Chasing Francis by Ian Cron

I need to thank Ian personally for this book (I received it as part of the Soularize experience) as once again a book came at the right time for me. I met Ian briefly on a boat in the Bahamas on our way to swim with sharks, but never knew this was his work.

To give you a run down, the book centres on a character (Pastor Chase) who is the founding pastor of a large protestant church in the New England area. Chase, as you find out early is going through a lot of questioning on what the church is to be and during a passionate moment, vomits these ideas all over his congregation. (Sounds like something I would do). This leads to a forced leave of absence so he can work through where he is at, and allow to elders to assess whether he should stay on.

After working through some of the issues with family (and getting hurt by a lot of church members) he decides to leave the country and go visit his uncle in Italy. In Italy he studies with a number of Saint Francisan monks and they begin to shape the way he sees the world and ultimately the church.

If I was to write a book in order to teach a way of life, this is how I would do it. The story was very well written and believable (more believable from an American stand point, as I have heard how churches are down there, but understandable as a Canadian). And for me it was a great way to get introduced to more of Saint Francis, a Saint I really only knew as a few famous quotes. Near the end when Chase is connecting back up with his old church, I felt that Saint Francis was given way too much credit in his speech, but other than that I loved this book entirely.

On my CP scale I give it a 4.5/5, and recommend it to any church planter, leader or whatever that needs a pilgrimage to work through how they feel they about how the church should be and the role they should play in it.

My friend mike made a short mention on his blog about this book as well.

Out of the Ooze by Spencer Burke

I am sure Spencer (whom I met at Soularize) would be the first to tell you he didn’t author this book, so for clarity this book is a collection of articles from the ooze website that Spencer picked for his book.

I think sometimes we rank books, music or movies based on the time of life they touch us. And so I am quick to give this book high praise and CP marks (I give it 4/5 as a book for rethinking). I am at a serious stage of rethinking (I know I always seem to be at that point), and so this book was the perfect match to my time of life. I received this book for free from Spencer from my time in the Bahamas at Soularize and decided to pick it up a week or so ago. And to my surprise it was exactly what i was looking for. Every article (specifically the ones at the beginning and at the end) seemed to speak where I was at. Not in ways that would fix my problems, but allowing me to sit in the problem in order to work it out. You see there wasn’t one article that I would say I totally agreed with, in fact a lot of them I pushed back, but it was the freedom of thought that I enjoyed. It has inspired me to write more to, and to share my thoughts even though they are very incomplete at their best.

So if you have a moment pick this book up and read the first 3 articles. All three of these had me hooked and inspired. Inspired not to do, but to undo and detox, and move in a direction even if it isn’t the right one…although it could be the right one for now.

Simplicity by Richard Rohr

I have managed to down another Richard Rohr book, and Simplicity is another winner. He again builds upon many of the thoughts from “everything belongs” and challenges me over and over to get myself out of the way so that God can work through me. There are so many ways that we as Westerners have built up our own “kingdoms” so as to get in the way of what God is doing. What I really loved is how those “kingdoms” manifest themselves in not only our personal goals and ego, but also in the systems we have created. When we finally move ourselves out of the way we will see the corruption in our own lives and in the systems we work through every day.

As a church planter I give this book a 4/5, so consider it a must read, but you need to be in a good place…a quiet contemplative place to read it and really grasp what he is trying to say, because if you don’t you can let his powerful words slip by without causing any change in you. The main thing that this book did to me is open my eyes to see. I am not sure what i will see yet, but i know it will involve some action on my part. Those thoughts to come.

And yes to those who want those levels of maturity that Rohr has put together and presented in the Bahamas, I found them again and will post them sometime in May.

For All God’s Worth by NT Wright

I’m not sure if it’s being in Paris or whatever, but this book seemed to be written to me at the right time. Let me read you a quote that may or may not affect you, but really challenged me and my direction in life.

“…But the second level of calling, which may, and I pray will, come to some of you, is the calling to be all this for the church. It is the call, in other words, to full-time Christian ministry at whatever level, including that of ordination. Ordination isn’t the be-all and end -all of Christian ministry; but the church desperately needs ordained clergy, needs them now as much as ever, and I would be surprised if out of the readers of a book like this God were not calling someone, perhaps several, to give their life in imitation of Paul in imitation of Christ: to hold on to Christ with one hand and hold on to the church with the other, to share and feel the agony of the church’s follies and failings, and to know the power of Christ to restore and heal the church and set her feet back on the right path. That vocation not to be lightly dismissed. (pg. 100)”

Now this is a loaded quote, and depending on how or of you know me, there are many ways this quote could be interpreted. Therefore let me just say that I know that my life is involved in purposes of the church, and the way that looks is still part of my journey, but ever since I started the open house and now my new job I feel that calling more than ever. I am not convinced it has to look a certain way, but I know that it will be a huge part of my life. Now to say something about this book in particular, I would like to rate it a 4.5/5 for church planting purposes. It will renew your vision of God and the role of the church in the world, which I desperately need taught to me over and over again. NT does an amazing job of connecting the worship of God and the role of the people of God, revealing how God uses us to His ends. He remembers us and that turns into action for us and by us. He also brings unity into the mix, and addresses unity in light of justification by faith; justification is a thus a doctrine leading to unity in Christ as all of us are justified equally and therefore should participate in the life of Christ together. Wright says:

“…the doctrine which declares that all who believe in the Messiah Jesus belong at the same table, no matter what their ethnic, geographical, gender or class background.”

Lastly, in this short review of a powerful book, Wright paints a picture of the church (in the last chapter particularly building upon the whole book) that is the church I want to Pastor. It is a church focused on the Beatitudes, and his teaching of the beatitudes changes the face of the church. Wright says:

“The church is here to be the Voice to the world; the Voice that does not claim great things for itself, but simply urges the world to get ready for the God who comes in the power of judgment and love. We are to live, and we are to speak in such a way as to do for our generation, more or less, what John did for his: to demonstrate and announce that there is a different way of being human, the way of love, the way of God, and so to bring to the world the news (good news to the weary, bad news for the bullies) that the creator of the world is also the comforter of the world…”

This is a powerful statement and gets me excited for life…even as a Pastor.

All The Ideas Living In My Head by Don Everts

This little book came at a good time for me. Basically Don talks about how we think and uses the picture of your head being a busy household and the different people are ideas that interact with each other. What I love about this picture is that it celebrates having many ideas about different subjects all together, but it also makes the interaction real. You see when people interact in a house, sometimes their wrong or right, or junior or senior and need to leave or stay or get the better room. I am not sure if you are following but it makes thinking more real for me and it also celebrates diverse thinking, without losing the critical nature of thinking that is important.

I teach a lot of different ideas at the open house, and some are received well and others are shot down, but I have never been upset with presenting the ideas because if I don’t then I won’t learn and others won’t challenge or ask themselves whether the idea should be considered.

Right now we are going through Genesis and its been a blast. New ideas, ruffling feathers, but some great thinking is coming out. Cool stuff. Thanks Don. I give you a 4/5 for church planting stimulation.

Book 5/48: Mavericks at Work by William Taylor and Polly LaBarre

Having just finished Mavericks at Work: Why the most original minds in business win by William Taylor and Polly LaBarre, I would like to start by saying that in church planting terms (as I like to rate books by) this is a bust. This is a book about ideas for businesses (too many examples I must add), and it’s a no holds barred approach. The writers don’t shy away from how these companies market, find talent and run their business and I found it incredibly conniving, especially in the way that they measure success, so in that regard (as one who dreams about a little more ethical approach to success) I found myself left wanting.

In a business sense the writers try to cover too much ground. From clever business ideas, to marketing those ideas, to hiring the right people, to coming up with the right gimmick, i was overwhelmed form the start. I have ready many of these types of books and this one is on its way to the closet thrift shop (unless you leave a comment here and I will send it to you).

In writing terms the book was too repetitive. Concepts and examples (did I mention about there were too many already) we repeated over and over, almost driving me insane.

So in the end I give this book a 1.5/5 and why the 0.5? Well for the following 5 questions that ask you to work through for your business that I found helpful. Here they are, think them through and don’t buy this book.
1. Why should great people join your organization?
2. Do you know a great person when you see one?
3. Can you find great people who aren’t looking for you?
4. Are you great at teaching great people how your organization works and wins?
5. Does your organization work as distinctively as it competes?

Book 4/48: The E-Myth by Michael Gerber

It is 3am and at about 1:30am I finished reading the E-myth by Michael Gerber. Why I am up at 3am is the Keg’s problem (not bad food, just a little too much), but now that I still am I thought I would write a few thoughts on the E-myth.

I started reading it because my wife thought it was a good read, and one of my favourite thinkers recommended it here. All I can really say is that I had trouble getting through the first half of the book, but once I made it to some more of the practical steps of small business creation in the second half I definitely was drawn in.

Basically Mr. Gerber takes you along in a story of a lady who has started her personal business called All About Pies and is about to quit. He helps her re-imagine her business, as she was so caught up in the making of the pies, that she didn’t know how to run her business. So Gerber helps her create systems, and the classic turn-key project so that she can get back to why she started the business in the first place. She was so overwhelmed by all the work, she couldn’t take it anymore, but with Gerber’s help she was able to refocus and dream again.

I am not sure what type of ranking I would give it on a church planting scale or a small business scale, probably more towards a 3/5 because many people have found it quite helpful. But on a personal level, this book didn’t do it for me. I found the stories were boring and drawn out, and the advice almost didn’t fit within the context of the stories.

If you are thinking of starting a church (or a small business), I wouldn’t recommend this book, instead learn your demographic, your people and maybe read a little Seth Godin to get you going. The E-Myth will be there when you run out of popular entrepreneurial books to read.

Book 3/48: Everything Must Change by Brian McLaren

OK, so in the past month I have started a new job, almost finished a renovation on our basement, and tried to balance being a pastor…so I am a little behind on the book front. Will I get to 48 this year? Time will tell. In the meantime here is the most recent book i have finished. Everything Must Change by Brian Mclaren.

I will give it a ranking of 4.5/5 in the category of relevance for today’s church communities. It did an amazing job of bringing to life the major issues in this world and the way in which Jesus has spoken into each of these as found in the bible. It also makes a great case for how we must address them as churches not only because we are commanded to, but also for the benefit of what it would mean for our world.

I highly recommend this book for the reader with a high social conscience, and pretty much anyone who calls themselves a Christian and wants to truly follow the ways of Jesus in light of the major issues in the world. Thats a bold endorsement, but you will know what I mean if you read it.