[?] End of the week housekeeping

Ann Rice's Book didn't ship this week. I'm mad as a devil about it, but them's the breaks. I'm expecting it Wednesday, and I guess I'll have to review it after the hoopla rather than in the midst of the hoopla.

So what's on the nightstand in the meantime?

On the top of the stack is Doug Wilson's To a Thousand Generations, which I will be commenting on here next week if not reviewing. As you would expect, it's compelling and articulate, but I also think it is wrong. I'm probably not going to change Pastor Wilson's mind on the subject, but people of honest-but-conflicting convictions should interact with each other to sharpen each other and to prove out their honesty and their convictions. It's a good read, but not for those who are unstable in their doctrine, one way or the other.

Also, you may have noticed the new book by Dever and Alexander in the Shopping Cart, the Deliberate Church. Many of you are 9 Marks of a Healthy Church fans (those of you who are not ought to find out what the fuss is about), and this book is such an excellent follow-up that I have linked to it here and in the shopping cart for your edification and enjoyment.

For those of you completely in the dark, the Purpose Driven Life is pretty much the flavor of the day in evangelical circles when it comes to "church growth strategies"; there is also the problem of the "Mega shift" which I have discussed briefly here and (sadly) here. Personally, I'm pretty much offended that the goal is "church growth" and not "gospel message" -- because we don't really care if our churches are gigantic or microscopic, do we? Ought we to care? What we ought to care about is that our churches are clearly and actively preaching the Gospel and changing the lives of those who confess Christ as savior. In that, Dever's two books outline the antidote to the Purpose-Driven fad. Review of these two books is forthcoming.

Some of you are also waiting for the reviews of the Narnia books. I'm waiting, too. Hang tight.