Money, Purpose, Joy, Matt Bell

A golfer with money problems, now that I can relate to!

I really enjoyed Matt Bell's practical and down to earth approach to solving personal financial dilemmas.  He offers wisdom from God's word, practical advice, good tools and helps online (and also a handy workbook, for an extra cost).  I was particularly challenged by his method for handling debt. Also at the end of every chapter the author offers a summary of the content included in the previous chapter along with a couple practical suggestions or action steps for applying the concepts mentioned in the chapter.

The action steps are very do-able.  They are based on just one or two easy ideas that can count up to real change.  They can be implemented with just a few easy adjustments to lifestyle.

Matt Bell also does an analysis of the type of spending / saving we tend to do that really helps us understand the differences or tensions that can come up in marriages or families. Are you a "Shopper", "Stockpiler" or a  "Builder"? The answer to this can help with many family stresses. 

Also the book includes several spending guides to give you an idea of how you are doing in conjunction to spending on housing, groceries, giving, saving, eating out etc.  These are inline with healthy lifestyles.  I found them encouraging to my values and reasonable to make changes. 

In the age when there are so many "Success Stories"  in relation to Money Management (Dave Ramsey, Crown, Generous Giving, etc) it was encouraging to read stories of success that have been born out of weakness & struggle. 

 Check out the Website www.moneypurposejoy.com

Looking For God, Nancy Ortberg

The subtitle captures it all

The Shack, William P. Young

The story of a tragic murder and how the father dealt with this huge loss. In the midst of his pain he solved many of the spiritual questions of his life. Including pain & suffering, the Trinity, prayer etc.

Breaking The Discipleship Code, Dave Putnam

Putnam is a church planter who is trying to help us go to the next step in helping people take responsibility for their growth in Christ. The text is full of great anecdotes about his experiences in and out side of the church .

"Live as Jesus Lived, Love Like Jesus Loved and Leave like Jesus Left" This is Putnam's philosophy of ministry and the book gives personal and challenging examples as to how this has played out

Rules for Renegades, Christine Comaford-Lynch

10 rules that will help you take leadership in life and business. The Key for Ms. C-L is to be bold even when you don't think your desired result is possible.

Rule 1: Everything's an illusion, so pick one that's empowering.
Rule 2: An MBA is optional, but a GSD (getting stuff done) is essential.
Rule 3: Problems + Pain=Profit
Rule 4: Build Power instead of borrowing it.
Ru,e 5: Rock Rejection and Finesse Failure
Rule 6: Learn to love networking
Rule 7: Only you can lead your life.
Rule 8: Work your money MOJO.
Rule 9: Resign as General Manager of the Universe
Rule 10: Don't just do Something, Stand there.

Point Man, Steve Farrar

Will we take the lead? One of the original Promise Keepers. Steve Farrar lays out a strategy for being men called to Biblical action in leading our families, our marriages, our work and our community relationships. It was a great wake up call for me to see how easy it is to slide down/ fall down the path of sin and brokenness.

In this call to leadership, Farrar shows us a path to healthy decision-making and Biblical directives in a way that does not remove the power of grace.

The Living Church, John Stott

A wonderful overview of the church - written in that John Stott style of being so strong in leadership and communication, yet gracious in judgement and condemnation. In other words you feel his conviction - but rather than feel like he is "yelling at you" you are aware of the Holy Spirit's voice in your life.

I felt particularly convicted in the areas of preaching as well as evangelism. All preaching is exposition - which is not an excuse for a "running commentary on a long passage". Evangelism is played out in 'incarnational Christianity' in the church. That is, we have been "both called out of the world to worship God and sent back into the world to witness and serve."

Each chapter deals with one aspect of the church today - and concludes with a summary that provides a simple action plan for change.

I became a Christian and All I got was this Lousy t-shirt, Vince Antonucci

A very interseting book. Vince, a pastor from a church for the unchurched in Va. Beach has written this book as a journey/journal through the ups and downs of his Christian life. It seems to me like a cross between Blue Like Jazz, and a compilation of sermon illustrations.

In his honesty in portraying his life as a "little Christ", Vince sometimes goes over the top in his descriptions. But he uses humour well and in the midst of dealing with his issues pertrays a helpful list of ideas to live with Christ.

I Once Was Lost, Don Everts & Doug Schaupp

The new book from IVP. It's about campus evangelism, by these 2 veteran InterVarsity staff workers. I felt hat it was very insightful and helpful. The greatest tool provided is the foundations of the book - mainly the 5 Thresholds of Evangelism.

Included with good campus stories these 5 thresholds gave me good guidelines for moving deeper into the life of my friends who are not yet believers.
Threshold 1 - Moving from Distrust to Trust - Christians have lost so much trust. We need to learn to listen and not preach or scold.

Threshold 2 - Moving from Complacency to Curious - Once trusted we need to be intentional about being authentic and compelling as we share our story.

Threshold 3 - Moving from being closed to change to bring open to change in their life. - Are they willing to go to an event or a Bible study with us?

Threshold 4 - Moving from Meandering to Seeking - We should continue to be intentional about asking them where they are in their journey

Threshold 5 - Moving to cross the threshold of the Kingdom of God. - Don't forget to ask the right questions at the right time and be prepared for the answer.

I will recommend this book for all student leaders.

Why You Do The Things You Do, Tim Clinton & Gary Sibcy

Tim Clinton & Gary Sibcy a primer on building relational health from a Godly perspective. The authors took a long time at the beginning developing the model of 4 styles of relating: secure, avoidant, ambivilent & . After they laid out the model they spent the 2nd half of the book talking about the specifics. It was a very good balance between real counseling case studies and strong principles. The plan of action is written in easy steps that are easily remembered and very practical.