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MAGL Spring Reading List

Chris —  March 11, 2011

Today in the mail a bunch of new friends came.  They’ll be hanging out with me for the next two months as I prepare for two weeks of  Masters of Arts of Global Leadership classes through Fuller Theological seminary.  They are:

Community of Character by Stanley Hauerwas.  When I first read Hauerwas’s The Peaceable Kingdom it sent me down a path that has defined much of my thinking ever since.  I’m super excited for more.

Experiencing the Trinity by Darrell Johnson.

Renovation of the Heart by Dallas Willard.  I’ve been through this once before on audio.  Anyone who I’ve ever talked to about books knows that there’s no one I hold in higher esteem that Willard.

Spiritual Direction by Henri Nouwen.  I’m not sure how I’ve made it this far in life without reading Nouwen.  Time to change that

The Ascent of a Leader by Thrall, McNichol and McElrath.  Leadership books always inspire me toward greater focus.

Spiritual Leadership by Blackaby.

The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity, by Phillip Jenkins.  More of a sociological study for the “Global” in MAGL.

Announcing the Kingdom by Glasser, Van Engen and Redford.  Written by the Fuller Missions staff, this looks to be the heaviest theological work I’ll be doing this quarter.

Open Secret: An Introduction to the Theology of Mission by Lesslie Newbigin (not pictured). As I’ve said before, Newbigin is responsible for launching much of the conversation in the Church today.  This will be important.

Time to get to work!

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10 Great Reads Encountered in 2013

Chris —  December 26, 2013

Here are ten books I’m glad I encountered in 2013.

Daring Greatly
Brene Brown‘s “data with a soul” may be the most important book you read for awhile. She lays out issues of shame and authenticity in a way that make you feel known. You will be a better human if you read this book.

 

 

 


Prodigal Christianity: 10 Signposts into the Missional Frontier
David Fitch and Geoff Holsclaw

Ecclesia Network friends Fitch and Holsclaw’s pitch for missional neo-Anabaptism. It’s important.

 

 

 

Faiths in Conflict?
Vinoth Ramachandra

One of the best books I read in MAGL. Comparative religions written by a Christian from Sri Lanka.

 

 

 

The Social Animal
David Brooks

David Brooks parable using brain science, behavioral economics and even a pitch for neo-federalism. You might not buy his politics, but he is a model thinker.

 

 

 


Jesus, My Father, The CIA, and Me: A Memoir. . . of Sorts
Ian Chron

Don’t let the ridiculous title fool you. It’s a story about the adventures of life, addiction and where the divine fit in.

 

 

 


Snow Crash
Neak Stephenson

The Matrix meets Raiders of the Lost Ark. Do not read if you are a charismatic Christian with thin skin.

 

 

 

The Power of Habit
Charles Duhigg

How habits work. Read if you want to be a better human. Read especially if any part of your life contains the word “discipleship.”

 

 

 


What We Talk About When We Talk About God
Rob Bell

God is: With us—For us—Ahead of us.
Nothing fans haven’t heard Rob say before, but written for a different audience. The Love Wins fiasco has forced Rob to find a new audience outside the evangelical world. This is a pretty good pitch.

 

 

 


Attached
Amir Levine and Rachel Heller

An introduction to Attachment theory. Great reading if you’re asking “why am I still single.”

 

 

 


Fables
Bill WillIngham

Grimms fairy tales meets Friends. So much fun.

 

 

 

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Nine Necessities for a Life of Mission

Chris —  November 7, 2013

Becoming a missionary often means getting a theological degree and learning a new language. As Christendom takes hold in the west, we’re learning that all Christians must be missionaries, and all churches must be missionary churches.

Over the last six months, I have been helping to gather a new church community we’re calling Austin Mustard Seed. As we learn whom we are, I am thankful for the twisted paths of preparation we have all taken to get here.

You want to be a Missionary? Here are nine lessons I learned from preparing the hard way.

1. Learn the Story of the Bible (and the Church)

The word “missionary” has some blood on its hands. For centuries, people in power used it to enforce their way of life on others.

The true word for this is imperialism, not mission. Imperialist use the “God card” to enforce their own way of life, and usually increase their wallets at the same time.

The cure to imperialism? Deep study of the entire Bible, from beginning to end. Continue Reading…

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The People Who Got Me Through Grad School

Chris —  June 20, 2013

This past weekend I turned in my final paper for my Master’s Degree at Fuller Theological Seminary. It’s been a long and treacherous road to get there, over eight years, three seminaries and two major moves.

I didn’t know if I’d ever get here and I’m not precisely sure what comes next. What I know for sure is, I could not have done it without the support of the following people:

Marvin Crowson believed in me enough to pull the strings needed to get me in to my first attempt at grad school at Harding University.

Mark Powell‘s ethics class at Harding Graduate School had us read Richard Mouw and Stanley Hauerwas hand in hand. This proved to be slightly prophetic: I completed my degree at Mouw’s school, and focused heavily on writers like Hauerwas.

Chris Flander‘s Worldview at Abilene Christian University class dismantled the short sighted popular concept of worldview and helped me to begin thinking of following Christ as a way of life.

My high school and college friend Jeff Cole came back into my life, helped with my admission to the Fuller MAGL, and provided housing during my course work.

Donna Downes led my MAGL cohort. She has been a mother to us all. Not only has she been an excellent professor, but she has been available night and day to answer questions and provide moral support.

Coming to know, Kairos, our 24th MAGL cohort, has been the best part of this experience. They are men and women spread throughout the world who are dedicated to God’s mission at any cost. You have taught me more about following Christ than any of our books.

My parents have always encouraged me in this quest. They have helped me remember its value when I sometimes forget.

My church community Vox Veniae has been the subject of many papers. More importantly, it has provided me a home and a vision of what a missional church should be.

What’s next? Well, that’s complicated. There are some cool opportunities which I hope to announce soon. I am currently looking for what will pay the bills while this new thing gets off the ground. Please keep me in your prayers.

In Life
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Three Essential Leaders Missing From Your Church

Chris —  April 23, 2013

JR Woodward is a fellow graduate of the Fuller MAGL, the head of V3 Church Planting. His book Creating a Missional Culture: Equipping the Church for the Sake of the World, synthesizes much of what we studied in the MAGL with his own philosophy of church planting and leadership.

According to Woodward’s, there is a direct correlation between the forms of church leadership and the spiritual lives of individual believers.  He draws on Paul’s teaching in Ephesians 4 that there is a “link between the spiritual maturity of the church and the five kinds of equippers operating in the church: apostles (what I nickname dream awakeners), prophets (heart revealers), evangelists (story tellers), pastors (soul healers) and teachers (light givers)”.

This view of church leadership is occasionally referred to as APEPT.  The modern churches obsession with Pastor/Teachers often leads to the joke “where are all the APEs in the church?

Here’s a quick overview, and my response:

Continue Reading…

In Church, Mission , , ,
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