Review of Plan B by Pete Wilson

Everyone knows the life can be unexpected. What do you do when the unexpected happens? Pete Wilson's new book Plan B tries to help you through those situations. What happens when you tragedy strikes or the unexpected happens? Plan B is all about helping you understand that you can make through those times. It won't be easy, but God is there and will see you through it. 

Plan B was a very encouraging book. He certainly doesn't sugar coat the tough situations in life, but he doesn't leave you with out hope either. He questions what do you do when you find out the worst news possible. He asks does God let these things happen. Sometimes he doesn't have answers, and I don't think anyone can really answer why, but Pete does what he can do and reminds us that God is still there and God is still in control. The best illustration in the book is when he shows God moving through the life of Joseph. No matter what God looked out for him. The only big issue I had with the book was the ending. The last chapter called "The Bow" talks about how there is no pretty bow to put on top and wrap up this book. The problem I have with that is the Bible ends with a pretty big bow on top called Revelation. Yes the book is scary, but God Wins in the end and his people win with him. These words of hope are the most comforting words we have as Christians. No matter how bad it gets, God wins. No more tears, no more sickness, no more sadness, no more need for a Plan B. 

I would recommend this book to people facing plan b situations, but I would also recommend they read Surprised by Hope by NT Wright afterwards. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Review of Wild At Heart by John Eldredge

Stated simply, this book is about men being men. In his revised an expanded edition, John Eldredge sets out to explain Biblical masculinity, arguing that men need a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and a beauty to rescue. These characteristics make up the man who is Wild at Heart. Eldredge looks into the depths of men's souls to analyze what keeps them from being wild at heart. Throughout the whole book, he relies heavily on the Bible to make his case.  At the heart of this is the message that masculinity is bestowed by God. He emphasizes his point in chapter seven writing that, "True masculinity is Spiritual."

I approached this book wondering if another book about manhood was needed, but Eldredge hit a home run. I think that he had it right, however, that men need permission to be men. There many obstacles keep a man from fighting his battles, having adventures, and pursuing the woman in his life. In the beginning, I was skeptical that this would be all about being a tough guy and doing "manly" things, but Eldredge changed my mind when he said that Biblical masculinity is about being the man that God created me to be. God has endowed men with certain characteristics and responsibilities and in Christ we have the freedom to do those things. We all want to be like William Wallace and Elderdge says that we can. This is a fantastic book; I would recommend it to any guy looking to be inspired.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

A weekend in Cincinnati

A couple of weeks ago, I went to the Stone Campbell Journal Conference in Cincinnati.  I went last year (although I didn't write a post about it) and had a great time. This year, I had a great time as well.  I went there, first of all, to support my friends in the student paper competition.  Students from colleges and seminaries submit academic papers to this competition and the top three present their papers.  My friends David, Michael, and Nathan were all selected to present.  Michael presented in undergrad competition and his paper on the apocalyptic imagery of Matthew 13 won.  My friends David and Nathan presented their papers in the graduate competition.  Both papers were fantastic. David's paper was on the Celtic practice of peregrination and Nathan's was on the advancement of nanotechnology and it's affect on the world. Unfortunately, they did not win, but these papers, along with the paper that won, were fantastic papers and honestly, each deserved to win for one reason or another.  I also went to enjoy Skyline Chili.

This was not all that happened at the conference.  For those of you who are not familiar, conferences put on by journals or societies (like the Society of Biblical Literature, SBL, or Evangelical Theological Society, ETS) will typically consist of some main presenters and then a lot of other people presenting papers they have written in elective fashion.  This conference was hosted by the Stone Campbell Journal (if you're not familiar with the Stone-Campbell/Restoration movement, check out this).  When I was not hearing my friends present, I heard various scholars read papers and give presentations on different subjects.  The main theme of this years conference was Spirituality Old and New, which is fantastic because this is one of my main areas of interest.  The highlight was hearing Scot McKnight speak on spirituality in two of the main sessions.  I took copious notes and got some great (and funny) quotes.  My favorite quote was from his presentation on Spirituality in a Postmodern Age.  He said, "People who can combine Jeremiah, Thomas Paine, Max Lucado, Harold and Kumar, and Dr. Suess are postmodern. . . whatever that means."


The most challenging of his talks was on Spiritual Disciplines for Today. He left us with many thoughts, but the most challenge being that any discipline that does not lead us to love God or love others, is essentially a misused discipline.  I was certainly challenged by that, since many times I find my self using a spiritual discipline to make myself better and not to simply fall in love with God more.  So here's the question I want to leave you with, how can we better use our disciplines to love God and others and not simply do it to make us better people?

The Easter Season and Other Updates

The Easter season is upon us.  Most of us think of easter being one day, but it's really a seven week season known as Eastertide.  On the Fiftieth day after Easter, Pentecost is celebrated (see Acts 2).  Fifty days are to be dedicated to the celebration of Jesus' Resurrection from the dead and its impact on our lives.  This season is a time to remember the resurrected life in which we live.  Dustin said in sunday's sermon at Jeff St, Jesus' resurrection not only means that he's not there any more, but we won't be there either.  Because of Jesus defeated death, we in the end will too.  We live in hope of the future resurrection from the dead for all of us.  I would suggest that for the Easter season, we should all read through NT Wright's book Surprised by Hope. He discussed what impact resurrection has on our lives.  I'm going to start (actually pick it back up again) reading it as soon as I finish the book that I'm currently reading.  As a side note, if this interests you and you live in Lincoln, Jeff St Christian Church just started a series called "Beyond a Better Place" dealing with the impact of resurrection on our lives and what happens when we die.

Now for the other updates: I joined a site called Booksneeze.com that distributes books to bloggers for free in exchange for a blog review and a review on a site like Amazon.  So you can look forward to seeing more book reviews from me.  The first one will be the Revised and Expanded edition of John Eldridge's book Wild at Heart.  I'm also hoping that I will be able to get a copy of a book called Plan B that they are making available on tomorrow.



Last update, this weekend, I'm headed to the Stone Campbell Journal Conference at Cincinnati Christian University.  So, there will be an update on my time there.

Have a good Easter Season.  He is risen...

Good Friday

It's Good Friday, and I don't need to add my own words to what this day is all about. Instead, I will leave you with this:

Matthew 27:45-56

From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.  About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means,“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split.  The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.  They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Sonc of God!”

 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs.  Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

Romans 5:6-11

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.  Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!  For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!  Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Being an Introvert in the Church

Some of you know that I am an Introvert.  For people who knew me a long time ago, this may be a surprise because I talked way too much.  But, as my mom will tell you, sometime in Junior High I started talking less and answering questions with no more than 5 words.  This wasn't something I really understood until I was on my internship.  When I was faced with full time ministry, I realized how I function and somethings that might stand in my way.  My energy level is drained after spending time with people and it is replenished after quiet times spent reading and reflecting.  I'm still learning how to balance that so that I can be in ministry.  I learned very quickly on my internship that ministry involves relationships, but I didn't know how I was supposed to live in the balance of personal time and people time.

I also took an online test that I was directed to by my internship mentor and it told me that I was an INTJ.  It's not the real myers-briggs test, but it's pretty good.  Last semester, I took the Myers-briggs test and it confirmed the online test results.  After all this, I was still left with the question of what does that mean for me in ministry.  How does an introvert function in the highly relational world of ministry?  And that's when Lindsay and I saw an add in an IVP magazine for a book.  And I like books.

The book is called Introverts in the Church and it was written by Adam S. McHugh.  And as soon as I could get it from the library I did and I read it. It's a fantastic book.  It raises a lot of good questions for the church and gives hope to all of us who want to be involved in Church and don't know how to do it.  He legitimizes the introverted concerns I have, but also pushes introverts to step out of their comfort zones enough to grow and be stretched.

The fact of the matter is that churches and ministries are often led by and made for extroverts.  Often ministry positions are built for extroverts.  They are made for people who love people and spend all of their time working crowds, talking to strangers, and evangelizing on street corners (ok, so maybe not that last one).  Adam covers all of these topics and works through how introverts can be involved, lead, and even evangelize.  I was highly encouraged by this book and now feel like I do have a place in a society that praises extroverted qualities and thinks introverts to be very strange. I would certainly recommend this for any Christian who finds it hard to be an introvert in an extroverted culture.  Also, extroverted leaders may want to read this to figure out why some people seem so weird.

So, are you an introvert? What have you found to be hard about being an introvert in the church?

Learning from the past

Like I said in a previous blog, I've been teaching a class with a friend on the "History of Christian Spiritual Practices" which is a long way to say how spiritual disciplines where practiced in different parts of history. It was fun to explore history, and this week, I taught my last class on historical matters (I'm teaching one more, but it's on present day).

I have gained a deeper appreciation for those who have gone before in the faith.  I had the chance to study the time of the early church and the reformation.  Although I was unable to completely due justice to the amount of history I had to cover in one hour, I thoroughly enjoyed teaching and was most moved by what people have done to keep the faith alive and to keep the church pure.

In the early church, men and women risked their lives just to be Christians.  They had to give up a whole way of living just to follow Jesus.  They were not accepted and most of time persecuted by those who did not understand or even hated Christianity.

Oddly enough, the reformation cause Christians to undergo some of the same persecution, but this time it was from the church.  People like Martin Luther tried their hardest to help the church be better.  Luther never intended to leave the church, but help it be what Jesus intended it to be. The church leadership of the day did things that were not moral, and Luther (amongst others) tried to reform the church, eventually he started another church based on the beliefs of scripture.

Although, they were not perfect people, the sought to make the church the best possible.  I am certainly thankful for everyone who has tried to make the church better, because I certainly hope to do the same.

If this interests you, I suggest you go rent (or buy because it's worth it) the movie Luther.  It's a fantastic movie, mostly historical, and very enjoyable.