New books to read!
Originally uploaded by Jonathan D. Blundell.
new books to read, chew on, enjoy and review…
A New Kind Of Conversation
&
On the Side of the Angels: Justice, Human Rights and Kingdom Mission
Woot!
Category: book club
Book reviews, thoughts and reflections
St. Peter’s Brewery aka a #nanowrimo update
Here’s my stats as of right now. I’ve gotten a little bit behind, as you can see I haven’t updated each and every day.
Starting out, I think you need an average of 1,666 words a day to finish all 50,000 words in a month. I think my average for the remaining 20 days is now around 1,950 words a day (that also takes in consideration the 2-3 days I’ll probably miss this weekend due to the marriage retreat we’ll be going on).
So anyways, I’m having fun, trying not to think about it too much as in making plot decisions, grammar and such (I think that’s the biggest suggestion everyone has given).
Here’s to hoping I’ll win and have something worth sharing at the end.
A few random trivia points thus far. See if you can piece the story together. 🙂
- The name of the book is St. Peter’s Brewery
- The title comes from a scene in Jamie Moffett’s great documentary, “Ordinary Radicals“
- Many of the brews served at St. Peter’s are inspired by beers at Pagosa Springs Brewery or St. Arnold’s.
- One of the characters is named G.T. He’s a tall truck driver with a long goatee and loves community and organic communities of faith.
- It takes place in a small Central Texas town.
- Just introduced a group of seven folks who live on a farm together.
OK that’s all you get for now – unless you can track down my profile on Nanowrimo.org 🙂
Or you can follow my #nanowrimo updates on Twitter.
Or see what other writers are tweeting about.
And read what Kevin Hendricks has written thus far.
Crazy times
I gave in and joined a couple discussion on Facebook over the weekend about faith and politics.
Several folks whom I consider good friends (and still do) made comments that basically said if you vote for any candidate that supports abortion, you need to really question your salvation and faith.
That really bothers me. But I really don’t want to delve into that here.
For the record, I’m pro-life. Always have been and likely always will be. And I also hope that my pro-life stance doesn’t end with birth of a child. I hope that it goes from conception to the grave. Am I caring for that baby after it’s birth? Am I advocating for quality of life and freedom and justice for that baby as he or she grows into adulthood? Am I advocating that the child will be free from oppression?
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
I will also add that my pro-life stance doesn’t always agree that “life” is the ultimate answer. We tend to think it is. We tend to think that prolonging life is the ultimate goal of medicine. But just because we have the technology to keep a person alive via machine – doesn’t always mean that we should.
But I digress.
Anyways, I wanted to share a couple different views on the election. Two different “Christian” authors have shared some of their thoughts on the election.
This first video is a video of John Piper who shares his thoughts on the unusual challenges this election presents. Such as Sara Palin as VP. Can a woman be “commander in chief?” And what about race and what about abortion? Shouldn’t Barack Obama be concerned about the 12 million unborn babies who have been killed in the U.S.?
Beyond the initial comments, I think Piper makes some great excellent points.
We don’t live for politics. We don’t base our confidence about the future on who gets elected… Let those who vote or do politics do it as though they were not doing it. Which means there is a type of engagement that is not all consuming… We’re not here fully. We have a foot in heaven and a foot on the earth. We are citizens of two kingdoms. This is not our main home. This world is passing away… We know this system is disappearing. We shouldn’t be so worked up about our opponent getting elected that it will undo his life.
The second point of view is from Don Miller. He shares his journey from being a Ronald Reagan Republican to a Barack Obama Democrat.
My Journey from being a Reagan Republican to an Obama Democrat.
I grew up in a Southern Baptist Church along the Gulf Coast in Texas. It was a suburban church nowhere near a bus line, protected as it were from most demographics that didn’t have our common interests. Those interests were embodied in the Republican Party, then led by President Ronald Reagan. Reagan captured our attention with an anti-communist, anti-atheist message, that was easy to understand, emboldening the American people against a clear threat , that of nuclear war and a godless communist regime. Reagan rode that same horse his entire career, even as an actor while President of the Screen Actors Guild, taking stands against blacklisted actors and directors thought to be sympathizers with communist ideology. The Democrats, on the other hand, were squishy, hard to understand, and believed life was complicated. They sounded intellectual and suspicious.
So take some time and dig into these thoughts, these world-views. Do they line up with yours? Does it matter?
I keep going back to Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw’s thought, “What matters more is not who you vote for on Nov. 4 but how you live on Nov. 3 and Nov. 5th.”
Another world is possible!
And one final thought, especially for those of you who haven’t voted yet, “Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.” — John Quincy Adams
UPDATE: @kevinhendricks adds to the Piper conversation on his own blog :: should we pray for the church to suffer?
Friends through adversity
I’m in the midst of reading “If God Disappears” by David Sanford. It’s an interesting read thus far. It hasn’t made it to the top of any of my reading lists yet, but several points he’s made have stood out so far.
As we talk about relationships and our relationship toolboxes, I thought these thoughts lined right up with several aspects Brian’s touched on over the last several weeks.
Over the years, I’ve discovered that whenever someone becomes enraged at me, odds are we’re only two steps away from becoming good friends.
Why?
First, because that person is emotionally engaged in our relationship. That’s passion!
Second, because if true Christianity is about anything, it’s about reconciliation. Once a matter is settled, the other person and I are bonded. Sometimes for a while. Sometimes for life.
The same principles apply to a relationship with God. He isn’t defensive or threatened when we feel angry at him. After all, we’re passionate. And he’s equally passionate about being reconciled to us, whether or not we want anything to do with him right now.
God is waiting for us to express our innermost feelings toward him and then ask ourselves, Is that true, or is that how I feel?
Sometimes we’re not angry with God, it turns out. Instead we’re angry at a caricature of God we’ve painted like graffiti on the walls of our psyche.
I can think of a couple times this has played out in my own life. Most of them came from my time working at a newspaper. Many people would write in and be angered about something I or another writer might have written. If handled correctly, we could often get to the bottom of the issue and with understanding and patience, a great friendship and bond grew out of it.
Other times, if one side or the other is firmly set in their way and there’s no chance to agree-to-disagree or build understanding, the relationship may be doomed from the get go.
I hope that I do all I can to avoid being to set in my ways to offer understanding and love to anyone and everyone – regardless of what we may disagree upon.
re: How M. Scott Peck saved my life
Finished Not the Religious Type last week.
My friends are going to hate hearing the stuff that I too to heart from this book. 🙂
Stage 1,2,3,4…
Bounded sets and centered sets…
Living a life where we daily listen to God…
Great stuff!
If you’ve got time today, the author of Not the Religious Type Dave Schmelzer will be chatting online at Abunga.com about his book and views on religion both as a pastor and former atheist today, Oct. 29, from 2-3 p.m. EDT for anyone who wants to join in.
The chat will be held at Abunga.com/AuthorsAtAbunga. More details are available in our news release at: http://alrcnewskitchen.com/abunga/docs/flash/081023_dave_schmelzer.htm.
I also understand that the chat will be archived so folks like me who have to work during that time can check it out at a later point. And… I’m hoping to chat with David in the next week or so for an upcoming episode of the something beautiful podcast.
Check it out and let me know what you think!
How would Jesus vote?
This book arrived a little late for me to read (as I had hoped to) before the Oct 27th review deadline.
But it’s still on my stack to read ASAP. I’m wondering if anyone out there has read it and what your thoughts are. I’m still digging Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw’s comment that its more important what you do on Nov. 3 and Nov. 5th than who you vote for on Nov. 4th. I wonder if Dr. James Kennedy says the same in this book. Who do you think Jesus would vote for? And would he even bother?
How Would Jesus Vote?
Summary from the Publisher: The 2008 election is shaping up to be one of the most important political contests in American history. In fact, Dr. D. James Kennedy believes it will be a watershed moment that could impact our very survival as a nation under God.
Values voters—people whose political views and votes are based on their faith in God—are being targeted as never before. As the campaign season moves forward, the significant players will debate terrorism, radical Islam, nuclear threats, global warming, social issues, gay marriage, immigration, education, health care, and many other essential issues that can create sharp ideological divisions.
Into this overwhelmingly complex political situation, Dr. Kennedy and Jerry Newcombe bring a clear, compelling, and nonpartisan exploration of what God’s Word has to say on these critical matters. How Would Jesus Vote? isn’t intended to tell readers which candidates to support; rather it offers a Christ-centered understanding of the world to help readers draw their own political conclusions.
Author Bios:
Jerry Newcombe is senior producer for Coral Ridge Ministries television and has produced or coproduced more than fifty documentaries. The host of two weekly radio shows, he has also been a guest on numerous television and radio talk shows. He is the author or coauthor of more than fifteen books.
Dr. D. James Kennedy is one of the most trusted and recognized Christian leaders of our time. The senior minister of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, he is the featured preacher on television’s “The Coral Ridge Hour” and radio’s “Truths That Transform”, syndicated on over one thousand stations throughout the U.S. The founder and president of Evangelism Explosion International and chancellor of Knox Theological Seminary, he is the author of more than sixty books, including the bestselling What If Jesus Had Never Been Born?