Adam Shields I just started reading Dennis Fuqua’s new book Living Prayer yesterday. I first met Dennis about 10 years ago when he came to meet with the leadership team of the Chicago Pastor’s Prayer Summit. Since then we have regularly run into one another at either Prayer Summit, Mission America or City Impact Roundtable events. I … Read more
Part of the Ancient Practice Series, “œThe Sacred Meal” looks at practice of the Eucharist (or communion or Lord’s Supper) within the church. This is a unique series and a unique book. I have never read another book on communion quite like it. It is not overly concerned with history (although it brings up some … Read more
Takeaway: Poverty, the reasons for poverty and the ways out of poverty are never simple. Good, rich stories are one way to show the complexity. Purchase Links: Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle Edition I love reading books when I have some outside references to the setting. Part of the book The Magician was set in Paris. We went … Read more
I like the concept of this book, introduce a saint to modern Christians through story and not just biography. Saint Francis, was a transitional Christian and is very relevant to today’s Christians, maybe especially to evangelicals. The weakness is that it isn’t great literature. At one point it talks about the purpose of great art … Read more
Takeaway: Best book I have read on leading prayer in a small group setting Purchase Links: Paperback, Kindle Edition Small groups have become a standard among the evangelical church. Especially in large churches, they are the way that you build community, disciple one another, and give and receive care from the church. Many small groups … Read more
Very different feel from the twilight books. This is a faintly science fiction book. It is an invation of the body snatchers story (or at least as much as the Twilight books were vampire books). There is a light romance going on. It is sort of like the Robert A. Heinlein book “I Will Fear … Read more
Frustration is probably the first thing I think about when I think of church prayer meetings. Maybe you have had much better experiences than I have. But when I think about my own church prayer meetings from the variety of churches that I have attended over my adult life, frustration is an accurate word. This … Read more
I have read a lot on prayer. I am interested for a number of reasons but most of them come back to my participation in Pastor’s Prayer Summits. These 3 or 4 day gatherings, usually with a facilitator from International Renewal Ministries, work to try to not only gather pastors and para-church leaders together from … Read more
Takeaway: Simple churches are more focused on the mission of the church. Purchase Links: Hardcover, Paperback, Audible.com Audiobook, Kindle Edition (You can also borrow this book on kindle, leave a comment or go to the lending page for more info) This is a summary review for a group blogging project that I participated in. I wrote my post … Read more
I picked up the audiobook version of Atlas Shrugged for $5 when it was on sale at Audible.com. It is 63 hours long. This will be my longest audiobook yet, beating our David McCollough’s Truman and Roy Jenkin’s Churchhill. Interrestingly, neither seem to be offered any more at Audible in their unabridged versions. I am not going … Read more