Awaiting a New Book

About a year ago I did a study with some colleagues entitled, "Wonderstruck" by Margaret Feinberg.  We were challenged to look for the wonder in every part of life.  Since then I have been reading blog posts and other things by Margaret.  When I read that her new book, "Fight Back with Joy" would be coming out soon, I was excited.  Her blog readers were offered a chance to read a sample of the book.

The sample was way too short!!!  I wanted to read more.  I suppose that is what a sample is designed to do.  Margaret is a popular author and speaker.  She and her husband work together in this teaching and encouraging ministry.  Their lives were turned upside down when Margaret was diagnosed with cancer.

We all have different responses to such news and difficulties in our lives.  Margaret chose to fight back with joy.  I can't imagine it was an easy fight in any way.  I look forward to receiving my copy of the book, the full book, and reading more about how they fought back with joy.

Even in the few pages I read there were several quotes that touched me.  One, from page 35, is:
"The Great Joy Giver is parachuting people into your life to remind you that you are not alone."
She mentions a few of the unhelpful-type people she encountered, but then reminds us of the encouragement she received, and, in fact, we all receive, from these parachuting people.

Although I have not experienced a personal battle with cancer, my dad is in that fight right now.  I have seen these parachuting people in my dad's life.  As I watch from afar, I am grateful for these people who remind my parents they are not alone, these people God parachutes into their lives.

I choose to fight back with joy and anticipate learning more about that fight through this book.

Christmas Books

 I have a pile of Christmas books.  Most years I read several of them.  This year I have gotten through one of them.  And, it is the shortest one at that! "Christmas in Harmony" by Philip Gulley

It is a really fun read, though.  The book is written by a Quaker pastor, and it is about a pastor who lives in a small town shepherding the church where he grew up.  It makes me laugh out loud and makes me pause to ponder.

Here are a couple of quotes from pages I have dog-eared over the years...
God could have sent a lawyer who would scrupulously define the limits of love.  Instead, He went for broke, and sent a child with whom He was well pleased.  And had the good sense to tell Him that.
Christmas, I tell my wife, is not the time to hold back.  It is the bold stroke, the song in the silence, the red hat in a gray-suit world.

That is the problem of theology- instead of bringing clarity, it often raises questions too frightening to consider.

"You know, Sam, having the Nativity scene spread out like that kinda reminded me how we never really see the full picture.  We think we do, but most we're just lookin' at bits and pieces, thinkin' we're seeing the whole thing."

If you are looking for a quick read this Christmas, one that reminds you of the true meaning of Christmas and the messiness of life, this is a book you might like.

where to start

It has been so long since I last posted and so much has happened that I don't even know where to start! Plus, there are some things that happened before going to Hawaii that I had wanted to post about but haven't yet. So, I will just start with what is on my mind right now and maybe get back to the other things, or maybe not!

I noticed that I have recently talked a bit about books I have read and don't mean for this to be a book talk blog, but some of the authors I have read this year have some thought-provoking things to say.

One of my friends asked me where I found out about all these books. Well, from other blogs, actually. A couple of blogs I read regularly had readers post comments about books they were reading. I read through the comments with a pen and paper and made a list. I found out that a lot of books can be ordered through amazon's Japan branch-saves me huge amounts of money on shipping costs!

Well, last week I finished reading two more of those books, Crazy Love and There is no me without You.

The first book is by a pastor named Francis Chan. There were so many things he said that made me stop and think. One thing that has stuck in my head and challenged me is: if you didn't believe in Jesus how would your life look different? (paraphrase!:)

The second book is by Melissa Fay Greene written about Haregewoin Teferra. The book tracks Haregewoin's life from middle class life in Ethiopia to losing half of her family and becoming a 'mother' to AIDS orphans. I hope by reading it others will also become educated about the crisis and figure out a way to help out. We in the western world are rich. There is no reason we should not be helping out our fellow humans in poverty around the world.

In an attempt to keep from getting on a soapbox I will stop there. In an attempt to keep this post from becoming too boring, I will stop there. But, along with other books I have written about on this blog, I recommend these books-the first to those serious about learning to love God with their hearts, minds, souls, and strength and then to love their neighbors as themselves. I also recommend it to those who wonder why it is we love God. The second I recommend to anyone who cares about others, especially children and those living in poverty.

What books are you reading/have you recently read that you would recommend?

Life-challenging/changing book

Yesterday I went into downtown Osaka to go shopping. This time the shopping was for specific items for our church plant or for English classes, etc. While in the bookstore looking at textbooks I decided to take a wander through the paperback section on my way out. In the bestseller section a book caught my eye.

I just received my September/October Discipleship Journal. The first thing I do when I receive it is look through the whole thing without reading any articles, just anticipating and looking at the ads for new books. One ad for a book said, "This book has the potential to do for our generation what John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress did for his. It's that good!" -Eugene Peterson

When I read that I thought, "That sounds like it might be an interesting read, I'll add it to my list for the next CBD order."
***update-it wasn't in DJ that I read about the book, it was in my Japan Harvest Magazine in the book review section!

On Thursday when I was shopping I couldn't have told you the name of that book, but when I saw it at the store with that review from Eugene Peterson on the front, I picked it up immediately.

The book is called, "The Shack."

Being the impatient person I am as soon as I got home and got my dinner ready I sat down with the book. Now, just over 24 hours later, I have finished the book. There are so many pages dog-eared to go back and read that I should have dog-eared those not to reread!

The book is a novel. However, it is also a theology book. I can't say that I agree with all of the theology, mostly because I read it too quickly the first time. But, it has already made me start to think about God in a different way. It has challenged my ideas of Christianity and given me a fresh faith.

It was published last year so many of you may have already read it, or at least heard of it. Buy it, read it, mull it over.

Some fans of the book are working with a movie producer to get it made into a movie. Apparently, the book has to sell so many copies before they can produce it so they are challenging people to buy the book for themselves. If you want to know more, go to http://www.theshackbook.com

One of the many lines I liked...
"'Oh child,' spoke Papa tenderly. 'Don't ever discount the wonder of your tears. They can be healing waters and a stream of joy. Sometimes they are the best words the heart can speak.'"