I don’t plan on linking to all the reviews that come out, but I thought it might be interesting to show how people respond to a book doing both theology and story. Here are some of the early reviews and how they differ from non-fiction.

1. Fiction reviewers respond to the emotional resonance of the characters, not just the persuasiveness of their conversations.  

With non-fiction books, reviewers focus on the presentation and the persuasiveness of the main ideas. With Clear Winter Nights, readers wind up talking about the characters, not just their ideas.

Take Johann Vanderbijl’s review, for example. He focuses on his connection with the grandfather in the story:

No work of fiction has ever touched me this deeply.  I often had to stop to think, meditate, pray, and search my own heart.  Then this:  “In those quiet moments, when the stillness of the house set in and the winter evening sent a chill through everything, Gil cried out to God, asking for strength and wisdom.  From his heart poured his own regrets, his failures as a father, his decisions that had caused unintended pain.”  At this point, I had to put the book down.

Later on, he does mention the apologetic purpose of the story, but almost as a footnote:

This review is very personal because that is the impact the book had on me as I read it… At the same time, this very true to life book serves as an apologetic to those who share Chris’ hurts, anger, doubts, and fears.

For Johann, the characters are the book. The conversations are secondary. Perhaps that’s why in Patricia Janes’ review, her negative reaction to one character made it harder to appreciate the rest of the book. She describes one of the characters as naive and clingy and then writes:

I really dislike how the author equates Chris’ uncertainty about marriage with his uncertainty about faith. This artificial dilemma is ridiculous and I found it unsettling that the author equates these two things as on the same level.

Actually, the purpose of the Chris/Ashley dilemma is to demonstrate that conversion, rededication, and our journey of faith happen in community amidst a nexus of relationships. We are never in a vacuum dealing with the claims of Christ on our own, but are always interacting with and reflecting on how these decisions are impacted by and will further influence our friendships. In the rest of her review, Patricia found aspects to be commended (caution – Spoiler Alerts in the review!), but it’s clear that her disapproval of the main character’s relationship choices colored the rest of the book for her.

This kind of reaction to character is new for me. It makes reading the reviews exciting. I keep wondering, What will people think about Chris? How will they respond to Gil? It’s not the conversations that make the characters, but the characters that make the conversations.

2. Regular readers of non-fiction recognize the apologetic value of teaching theology through story.

Virginia Garrett’s review focuses on how the story provides food for thought for Christians and non-Christians (and provides a photo of the one of the pages!). She writes:

[This book] spoke to so many issues people have today. Many of the very issues people claim to have with Christianity are dealt with and answered in this book. If you or someone you know, Christian or not, are questioning beliefs, this would be a great book to read.

Michael Kelley also reviewed the book. He doesn’t give too much away, so you don’t have to worry about spoilers. Michael gets the “theology in story” part, and why it matters to be up front about the purpose.

I remember several years ago when The Shack came out and there was a good deal of controversy in trying to diagnose what the author was or was not trying to say in its pages. One of the defenses of the book was that it was a story, and therefore could not be treated as a strict commentary on life and God. The problem with that approach is that everything, whether we recognize it or not, is really about theology at its core. Every interaction, every response, every question at its core level reveals what we do or do not believe to be true about God. What Trevin has done here is simply dispense with the pleasantries and say, from the outset, that he is teaching through this story.

Along the same lines, Kyle McDanell sees the value in teaching through story:

Instead of confusing the faith, like The Shack, or tearing it down, like in A New Kind of Christian, Wax articulates it and builds it up. Wax acknowledges the real and present threats facing the church and uses Chris as the voice for them. But instead of ignoring or belittling them, he has Gil confront them all the while articulating why the gospel is more freeing.

3. Regular readers of theology understand the difficulty of crossing literary genres.

My friend and colleague, Matt Capps, admits he’s not much of a fiction reader, but he has a keen understanding of how difficult it is, as an author, to try a different genre. He writes:

Offering a work of fiction to the public puts an author in new territory beyond a change of literary genre. In non-fiction a writer has the privilege of shoring up his or her arguments with evidence, his or her points with the thoughts of other thinkers. Fiction pushes an author into a much more vulnerable position. Trevin has not only personally crafted this entire story, but also intimately created each character, and shaped their thoughts and actions. A fiction novel is a work of art. And because it is a work of art the writer becomes susceptible to criticism on many levels. In my opinion this makes Clear Winter Nights Trevin’s most personal venture yet.

Exactly. The personal attachment to this book is stronger than anything else I’ve written, and yet I’ve found I’m less defensive about this book and more interested in how people respond to the characters.

• John Wesley’s Teachings, Volume 1: God and Providence by Thomas Oden. $3.79.
• John Wesley’s Teachings, Volume 2: Christ and Salvation by Thomas Oden. $3.99.
• John Wesley’s Teachings, Volume 3: Pastoral Theology by Thomas Oden. $3.79.

NYC Ad Campaign – Kids Ruin Your Life:

The city’s Human Resources Administration (HRA) launched the campaign in March to warn teenagers about the burdens of being a young parent. But the posters displayed city-wide send a larger message to all residents: Children ruin your life.

Will Mancini – 5 Ways that Plug-n-Playing Another Church’s Ministry Model Will Cost You Ministry Progress:

If you utilize a model that you don’t develop, the enthusiasm behind it is often less. The passion is derivative and a generation removed from the model itself.

Christianity Today – Want to Change the World? Sponsor a Child:

“This is … amazing,” was all I could mumble. We tried slicing the data different ways, but each showed significant educational improvements. You could beat this data senseless, and it was incapable of showing anything other than extremely large and statistically significant impacts on educational outcomes for sponsored children.

A Pro-Abortion Reversal of Roe?

Pro-lifers continually pray for the reversal of Roe v. Wade. And with many on both sides of the abortion divide now agreeing that the decision is badly flawed, that could happen one day. But what if the overturn comes from the other direction?

- Polycarp

On the one hand, man is held to be in bondage to sin and in need of a divine redemptive power working within to emancipate him. On the other, it is held that no such bondage exists. All man needs is education.

With one group, something new is needed by sinful men; with the other, merely a recognition of one’s likeness to God is sufficient.

With one group a power from without, with the other an unfolding from within is required.

With one group, man accepts a saving grace to which by reason of sin he can make no just claim. With the other, he merely claims what is already his own.

With one group, Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, and our Lord and Savior. With the other, he is the son of Joseph and Mary and an inspiring example of filial devotion to God.

With one group, conversion as the result of evangelistic preaching is one of the permanent aims of Christianity. With the other, education and training, or ethical culture, are the only needs.

With one group is a great missionary passion based on the conviction that the world needs a saving Christ. With the other, altruism in the form of schools, hospitals and social reorganization is the chief need.

With the evangelical group, there is no denial of the ethical and social needs and results. Indeed they are held to be implicit in the whole Christian movement. The causes carry the effects in themselves at every stage. But the effects are impossible without the causes. The radical group insist much upon the ethical and social effects, but sever them from the causes, as those are conceived by the evangelical group.

- from  Christianity at the Crossroads (1924)

Kindle Deal: Speaking with Bold Assurance by Bert Decker and Hershael York. $2.99.

Whether preaching or witnessing, speaking is a critical communication tool in almost all facets of Christian life. This book brings the Bold Assurance concept to Christian leaders and laypeople, giving them a tool to help them use their minds, mouths, and beings to communicate effectively.

1. Nine Things You Should Know about Fathers and Father’s Day

2. A Father’s Day Challenge

3. Michael Patton on why you shouldn’t take yourself so seriously

4. Five People We Should Pray For (Even Though We Don’t Want To)

5. Eric Geiger – Is a Pastor a Leader?

6. Reading Comprehension Just as Good with Kindle as with Paper

7. The Question Not Asked in Germany – To Spank or Not to Spank?

Afshin Ziafat (Providence Church) – “Sharing the Gospel with Muslims”

Bob Russell (Southeast Christian Church) – Developing a Transition Plan

Spence Shelton (The Summit Church) - “Small Group Spiritual Formation Plan”

Jeff Iorg (Golden Gate Seminary) – “Learning Humility”

Danny Franks (The Summit Church) – “The Sermon Starts in the Parking Lot”

Matt Papa – “What is Worship?” 

“48 Days to the Work You Love is a strategic program designed to help you move ahead in your career with the confidence, boldness, and enthusiasm that only comes from having clear personal understanding and a plan of action,” says author Dan Miller.

House Committee Advances 20-week Abortion Ban:

A bill that would ban abortions nationwide after 20 weeks gestation is quietly moving in the U.S. House of Representatives and could reach the House floor as early as next week.

How to Deal with 3 Kinds of Hate Mail:

If you want to avoid hate mail, simply avoid any public leadership role. Yes, pastors receive their “fair share” of hate mail, but so also do politicians, business owners, teachers, and many others.

That said, there are seasons when pastors receive more hate mail than normal, and now is probably one of them, when churches and pastors are taking courageous yet unpopular stands on numerous moral issues. So what should we do when the haters start hating?

Philip Nation – Decisions are not Permanent:

In order to lead, we must make decisions that are certain. However, I do not think that we need to pretend as if every decision is permanent. As those we serve, sell to, or resource change, so will our production.

12 Steps to Strong Sermon Illustrations:

There are preachers who realize they aren’t naturals, but they work at it any way. They may never tell an illustration that goes down in history, but at least they will engage the hearts and imaginations of their congregation.

That’s you and me.

There’s only so much you can learn about a church from their website.

Sure, you can check the church’s doctrinal statement to find out what the people believe. You can see from the church calendar what programs run and how active people are in church activities. But the calendar and confession don’t necessarily tell you about the church’s culture.

Culture is the heart of your church, the atmosphere your church creates – whatever makes your church unique.

Unfortunately, the culture of a church doesn’t always match the confession. And when the culture isn’t aligned with the confession or the calendar, the culture typically wins. Which means, as church leaders, we shouldn’t spend all our time stocking the calendar or tweaking the confession. Instead, we need to take a step back and ask some questions about our culture.

In Creature of the Word, Matt Chandler, Josh Patterson, and Eric Geiger write:

“A church culture is healthy when there is congruence and consistency between what the church says is important to her and what others know really is important to her.”

So how do you know what your church culture is like? Here are a few questions:

1. What are you funding?

If your website says “missions” is a core value, and yet the music ministry budget is four times as big as your missions ministry, your church culture doesn’t line up with your stated values.

Follow the money. What are you funding? It’s likely that the more inward-focused your budget is, the more inward-focused your church is.

2. What are your people talking about? 

I recently spent some time on a college campus, and went to dinner with a couple guys. For two hours, all I heard about was the people these guys were discipling. Drug addicts. Homeless people. People far from God. It was clear from casual conversations that the culture of the school was mission-focused.

Spend time in casual conversations with the people in your congregation. You’ll discover what people are excited about. Talk to them long enough and you’ll discover the motivation behind the excitement. Are volunteers excited about VBS because of their love for kids, or because they hope to outshine the other churches across town? Are people always talking about personal preferences or how to be better effective in mission?

3. Who or what is the focus of attention?

What is the church focused on? Certain programs that give the church a good reputation? A ministry that gets good press? Powerful worship? Preaching? All these are good things can eventually supplant the worship of Christ.

Pity the pastor whose message is all about Jesus but whose ministry is all about himself! It’s possible to say Jesus is the hero from the platform and yet live as if you’re the hero of the church.

4. What are signs that back up your talk?

In Creature of the Word, a gospel-centered framework is described as a house.

• Theology is the foundation – what your church believes.
• Ministry philosophy is the structure and the design of the house, the commitments that undergird all your church does.
• Practice is the furniture of the house, what your church actually does.

Look at what your church is doing, the activities your church is involved in. And ask yourself where your practice aligns with your philosophy and theology. What are the signs that your people actually believe the confessional statement about evangelism? Or the core value of hospitality?

Look for the signs that back up your church’s talk, and then publicly celebrate those signs constantly. You become what you celebrate.

Conclusion

It’s possible to talk about grace and still be a legalist. It’s possible to talk about Jesus and still be self-centered. It’s possible to talk about guests and still be unwelcoming.

So check the culture of your church. Listen to those who visit. Ask friends to give you feedback. Don’t give up until the Jesus you worship and proclaim from the platform is the center of everything your church does.

Disciplines of a Godly Man 

This inspiring and best-selling book uses biblical wisdom, engaging illustrations, practical suggestions for daily living, and personal study questions to address the major areas of contemporary Christian manhood.

Thom Rainer – 7 Things Pastors Would Like Church Members to Know about Their Children:

I recently conducted a Twitter poll of pastors and their spouses about this very issue. Though the poll was informal and not scientific, the responses were nevertheless fascinating. Here are the top seven responses in order of frequency. A representative comment or combined comments are given with each of the seven.

Newsweek Ponders Privacy – in 1970:

The 1970s that followed this cover saw a pretty successful pushback against the government’s ability to surveil its own citizens. Time will tell if we can do the same.

13 Email Tips to Keep Your Inbox Under Control and Get Things Done:

To deal with the deluge, I have adjusted some of my email processing habits. I am starting to tread more and drown less. Here is what is working for me. Maybe if you are drowning in your inbox it will help you, too.

Here’s the trailer to The Hobbit – The Desolation of Smaug: