Remember Why You Play (book review)

March 17, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

The subtitle of Remember Why You Play by David Thomas is a bit of an understatement: Faith, Football, and a Season to Believe. It is so much more than another football book.

I picked up this book because I had heard the story about the Faith Christian Lions playing against the Gainesville State Tornadoes in 2008. Gainesville State is a maximum-security juvenile detention facility, and Faith Christian is a squeaky-clean Christian high school. Yet the Faith team and fans handled this game in an unbelievable way. Kris Hogan, Faith’s head coach, asked the Faith parents to cheer for the Gainesville players… to cheer against their own sons. These incredible families responded in the most loving, Christ-honoring way, leaving an indelible impact on the 14 Tornado players dressed for that game.

But, as David Thomas said, you have to go back to look at the Lions’ 2007 season to truly understand why a team—a whole school—would respond this way.

Kris Hogan is a highly successful coach in the state of Texas where football is king. Because of his success on the field, he has been offered positions at other schools, making a lot more money than Faith Christian can pay him. But he continues to coach at Faith because he believes that is where God has placed him. And because he believe that, he is much more than an Xs and Os football coach.

Football is simply the backdrop to the life lessons Coach Hogan is trying to teach his players. He views it as his mission to prepare these young men for life after high school, so football games and practices just become the means by which he can apply the valuable lessons.

Sports fans will definitely enjoy this book, as will any current or former football players or coaches. But I also believe parents of teenagers and even youth pastors will find a lot of life lessons in Remember Why You Play to pass on to the young men in their lives.

I am a Tyndale book reviewer.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , . 1 Comment »

Happy To See You

March 13, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Do you like being around people? Or maybe a better question is: Do people like being around you?

In the case of Jesus, the answers are “yes” and “yes.” Check this out:

When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that He was back home. Soon the house where He was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. (Mark 2:1-2)

People like being with Jesus.

They invited Him to their weddings…

They invited Him to their parties…

They invited Him to their dinners…

And when Jesus showed up somewhere, people flocked to that house.

If you and I are Christians—followers of Jesus Christ—the same thing should be said of us: People should like having us around, and they should like being around us.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Don’t Fake It

February 24, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

Have you ever had someone tell you, “Fake it until you make it”? In other words, you may not feel happy, but just start smiling and soon you will feel happy. Sadly, I’ve heard this type of so-called wisdom given by Christians to other Christians. Phrases like…

  • Don’t let anyone know that you feel scared, doubtful, or angry.
  • Never let ‘em see you sweat.
  • Even if you’re down, put on a happy face.

Turns out that this is not only bad advice, but harmful advice too. A study done by Michigan State University found:

     “Pretending to smile when you’re feeling bad makes you feel worse and be less productive. … [You] can’t just fake a smile and expect to feel good about it or negative feelings intensify.”

If you’re a follower of Jesus Christ, you should never fake it. Take a quick glance through the Psalms and you’ll see raw, real emotions: anger … depression … anxiety … vengeance … sadness … envy … spite … and many others. 

Here’s the deal: You may wear a {fake} smile on the outside, but God knows the {real} emotions in your heart. You’re not fooling Him. And, as it’s been revealed in this study, you’re not fooling anyone else either.

So go ahead and vent those negative emotions when you’re alone with God. Tell Him how you really feel (He already knows, but it’s good for you to hear you say it). And then let the Holy Spirit show you how to deal with those emotions in a healthy way.

Don’t bottle it up—don’t fake-it-until-you-make-it—be real and let God heal you.

UPDATE: I talk a lot about dealing with our strong, negative emotions in my book When Sheep Bite.

►► Would you please prayerfully consider supporting this ministry? My Patreon supporters get behind-the-scenes access to exclusive materials. ◀︎◀︎

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments »

Thursdays With Oswald—Broken And Crucified

February 24, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

Broken

       We need to remember that we cannot train ourselves to be Christians; we cannot discipline ourselves to be saints; we cannot bend ourselves to the will of God: we have to be broken to the will of God.

From Facing Reality

Crucified

       To “crucify” means to put to death, not counteract, not sit on, not whitewash, but kill. If I do not put to death the things in me which are not of God, they will put to death the things that are of God.

From Biblical Ethics

Jesus said to His disciples, “If any of you wants to be My follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow Me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it.”

Then Jesus said, “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you. Let Me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”

I’m trying to live broken and crucified. Will you join me in this daily pursuit?

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Thursdays With Oswald—The Word Of God

January 27, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

The Word Of God

       The Bible nowhere says we have to believe it is the Word of God before we can be Christians. The Bible is not the Word of God to me unless I come at it through what Jesus Christ says, it is of no use to me unless I know Him. The key to my understanding of the Bible is not my intelligence, but my personal relationship to Jesus Christ. … You may believe the Bible is the Word of God from Genesis to Revelation and not be a Christian at all.

From Facing Reality

Do I just know the Word of God, or do I know the God of the Word? If I read and study the Bible just to gain knowledge, I will become a very religious person. But if I read the Bible to know Christ more, I will enter into a deeper relationship with Him.

…knowledge puffs up while love builds up… (1 Corinthians 8:1)

I want to read my Bible as a love letter, and fall more and more in love with the God who wrote it to me.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Codependent?

January 25, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Modern psychologists have coined the term codependent to mean someone who allows their life to be controlled by another person, much like the moon controls the tides on the earth’s oceans. Almost always this relationship ends up being a lose-lose relationship: both the person being controlled and the person doing the controlling are headed the wrong way.

Codependent is not a biblical term.

But there is a concept in Scripture that is the anti-codependent. I would call it interdependent. Here’s a couple of verses to back it up…

Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:1-2)

Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. (Proverbs 27:6)

It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. (Galatians 5:13)

God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. (1 Peter 4:10)

This isn’t excusing bad behavior, or winking at poor choices, or rescuing someone from the consequences of sin. Excusing, winking, and rescuing are symptoms of codependency.

Interdependency is saying, “I need you to be stronger—to be healthy—because I may need to lean on you someday.”

Christians try to get stronger and develop their own spiritual gifts so that they can help a friend-in-need get stronger and develop his/her spiritual gifts.

The Body of Christ needs you to be interdependent, which completely trumps codependent.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment »

Books I Read In 2010

January 4, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Here is a list of the books I read in 2010. The titles that at hyperlinked will take you to the book review I wrote for that book.

A Century Turns

A Maze Of Grace

Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites

Classic Wisdom For The Professional Life

Crave

Endued With Power

Finding Purpose Beyond Our Pain

Get Out Of That Pit

In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day

Lead Like Ike

Living Free In An Anxious World

Living Life In The Zone

Mad Church Disease

Once An Arafat Man

Outlive Your Life

Overcoming Barriers To Church Growth

Patton: the Pursuit Of Destiny

Permission To Speak Freely

Plan B

Points Of Power

Quitting Church

Raising The Dead

Rules Of Engagement

Rush Limbaugh: An Army Of One

Should We Fire God

Sleep, It Does A Family Good

The Barbarian Way

The Case For Christmas

The Christian Atheist

The Lord’s Prayer

Tribes

What Good Is God?

What Your Son Isn’t Telling You

What’s So Amazing About Grace

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

The Case For Christmas (book review)

December 20, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

Virgin birth? The accuracy of the biblical account? God in flesh? These are all intriguing questions that crop up especially around the Christmas season, which is why The Case For Christmas by Lee Strobel is a timely read.

Lee Strobel investigates the fantastic claims that Christians make about the birth of Jesus Christ with all of the cool-headed dispassion of a newspaper journalist. Beginning with his own skepticism about the miracle of the virgin birth of Christ, Mr. Strobel seeks out the sharpest minds who have thoroughly researched the key areas surrounding this subject. In a book that reads a little like a detective story, we get to sit in on some of the fascinating interviews Mr. Strobel conducted for this book.

Whether you are an atheist, a doubter, or a wholehearted believer, there is much to ponder in The Case For Christmas. At only 96-pages long, you can read this book prior to Christmas Day, and gain a better appreciation for the true meaning behind CHRISTmas.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites… (book review)

October 25, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

…and Other Lies You’ve Been Told.

If this sounds like a provocative title, you’d be right. But Bradley R.E. Wright delivers with Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites. A sociologist professor, Dr. Wright digs into the numbers behind the headlines. Of course, you’ve heard the age-old cliché: Figures never lie, but liars figure. Sometimes headline writers can take some stats to say what they want to say about Christians and the church, but Dr. Wright shines a light on these tricks.

Dr. Wright looks at some of the headline-grabbing topics like:

  • Is the church losing its young people?
  • Are evangelicals uneducated and poor?
  • Do Christians break the rules as much as non-churched people?
  • Do Christians really love others?
  • What do non-Christians think of Christians?

There are a ton of stats presented in this book. I happen to enjoy digging through the numbers, so there was just enough for me. But don’t worry, if you aren’t really a “numbers person,” there are some easy-to-read graphs and charts that make the numbers easier to digest.

My own slight hesitation with recommending this book is a slight sarcastic edge to Dr. Wright’s delivery. It’s not over-the-top, but at times I felt it was less than his best. But aside from this, I enjoyed getting a look behind the numbers.

I am a Bethany House book reviewer.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , . Leave a Comment »

What Good Is God? (book review)

September 28, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

Philip Yancey always makes me think. He explores the edges of Christian faith, not content just to walk down the safe paths of well-worn, traditional preaching. Just the title of his latest book—What Good Is God?—tells you that this book will be no exception.

This book is laid out in ten sections, each with two chapters. The first chapter in each section gives you the setting, the second chapter is a speech that Yancey gave in that setting. And, wow, what tough settings they are! Every setting is one that makes you wonder, “Where was God in that?!?”

What Good Is God? will take you to settings like…

  • The campus of Virginia Tech after a gunman opened fire on faculty and students.
  • The secret house churches in Communist China.
  • The post-apartheid South Africa where wounds of hate are still healing.
  • The volatile Middle East where religious beliefs violently collide.
  • The middle of a terrorist attack in Mumbai, India.

In every section, Philip Yancey masterfully and empathetically takes us on a journey of discovery that shows that God is still God and that He is good. He does this through personal example, Biblical references, and always with a heart that seems to know his audience.

It’s a challenging read, but well worth your time.

I am a Faith Words book reviewer.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »
« Older posts
Newer posts »