While I traveled recently, I read a book I have been meaning to read for some time.  In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day (Mark Batterson) is an incredible read!  I am definitely behind the curve on this one and am probably one of the last people on the planet to read this book.

However, if you are one of the other ones, you have to read this book!

The core theme is that God-sized moves require God-ordained risks and is based off of a few obscure verses in scripture:

“There was also Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant warrior from Kabzeel. He did many heroic deeds, which included killing two champions of Moab. Another time, on a snowy day, he chased a lion down into a pit and killed it. Once, armed only with a club, he killed a great Egyptian warrior who was armed with a spear. Benaiah wrenched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with it.” – 2 Sam 23:20-21

There are a lot of great points in the book, but my favorite quote from the book is actually a requote from G.K. Chesterton.  It really boils it down to having a high view of God.

“How much happier you would be, how much more of you there would be, if the hammer of a higher God could smash your small cosmos.”

Well said.

That’s the title from chapter 8 of Mark Driscoll‘s book called “Porn-again Christian – a frank discussion on pornography and masturbation”.  You can download a free copy at this link.

WARNING! THIS IS A VERY GRAPHIC BOOK! I know a lot of different people read this blog and I just want to be sure you know beforehand that this book uses explicit language and takes a straightforward look at the issue of pornography and masturbation. That said, it is an incredible resource and I think Driscoll hit a home run with his direct approach.

I shared that so I could write about chapter 8…”pornography and the slippery slope of ted bundy”.  James Dobson interviewed Ted Bundy the day before he was executed.  Bundy is one of the most notorious serial killers in history. The book contains an excerpt of the interview.

In this interview, Bundy shares something that blows me away!  Bundy was not abused as a kid, he wasn’t molested, didn’t have any of the normal psychological triggers that profilers have attributed to serial killers.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

“Shockingly, Bundy admitted that he possessed none of the normal triggers for such sinful behavior, as he was raised in a loving Christian home with five siblings and did not experience any sexual abuse growing up. Rather, he confessed in clear detail how as a young boy he began, as most boys do, viewing common pornography, which grew into increasingly harder and more deviant forms of pornography that eventually led to his acting out his evil fantasies. Quoted below is an edited transcript of the conversation that occurred just seventeen hours before Ted was led to the electric chair. I trust that it will be a sobering reminder to my Christian brothers that the sin of lust is an insatiable parasite that you must not feed, lest it grow and lead to death.”

Wow!  Go download the free book if you want to read more.

I just finished a paper for a class I am taking on Romans.  In the course of my researching, I dug up a quote a friend of mine shared with me a few months ago.  Profound:

“The wisdom of God has ordained a way for the love of God to deliver us from the wrath of God without compromising the justice of God.“  – John Piper (Desiring God)

WOW!

This is a book I read a few months ago.  Since then, I have read it multiple times.  It is from Andy Stanley and the guys at North Point.  We actually read it as a staff at Washington Avenue.

There are tons of great points from this read, and I highly recommend it, but here are my primary takeaways:

• You have to know where you are going – Leadership has to be crystal clear and united on this.  This is no “kool aid-free” zone…everyone in a leadership role has to be smoking what you’re selling.  The tiniest degree of variance in vision can result in egregious differences down the road.  There is just no wiggle room here.  Team members may have to be replaced in order to solidify unity.
• You can only do a few things great – I was just reminded of the basic principle that the more you do, generally speaking, the less attention to detail you are able to give to everything.  In other words, there is an inverse relationship between number of programs and the quality of those programs.  This is relative to human resources in each setting…but most try to more than capabilities or resources allow and quality suffers.
• You never “arrive” – There is never a time when it’s ok to sit back and relax.  We will be done when we get to Heaven.  Until then, there is much to do and no time to waste!

There is a lot of good stuff in here…these are just the BIG ideas that I walked away with.

unChristian: What a new generation really thinks about Christianity…and why it matters?
By: Dave Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons

I finished this book recently and wanted to give a quick recap and recommendation.  Let me first make this disclaimer: do not read this book if you are easily offended or want to offer an explanation for everything!  I don’t remember where I first saw this book talked about, but the title really caught my attention and here are my thoughts after reading it.

The very title of this book is an excellent summary word for the entire point of the book.  The book is directed at informing Christians about the way the rest of the world (particularly the younger generation) views them: as unChristians. There is a common term used in the book that needs some explanation.  The authors use the term “outsider” to describe anyone who is: 1) not a believer in Christ and not in church 2) people who were once but are no longer connected to a church.  Outsiders are the mission field of the believer.  Everyone who is today a Christian, was once an outsider.  New believers in Jesus come from among the outsiders.  This book highlights some of the key perceptions outsiders have of Christianity – and many of them are quite disturbing.

The book gives in depth statistical data to show the grievances against Christians.   One of the more interesting points is the data showed that outsiders are not closed to off to Christ Himself, or to what they understand as His message.  They simply do not feel that Christians are representative of what Christ taught.  If reaching outsiders with the gospel is the goal, understanding what they believe and why they believe it is of paramount importance. The book examines a number of reasons for this drift.  Primarily they all surround a real or perceived lack of authenticity on the part of Christians.  This can be demonstrated through hypocritical behavior as well as through judgmental attitudes that do not reflect the love Jesus has for “whosoever”.  The challenge the book presents to believers in Jesus is one of great magnitude and importance.  We must change the perception by living our faith as Jesus did – with compassion.  We must connect with those we would minister to as Jesus did – through truth and grace.

Why should any of this matter?  There are those who certainly subscribe to the mindset that says the world will never understand Christians and that ‘the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing’.  However, Jesus set the example for each of us in how we are to reach outsiders.  Jesus met people where they were.  He met me where I was.  And if you’re reading this and you are not a believer, he will meet you where you are!  Jesus went to whatever lengths necessary to draw people to himself.  The people who got in the way during Jesus’ time were the “religious” elite!  Religion is still affecting the cause of Christ today.  Religion has caused Christianity to become unChristianity and this generation has to make a stand!  Hell is forever – and the mission has been entrusted to us.