In this interview, we delved a little deeper into the themes canvassed in the recent cover story of Christianity Today. What a privilege it is to try to make a helpful contribution to an important conversation!
Showing posts with label Book Interviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Book Interviews. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 09, 2021
Interview about "Resisting Gossip" on "His People" Program on Pilgrim Radio
Saturday, April 17, 2021
Interview with Bill Arnold at Faith Radio about "Resisting Gossip"
On Friday, I enjoyed talking about Resisting Gossip yesterday with Bill Arnold on Faith Radio out of Minneapolis.
Live radio can be kind of daunting--I had a few moments when I blanked out and I tripped over my words, but it was still fun to have a lively conversation about saying, "No" to the temptation to talk about people behind their backs.
Tuesday, April 06, 2021
15:14 Podcast Interview
I thoroughly enjoyed being interviewed by Curtis Solomon of the Biblical Counseling Coalition for their 15:14 Podcast. We got talk about Resisting Gossip and especially how it relates to biblical counseling. Stay clear to the end for a two minute "get-to-know-you" speed round of favorites!
You can subscribe on Google Podcast, Apple Podcasts, or PodBean to find this and future episodes of 15:14 – A Podcast of the Biblical Counseling Coalition.
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
Learn HOW to Counsel Married Couples and Troubled Families from Bob Kellemen
When first became a pastor, I quickly learned how much I didn't know about counseling, especially couples in conflict. I remember many heavy hours of agonizing over what to say and do in those situations and wishing there were better practical resources available to me.
Back then, in the providence of God, I found my way to the biblical counseling movement as a rich repository of wisdom on how the Bible speaks to the problems of everyday life. I have eaten up every helpful thing I could find from that sector, eventually doing my doctorate in this field at Westminster Theological Seminary under the faculty of CCEF.
What's often missing in any system or approach is the down-to-earth, practical nuts-and-bolts training of what to actually say and do.
My friend Bob Kellemen, a leader in the biblical counseling movement, has tried to fill that gap with a set of books that he calls "equipping guides" and "'work-books,' or 'working-books,' or 'workout-books.'” They are very practical (while not at all stilted) and aim to give training to readers in the nitty-gritty reality of counseling couples and families.
I am slowly working through them right now myself, and lightbulbs are going on for me left and right. "Oh, that's a good idea." "I can see myself doing that next time." "That would have helped me with so-and-so."
The only thing better would be to sit with Bob and watch him do this and then have Bob sit with you watching you do it, too, with his feedback. But most of us won't have that opportunity. As a next-best-thing, this is pretty good. Recommended.
Bob has given me permission to include this short essay on why he wrote these manuals and how they are designed.
****
Why I Wrote
Gospel-Centered Marriage Counseling and Gospel-Centered Family Counseling
In September 2020, Baker Books released my new two-book series on equipping biblical counselors for marriage counseling and for family counseling:
Marriage Counseling and Family Counseling Are Hard!
As an equipper of pastors and counselors, I hear all the time how intimidating marriage and family counseling are. Recently, an experienced pastor shared with me:
“Marriage counseling? I’m clueless. I feel like I’m standing in traffic on an expressway with cars going both ways, half of them the wrong way, most of them swerving out of control. I have no idea how to move from my good theology of marriage, to actually helping the troubled couple sitting in front of me.
Family counseling? Don’t even get me started on that. By the time family members get to me, they’re so angry that they aren’t listening to each other. And half the time, they don’t even want to listen to me!”
Here Are Your Step-by-Step Training Manuals
The contemporary Christian world churns out books—great books—on marriage and the family. Theory of marriage and family? Tons of books. Books for couples? Scores of books. Books on the family and parenting? Boatloads.
However, even in our biblical counseling world, we have few books focused on the procedures—the “how-to”—of counseling hurting couples and families.
As pastors, counselors, and lay leaders, we desperately need help in relating our theology to marital messes and family chaos. We need training manuals on the nuts-and-bolts of the procedures and processes of helping the couple or family sitting in front of us.
Gospel-Centered Marriage Counseling and Gospel-Centered Family Counseling step into this void. This two-book how-to training manual provides practical, user-friendly equipping for folks like us—pastors, counselors, lay leaders, educators, and students.
Not Your Father’s or Mother’s Counseling Books
These two books walk you as a reader through a step-by-step training manual for developing your skills and competences in marriage and family counseling. In fact, “reader” is the wrong word. “Participant” is better.
Gospel-Centered Marriage Counseling and Gospel-Centered Family Counseling are work-books, or “working-books,” or “workout-books.”
Thus the subtitle: An Equipping Guide for Pastors and Counselors. Chapter-by-chapter, skill-by-skill, as a participant you’ll use the questions, exercises, role play directions, sample dialogues, and much more to develop your competency and increase your confidence as a biblical marriage and family counselor.
I Wrote These Books for You
I’m picturing you—a pastor—who perhaps had one class on counseling, and possibly zero classes on a gospel-centered, how-to approach to marriage and family counseling.
I’m picturing you—a trained biblical counselor—who likely had one class on marriage and family counseling theory/theology. But you probably had no lab class specifically on training you how to provide effective biblical marriage and family counseling.
I’m picturing you—a “lay person” (not a vocational pastor, a non-professional counselor)—who loves people and marriages. But you feel overwhelmed when trying to help a brokenhearted couple or a distressed family.
I’m picturing you—educators—who teach pastors and counselors in a Christian college or seminary setting. When you search the evangelical publishing landscape, you can find hundreds of books about marriage and the family. Yet, even with your level of academic awareness, you’re likely at a loss to identify Christian books that equip your students with a biblical, practical, step-by-step process for learning how to help struggling marriages and families.
Gospel-Centered Equipping in Marriage and Family Counseling
In the secular publishing landscape, we can find many books focused on hands-on training in marital and family therapy. But we’re not interested in a worldly way to help Christian marriages and families.
There’s a central reason I included the phrase Gospel-Centered in the title of each book. This is not a secular marital therapy manual. In writing these books, I’ve examined Scripture asking myself: 
“What would a model of biblical marriage and family counseling look like that was built solely upon Christ’s gospel of grace?”
What motivated me to write Gospel-Centered Marriage Counseling and Gospel-Centered Family Counseling? My motivation to write is the same as your motivation to read these books.
We each want to glorify God by growing as biblical marriage and family counselors who apply Christ’s gospel of grace to help hurting and hurtful spouses, parents, and children to become Christlike and Christ-honoring spouses, parents, and children.
Wednesday, February 05, 2020
An Interview with Tim Shorey about “Respect the Image”
I was recently introduced to Tim through our mutual friend Katie Faris who told me about his writings on healthy communication between humans, and P&R Publishing sent me an advanced copy to read.
Is there a more pressing need in society today than respectful communication between God’s image-bearers? As I’ve been reading Respect the Image, I have appreciated Tim’s pastoral approach to teaching biblical principles–gracious yet unbending, gentle and firm. He practices what he preaches by speaking the truth in love. Tim has a wry, self-deprecating sense of humor and uses it to illustrate his shortcomings (and personal growth) in this arena of the tongue.
One of the reasons I wanted to read Respect the Image was to prepare my heart for the 2020 election season especially for the coming onslaught on social media. It’s going to be a difficult year to be a Christian online. It is so easy, way too easy, to see people whom we disagree with as not just our opponents or even our enemies but as less-than-human and therefore unworthy of even basic respect. Everything Tim says in this book applies to the political arena.
As I’ve been turning the pages, however, I have been even more struck by how Respect the Image makes a great counterpart to my own book, Resisting Gossip. It explores the flipside of gossip, the “instead of” dynamic that I tried to emphasize throughout my book. We aren’t only supposed to “put off” sinful speech but “put on” the godly kind.
Matt: Why did you want to write a book on this? What from your own life experiences brought you to the place of writing on communication?
Tim: Respect the Image emerged from a life full of relationships—childhood with five siblings, 42 years of married life, six children, 13 grandchildren, 38 years of pastoral ministry, a church of 250 people consisting of 25 different ethnicities, and over 15,000 hours of pastoral counseling. Early on I realized that the most frequent personal, pastoral, and counseling needs I faced were my own, and my people’s, need to learn more about God, more about the gospel, and more about communication; in that order. This all drove me to study biblical principles of communication in earnest—for my family, my flock and my world needed these truths both taught and practiced. This then gave birth to the basic structure and outline of Respect the Image. Further motivated by a desire for these principles to be called readily to mind in conflict and other situations I developed the acrostic format of the book and various other memory helps the book includes. All that said, I certainly would want my readers to know that these truths impacted me long before they ever got into book form. Now my hope is that they will leave a mark more widely than ever before.
Matt: What is the image of God and why should we be respecting it in others?
Tim: As any theologian would tell you, that’s a tough question to answer, since the answer is multi-layered. It involves our being created to represent God’s rule on the earth—as Genesis 1 shows. While it normally might include the capacity to reason, to communicate, and to relate, it doesn't always do so, since there are some precious human beings who do not have such capacities; at least not to the same degree as others. I believe it is a deep mysterious reality in which every person has the mark and imprint of God upon him or her (along with a capacity to relate to him) —and is thereby stamped with dignity and value. I cannot define it well, but it is there for all to see whenever we look intently into each and every human face.
Matt: How does your book relate to the subject of my book? What principles in RTI would help a follower of Christ to resist gossip?
Tim: At its very core Respect the Image teaches that because each person is made in the image of God, we cannot communicate badly or sinfully or disparagingly with or about others without insulting the image they bear. Gossip is the great evil it is primarily because it demeans, disrespects, and destroys others; others who are to be held in high honor since they are made in the image, redeemed with precious blood, and destined for immortality. I dare not slander or gossip, because in so doing I slander God. This truth—and its force in countering gossip—is played out in numerous applications throughout the book. Gossip is the antithesis—the polar opposite—of the respect for, the celebration of, the attention to, the understanding of, and the charitable judgment toward, others to which the Bible calls us, and which my book tries to address. Where these truths rule in the heart a guard will stand watch over the tongue to ensure that the only words that come out are words calculated to bless, to nourish, and to honor. Gossip dies a certain—even if all-too-slow—death when respect prevails. No doubt it goes without saying that this is easier said than done. James let’s us know how hard it is. But if we ask for the wisdom from above and commit to honor the image, communication transformation can happen; and the results are wonderful!
Thank you, Tim, for your time and your labor love in producing Respect the Image. I pray that it helps many to reflect our Creator as we talk to and about those made in His likeness.
Wednesday, August 07, 2019
New Interview on "Resisting Gossip" at CLC Publications
Why should people read (or now listen to!) this book?
What do people “gain” from gossip that encourages them to continue to do it?
Do you believe that gossip in churches has decreased? Why or why not?
What we can do daily to eliminate the urge to gossip?
Check out my answers here.
Thursday, May 17, 2018
Passing on the Wisdom of the Proverbs
My goal is to help the boys and men to ransack the book of Proverbs for themselves. Pray for me!
To prepare, I've been re-reading this excellent little handbook from Champ Thornton Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation.
A few months ago, I got to interview Champ about this book. It's full of some really good stuff.
The opening chapter, "A Bird's Eye View of the Proverbs" is one of the best introductions I've ever read to this book in our Bibles. WTS Books has it up as a free downloadable sample chapter right now. Don't miss it!
My endorsement from last year still stands:
In Pass it On, Champ Thornton has created another unique resource for assisting Christian parents to extract the precious wisdom from the endless goldmine of the Book of Proverbs and impart its righteous riches to their children. I will be using it with my kids and urge others to dig in, too.
Thursday, December 28, 2017
More Good Books from 2017
Yesterday, I named my "top books of 2017." Today, I want to share some of the other good books that I had the privilege of reading in the last twelve months. Like yesterday's list, most of these books pushed me in significant directions, either with new perspectives or new levels.
On Being a Theologian of the Cross by Gerhard O. Forde
In 2017, we celebrated the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. To go deeper in that vein, I re-read significant portions of Luther: Man Between God and the Devil by Heiko Oberman and Luther's own commentary on Galatians (for my sermon series). I also attended the EFCA Theology Conference which looked closer at the theology of the Reformation. One of my friends recommended that to understand Lutheran theology, I ought to read works by Gerhard Forde. I chose On Being a Theologian of the Cross because it is an explanation of and elaboration on the Heidelberg Disputation, a work of Luther's that I did not know nearly enough about. Between Forde's writing and the conference lecture from David Luy I now have a much better understanding of the antithesis that Luther was teaching.
I've been wanting to read this book by Moore since it came out, but only got around to it this year. It is an excellent presentation of his theology of cultural engagement: "engaging the culture without losing the gospel." I found myself nodding in agreement and reading it out loud to Heather again and again. I'm not very good at engaging the wider culture (and feel less competent as time goes on and culture grows so wildly challenging), but Onward gives me a direction in which to point.
Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance
Speaking of culture, this book was all the rage a year ago and rightly so. It tells the story of an often forgotten segment of the American populace, one that I can relate to both in my own family of origin and among the people whom I minister now.
American Evangelicals and Modern Israel: A Plea for Tough Love by Frederic Martin
Martin, an EFCA pastor, attempts to look at the story of modern Israel with a loving but critical eye. He shows a whole other side to both the history and the theology of our engagement with the current nation of Israel than gets presented by some popular Bible teachers. Frankly, I don't know what I think of some of these things, but I'm much better informed for having read this.
Death Comes for the Deconstructionist by Daniel Taylor
Taylor's book is actually a novel, but as a work of fiction it was teaching truth. In fact, it was teaching that there is truth. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as my gushing review reveals.
Speaking of fiction that teaches, in 2017 I visited Port William, Kentucky the literary world of Wendell Berry for the first time. I read Hannah Coulter and joy-cried through the last third. As the year progressed I also read A World Lost, Andy Catlett Early Travels, and Jayber Crow. I'll be visiting Port William again and again.
Descriptions and Prescriptions by Michael Emlet
Michael Emlet, one of my wise biblical counseling professors from CCEF and WTS, wrote an excellent (yet short!) book on better understanding the role of psychiatric labels and medications from a biblical counseling perspective, trying to be neither too hot nor too cold but just right. When it came out, I got to publish an interview with Mike on his book. I draw on the framework he lays out every week in pastoral ministry.
The Wild Man Fable and Wild Mountain Tribe by Zeke PipherThis Spring, my friend Zeke Pipher published a unique little story about a "Wild Man" to teach young men about biblical masculinity. I'm a fan. He also published a small group guide which our youth boys' class is working through on Wednesday nights at our church. Here's my interview with Zeke about these new resources.
Pass It On by Champ Thornton
Another one of my friends also had a new book out this Fall. Here's what I said in my endorsement:
In Pass it On, Champ Thornton has created another unique resource for assisting Christian parents to extract the precious wisdom from the endless goldmine of the Book of Proverbs and impart its righteous riches to their children. I will be using it with my kids and urge others to dig in, too.I also got to interview Champ about Pass It On. I highly recommend it, especially for the short chapter on how to read the Book of Proverbs. I teach from Proverbs every Wednesday with my youth boys, and this is the kind of thing I'm always telling them!
The Storytelling God by Jared C. Wilson
While I'm telling you about books that have been directly helpful in my pastoral ministry, I've got to mention The Storytelling God. This was my first Jared Wilson book, but it won't be my last. This year at LEFC's Family Bible Week, I taught on how to read, understand, and apply the parables of Jesus. I found Wilson's book to be one of the most helpful introductions to the parables--pithy, radical, orienting, and quotable. Because of reading this one, our small group has picked up The Imperfect Disciple to read over the course of this school year. Good stuff!
Christian History Made Easy by Timothy Paul Jones
Speaking of our small group, our last big study was an overview of church history something I had never taught through in my nearly two decades of pastoral ministry. Timothy Jones' Christian History Made Easy was indispensable! He distilled two millennia of names, dates, ideas, and movements into a handy little handbook--with pictures! We used the discussion guide in the back including the weekly "quizzes" to keep things fun. I highly recommend it, especially if history is not your forte.
And to round out this list, I have to mention the excellent commentaries on the Books of Kings and the Letter to the Galatians that were my constant companions all year. I am so grateful to pastor a church that allows me to buy helpful tools like that to do my job.
Tolle lege!
Wednesday, December 27, 2017
My Top Books of 2017
The flood-tide of 2017 events has crested (I sure hope), and it's time again to share some of the good things I've had the privilege of reading this year.
It's been a great year for reading for me though I haven't gotten to write about it much. I didn't read very many books (less than 70 and a bunch of them were escapist fiction), but a goodly percentage were great books that really challenged me. In fact, if I had to name a theme for the year, it was that I read great books that strongly pushed me in directions I needed to go.
What I Mean By "Top Books"
As in past years [2013, 2014, 2015, 2016], my "Top Books" list is not necessarily the best books that were published that particular year or the most enjoyable either. I intend it to be a list of the Christian nonfiction books I read:
- that had the most personal impact on me, my thinking, my heart.
- that I was the most consistently enthusiastic about.
- that I kept coming back to again and again.
- that I couldn't help recommending to others (and recommend without reservations and significant caveats).
Choosing which books to name as "the top" ones was really hard this year. I think that most years I've named five. This year I barely whittled it down to seven (and that by sneaking in some "honorable mentions"). Tune in tomorrow for even more great books.
My Top Books Read in 2017
Sander's newest book on the Trinity in the "New Studies in Dogmatics" series from Zondervan pushed me in a whole lot of directions not the least of which was stretching my mind to read on an higher academic level.
As for the content, this is what I said to LifeWay Pastors when they asked about it:
I want to understand, as much as I can, the deepest mysteries of Who God is, and what is more mysterious than the Tri-Personal-Unity of God? Sanders is taking me deeper than I’ve ever gone without rabbit-trailing into unhealthy and unhelpful speculation.I have also spent several hours watching the video course companion to the book. There is still so much I don't understand about this fundamental doctrine of the Christian faith, but I feel that, with Fred's help (and other good books such as Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves), I'm making progress. I need to read it again.
Stokes' book was also a bit beyond my intellectual abilities to fully comprehend, but I still thoroughly enjoyed watching his mind work. In How To Be An Atheist, Mitch Stokes shines a skeptical light on skepticism. After taking on David Hume and showing the limits of skepticism, he turns to science (which has not disproven God, perhaps quite the opposite) and then morality (making the moral argument--which I have always found so compelling since I was introduced to it by C.S. Lewis--in new sophisticated ways in the current climate of militant atheist skepticism).
Stokes is well qualified to write this book with his PhD in philosophy and his MS in engineering and his clever and mischievous sense of humor. He does a wonderful job of presenting the best arguments for the other side and then interacting respectfully but sharply with them. I need to read it again soon.
Speaking of presenting the best arguments of the other side, I finally got to finish the series of apologetic books by Nabeel Qureshi by reading Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus which turned out to be my favorite of them all. Qureshi is the most sympathetic apologist I've ever been exposed to. It was strange to start reading a book while the author was living and then, sadly, to finish it after he had passed. I pray that his books stay in print for a very long time and reach many people for Christ.
This book was no fun to read. Reinke pushed me to reevaluate my use of technology (the smartphone being just the pinnacle of personal tech in our day) in significant ways.
Reinke is no enemy of technology. He does a wonderful job of celebrating it as a gift of God. But he is a shrewd observer of how our sinful hearts twist around any technology and take it in unhealthy directions. [See these EFCA Now reviews I got to coordinate for more.] I need to read it again soon and will be handing it to my kids as they get phones of their own.
In a very similar vein, Andy Crouch's The Tech-Wise Family was a very good short read on how to put technology in its proper place (hint: not the center).
My one sentence review:
This book is small like a "ghost pepper" is small.
I published a longer review this Fall when I ran a contest giving away a copy. This book pushed me to identify my anger problem when it isn't coming out as rage.
I love how Ed has gotten really good at packing pungent thoughts into short conversational meditations. My only criticism is that the title doesn't say what the book is about! I need to read it again soon.
This book pushed me towards beauty.
Ortlund's book wasn't an academically challenging read nor did it challenge me to love Heather in a different way, but it did sweetly remind me of what I know about marriage--marriage has always been a beautiful picture of the gospel.
Ray uses carefully chosen words to pull together and powerfully present how marriage fits into the grand storyline of the Bible. It's imminently quotable (Tweetable!) and rich. It encouraged me to continue to love my wife as I've been learning to do for the last 24 years and to love her for the glory of Jesus. I need to read it again.
I expected to be challenged by Sasse's book (and I was), but I was surprised by how encouraged I was by reading it.
The challenge is that Senator Sasse is an uber-talented intellectual who sets a rigorously high bar for raising up the next generation of American citizens. I can't relate to his achievements (aside from getting jealous) and could feel like many of his illustrative examples are unattainable. I also expected to be depressed by some of the trends he was observing (vanishing adulthood is not a positive thing!)
But I was actually encouraged. My biggest encouragement was that I recognized the broad outlines of his philosophy of parenting as being the same as Heather and mine. "Yes! That's what we're trying to do with our kids!" was the thought that regularly reoccurred as I read it. I enjoyed reading his engaging (often humorous) prose. I dog-eared a bunch of pages, especially the ones with list-like practical suggestions and began loaning it out to other parents.
Dunlop's book pushed me to love people more skillfully and to face my impending mortality.
Interestingly, Dr. Dunlop used to be our physician when I was a young seminarian. I'm glad he's focused on geriatrics now because he's shown a deep understanding of what it feels like to grow weak with age and infirmity.
The greatest strength of this book was describing what dementia is like from the perspective of both the person suffering from it and a person caring for someone who has it. Everyone who reads it (and I've read multiple reviews of it as the book review coordinator for EFCA Now) says the same thing.
So many people are affected by this that a book like this needed written. Our copy is getting passed all the way around our little church. I'm glad that this one is so rich with theological insight and practical counsel.
It was hard to read because just as there is a good chance Dr. Dunlop will eventually suffer from dementia himself (and his letter to his family at the end is a beautiful meditation on such), there is a good chance that either Heather or I or both of us will suffer similarly as we get old. As a preview of coming attractions, it was a difficult but salutary harbinger to consider. I need to read it again.
Monday, October 30, 2017
An Interview with Champ Thornton about "Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation"
It's called: Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation, and I got to read a pre-publication copy and provide my endorsement.I'm really excited about this new resource. Tomorrow, I'll tell you some of my biggest takeaways from reading it, but today, I'm pleased to have Champ tell us about it himself.
Matt: Why did you write Pass It On? What was your burden for creating it? What is your hope for those who use it?
Champ: Pass It On is a devotional guide to the book of Proverbs in which parents and others can record and pass along to the next generation their observations about wise living which they have gained from God’s Word and from their own life experiences. I researched and wrote this book because I knew I needed to learn the book of Proverbs better for myself, as my wife and I rear our three children. Proverbs-filled children come from Proverbs-filled parents. Beyond that, I wanted other parents (and grandparents and others) to be able to study Proverbs and pass along that wisdom and other advice, memories, and life skills to those they love in the next generation.
Matt: This is your second book that is a little "different." Tell us a little about the process of creating this creative book. How did you come up with the format? What was the hardest thing to write and the happiest thing? What surprised you the most as you wrote it?
Champ: This book is different than what I have written previously. I had written a Bible storybook for preschoolers (God's Love) and an intro to the Christian faith for middle-schoolers (The Radical Book for Kids), but this book is different in that it’s not aimed at children, but rather at their parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles. This book doesn’t survey the whole Bible (like God's Love), and it isn’t a topical guidebook (like The Radical Book). Instead, it’s an interactive and user-friendly guide to the book of Proverbs, designed to help parents and others pass along the wisdom they learn from Proverbs (and from life) to those they love in the next generation.
It’s also different in that it brings together the benefits of several kinds of books all within one cover. Pass It On is part study guide to the book of Proverbs, it's part journal for capturing your thoughts on wise living; and it's part gift book to be given to one of your children, grandchildren, nephew or niece, or a younger friend. In short, it’s doing your devotions, not just for your own benefit, but also as a keepsake for the next generation to treasure.
And since that time, the happiest part of the project was learning how various parts of Proverbs fit together (it’s not as random as it first appears—kind of like life, actually). The hardest was without doubt the Topical Index, mainly because it was so time-intensive and tedious to produce, but I trust that it’ll also serve others well when they’re looking for particular themes in Proverbs.
Another “different” aspect of Pass It On is that it does ask the reader to reflect and share not just about Proverbs but also about life. And I was not anticipating this realization. Here’s what I found. God made the world to work a certain way, usually according to general and predictable patterns. Wisdom, then, is learning God’s ways in this fallen world and living in harmony with them. So, Proverbs provides a God-inspired starter kit to understanding how to wisely navigate the twists and turns of life. So we should all learn about wise living from Proverbs. But as we examine wisdom in Proverbs, we should also learn to examine wisdom through Proverbs. (And Proverbs expect this—telling us to “go to the ant and consider her ways,” or to give attention to a broken-down house or weed-filled garden, etc.) In other words, we should learn to observe how God designed life to work—by looking at Proverbs (which is inspired) and then by looking at life (which is not inspired).
Matt: Give us a guide to the best reading experience. Who do you hope reads this book and how do you hope they read it?
Champ: I hope that many parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles, will leave their families a rich legacy of wisdom. That they would come to understand Proverbs better and take time to record and pass along their observations about the wisdom of Proverbs, along with their wise observations about life. Their children and grandchildren, nephews and nieces will treasure these observations. So, I hope that first, parents (along with grandparents, and aunts and uncles) will read, enjoy, and benefit from this book. Then I hope that in years to come their children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces will read what’s been written in the book—the study notes and their personal observations—and benefit from them for generations to come.
Matt: Thanks, Champ, for taking time to answer these questions, but even more for taking the time to create this unique resource!
Pass It On is on sale today at a whopping 40% at New Growth Press (much lower than Amazon!). This is a high-quality imitation leather book that would make a really nice gift.
Tomorrow, I'll be opening a contest to give out a free copy, but you might want to order one or 10 while the price is so low.
Friday, September 15, 2017
Q&A with Mike Emlet on "Descriptions and Prescriptions"
His answers give a flavor of the contents of this helpful little book:
Why did you write Descriptions and Prescriptions?
When it comes to issues of psychiatric diagnoses and medications it is too easy for Christians to go to one extreme or the other. That is, to either grant too much authority to psychiatric classifications and solutions for people’s problems as though Scripture is irrelevant for issues of mental distress. Or to dismiss them altogether as though medical science is irrelevant for issues of mental suffering in Christians. I wrote this book to present a nuanced “third way” between those two extremes that is grounded in Scripture, does justice to human beings as embodied souls, respects the role of scientific inquiry, and suggests compassionate and wise ways to minister to those who are struggling with mental illness in our churches.
How do you think your medical background and ministry training/experience contribute to the shape of this book?
My training and experience in both medicine and gospel ministry means that the book is first and foremost grounded in Scripture while also giving careful consideration to the medical research that contributes to the discussion. The book is marked by both biblical and scientific inquiry.
Who is your target audience?
My primary audience includes helpers and leaders in the church--pastors, vocational counselors working in a church setting, lay counselors, elders, deacons, small group leaders, and others involved in one another ministry. I trust the book will be helpful also for Christian psychiatrists, Christian psychologists, and Christian professional counselors.
What are the takeaways of your book?
For readers who come skewed to one extreme or the other regarding psychiatric classification and psychoactive medications, I hope they leave with a more balanced and nuanced approach. For readers who already have a more balanced approach, I hope they leave more clearly informed and equipped with biblical and scientific perspectives to undergird their ministry. Ultimately I want the perspectives of the book to provide helpers with guidelines for compassionate, wise, gospel-saturated care to those who are struggling with issues of mental health.
What imbalances have you seen in the way Christians think about psychiatric diagnoses and medications?
Regarding psychiatric diagnoses, I have encountered people who embrace a psychiatric label as an all-encompassing explanation for their struggles. Their diagnosis becomes the identity around which their lives orbit. They may seek only medical means of help and believe that biblical and pastoral realities are irrelevant to their problems. On the other hand I have seen people who resist a particular diagnosis when it might provide a helpful way to bring some clarity and order to their experience. These people may over-spiritualize their problems and resist appropriate medical interventions. Since God has made us both body and spirit creatures, it is important to consider both aspects of our personhood as we seek to understand the struggles of others.
What are some limitations and benefits of a psychiatric classification of people’s struggles?
The main limitation of a psychiatric classification is this: it is a description of the person’s experience but it is not an explanation for it. A diagnosis describes the person’s disordered thinking, emotion, and behavior but doesn’t tell you why the person is struggling in this particular way. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (the DSM) acknowledges this limitation. This means that a diagnosis becomes a starting point (not an endpoint) for careful inquiry, biblical understanding of this person as a body-soul image bearer, and ongoing pastoral ministry. At the same time, certain psychiatric diagnoses (for example, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder) alert us to patterns of severe suffering that may well require additional intervention, including medication.
How does Scripture give us a framework for understanding various forms of mental suffering?
Our starting point is Scripture because we cannot understand ourselves apart from God’s revelation to us. God created us as body-spirit image bearers who perfectly reflected His design for abundant and fruitful life (Gen 1:26-28; Gen 2:7). Body and soul worked seamlessly to honor and glorify God. The fall of Adam and Eve into sin affects us holistically—we are fallen, body and soul. Sin and suffering (physical and mental) become two ever-present realities for us as a result (Gen 3:16-19; Gen 6:3-7; Rom 5:12-21; Rom 8:22-23; 2 Cor 4:7-12).
There is no doubt that our cognition, our affections, and our will to act must and do reference the living God—we are by nature worshippers, according to Paul in Romans 1. The human heart is always active (Gen 6:5; Exod 25:2; Lev 19:17; Deut 6:5; Prov 13:12; Prov 14:13; Ezek 36:26-27; Matt 15:10-20; Luke 6:43-45; Eph 6:6; Heb 4:12). So while mental illness is suffering, it is also demonstrative of an active posture before the Lord—we remain image-bearers, after all! Our thoughts, emotions, and actions reveal an orientation toward or away from him, moment by moment. To ask, as Scripture urges us, “What does the call to love God and others look like in the midst of your suffering?” is a profoundly humanizing question.
At the same time we must recognize the mystery involved in the interface of body (brain) and spirit. Scripture doesn’t slice and dice people into bodies and spirits per se, but approaches God’s people holistically as saints who need confirmation of their identity in Christ, sufferers who need the consolation of God, and sinners who need loving correction of their wayward ways. Ministry to anyone with a psychiatric diagnosis always involves these elements in various measures (1 Cor 1:1-9; 1 Thess 5:14).
How does Scripture guide our thinking about the use or non-use of psychoactive medications?
Clearly, Scripture does not provide explicit instruction about the use or non-use of medication. However it provides a wise and balanced framework for considering such questions. For example, here are several biblical perspectives that offer guidance: (1) Relief of suffering and growth in Christian character in the midst of suffering are both important; (2) Medications are a gift of God’s common grace and medications (like any gift of God) can be used idolatrously; (3) Motives are important—a person can have wrong motives for wanting to take medication and a person can have wrong motives for not wanting to take medication; (4) Attention to the interplay between the spiritual and somatic aspects of the person’s experience is important. In the end, the use or non-use of medications is not a “right or wrong” issue but a “wisdom” issue. We ask, “What seems wisest for this particular person with this particular constellation of struggles and strengths at this particular time?”
If the local church embraced the ideas in your book, what would change?
My hope is that leaders in the church would have increasing confidence to pursue those in their congregations who are struggling with mental health issues. And that they would do so in a balanced way, being attentive to both spiritual and bodily aspects of these struggles. I want them to have a growing conviction that Scripture speaks broadly and deeply to the disordered thoughts, emotions, and behaviors associated with psychiatric diagnostic categories, and that Scripture provides fundamental ways of understanding people that are much more full-orbed than a diagnosis can capture. At the end of the day my goal would be a restoration of the local church as the central locus of care for those who are troubled, while recognizing there are times when we must wisely partner with those in the medical community.
How can leaders in the church become better equipped to minister wisely to those diagnosed with psychiatric disorders?
The most fundamental starting point is to listen deeply to people and to Scripture. Both are critical. Listening to people’s stories without an accompanying biblical perspective will result in truncated, imbalanced ministry. Listening to Scripture without listening to people’s experiences will also result in short-sighted and imbalanced ministry. Always ask, “How does Scripture provide clarity and coherence to this person’s struggle as a body-soul image bearer?” But do so, making sure that you have sought to understand the struggler’s experience as well as possible.
In addition, the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (www.ccef.org) provides a wealth of resources to equip leaders in the church, including blogs, podcasts, videos, conference talks, mini-books, books, online classes, and The Journal of Biblical Counseling, to name a few.
Can you tell a story that illustrates the balanced approach you are advocating in the book?
I knew a man in my former church who struggled with paranoid schizophrenia. Despite the use of multiple medications, he continued to have bouts where accusatory voices filled his head, telling him that he was worthless and that he ought to kill himself. What did he need? Fine-tuning of his medications? Certainly that was something important to pursue, given the complexity of his psychoactive medical treatment. But I think what he also (and perhaps especially) needed at those times was a friend. A friend who would listen with compassion and patience. A friend who would take seriously the impact of those demeaning and frightening voices in his head. A friend to remind him of God’s favor, care, and presence in his experience of isolation, confusion, and loneliness. A friend who would pray for him and read the Psalms with him. A friend who would highlight that, in Jesus, nothing could separate him from the love of the Father (Romans 8:38-39). A friend who expected both personal and corporate benefit from having this man as a part of the body (1 Corinthians 12:21-26). You can be that friend. I can be that friend. And that’s apart from having any particular medical expertise with schizophrenia (which of course he needs as well). There’s the balance: by all means seek psychiatric input/medication when it seems justified but approach the person with biblical categories in mind, confident that God speaks into the experience of suffering.
Why did you write Descriptions and Prescriptions?
When it comes to issues of psychiatric diagnoses and medications it is too easy for Christians to go to one extreme or the other. That is, to either grant too much authority to psychiatric classifications and solutions for people’s problems as though Scripture is irrelevant for issues of mental distress. Or to dismiss them altogether as though medical science is irrelevant for issues of mental suffering in Christians. I wrote this book to present a nuanced “third way” between those two extremes that is grounded in Scripture, does justice to human beings as embodied souls, respects the role of scientific inquiry, and suggests compassionate and wise ways to minister to those who are struggling with mental illness in our churches.
How do you think your medical background and ministry training/experience contribute to the shape of this book?
My training and experience in both medicine and gospel ministry means that the book is first and foremost grounded in Scripture while also giving careful consideration to the medical research that contributes to the discussion. The book is marked by both biblical and scientific inquiry.
Who is your target audience?
My primary audience includes helpers and leaders in the church--pastors, vocational counselors working in a church setting, lay counselors, elders, deacons, small group leaders, and others involved in one another ministry. I trust the book will be helpful also for Christian psychiatrists, Christian psychologists, and Christian professional counselors.
What are the takeaways of your book?
For readers who come skewed to one extreme or the other regarding psychiatric classification and psychoactive medications, I hope they leave with a more balanced and nuanced approach. For readers who already have a more balanced approach, I hope they leave more clearly informed and equipped with biblical and scientific perspectives to undergird their ministry. Ultimately I want the perspectives of the book to provide helpers with guidelines for compassionate, wise, gospel-saturated care to those who are struggling with issues of mental health.
What imbalances have you seen in the way Christians think about psychiatric diagnoses and medications?
Regarding psychiatric diagnoses, I have encountered people who embrace a psychiatric label as an all-encompassing explanation for their struggles. Their diagnosis becomes the identity around which their lives orbit. They may seek only medical means of help and believe that biblical and pastoral realities are irrelevant to their problems. On the other hand I have seen people who resist a particular diagnosis when it might provide a helpful way to bring some clarity and order to their experience. These people may over-spiritualize their problems and resist appropriate medical interventions. Since God has made us both body and spirit creatures, it is important to consider both aspects of our personhood as we seek to understand the struggles of others.
What are some limitations and benefits of a psychiatric classification of people’s struggles?
The main limitation of a psychiatric classification is this: it is a description of the person’s experience but it is not an explanation for it. A diagnosis describes the person’s disordered thinking, emotion, and behavior but doesn’t tell you why the person is struggling in this particular way. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (the DSM) acknowledges this limitation. This means that a diagnosis becomes a starting point (not an endpoint) for careful inquiry, biblical understanding of this person as a body-soul image bearer, and ongoing pastoral ministry. At the same time, certain psychiatric diagnoses (for example, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder) alert us to patterns of severe suffering that may well require additional intervention, including medication.
How does Scripture give us a framework for understanding various forms of mental suffering?
Our starting point is Scripture because we cannot understand ourselves apart from God’s revelation to us. God created us as body-spirit image bearers who perfectly reflected His design for abundant and fruitful life (Gen 1:26-28; Gen 2:7). Body and soul worked seamlessly to honor and glorify God. The fall of Adam and Eve into sin affects us holistically—we are fallen, body and soul. Sin and suffering (physical and mental) become two ever-present realities for us as a result (Gen 3:16-19; Gen 6:3-7; Rom 5:12-21; Rom 8:22-23; 2 Cor 4:7-12).
There is no doubt that our cognition, our affections, and our will to act must and do reference the living God—we are by nature worshippers, according to Paul in Romans 1. The human heart is always active (Gen 6:5; Exod 25:2; Lev 19:17; Deut 6:5; Prov 13:12; Prov 14:13; Ezek 36:26-27; Matt 15:10-20; Luke 6:43-45; Eph 6:6; Heb 4:12). So while mental illness is suffering, it is also demonstrative of an active posture before the Lord—we remain image-bearers, after all! Our thoughts, emotions, and actions reveal an orientation toward or away from him, moment by moment. To ask, as Scripture urges us, “What does the call to love God and others look like in the midst of your suffering?” is a profoundly humanizing question.
At the same time we must recognize the mystery involved in the interface of body (brain) and spirit. Scripture doesn’t slice and dice people into bodies and spirits per se, but approaches God’s people holistically as saints who need confirmation of their identity in Christ, sufferers who need the consolation of God, and sinners who need loving correction of their wayward ways. Ministry to anyone with a psychiatric diagnosis always involves these elements in various measures (1 Cor 1:1-9; 1 Thess 5:14).
How does Scripture guide our thinking about the use or non-use of psychoactive medications?
Clearly, Scripture does not provide explicit instruction about the use or non-use of medication. However it provides a wise and balanced framework for considering such questions. For example, here are several biblical perspectives that offer guidance: (1) Relief of suffering and growth in Christian character in the midst of suffering are both important; (2) Medications are a gift of God’s common grace and medications (like any gift of God) can be used idolatrously; (3) Motives are important—a person can have wrong motives for wanting to take medication and a person can have wrong motives for not wanting to take medication; (4) Attention to the interplay between the spiritual and somatic aspects of the person’s experience is important. In the end, the use or non-use of medications is not a “right or wrong” issue but a “wisdom” issue. We ask, “What seems wisest for this particular person with this particular constellation of struggles and strengths at this particular time?”
If the local church embraced the ideas in your book, what would change?
My hope is that leaders in the church would have increasing confidence to pursue those in their congregations who are struggling with mental health issues. And that they would do so in a balanced way, being attentive to both spiritual and bodily aspects of these struggles. I want them to have a growing conviction that Scripture speaks broadly and deeply to the disordered thoughts, emotions, and behaviors associated with psychiatric diagnostic categories, and that Scripture provides fundamental ways of understanding people that are much more full-orbed than a diagnosis can capture. At the end of the day my goal would be a restoration of the local church as the central locus of care for those who are troubled, while recognizing there are times when we must wisely partner with those in the medical community.
How can leaders in the church become better equipped to minister wisely to those diagnosed with psychiatric disorders?
The most fundamental starting point is to listen deeply to people and to Scripture. Both are critical. Listening to people’s stories without an accompanying biblical perspective will result in truncated, imbalanced ministry. Listening to Scripture without listening to people’s experiences will also result in short-sighted and imbalanced ministry. Always ask, “How does Scripture provide clarity and coherence to this person’s struggle as a body-soul image bearer?” But do so, making sure that you have sought to understand the struggler’s experience as well as possible.
In addition, the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (www.ccef.org) provides a wealth of resources to equip leaders in the church, including blogs, podcasts, videos, conference talks, mini-books, books, online classes, and The Journal of Biblical Counseling, to name a few.
Can you tell a story that illustrates the balanced approach you are advocating in the book?
I knew a man in my former church who struggled with paranoid schizophrenia. Despite the use of multiple medications, he continued to have bouts where accusatory voices filled his head, telling him that he was worthless and that he ought to kill himself. What did he need? Fine-tuning of his medications? Certainly that was something important to pursue, given the complexity of his psychoactive medical treatment. But I think what he also (and perhaps especially) needed at those times was a friend. A friend who would listen with compassion and patience. A friend who would take seriously the impact of those demeaning and frightening voices in his head. A friend to remind him of God’s favor, care, and presence in his experience of isolation, confusion, and loneliness. A friend who would pray for him and read the Psalms with him. A friend who would highlight that, in Jesus, nothing could separate him from the love of the Father (Romans 8:38-39). A friend who expected both personal and corporate benefit from having this man as a part of the body (1 Corinthians 12:21-26). You can be that friend. I can be that friend. And that’s apart from having any particular medical expertise with schizophrenia (which of course he needs as well). There’s the balance: by all means seek psychiatric input/medication when it seems justified but approach the person with biblical categories in mind, confident that God speaks into the experience of suffering.
Tuesday, July 04, 2017
An Interview with Zeke Pipher about "The Wild Man" and "Wild Mountain Tribe"
Interview
Matt: Tell us about yourself and your family. Who is Zeke Pipher and how did you come to write this book?
Zeke: I was transformed by the grace of Jesus Christ in 1990, during my sophomore year in college. I’m an EFCA pastor and author from central Nebraska. I’ve been married to Jamie since 1997, and together we have three children who are in the throes of junior high and high school. Those are the most important things about me. Some lesser important things I could mention are—I’m fanatical about hunting and fishing, I have absolutely no golf game, I love to butcher meat and chop vegetables, I just bought a motorcycle jacket to go with my newest hobby, I contribute to several national hunting magazines, and most of my books have been geared toward men and boys.
The Wild Man fable came from someplace deep inside me. One of my strongest desires is to be a faithful husband, father, and friend. A couple years ago, when my son, Aidan, turned twelve, I felt an awesome responsibility to pass on a concrete vision of manhood. I decided to write a story for him to provide him images of strong, courageous, faithful masculinity. Many men today are looking to society (celebrities, sports figures, politicians) to give them a definition of masculinity; my hope is to show Aidan through these two books how the Scriptures and his conscience can provide the direction. The Wild Man fable provides the vision of masculinity, and the Wild Mountain Tribe guidebook helps men—young and old—have conversations about how to live it out.
Matt: Why is The Wild Man a fable?
Matt: What are you hoping to accomplish by publishing The Wild Man and Wild Mountain Tribe?
Zeke: There are few things I desire more than to see older men – fathers, grandfathers, mentors, and father-figures – teach younger men how to be strong, courageous, and faithful to Christ. It saddens me how many times I’ve heard fathers and grandfathers say, “I’ve dropped the ball when it comes to my son/grandson.” It breaks my heart for that older man. It makes me sad for the younger man. And it grieves me for our society. Everyone in a community benefits when men—young and old—are strong, courageous, self-sacrificing, humble, and justice-seeking. We are experiencing a crisis in our America surrounding issues of sexuality, gender, end of life, beginning of life, finances, and our stewardship of creation. When men are faithful to Christ as men, including in how they pass on a vision for masculinity, everyone in society wins. I wrote these two books to help men be the “image and glory of God (1 Cor. 11:7b) as faithfully as possible.
Matt: Where did you get the idea for the “Ancient Symbol of the Deep Masculine” (from The Wild Man)?
Zeke: That symbol is the ancient Chi Rho christogram that the early church used to represent Christ. It is formed by the first two Greek letters of the word Christos, the chi and the rho. I chose that symbol because it is a way of connecting the fable and its presentation of masculinity to the person of Christ. All the qualities and characteristics of masculinity find their origin and perfect expression in Jesus, and so I wanted the “Ancient Symbol of the Deep Masculine” to direct the reader back to Jesus.
Matt: In addition to The Wild Man, you wrote a 14-week guidebook called, Wild Mountain Tribe. What is that guidebook for, and who is it for?
Matt: What word of encouragement would you want to leave any dads who are reading this interview?
Zeke: Fatherhood is one of the most noble, challenging, and rewarding endeavors God has given us. To do it well, we’ve got to be intentional. We must spend time with our children, and we must have the right conversations and experiences with them. This isn’t easy. The best fathers in the world struggle with discouragement and uncertainty at times. One of my hopes for us older men as we use The Wild Man and Wild Mountain Tribe to teach young men to be faithful is that we never feel alone. We have an enemy who knows our souls well, and knows that if he can make us feel isolated, he’s got us on the ropes. We are not isolated. We are a part of a tribe of faithful men that stretches back to the first family God created. My hope and prayer is that you take your roles as a father, grandfather, mentor, and father-figure seriously. And as you do, I pray that you feel us—the greater tribe of faithful men—cheering you on in your journey.
Matt: Thanks, Zeke, for your time in this interview, but even more for writing this book. I pray that it blesses thousands of men and soon-to-be-men and their families.
Our giveaway contest ends Thursday at 11:59pm.
Tuesday, November 15, 2016
An Interview with Champ Thornton on "The Radical Book for Kids"
I'm excited today to participate in the new blog tour for The Radical Book for Kids by Champ Thornton.
I got to read a copy before it was released and was really impressed. Here's my short review:
The Radical Book for Kids is deceptively fun! While preteens are utterly enjoying themselves with the creative games, hands-on projects, laugh-out-loud jokes, and cool stories, Champ Thornton is radically discipling them with a crash course on Bible study methods, hermeneutics, church history, biblical theology, and Christian life and ethics. This is the kind of book that stealthily helps parents, pastors, and teachers make young followers for Jesus Christ.
It really does all of that!
I recently got to ask Champ (what a neat name, huh?) a few questions about this really cool book he's written.
Matt: Tell us about yourself and your family. Who is Champ Thornton and how did you come to write this book?
Champ: Most centrally, I’m a sinner now welcomed into God’s family through Christ. I’m husband to Robben (we’ve been married since 1996) and dad to three children, all presently under the age of 12. I also serve as an associate pastor at our church in the state of Delaware. Before moving here in 2012, I’d lived most of my life in the Carolinas. That’s where I grew up, went to college and seminary, started a family, and followed the call into pastoral ministry. I enjoy spending time with my family and friends, drinking coffee, listening to music, and reading—especially theology, biography, and fiction. But even as a kid, books have been a big part of my life. I remember enjoying the Hardy Boys, then Sherlock Holmes, and later Alistair MacLean novels. So, having enjoyed reading for so long, it has been a privilege to begin putting words back onto the page for others. The Radical Book for Kids started as a conversation over lunch with Marty Machowski, author of many children’s books, including The Ology: Ancient Truths, Ever New. At that time, our church was without a children’s pastor, so I was asking Marty questions about children’s ministry. The conversation turned to writing, and eventually New Growth Press asked me to give them some sample chapters from the book which became The Radical Book for Kids: Exploring the Roots and Shoots of Faith.
Having three young children (two boys and a girl), I wanted to write for boys and girls in the next generation. My hope for them is that they grow up to know God, trust him, love him and serve him with all of their lives. So this book is an attempt to point my kids and others toward that goal. And in the background of this desire is that in 2003 I was diagnosed with a blood clot and a genetic blood disorder. When you’re 29 years old, you think you’re fairly invincible, but God brought into my life a daily reminder of my mortality. I’ve not had another scare like that since, but God has used this diagnosis to raise my awareness of the importance of passing along to the next generation the good news of Christ and the truths of His Word.
Matt: What is the central message of The Radical Book for Kids? What are you hoping that readers come away thinking, believing, feeling, and doing?
Champ: The Radical Book for Kids is a fun-filled explorer’s guide to the Bible, theology, church history, and life for boys and girls ages 8 and up. In this book, I introduce young readers to the stories of men and women who have lived out their faith in Jesus in radical ways. God sustained them to trust him despite great opposition and difficulty. The book also focuses on the radical roots of our faith. (The word “radical” comes from the Latin word “radix,” which literally means “roots.”) So in many ways it is a “root” book, leading young minds on a tour of the roots of their faith — a tour of the Bible, what it teaches, how to read it and why we should believe it and tell others about it. The Radical Book for Kids also includes radical fun with a 3,000-year-old game, a secret code, hands-on activities, fun facts and more. It’s radical strength, depth and fun.
On one level, I hope those who read this book — whether children and teens or their parents and grandparents — would come to love, trust and follow the Lord Jesus Christ more. It’s my prayer this book will be used by God to grow deep roots of faith in all who read it.
In addition to this, it’s my hope that the middle schoolers and young teens who read about the spiritual disciplines, the names of God, biblical wisdom, union with Christ or men and women who gave their lives for the Lord will one day come back for more as they later decide to explore more deeply and widely the riches of God’s truth. In other words, I want to scatter a packet of assorted seeds across the minds and hearts and imaginations of the next generation, which in God’s time and by His Spirit will take root, sprout and bear much fruit. If this book makes children and teens (and adults) more curious and thirsty to know God and the good news of His Word, then it will have done its job.
In addition to this, it’s my hope that the middle schoolers and young teens who read about the spiritual disciplines, the names of God, biblical wisdom, union with Christ or men and women who gave their lives for the Lord will one day come back for more as they later decide to explore more deeply and widely the riches of God’s truth. In other words, I want to scatter a packet of assorted seeds across the minds and hearts and imaginations of the next generation, which in God’s time and by His Spirit will take root, sprout and bear much fruit. If this book makes children and teens (and adults) more curious and thirsty to know God and the good news of His Word, then it will have done its job.
Matt: Tell us a little about the process of creating this creative book. How did you come up with the unusual format and all of this cool content? What was the hardest thing to write and the happiest thing? What surprised you the most as you wrote it?
Champ: A quick search on amazon.com will yield various books promoting: “everything a boy/girl should know or do.” Yet all of them are secular in content and approach. The Radical Book for Kids is different; it’s what I wanted my own children to know about God our Savior, the Word He has written, and the world He has created.
Champ: A quick search on amazon.com will yield various books promoting: “everything a boy/girl should know or do.” Yet all of them are secular in content and approach. The Radical Book for Kids is different; it’s what I wanted my own children to know about God our Savior, the Word He has written, and the world He has created.
So I started by making a list of all the things (about God, the Bible, theology, life, etc.) that I’d want my kids to know about or know how to do. Then I emailed over a dozen friends in ministry, asking them what they’d include on their short list of things for kids to know or do. Initially, over 100 topics made the list, but we eventually landed on the 67 mini-chapters that make up The Radical Book for Kids.
Through the entire process, I wanted to write in a way that would resonate with young readers. There’s nothing boring about God — He’s the most engaging, creative, vivid and energizing Being in the universe. In fact, just look at the universe He’s created! A riot of colors, sounds and smells, tastes and textures. This is beauty, but His truth is just the other side of the same coin. God’s beauty, truth and goodness are all different expressions of the same reality — God’s reality. So, He’s the farthest thing from boring, and when we teach about Him in a way that’s uninteresting, we misrepresent Him.
New Growth Press and I wanted this book to engage minds with truth, ignite hearts with His goodness and captivate imaginations with His beauty. And Scot McDonald’s creative design work has brought all the wonder-filled fun-factor I had hoped for when writing the book. Vivid colors, eye-catching pictures, hand-drawn sketches and illuminating sidebars fill its pages. It’s been a collaborative creative process throughout.
Numbers of chapters presented a challenge to write—how to communicate big and sometimes complicated truths in an age-appropriate and engaging way? Perhaps one of the most difficult was the chapter on how to read the prophetic books in Scripture (“How to Profit from the Prophets”). I wrote probably 4 or 5 significantly different drafts of that chapter before finally landing on the finalized version which is in the book. The happiest was periodically getting to collaborate with my oldest son—hearing his opinions (pros and cons) and seeing the book through his eyes. As to the most surprising element, it may be the time involved. I started writing in the spring of 2014; after this the book went through several rounds of re-writing and editing over the next few years.
Matt: Give us a guide to the best reading experience. Who do you hope reads this book and how do you hope they read it?
Champ: This is a book that kids, ages 8 and up, can read on their own. For curious readers, a table of contents and index make topics easy to find. So kids can explore their book however they like: hopscotching around via topic or just reading straight through. For kids of younger ages, parents can also read this book aloud in family devotions. Bible teachers can use it to supplement their main curriculum. For parents or teachers, there are plenty of places to stop reading and to discuss issues posed, consider questions asked or just laugh at something funny. (Also, as the book has been previewed, I’ve learned adults have found this book useful for themselves or to give to others who are growing in their faith.)
Matt: Thanks, Champ, taking the time to answer these questions, but even more for investing the many hours to creating the Radical Book for Kids. I think it's a great resource. When I got my advanced copy, I read parts out loud to my family, and they chuckled, hooted, and hollered at all the right places, and didn't realize that they were learning something important. That's a mark of a great book!
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
More Good Books from 2015
Yesterday, I named my top 5 books read in 2015.
Today, I list some "honorable mentions" that I also appreciated a good bit. What a privilege it is to own, read, and recommend books!
Loving My Children by Katie Faris
Four kids later, she has written an excellent little book on mothering.
I got to interview her about the book this Fall and have her speak to groups of ladies at our church.
I also got to formally endorse her book (my first "blurb" as a published author). Here's what I said:
"What do diapers, lullabies, laundry, and cleaning behind the baby's ears have to do with the gospel? Everything! In this gem of a book, our friend Katie Faris winsomely shares biblical wisdom on seeking the best for the children God has loaned us. Katie knows what she's talking about--we've seen her mothering in action--and she writes well. Sweet but not sentimental, direct but not demanding, Loving My Children helpfully connects the Bible's teaching on grace, sovereignty, and sanctification to the everyday hard work of being a mom. Heather and I highly recommend it."
I also encourage people to check out Faris Press' Facebook page about Loving My Children, especially for the beautiful sharable posters they've created to illustrate the lessons in the book.
Katie has also created a FREE study guide with discussion questions available for downloading on the Faris Press website.
#ReformingSocialMedia by Mandy Hoffman
Hoffman has clearly invested time in thinking through many of the issues and brings pertinent biblical principles to bear with concise, fluffless prose. She is neither alarmist nor dismissive of the inherit digital dangers and offers very practical strategies for glorifying God while being social online. Good counsel. I've already thought of several people to whom I will recommend "the book with the hashtag in the title."
Stop Your Complaining by Ronnie Martin
I got to read an advanced copy and offer this endorsement:
"I didn't want to read this book because I knew that I needed to read it, but I'm glad I did. With both keen insight and dry wit, my friend Ronnie explores our all-too-common sinful tendency to grumble and offers grace-laced answers to our problem. You may not want to read Stop Your Complaining either, but you'll be glad you did."
Seven Pressing Questions by Bill Kynes
Bill Kynes' modest goal for this little book is not to "prove" Christianity with logical certainty. Instead, it is to show (1) that the Christian faith is a rational option to consider and (2) how it maps coherently onto both our experience of the world and the meaning of life.
I appreciated how he takes the 7 pressing questions seriously--there are no artful dodges here--and provides some solid, helpful, raw, real, and Christ-centered answers in everyday language. Kynes defends the faith without being defensive. His approach is similar to Tim Keller's and just as erudite but is more accessible for short attention spans. It would also be helpful for training Christians in how to answer the common objections to Christianity in our day and age.
Give this book to the reasonable skeptic you love and ask them to read it with an open mind.
Church Elders by Jeramie Rinne
An excellent primer on the essence of eldership in the local church.
This is just the little book on eldership that the evangelical Church needs. For years, I have searched high and low for an accessible book that introduces biblical eldership which doesn’t devolve into either a technical treatise on ecclesiology nor a how-to manual that relies on debatable insights from the world of secular organizational theory. And here it finally is!
Rinne successfully avoids secondary polity and pragmatic questions while staying strongly theological and practical on both what an elder is and does. Need proof? Check out these chapter titles which edify all by themselves: “Smell Like Sheep,” “Serve Up the Word,” “Track Down the Strays,” “Lead Without Lording,” “Shepherd Together,” “Model Maturity.”
Church Elders does a good job of neither glorifying the position nor denigrating the work of an elder. Rinne writes as a vocational pastor but FOR avocational elders. He understands the perspective of a man for whom being an elder is lived out in addition to all of his other responsibilities including a family and a full-time job.
Rinne packs a lot into these 122 short pages, but it feels like just the right amount. His illustrations are concise but revealing and helpful. His prose is conversational and carries the reader along but isn’t trite, sentimental, or sappy. If I could write a book on church elders, I would want it to be just like this one. I’ll be asking all of our elders to read it and include it in all future elder training. Highly recommended.
