Today, a package came in the mail. It has been a long time coming, and it is a result of the Rob Bell effect. Be patient. I will explain.

As Rob Bell has become a national figure over the last five years or so, the Rob Bell effect has grown. He has recommended many books through his teaching and speaking. This is especially of interest for those of us who like some of the history he digs up. The problem is, some of these books are out of print. Low supply and growing demand means these books get expensive. Really expensive.

That’s when it becomes fun for me. Some odd part of me loves to hunt these books down to find a price I can afford. Each of the books below suffers from the the Rob Bell effect. They are selling for $150 and up around the internet. But I’m now happy to have each in my library, having paid less than $30 for each:

• The Seven Cities of the Apocalypse in Greco-Asian Culture, by Roland Worth - This is the one that arrived today. I found it used on Amazon for for $25 last week. It looks brand new and I can’t wait to dive in. Rob mentioned it in the endnotes of Velvet Elvis. It was only published in 1999, so I’m not sure why it has gone out of print.
• The Seven Cities of the Apocalypse in Roman Culture, by Roland Worth - This is the counterpart volume to the above book. It was not directly cited by Rob, but it is still hard to find. I was able to find it on Eisenbrauns brand new a year ago. Unfortunately, they don’t have it any more.
• Christ and the Caesars, by Ethelbert Stauffer - I heard about this one from Rob several years ago. I think it was already hard to find because it was on Ray Vander Laan’s suggested reading list. I found it in the online inventory of a used bookstore in the UK for under $15. (No, not the bookstore on Notting Hill.) I was a tad delighted.

If you are hunting for out of print books, Alibris or BookFinder are useful. But, I’ve probably had the most luck just using Google to search for the title and author. Once again, be patient.

Persistence bordering on psychosis helps too.

A few months ago, I blogged about mustard plants. (Never mind that that post was supposed to be the intro to a series. The ideas have continued to flow, they just never made it to the blog!)

Some of that thinking has really helped form some ideas about the initial stages of what our church community might look like. I was able to develop the ideas in a paper for a class. While at a church planting boot camp a few weeks ago, I reworked that paper to form a general strategy for developing a multiplying church model. It is linked below for those who are willing to take the time to read it. I’d be thankful and honored if you would share the thoughts and questions that it stirs for you.

A Mustard Seed Church (pdf)

God did not create a divine subculture and then wait for humanity to wise up and join in. God joined a story. God got dirty. God entered. God engaged. And this is the calling of the church as well–to join in and participate in God’s story at work in the world. In that sense to be incarnational is to live in the world the way God lived in the world. — Tim Keel, Intuitive Leadership

Lots of airplane time in the last week meant lots of time to read. And a nap or two mixed in here and there. Here are a few books I was able to finish off that are worth mentioning:

Feel, by Matthew Elliott
A few months ago, I was leading a training session for some youth leaders. I asked the question: “What does spiritual maturity look like?” One response was a suggestion that to be mature is to keep our emotions in check — we don’t get too up and we don’t get too down. That portrays a common, but flawed, understanding in Christianity that emotions are bad. Thankfully, Elliott challenges this idea, and shows why emotions are central to what it means to be a relational human who is made in the image of God. I had not heard of Feel before being sent a copy for review, but I’m glad I can help others hear about it now. It’s an important book with a message that needs to be heard.

The Reason for God, by Timothy Keller
I have to admit I was a little disappointed when I first saw that Tim Keller was publishing this book. I love his heart for mission and church planting, and would have liked to see him write a book on these topics. But the disappointment didn’t last long. Keller is intelligent, thoughtful, and gracious in this explanation of why he has faith in the Christian God. It is born both out of his own study and his dialogue with people during his ministry in New York, and the combination of these two sets the perfect tone for this book. He does dig in pretty deep, so I did bog down in it a few times. Even if one just buys it as a reference book, it would be handy to available.

The Multiplying Church, by Bob Roberts
As we’ve been forming strategies for our new church community, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to start a church that is structured for ongoing multiplication. That pretty much explains why this book caught my eye. The fact that it was written by a pastor from a church that is actually doing this stuff is what caused me to buy it. I think this would be a helpful book for any church leadership that is trying to think intently about what it means to give birth to other churches locally or globally.

A few weeks ago, I was sent a copy of My Beautiful Idol, by Pete Gall, for review. A long plane trip earlier this week gave me the chance to really dig in to the book. Once I did, it was easy to stick with it.

Much like Blue Like Jazz, My Beautiful Idol is a spiritual memoir of a young man trying to make sense of life in his early 20s. I’ve even seen the two books compared in this way on a few occasions. The similarity should end there, because otherwise it will distort the way one reads My Beautiful Idol.

About a third of the way through the book, I was struggling with whether I wanted to continue. Spending some time reflecting on it helped me to see why — I didn’t really like Pete Gall. But as I continued to read, I realized that that is kind of the point. Pete Gall writes of his journey as a young man to fully devote himself to God. He offers a great deal of transparency as he shows his own immaturity in that season. And as he does, I was invited to watch how he gradually becomes aware of that himself. And I respect him for showing us so much.

So, don’t confuse My Beautiful Idol with Blue Like Jazz — it’s written from a different stance and should be read as such. But do consider reading it if you want to be refreshed by the honest reflections of one man’s journey through the Christian faith. You might even see some of your own self along the way.

I have tagged a number of blog posts in the last few weeks that my heart was in tune with. Each of these somehow captures pieces of what I am hoping for in a new church community:

• The Consuming Christian and the Consuming Church (Todd Hiestand) - Todd is a good friend, and my initial connection into the Ecclesia Network. I look forward to sharing more time together in the coming years.
• Things They Tell Church Planters That Are Simply Wrong (Pat Loughery) - Much like Todd, Pat is on a short list of friends whose last name I’m not sure how to actually pronounce. Pat has become a Seattle friend who I haven’t gotten to spend enough time with.
• Pastoral Recovery (Hugh Halter) - I’ve only had a chance to speak with Hugh once or twice on the phone, but really appreciate what he is helping to develop with Missio. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of the new book he co-authored: The Tangible Kingdom.

Done…but not finished.

These are words my friend Blaine offered yesterday about graduation. They couldn’t feel more true.

Yesterday, I walked. It’s official. I have a long black robe and the fancy cap made famous by the gentleman on the Yahtzee box. I have a diploma (or at least a piece of paper promising me that I’ll get one if I passed my spring classes). I have a beautiful black, red and white hood. I have photographic evidence that I walked across the stage.

I am done. And it feels ridiculous to say so.