What I've Been Reading

• Finished re-reading An Unstoppable Force by Erwin McManus. Probably the best book on what church should look like and what a pastor's role is in this modern age that we live in. I think its a must read for any pastor or church planter.
• Just finished The Shack. I thought that this was a great story and would recommend it to anyone. That said, it is not without controversy. You will find many who embrace it wholeheartedly while others claim it is heretical. It is a fiction story packed full of theological thought. It is a fresh look at the Trinity and how God works in this world. You have never seen God portrayed in such a way. I do believe this: God is bigger than the box you have put Him in and the life you are living. This book will put you outside of that box and could make you uncomfortable but that is not always a bad thing. Maybe it's time to let God out of your box and let Him fill in the spaces of your life.
  
• I am currently reading God Wants To Save Christians by Rob Bell. Speaking of the Pharisees, Rob writes "In Jesus' day, people could read, study, and discuss the Scriptures all their lives and still miss its central message." Speaking of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, he says "In Jesus' day, people could follow Him, learn from Him, drop everything to be His disciples, and yet find themselves returning home, thinking Jesus had failed." If that could happen in Jesus' day, it could be happening now in our day. I am convinced that much of mainstream Christianity including evangelical Christianity has embraced an Americanized Gospel that keeps us from being the church God intended us to be. This is another controversial book but it is time for us to become thinking Christians rather than programmed, streamlined, stay in your place and don't rock the boat conformists.
  
• I am just finishing Joshua in my Bible reading. Joshua is a book of obedience, courage, conquest and victory. It shows that with God we are bigger and stronger than the enemy that comes against us. I love chapter 17 where the tribe of Manasseh wants more land but Joshua says that they can clear another part if they need more space. They replied, "The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who live in the plain have iron chariots, both those in Beth Shan and its settlements and those in the Valley of Jezreel." But Joshua said to the house of Joseph—to Ephraim and Manasseh-"You are numerous and very powerful. You will have not only one allotment but the forested hill country as well. Clear it, and its farthest limits will be yours; though the Canaanites have iron chariots and though they are strong, you can drive them out." We are stronger than what we think if we will just conquer our fear and move out in obedience and faith.
• I am also nearing the end of the Gospel of John. The last teachings of Christ in chapters 13-17 are beautiful, picturesque, poetic, encouraging, inspiring and worth reading over and over again. I love Jesus. This Gospel causes me to fall in love all over again with a Savior who truly loves me.