-47). The first step involves imagining what could be. The next step is shifting one’s thinking to accommodate and understand the new vision and paradigm the imagining process discovers. After that, one needs to take action. Then, as the church takes the steps to reach out and take action, they need to move and grow to both accommodate the new world the missional community is living in, and to also repeat the process of innovating once again. This sounds pretty basic, but harder to actually create this momentum in a congregation one is leading.

The text is fun, and thought provoking. As a pastor of a more historic church, I think creating this kind of culture would be more difficult for me than for a church leader who is beginning a new congregation. Nevertheless, moving congregations from being institutionally focused to mission focused is something we all must do in our own way, and help our churches continue to do long after our ministry is through. On the Verge helps people like me think through ways we might do just that.

My newest realignment predictions for NCAA DI FBS

With the ACC going to 14 teams with Pitt and Syracuse, it begs the question: Who is going where with the football conferences. My latest prediction:

Where will teams in the big 12 go?

Big Ten--will add Iowa State and Missouri, then later Kansas and Kansas State

Pac 12--will add OU, Oklahoma St. Texas Tech, Texas

This leaves Baylor the odd man out. Baylor can see the handwriting on the wall. That is why they are threatening to sue

SEC--as Big East disintegrates, will pick up West Virginia to make a 14 team conference.

Which then leaves us with two 16 team conferences and two 14 team conferences.

What do the ACC and SEC do? Stand pat or get two more teams each?

I think the SEC, in part to avoid a lawsuit, and in part for recruiting, picks up Baylor and possibly TCU.

I then think the ACC picks up Rutgers and Conneticut. This solidifies the Eastern Seaboard for their conference. (this puts duke, uconn, pitt, north carolina and syracuse in the same basketball conference)

Here is what will then get interesting...do mid-majors make themselves superconference sized? Or does the independent school rise again with more independents?

Strangely enough, many of the mid-majors like the MAC (13), Conference USA (12) are already supersized.

I think the rest of the Big East stays in the Big East for Basketball, but that the Big East disolves in football. This leaves Cincinatti, USF, and Louisville without a football conference. Although it makes no geographic sense, I think they look to jump into the Mountain West for football only--which will give the mountain west 10 teams, and give the the eastern teams the most competitive conference outside of the big 4.

How do you think teams will realign?

Book Review for Young and In Love

YOUNG AND IN LOVE


By Ted Cunningham

ISBN 978-0-7814-0447-1

Published by David C. Cook

Reviewed by Clint Walker



Much of our culture, both inside and outside of the church, tends to believe that getting married young is not a wise idea. There are a number of reasons for this. Many statistics tend to lead us to believe that marrying young will lead more easily to divorce. Many counselors teach that persons need to get to “know themselves” before they enter into a marriage covenant, and thus should delay marriage at least until college is completed and a career has begun. Financial counselors warn that early marriage dooms husband and wife to poverty. Ted Cunningham seeks to tell us and then teach us that everything we have heard about the wisdom of delaying marriage is completely wrong. In his book Young and In Love, Cunningham argues in favor of Christian couples marrying young. He believes that young marriage is the most wise and God-honoring way to approach marriage, and that most of us have been lied to about the benefits of delaying marriage. Although I believe that Cunningham overstates his case, he does have many valid points.



Cunningham believes that teaching people to delay marriage demeans the institution of marriage on several fronts. He believes that delaying marriage increases the frequency of cohabitation. Then, as cohabitation increases so does divorce. Young and In Love also argues that “delaying marriage delays adulthood” (p. 68). As long as people delay marriage, Cunningham argues, they have a license to be selfish and “self-centered” (p. 70).



To Cunningham’s credit, he carefully acknowledges some of the ways that people rush into marriage, and some of the necessary delays for marriage. He is forthright about the truth that some people, especially young, chaste Christians, rush into marriage just because they do not want to wait to have sex any longer. He also wisely counsels against couples who marry young because it brings financial benefit (p. 85).

Young and In Love goes on; however, to argue against many of the prevailing arguments for delaying marriage. The arguments Cunningham disagrees with include increasing one’s financial health (p. 102-104), and waiting until one is through with college (p. 105-106).



I have enjoyed reading Cunningham’s arguments, although I think at times the book is overly repetitive. I agree with him on several points, and I disagree with him on others. You may agree or disagree with him, but I think if you read what he says you will agree with me that he has some intelligent arguments, and his point of view should be heard. Much of what we hear about delaying marriage is not value neutral, but driven by fears and agendas that may not be Scriptural or godly. Personally, I got married rather late (age 34), but I certainly would not resent anyone or blame anyone for choosing to marry at a younger age if they were ready and had found the right partner. If nothing else, Young and In Love can challenge prevailing thought enough to rejoice with those who marry at a young age, and support them instead of gritting our teeth believing that their marriage has no chance because they are too young.

Book Review of Playing Hurt by Brian Goins

PLAYING HURT
 By Brian Goins
ISBN 978-0-8254-2673-5
Published by Kregel
Reviewed by Clint Walker

 Ephesians 5:25 says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” This is the starting point for Brian Goins’ Playing Hurt strategy to help men to be better and more effective husbands. The idea is to communicate sacrificial love to men in a way they can more easily relate to. Thus, the idea of “playing hurt” that many men have experienced or observed in athletic competition is tied to “taking one for the team” in a marriage relationship.

Playing Hurt is an ingenious metaphor for sacrificial love. Brian Goins does an admirable job of extending the metaphor throughout the whole book. He speaks of overcoming difficulty and the adversary through sacrificial love, and of being a servant leader for one’s household. He also challenges men to find a support team to help them be a better husband and father. His wisdom is witty, engaging, thought-provoking, and inspiring. As a husband with young children, I found the book to be a great encouragement.

However, I do have some honest concerns about the text. First, will very many men actually take the step to grab the book and read it? About half of the guys I know are not really committed readers. Of those that actually do enjoy reading books, very few of them are eager to read a “relationship book”. Because of this, I have concerns about whether Playing Hurt will actually get to its intended audience.

I also wonder if all of the athletic stories and metaphors are, at times, a little overdone. I know these kinds of stories are supposed to draw guys like me in, but at times it feels like the author is trying too hard to make the book too manly and cool. This feeling may be due to my experience as an athlete. I, at times, get tired of the some of the motivational tools coaches use with athletes, and some of those find their way into this text.

Also, when people would find out that I was an athlete, they would often try to communicate their point of view through athletic metaphors with me, assuming that I was not smart enough to figure out what they were saying otherwise I believe that Brian Goins has written the best book for Christian men on being a good Christian husband that I have ever read. It is easy to understand yet profound. Readers will find Goins easy to relate to, and will find his illustrations and stories especially helpful. It is definitely worth a read!