Followers Of The Cross

Aaron Shust has achieved another first.The award-winning CMA artist has released his first live recording album, “Love Made a Way.”It is his eighth album overall. His label, Centricity Music, wanted the live recordings.“That’s petrifying,” he said. “There’s something inviting and welcoming about going into the studio, and if you make mistakes, you just do it again. And so there’s something exciting about a live record.”Shust’s awards include Songwriter of the Year at the GMA Dove Awards in 207 and Song of the Year for “My Savior My God.”However, with his background as a worship leader, live performances are his favorite part of the music process.“Writing and every part of the process has its own joy.”When worship music is performed with people who join in, “Heaven is listening to the praise. That makes the performance extra special.”Cameras were used to capture the making of the “Love Made a Way” CD. That in itself was daunting, Shust said, because he saw his facial expressions live. He also had just lost his

A new book provides a fascinating insight into the world of former President Obama’s outreach to faith-based communities.Michael Wear is an evangelical Christian who served in Obama’s Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships in the White House during the president’s first term. Wear directed faith outreach during the 2012 re-election as well.Wear also is founder of Public Square Strategies LLC, a consulting firm aiming to build bridges between secular and religious institutions with shared goals.The story of how a young college student became a White House staffer is told in “Reclaiming Hope,” published by Nelson Books/Thomas Nelson. The subtitle is “Lessons Learned in the Obama White House About the Future of Faith in America.”Wear writes about how through a series of coincidences he basically walked up to then-Sen. Obama in a hotel and asked for a job with the future presidential campaign. Wear, a college student at the time, persistently stayed in touch with Obama’s staff throughout the 2008 cam

Family and music are both a way of life for Christian duo Grayson/Reed, and they wouldn’t have it any other way as they have found a certain balance in their lives.Husband and wife duo Molly Reed and Mike Grayson are releasing their new CD “Walk” on Jan. 13, 2017, just shy of their fourth anniversary in February.Molly granted me a telephone interview in early January to talk about “Walk” and other topics.Up until forming Grayson/Reed recently, Mike and Molly worked in separate musical careers. Mike was lead singer for MIKESCHAIR for 13 years, where he released three full-length albums and five Top 5 radio singles. Molly was a member of duo City Harbor and is a popular songwriter, having penned hits for a variety of crooners from Marie Osmond to Amy Grant to Francesca Battistelli.They have a 2-year-old daughter, Grailey. Molly said that she and her husband had wanted to do music together but did not know how or when it would happen. When they were pregnant, they didn’t wan to be separated by their careers so t

A new author wants your worship life to be the opposite of boring.John Hambrick is part of the leadership team at Buckhead Church, part of North Point Ministries in the Atlanta area. He’s also the author of the powerful new book “Move Toward the Mess: The Ultimate Fix for a Boring Christian Life” by David Cook publisher. The foreword is by Andy Stanley.Hambrick is speaking out against Christians getting stuck in a rut. It doesn’t matter if your pastor gives boring sermons. It doesn’t matter if the music is dull. Jesus was always in motion. Hambrick writes that if Jesus were boring, the Pharisees would not have killed Him.Hambrick said, in an interview, he coined the phrase “Move Toward the Mess” at his church. Most of the ministries there were already moving toward the mess. He decided he needed to write about the concept.Most Christians would rather stay in their comfort zone, he said. “We started to realize if you want to follow Jesus out into the world … that’s what you’ve got to do. There first mess that

The widow of NFL center Grant Feasel is sharing her family’s story to help warn others about the dangers of sports-related concussions.Cyndy Feasel lost her husband Grant in 2012 to cirrohsis of the liver due to alcoholism, which was connected to a degenerative brain disease called CTE. The CTE in turn was caused by a lifetime of receiving concussions from playing football.Cyndy shares her story in a book by Nelson Books titled “After the Cheering Stops: An NFL Wife’s Story of Concussions, Loss, and the Faith That Saw Her Through.”The couple, which had three children, divorced about a year before Grant’s death, ending 29 years of marriage. They made peace shortly before his death.“If I’d only known that what I loved the most would end up killing me and taking away everything I loved, I would have never done it,” Grant told Cyndy weeks before his death.Cyndy calls Grant’s issues a “slow fade.” She did not realize the extent of his brain injuries until his death; CTE can only be diagnosed by performing an autop

Pastor Lucas Miles is in the early stages of producing a historical documentary of Nimrod, a person from the ancient world who is mysterious but very relevant to people today.The Book of Genesis says Nimrod was responsible for building the Tower of Babel. Jewish tradition backs this up, Miles said.Nimrod also was responsible for the creation of Ninevah and Babylon. The word “Nimrod” means something like “We will rebel.” Miles said he believes “Nimrod” was more of a title than a real name, but he does believe this was an actual person.Jewish tradition believes the Tower of Babel was not only a tall building but a revolt against the flood of Noah’s Ark. The builders believed that the building would protect them if God sent another flood; however, God had promised not to do another worldwide flood.“This was a group who did not trust God,” Miles said.Nimrod also is connected to the ancient Greek and Egyptian religions as well as freemasonry and even Islam. It is believed that Nimrod’s body was cut into pieces and

Lucas Miles seeks God in church, in movies and in books. Lucas produced the movie “Rodeo Girl” with Kevin Sorbo and is producing a new film, “Crowning Jules,” which is in the works. A 2017 release date is likely as the producer is hunting for a distributor as of September 2016.“Crowning Jules” is a teenager adventure comedy along the lines of “Ferris Buelller’s Day Off” meets a non-Christmas version of “Home Alone” meets something from the teen years of the Olsen twins, Miles told me. But with a family friendly theme.It’s a story of two sisters who had drifted apart with the loss of their mother. They journey together to Boston for a beauty pageant and rekindle their bond.crowning_julesThe sisters are played by real life twin sisters Elizabeth and Jacqueline Labadie. “They do finish each other’s sentences” in real life, Miles said.The Labadie sisters just graduated high school recently and have moved to Los Angeles to pursue careers. They have recently appeared on ABC’s “The Middle” sitcom in guest starring r

Spiritual warfare is real. This story is about a fictional take on spiritual warfare.Julie Hall is the author of the “Life After” trilogy. Book One, “Huntress,” was released in Nov. 2015. Book Two, “Warfare,” will be released in fall 2016.Hall, who used to work in youth ministry, said her series is in the young adult fiction category and should appeal to both the Christian and secular markets. The series draws upon biblical themes but is not a biblical description of Heaven, Hall told me.“Life After” follows the adventures of Audrey. “Huntress” focuses on Audrey’s death, which is only the beginning of her adventures. God gives her the assignment to go into training to learn how to fight the devil and demons. Audrey makes mistakes along the way, which a person in Heaven would not do.Each book in the trilogy focuses on Audrey’s interaction with each of the three identities of God in the Trinity: Book One focuses on God the Father; Book Two, The Holy Spirit; and Book Three, Jesus.“Huntress” is full of action, ad

Christian lead singer Chad Mattson is celebrating 13 years of sobriety with the new album “Follow Through” with the band Unspoken.“Follow Through,” from Centricity Music, will be available Aug. 26, 2016.(Editor's note: All commercial music in my podcasts is used by permission of the artist who created it or representatives of the artist. I use limited clip lengths. I respect artists' copyrights.)Unspoken bandUnspoken formed out of Chad’s quest for sobriety, he told me during a recent interview. His life turned around on a “self-made” missions trip to the Dominican Republic to get sober. That’s where he met guitarist Mike Gomez. The Lord led them to return to the States to preach and use music as a tool.This record is “getting back to the first love that we had,” Chad said. Believers get busy and “tend not to finish it as strong as we started.” The album is a call to return to Jesus as your first love.Unspoken is also composed of original band member Ariel Munoz, a drummer from Puerto Rico, said Chad, who is f

To simply call Dave Richardson Jr.’s new book, “Transparent,” an apologetics book would be an easy way to ignore what is underneath the surface of its powerful new look at why you believe the way you do.Everyone makes assumptions.“Those assumptions are the things that drive us and control us every day,” Richardson told me. “It’s like an autopilot in our head.”I interviewed Richardson during the International Christian Retail Show. He was there to promote his book, “Transparent: How to See Through the Powerful Assumptions That Control You.”He earned a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies from the University of Portland, a master’s degree in theological studies from the International School of Theology and a MTh. in applied theology from the University of Oxford. He worked with Campus Crusade for Christ (or Cru) for 30 years, spending most of his time with professors.The premise of “Transparent” came about from Richardson’s 20 years’ work with university and college professors, helping them connect fa

“Shepherd, Potter, Spy and the Star Namer: Survival in Canaan” is a fascinating title for a fascinating book.The historical fiction novel is told from the point of view of a 12-year-old shepherd boy, Keshub, in the land of Canaan during the period where Joshua leads the Israelites into the Promised Land. Keshub is a Gibeonite, a people who lived in the Promised Land before Israel claimed the territory that God had promised them.The author is Peggy Miracle Consolver, a Sunday School teacher of 35 years’ experience.Keshub tended his flocks and dreamt of having adventures beyond his valley. The shepherd, a potter’s apprentice, found adventure as the Hebrews approach his land and he helped hide the Amorite king’s son. He became a spy to keep watch over the Hewbrews.The book’s description reads, “True to scripture and authenticated by archeological research, this tale of God’s grace puts flesh and blood on the enigmatic Gibeonites who make a treaty with Joshua. ‘Shepherd, Potter, Spy and the Star Namer’ looks at J

Carol McLeod, a Christian radio personality, invites women to experience exuberant joy and hope with God through her new weekly devotional titled “Joy for All Seasons.”McLeod is a public speaker and prolific radio and podcast personality in addition to writing books and more. Her program “Defiant Joy! Radio with Carol McLeod” is found on Sirius XM’s Family Talk 131 from Monday-Friday at 2:30 p.m. Eastern as well as several local radio stations. She describes the radio show as Bible teaching to encourage people. She has a podcast available on her website at JustJoyMinistries.com/podcast. On the Charisma Podcast Network she is part of the Spirit Led Woman Broadcast, and she has a daily podcast. Her other projects include writing devotionals for the Youversion Bible app.In her new book “Joy for All Seasons,” available Sept. 1, 2016, McLeod says she provides a weekly summons into God’s presence complete with rich experiences. The book includes Bible verses to consider and questions to ponder. It is perfect for a

What’s in a name? A lot, when you are talking about the Creator of the universe.Children’s author Diane Stortz wants to help children better understand some of God’s names — 40 of His names, to be exact.Stortz’s publisher, Tommy Nelson (an imprint of Thomas Nelson), has released her new book titled “I Am: 40 Reasons to Trust God.” This is her third Bible story book.The book takes 40 of God’s names or descriptive titles from Genesis to Revelation and tells a story behind each, she said during an interview at the International Christian Retail Show. Each story can help a child get to know God better.“When you know someone better, you’re generally closer to them.”In addition to providing the story behind each name, Stortz’s book provides the Hebrew or Greek word, the pronunciation of the Hebrew and the Bible verse that mentions the name. (Jehovah Tsuri: the God who helps me and Jehovah Rophe: the God who heals me are two examples.)Stortz is an author and former editorial director whose heart’s desire is to “tell

Baptist preacher Kent Philpott has a heart for sharing the Gospel with his Muslim neighbors. And he is ready to help you share the Good News as well with his second-edition book titled, “If Allah Wills.”Philpott, pastor of evangelical churches for 45 years, former leader in the Jesus People Movement in San Francisco, has been writing about Islam since 2001.Since 1984 he has worked as pastor of Miller Avenue Baptist Church in Mill Valley, California. He was a long-time baseball coach for high schools and San Quentin State Prison. Philpott is the director of Earthen Vessel Publishing and author of numerous books.“If Allah Wills” has 15 chapters, seven appeals (asking Muslim readers to consider and reflect on a point), seven contrasts (asking Muslim readers to compare and contrast point of theology), and one appeal and contrast that essentially is asking Muslim readers to think critically about Islam. Philpott does not condemn Muslims or attack the tenets of Islam or the prophet Muhammad but reaches out with car

Dr. James Goll of Franklin, Tennessee is president of Encounters Network, an international outreach ministry. He has written 35 books, including his latest, Releasing Spiritual Gifts Today, which is the topic of this column. The book is published by Whitaker House publishers and is in the Christianity/Pentecostal & Charismatic categories. I like how his book is readable. While it covers deep theological matters, it is approachable for the average reader; one does not have to be a seminary student.The word “today” in the title Releasing Spiritual Gifts Today is important, Goll told me during an interview in June at the International Christian Retail Show. Goll said he first wrote the book and called it Releasing Spiritual Gifts. However, “It seemed flat.” He prayed and the word “‘today’ was just alive in me. And I go, ‘Oh my goodness. I have to rewrite this book.’ So in a three-day period I go through and I rewrote the book. And I brought in a lot more storyline, and I updated it with a ‘now tense’ which m

Zoro the drummer, or the minister of groove as he’s called, has played for the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Bobby Brown and Frankie Valli. Now, the minister of groove is stepping up his efforts to help people discover, develop and use their God-given gifts and talents.That may seem like an odd thing for a drummer to focus on. But Zoro is not your average musician. He has been a teacher and motiviational speaker for years. Feeling led by God, he has condensed his lesson plans into a book titled “Soar!” The book, which will be available Sept. 1, 2016, is published by Emerge Publishing.Over the years, Zoro has championed various causes. He’s a spokesperson for Compassion International and Big Brothers/Big Sisters of America, and he’s been honored at the nation’s capital for promoting responsible fatherhood and mentoring as part of the White House Fatherhood Champions of Change program, according to his website.I interviewed Zoro during the International Christian Retail Show in June 2016. He is one of the most dynami