Man it seems like evceryday I have more and more things that I need to read. Sometimes it is overwhelming. I read pretty slow and am always looking to learn how to read a little faster. This past week I came across a speed reader site that helps me read faster called ZapReader.

When you first come to the site you paste in the text you want to read into a box. Then push go and it starts flashing one word at a time the whole article you have pasted in. You think it does not work but it does. I like that I can change the speeds of the words so I can grow in my reading skill. If you like this please check out the video below…

I really love this commercial. I think it is one of the funnest things I have seen in a while. As I feel sorry about the kids I thought the clown looks a lot like the clown that terrified me in the Movie “IT”.

The X and Y of Buy is a book based on the understanding that men and women respond different to the types of marketing based on how they are wired. For marketing to be successful it has to reach the target it is focused on.  It would be hard for me to target men through feelings and women through external items.  It is not that it would not work for some but it fails to reach the majority.  That is because of how we are wired.

Elizabeth Pace (The Author) sheds light from what she has learned on the topic.  She speaks of the many differences between men and women in general.  She lays out such items of brain structure, priority, visual and emotional items, and even our senses.  Buy understanding who is your target audience you have a better game plan in being successful in your sales opportunity.

Overall I believe this is a good book as it holds information that works not just in sales or marketing, but also in life and even in the church.  I know not everyone is going to care about using it in church, but as a pastor that was a key for me evening reading this book.  This book does shine some light to creating opportunities on how to reach men and women through understanding how they tick.  It is not the easiest read and some parts take some plowing to get through, but it is worth it to say focused and finish.

I was so excited to be in the first group to review the new book from Mark Batterson. The book is called Primal and strives to seek what the primal essence of Christianity is. It was a great read and although I had a lot of excitement to read this book it lived up to it and even surpassed it.

In the first part of this book he talks about the growth of Christianity from the time of the early church to our current time. In this thought he asks what are the main ties that bind both them and us, and if we find those points we will look past all superficial items and find the primal side of Christianity.

He breaks down the book into the following groups to relay and explore the Primal side of Christianity. Under each of the headings I will share some thought about that part of the book.

The Heart of Christianity

More than a new HEART: Mark shares a story of Charles Siebert about the effects of receiving a transplanted heart. He shares that when a person has a heart transplant something funny happens, they just don’t receive a new heart but also new cravings, habits, and sensory responses. When we relate that to the fact when God comes in our life he gives us a new heart do we see in our lives new cravings, habits, and sensory responses.

He also shares how sometimes when we don’t know others stories we tend not to care as much as when we know there name and stories. Maybe we have lost sight of true compassion when we see others.

The Soul of Christianity

One of the great mistakes we’ve made in modern Christianity is approaching God deductively as an object of knowledge instead of approaching Him inductively as the cause of wonder. (Pg 53)

We are too easily satisfied in our study of Scripture. Or should I say, we are too easily dissatisfied? (Pg 79)

This section was awesome in understanding that maybe there is something more then having knowledge about God and truly being able to SEE HIM. We should strive to be in awe of God and pursue Him in ways we are not normally willing to try.

The Mind of Christianity

Mark talks about a TED talk that he saw and explained that our experiences help us to interpret what we see. I went back and watched that talk and it brought this chapter alive as I paced with Mark. It is something new in my life to pursue God in a Curiosity that strives to gain more perspective.

This leads right into the next chapter as Mark begins to encourage having an idea and reaching out through it. WOW… REALLY WE CAN DO CHURCH OUTSIDE OF THE PATTERN WE CURRENTLY DO! Man this is eye opening. I am a youth pastor and what if I began to dream of reaching students that might not come to a regular church. So I am working through the ideas and Rethinking Ministry so I can grow in my knowledge and curiosity.

The Strength of Christianity

Ready, Set, GO! That is how we always think of it. in our lives we spend most of time in prep. I have known people called to ministry that spend years prepping and in turn never go. Mark ask what if we switched it and instead of how we know it it was Go, Set, Ready. Meaning sometimes we need to just GO…

Hard work is the core of Christianity, not for salvation but for the others to see and have the opportunity to hear that Jesus Loves them. It is not going to just happen it is up to us.

This whole book challenges us to be great at one thing and that one thing is what spurs on a Primal Christianity. That is the Great Commandment.

I would strongly encourage every person to read this book. It is a must read as we strive to connect with God on a deeper level.

In his new book call What Matters Now, Seth and 70 other people give short answers to the question “What Matters Now”. I would encourage you to download this and make it a most read, as it will help you see and get excited about what matters now!

Today in the mail i received my copy of Mark Batterson’s new book Primal. I am excited to be reading this book before it is released. If you would like to pre-order this book Click HERE. I am going to be reading the book and posting some insights here at the blog the week of December 15-22, 2009. It is going to be a great few weeks.

I would love to hear what you thought of Mark’s previous books? (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day & Wild Goose Chase)

Today in the mail i received my copy of Mark Batterson’s new book Primal. I am excited to be reading this book before it is released. If you would like to pre-order this book Click HERE. I am going to be reading the book and posting some insights here at the blog the week of December 15-22, 2009. It is going to be a great few weeks.

I would love to hear what you thought of Mark’s previous books? (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day
& Wild Goose Chase)

Frodo: I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.
Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world Frodo, besides the will of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring. In which case, you were also meant to have it. And that is an encouraging thought. ”

I say this quote over at Michael Hyatt’s Blog it was really cool. I was really thinking about this and it seemed to be something that really struck a nerve in my current season of life. Here are some of the thoughts i got out of this quote.

1. With Frodo’s comment I have been there. Don’t tell anyone but there are times that I wish I was not called into ministry. I know that seems crazy, but really ministry sometimes gets rough. I wish it was all altars, and parties but sadly sometimes it gets messy.

2. There are other forces at work in this world Frodo, besides the will of evil–As pastors we sometimes feel the Fact that Satan is in this world, but we forget most the time that God is doing something too. Jer. 29:11

3. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us–This is the challenge I have been feeling for awhile. So I have been focusing on making sure I am doing the best with the time.

So what does this Quote speak to you? Let me know…

I saw this video and it spoke to me as i am looking to make some changes to our worship team. I think this is a great training that I could use for the team but also with the youth.

What do you think? How would you use this…

Really I thought this was creative and it made me laugh!

I was informed the other day that I was accepted to take part in reviewing Mark Battersons new book coming out 1.1.10. (I encourage you to pre-order this book you can do it at AMAZON or BARNES & NOBLE) I am really excited to do this as I have loved his previous 2 books (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snow Day & Wild Goose Chase) and think Mark is an upcoming voice to this generation. So be watching the blog for my review. I should get the book in the next week or so.

So I would like to say thank you Mark and Team for letting me take part!