Too true...

“If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.” 

~ J.K. Rowling in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

"Read the Bible in a commonsense way. Pray after you have read it as much as you like. When you are reading it, if you come to a knotty point, do not skip it. You all have some Christian friend who knows more than you do; go to him and try to get the thing explained. Above all, when you have read any passage, and do understand it, act it out, and ask the Spirit of God to burn the meaning into your conscience till it is written on the fleshy tables of your heart."

-Charles H. Spurgeon on Bible study

"Passion is passion...It's the excitement between the tedious spaces...the saddest people I've ever met in life are the ones who don't care deeply about anything at all.”

-Nicholas Sparks in Dear John

“The stage is a magic circle where only the most real things happen, a neutral territory outside the jurisdiction of Fate where stars may be crossed with impunity. A truer and more real place does not exist in all the universe.” 

~ P.S. Faber

The amazingly talented Sarah Kay

"Please don't let me stop thinking and start blindly frightenedly accepting!  I want to taste and glory in each day, and never be afraid to experience pain; and never shut myself up in a numb core of nonfeeling, or stop questioning and criticizing life and take the easy way out.  To learn and think: to think and live; to live and learn: this always, with new insight, new understanding, and new love."

~ Sylvia Plath

Learning to teach

"Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths pure theatre."

 ~ Gail Godwin

One of the great things about getting to teach so often is that one gets to present ideas in a way that is both educational and entertaining.  I believe that teaching is a gift that, while it can be honed, is usually a natural talent.  The best teachers I have had, whether in the church, the classroom or in the realm of life, made learning exciting and fun.  A certain element of drama is involved in teaching.  Certainly knowledge and preparation are important as a teacher, but at least as equally as important is the ability to translate that raw information in a lively and thoughtful way. 

My grandmother is a gifted storyteller and was wonderful at the presentation part of teaching.  What she lacked in knowledge about pirates, Native Americans and famous battles from the past, she compensated with a dynamic delivery and cliff-hanging presentation style.  This method of teaching encouraged us as children to then investigate the subject further in our own time.  Had it not been for her detailed and dynamic style, I might never have been motivated to such a great interest in history and folklore.  Fortunately, I was blessed with a childhood that encouraged reading, investigating and learning.  I believe this attitude toward learning demonstrated by my grandparents and parents motivated my sister and I to be life-long learners.  One benefit of loving to learn is that you will almost naturally come to love to share your knowledge with others.

In addition to family influence, another teaching example stands out to me.  I had a brillant Bible teacher during my undergraduate education.  In his class on Acts of the Apostles, he demonstrated a breadth of knowledge that far out-distanced my previous experience with the material.  Having more than just knowledge, he taught the course as if you were really there with the early Christians experiencing the same dramatic events that are witnessed in that book.  I learned so much in that class both from his knowledge and his teaching ability.

If you are preparing to teach please remember: knowledge of the subject matter is valuable and essential but so is the ability to relate that information to your audience.  When these two elements are joined together in the right proportion for the situation, learning is sure to result.

 "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."

~Antoine de Saint-Exupery in The Little Prince

"...you have broken down my defences. And I don't really resent it."

The film version of Les Miserables has been cast and will begin filming on March 5, 2012.  Hugh Jackman will appear as Jean Valjean and Russell Crowe will star as Javert.  The cast is first class mix of Hollywood/Broadway/West End actors and the songs will be recorded live during filming rather than dubbing over using tracks from the studio.  

Like all Les Miz fans, I am holding my breath to see if the film could possibly live up to such high expectations.  One great aspect of having a feature film version is that it will expose a much wider audience to the wonderful music and story of the play.

Less than a year (hopefully) before the premiere on December 5, 2012.  Can you hear the people sing?

Choice and Chance

This week I was caught up one day and decided to watch a movie.  I decided to watch the 1968 classic version of Romeo and Juliet.  Most people are at least vaguely familiar with the story of these two star-crossed lovers.  As children of two prominent feuding families, Romeo and Juliet should not allow themselves to fall in love, but as often happens, the two young people get swept up in their emotions.  Forced to marry in secret, a series of unfortunate events occur to the young couple and they end up dying tragically at the end of the story.

One of the leading ideas of the play is fate or chance and how it affects the lives of the characters.  One aspect of life not emphasized in the play is choice.  Many people in life blame or credit chance when, in all actuality, they should realize that choices played an important role in the situation.  It is sometimes easy to blame bad luck when perhaps instead we should blame bad choices.  Certainly some unfortunate events happen even when people make all the right choices, but I would venture to suggest that these cases are the exception rather than the rule.

When we make good choices, we influence life in our favor.  Good choices, of course, are the ones influenced by Christ.  When we make choices that mirror the choices that Jesus made we may not reap material benefits, but spiritual blessings will flow.  Choosing to do the right thing is the most sure way to avoid regret.  As it is said, a clear conscience makes a soft pillow.  When we do our best to make right decisions we can know that we are pleasing to God.

And that makes every right choice worthwhile...

What we study and who we are

One fact about me that perhaps many people don't know is that I studied primarily literature in college and not Bible.  The things that we choose to learn about whether formally or informally have a tendency to shape our views on life.  I believe that my background in literature and writing greatly impacts the way in which I think, teach, and preach.

Many men who are preparing to be preachers spend only a small amount of time in learning how to present ideas.  Most ministry students take two or three classes on the actual practice of preaching and spend much of the rest of their education in classes about the Bible text, Biblical languages, church history and church organization.  While it is certainly a benefit to learn Biblical criticism and ancient languages, these studies do not always inform a preacher's ability in the pulpit.  In my experience, it is just as needful to know how to express ideas in a meaningful way as it is to possess the ideas themselves.  One simply cannot be effective without both the knowledge of material and the method of presentation.

Fortunately, a background in literature informs both areas.  Knowledge of the Biblical text is enhanced when one understands the literary devices used by the writers of Scripture.  Also being able to compare the Bible with other literary works is valuable in seeing how human experience is universal and timeless.  In addition to aiding with knowledge, a background in literature also helps in the delivery of information.  Much of preaching is writing whether it be sermon outlines, bulletin articles, or study materials.  Having a more than basic skill level in the use of words is a great benefit to a minister.

I have often wished I had taken more text and language classes while in college, however, my extra time spent in the study of words and how to use them effectively is something I would not change.  Obviously some preachers will be heavy on the knowledge and lighter on the application and vice versa.  Hopefully we can all be used of God to draw more people to the point of a decision regarding relationship with Him.

"It takes all sorts to make a world."

-The Wind in the Willows

A Poem for New Year's Day

Another year is dawning,

Dear Father let it be,

In working or in waiting,

Another year with thee.

Another year of progress,

Another year of praise,

Another year of proving

Thy presence all the days.

Another year of mercies,

Of faithfulness and grace,

Another year of gladness,

The glory of thy face.

Another year of leaning

Upon thy loving breast,

Another year of trusting,

Of quiet, happy rest.

Another year of service,

Of witness for thy love,

Another year of training

For holier work above.

Another year is dawning,

Dear Father, let it be,

On earth, or else in heaven,

Another year for thee.



-Frances Ridley Havergal

You can't stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you.

You have to go to them sometimes.
-From Winnie the Pooh

Going south...

Trip to Oxford, MS, today with my grandparents.  Oxford is one of my favorite towns and, although this will be a lightening fast trip, I look forward to sharing it with them.

Enjoy these last warm days!

Surprised by Oxford not surprising

I recently completed Surprised by Oxford by Carolyn Weber.  The memoir tells the story of one woman's search for faith amid the academic and social circles of Oxford University.  Weber, affectionately known as "Caro" throughout the work, moves from a hardened position of unbelief to a reborn, reawakened Christian by story's end.

The book moves along briskly through the opening chapters following Oxford's unique term schedule as a guide for the story.  About the time of Weber's conversion, however, the work begins to drag a bit.  While I understand that a memoir has to work within the confines of the facts, Weber seemed to convert too early in the story.  The male figure "TDH" is memorable (and we later find a major influence on Weber spiritually and otherwise) and the supporting characters are all very real.  The main conflict does not seem to be between Weber and God but rather between Weber and reason, family and ambition.

Overall, the book was good if predictable.  Not everyone who pursues God will find as much support as Weber does from her motley crew of classmates and professors.  For others the process of conversion will be similiar.

Two aspects I loved about the book: the length of the individual chapters and the quotes/poems/epigrams that appeared constantly in the work.  As a student of literature, it was good to be reminded of Donne, Hopkins, Coleridge, Blake, Milton and others.

I would recommend the book to people who enjoy academics and questions of faith.  I think the average Christian reader might find some of the material a little too deep for an enjoyable read.

Overall, I give the book 3 1/2 of 5 stars.

Thomas Nelson provided me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

The relationship dynamics of Little Women

In Louisa May Alcott's novel, Little Women, she tells the semi-autobiographical story of the Transcendental lives of a New England family.  At the center of the drama is the relationship between the four sisters of the March family.  Every person who reads the novel has a favorite among the sisters and I confess my affectionate changes allegiance each time I read the novel or see one of the film versions.  Fictional characters are great to have relationships with: you control their behavior and they are custom fitted to your interpretations of them.  At different points in my life I have loved each of the March sisters.  For those of you who think this strange, just imagine having a crush on Beiber or Britney Spears except in a much more classy, literary way.

• Meg.  The oldest and most practical March sister.  She helps Marmee with the younger sisters and eventually marries the equally practical Mr. Brook.  Meg is motherly and what guy doesn't occasionally want someone to take care of him?
• Jo.  The star of the novel, Jo is adventurous, intelligent, daring, emotional and dramatic.  Every guy wants to date a Jo at least once in his life.  She is full of passion and desire and always looking for adventure.  The problem arises in the fact that she is a workaholic and will always outshine her man in public.
• Beth.  Beth is the sister with the tender heart.  She is frail and kind and plays a hauntingly good piano.  Beth of course dies in the novel.  Many men want to date a Jo and then marry a Beth.
• Amy.  Spoiled and childish at first, she grows up to marry Teddy who initially loved Jo.  Amy is high maintenance and knows it.  She always wanted to marry for money and does.  Amy is the "mean girl" that, while you don't like her attitude she is an object of desire as well.

I would say in my life I have dated all four types of March and found good and bad in all of them.  Jo-like women will always be the ones I fall for, but I love the sweetness of a Beth, the sturdiness of a Meg and the challenge of an Amy.  None is perfect, but it makes for a perfect story and a perfect setting for a literary crush.

Everyone wants to date a Jo and then marry a Meg or a Beth.