Stuff Christians Like is, from the author’s site, “..a collection of more than 120 ideas, including more than 80 never before seen, brand spanking new posts and reader favorites from the site. It’s illustrated to amplify the hilarity and features a collection of classic Serious Wednesday posts as well.

Stuff Christians Like is your field guide to all things Christian. Like a satirical grenade, Acuff brings us the humor and honesty that galvanized 730,000 online readers from 209 countries in a new portable version. Welcome to the funny side of faith.“

Not only is this a funny read, it’s a quick one as well.  But the true brilliance Jon Acuff, is his ability to carve away the layers of personal protection and drills directly to the real, honest heart of every Christian.  We hide from certain areas of faith that are too messy and too personal, but Jon pulls away the scab from years of Christian indoctrination to reveal the gaping wound of Christ followers who just don’t know any better…

Jon  has been blessed with the gift of sarcasm, but also with the gift of teaching, evangelism, and of honesty.  Which in today’s church world, is a rarity.  If you’d like to get a taste of Stuff Christians Like, please visit StuffChristiansLike.net.

“We are all worshipers…of something.  Bur are we spending our lives and filling our days with what matters most?” – Louie Giglio

This is a great book for people who wish to grow a deeper understanding of what true worship really is.  The Air I Breathe is conversation and extremely thought provoking.

It’s also a great resource for a small group study, especially a worship team.  It should also be mandatory reading for all ministers, pastors, and church volunteers!

Quotables:

• “Worship is the activity of the human soul.”
• “Worship should matter to you simply because it matters to God.”
• “I’ve got to keep making sure that what matters most, matters to me.”
• “The things we champion-the values we serve-are not choices made in a vacuum.”
• “There’s a war raging for our worship, and it’s been that way since before there was time.”

Anyone who knows me, reads my blog, my Twitter, or my FaceBook, KNOWS I am in love with all things Disney.  Well, not so much anything Disney that ends with ‘Montana’, ‘Jonas’, or ‘Pherb’.  But most anything that relates to the Magic Kingdom, has me at ‘Hello’.  So, when I got a copy of Mousejunkies!: Tips, Tales, and Tricks for a Disney World Fix, I knew that I had to read it.

And I did, cover to cover, in about 2 1/2 hours.  In fact, I read it on a really bad day for me, and as always, ‘The Mouse” made me feel better.  It was magic.

And don’t we all need a little magic every now and again?

Mousejunkies! is a fun, enjoyable read.  It is full of great ideas and tips on how to spend an amazing time at the “Happiest Place on Earth.”  It’s written by a group of people who call themselves “Mousejunkies”, people who have spent their time, money, and loves absorbing everything Disney.

They are knowledgeable and wise in all ways ‘Mickey Mouse.’  The book is written as guide to the 4 kingdoms, all the resorts, restaurants, and shopping areas.  If you are planning on a trip to Orlando, you need to read this book.  As a Florida resident, and someone who has been the the parks numerous times, There weren’t a lot of new secrets revealed, and they spent a lot of time talking about the heat and weather.  Trust me, I KNOW when Florida is hot…really hot.  And no, not even Disney is fun when the temp is 101…

But I did learn how to really enjoy my Disney trips, whether multi-day or for just a few hours.  There are also several times when the different ‘MouseJunkies’ put their 2 cents in.  Bill, the main author is a man after my own heart.  His perfect day at Disney is an early lunch at the ESPN Zone at Disney Boarkwalk, watch a football game (or two), and then end the day at Illuminations at EPCOT.

If you can’t be at Disney, I always suggest that you read about Disney.  And I HIGHLY recommend Mousejunkies! to you!  If for no other reason, for Chapter 12, Why We Go…it sums up my love for Disney and for the World of it’s creator.

Matthew 28:18-20, the Great Commission, tells us to “Win, Baptize, and Disciple, everyone in the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.”  THAT’S selling/marketing.  And Beckwith is a master of selling and his simple concepts are PERFECT for helping the church to be more productive in our main goal, spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Beckwith’s writing style is very easy and enjoyable.  It’s an easy read and absorb.  Thought he is instructing from a purely secular mindset, his principles translate very well to contemporary church strategy.  Marketing is what we do…although it’s not what we call it…we call it evangelism.  But think about this: remember the last movie/book/tv show that you enjoyed SO MUCH that you told all your friends about it?  You evangelized that show/book/movie.

I pray that more church leaders will utilize resources like Selling the Invisible, I believe that their congregations would increase, their baptism numbers would go up, and more people would make weekly decisions that change their lives.

On a side note, this is an older book, written BEFORE 9/11, and I found it fascinating to hear what the predominate marketing thoughts were BEFORE our entire economy shifted.  What was written in stone even back then, is no longer a sure thing.

Invest in a copy of Selling the Invisible: A Field Guide to Modern Marketing, and let it change you for the better.

QUOTABLES

• “Marketing [evangelism] is not a department, it is your business.”
• “Do you thank people enough…are you sure?
  
• “No matter how skilled you are, you must focus your skills.”
• “Don’t start by positioning your [church], start with the position you have.”
• “Too often the path to perfection leads to procrastination.”
• “With whom are you really competing?”
• “Find out what your [customers] are REALLY buying.”
• “Who is setting your standards: your industry, your ego, or your clients?”