Review: The Good and Beautiful Life: Putting on the Character of Christ

The Good and Beautiful Life: Putting on the Character of Christ by James Bryan Smith
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I had to read this book as part of a seminary course. 95% of required readings are those really dry, dreary and boring books that I would probably never want to read if I had the choice. But boy oh boy was I proven wrong! I ended up buying the other two books in his apprentice series - "The good and beautiful God" and "The good and beautiful community."

The reflection (Smith calls them Soul Training) exercises were also mandatory requirements of the course and they were extremely helpful to plow through. (I would not have done them if they werent made compulsory). There was not a moment that Smith was indulging in questionable exegesis or upholding shaky theological claims. I thoroughly enjoyed Smith's engaging, passionate and easy-to-read little book. So much so that after I read the book I borrowed from the library, I bought one for myself.

I highly recommend this book! Small group leaders may consider journeying chapter by chapter with their flock. You'd be tempted to rush through it, but please try to refrain from doing so! There is so much reflection, healing and encouragement that could result from prayerful reflection and discussion with this book as a tool!

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Review: Fight Fair: Winning at Conflict without Losing at Love

Fight Fair: Winning at Conflict without Losing at Love by Tim Downs
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

While the primary target audience would be married couples, the principles discussed are relevant to almost every other type of relationship (those dating, good friends etc). Though the material is sometimes a little boring and repetitive (which means that the book could possibly have been even more concise with better editing), the thoroughly researched comments and suggested applications are extremely useful.

Stylistically, the layout is simply brilliant. A comic strip starts each chapter, the text is large enough for easy reading and the side column on each page is filled with interesting random information. I borrowed this book from the library and liked it so much that I ended up purchasing one to keep (as a bible school student, we have to be extremely selective in the books we choose to buy/keep otherwise we would end up with many books that we would never pick up again).

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Review: The Last Christian Generation

The Last Christian Generation by Josh McDowell
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This book is intended for the "older folk" in churches who have no idea how the young postmodern millennials think. As part of the latter group, the book correctly identified the many differences between the two groups. But sadly, the apologetic arguments were few and thin. There is little likelihood of any of us buying the remedial solutions that McDowell was proposing. He could have either gone down the philosophical or the theological route, but it seems that he intends the book to be read by an audience that has receive little education in either area. I cannot recommend this book.

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Review: Perspectives on the World Christian Movement: Reader

Perspectives on the World Christian Movement: Reader by Ralph D. Winter
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

My bias is perhaps I have more interest in biblical theology than in the history of world missions, and having grown up in a charismatic missions church, find the case studies to be less "spectacular" than I had expected. I did really enjoy the assortment of biblical perspectives, and works by the pioneers of modern missions (like Carey and Taylor).

Maybe the fact that we were to read this title as a compulsory reading for a missions course killed the joy of reading. If I were to purchase this book, I would cut it up and only keep the more enjoyable chapters (1-7, 9, 11-19, 21, 24, 27-28, 30-31, 34-36, 43, 48-51, 54, 69, 75-76, 78-80, 88, 99, 101, 106, 110, 132, 134-6). Overall, there are a few brilliant articles, but the disjointment from author to author does not provide a smooth overarching picture from theology to practice. I also would avoid any article written by Hawthorne as he writes from a non-scholarly perspective.

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Review: Counseling Before Marriage

Counseling Before Marriage by Everett L. Worthington Jr.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed this journal. Recognising my own biases as a postmodern thinker, I have had my prejudices and apprehension about pre-marriage/pre-courtship counselling reduced significantly. My strong worldview would not have budged if the author had made ungrounded assertions.

As a seminary student preparing for marriage, it has brought up extremely useful bible-based insight as to what is to come in the days ahead. All these mixed with an enjoyable dose of what Christian psychologists have gleaned from their field and years of study/practice.

I strongly recommend this title. You'd probably have to grab a second hand copy as a brand new one is going to be really expensive!

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Review: Practicing Greatness: 7 Disciplines of Extraordinary Spiritual Leaders

Practicing Greatness: 7 Disciplines of Extraordinary Spiritual Leaders by Reggie McNeal
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thankfully, this book was a compulsory course reading requirement and proved to be a joy to read! It made me consider wanting to purchase other titles from the same author. The book consists of some thoughts and processes that (as I observe how my new church functions), I could possibly highlight for consideration to the pastoral team. As an instinctive problem-solver, I unconsciously seek out more efficient methods and processes of my surroundings. I thought that the notion of benchmarking was brilliant, with its potential for vision, modelling and affirmation to be caught from a posture of rest from service.

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Review: Courageous Leadership

Courageous Leadership by Bill Hybels
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thankfully I read the book without knowing the identity of this certain Bill Hybels. If I knew, I would most probably not have even picked up the book! I would have missed the opportunity to get a glimpse of the inner workings of this man of God (because of my negative perception of Willow Creek and the visitor-friendly church model).

In the introduction, Hybels claims that he waited thirty years to write this book, and that Courageous leadership is the one he feels most strongly about. Some great advice for idealistic and naive seminary students like myself, who understand and affirm deep concepts but have not yet tried to apply them to the real world: "the words and ideas that fill the pages to follow are not abstract concepts to me; they represent the activity and passion of my life" (p11) and "this is not a book on leadership theories, but rather on proven leadership practice" (p12).

I first read this book when I chanced upon it two years ago (then 2013), and I was so blessed that I purchased one to keep (as a bible school student, we have to be extremely selective in the books we choose to buy/keep - otherwise we would end up with many books that we would never pick up again, and that we would have a big headache trying to figure out what to do with them if we were to pursue further studies overseas or go for missions). And to write this review, I'm reading it again.

I recall an exchange I had with two of my seminary classmates yesterday (9 Oct 2015). The topic was on whether we preferred to pastor a small (about 200 people strong) or a larger (about 2000 people strong) church. One of them joked that I would lead a megamega church of two million (to put that in perspective, here in Singapore we have 5.5million people). I searched my heart for a reply, and this is what I come up with, "I think I'm a better teacher than I am a pastor. I truly do not know how, because I have never had a good pastor until about I met my first about three years ago. I need somebody to teach me or else I would never know." The reason I share the exchange, is because I thoroughly believe that we need good leaders and good pastors. Or else the younger generation simply will regard the term good pastor-leader as an oxymoron.

Courageous Leadership is one of top two leadership books I would recommend (the other being Overcoming the Dark Side of Leadership by McIntosh & Rima - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...). If you would like to bless a leader or pastor for a special occasion (maybe the ones who you do not like, need to read these more than the ones you do like), you will not go too wrong with a twin gift set of pairing up Courageous leadership with his other book titled Leadership Axioms (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...). They are often found in a bundle of three, together with the Call to Lead, but I am not as fond of this as much as I am about the former two.

This labour of love is the fruit of after he concluded that his "thirty-year graduate class on leadership-fleshed out in the real-life laboratory of a local church-had finally prepared [him] to write about the strategic importance of the spiritual gift of leadership" (p12). Hybels asks of us this profound call to action: "will the men and women who have been entrusted with leadership gifts take their gifts seriously, develop them fully, and deploy them courageously, so that the willing and gifted believers in their churches can work together to make a difference in the world?" (p27).

It could be argued that the Crazy Busy (cf. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...) Singaporean believer and the Church he attends may tend toward being more inward than outward looking; the Singapore church exists for itself and efforts to bring forth the gospel of Jesus Christ may not be the primary personal responsibility of every member. To this problem, we have one-trick response - events and events and more events.


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