Every year, before I go on my July Sabbatical, I like to share what I am reading and what I intend to study, pray over and think about during my month of study, rest, and prayer.
Books I am reading…(in random order)…
“White Fragility: Why It’s Hard for White People to Talk about Racism” by Robin Diangelo
“How to be an Anti-Racist,” by Ibram X. Kendi
“The Way of Gratitude: Readings for a Joyous Life”
“Eat, Fast, Feast: Heal Your Body while Feeding Your Soul” by Jay W. Richards
“The Choice: Embrace the Possible” by Dr. Edith Eva Eger (Holocaust survivor)
“Mud Puddles: Path to Peace” by Jody McClure
“Living in Christ’s Presence: Final Words on Heaven and the Kingdom of God” by Dallas Willard
“The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company” by Robert Iger
Magazines I read regularly
The Christian Century, Christianity Today. America, Sojourners, and the Harvard Business Review.
This July…I am praying and thinking about….
Intellectual Evangelization – exploring ways we use science and reason to communicate the Good News of Jesus in a culturally relevant way. How do we connect with a culture that is increasingly secular? A lot of challenge and good has come out of the last three months of stress and strain. One of good things is that people are spiritually curious and are genuinely hungry and thirsty for more than they have. A challenge is a shift that has become increasingly pronounced. Recently, in the last few years, people were enthralled with Jesus and suspicious of the church. One of the shifts recently is reflected in this sign which was seen at a park:
I so desperately want to think and pray about how to keep the message of Jesus alive! I have very little passion for institutional preservation; however, the church was Jesus idea. Maintaining the movement of Christianity as a community of sisters and brothers who love God and neighbor still makes my heart beat a little faster but it cannot be an emotional warm fuzzy! It has to be rooted and grounded in the Wesleyan quadrilateral: Scripture, tradition, reason, and experience or it will not speak the 21st Century crowd.
Blessings!
– Pastor Jeff