B.C. and Book Tag

My mission to British Columbia was successful. Partly because I was able to actually spend analog time (@ Starbucks, because The Bean Scene was closed that late at night) with none other than Len Hjalmarsson, with whom I have enjoyed digital friendship and co-authoring adventures for the past three years.

Mostly, the mission to B.C. was successful because I was able to find a house for our family to move into later this year when we join the ranks of Youth With A Mission.

I was also able to, as a diversionary break from house-hunting and all the related hassles of relocating across the country, spend numerous hours providing bass tracks for a CD by a local Christian artist, at the invitation of producer Andrew Smith, who also provided much laughter as we recalled "on the road" stories from a tour we once did in the Maritime provinces.
And to top it all off, I had the awesome privilege of reconnecting with friends from our Winnipeg and Vancouver Island days, who are now involved in the Kelowna Vineyard church plant, and not only laughing about some of our favourite memories but also sharing dreams and vision for the future (that'll be my next post).

On a different note, Brother Maynard has tagged me with the book list meme that has been making the rounds, much as the theological worldview quiz did earlier this week. So, since this is some form of digital "tag", I guess that means I'm "it" (proof positive that there's always time for some levity and fun), so here goes:

1. Number of books that I own?
   
   Like Bro Maynard, I shall have to amend this question to include books that I used to own. Several church libraries and used book stores in Victoria and Winnipeg now have larger quantities of books as a result of our many cross-border and cross-continent moves. I find myself more ruthless about which books I hang on to, based on the criteria of: (a) those I read or refer to more than once, (b) any might serve as a research tool for later writings, or (c) that I might loan to a friend (which also sometimes accounts for why my book numbers go down).
   
   Currently, I think I own in the neighbourhood of 200+ books, but these would be my "A-list" books because I've donated the rest to the aforementionied libraries and book stores. If I still had every book I've ever owned -- Christian or otherwise -- the number would be well over 1000.
   
   
2. The last book I bought.
   
   Much easier to answer: It's The Shepherding Movement by S. David Moore. It's part of my primary sources research for the writing I'm doing on Post-Charismatics. While the Shepherding movement was discredited a long time ago -- and some of the main proponents publicly repented of it -- the concepts of "covering" and "who are you submitted to" have survived and continue to cause devastation.
   
   
3. The last book I read.
   
   Again, quite easy, and also connected to my Post-Charismatic research, although from a historical theology angle: A History of Christian Thought Volume 3 by Justo Gonzalez.
   
   

   Another re-read -- to unplug my brain from history, theology, and research -- was one from my complete collection of Bloom County books, Billy & The Boingers: Bootleg.

   
   
4. Five books that mean a lot to me (or, if I'm interpreting this question's intent correctly, have impacted me a great deal):
   
   Brethren, Hang Loose, written by Bob Girard in 1971, is still a favourite; it was the book that first put into language the things that Wendy & I, as young believers, were trying to articulate. Also, since it was written many years before the "emerging jargon that we find ourselves in", it's refreshing to see that we're not the first people to have questioned what Bob called "The Glorious Evangelical Status Quo".
   A New Kind of Christian, by Brian McLaren. While I'm not comfortable with some of the theological directions that Brian has delved more deeply into these past few years, it would be a form of revisionist history to not acknowledge that Brian -- much like reading Bob Girard's books 20 years ago -- put into words the kind of things that we were observing and questioning in the late 1990's. And it was my dad who let me borrow his copy of the book, when I was living under a rock somewhere and had never heard of Brian McLaren.
   The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection is still a favourite, many years after it being one of our textbooks at Providence College. We used Brother Lawrence's teaching as part of the discipleship of the interns who served at the two senior high retreats we did earlier this year (total attendance: 950 senior highs), and gave the book to each intern as a gift -- they loved the book, learned a lot from it, and were exemplary in their servanthood during the retreats.
   The Quest for the Radical Middle by Bill Jackson, is the unofficial history of the Vineyard movement, of which I have been a part and/or friend of for many years. It's been extemely beneficial in developing the Post-Charismatic material, and also showing how new movements tend to have pendulum swings that initially draw criticisms, but eventually balance out.
   The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer, is still one of my favourites. While just about anything by Tozer is a good read, this one rocks. And a favourite memory of mine comes from the mid-90's, when I repeatedly observed many young Christians, with all manner of hair styles, tattoos, and body piercings, enthusiastically devouring Tozer's books. Truly a man whose writings continue to speak eloquently to today's generations.
   
   
5. Two major books when I was a kid. I'd like to suggest Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss, but I think I'll re-interpret this one to be "two major books when I was a young Christian" (circa grade 12).
   
   Peace Child by Don Richardson.
   Bruchko by Bruce Olson.
   
   Equally infuential on me at this point in time, as a musician, were these albums:
   
   Street Level by Larry Norman
   No Compromise by Keith Green
   Colours by Resurrection Band
   
   
6. People I want to tag (that haven't already participated, to the best of my knowledge):
   
   Rivertribe Mike
   Johan the Bassist
   Dan Edelen
   Jamie Arpin-Ricci
   Maryellen Brokop