Hello, Monday friends! My sweet, smart Dad wrote a book, and if you’re even remotely interested in the church history of reformed Christianity, you should probably buy it.
The book is called “Sharing in Abraham’s Blessing: The Spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem to the Ends of the Earth”, and it’s available from Premier Publishing – there’s an email link at the bottom of that page for ordering, and you need to know what you want, so copy and paste that title and get ‘er done!
Now of course, my Dad didn’t pay me to say this. In fact, I’m reasonably sure he doesn’t even read my blog unless my mom tells him it’s a post he’ll enjoy (ie. pictures of his grandchildren), so I can say anything I like here.
Like how he asked me if I would be willing to do some editing during the writing process while I was there last winter. How nice, I thought, that he values my opinion of his writing.
Then he followed it with, “I want to make sure it’s readable and understandable for a layperson”.
HA.
Thank you, Dad, for assuming I am your average uninformed reader.
Fact: I totally am. But your own dad is supposed to think more highly of you, right?
Then there was the talk of titles. In my defence, “ripples” DOES sound very much like “nipples”, right? One strategically placed line with a Sharpie and that book spine would never be the same on my shelf. I told him that this was what he got when asked for my layperson opinion. He rolled his eyes and shook his head a little, and probably wondered why he ever agreed to let me move back home for 3 months, but he did come up with a good, descriptive title in the end that even I could not make fun of.
When he needed a break from writing, he helped me bundle all my children against the bone-chilling cold and accompanied us to library storytimes, swimming lessons, the grocery store, and even the aquarium. Catch of the day, right here :)
When he was focused and hard-at-work we left my youngest home “to nap” which invariably ended in a short nap, a dirty diaper, and a noisy, enthusiastic writing partner. I like to think we helped in the writing process by giving his brain space to rest and giving him time to read some of the competition’s work.
When he had been sitting too long, we let the kids loose in his general direction to give him some exercise, and I relived memories of my childhood. He’s still got his child-flipping Dad skills going strong.
As your friendly layperson, I can assure you that his book is an engaging and informative read for anyone, and the culmination of years of work and study in church history. The book is a nice manageable length and includes questions for discussion, making it a great change for Bible studies looking for a more topical alternative to studying a specific Bible book.
Making known the roots of our church and understanding the history behind our faith has always been one of Dad’s main interests, alongside woodworking, bowl making, gardening, and, of course, preaching the bread of life as a pastor for about 30 years now. Oh, and alongside parenting his five exceedingly charming daughters ;) (It’s no wonder he waited until he *thought* we had all moved out before starting his book.)
Now, no one tell Dad it’s a good day to read the blog or he may not let me move back in again in the future ;)
Too late…I told him :)
what a great post :) and a very special man :) And I am also loving his book, can’t wait to get all the way through it!
What would he have done without you???
Stan read his book and is recommending it to everyone! I should have time to read it during Christmas break.