In Primal, Batterson expands on what Jesus called The Greatest Commandment – “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12:30) To illustrate he uses a blend of personal story, scripture and corollations from science, history, and literature. Each chapter was engaging and spiritually challenging.

The focus of the book is to help readers peel back layers of religion or tradition from their faith, and to recapture and reignite that primal faith in Jesus. One particular aspect in Mark’s writing I appreciate is his sincere and challenging love for people. Mark honors his readers while spurring them on to a deeper, more passionate faith.

And that’s what happened, for me at least. As I read Primal I was brought back many times to those core moments in my faith. The simplicity of following Christ, with all I have – heart, soul, mind and strength.

If you’re looking for a heart-challenging book for the New Year, I would suggest putting Primal on your list.

I tried to take a browsing stroll around Costco, but as always, I ended up in one of two places: electronics, or books. That day it was books.

So glad.

They have a boxed collection of Roald Dahl’s kids books – 15 of them – for $24.95. Dang. Do the math on that – umm, well, you know. Less than $2.00 a book. So naturally, said boxed set went under my arm and accompanied me to the checkout.  How very cordial of that boxed set! Guess I should invite it home…

Which is great – me and Eli are already plowing through them. They are such crazy fun! I am starting Danny The Champion Of The World tonight.

Neil Cole is very adept as stripping away the institutional trappings that hinder churches, and see the vibrant power of organic churches – and leaders.

The book centers on growing leaders that multiply naturally in a healthy church setting, a topic that resonates with me.  I love Cole because he’s not afraid of pulling any punches as he goes to work on faulty leadership ideas, yet he truly loves the church!  This guys not off on a bitter rant; he simply wants to see God’s church alive.

I have a feeling we’re going to need quite a few more copies of this floating around the Fountain.  For now, I’m off to do a couple more chapters over a quick taco and iced tea before I head home.

The concepts presented are helpful, instead of just intellectual.  A big takeaway for me was to be mindful of different ways of determing what is salient in decision-making.  Often I look at things through my “reality” (things I perceive as important), when there are other factors to hold in mind simultaneously that would help me make a more informed decisions.  And while we could all probably see the benefit in doing that, it’s harder, more complex, requires more mental draining. 

In other words, it’s more work.  Which, the author argues, is why successful leaders win.  All in all, a great book.  Here’s a video link to Roger Martin sharing more about integrative thinking:

How did I end up putting this in queue?  Two things:  1)  Seth Godin is an insightful and inventive thinker. 2) The word Tribes; I had previously ordered the book Tribal Leadership, and the whole tribe concept was in my mind when I was walking through B&N, so the title just stuck out.  Simple enough.

• Value Attribution:  The perceived value we attach to a person or thing
• Diagnosis Bias:  The inability to see past our original perception of a person or situation, even in the face of new information
• Loss Aversion:  Our tendency to go to great lengths to avoid perceived losses  

The Brafman’s do a great job relating the case studies to their theories, and while the book is academic, it’s also incredibly readable.  The accounts of human behavior are intriguing, and help to see patterns in why we might find ourselves just as easily in the same situations.  It’s helpful in the way that we can avoid irrational behavior by first being aware of it.

Sway was fascinating and entertaining.  I’ll give it as many stars as needed to persuade you irrationally to check it out.

Book – Touch, by Rudy Rasmus

The pastor of St. John’s in Houston has written a powerful book chronicling the life of St. John’s; really it’s also an extension of his own life and experiences.  Touch is formatted in a way that anyone would enjoy, while also lending itself to being a great leadership book.

While reading it, I keep coming back to the words of Jesus, about those who have been forgiven much, loving much.  I was encouraged and challenged by the fresh and compassionate way Pastor Rudy looks at people.  Three reads in 2008 wasn’t enough it seems; I plan on cracking it again this year

Album – Gossip In The Grain, by Ray LaMontagne

I’m always on the lookout for albums that really capture me, make me stop and say, “Yep. That’s it.”  And while that hasn’t seemed to happen in a while, when I heard Ray LaMontagne’s Gossip In The Grain, there it was.  Since Trouble, I have really enjoyed LaMontagne’s stripped down, well-written tunes.  On Gossip In The Grain, he adds to the sound, including horns and background vocalists, taking it in a fuller direction, while keeping it centered around good bluesy, folksy (how many annoying adjectives can I insert?) songwriting.

For me, it’s still about his voice (smooth yet rough – however that works; velvety sandpaper?) and the emotive feel of the songs.  Comparisons to Nick Drake or Joe Cocker are easy enough, but the guy has his own thing going.  If you only buy one CD this year… well, you know.

Movie – Be Kind Rewind, by Michel Gondry

I thoroughly enjoyed Be Kind Rewind, a movie by Michel Gondry that slipped in under my radar until I spied it on the rental shelf.  Intrigued by the picture of Jack Black and Mos Def riding a VHS cassette, I grabbed it.

I could give you the whole synopsis, but a quick Google search can give you that.  Or just rent it.  Now.  I know that for me, it was refreshing.  It had some really funny scenes, but the everyday feel of it was what I enjoyed most about it.  The storyline has a way of bringing you into the movie itself.  I chose this movie as my 2008 fave because it was just plain enjoyable. 

Books about social behavior really interest me – although I often wonder what social dynamics have affected the interpration of the data in books about social behavior!  That sentence probably gives a lot of insight as to why Malcolm Gladwell hasn’t called me for any help lately…

Back to Currently Reading:  I just started Sway: The Irresistable Pull of Irrational Behavior, by Ori Brafman (The Starfish and the Spider) and Rom Brafman. 

The title gives you enough information as to the contents, so I won’t go into it until I review it later.  So far, so good!