Small Group Curriculum Review – Lifeway’s Platform Series – Stand Against the Wind by Erwin McManus
As a discipleship pastor at a church that is driven by small groups, I’m constantly on the lookout for good, new curriculum, and especially of the video-driven variety (because they seem to work really well in our situation). So, I excitedly picked up the new Stand Against the Wind curriculum by Erwin McManus which was developed by Lifeway. Here are my thoughts…
Packaging
Despite the image on the front cover, which is a bit cheesy, the material came in a self-contained, durable, and unique case. It felt up to date. I was drawn to it. It’s a well executed design from the outside looking in. It contains one leader / participant book and one dvd (containing six messages), all for $25. Perfect! Relevant-feeling. Affordable.
Video
It’s a dvd, not a blueray, but the quality was lower than I expected. The lighting on Erwin (from Mosaic church services) was adequate, but somehow not appealing to the eye on the video. The video appeared grainy. The dvd menu screen was created in such a way that it didn’t seem to fit on my tv screen well. It was almost like I had an overscan issue, but I don’t. The menu designer failed to leave enough space between the content on the menu and the edge of the screen of the tv. Overall it does work, you can read the words on the menu screen, but it feels cheap rather than well executed.
Content
The curriculum is marketed as a composition of six, 20 minute video talks. But to be honest, most of them were more like 10 minute talks. This is not a deal breaker if the content is laid out well, but it’s not. A concise video portion could be advantageous for your small group if it leaves more time for discussion, but I wouldn’t call the Stand Against the Wind videos concise. They were more like endless meanderings. They leave the viewer wondering what the heck Erwin is exactly talking about, and how he got that content from the Scripture passages that he’s reading. And I’m not sure this is completely Erwin’s fault either, Lifeway (or someone) seems to have cut out portions of the sermons (that I guess they deemed unimportant – I’m honestly not sure why there are breaks in the video), that leave a dizzying effect in the overall structure of the message. And, this isn’t really six different sermons, it’s three sermons chopped in half (and really chopped in even more pieces apparently because there are all these breaks in the video).
Having watched all the video portions of this curriculum, I’m still not completely sure what the study is about. I know it’s about living a different sort of life, a life out of step with how the average person in our culture lives, but that wasn’t made very clear on the front end. In fact there is no introduction on the video about the content of the curriculum. The participant book sets up the content a little bit, but overall it’s still confusing.
Erwin’s a great communicator. In fact he’s an unbelievable communicator, but this fact is clouded by the structure of the curriculum.
Participant Book
Good size. Laid out well. Good questions considering the video. They’re probing questions, but because they follow the video, and the video is kind of weak, the questions are kind of weak too. In my opinion the participant book is weakened by the content of the curriculum itself. But this is not the question writer’s fault per se.
Gospel
Suffice it to say, that one could go through this curriculum and have never heard a clear gospel explanation. They would know some things about how God wanted them to live, but I’m not sure they would understand that this sort of living is grounded completely in the cross of Jesus and empowered only by Holy Spirit. Is this an intentional oversight? I don’t think so. Jesus is not ignored to be sure, but I’m not sure he’s lifted up the way he should be in a curriculum that is supposed to be talking about “standing against the wind” and living a life out-of-step with typical America. Any small group leader could supplement the material with some additional gospel truth, but it’s not clearly included in the curriculum itself.
Overall
Love the price. Love the packaging (minus the cheesy, motivation poster image on the front). However, the quality of the video on the dvd and the menu screen execution makes this feel cheap. The content, whether Erwin’s fault or Lifeway’s (I’m not sure), is confusing. The overall message of the curriculum is clouded. The gospel is ignored a little bit (this feels more like a motivational talk than true Christianity). Erwin is engaging, as always, but the choppiness of the messages because of how the video is split up, makes him less engaging than he would be otherwise. Worthwhile for your small group? Probably not. You might have some pretty good discussion from this curriculum, but I’m not sure it would clearly point you towards Jesus. Memorable? I really kind of doubt that it would be. I can picture most people finishing this study and not really understanding what they just studied for six weeks. The Platform series by Lifeway – of which Stand Against the Wind is a part – is certainly promising, but it needs some work before it’s worth the consideration of your small group or small group ministry.
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No commentsTwo New Goals…
I’m currently fulfilling a goal to read an average of a-book-a-week for this entire year. It’s been fun so far. Really fun actually. I’d suggest this goal to anyone (unless you’re in seminary or law school or in some other situation where additional reading might make you lose your mind). At least a few of my reasons for setting the a-book-a-week goal are:
1) To better develop my mind and thus better love God with my mind (Mark 12:30).
2) To practice writing by briefly reviewing the books upon completion.
3) To be relevant. I think the whole “relevancy” thing can be pushed too far, but it’s still true that we need to understand the world in which we live. And, reading books may actually be a better way to pursue relevancy than watching tv or reading newspapers. I say this because the material in books has usually been mulled over for a longer period of time, and thus may contain more mature thought than other forms of media. In fact C. S. Lewis lamented the fact that boys in his day were encouraged to stay abreast of current news. As he says in Surprised by Joy, “I think those are very wrong who say that schoolboys should be encouraged to read the newspapers. Nearly all that a boy reads there in his teens will be known before he is twenty to have been false in emphasis and interpretation, if not in fact as well, and most of it will have lost all importance. Most of what he remembers he will therefore have to unlearn; and he will probably have acquired an incurable taste for vulgarity and sensationalism and the fatal habit of fluttering from paragraph to paragraph to learn how an actress has been divorced in California, a train derailed in France, and quadruplets born in New Zealand” (152-153). So I want to read a lot of books because with Lewis, I believe it is better learning.
However, the thought hit me today that, in addition to the reading, I also want to find at least one good quote from every book that I read. I want to take these quotes and catalogue them so that I have a readily accessible list of good quotes when I am preparing a sermon or writing an article or book. So this is goal #1.
Goal #2 is to try to witness to at least one person a week. This is what I was asked to do while in seminary at Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary. While I did not love everything about the way in which the seminary asked us to pursue this endeavor, I do think it was a great requirement. I know that the Bible plainly teaches that I’m to share the gospel regularly. I’ve never quit believing this, but I have not challenged myself to pursue evangelism (the first step in disciple-making) enough since seminary. So I’m setting a goal of witnessing to at least one person a week for the rest of the year. I’m going to reevaluate this goal at that time, see if I fulfilled it, and ask myself whether I should change it in any way.
So there you go. Two unrelated goals. We’ll see how I do.
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2 commentsBook Review: Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins
I just finished the audiobook version of Confessions of an Economic Hitman by John Perkins. The audiobook was read by Brian Emerson, who is one of my favorite readers. (I believe even a bad book could sound interesting if Emerson was reading it.)
I can safely say that this book will change the way that you view politics and the economic situation in the world, if you choose to read it. Confessions of an Economic Hitman is Perkin’s autobiography, his confession, about his involvement as an economic forecaster for a now-defunct company called Chas T. Main. Chas T. Main was a large, U. S. engineering firm which specialized in designing infrastructure plans for utility industries around the world. It was bought, and the name changed, in the late 80′s due to mismanagement.
Perkins explains that while his official job title may have been “chief economist for Main,” his real job was to act as an economic hitman. An economic hitman, or EHM (as Perkin’s calls it), is an economist whose purpose is to produce inflated infrastructure predictions for third world countries. These inflated forecasts are produced in order to justify the millions of dollars that foreign countries will have to borrow in order to hire American construction companies to build modern utility infrastructures within these third world countries. Based on these predictions, the world bank grants loans that these countries will never be able to repay. The country becomes mired in debt, and only a few, privileged people benefit. In this way, the American “corporatocracy” continues to grow rich, and economic pressure due to debt keeps the governments of third world countries in-check politically. At the end of the day, the rich get richer, the poor get poorer, thousands of indigenous peoples are exploited, and America continues to build its global empire. Economic hitmen, and the CEO’s of large corporations, work unofficially in conjunction with the NSA to control foreign nations.
Whether you buy all this or not (see the wikipedia entry about Perkins for the controversy surrounding the book), it’s great, thought-provoking, conscious-altering reading. Much of what Perkins describes about the way in which the U. S. government uses the private sector, free-trade agreements, and economic pressure, seems (in my mind at least) to match real life. Perkins’ insights into the administrations of several of our past presidents is eye-opening for sure, and he confirms a lot of my own suspicions about the reasons for the Iraq War and the Bush/Cheney regime. I will say however, that any critique of the Clinton presidency is completely absent from this book, which may point towards some of Mr. Perkins’ political leanings (although I would be remiss to say that I find him a complete leftist).
Perkins ends the book with an epilogue of suggestions about how we, as Americans, can fight the global empire and leave a better world for our children. As a Christian, I’m inclined to see “the way forward” a little differently than Perkins. In my opinion, the main reason the global empire of America exists is greed. Many of the ideals at the heart of democracy, capitalism, and a global economy are sound (not perfect, but sound), except that people are greedy. The problem with capitalism is that companies nearly always act based on the bottom line. They hardly ever consider the best interests of others. They are greedy. They run over the poor, especially the poor of other countries. The rich get richer, and the poor are exploited. Unregulatized capitalism would work perfectly if everyone had a changed heart, but we don’t, so it doesn’t. Neither will the alternative to capitalism work (i.e. – socialism). They are both faulted systems because of faulted people.
We need Jesus to do the masterful work of heart transformation. On its own, this world will always tend towards depravity, and the American government and its capitalistic, self-serving policies, are most definitely included. I’m not saying that we should do nothing. We should try to fix the government. We should try to put men into office that don’t simply support the wishes of a few rich men that help fund their campaign. We should work hard, promote justice, and involve ourselves in charity. But more than any of that, we should embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the only true, transformational hope that our world has.
My advice: Read this book. Involve yourself in politics as a concerned citizen. Think beyond party lines. Act like a Christian. Trust Jesus and the life change that He brings most of all. And, spend the majority of your time focused on the Gospel because it is the real change-agent in the world.
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No commentsListening for the Day: I AM ALPHA AND OMEGA
Hey everyone,
I’ve been in a blogging mood the last few days, so the content and the thoughts may appear a bit more often on here, at least until this mood wears off.
If haven’t yet heard of Come and Live, you should definitely check it out. In there own words, Come and Live is a non-profit devoted to: “proclaiming the good news of Jesus. By joining hands with artists {musicianaries}, we provide them with guidance, direction and accountability to model a life of genuine faith. Our focus is in promoting the only true enduring treasure – loving others and living like JESUS. We choose to share music and profit as a humble example of radical generosity. We live simply to give generously, encouraging others to do the same. Our prayer is that God would use us to Give. Love. Share. and Revive (http://comeandlive.com/aboutus).”
The long and the short of it is, there is some pretty amazing music on Comeandlive.com for free, and these artists really care about promoting the Gospel. Pretty rad!!!
My current favorite from their site is a band called I AM ALPHA AND OMEGA. If you’re into Underoath or The Devil Wears Prada, this is right up your alley. I love it, perfect music for doing design work.
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No comments7 Characteristics of Highly Evangelistic Christians
I know I haven’t done a good job sharing my faith the last several years. Part of the reason has been due to disillusionment, but part of the reason has just been plain old disobedience too.
After graduating from a seminary (in 2006) that required me to share my faith regularly (but in a somewhat formulaic way), I’ve struggled to figure out the best method for sharing the Gospel. For the record, I’m not opposed to being asked to share my faith (by a church or a seminary), in fact I think it can be a really good thing. The one thing I am opposed to is the mandate that I have to ask the person I am witnessing to, “Would you like to accept Christ today as your personal Lord and Savior?” even when I invariably know that their answer will be, “no.” This is not a bad question necessarily, but in a situation where body language indicates that a person has no intention of being converted, or in a situation where the comprehension of the Gospel by the person being witnessed to is still lacking, I don’t like being forced to ask that question. At the seminary that I attended, this question was necessary for the witnessing experience to “count” as part of our requirement to regularly share our faith. I have a problem with that specific rule because it left me feeling like I was sometimes forcefeeding the Gospel to someone who didn’t want it or didn’t understand it.
The other struggle that I have is that I doubt the the effectiveness of door-to-door evangelism. I know that many people have been, and still are being, led to relationships with Christ through door-to-door methods. However, the question I have is, “For all the people that are led to Christ using door-to-door evangelism, are even more left with a bad taste in their mouth by the experience?” I don’t know the answer to this question to be honest, but I struggle with this fear. I do know that making friendships with others, and inviting them to church, and speaking truth into their lives spreads the Gospel. But oftentimes I am lazy, and a coward, and not nearly bold enough in my witnessing when I use this “lifestyle” method.
So I want to strike a balance in personal evangelism between legalistic tendencies and formulaic approaches on one end, and laziness and fear and apathy on the other end. I’m trying to get better, and I want to be obedient. So, in that vein, I found this article on the 7 characteristics of highly evangelistic Christians encouraging. I didn’t come up with this list, it is a partial repost of Thom Rainer’s blog http://www.thomrainer.com/2010/03/seven-characteristics-of-highly-evangelistic-christians.php
7 characteristics of Highly Evangelistic Christians
1. They are people of prayer. They realize that only God can convict and convert, and they are totally dependent upon Him in prayer. Most of the highly evangelistic Christians spend at least an hour in prayer each day.
2. They have a theology that compels them to evangelize. They believe in the urgency of the gospel message. They believe that Christ is the only way of salvation. They believe that anyone without Christ is doomed for a literal hell.
3. They are people who spend time in the Word. The more time they spend in the Bible, they more likely they are to see the lostness of humanity and the love of God in Christ to save those who are lost.
4. They are compassionate people. Their heart breaks for those who don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. They have learned to love the world by becoming more like Christ who has the greatest love for the world.
5. They love the communities where God has placed them. They are immersed in the culture because they desire for the light of Christ to shine through them in their communities.
6. They are intentional about evangelism. They pray for opportunities to share the gospel. They look for those opportunities. And they see many so-called casual encounters as appointments set by God.
7. They are accountable to someone for their evangelistic activities. They know that many good activities can replace Great Commission activities if they are not careful. Good can replace the best. So they make certain that someone holds them accountable each week either formally or informally for their evangelistic efforts.
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No commentsBook Review: Living the Cross Centered Life by C. J. Mahaney
Why?
My brother Andy has been telling me about C. J. Mahaney and Sovereign Grace Ministries for a while now. So, digging into a Mahaney book was really only a matter of time. Andy and I like to talk about books and ministry and theology because, well, we’re both pastors. But the actual reason that I picked up this book was to review it. I wanted to see if it might be a useful tool in a discipleship program that I’ve been working on for my church. Nathan Loxley (our worship pastor) and I were looking for a book that would be pretty accessible for the average person, but also really foundational. It needed to be a book that would teach doctrinal truth, but stay applicable. And I think we found the book with Living the Cross Centered Life.
Brief Description
Living the Cross Centered Life is a relatively small book (166 pages to be exact) about the theology and practical application of the cross of Jesus. It should be explained that this book is really a combination of two other Mahaney books: The Cross Centered Life and Christ Our Mediator; the new version of the book combines these two books and includes additional material. The focus of the book is this: the truth of the cross is not just for new believers, but for all believers in all parts of their lives. As Mahaney says in the first chapter, “Too many of us have moved on from that glorious plan [the plan of responding with our whole lives to the gospel]. In our never-ending desire to move forward and make sure that everything we think, say, and do is relevant to modern living, too many of us have stopped concentrating on the wonders of Jesus crucified” (18). This is glorious truth and often overlooked. Many times Christians think they are saved by God’s grace, but then after that it’s all about what they do. Wrong! It’s all about what Jesus did from beginning to end.
Mahaney takes his readers through a brief, but thorough understanding of the cross in the first half of the book. He then moves on to explain how the cross helps us when we suffer, how it brings us joy, and how it defeats legalism and self-condemnation. He ends by giving practical advice for keeping the cross central on a daily basis. I love this nod towards the practical. As Mark Dever says in praise of the book “You’re holding the book you want to read to begin living the Christian life. You’re also holding the book you want to read to help you continue living the Christian life” (1).
Why I love it
Living the Cross Centered Life is a great book! It’s doctrinal, accessible, and practical. C. J. carefully examines the cross, teaching theology as he goes, but keeping the picture of Jesus vivid the entire time. Mahaney is honost and practical as he writes; he seems to me to be the type of guy that anyone would love to hang with.
The part of this book that will probably stick with me the most is the concept of “preaching to yourself” rather than “listening to yourself.” Mahaney talks about how prone we are to let our emotions control us. We begin thinking all kinds of negative and prideful thoughts in our heads rather than preaching the truth of the cross to ourselves. He encourages readers to make decisions in life based on the truth that they know is right (the cross and it’s accomplishment) rather than making decisions based on how they feel emotionally at any given moment. This is a really good insight that has already begun to effect my life. I’m grateful for this little book, and even more grateful for Jesus and his life, death, and resurrection! I highly recommend Living the Cross Centered Life and am already making plans to implement its use in the life of 24church.
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