The Barbarian Way

I like this book.  It was very interesting.  I did not like the title or how it applied the word barbarian.  When I think barbarian, I think about the beginning of Gladiator when the barbarian holds the cut off head of the dude he just killed and starts screaming.  I love the ideas presented in this book.  I appreciated the way McManus references his relationship with his daughter and son.  I think he does a great job communicating the miscommunications between generations.  I love his writing style.  McManus does a good job referencing scripture and pointing out how people in the bible lived.  I agree with the idea that we try to water men down.  Society doesn't allow men to be men.  Churches don't allow men to be men.  There is something great about it when men are men.  When we get to fight for things that are worth fighting for on a daily basis.  Like I said, I did not appreciate McManus's use of the term "Barbarian", but I did like the book a lot.  He definitely spoke well to how men should act.  How men should not care what limitations society has placed on us.  Men should only be concerned about the limitations that the Lord has placed on them.  

The Almost True Story of Ryan Fisher

The Almost True Story of Ryan Fisher is a fictional account of non-Christian realtor, who through a most curious set of events, decides to plant a church in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. This caught my attention immediately, seeing that I am a church planter that is from just outside of Bartlesville, OK. That alone would have been enough for me to have at least checked out the book; but it is content of the book itself that has warranted writing this review.

The book is extremely clever and Stennett's satire is both brilliant and dangerously accurate. The book pokes fun at many elements of American "Churchianity" as only an insider can; however, it is not biting or malicious in its criticisms, as has become the trend among so many angry children of Evangelicalism, who have realized that irreverently beating up on the Bride of Christ can be pretty lucrative business. Stennett is an incredible developer of characters, and though parts of the book are verging on "over the top," the plot felt natural and eerily believable. Which, I think, leads into one of the main take aways from the book...it is possible to plant, and even grow, a church with absolutely no depth of relationship with Jesus; which incidentally, is something almost all of us suspect after five minutes of watching Christian TV, and wondering why the Pastor on his golden throne telling little old ladies to trade their life savings for prosperity prayer cloths seems so different from the Jesus we find so beautifully portrayed in the Gospels. Somehow in the midst of this novel filled with belly laughing humor, a very somber message rings out reminding those of us, whose task it is to plant and pastor God's church, to take a long hard look in the mirror and deal with the Ryan Fisherism in our hearts.

I think every potential church planter and pastor would benefit greatly from this book, and I am even offering extra credit for students in my undergraduate church planting class to read and review it. I had an opportunity to spend a few minutes with the author last week. He is a great guy and a brilliant writer. He told me that he has another book coming out pretty soon, and from what he told me, it is going to be great as well. This book is one of my new favorites and I highly recommend it.

Wide Awake

I love the ideas presented in this book.  It basically tells you to dream big and allow God to use you to fulfill your dreams.  It is not unrealistic.  Meaning just dream big and anyone can do anything.  For Example: My nephew named Jonathan was born blind.  .  . Not to say that God won't heal him, cause I think if the Lord receives the most glory by healing him, he will.  If one of his dreams is to be an eye surgeon, this is a little unrealistic.  Right now that is out of the scope of his capabilities.  Granted, the Lord can heal him and he could do that, but right now he is not capable of doing this.  (I think he will do great things and the Lord will get great glory from Jonathan's Life.)  We are capable of doing amazing things with the Lords help, even greater than we think.  We are not all meant to be the eye of the body.  Back to the book,  I love how relationships are addressed.  It is very important to invest in people.  One of the greatest legacy's we achieve is measured by the success of the people that we have helped.  You cannot live a successful life alone.  Life is not meant to be lived alone.  

Last of all if you want to know more about me read this book.  The way I am and want to be is represented well in this book.  

And so it begins...

It seems like everyone has a blog these days...and I am not so sure that this is a good thing. In fact, I am pretty convinced that the fact that anyone can write anything on any topic at anytime with no accountability is a bad trend in our society. There was a day when you needed a publisher or an editor or at least a brain to deseminate your thoughts to the masses...but no longer. Today all you need is a computer (...and there are more computers than people in the USA) and an internet connection, and an audience unimaginable just a few years ago is at your finger tips. The truth is its all a bit overwhelming sitting in my little office in my little house and helping to facilitate an information explosion.

So how do we respond to this crazy circumstance we find ourself in...we are starting our own blog. I know...I know...the irony is not lost on us. But since so few of the voices that make up the blogosphere speak from the perspective of people who both love Jesus deeply and feel a responsibility to communicate his truth in ways that are relevant to contemporary culture; we will offer our voice. We suspect that you will not always like what we have to say--and if I have learned anything about blogging, its that the only thing that will elicite a vicious reponse from bloggerdom is a bunch of pasty weak thoughts, with which no one can passionately disagree.

So as the leadership team of Doxa Church, we will seek to offer book critiques, movie reviews, and variouse other thoughts, which we are hoping will become "Gospel-centered social commentary." Easier said than done...but what isn't.