All is Grace

I have written about Brennan several times, from his insistence that we should never 'should' on ourselves, to his simple words of grace, "lets play." Few living christian authors or speakers have impacted me as much as Brennan. With his health deteriorating, nearly blind, Brennan has finally co-authored his autobiography, a story of severe brokenness and even greater grace. Above is a promo video for the book from fantastic (non-profit) publisher David C. Cook.

I can't wait to read this book, but in the mean time here are a few of my favorite Manning quotes:

"A Saint is not someone who is good but who experiences the goodness of God."

"When I get honest, I admit I am a bundle of paradoxes. I believe and I doubt, I hope and get discouraged, I love and I hate, I feel bad about feeling good, I feel guilty about not feeling guilty. I am trusting and suspicious. I am honest and I still play games. Aristotle said I am a rational animal; I say that I am an angel with an incredible capacity for beer."

"There is something more important than understanding."

There are countless others and as I come across them I will share them with you in anticipation of Brennan's final book, All is Grace

The Giving Tree read by Brennen Manning

Patched Together

Last year as I traveled to and from my family in Arkansas, I devoured a little book called Patched Together by Brennen Manning. Manning, more than any author or speaker has inspired me and shaped my faith. I was privileged to hear him speak on the furious love of God for us in 2006 and his words of faith forever changed me.  I have since read some of his work, mostly non-fiction that deals with aspects of God's love for us, but this book, a piece of fiction was the simplest yet most profound work of Manning's I have yet encountered.

The book was given to me at a conference by a representative from David C. Cook publishing out of Colorado Springs. I shared my testimony of renewed love that stemmed form Manning's work. The story seemed both routine and invigorating for him, I imagine that he meets people everyday touched by Manning's honesty and truth and yet each encounter gives him hope as well. He informed me that Manning was rather ill, almost fully blind and near death even. He promised to give the book if I promised to pray for Brennen. It was an easy promise to make.

The story is autobiographical while still being fiction. We see the life of a man in three stages from childhood to death and the struggles that present themselves but most importantly the impossible victories as well. Not once was I spell-bound by some  fancy prose but always I was enthralled with the rawness of Willie Juan's life and his encounters with the Man of Sorrows. With grace, Manning weaves together a patchwork tapestry of life, love, pain, death, and mercy. Thankfully Manning is still with us and his actual autobiography is coming soon. But in the meantime, I encourage you to find yourself patched together and to join me in my promise to pray for this man.

Should

Anyone else ready to give up all their resolutions?

The date is only January 13th and I am already making excuses for my shortcomings. I should not be surprised, this cycle of broken promises is far from new, but each time almost hurts worst than all the previous errors because my failures compound together to form one large witness against me. But for some weird reason, I keep trying, feeble as my efforts may be.

I simply adore Brennen Manning and he knows a thing or two about broken promises. A recovering alcoholic priest (you guess which part he's recovering from), Brennen has fallen off the wagon hard in his life, only to find some morsel of courage large enough to enable him to find his way back on. This morsel he calls "grace." I had the honor to listen to Brennen share his testimony of grace a few years ago and, by God, it changed my life. One quip that stands out to me and I find hard to shake is Brennen's suggestion that we not "should" on ourselves (say it aloud for the full-effect). In essence, throughout our lives we burden ourselves with a list of shoulds, such as, "I should eat 10 servings of vegetables a day," which instead of producing model nutrition creates a sense of worthlessness. I should listen to Brennen more.

This is not to say that we do not create and go after goals, but that we do so not out of obligation but in a joyful play-dance as the beloved of our Father. I know that that last sentence has a hidden "should" in there, because even as I write these words, a sinking feeling develops in my gut that knows how little of what I do is a "joyful play-dance" (whatever that is) but a forced exercise of my duty. And yet, there is a morsel of joy inherent every time I get back up, a sense of grace that even though I have again fallen, I have also again felt a love so amazing that dare not try to explain it.

So, we get back up, joyless as it may seem, because a hope beyond all hope has come to us and made a promise that will never be broken. We get back up, because although there may be little hope in it, we know there is no hope in staying down. We get back up, not because we "should," but because we can.

We get back up.

Whatever is Lovely

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Philippians 4:8

Well now that the Christmas wrapping carnage has been cleared away and the vertigo has begun to subside I wonder about tomorrow, the day after.  December 26th is a lot like a hangover as we feel the pain inflicted upon ourselves by over-indulging.  I get a little depressed after "Joy to the World" as I begin to think of getting back to normal.  One of the ways I cope is to reflect upon the good this year has brought.  While it had definitely brought its share of bad, 2010 also gave me moments that offered me a bit of hope for the next year.  I wonder what fed you this year? What piece of art or literature moved you to look outside of yourself? What relationship changed the way you felt about life? How did you live a better story in 2010?  I hope that in this last week of 2010 we can, as Paul says in the scripture above, dwell on the good and, in so doing, ignite a passion to reach for the lovely this next year.

Being a bibliophile (look it up) one area I love to dwell on is what I read this past year.  Here are some of the  books I read that made an impact on me in 2010:

Patched Together by Brennen Manning
A fictional rendition of Manning's story, this simple read exposed my doubts and wickedness and also yet awoken a greater sense of gratitude for such a wonderful Savior.

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller
I reviewed this book in detail here.  In trying to turn his life into a movie, Miller is faced with reality that his is not a good story.  This memoir challenged me tho view my life as a story and to know the author and to live a better story.

The Practice of the Prescence of God by Brother Lawrence
This medieval devotional classic pressed me to know God in a very intimate and immediate way.  I perhaps will always wrestle with this book and with my God but I thank them both for drawing me into the match.

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
This one was hard for me.  This fictional account of a failed Jesuit mission to an alien planet was haunting and disturbing.  Yet, it made me ask some hard questions about my faith, like if we thank God for good things should we not blame Him for the bad.  I was forced to evaluate what I thought about Providence and mercy and came out the other side knowing my God all the more closer.

What did you read this year?

These next few days I will talk about other areas that inspired me in 2010 like music and relationships.