Coming Soon to the Resource Center - More in Early April

Here are just a few of the books you can find in the church Resource Center in early April, 2014. In this edition, we feature a title mentioned at our recent missions conference, a resource for pastors, a book on youth ministry, a book on writing in the margins of your Bible (really!) and other titles we hope you’ll want to read. (All text copy from Goodreads unless otherwise stated):

Serving as Senders: How to Care for Your Missionaries While They Are Preparing to Go, While They Are on the Field, When Then Return Home (1991/2012 reissue) Neal Pirolo

The title says it all! A missionary needs care in at least six areas: Moral Support, Logistics Support, Financial Support, Prayer Support, Communication Support, and Reentry Support. This book gives scores of practical ideas in how a team can provide the necessary care for a missionary. Chapter One tells "when" and "why" a missionary needs care. Chapters Two through Seven deal with each of the six areas of care. Chapter Eight brings it back to the individual's involvement in care giving. A Study Guide for groups is included.

Glimpses of Grace: Treasuring the Gospel in Your Home (2013) Gloria Furman

Sometimes life feels a lot like a burden--day-in and day-out its the same chores and tasks, challenges and discouragements, anxieties and responsibilities. Dust bunnies show up on the stairwell, social commitments clutter the calendar, and our families demand daily attention and care. At times, just catching our breath seems like an impossible feat.

So where is God in all of this? Does he care about the way we unload the dishwasher or balance the budget? Do the little things like changing diapers or cooking meals make a difference? And how can we use our spheres of influence for God's glory and our joy?

Whether you are a stay-at-home mom or a working woman splitting time between the office and home, Gloria Furman--writer, pastor's wife, cross-cultural worker, and mom--encourages us to see the reality of God's grace in all of life, especially those areas that often appear to be boring and unimportant. Using personal examples and insightful stories, her richly theological reflections help us experience the gospel's extraordinary power to transform our ordinary lives.

Reading for Preaching: The Preacher in Conversation with Storytellers, Biographers, Poets, and Journalists (2013) Cornelius Plantinga, Jr. 

In Reading for Preaching Cornelius Plantinga makes a striking claim: preachers who read widely will most likely become better preachers. Plantinga—himself a master preacher—shows how a wide reading program can benefit preachers. First, he says, good reading generates delight, and the preacher who enters the world of delight goes with God. Good reading can also help tune the preacher's ear for language—his or her primary tool. General reading can enlarge the preacher's sympathies for people and situations that she or he had previously known nothing about. And, above all, the preacher who reads widely has the chance to become wise.This beautifully written book will benefit not just preachers but anyone interested in the wisdom to be derived from reading.

Works that Plantinga interacts with in the book include The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Enrique's Journey by Sonia Nazario, Silence by Shusaku Endo, How Much Land Does a Man Need? by Leo Tolstoy,Narcissus Leaves the Pool by Joseph Epstein, Les Miserables by Victor Hugo . . . and many more!

Why Study History? Reflecting on the Importance of the Past (2013) John Fea

What is the purpose of studying history? How do we reflect on contemporary life from a historical perspective and can such reflection help us better understand ourselves, the world around us, and the God we worship and serve?

In this introductory textbook, accomplished historian John Fea shows why Christians should study history, how faith is brought to bear on our understanding of the past, and how studying the past can help us more effectively love God and others. Deep historical thinking can relieve us of our narcissism; cultivate humility, hospitality, and love; and transform our lives more fully into the image of Jesus Christ.

Writing in the Margins: Connecting with God on the Pages of Your Bible (2013) Lisa NIchols Hickman

No other time-honored spiritual practice is as immediate, raw, and engaged with Scripture as writing--responding to God--in the margins of the Bible. Composers like Bach to theologians like Barth, botanists and saints--all have written their thoughts directly in their Bibles. In doing so they engaged their fullest selves with our most significant text. Some people have lived with Scripture all their lives and yet feel estranged from it. This book inspires a new encounter with the living Word --and jump-starts a deep, creative, and hands-on approach to reading Scripture. As you sit, with pencil, pen, crayon, or marker in hand and Bible in lap, at whatever edges of life you are living within, now that invitation is yours. The creative practice of writing in the margins creates a divine conversation that transforms and guides. Meet God in the margins. Let God shape your character from the living interaction on the pages of your Bible. Writing in the Margins is a book about making connections on the pages of your Bible--and introduces a devotional and scriptural path of engagement that is life-changing."

Miracle Work: A Down-to-Earth Guide to Supernatural Ministries (2013) Jordan Seng 

We are a supernatural people. Made in the image of God and called to follow a risen Lord through the world God made--we're anything but normal. Given all that, it should not be surprising to us when miraculous things happen in our midst. Still, many of us are intimidated at the thought of it, and we stop short of trying so we won't disappoint God with our lack of faith, or--if we're being honest--so we won't be disappointed when God fails to deliver. In Miracle Work Jordan Seng tells remarkable stories of physical healings and prophetic messages. He reflects on the possibility and limitations of a contemporary ministry that believes in the power of God, and helps us train and prepare ourselves for when God works through us in the lives of others. Read Miracle Work for a better understanding of what it means to be agents of grace, healing and even miracles in a world that desperately needs the good news of God's loving, healing touch.

Youth Ministry from the Outside In: How Relationships and Stories Shape Identity (2013) Brandon K. McKoy

We tend to organize our youth ministry from the inside out. We give gathered groups of individual youth tools and teaching to form their souls around a Christian identity. So far, so good. But what if our identity is not merely or even primarily rooted and established somewhere inside ourselves? What if our identity is shaped and cultivated in the relationships we inhabit--each with their own distinctives and demands--and in the overlapping stories we find ourselves in? Prefabricated approaches to ministry that focus on the interior makeup of our youth may make for good youth group members, but these limited approaches don't reach beyond the youth room into other corners of their lives. Rather than centering them on the faith, our inside-out approach may be pushing their faith to the margins of their life. Brandon McKoy mines the insights of social construction theory to help us locate Christ not in our hearts but in our midst. We learn to embrace him as our own and our students as whole people engaging in a life's worth of encounters. Approaching youth ministry from the outside in, we discover our students in a whole new light--and with them, the fullness of our faith.

The Up Documentaries (1964-2012 so far)

Every seven years, Michael Apted films the same small group of people and shows us how they’re doing. That’s a very simple overview of the “Up” documentary series which began in 1964 with Seven Up, a half-hour film that focused on the lives of 14 British children from various classes and socioeconomic backgrounds. Apted didn’t actually direct the first film (Paul Almond did, but Apted was a researcher), yet directed all the subsequent films, so he knows these people pretty well. (Can you imagine a man wanting to interview and film you every seven years for half a century?) I just finished watching all of the “Up” films, ending with the most recent film, 56 Up (2012) and decided to share a few thoughts. 

The seven-year-old children are asked several questions in Seven Up, such as “What do you want to be when you grow up?”, “Do you want to have children and if so, how many?”, “What do you think of rich/poor people?” and the like. These seem innocent enough questions to ask seven-year-olds, but what’s interesting is how much their answers change or don’t change over a 50-year period. In fact the entire series starts with the Jesuit motto “Give me a child until he is seven and I will give you the man.” 

One can view some of the children at age seven and see many characteristics - good and bad - that will shape the rest of their lives. Some live up to their initial expectations, hopes and dreams. Some do not. Some change in remarkable ways. Others don’t. I’m not going to give you any spoilers and I urge you not to look at any online information about any of the participants. Just watch these people move through their lives and try not to reflect on your own life. It’s impossible. 

With that in mind, the staff of our church’s college ministry (I am one of the staff of four) decided to try an experiment. Students and staff watched Seven Up together, then we passed out journals to everyone. We asked them to write about what was going on in their lives at age seven and whether they were aware of God or not at that age. (This is a great exercise; you certainly don’t have to be a Christian to do it and to gain a tremendous amount of understanding from it.) The staff journaled as well. We all wrote for about 20 minutes, then got back together to share some general thoughts. The entire process was private, so no one had to share with the group anything they didn’t want to share. We were all amazed at what we remembered and how those events and memories helped shape us. 

At our next meeting, we watched Seven Plus Seven. For most of the students, they were 14 only seven years ago, and while that seemed not that long ago, so much had changed. We asked them to journal again, focusing on how God had guided and led their lives over the past seven years. At the next meeting, we watched 21 Up, the age (or close to it) that most of the students are now, and journaled. Then two weeks later, we saw 28 Up, and journaled about where we thought God might be leading us in the next seven years (regardless of our ages). 

This was an amazing exercise. It’s not the same experience as having someone film you every seven years, but it does cause you to think about your life, where it’s been, where it’s going, and so much more. While watching the “Up” documentaries, we’re literally watching these people’s lives pass before our eyes. And we’re also watching our own.   

Watching these films leads Christians to think of so many things: the sovereignty and protection of God in our lives, the limitations of our relatively short time on earth, the influence of our environment, the influence of our parents, our purpose in life... and I’m just scratching the surface. One of the things that most astounded me about the project is how each of these people is a unique creation of God. No two of them are alike and no two of them go in exactly the same direction, yet God is sovereignly watching every moment of their lives. Not one second of their existence is beyond God’s control. To me, that’s staggering, and we’re only talking 14 people here, not 1,000, not a million, not 6 billion, although God’s in control of each and every one of those lives as well. God is teaching us so many lessons over what seems at the time long stretches of years, yet is a very brief period, made even more brief by looking at snapshots of these people every seven years. Yet in between those seven years, when we didn’t see these people, God did. He saw their joys, sorrows, sufferings, celebrations, their monotonous routines, their spontaneous acts, everything. These people are different than they were seven years previously, yet they are the same people. You carry all those years around with you every single day. And God knows all those years better than you and I ever could.    

The films are not perfect and Michael Apted will be the first to tell you so. Early on, he realized that the initial films should’ve included more female subjects and certainly should’ve reflected more diversity. (All of the subjects are white, with the exception of one boy who had a black father and white mother.) Apted also admitted in an interview to Roger Ebert that it was very tempting to “play God” and steer certain parts of the film in the direction of where he thought certain characters were going. There’s one participant Apted was convinced was going to end up behind bars, so the director shot some footage of a prison to use in the next film. The participant did not end up in prison, and Apted humbly learned his lesson.

At several points in the films, Apted is taken to task by the participants (often rightly so) for editing the scenes and interviews to paint an inaccurate picture of their lives. By no means do we get a complete picture of these people. It’s just not possible. That realization is part of what you need to understand going in. By its own nature and popularity on British television and DVDs, the films also can’t help but overshadow any accomplishments the participants might have achieved apart from the films. One participant states (with humorous resignation) in 42 Up, that he hopes he’ll be remembered more for his work than for his participation in the films, but he knows that will never happen. 

What’s fascinating is the number of people who have remained a part of this project. All of them are still living and although two of them have chronic conditions, 56 Up finds most of them in good health. Without giving away too many spoilers, one participant dropped out after 21 Up and has never returned. Some drop out from time to time and return, sometimes to promote some project that they are passionate about. One woman frequently mentions that she loathes the project, but continues to do it out of a sense of obligation. And others seem happy to participate. 

Apted (who has had a long and successful directorial career, directing films such as The World is Not Enough, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Amazing Grace, Gorillas in the Mist, Coal Miner’s Daughter) has stated that he would like to keep the project going at least until the participants turn 70. In the Ebert interview, he stated that his ultimate goal would be to film them through their 84th birthdays. The only problem, Apted stated, would be that he himself at that point, would be 99. 

The entire Up documentary series can be viewed on Netflix streaming or on YouTube. 

Gospel and Pornography

Gospel and Pornography from David Platt on Vimeo.

This short (7-minute) video from David Platt (author of Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream) won't take much of your time, but it's so, so important in our culture. I picked this up from Tim Challies' excellent blog, which is filled with great stuff, including book and ebook news. 

Coming Soon to the Resource Center - Early April 2014

Coming Soon to the Resource Center - Early April

Here are just a few of the books you can find in the church Resource Center in early April, 2014. In this edition, we feature four titles from David F. Wells, the Andrew Mutch Distinguished Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, as well as two other titles we hope you’ll want to read. (All text copy from Goodreads unless otherwise stated):

No Place for Truth (Or Whatever Happened to Evangelical Theology? (1993) David F. Wells

Written expressly to encourage renewal in evangelical theology, No Place for Truth explores the interface between Christian faith and the modern world in unique ways and with uncommon rigor. David F. Wells’s sweeping analysis examines the collapse of theology in the church, the academy, and modern culture, raising profound questions about the future of conservative Protestant faith. (from the book’s back cover copy)

Losing Our Virtue: Why the Church Must Recover Its Moral Vision (1999) David F. Wells

Wells loudly throws down the gauntlet to the evangelical church in this perceptive analysis of our culture in crisis. Painting a vivid description of society’s moral and spiritual confusion, he explains how the church can regain its effectiveness and influence in our postmodern world. A challenging look at social reform vs. spiritual transformation.

The Courage to Be Protestant: Truth-Lovers, Marketers, and Emergents in the Postmodern World (2008) David F. Wells

It takes no courage to sign up as a Protestant. These words open this bold new text - the summa of David Wells’s critique of the evangelical landscape - leaving no doubt that Wells is issuing a challenge to the modern church. This book is a broadside against new versions of evangelicalism as well as a call to return to the historic faith, one defined by Reformation solas (grace, faith, and scripture alone), and to a reverence for doctrine. Wells argues that the historic, classical evangelicalism is one marked by doctrinal seriousness, as opposed to the new movements of the marketing church and the emergent church. He energetically confronts the marketing communities and what he terms their sermons-from-a-barstool and parking lots and apres-worship Starbucks stands. He also takes issue with the most popular evangelical movement in recent years - the emergent church. Emergents are postmodern and post-conservative and post-foundational, embracing a less absolute, understanding of the authority of Scripture than Wells maintains is required. The Courage to be Protestant is a dynamic argument for the courage to be faithful to what biblical Christianity has always stood for, thereby securing hope for the church’s future.

God in the Whirlwind: How the Holy-Love of God Reorients Our World (2014) David F. Wells

Building on years of research, writing, and cross-cultural ministry, renowned author and theologian David Wells calls our attention to that which defines God's greatness and gives shape to the Christian life: the holy-love of God.

In God in the Whirlwind, Wells explores the depths of the paradox that God is both holy and loving, showing how his holy-love provides the foundation for our understanding of the cross, sanctification, the nature of worship, and our life of service in the world. What's more, a renewed vision of God's character is the cure for evangelicalism's shallow theology, with its weightless God and sentimental gospel.

Written by one of evangelicalism's most insightful minds, this book will help you stand firm in your faith despite the changing winds and raging storms of the modern world.

The Good Funeral: Death, Grief, and the Community of Care (2013) Thomas G. Long, Thomas Lynch 

Two of the most authoritative voices on the funeral industry come together here in one volume to discuss the current state of the funeral. Through their different lenses--one as a preacher and one as a funeral director--Thomas G. Long and Thomas Lynch alternately discuss several challenges facing "the good funeral," including the commercial aspects that have led many to be suspicious of funeral directors, the sometimes tense relationship between pastors and funeral directors, the tendency of modern funerals to exclude the body from the service, and the rapid growth in cremation. The book features forewords from Patrick Lynch, President of the National Funeral Directors Association, and Barbara Brown Taylor, highly praised author and preacher. It is an essential resource for funeral directors, morticians, and pastors, and anyone else interested in current funeral practices.

The Blessing Life: A Journey to Unexpected Joy Generosity (2013) Gerrit Dawson

What would it be like to enter a life of vibrant worship and deepening romance with Christ? From first to last Scripture tells a mighty blessing story, and we can be part of it. We can enter the energizing dynamic of receiving, returning and reflecting the love of the Triune God. Offering passionate insights into the person of Christ, and true stories of blessing, pastor Gerrit Dawson leads us on a joyful journey toward loving Jesus and participating significantly in his love for the world. 

(The Resource Center will also offer A Guide to the Blessing Life: 40 Days of Scripture and Prayer.)

Imagining the Kingdom (2013) James K. A. Smith

Imagining the Kingdom: How Worship Works (2013) James K. A. Smith

Baker Academic, 191 pages

ISBN 9780801035784

Please don’t let the name of the publisher - Baker Academic - keep you from reading this marvelous book. Also don’t let the fact that this is the second book in the Cultural Liturgies trilogy keep you from reading it. (Much of the first book is summarized in this second volume.) I hope you will read it. I won’t deny that the book is challenging; it is, yet it is also enormously rewarding.

Smith, a professor of philosophy at Calvin College, states that we are defined not so much by what we know as by what we love. What we love, we worship. Those loves are shaped by many things, among them formative practices, or liturgies, both religious and secular. We’re all hardwired to worship someone or something. 

Smith uses Scripture, the writings of Calvin, Augustine, Merleau-Ponty, Bourdieu, Wendell Berry, David Foster Wallace, poetry, and films such as The King’s Speech, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and many other resources to make his points. 

All of this is enormously thought-provoking reading as you consider the implications not only for local worship, but also for education and ministry. I also greatly appreciated how Smith suggests a renewed place for the arts in Christian worship and thought, how the arts can bear witness to the gospel and allow the Spirit to work. 

I hope you will take on the challenge of reading this book. I think after reading it you will not look at worship in quite the same way.

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

(Note: Imagining the Kingdom is not yet in the Resource Center, but should be sometime in April.)