Featured song: David Crowder Band- Shadows

Photos: Spring in the garden #1

Book review: Andy Andrews- The butterfly effect

The Butterfly Effect
Andy Andrews

In The Butterfly Effect, Andy Andrews attempts to communicate how much everything we do has the potential to change the world.

The book follows how the little actions of someone impacted someone who impacted someone else and so on eventually resulting in something that has made a big difference to the world happening. They are certainly interesting stories. Another positive about the book is the beautiful artwork and photography. They did a really good job with the book’s graphic design.

I did think the book had a few weaknesses. One was that I thought it tended to overstate its point. It claims billions of people will be impacted by what we do. We certainly can change the world, but realistically not everything we do will change the world. It gives too much credit to the individual for shaping the world and too little to God.

The other thing that bothered me was the portrayal of America it presented. One of the stories it told was about an American victory in war. It argued that because America won that war it was able to do a whole lot of wonderful things in the world. Maybe there is some truth to that but it seems to excessively glorify America and hardly seems a balanced perspective on America’s involvement in the rest of the world.


Review copy courtesy of booksneeze.com

Book review: David Jeremiah- Captured by grace

Captured by grace
David Jeremiah

In Captured by Grace, Dr. David Jeremiah explores the wonder of God’s grace.

I really enjoyed this book. It deals with the big idea of grace in an easy to read way. Much of the book is vivid narratives about the lives of the Apostle Paul and John Newton (the man who wrote the hymn Amazing Grace). I could easily picture the scenes he described. In addition to the storytelling is some great reflections on the nature of grace. The reflections are divided up into the sections of grace for the past, grace for the present and grace for the future.

I think this is a book that will be helpful in some way to all Christians, whether they be new Christians coming to understand grace for the first time or not so new Christians rediscovering the wonder of the grace they already know. I think that this book would also be understandable and helpful enough for someone investigating Christianity, particularly if they’ve had thought Christianity was about rules and us earning our way to God.


Review copy courtisy of booksneeze.com

Free ebook from Sarah Cunningham

A few weeks ago I interviewed author Sarah Cunningham. If you are interested in reading her book Picking Dandelions, you can download it free at the Amazon Kindle store this week. If you don't have a kindle, you can get free apps to read kindle books on a variety of phones, iPod touches or computers. Make sure the book is still free before you get it as prices can change.

Free download of Picking Dandelions at Amazon.

Love doesn't stereotype

I couldn’t tell you in any detail what I did or felt most days of September 2001. I was in high school at the time so probably normal high school student things. September 11 and 12 are the exception. The attacks happened in the middle of the night of September 11 Australian time so I was already asleep. I awoke early the next morning as I had an 8am school band practice to go to. I stumbled out in the hallway to be confronted by my tired looking mother saying something about towers and planes and New York. At first I dismissed it, thinking it must have been a bad dream she was telling me about. Upon walking past the TV I discovered that this was no dream but a very real and terrible reality.

Despite what had happened, band rehearsal and classes were still going ahead as usual. While the teacher rearranged their sheetmusic students would talk amongst themselves about what they had seen on television that morning, filling in the few students who had not heard about it. In the chatter something troubling began to emerge. I started to hear a certain ethnic group of which there was some suspicion the attackers may have come from get talked about in very unflattering terms. It was only 7 or 8 hours after the attacks and details as to who did it and why we still sketchy but racism was coming up already. People didn’t stop to think that even if they had correctly identified the ethnicity of the attackers, the proportion of that ethnic group who had anything to do with the attacks was very very very small. It was guilt by association on a massive scale.

Unfortunately such stereotyping was not an isolated incident. It is way too easy to shove people in boxes- “They belong to (group name) so they must be (negative attribute)”. We see it all the time, whether the type of group in question be ethnic, religious or any other type. It is noticeable in many of the responses to the currently debated New York Islamic cultural centre. I’m not going to get into the complicated issue of whether that project in that location is a good idea (and I ask that you don’t in the comments section). It is troubling how many people seem to assume that because they are Muslim they can’t possibly have good intentions.

Assuming the worst of people based on their group affiliation is lazy and not fair. People deserve better than that. Part of our Christian responsibility to love our neighbor means treating them how we’d want to be treated. We wouldn’t want to be thrown in with the many examples of Christians doing really stupid things so we should be careful to show others the same courtesy. Love, don't stereotype.

Photos: Birds

Book review: C.S Lewis- Mere Christianity

Mere Christianity
C.S Lewis

In Mere Christianity, C.S Lewis lays out the case for the beliefs that are central to all branches of Christianity.

It would be worth reading just to put all the quotes you’ve probably heard or will hear in context. It is with good reason that this book has become so popular. Lewis has a great way with words and does well at explaining some big concepts in accessible ways. Lots of times he said things in a way that really made me think, particularly in regards to the relationship between faith and morality. There are some cultural difference between the time Lewis was writing and our time, both in some of the illustrations used and in the arguments for God people find compelling. Despite these differences, the book still has much making it well worth reading for both Christians and those interested in Christianity.

I “read” this book in audiobook format. It was nice to hear someone with a British accent narrating the book given Lewis is British but most narrators seem to be American.


Review copy courtesy of christianaudio.com

Loving the lonely

People on my campus seem to really enjoy scawling graffitti in the bathrooms. In some of the bathrooms there is barely any undecorated space on the back of the doors. It seems no topic is off limits in their scawling- sexuality, ethics, politics, religion, mental health, relationships and many other topics. People ask for advice and respond to other people’s graffitti. Some write a few words, some write paragraphs. There even seems to be someone who considers it an evangelistic ministry as bible verses and C.S Lewis quotes make an appearance occasionally.

Sometimes it can make for entertaining reading. Sometimes though, I can’t help but feel a little disturbed and sad. What have we come to as a culture when some people feel their best avenue for confessing their struggles and talking about their problems is to write it on a bathroom door and hope that a stranger may write back? You'd have to be pretty lonely. It is surely not a healthy sign for our society.

As Christians we tend to be pretty into changing the world and reforming society. Often the big things we plan are great but reading the bathroom doors I can’t help but wonder if what we also need to do is lots of little things. Some hugs. Some kind words. A few minutes to listen to how someone is really feeling. Certainly not flashy but imagine what a difference everyone feeling cared for could make.

Featured song: An epic, no less- One word

You can download the song (plus the rest of the album) for free at the widget below. They sound like Owl City crossed with Hillsong.