The Way I See It #230

This morning I stopped at my favorite place - Starbucks. As I was sipping my vente Anniversary blend, I noticed the submitted "way I see it" blurb on the side of the cup. This one came from Joel Stein who is a columnist for the LA Times:

Heaven is totally overrated. It seems boring. Clouds, listening to people play the harp. It should be somewhere you can't wait to go, like a luxury hotel. Maybe blue skies and soft music were enough to keep people in line in the 17th century, but Heaven has to step it up a bit. They're basically getting by because they only have to be better than Hell.

There are a couple of issues I have in reading this blurb. First, Mr Stein implies that heaven has need of new marketing. That the heaven PR machine has rested on it's laurels for a couple of centuries., and needs to merely step it up a bit. Also, Mr Stein seems to be placated quite easily. A luxury hotel? Like CS Lewis says, "We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased." If heaven were only about someplace nice to go, than it would not be heaven. Last, about heaven "getting by", it seems Mr Stein believes that Peter and Judas as in competition with one another trying to sell the more tickets for their respective eternal residences and that hell has just received some bad consumer recommendations.

In reading both John Eldrege and Randy Alcorn, I agree that Christians are, in part, to blame for the misconception that in heaven we will be sitting on a cloud with a harp singing forever. We will not, as Mr Eldrege says, be going to the eternal church service in the sky. Mr Alcorn believes that Christians are to blame for the misconceptions of heaven because we have failed to explore the extraordinary images of heaven presented in Scripture.

While I obviously do not know exactly what heaven will be like, I think we get a good picture from Jesus. Jesus came to make all things new (not change things, but restore then to their created order - an order in which we worked, had relationships and were surrounded by beauty, both created and God). Jesus also came to give us life as it was meant to be, so we could live to the full. There is not one person I know that would consider a full life sitting on a cloud, playing a harp, endlessly singing. Heaven is somewhere I can't wait to go - because of a number of reasons, but mainly,

• because Jesus will be there
• because evil and suffering will be no more
  
• because I will receive a new body
• because Jesus will be there

I encourage you to do a couple of things. First, log onto www.starbucks.com/wayiseeit and write a comment about Mr Stein's contribution. Second, if you wish to read more about heaven, in addition to Scripture, check out a good biblical overview in Randy Alcorn's book, Heaven. Mr Alcorn's website, Eternal Perspectives, is also a good informative site. Another place to go is the writings of John Eldrege, and his Ransomed Heart podcast.

LIQUID - Live at Five and Mirror Image

A couple weeks ago I reviewed the Old Testament episodes of Liquid, a new small group DVD curriculum from Thomas Nelson, done by the pastors at Mariner's Church.
I have recently viewed the two New Testament offerings from Liquid - tackling the book of James (Live at Five) and some of Jesus' parables (Mirror Image). From turning off the very first episode to giving the series a second chance, I now have come to really enjoy the series. Basically the format is each DVD contains 5 episodes which cover different portions of the book or subject covered (James and the Parables in this instance) and share the principles through five different but interlocking stories intertwined with teaching from the pastors at Mariner's.
These NT based sessions are quite good and I found them both entertaining, engaging and thought-provoking. This series is an excellent resource for small groups ministry. They are like a hybrid of Nooma and H2O. They are short and stand alone like each of the Nooma studies (however, they do offer much more in the way of study questions and a leader's guide), but they intertwine teaching and story in an engaging fashion, much like H2O.
Here is a trailer they have made for the series:

Prayer DVD

Last winter, I reviewed Philip Yancey's latest book, Prayer. This past month, Zondervan has released a 6 session small group curriculum based on the book and taught by Philip Yancey. While the book delves deeper into more issues regarding prayer, the small group curriculum is a great primer which will get groups talking about a portion of their lives which most everyone wishes was stronger.

The curriculum covers six topics from the book -
The View from Above - the fact that God has everyone in mind and ultimately his glory in mind, whereas we are mainly concerned about our our needs and wants.
Why Pray? - this session touches on the subtitle of the book and DVD - does it make any difference? Yancey talks about the fact that God knows what we are going to pray about, so why should we go through the motions?
Keeping Company with God - this session speaks to Paul assertion to "pray without ceasing". How is that possible? What does it look like in practice? Yancey speaks of keeping a running inner dialogue with God.
How to Pray - while there is no formula to prayer, there are things that each of us can do to make prayer a daily, regular practice. Each of us need to find our own way to pray, not someone else's.
Prayer Problems - the book tackles this issue both more deeply and more broadly, but the DVD
covers the biggest problem for most people - unanswered prayer. Yancey looks to our expectations as well as potential road blocks we have put up ourselves.
Does Prayer Change Anything? - Something that C.S. Lewis said has always stuck with me - I pray not so much to change God, but to change myself. Yancey picks up on that and talks about how prayer changes us.

This is an excellent group study and one that will enhance people's communication and communion with God. I believe that prayer is something that many people struggle with and that once people get in a group setting and share struggles and issues they have, they will see that they are not alone. The study will also bring to light helps to those issues.

Decide for Yourself

Today, an oldie but a goodie. I picked up Decide for Yourself about ten years ago, and I can not tell you how helpful I have found it. What this book does is go through many of the major doctrines of our faith and explains some of the varying opinions people hold and/or have held over the years. Then, the author lists out the Scripture references associated with each of the various positions asking questions intended to provoke discussion and insight into that topic, so each person can "decide for themselves" what they believe the Bible to be teaching about these doctrines.
I have used this book in personal study as well as in group study situations, for groups of teens and groups of adults. This book has been a valuable resource for me.
Some of the doctrinal subjects Decide for Yourself covers are the atonement, what is God like, the inspiration of Scripture, the person and work of the Spirit, and what happens after death.
What the book does is open each of the 24 chapters with the background of what the belief is and means, states what the problem is or has been, lists the procedure for "deciding for yourself" by asking questions and listing Scripture to dig into, then encourages readers to write down their own conclusion tot he matter and then offers some follow up questions to the study.
For instance, chapter 8 looks into the will and providence of God. The author lists the differing opinions from Deists, Pantheists (and some liberals), religious existentialists and neo-orthodox theologians, and finally orthodox Christians. Then the problem is stated - How should we think of God's relation to the world of nature and human history? Which views merit your assent. Next questions are qsked and paired with Scripture to draw out insight. Does God overrule evil to accomplish good? (Ge, 45.5; Ps. 76.10; Rom. 8.28; etc.). How does God's providential agency relate to the evil acts of men? (1 Cor. 4.7; Phil. 4.13; Jas. 1.17, etc.). Readers are then encouraged to memorize Ephesians 1.11 and write out their own conclusion. Last, readers look at the significance and answer some questions, including "Why do you think this teaching so often seems offensive rather than comforting?"
Overall, whether you work for a church, lead a ministry in the church or just have questions about faith, ths is an extremely helpful book.

The Myth of Happiness

The pursuit of happiness in America has become a national pastime . . . a dead-end obsession for satisfaction and fulfillment. In a world so consumed with want, how can we fill our lives with true joy?

In The Myth of Happiness, software engineer turned author Rich Wagner helps dissipate our misunderstandings while revealing the true nature of biblical joy. Besides answering what joy is and isn't, he honestly confronts tough questions like “how can we experience it daily?” and “can we experience joy while battling fear and uncertainty?”

When I think about joy, I’m reminded of a Sunday school chorus like “I’ve Got the Joy, Joy, Joy down in my Heart,” the classic hymn “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee” or the ever popular “Jesus first; Others second; and Yourself last.” We talk of joy like we know what it's about, but our lives spotlight discontentment, envy and unhappiness. Sadly, we just don’t get it! Wagner helps the Christ-follower to understand the unquenchable joy Christ promises.

He describes joy as "the nature of God pumped through our bloodstream" and states that "The problem with happiness becomes one of attitude and priority not of avoidance."

With where I’m at in my faith-walk, chapter 8 “Driven by Purpose” was revealing and convicting especially the section “The Unpurposed Life.” I don’t want to settle for the cheap substitute of happiness when biblical joy transforms and sustains.

This book will be one of the chosen few I’ll be giving as Christmas gifts this year. Its message of discovering a joy you never thought possible is clearly presented and needs to be heard.

Keep writing Mr. Wagner!

6 Great Reviews

In an effort to be more productive and efficient, I have many website and blog feeds in Google Reader. One of the feeds I subscribe to is Discerning Reader. "Discerning Reader is a site dedicated to promoting good books--books that bring honor to God. At the same time, we hope to help Christians avoid being unduly influenced by books and teachers that are not honoring to God."
I came across this site by a tip from Matt Mitchell, pastor of the Lanse Evangelical Free Church and fellow blog-writer at Hot Orthodoxy. Matt also posts book reviews on Discerning Reader, and has let me post his review of Uprooting Anger on this site.
Recently, 6 newer books were reviewed, and I was impressed with the quality of these reviews. The books cover a wide variety of audiences and are sure to be quite popular titles to their respective audiences. to see the review of each book, simply click on the title. You can also go directly to the Discerning Reader website by following this link.
3:16, by Max Lucado
Get Out of that Pit, by Beth Moore
Simple Church, by Thom Rainer
Quiet Strength, by Tony Dungy
Foundations of Grace, by Steven Lawson
A Taste of Heaven, by R.C. Sproul