Rise of the Servant Kings

The "how-to-get-it-right" book for today's Christian man--in marriage, family, work, friendships, with God in all of life.

Men are hungry for authenticity and for sound and bold biblical teaching on true masculinity. Every day men ask themselves questions about how to be better fathers, husbands, friends, and men, but it's difficult to find satisfying answers. Rise of the Servant Kings explains that true masculinity is found in absolute surrender to God, which always results in humble character and is expressed in courage and generosity. When a man truly understands God's desires, he will naturally express godly masculinity, Ken Harrison weaves together his experiences as a police officer in one of the deadliest areas of the country, with many years as a business executive and ministry leader, to share deep truths for men direct from God's Word.

After I requested this book from NetGalley, I noticed that the author was the chairman of the board of Promise Keepers.  To be honest, I didn't know that PK was still around.  I thought that the organization had ceased to exist around 2000.  A man taking on the duty of leading an organization from obscurity must have something to say.

Mr. Harrison wrote an excellent book of encouragement to men.  In keeping with PK philosophy and theology, the book encourages men to step forward and not be passive.  He tells numerous stories of his time with the LAPD and the truths he learned there.  Bringing these truths forward, he encourages men to live lives on purpose.

Letters to the Church

If God had it His way, what would your church look like?

The New York Times bestselling author of Crazy Love challenges readers to be the Church as God intends.
 

• Do you want more from your church experience?
• Does the pure gospel put you in a place of awe?
• Are you ready to rethink church as you know it? 

Sit with Pastor Francis Chan and be reminded that you are a part of something much bigger than yourself, something sacred.

In his most powerful book yet, Chan digs deep into biblical truth, reflects on his own failures and dreams, and shares stories of ordinary people God is using to change the world.

Chan says, “We’ve strayed so far from what God calls Church. We all know it. We know that what we’re experiencing is radically different from the Church in Scripture. For decades, church leaders like myself have lost sight of the inherent mystery of the Church. We have trained people sitting in the pews to become addicted to lesser things. It’s time for that to change.”

When Jesus returns, will He find us caring for His Bride—even more than for our own lives? Letters to the Church reminds us of how powerful, how glorious the Church once was … and calls us to once again be the Church God intended us to be.

This was a quick read but took a lot of processing.  I grew up in church.  All I have ever known is the way the church is done in the southeastern US.  I would default say that is the proper way to do church.  In college, I did take a course that challenged us to evaluate the modern church in light of what we read in the New Testament.  Chan brought those questions back to mind and then some.

Writing his standard get to the point, challenging the default way, that Chan has done in other books, he lays out a strong thesis for a new paradigm for the church.  Actually, not new but a reformation of returning to the old.  He purposefully does not lay out a plan of change or structure.  He places a challenge to the western evangelical church to look at how we are doing things in light of the Scripture.

Why are we doing what we are doing?

Why are we doing things the way we are doing them?

Are we honoring God or ourselves?

Whose kingdom are we advancing?

I was deeply challenged by this book.  I highly recommend this book to any Christian that holds to sola scriptura.

The October Country

Welcome to a land Ray Bradbury calls "the Undiscovered Country" of his imagination--that vast territory of ideas, concepts, notions, and conceits where the stories you now hold were born. America's premier living author of short fiction, Bradbury has spent many lifetimes in this remarkable place--strolling through empty, shadow-washed fields at midnight; exploring long-forgotten rooms gathering dust behind doors bolted years ago to keep strangers locked out.. and secrets locked in. The nights are longer in this country. The cold hours of darkness move like autumn mists deeper and deeper toward winter. But the moonlight reveals great magic here--and a breathtaking vista. The October Country is many places: a picturesque Mexican village where death is a tourist attraction; a city beneath the city where drowned lovers are silently reunited; a carnival midway where a tiny man's most cherished fantasy can be fulfilled night after night. The October Country's inhabitants live, dream, work, die--and sometimes live again--discovering, often too late, the high price of citizenship. Here a glass jar can hold memories and nightmares; a woman's newborn child can plot murder, and a man's skeleton can war against him. Here there is no escaping the dark stranger who lives upstairs...or the reaper who wields the world. Each of these stories is a wonder, imagined by acclaimed tale-teller writing from a place shadows. But there is astonishing beauty in these shadows, born from a prose that enchants and enthralls. Ray Bradbury's The October Country is a land of metaphors that can chill like a long-after-midnight wind...as they lift the reader high above a sleeping Earth on the strange wings of Uncle Einar.

Having checked out the book Dear Fahrenheit 451, I had fond memories of reading the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.  On the same library display shelf was this book of short stories by Ray Bradbury.  The short stories cover several decades of his writing.  The topics remain similar, but Bradbury's writing still obviously changed over that time.  To the better in my opinion.

Since it has been almost 100 years since he wrote some of these stories, they seem practically humorous to me where they were intended to be suspenseful.  My how times have changed.  Some of the stories were insightful and thought-provoking.  I will allow the reader to determine which ones.

Comparing these short stories to his masterpiece Fahrenheit 451 or to The Martian Chronicles would be unfair.  This is a modest collection of short stories but do not expect the Bradbury of F451.  Expect the Bradbury as a writer of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Twilight Zone.

Christians in the Age of Outrage

Are you tired of reading another news story about Christians supposedly acting at their worst?
Today there are too many examples of those claiming to follow Christ being caustic, divisive, and irrational, contributing to dismissals of the Christian faith as hypocritical, self-interested, and politically co-opted. What has happened in our society? One short outrageous video, whether it is true or not, can trigger an avalanche of comments on social media.

Welcome to the new age of outrage.
In this groundbreaking book featuring new survey research of evangelicals and their relationship to the age of outrage, Ed Stetzer offers a constructive way forward. You won’t want to miss Ed’s insightful analysis of our chaotic age, his commonsensical understanding of the cultural currents, and his compelling challenge to Christians to live in a refreshingly different way.

I believe this book should be required reading before any Christian walks out their front door or turns on their computer/smartphone/tablet/charier pidgeon.  Dr. Stetzer has written an engaging book on the Christians proper action and role in the culture that exists today.

The culture around us in the West has changed dramatically in the last 20 years.  This is now a post-Christian culture.  The sooner that is understood by Christians, the better their engagement with those that are not Christians will become.  Yelling.  Being purposefully offensive.  Taking offense at everything one disagrees with.  These are not actions of Christ.  Dr. Stetzer explains clearly to the reader the how and the way for loving engagement with all people.

There are no words to express how strongly I recommend this book.  Thank you, Dr. Stetzer!  Well done.
Christians in the Age of Outrage: How to Bring Our Best When the World Is at Its Worst by Ed Stetzer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Dear Fahrenheit 451

If you love to read, and presumably you do since you’ve picked up this book (!), you know that some books affect you so profoundly they forever change the way you think about the world. Some books, on the other hand, disappoint you so much you want to throw them against the wall. Either way, it’s clear that a book can be your new soul mate or the bad relationship you need to end.

In Dear Fahrenheit 451, librarian Annie Spence has crafted love letters and breakup notes to the iconic and eclectic books she has encountered over the years. From breaking up with The Giving Tree (a dysfunctional relationship book if ever there was one), to her love letter to The Time Traveler’s Wife (a novel less about time travel and more about the life of a marriage, with all of its ups and downs), Spence will make you think of old favorites in a new way. Filled with suggested reading lists, Spence’s take on classic and contemporary books is very much like the best of literature—sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, sometimes surprisingly poignant, and filled with universal truths.

A celebration of reading, Dear Fahrenheit 451 is for anyone who loves nothing more than curling up with a good book…and another, and another, and another!

I was at my local library for the first time since they had moved into a new building.  By the time I visited though, the building was no longer new.  I think the library had been in the building for about a year. (Don't judge me.)  My wife and daughter were going to be at an appointment for nearly an hour, and I had no desire to stay in a waiting room.  Library for an hour wins by a mile.

The library's front display had this book.  I rank Fahrenheit 451 as one of the greatest works of fiction of all time.  It should be required reading at all schools.  Fahrenheit 451 had such an impact on me that it continues to influence my thoughts on entertainment and censorship today over 35 years later.  When I read this book's title, I picked it up to check out with no concept about its subject.

Ms. Spence had me read her first book in short order.  I laughed at many of her letters and her relationships with books.  I understood entirely and enjoyed her personal reflections on these relationships.  Her relationship with JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit troubled me.  I wanted to argue with her and explain how she was wrong.  How could a man who gets TWO letters for his middle name not write great fiction?

I do have to admit to having developed somewhat of a crush on Ms. Spence in reading this book.  She likes books.  She's funny. She's cute.  Then I realized I didn't have a crush on Ms. Spence; I was projecting my feelings for my wife onto someone like her.  Sorry, Ms. Spence.  I have a beautiful wife.  I'm a dog person.  I like The Hobbit.  I don't think it would have worked out anyway. :)

Smarter Next Year

Contrary to accepted belief, developing and enhancing cognitive ability can be achieved at any stage in life. Smarter Next Year presents the latest scientific information and best practices for increasing intelligence at any age, whether you're 5, 55, or 105. This self-help book provides the tools to take your mind into your own hands and stave off the effects of time.

For the past three years, retired dental surgeon Dr. David Bardsley has been a full-time professional speaker, helping individuals increase their cognitive ability and perform at their highest intellectual level. His primary audiences have been groups of CEOs who belong to several organizations including Vistage.

As with any good self-help book, Dr. Bardsley makes some significant claims.  Unlike a majority of self-help books, Dr. Bardsley is merely applying accepted science rather than pushing an unproven philosophy.  The "8 secrets" aren't secrets at all.  They are peer-reviewed science understandings that have only recently been discovered.  Dr. Bardsley also encourages readers who desire to see if the argued changes have an effect to measure their results with a freely available tool.

As a physicist, biology is always a little wanky to me.  I was very encouraged by Dr. Bardsley's use of peer-reviewed science.  I was also inspired by his desire for readers to take measurements.  My only issue with Dr. Bardsley is that his doctorate is not in neurology or biology.  He is a DDS.  This is not hidden.  He did the work necessary to receive his DDS, but his doctorate is not vital to this research.

Ragnarok Unwound

Prophecies don't untangle themselves.

Just ask Ikepela Ives, whose estranged mother left her with the power to unravel the binding threads of fate. Stuck with immortal power in a mortal body, Ives has turned her back on duty she never wanted.

But it turns out she can’t run from her fate forever, not now that Ragnarok has been set in motion and the god at the center of that tangled mess has gone missing. With a ragtag group of companions—including a brownie, a Valkyrie, and the goddess of death herself—Ives embarks on her first official mission as Fate Cipher—to save the world from doomsday.

Nothing she can't handle. Right?

This work is an exciting and surprising amalgamation of Norse and some Hawaiian mythology.  Jacques uses a simple main character that anyone can relate to as the center of real apocalypse avoiding story.  She does not utilize the tired understanding of Norse mythology to advance her story but instead introduces a story around and through the typical story.

Jacques leaves us with a story that can easily continue and expand to other mythologies and people.  I look forward to what I hope is a series of mixed mythology fiction.