RECOMMENDED READING

Here are a few books, from various different fields and perspectives, that I have found especially informative and helpful:

Nathan Hatch, The Democratization of American Christianity (a study of the rapidly changing landscape of the church in America during the early republic (1780-1830), especially the shift away from hierarchical structures and toward populist patterns under the influence of the spirit of ’76; this work helped me understand many of the cultural assumptions we bring to our churches and that we apply in relation to leaders)

Edwin Friedman, A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix (a not-quite-finished work published posthumously by his wife, this brilliant and provocative yet sometimes aggravating study by a rabbi-therapist-consultant offers a penetrating critique of contemporary culture and how it sets us up for the sabotage of leadership)

Thomas Watson, All Things for Good (an exposition of Romans 8:28 by a 17th century Puritan pastor that probes the ways in which even the hardest things Christians face are for their ultimate good—and how we need to go through such trials)

John Piper, Desiring God (a vigorous defense of the notion that we were made to pursue the greatest of all joys, namely the satisfaction of knowing and following Christ (thus the subtitle: meditations of a Christian hedonist); the biggest problem is that we are so easily pleased, so willing to settle for paltry, second-rate, fleeting pleasures of this life, when ultimate joy is offered)

Jim Cymbala, Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire (a stunning picture of what God does in the lives of humble believers who really take prayer seriously)

Ruth Tucker, From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya (wonderful short stories on the lives of scores of missionaries through the centuries—honest, moving, encouraging)

Bruce Ware, God’s Lesser Glory (an extended and successful refutation of the theology of open theism; Ware ably demonstrates that an attentive reading of the whole Bible must reject the claim that future decisions of humans are not known to God)

John R. W. Stott, The Message of the Sermon on the Mount (as always, Stott is clear, organized, concise, bold—a great book to bring a key biblical passage (Matthew 5-7) into vivid light, and a great model of an expository Bible commentary)

SPIRITUAL AIR POLLUTION

I wonder if we realize how radically “now-oriented” our modern world is. It’s one thing to “live in the present” and trust God for today—that’s great. But it’s another thing to live in complete denial of the looming, final reality of the next life. It seems the air we breathe in Western culture is contaminated with fumes that make people (even many Christians!) forget about eternity.

We need some “Bible oxygen” in order to keep our heads. According to 2 Corinthians 4:17-5:1 this life and its troubles are but “momentary,” and our bodies are mere “tents” we camp in for our brief earthly stay. “As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more” (Ps 103:15-16). Compare your time in this world to the dandelion: a bright yellow blossom one day, then before you know it its fuzzy little seeds float away and the flower is gone. And so, Jesus calls the man in Luke 12:16-21 a fool: he may have been rich, but in his delirium he forgot about the next life. He was like Demas, who deserted Paul in time of need because “he was in love with this world” (2 Tim 4:10). And like the Laodiceans, who trusted in their wealth yet failed to see that, spiritually, they were destitute (Rev 3:17).

On the authority of God’s Word I say, Beware of the air down here—it’s polluted. Don’t let the here-and-now take center stage in your heart or thoughts or speech or hopes: don’t be a fool. Instead, give your heart to Christ, get your Bible oxygen, and set your hope in heaven!