I’ve decided not to publish any more books in the traditional way. 12 for 12 and I’m done. I like the people, but I can’t abide the long wait, the filters, the big push at launch, the nudging to get people to go to a store they don’t usually visit to buy something they don’t usually buy, to get them to pay for an idea in a form that’s hard to spread … I really don’t think the process is worth the effort that it now takes to make it work. I can reach 10 or 50 times as many people electronically.

That’s quite the statement for a successful author to make. You’ve got to remember, we’re not talking about a small-time author – in its first two years of release, Purple Cow sold over 150,000 copies in more than 23 printings and The Dip was a Business Week and New York Times bestseller. So what is making him jump ship?

Godin’s little gem of a statement is right in the middle of that quote when he talks about trying to get people to “pay for an idea in a form that’s hard to spread.” That is what separates the traditional publishing industry from electronic forms of idea distribution like blogs – if you can’t Tweet it, Like it, Digg it or email it, then how will you spread it?

I’m not saying that books are a thing of the past but I do agree with Godin that there are some significant paradigm shifts about to rock the publishing industry over the next decade or two. The earliest waves of that shift are already starting to hit the magazine world which often relies on current news stories to sell their stories. How can a traditionally published magazine keep up with the speed and flexibility of the Internet where stories trend and fall into obscurity before a printed page can even hit the stands?

Do you agree with Seth Godin’s quote? Are books on the way out? Will authors start dropping traditional publishers in favor of electronic mediums?

Do-It-Yourself Coffins

Wow, that’s pretty morbid, isn’t it? I’ve only heard of people building their own coffins in horror films. Then again, I have to give props to whoever came up with the subtitle, “A book for Woodworkers who Want to be Buried in Their Work.”

How To Have Sex In The Woods

Ummm….is it really that complicated? According to the inside flap of the book, yes it is. Here are just a few of the questions you probably have never considered before getting frisky under the stars:

• What sex essentials should be part of your first-aid kit?
• What kind of camping equipment provides particular comfort for two?
• What are the effects of the elements on condoms, spermicides, and other contraceptives?
• How do you find that perfect spot for your love den?
• What about foreplay, personal hygiene, and protection from pesky plants or adverse weather conditions while you’re exposed?

If you’re planning on a little nookie during your next camping trip and don’t have the answer to any of those questions above, this book is for you. For your kids’ sake though, please pack it somewhere where they won’t find it.

Microwave Cooking For One

Saddest…cookbook…ever.

How To Avoid Huge Ships

Don’t laugh. Think how many maritime collisions could have been avoided if more people had read this book. And besides, it must have been pretty good in order to warrant a second edition. You have to account for…umm, huger ships and stuff.

How To Start Your Own Country

Yes! You too can start your own country! Seriously though, there could be some advantages to starting your own country. For example, anyone could place and compete in an Olympic sport and make it to the Olympics. Plus, you could write your own laws – I think I would outlaw reality television and make Freebird the National Anthem.

How To Be Pope

Wow, talk about a niche audience! Then again, if you ever do become Pope, I suppose it would be helpful to have a manual.

What crazy books have you come across that could be added to this list?

I decided to skim the first few pages to see what the author had to say. The first few pages turned into a chapter, then two. I grabbed the highlighter next to my bed and began highlighting away and before I knew it I had read the first 75 pages. I felt like the author had set up hidden cameras and had been spying on me. I began to see challenges I faced explained in detail like “reactionary work flow”(acting impulsively on the most burning project rather than being proactive).

Like many creative people, I thrive on being creative and generating creative ideas. I’ve always struggled with the organizational part of my creative ideas though. One principle Scott explains made perfect sense.

CREATIVITY X ORGANIZATION = IMPACT

Organization is just as important as ideas when it comes to making an impact. Using the above equation, let’s imagine someone who is wildly creative but totally disorganized. He would look something like this:

100 (Creativity) X 0 (Organization) = 0 IMPACT

No matter how brilliant the ideas are, without some level of organization, those ideas will never be realized and will never have an impact on the world.

On the other hand, suppose someone is far less creative but slightly more organized:

50 (Creativity) X 2 (Organization) = 100 IMPACT

A shocking and perhaps unfortunate reality is that someone with average creativity but stellar organization skills will make a greater impact than the disorganized creative geniuses among us!

Ok, that’s all well and good, you might say, but how do I become more organized? It’s just not my strength.  And you’re right. Organization is something most creatives simply are not good at. I myself struggle with bouncing from creative project to creative project, from idea to idea. I’ve read productivity books before but most are geared towards the business professional. This is the first book I’ve read that is written specifically for Creatives like me and the methods explained not only make sense, they work!

You’ll learn, among other things, how to:

• Scrap useless brainstorming sessions and generate ideas in moderation (more is not better)
• Rapidly refine ideas to keep momentum on creative projects
• Reduce complicated projects to just 3 primary elements
• Develop an action-oriented system that even big-picture creative types can understand and use

I simply cannot rave enough about how great this book is and how helpful it has been for me! If you are a creative person who struggles to turn your ideas into reality and stay organized, do whatever you have to do to get a hold of this book!

WIN A FREE COPY OF MAKING IDEAS HAPPEN! – We Have a Winner…

Because I know so many of you are fellow creatives like me, I knew that I simply had to tell you about this book and help get it into your hands. After reading it I emailed the publisher and asked if I could give away some copies here on my blog. They graciously agreed to send me 5 COPIES to give away! Wanna win one? Here’s how.

To enter, simply leave a comment below and share your biggest obstacle to your creative productivity (Tweet a link to this post for an extra contest entry). I’ll announce the winners later this week.

WINNERS! – Congratulations to Katie, Eddie Siceloff, Mike, Luke Allen and Jason Yarborough who won a copy of this amazing book! I hope it helps you guys as much as it helped me.

Fortunately I’ve already stocked my library shelves with tons of great Relevant books through the years but I thought I’d pass this information along to you, my faithful readers. So to celebrate their End of Summer Sale, here is my Top 10 Relevant Books that you can pick up for only $5 (through Aug. 31).

** No, I’m not getting paid to write this. Yes, I do own and have read all these books. **

My Top 10 RELEVANT Books You Can Pick Up For $5

10. Here’s To Hindsight

Tara Leigh Cobble

Tara Leigh Cobble is an independent singer/songwriter from New York. Here’s to Hindsight is the honest story of her effort to reconcile God’s goodness with the uncertainties of day-to-day life. Entertaining and quick read with some great insight.

9. Simplicity

Mark Salomon

Simplicity is an entertaining and enlightening book on being authentic. Written as a farewell letter to the Christian music industry, independent rock icon Mark Salomon offers a compelling memoir of his life as a musician and a Christian. Very interesting read.

8. The RELEVANT Nation

Assorted Authors

The RELEVANT Nation tells the stories of 50 visionaries under the age of 40 who are living influential, active and passionate lives grown out of their Christian faith. Although a few years old, the stories and ideas in this book are still incredibly…uhh…relevant. Great book.

7. The Relevant Church

Assorted Authors

Even though this book was published in 2004 (ugh! how totally un-relevant) it has some great stories and ideas about building authentic communities of faith. Some of the contributing authors include Mark Driscoll (Mars Hill Church), Alex McManus (Mosaic) and Mike Bickle (International House of Prayer).

6. (Re)Understanding Prayer

Kyle Lake

You may remember the name Kyle Lake from the news a few years ago. He was the Pastor of University Baptist Church in Waco, TX that tragically died after being shocked during a baptism. This book asks you to re-examine what you know and think about prayer and how to connect with God in even more powerful ways.

5. The Revolution

Assorted Authors

The Revolution looks at social justice issues and people who are making a difference around the world. Some of the topics addressed are clean water, hunger, fair trade, women’s rights, AIDS and much more. If you’re looking for a great guide on preparing yourself and your church to make a difference in the world, this is an excellent resource.

4. Pocket Guide To The Apocalypse

Jason Boyett

Jason Boyett is one of my favorite writers (and bloggers). Pocket Guide To The Apocalypse take a look at our culture’s ongoign love affair with the “End Times.” Order this book before they’re all sold out and you get…left behind. (also check out Boyett’s other book currently on sale as well, Pocket Guide To Adulthood)

3. The Vision And The Vow

Pete Greig

This book is an illustrated account of The Vision — a radical call to discipleship that was found graffitied on the walls of the first ever 24-7 prayer room and quickly spread by word of mouth from that single room in England to Washington D.C. and the underground churches of China, inspiring artists, DJ’s, film-makers and countless ordinary people along the way. It will shake your world.

2. The Christian Culture Survival Guide

Matthew Paul Turner

The Christian Culture Survival Guide is a hilarious look at some of the more…interesting…elements of our Christian subculture. If you’ve grown up in the church you’ll appreciate some of the “inside jokes” and churchisms in this book. Matthew is also a fellow blogger and author of Churched (read my review).

1. Deadly Viper Character Assassins

Mike Foster & Jud Wilhite

Ok, this is a must-have. Seriously. If you don’t have this book in your library, buy it now. Better yet, buy 10 and give them away. The money you’ll spend is well worth the character assassins you’ll avoid. Brilliant writing by Foster & Wilhite, beautiful artwork (also be sure to check out the Deadly Viper blog).

Are you a RELEVANT book fan? I’d love to know…what’s your favorite RELEVANT book.

Sure, you can pre-order this book from Amazon and wait for it to show up in your mailbox (please do that too), but what if I told you that I have 1 official hardcover copy of Mad Church Disease? What if I told you that I want to give it away? That’s right, you can get your hands on this amazing book weeks before anyone else.

HOW TO WIN THIS BOOK

Here’s all you need to do. First, leave a comment with your name. Second, you have to promise that when you’re done reading the book you will give it to someone you know in ministry. This book is too good and the message too important not to share. The winner will be chosen at random and announced this weekend.

Health officials are worried about the mysterious new epidemic that is sweeping around the world known only as Mad Church Disease (MCD). Symptoms are difficult to recognize in the early stages leading to an alarmingly high causality rate. While typically infecting those in full-time ministry (especially pastors), MCD is not uncommon among youth pastors, children’s workers, worship leaders, musicians and administrative staff. Even volunteers and part-time ministry staff are at risk.

Symptoms include lack of desire for prayer, decreased Bible reading, anxiety, worry, insomnia, headaches, negativity, cynicism, and lack of fulfillment in life.

A Review of Mad Church Disease

Let me preface this review by reminding you that I don’t review a lot of books on my blog. I’ve intentionally only chosen books to review that connected with me personally. Mad Church Disease is one of those books.

While I actually met Anne for the first time in October, I was very familiar with her because of her blog FlowerDust.net. Over the past year as I’ve read her blog and various pieces she’s written, I’ve been amazed at her gut-wrenching honesty about her struggles with pornography, depression and burnout. As a matter of fact, if I didn’t know her I might even find some of the stories in the book hard to believe. Unfortunately, they’re not only true but all too common in churches across America.

If anyone is qualified to speak out on this subject and offer hope it would be Anne. Her journey has taken her through the worst and the ugliest the church world has to offer, but also celebrates the hope of a new and better way to function in ministry.

Her wake-up call came in the form of a question from an associate pastor at her church:

“Does working at this church interfere
with your communion with Christ?”

That question led her to realize that her ministry for God was actually getting in the way between her relationship with God. She quickly learned that she was falling into the trap that so many in ministry fall into. The trap that excuses the extra long hours and ignores the stress and physical warnings. The burnout trap.

We cannot be dependent on ourselves and on God at the same time. When we consider the practice of rest unnecessary, we will also inevitably lose sight of the necessity of God.

Anne Jackson

My Own Struggle With MCD

I think the reason this book resonated so stong with me was because I’ve been down this road. I once thought that I was the one person holding up a shaky house of cards. In my foolishness I would spend extra time focusing on ministry responsibilities at the expense of time with my family. As is the case with many people who struggle with MCD, the extra hours and stress weren’t forced on me – I willingly took them on myself under the guise of “sacrificing for God and the church.”

Lisa kept telling me how my focus on ministry left a gaping hole in our family. I finally began to see how my “sacrifice” for the church was affecting those closest to me. I didn’t change overnight but I began to be more conscious of whether I was cheating my family and, more importantly, my relationship with God.

Who Should Read This Book

Anyone in any type of ministry – full-time, part-time or volunteer – needs to read this book. I completely agree with Jon that everyone graduating from seminary needs a copy of this book along with their diploma.

The funny thing about MCD is that has a funny way of sneaking up on you. You may think you’re doing fine and able to manage your stress level. But it’s important to remember that our enemey specializes in robbing us of our joy and destroying our life (John 10:10).

PLEASE do yourself a favor and pre-order this book. It is well worth the $11.55 you’ll pay on Amazon. You can even get a sneak-peek by downloading a sample chapter here. Buy it for yourself or for those close to you in ministry.

Last week I wrote about Matthew Paul Turner’s new book Churched (which is amazing by the way, buy it here) and did a little contest to give a copy away. I got a much larger and funnier response than I had anticipated.

I asked you to finish this sentence, “I was/am so churched…” with a true/partly-true or humorous illustration about just how churched you were growing up. Sometimes it’s kinda fun to laugh about how far we’ve come in our walk with God.

It was hard to choose the winner out of all the hilarious comments but here are some of my favorites. The first and second place will both receive copies of Churched.

1st Place:
I’m so churched I was born there…well, almost. My mom’s water broke while at the piano playing “I’ll Fly Away”. She was back at that same piano playing “Love Lifted Me” less than 24 hours later – Shanda

2nd Place:
I’m so churched that when picking out a shirt to buy I still wonder if it will pass the “can’t be lower than four fingers width from your collarbone” test. – Jennifer Bergey

Honorable Mentions:

I am so churched… I can recite the 1st, 3rd and 4th lines of the hail mary to the tune of ‘jehovah jirah’ all while alternating between the holy hop & the kick skip dance. – Carolyn Mejia

I am/was so churched I asked for flannel-graphed walls instead of wallpaper in my room as a kid so that I could do my own illustrated Bible stories. – Brian Becker

I’m so churched I have signed 35 True Love Waits cards – Josh Brickey

I was so churched that I knew the distinctive flavors of 100 different casseroles before most kids my age were off of their bottles. – Danny Eiler

I’m so churched that I played the part of “God” in a referee shirt in a dramatic reenactment to the song, “The Champion” by Carmen. – Jason Salamun

I’m was so churched I bought, laid at the altar, and re-bought Collective Soul’s “Gel” album three times! – Brett

I’m so churched Bill Gaither is STILL my homeboy – Aaron Jackson (I love this picture)

I was so churched I didn’t know my wife had knees until we got married. – Nick Carnes

I’m so churched I proposed to my wife before Sunday service in the Senior Pastor’s office. Romantic huh? – Bryan McGee

Read the rest of the entries here and pick up Matthew’s new book here.

“Churched” Contest Details:
We’re going to have a little fun with the giveaway. To enter, just leave a comment that starts with “I was/am so churched…” and finish the sentence with true or mostly true details about yourself.

Example: “I’m so churched that I can sing 135 Sunday School songs word-for-word” or “I was so churched that I was wearing clip-on ties to church before I was out of diapers.” Be creative. I’ll pick the best “churched” comment as the winner and announce it here tomorrow.

Ready?

I was/am so churched…

My Review of ‘Churched’ by Matthew Paul Turner

I received an advance copy of Churched in the mail a couple of weeks ago and was anxiously looking forward to reading it. I knew it was going to be good because only great writers get to use their first, last and middle name on the book cover.

I sat down to read about Matthew Paul Turner’s “journey to God despite a holy mess” and was immediately drawn into the story. Within a few hours I had read the book cover to cover in one sitting.

Turner’s humorous storytelling style made this book a fun and easy read. Every 10 or 15 minutes I called out to Lisa in the other room, “Honey, listen to this…” Some of the stories were so laughable that you might almost wonder if they were true. But having been thoroughly “churched” myself I knew that situations like those could only happen in a church.

So many of his recollections brought back memories of when I attended Sunday school as a child with my hair slicked back and my clip-on tie firmly attached to my collar.

I thought the devil was easy to spot when I was younger. To me, he stuck out like a black dot on a white sheet of paper. I’d be minding my own business and all of a sudden – boo! – Satan jumped out from behind a corner like he was a jack-in-the-box. he sought out ways to devour me, tempt me, or get me to take up smoking.

I was trained in Sunday school to spot the devil. My teachers told me to watch out for roaring lions, disgruntled angels, women wearing low-cut blouses, and Billy Graham. Those were sure signs that Satan could be close.

I remember the songs we sang that contrasted the stomp-the-devil-to-the ground-and-make-him-sit-on-a-tack to the ones that reminded us just how big and strong our God was.

A part of me always believed that God was bigger than how the people at my church talked about him. They thought of him as big, of course. And strong. One of the songs we used to sing in Sunday school boasted, “My God is so big, so strong and so mighty; there’s nothing my God cannot do.”

We’d scream-sing those words so loud that our teachers would worry that our blood vessels would pop. But the big God that my pastor and Sunday school teachers talked about seemed like an if-he-ever-stepped-on-me-he’d-smash-me kind of big. Angry, giant big. It always made God seem unloving and uncoordinated.

But probably the part of Turner’s book that grabbed me the most were his stories of conforming to the popular image of what it meant to be a Christian, from the “Baptist haircut” to the way he talked.

At my church and school, perception was everything. How people viewed you was much more important than how you actually were. The truth didn’t matter. What people believed to be the truth mattered. I learned early on that if everybody believed I was the well-behaved, good-natured boy without a sin in the world, it didn’t matter what the truth was. The truth was secondary to a person’s opinion or perception of truth.

As I read Churched I alternated between laughter at some of his stories and wincing as I remembered some of mine. I’ve seen the worst of legalism and fundamentalism in the church. I tried to conform to the scripture-quoting, suit-wearing, hymn-singing Christian everyone told me I needed to be. I looked the part on the outside but inside I was a mess.

This book paralleled my childhood in so many ways which, at times, was a little uncomfortable. However, it was the thread of hope that ran through the pages that reminded me that each of us are on a journey to God. For some of us, our journeys include stories of sex, drugs and alcohol abuse. But some include singing hymns, doing Bible-drills and burning secular music.

I’m so thankful that my journey led me out of that “holy mess” to a real, genuine relationship with God, one that was unhampered by legalism and hypocrisy.

Reading ‘Churched’ reminded me just how far I’ve come.

****

Order Churched on Amazon.com
Visit Matthew Paul Turner’s blog

(UPDATE: I originally posted that this webinar was today when it is in fact tomorrow. Sorry for the confusion)

Here’s an excerpt about the book and event:

In this brand new presentation, bestselling author Seth Godin outlines 14 trends that are changing businesses forever. He talks about how the new marketing landscape represents nothing short of an industrial revolution, and highlights the organizations and brands and products that are taking this new world by storm. By the end of an hour, Godin will have you looking at the world you live in very differently… the new rules create new winners (and losers) and there’s no time to waste.

If you’re free tomorrow afternoon check this event out and then stop back here and let me know what you thought.

Register for the free Webcast
Purchase Meatball Sundae on Amazon.com