7 Quick Takes Friday (vol. 29): banana suits, evangelism, and resources galore

— 1 —

So this happened today:

@conversiondiary – It’s finally here! My Friday night just became all kinds of awesome. #SOTG pic.twitter.com/FL2DTBW6Ay

— Happy Thorp (@simplefelicity7) May 3, 2014

— 2 —

I’m actually already 1/3 of the way thru and loving this book , which tells the story of Jennifer Fulweiler’s journey from atheism to faith.   Jen has always been one of my favorite bloggers, and is a brilliant storyteller.   Putting the book down was hard – but I suddenly realized I had to, if I was going to have even a small shot at winning that banana suit.

I would have mentioned it anyway, but who wouldn’t want a banana suit?  So hear ye, hear ye: please go pick up a copy of Something Other Than God as soon as you possibly can.

— 3 —

Can I admit something?  “Evangelism” is kind of scary.  Seriously – it can be really hard if you’re not thinking about it the right way, and there can even be this extra pressure and a weird guilt-trippy thing when it comes up at church, like if you’re not “evangelizing,” maybe you just don’t love Jesus enough.  And “I don’t want to offend anyone” can be viewed as a cop-out, even when it’s not.

Which is why I am really excited about Soulation’s first eCourse, on “Spiritual Truth Without Spiritual Arrogance.”  You can learn more about this course (and register) here.  It’s just a few weeks long, and from what I’ve seen, it’s going to be a fantastic experience, helping us to think about evangelism is better ways and become more confident in ourselves and our ability to share our faith in compelling ways.   I’m taking the course, and I’d love for you to join me at SoulGym!  The course starts Sunday, but you can still sign up thru May 11th.

— 4 —

photo courtesy of ©Depositphotos.com / sorinus

A couple of months ago I made a really difficult decision – to step down from leading worship at my church (at least for a season).  Not because I don’t love it – I do – but because there are only so many hours in a day, and with my work schedule the way it is, finding time to write is already difficult.  Throw in five hours worth of planning and rehearsals before a Sunday, and I’m falling asleep at the keyboard – or not writing at all.  I felt like I had to choose.

And the coolest thing happened when I finally turned in my official “resignation” – all of a sudden, more opportunities to write started opening up.  I’m really excited to tell you that I have two guest posts on other blogs coming up in the next couple of weeks, and a bunch of stuff in the works for Simple Felicity as well.  So stay tuned!  I know there hasn’t been much going on here the past few weeks – but there’s been a lot going on behind the scenes and there is new content on its way!  (And I think it will have been worth the wait.)

— 5 —

I love TED talks – I’ve learned so many interesting things from them.  I think this might be one of my favorites:

— 6 —

I heard one of the best podcasts this week.  If you’re in leadership anywhere, I think Andy Stanley’s Leadership Podcast is a must-listen, whether you’re a Christian or not.  His April podcast on leading meetings – I’m not kidding, it could change the world.   I love listening to Andy Stanley, no matter what he’s talking about – but the only podcast I’ve enjoyed more from him than this one was one from last April, called Trust vs. Suspicion (also definitely worth your time).

— 7 —

Alright, now that I’m done plugging resources galore and my own writing, I am kind of dying to get back to Something Other Than God.  I probably should have taken a picture to prove it, but I was so excited to tweet a picture of the book to Jen that I forgot the stove was still on, and I’d left a plastic spatula in the pan.  It would have made such a great story if I hadn’t caught it before it melted.  Jen could have issued warning labels for the 2nd edition…

On the up side, my apartment doesn’t smell like burnt plastic!  😀

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!