I leave in a few minutes for our last tour stop in Goshen, Indiana. It's not too late to join us - and Goshen isn't far from major midwest cities ...
One of the truly interesting and good-hearted people I have gotten to know in recent years is Lynne Hybels. She is a gifted writer and has an important voice in the integration of faith and justice - and art. Check out her recent article here.
In the article you'll find links to the good work of my friends at La Red del Camino and The Work of the People.
And here's a link to the song by Aaron Niequist that Lynne refers to in her article.
I've been listening to Don Chaffer's CD "What You Don't Know" almost constantly for the last couple days.
And Rev. Vince Anderson's "100% Jesus."
Great music.
My friend Sivin Kit has helped launch a beautiful new project in Malaysia. You can read about it here.
They describe the initiative like this:
The MICAH MANDATE website is the result of the concerns and aspirations of a group of Christians who are praying that all Malaysians in general and Christian Malaysians in particular will be more constructively engaged in matters of social conscience, public service and nation building rather than to only remain in comfortable armchairs criticising other people and institutions. Actual involvement will better shape and clarify our thinking and our doing. In the process, we will meet and relate with others of all walks of life and learn to live and work together to build a better neighbourhood and a better world. All are welcome to MICAH MANDATE. We hope that here you will find the necessary space and incentive to express your views and concerns and find inspiration and opportunity to reflect and act.
"Actual involvement" and the opportunity to "reflect and act" rather than armchair critique? What a concept! When people ask me why I am so hopeful about the future in spite of all the crises we face, I think about people like Sivin who are part of constructive initiatives like the Micah Mandate.
The "A New Kind of Christian" trilogy, as many of you know, has just been re-released in paperback. The new artwork is excellent, and we included a new introduction to each book. I keep hearing from people - especially young people - who are just discovering the books for the first time, and the response is encouraging.
For example, I just received this note this morning:
Just a few minutes ago I finished reading The Last Word and the Word After That. When I started reading the last few chapters, I thought I would just finish the book tonight, rather than leaving one or two chapters for tomorrow. As I read the final chapter, I got choked up and some tears formed in my eyes. It was time for me to say goodbye to the friends that I had come to know over the past year or so. I'm sure you hear this often, but I wanted you to know that the trilogy you have penned has been inspiring and affirming to me. Neo, Dan, and many of the other characters through whom you speak have led me to a place that I did not intend to go when I began reading A New Kind of Christian for a denominational class. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the guidance and mentoring that you have provided to me through these books. May God, the author of our stories, be with you as you continue to touch people through your writing.
You can order the books here:
New Kind of Christian
Story We Find Ourselves In
Last Word and the Word After That
Jeremy Del Rio blogged and photographed our EMC event in Bronx last weekend. The next best thing to being there would be catching his excellent verbal and visual report here.Vic
Your last chance this year to be part of the EMC tour comes this weekend in Goshen, Indiana. Hope to see you there!