Review of "Derailed" by Tim Irwin

Derailed by Tim Irwin is the vaccination every leader needs but rarely gets, and the reason it is so rare is because it stings a bit. Irwin takes traces of common factors of decline for leaders of large and recognizable corporations and forms a powerful vaccination sure to immunize you from your own downfall as a leader.

The overall intention of this book is clear. It reveals certain vulnerabilities if left unattended can and will lead to ‘derail’. Character is the impetus for everything we do, and Irwin is clear in stating that the greatest impact of our leadership can always be traced back to our character.

The first ingredient in this vaccination is 5 parts profile. The reader is given a glimpse of 6 high level leaders who have derailed due to a character flaw left unattended. These profiles are written to not only commiserate with each fallen leader, but to identify with one or more of them. You quickly discover where this book may be leading you once you read these profiles.

A quick explanation of derailment follows. There are 5 stages to the process of an eventual derailment: Failure of Self-/Other-Awareness, Pride Before the Fall, Missed Early Warning Signals, Rationalizing, and Derailment. It is revealed how if left ignored, these stages happen almost effortlessly.

Irwin develops 4 dimensions of character each leader, no matter the capacity, should develop and maintain: Authenticity, Self-Management, Humility, and Courage. The explanations of these dimensions are the alcohol swab before the injection.

Injection: the derailment factors to be aware of if your leadership lacks any of the aforementioned character dimensions. The healing vaccination Irwin provides in this book necessarily is applied with a sting.

The book is closed with a soothing band-aid in a description of the ways to stay on the track without derailing. You can still be a dynamic leader if you do not ignore the danger, face the sting, and move forward. Irwin closes this book with a great look at how this is accomplished.

I received this book for free in exchange for a review to be written for Thomas Nelson publishing, but knowing what I know now, I would have paid a good amount to gain the tools provided in the reading of it. No matter the capacity in which you lead, this book will serve you very well in forming a long-lasting leadership wherever you are. It is the vaccination every leader needs.

My Favorite 3 Books (this year)

A friend of mine just asked me what my favorite 3 books I read in the last year are. I have not answered him (though I suppose this very post can be my answer). That is not a very simple question for me. I read a lot of books in a year. I also try to read about a variety of topics. Typically, I try to cycle through books on leadership, spiritual development, art, creativity, and church stuff. So it would almost be easier to select top books from each topic, but alas, that was NOT the question.

So here is my immediate reaction to his question, but not be the most thought through. This short list may be more adequately entitled "most memorable books I've read this year". No...thats not it. I'll just stop explaining and start writing:

"A Million Miles in a Thousand Years" by Donald Miller I like Donald Miller. I'm not obsessed with him like many are, but I really like Don Miller. This is his most recent book, and I loved it. The whole idea of living a great story is incredibly intriguing to me.

 "The Artists Way" by Julia Cameron This is one of the best books about art and creativity I have ever read. It is not a "new" book by any means, but I only read it for the first time in the last year. If you want to see your inner artist sparked again or for the first time, this is a great book.

 "The Tangible Kingdom" by Hugh Halter This book will not blow you away. It will not rock your world. It will not turn your perspective of the Church upside down, but it will certainly challenge you to begin thinking of things very differently. I loved this book, but I think it is only because it simply resonated well with where my heart had already been as it relates to the Church.

HONORABLE MENTION: "Angry Conversations with God" by Susan Isaacs "DeRailed" by Tim Irwin

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What are your favorite 3 books you read this year? (you may not post if your titles include the words: moon, eclipse or rogue)

How to Park at CSUS

I am a college pastor in Sacramento, and a majority of my students attend Sacramento State. I have come to discover there is a list of things every college student complains about, regardless of which school they attend: tuition, the food, the rules, and parking.

Most college pastors spend a decent amount of time on campus to hang out with their students, and I like to do this from time to time...if it weren't for the horrific parking situation. Allow me to elaborate on my experience.

STEP ONE Park in the 30 minute parking spaces. There are a few precursory steps before actually parking, so you can park for free in 30 minute parking while you run these quick errands.

STEP TWO - ATM Parking is going to eventually cost me $6 for the day, and who really carries cash any more aside from your grandmother? So I will need to go to the ATM on campus to get out cash. Naturally, you are only allowed to get cash in increments of 20.

I know what you're thinking; "But you only need $6." Yeah, I get it! What's more, the parking machine only takes exact change. So unless I want to make a $14 donation to California State University Sacramento, I now need to break my 20 to get exact change.

STEP THREE - Coffee Shop As expected, I will be getting coffee eventually. It may as well be now. I have to order my medium americano from one of the 75 Java Cities on campus in order to get my coffee AND break my 20 so I can pay my $6 parking fee.

If you're counting at home, my visit to campus has costs me nearly $8 for the price of parking plus americano.

STEP FOUR - Parking Machine The parking machine is located on the 3rd floor of the parking garage. You round your way up the garage to park (at your risk) in the flow of inattentive traffic with your hazards on while you pay for your parking pass. Ignoring the honks and near collisions, you collect your pass and prepare for the parking spot search.

STEP FIVE - Parking Garage Can you imagine a place where you drive an eternal circle while dodging vehicles and pedestrians who pay no mind to your existence? This is the reality of the CSUS parking garage. I have have driven the endless circles for nearly an hour and a half at busy times looking for a spot that never opens.

I am generally uncomfortable with the often necessary "stalking" approach for parking. This is the discovery of a solitary student walking in a fashion which makes you wonder, "Is he on his way to his car?" You drive slowly behind him as he walks, hoping not to creep him out in any way. If he is a decent human being, he will notice you are drafting him and will motion to you that he is NOT in fact walking to his car. But if he is typical, he will let you follow him for several minutes to the stairs in the parking garage where he leaves to go to class. SON OF A....!!!

You await the break in class times when enough people are leaving to find that spot accompanied by gleams of light and cozy chorale music. Alas! I am parked!

My americano is not lukewarm, and I've spent nearly 2 hours preparing and looking for a spot, but the opportunity to hang out with my students on campus is worth every second.

Something About Jesus: random notes on Matthew 13-21

On December 1, I began a challenge to read through the gospels in 30 days.  Along with a few other good friends, it has been a great journey through the life and teachings of Jesus. My hope was to include reflections along the way and offer a place for those taking the challenge to post their reflections as well.

Due to the weekend, I read a lot and posted little. So here are just a few random reflections on I had from chapter 13-21 of Matthew.

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CHAPTER 13 13:20-21 - I don't want to be without deep roots so my faith may last longer...this soil speaks of those who fall away or walk away from faith as soon as there are problems or questions. This seems to define too many college and young adults without deep enough roots to last 13:33 - Do we permeate our world like yeast? Or are we clumped up? 13:38 - THE GOSPEL IS NOT THE SEED! WE ARE THE SEED!

CHAPTER 14 14:15-16 - How often we want Jesus to just do something instead of us actually acting on things we are not only capable of, but called to do.

CHAPTER 15 15:18 - How much of my worship do I offer with my lips but not my heart? 15:15-19 - the heart, the HEART, THE HEART

CHAPTER 16 16:4 - A wicked and adulterous generation looks for miraculous signs - in the age of the "new atheism", we are a generation...a culture...a mindset not only looking for miraculous signs but demanding them 16:13-15 - Who do YOU say I am? - some say a lunatic, some say just a good man, some say only a great teacher, some say a prophet...but who do YOU say I am?

CHAPTER 17 17:17 - How long shall I stay with you? - Jesus knows he has to leave and die, but I wonder if he wonders at this moment, "Is this a good idea; leaving my Father's message and mission in the hands of these people?"

CHAPTER 18 18:7 - Things that cause people to sin - this shows us that bad things do happen in this world, and people have the choice to do horrible and bad things. These things will happen, and it is no good for the one who makes those things happen...but it is not God or Jesus who makes them happen 18:10-14 - I must not be a shepherd, because I would "count my losses" in this situation. If I leave the 99 for 1, I leave 99 at risk for that 1. This has to do with the difference between how I see the world and how God sees the world. I see it as good vs bad and he sees it as lost vs found. If I could change my perspective of the world, perhaps that 1 would be worth the risk of the 99 18:21-35 - ANY TIME I DECIDE TO LOOK DOWN ON ANYONE FOR ANY REASON (especially for not following Jesus), it is a clear indication that I have forgotten the depth of my own failure. I have forgotten how amazingly good God is

CHAPTER 19 19:16 - I noticed the rich young ruler wanted to know "what good thing" he needed to do to get eternal life...so familiar to those of us today who just want to be good enough or do enough good to get into a perfect heaven with a perfect God 19:17 - and Jesus is quick to show him he certainly is NOT going to be good enough to get eternal life...only God is truly good enough 19:18-19 - so Jesus shows him ways to be good, and the rich young ruler thinks he can accomplish these things UNTIL Jesus sets the hook in verse 21 19:21 - a good reminder that no you are NOT "good enough" 19:25 - The disciples ask the right question: "then who CAN be saved" if nobody can be "good enough" ANSWER: 19:26 - With man, impossible! With God, always possible!

CHAPTER 20 20:10-12 - Christians always think they are entitled 20:15-16 - How arrogant we are! 20:31 - WHEN THE WORLD DROWNS OUT OUR CRIES for Jesus, we have a choice. Will we just give up...OR...will we shout all the louder?

CHAPTER 21 21:9 - HOSANNA = "Save us" 21:44 - I want to be broken to pieces as I fall on the solid Rock of Christ, but I hope not to be crushed UNDER the weight of that Rock.

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LISTENING TO: Sidewalk Prophets (self-titled album)

Something about Jesus: Matthew 7-9

My original intent was to blog every other day through the Gospels, but today was so rich I had to write. CHAPTER 7 7:5 - First take the log out SO YOU CAN SEE CLEARLY to remove the speck

7:15-20 - So a false teacher could NOT produce fruit...yet we like to attack people who are doing great ministry leading people to Jesus and discipleship, and we call them false prophets

7:24-27 - Storms come to ALL of us, but the question is, "What is your foundation?" And its good to answer that question before the storm comes.

CHAPTER 8 8:4 - Only a priest could determine a person's reintegration into the religious community. Jesus knew that and wanted this man to be reintegrated

8:20 - Homeless Jesus! Where is THAT Christmas card? Where is THAT Christian imagery?

8:23 - The disciples followed him. What kept any members of the crowd from following him? What kept a mass of people from trying to be one of those on the boat with Jesus whom they were all following and listening intently to?

8:29 - I'm always stricken by the fact demons know Jesus so well! I think, possibly, demons KNOW Jesus better than a lot of Christians.

CHAPTER 9 9:2 - Amazing that FAITH is trusting hope in what we cannot SEE and yet Jesus can SEE our FAITH and perceive our thoughts (9:4)

9:4 - Why do you THINK evil in your HEARTS? - I wonder why we've so easily disconnected our brains from our hearts

9:11 - "Why does your teacher eat with...sinners?" I wish people would ask that about me, but alas, I'm often too afraid to eat there. I'm a pastor, for cryin' out loud! Think of the implications!

9:14-15 - Jesus' ministry provides what fasting seeks: communion with God's presence, forgiveness, salvation, guidance

9:18-26 - FAITH says, "If God...then it WILL happen." I am not so sure I have much faith in light of todays reading.

9:35-38 - It seems if it's not one thing its the next for Jesus in these few verses and these three chapters. Jesus is just going, going, going. Sometimes even while he's talking, someone comes to him in need. He is teaching, proclaiming, curing, and healing. He is curing EVERY disease and EVERY sickness.

When it would seem burnout is impending, you read verse 36.

"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them BECAUSE they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd."

Basically he realizes the outrageous amount of hurt, disease and NEED in the human condition.

Then verse 37-38

"The harvest is plentiful" = there are A LOT of hurting people everywhere...always

"But the laborers are few" = but nobody else is meeting them in that hurt and need

"Therefore ask the Lord to send laborers" = ASK the Lord in faith and prayer that he would send people to serve the harassed, helpless, and hurting

BEWARE: Don't think you can pray for laborers in order to skirt your responsibility to BE a laborer

Something about Jesus: Matt. 1-6

Reading through the Gospels in 30 days. If you still want in on it, we are only 2 days in. Thats only 6 chapters to read today to catch up. 3 chapters a day, 4 Gospels, 30 days

* I got this idea from a friend of mine, Justin Wallace, who has done this challenge before and is currently doing it again with us.

I am including my quick reflections here on my blog. Please feel free to include your reflections here as comments for others to read.

CHAPTER 1 1:1-17 - It is always striking how many women are included in Jesus' lineage, but whats more, it is interesting to note that there are whores and other "questionable" characters  in that line

1:23 - This is why the Christmas story is so vital and crazy and wonderful. "...and they shall call him Emmanuel, which means God with us." Just take a second and reflect on how HUGE that is! GOD....WITH US!!  Here...in flesh...WITH US.

2:3 - The NRSV says that "Herod was frightened and all Jerusalem with him". I knew that Herod gets uber-pissed later, but I never caught that, at first, he was frightened...and so was all Jerusalem

3:2; 4:17 - The Kingdom HAS COME near. We misunderstand this verse gravely when we state that the Kingdom is near or that it is coming near...this is very clearly a past tense statement of a present reality...the Kingdom HAS COME...it is here...going on right now

3:8 - "bear fruit worthy of repentance" (NRSV) - what does that mean do you think?

5:6 - "If you HUNGER and THIRST for righteousness...you will be FILLED" - Could I really define my heart with a HUNGER and a THIRST?

5:11 - "Blessed are you who are persecuted...ON MY ACCOUNT" - NOT because you're an ass

- How would 5:19 compare and come alongside "the least of these"?

5:42 - "Give to EVERYONE...do not refuse ANYONE." - Another instance when Jesus is clearly stark where we like to be muddy and faint...I'm sorry; I mean where...I...like to be muddy and faint.

5:47 - "What more are you doing than others?" - A haunting question I am slow to answer today.

6:2-6, 16,18 - "They will receive their reward...you will receive your reward." They will receive the reward they wanted which was attention, but if we do as Jesus has called us, we will receive our reward as well. The question here is, "What reward do you seek?"

6:11 - "give us this day our DAILY BREAD" - this is to say, give us what we need and not beyond that. We do not seek to hoard and consume more than we actually need.

6:21 - "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be" - At Christmas time, I wonder how much we have connected LOVE to what sort of gift I get/give.

6:33 - If you choose NOT to worry, Jesus gives you an action plan.

WHAT ARE YOUR REFLECTIONS ON Matthew 1-6

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LISTENING TO: "Light" by Matisyahu

Something About Jesus: I heard this was good

Studies show that more and more people know less and less about the Bible. Less and less people read Scripture regularly enough to form even an elementary sense of what the Bible contains. Each generation knows less than the one before it, and that is unnecessary. What is more, there are less and less people who have a true and accurate understanding of who Jesus Christ is.

I do not want to be a part of that group.

So I am embarking on a challenge to read through the gospels in 1 month. Would you take the challenge with me and defy the growing statistics of people with little understanding of Scripture and our Jesus?

BEGIN TODAY, DECEMBER 1

3 Chapters, 4 Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John), 30 days

Check in here for my reflections and please leave your reflections as comments.

Challenge others to engage with us!

Who's in?

Love Thru Accusation: facing my Dr Phil fear

"I'm gonna sacrifice everything to raise this child who will one day hate me," said one of my pregnant friends in a joking manner. But what was only a small joke I happened to overhear last weekend has, at one time and every once in a while again, been a legit fear of mine.

There have been a series of fears I have had to expose, face, and overcome to even imagine the possibility of being a father some day; one of them being the image of my offspring several years from now pulling me on to an episode of Dr. Phil to reveal all the flaws in my parenting when I thought I was on a "Father's Day Father of the Year" episode.

In the age of Celebrity Rehab and Intervention we know how to blame our parents for all of our issues. Granted, I am fully aware of the valid disorders and addictive personalities which take root in our upbringing. I am not discounting those realities.

I mean to shed light on how easy it has become to blame our parents for things which are our own shortcomings, but what's worse, we can blame our parents for our own disobedience and poor choices.

This is what drives my Dr. Phil fear.

I am afraid I will try my best to love the hell out of my son or daughter; to raise them with love, grace, discipline, and love only to be blamed, hated, and despised by this person I sacrificed so much for.

Today, I am reminded of a Father who sacrificed so much to love me and show me grace and discipline. I am reminded of the relentless love He has shown me when I have disobeyed, blamed, and hated him.

I am reminded of how frequently I have assumed he does not love me if he disciplines the way he does or withholds things I think I want or deserve. I am reminded of how frequently I have been angry with him and still found that he has loved me through my accusations.

So when my child grows up to hate me, I hope to be reminded of this sort of love that has been given to me.

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LISTENING TO: "The Old Prince" by Shad

How to Pray ALL the Time

Endless, unbroken lives of prayer are very possible.  Through some searching and with the help of some further reading, this is beginning to be clearer and clearer. We have such a Western Christianity that we have removed a lot of understanding from original Christianity, which happens to have its roots in the East.  One large difference is in our understanding of heaven and God's presence.

Western Christianity has this understanding which prays things like, "God, please show up tonight. " "God, be with us tonight." "We prayed, and God just showed up that night."  We have this understanding of God being in heaven somewhere above the clouds awaiting our demand to show up. Eastern Christianity; historical, Biblical Christianity has a different understanding of heaven and God's presence.  In Biblical accounts of God's presence, OT and NT, God calls out of heaven, but heaven is near.  Heaven is "at hand"...this means heaven is present around them somehow.  It was the very presence of God at hand, surrounding them.  God inhabits the space surrounding us.

This means we are constantly in the presence of God.  We do not actually need to ask for (or demand) that God "show up".  This means we have only to grope out after God, or as Luis of Granada (an old century Christian) once said, "any raising of the heart to God."

It is possible at all moments of the day to focus our hearts on God and trust that he is always present.  This means we no longer have to be preoccupied with making the sacred time, space, and words in order to really experience the presence of God.  This means that we only need to be aware of God's presence with our hearts in order to experience God's presence.  This means it is actually possible to experience god all times of the day, continually.  This means we can experience God even in the mundane tasks of a day.  This means we can join with Brother Lawrence in "Practicing the Presence of God".  This means prayer for another person can be merely feeling what they feel (as best you are able) while "raising your heart to God".  This means we may have been praying all along as long as we were placing ourselves before God. We cannot put God into this pious little space and time and assume these are the only moments we experience the presence of God.  We cannot dissolve God out of our every day experience.  He is always present.  We only hope to grope out for him and raise our heart out to him more continually.

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LISTENING TO: Download binge: Mayer Hawthorne, Shad, One Republic, Switchfoot, Matisyahu, Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson

Simple Coffee

Simplicity is not poverty, and it is not simple. In fact simplicity requires considerable thought as you sort through various things to determine which resources can be limited in order to actually rely on God. But another significant aspect of simplicity is the intentional celebration of life; enjoying the good (and often overlooked) things of life.

I have been reading through a reader called "Praying with Francis of Assisi" by Joseph Stoutzenberger, and there is a chapter about simplicity. Stoutzenberger writes an exercise I chose to take hold of while I sat in a Charlotte coffee shop with my buddy Justin Wallace as he prepared to speak for his group of college students that evening.

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He writes:

Pour a glass of your favorite beverage, or slice up a piece of your favorite fruit, cheese, cake, pie, or bread. Set the glass or plate in front of you. Reflect on the wonder of drink and food, their color, texture, and composition from earth to their present state.

Next, savor the smell of the beverage or food. Finally, take one sip or bite, roll the drink around your tongue or chew the food slowly. Closing your eyes may help to get the full effect.

Finish drinking the beverage or eating the food very slowly, pausing between each sip or bite.

End this action by praising God for His simple wonder.

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Done!

help-portrait

CALLING ALL PHOTOGRAPHERS, MAKE-UP ARTISTS, AND THE LIKE!!! I am incredibly interesting in doing something like this, but I am none of these. If you are interested in doing something like this in the Sacramento area, please contact me and let me know.

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