Category Archives: Mark’s Currently Reading

Books and more that Mark is reading

The Alchemist

Posted on November 24, 2010 by admin

I’m starting to read The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. This is not my usual style — its a fable/parable about discovering one’s destiny. But my doctor highly recommended it and I’m enjoying reading things outside my usual parameters.

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Books on CD

Posted on November 15, 2010 by admin

I started listening to Thomas Keating today. I found a collection of audio CD’s by the leading authority on the Contemplative Life at my local public library. So I get to listen to pep talks on contemplation while working out … Continue reading →

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A Lawyer and a Lot More

Posted on November 15, 2010 by admin

Things you learn reading novels by Stephen L Carter In real life, he is a professor of law at Yale In his fiction and non-fiction books, he acknowledges that religion can play a healthy role in modern lives What it … Continue reading →

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A Judge’s Biography

Posted on November 14, 2010 by admin

I started reading Sonia Sotomayor: The True American Dream this weekend. It was written by Antonia Felix, who doesn’t hide her admiration for the 111th Supreme Court Justice. So far, I’ve read about her mother’s impoverished beginnings in Puerto Rico, … Continue reading →

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Questions Raised by Books

Posted on November 11, 2010 by admin

I just started reading Deep Church by Jim Belcher. Belcher is a pastor, a trained theologian, and friend to the Emerging Church movement. His book tries to bring all of his backgrounds together in proposing a new (or, really, old/basic/classic) … Continue reading →

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Summarizing The Strategically Small Church

Posted on November 9, 2010 by admin

I just finished The Strategically Small Church. I hope I get the opportunity to work through this book with a local congregation sometime. O’Brien says the title refers to a change of attitude from “we’re just a small church” to … Continue reading →

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What do we equip for?

Posted on November 9, 2010 by admin

As long as I can remember, many local congregations have made a priority of the Ephesians 4 ministry of “equipping the saints.” Unfortunately, most of us artificially restricted what we equipped people for. Mostly, we just equipped folks for doing … Continue reading →

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Small Churches; Contemporary Sermons

Posted on October 31, 2010 by admin

Yesterday I started reading Brandon J O’Brien’s  The Strategically Small Church. I had commented on a blog post about it, and one of my commenters suggested I actually read the book. It’s a short book that gets right to the … Continue reading →

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Speaking and Helping

Posted on October 21, 2010 by admin

Of course, speaking and helping are not mutually exclusive; they just summarize the books I’m reading today. Communicating for a Change by Andy Stanley and Lane Jones fulfills my goal of reading a book on preaching every year. The first … Continue reading →

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The Power of Listening

Posted on October 12, 2010 by admin

I’m thinking about listening to people we’re out of the habit of hearing. And I’m reminded of Gordon MacDonald’s marvelous book, Who Stole My Church: What to Do When the Church You Love Tries to Enter the 21st Century. The … Continue reading →

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