Viral: A Review

Leonard Sweet's lastest book is an attempt to understand the current cultural phenomena that is found in social media.  This is essentially a look at the modern and postmodern mindsets and lifestyles, but Sweet refers to them as Gutenbergers and Googlers respectively.  I felt that Sweet did a fair job of defining them both and did not take a side with one being right over the other.  Instead Sweet goes into this with the understanding that in order for the church to survive it will have to take the Googlers culture very seriously.  The meat of the book is centered around dissecting the Google culture which he does using the acronym TGIF (Twitter, Google, Iphone, Facebook).  It seems that this book is targeted to those in the Gutenberg culture in order to become more familiar with the Google culture and in addition to understand how the church can use the tools available to minister within the culture.  I felt it was very well written and easy to understand.  I would recommend this book very highly.  

Click here to download and read Chapter 1.  

I received this book for free for review from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.  

I Am a Follower: A Review

My latest offering from the Booksneeze bloggers program is "I Am A Follower" by Leonard Sweet.  In this book Sweet is taking on the leadership culture that is dominating the culture of the church and asking if this is what the church is to be about.  As you might can guess from the title he is seeking to call us away from leadership models and into what he terms followership.  Instead of seeing ourselves as leaders he claims that we are to become first followers.  The reason being that much of the leadership culture that is present within the church can lead us away from following after our own whims instead of listening to the Spirit and following after Jesus.  After an opening section that makes the case for followership, the book is then broken up into three subsequent sections that take a deeper look at Jesus being the way, the truth and the life for those that follow after him.

I will have to admit that I loved this book.  As someone who has worked in the church for the past ten years and has been indoctrinated in the leadership culture, although with a great measure of discomfort, I am happy that someone is finally speaking up.  I only wish that this book had been written ten years ago to save me so much heartache and to help put some of my own thoughts into a more coherent form.  I felt that this book was a very easy read and was clear and understandable.  I think that this book is accessible to all audiences, but I think its biggest impact would be had on pastors and lay people who are in charge of ministries.  There will be a measure of controversy surrounding this book as I know of many a pastor who have sold out to the leadership paradigm to the point where they would turn a deaf ear to Sweet's message in this book.  But there is an important message here for the church and those who have been called by God to be the first followers that help to point others to the way, the truth and the life that Jesus is calling us to live.  Thank you Leonard Sweet for reminding me.

The Seraph Seal: A Review

My lastest Book Sneeze selection was The Seraph Seal by Leonard Sweet and Lori Wagner.  This is a fictional look at the end times that is radically different from previous books in this genre.  The book is set in the year 2048 and the main cast of characters are on a journey to put together a variety of clues that they have recently discovered.  Little do they know but they are the ones who have been chosen to help humanity follow after God at the end of times.  They are of course opposed by a man who is looking to dominate and rule over humanity.  What unfolds is an adventure that brings together history, religion, philosophy, biology, chemistry, economics, technology, philanthropy and so much more.   I felt that Sweet and Wagner told a good story, but it was a little slow in the beginning and also was a tad bit on the complex side.  But I think that was necessary to fully explain how the world of 2048 is different from 2011.  In order to fully grasp it you almost need to be thinking in terms of science fiction, or just fully engage your imagination.  Overall I enjoyed this book and it only took around a week to finish.  I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars and would recommend it.  Just remember to push out your own preconceptions about the end times while reading this book and I'll think you'll enjoy it for what it is.

Jesus Manifesto

I recently finished reading "Jesus Manifesto" as I got a copy from the BookSneeze bloggers program.  I did enjoy reading this book and felt that the authors did a good job of stating their case.  The writing style is very accessible for any reader and their message is definitely for the church and those who call themselves Christian.  My only minor irritation with the book is that I pretty much knew where they were going after the first few pages, but this book only has one subject in Jesus Christ.

All of that being said, I think this is a timely message for the church to get back to Jesus.  As someone who preaches from time to time and is involved in sermon discussions for our church, I was convicted about how many of our sermons point back to Christ.  I feel that we do a good job of that, but still something to think about.  I also really enjoyed the chapter that they wrote on justice and mercy and how they find their fulfillment in Christ.  I won't go into any detail as to ruin it for you, but I resonated with much of what they said in that particular chapter.

I do believe that Jesus Manifesto is worth a read and I hope and pray that it's message will cause all of us who claim Christ as Lord to really think about if we live as if Christ is Lord in our lives.