Category Archives: Speculative Fiction
God is in Control
There is a haunting appeal to contemplating the unknown. Since the dawn of mankind, we have turned our faces towards the heavens and searched the brilliant stars and the shining moon for answers. Who are we? Where did we come from? What is our purpose? What will happen to us after death? Is this all there is to life?
My daughter insists she has seen an angel. When we drive into our gated community, go up the slight hill and around the curve beside the large pond, she always points to a certain tree growing at the edge of the water.
“He was right there, Dad. Really, he was.” She describes a lanky, thin man with a beard and long hair wearing jeans and a simple tee shirt. She saw him as we passed but in looking back, he was gone. There and gone. A brief encounter with the unknown. At that time in her life, she needed this encounter. Struggling with her epilepsy and the terrible toll it had taken on her life as a high school student, she needed to know that God was still in control.
I did not see the angel. But then, the visitation was not for me. It was for her. A quiet message of reassurance that God is watching. We may not understand why life happens as it does, but we must cling to the assurance that God is in control. All I have to do is look up at the universe wheeling and spinning around our little oasis of life and know that God is in control. He is holding it all together and directing the path of each star, each galaxy, yes, each atom.
The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.
He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Colossians 1:15-20
I received a lovely email from a reader of “The 13th Demon”. I know the book seems to be a frightening and potentially horrific tale, but it is only in our terror that we see the power of God and His incredibly redemptive acts. In my book, I give a major character an affliction. I don’t want to say more than that for fear of spoiling a reader’s experience. The author of the email loved the book, particularly the story of the caterpillar. But, she didn’t like the fact I had used her affliction as that of one of the characters.
I saw in her email a hint of the pain and struggle of anyone who wakes up each day with a chronic illness. I see it in my daughter, who at 24 has just now begun to awaken to the possibility she can have her own life. She has started back to community college and is actually looking forward to holding a job and having an independent life. My wife and I marvel at the sudden change and not a day passes that I don’t look over my shoulder for the oncoming train. To my email fan, I sent commendation for her bravery and her honesty. I am all too aware of the toll such disease takes on a life. But, God is in control.
In the days to come, I will share more information about the nature of God’s messengers, angels. The power and presence of these creations of God are at the center of my books and to grow in understanding of these creatures is to get a glimpse of the unknown; a passing glimmer of God’s grace; a tall figure of reassurance standing by the road of life.
The Ones Who Did Not Fall
I went to Abilene, Texas to talk to a man who came back from the dead.
I’ll call him Julio. He was a simple man injured severely in a tragic accident that almost cost him his life. I heard the story of the policeman who happened upon the scene of the accident only moments after it took place. They were on a long, dark highway in the middle of flat, empty plains outside of Abilene. They were literally in the middle of nowhere. The officer found Julio lying face down on the side of the road with half of his head caved in and half of his face missing. Julio was not breathing. The officer was convinced he was dead. The man in the other vehicle was unhurt. When the officer went to speak to the other man he noticed someone hunched over Julio.
This new arrival was a man probably in his late twenties in blue jeans and a jacket. The officer ran over to the man.
“Who are you?”
“Just a friend.” The man started clearing grass and dirt out of Julio’s mouth. Suddenly, Julio gasped for breath and the officer ran back to his car to radio for a helicopter. After the call, he found Julio alone on his back on the side of the road. The “friend” was nowhere in sight. The police officer believes the “friend” was an angel.
I sat across from Julio in a TexMex restaurant just hours after meeting him and hearing his extraordinary story. I had never met this man. He knew nothing about me. I had been asked by my close friend, Mike Licona to come and interview Julio and evaluate his story and his medical records to see if there was objective proof of his story. Julio had never seen me, never talked to me, and knew nothing about me. Mike had only met him the evening before and during their conversations never mentioned my name or anything about me.
Julio suddenly looked up from his plate and looked over my shoulder as if listening to someone. I turned. There was no one there. He looked back at me.
“What do you have to do with demons?” Julio asked.
I blinked in surprise. “Why do you ask?”
“Dad told me to ask you.” He referred to God as Dad. He looked over my shoulder again and then back at me. “And why are you using the number thirteen?”
At this point in my writing career, I was finishing up the final draft of “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye” for Realms. Mike didn’t know I was doing this. And, Julio certainly didn’t know. I was stunned. “I’m writing a book called ‘The 13th Demon’ and it is about spiritual warfare.”
Julio just smiled. “Dad said you were doing His work. You need to tell the world all about demons and angels. And, Dad told me to tell you not to worry. You have three guardian angels to protect you.”
I got the shivers. I trembled all over and looked over my shoulder. “Where are they?”
“Right behind you. I can see them. You have important work to do and God sent them to watch over you.” He went back to his enchilada and acted as if nothing supernatural had happened.
That wasn’t the end of Julio’s amazing knowledge. But, it was both a chilling revelation and also a comfort to know that I had a guardian, no, three guardian angels. I have spent a lot of time talking about demons. The word is in the title of my book. But, we have to remember that demons are fallen angels. The good guys are still there resisting Satan and his army on our behalf.
Do I believe in guardian angels? You bet I do. In the coming weeks as we prepare for Christmas, I will devote some time in my blog on the subject of angels. In the meantime, why not take the time to make some comments on how you feel about angels. Have you ever encountered an angel? Do you think you have a guardian angel? If you have something to share that is too long for a comment, just email it to me at my contact tab on this page. Let’s talk about angels as we prepare for Christmas!
The Church I Drenched in Blood!
I remember standing beneath the concrete stairway leading up to the sanctuary of Blanchard Baptist Church, my hand firmly gripping my mother’s hand as I looked down the stairs into the creepy, shadowy, basement where all children were confined.
The hallway was long and led directly beneath the aisle in the sanctuary above. Bare bulbs hung from electrical wire dangling from the ceiling and you could hear people walking around above us. My mother handed me off to one of the children workers and I was absorbed into the strange, creepy basement of Blanchard Baptist Church. No wonder I still have nightmares about the place. And, no wonder I chose that building as the setting for “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye”.
SPOILER ALERT: I promised my readers I would put together a video of the history of that “white” building that I would one day cover in blood. The video contains some spoilers about the book so if you haven’t read it, you might want to wait until you have. I recently visited my old church and interviewed my good friend, Kevin Sandifer. Kevin reminded me of the Halloween I dressed up as a mad scientist, stretched him out on the pool table in the youth ministry “house” and proceeded to fling blood and guts on the kids who ran through the room. I guess back then I had a promising future in not only medicine but the macabre. Kevin Sandifer is now the Historian, Media and Archival Center’s director at First Baptist Church of Blanchard. So, as promised, a video visit to the location of all that blood and evil spilled out in “The 13th Demon”.
Welcome Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Blog Tour!
I want to welcome the reviews of the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Blog Tour! They will be reviewing “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye” over the next two days and you can find the list of websites performing reviews at this link.
Good or bad, reviews are there for you, the prospective reader to check them out.
Two things.
First, I will be reading an excerpt from my book, “The 13th Demon” this Saturday, October 29th at the Barnes & Noble on Youree Drive in Shreveport, Louisiana from 11 A. M. to 1 P. M. and I will be giving away free tee shirts. More information is available at this link. I hope to see you there! Bring you Nook and you can buy the electronic copy of the book right in the store!
Second, I promised to begin to release some special “Extras”. Check under the “Extra” tab for two things: Deleted Chapters and my short video on the history of human sacrifices and how we, as Christians should respond to such a horrendous practice.
A Book Review — Day 3 of “The Bone House”
The Ending
On this, Day 3, of my review of “The Bone House” I will talk about the ending of this book and how Stephen R. Lawhead brings together many threads, in fact many “ley” lines from the first book and this second book to a satisfying and moving conclusion.
By the time the reader reaches the last third of “The Bone House” the reader has learned of how Mina managed to gain a certain device allowing her to maneuver through the ley lines. The reader also learns of how Kit manages to move beyond his awkwardness and become a seasoned ley line traveler and help locate a key “treasure” mentioned often in the first book.
The reader also learns how the originator of the “skin map”, Arthur Flnders-Petrie manages to secure a family and begin to instruct his offspring in the ways of interdimensional travel. Stephen R. Lawhead brings the four main characters, Kit, Mina, and Lady Fayth together with the villain, Lord Burleigh in a believable and breath taking way. This scene is fast paced and chilling and it ends with Kit discovering an entirely new world.
This final portion of the book is so moving, so achingly beautiful in its description of the pristine world of Kit’s primitive “River City” tribe. Here, Kit finally completes his journey in becoming the man he must be. His physical skills increase. His self confidence grows. And, his spiritual journey reaches a most satisfying conclusion.
For, here among the simple community of this primitive tribe, Kit encounters the Ancient man whose sense of contentment, joy, and balance with the universe is breathtaking. The young men of the Ancient’s tribe build him a Bone House. I do not want to ruin the imagery. You must read of this journey Kit takes with the elder man into the unknown. For here, in final scenes of the Bone House, Stephen R. Lawhead delivers on all of his promises. He shows up the ultimate “treasure” led to by the “skin map”. He answers the riddle of the man whose skin is the map. And in the process, he opens a doorway to an entire multi-universe that the reader cannot wait to explore.
And, the final scene is very fitting as Turms, the Immortal is laid to rest.
All in all, “The Bone House” starts out a bit confusing, but persistence will pay off. Do not give up. One caveat: if you purchase the book on Kindle, Nook, or iBook be aware you will begin reading automatically with the first page. You must back up and read the summary of the first book and the list of characters that appear just after the table of contents. I did not know these pages existed until after I began to write my first review and discovered them on going back to the table of contents. It helps tremendously to review the story of “The Skin Map” whether or not you have read it.
I highly recommend this series of books now named “Bright Empires”.
A Book Review Day 2 — The Bone House
In Day One of my review of “The Bone House”, I spoke about the possible confusion one might find at beginning this novel. But, if you press on, you will be rewarded with a tightening of the focus in the middle of the book. So, today, I will discuss the middle.
Middle
I was somewhat confused in the beginning of this book when Arthur Flinders-Petrie and his wife Xian Li show up before Turms, the Immortal. (Spoilers ahead) Why? Because I was certain Xian Li had died in the first book. And yet, here she was healthy and pregnant in the second book. Well, if you press on, you will learn why and I dare not even begin to hint at the reasons for fear of spoiling a wonderful story.
Let’s just say that in the middle of this book, there is a wonderful development in the characters of Kit and Mina. We finally learn how Mina came to be in the perfect spot to rescue Kit from certain death. And, what I love about this story is how this dowdy, frumpy, let’s face it, BORING woman in the beginning of book one has become smart and sassy and very, very resourceful. I really like where Stephen R. Lawhead has taken her in this book. And, this for me is the mark of fine writing; the ability to disappoint me with a certain character only to show how, inevitably, that character can grow and mature and begin to gain my respect. J. Michael Strazcynski did this with G’Kar in Babylon 5 and surprised me with the results. We see the same growth here with the character of Mina. I really like the girl!
Same goes for Kit. Still a bit wobbly and uncertain, Kit rises above his sorrow over the death of Cosmino and follows through with a plan given to him by Mina. And here is the wonder of the second book. I don’t want to give too much away, but Kit must meet with and convince Dr. Thomas Young of the reality of the ley lines. And, in so doing, Kit must then lead Dr. Young to the hidden treasure at the heart of these books. Who would have thought that Stephen R. Lawhead would somehow evoke a wondrous exploration of the reason why man has always built tombs? Sound silly and not at all consequential to the story, but this section thrilled my apologetic heart (apologetics being the field of defending the Christian faith). Here is an excerpt without giving too much away:
“Contrary to what many may think, immortality is not a fairy tale invented to compensate for an unhappy life. Rather, it is the perception shared by nearly all sentient beings that our conscious lives are not bounded by this time and space. We are not merely lumps of animate matter. We are living spirits — we all feel this innately. And in our deepest hearts, we know that we can only find ultimate fulfillment in union with the supreme spiritual reality — a reality that appears, even during this earthly life, to take us beyond the narrow limits of time.”
And so, Kit and Thomas eventually solve one of the great mysteries of this story. But, Kit ‘s story does not end with the discovery. In fact, it only just begins and in the final review, we will learn of Kit’s fate.
Another important development in the middle is the revelation of the origins of one of the book’s main characters. I do not want to divulge which character, but here, in the middle of this book, Stephen R. Lawhead begins to give some humanity to one of his coarser creations. We begin to see the reasons behind the motives; the motivations behind the actions; and the history behind the man.
All in all, good stuff! Well worth moving through the sometimes confusing beginning narrative to get to the meat of the story and the reader will be rewarded for perseverance. In fact, as I said in my review of “The Skin Map” it is almost as if we, the readers, are ourselves being drawn from ley line to ley line, passing through countries now mysterious and now familiar. For eventually, the author brings those lines back together and weaves a grand tale that I can’t wait to finish!
Tomorrow, the Ending!
By the way, if you are in the Shreveport/Bossier City area I will be reading portions of my book “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye” and then signing books at the Barnes & Noble on Youree Drive this Saturday, October 29th from 11 A.M. to 1 P.M. I’m giving away a free tee shirt with each book purchase! See you there!
A Book Review Day 1 — The Bone House by Stephen R. Lawhead
Just back from my book signing in Austin and I had time to finish up the latest book by Stephen R. Lawhead. Here is the first day of my review:
It wasn’t that long ago I accompanied my 20-something daughter to an Anime convention. I thought I knew what to expect. My daughter had talked to be at length about her fascination with Anime but this conversation did not prepare me for what awaited. Walking into the hotel/convention center in Dallas, Texas I was instantly immersed and, yes, assaulted by every sensation in the book. There was the raucous sound of heavy metal rock with Japanese singers wailing away at some song whose meaning totally escaped me. I could feel the hot, humid moisture in the air from thousands of bodies crammed into the building. I could literally taste coconut in the air from one of those scented fog machines. And the sights! Colors, faces, bodies, abnormally distorted weapons, leather, feathers, wigs, you name it. I had never seen anything quite like this. It was disturbing and quite disorienting. And, finally, there was this odd mixture of the odor of makeup, latex, leather, and body odor — I instantly dubbed “Anime funk”. I was so disoriented and confused, I hunkered down in my hotel room and made sure my daughter checked in with me every hour while I tried to ignore the confusion raging outside my door!
I bring this up because I had the same initial reaction on opening up and beginning to read Stephen R, Lawhead’s newest book, “The Bone House”. I have been waiting for the next book in the series after “The Skin Map” by Stephen R.Lawhead for a year. That book was fascinating but left me scratching my head and dangling from a cliff almost as abruptly as the time I sat in a darkened theater and watched Boba Fett fly off with Hans Solo in carbonite and realized I wouldn’t know anything for another 3 years!
Whoo! That was one long sentence. And so is the beginning of “The Bone House” by Stephen R. Lawhead. I will divide my three day book review simply into Beginning, Middle, and End. For each section of the book had a decidedly different effect on me.
Beginning
First, let me say without reservation that if you have not read “The Skin Map” you will be instantly lost at the beginning of the “The Bone House”. It literally picks up right where that book left off. No preamble. No backflash. No shortened explanations. You just dive right in.
Mina, who reluctantly accompanied her boyfriend Kit through “ley” lines into parallel dimensions and ended up in Prague of 1607 was last seen in her coffee house/pastry shop having glimpsed a strange device constructed by an alchemist for the villainous, Lord Burleigh. Kit was last seen trapped in an underground treasure room of an ancient Egyptian tomb with his dead great-grandfather Cosimo and his friend, who had located the tomb where the mysterious “skin map” had been hidden only to discover it had been stolen. And, that book ended with Mina suddenly and unexplainably appearing at the locked gate to the treasure room to free Kit, who she had not seen since arriving in Prague.
Confused yet? Not if you read “The Skin Map”. But, you will be if you don’t. So, go read that book immediately or you will be totally lost. It helps that there is a prologue of sorts, “Previously” that does summarize the events of the first book. But, even reading through this and the list of characters did me little good for some of the beginning. Suddenly, we were meeting some new characters such as Archie, the orphaned bastard child of aristocracy. And, Dr. Thomas in Egypt of the 1800’s. Oh yes, and a mystical pharaoh/priest of ancient Egypt, Turms,the Immortal, the very one whose tomb Kit was subsequently locked in centuries later.
Now, don’t give up on me. Lawhead’s command of language is exquisite. The words roll along on the page like a musical melody. His descriptions of historical settings are so spot on, you can see and hear and smell all of the sensations. And, his dialogue is very witty and distinctive. It’s just there are so many characters coming back into the picture from “The Skin Map” at different locations and at different times in their lives, you can get very confused. I found it hard to keep them all straight.
But, if you stick with the story, it all begins to come together in the middle, which I will talk about tomorrow.
In summary, the beginning of “The Bone House” is a direct sequel of “The Skin Map”. I would highly recommend the reader read the first book before diving into this book. The author assumes the reader understands “ley” lines and “inter dimensional” travel and the concept of parallel universes all with striking similarities but slight differences. If the reader has not read the previous book, there will be a temptation to set the book aside and there is simply too much “magic” in this story to not enjoy this second book. It does get more understandable and all is explained in the middle of the book. Also, the spiritual “message” of this book comes to light in the middle and it is a fascinating discussion. You don’t want to miss it!
By the way, I have accompanied my daughter to 5 other Anime conventions and they no longer disturb and confuse me. I look upon them as a wonderful opportunity to explore a complex array of humanity and mine those depths for characters and stories. You should feel the same way about “The Bone House”. Enjoy and explore the complexity of this wonderful story!
Come back tomorrow and I will show you what you will miss if you turn away from the door to “The Bone House.”
Now, for all the links:
In conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
Book link – http://www.amazon.com/dp/159554805X/
Author’s Web site – http://www.stephenlawhead.com/
Participants’ links:
http://noahsreads.blogspot.com/ Noah Arsenault
http://tessbissell.wordpress.com/“> Red Bissell
http://www.oerkenleaves.blogspot.com/“> Thomas Clayton Booher
http://rbclibrary.wordpress.com/“> Beckie Burnham
http://morganlbusse.wordpress.com“> Morgan L. Busse
http://csffblogtour.com/“> CSFF Blog Tour
http://jeffchapmanwriter.blogspot.com/“> Jeff Chapman
http://carolcollett.wordpress.com/“> Carol Bruce Collett
http://www.kcreviews.blogspot.com“> Karri Compton
http://www.scificatholic.com/“> D. G. D. Davidson
http://tweezlereads.blogspot.com/“> Theresa Dunlap
http://projectinga.blogspot.com/“> April Erwin
http://vicsmediaroom.wordpress.com/“> Victor Gentile
http://going-greene.blogspot.com/“>Tori Greene
http://realmofhearts.blogspot.com/“> Ryan Heart<
http://fantasythyme.blogspot.com“> Timothy Hicks
http://www.christopherhopper.com/blog/“> Christopher Hopper
http://thequietpen.wordpress.com/“> Janeen Ippolito
http://thewriterssword.blogspot.com/“> Becca Johnson
http://www.spoiledfortheordinary.blogspot.com/“> Jason Joyner
http://www.molcotw.blogspot.com/“> Julie
http://carolkeen.blogspot.com/“> Carol Keen
http://krystisbooks.blogspot.com/“> Krystine Kercher
http://mharvireads.blogspot.com/“> Marzabeth
http://www.katie-mccurdy.blogspot.com/“> Katie McCurdy
http://www.shannonmcdermott.com/?page_id=189“> Shannon McDermott
http://rebeccaluellamiller.wordpress.com/“> Rebecca LuElla Miller
http://www.bookwomanjoan.blogspot.com/“> Joan Nienhuis
http://www.chawnaschroeder.blogspot.com/“> Chawna Schroeder
http://reviewsfromtheheart.blogspot.com/“> Kathleen Smith
http://www.mindsinger.com/“> Donna Swanson
http://www.rachelstarrthomson.com/inklings/“> Rachel Starr Thomson
http://www.epictales.org/blog/robertblog.php“> Robert Treskillard
http://christiansf.blogspot.com/“> Steve Trower
http://frederation.wordpress.com“> Fred Warren
http://christian-fantasy-book-reviews.com/blog/“> Phyllis Wheeler
http://www.theravenquill.blogspot.com/“> Nicole White
http://finishedthebook.blogspot.com/“> Rachel Wyant
Who Should Read “The 13th Demon”?
This past weekend I spent driving from Birmingham, Alabama through Talladega, Alabama up through Chattanooga, Knoxville, and on into Lexington, Kentucky. I had the honor of meeting some very dedicated and wonderful people at Crossroads Christian Church for the “God in the Dock” Apologetics Conference. I had the pleasure of meeting the organizer of the conference, Clint Field and watch his joy as people showed up and mostly filled the seats in the auditorium.
Clint had invited me to bring my book, “The 13th Demon” to the conference since portions of the book are based on apologetic principles. For more on apologetics, click on the tab labeled “Apologetics” on this page. Now, I knew this was risky. I have organized our own conference in Shreveport and I’ve been to my share of larger conferences. Fiction books are not the usual fare at these conventions. The books that are sold at the vendor tables involve science and doctrine and theology and logic and philosophy. And while many atheists would call any connection between the God of the Bible and sound science and history “fiction” these books are far from something you would curl up with in front of a fireplace with a cup of hot tea.
However, I did manage to sell a few books and the questions about the books caused me to pause. Who is my audience for my book? Who would want to read “The 13th Demon”? Here are my answers to that question for those of you still wondering if this book is for you.
Who Should Read my Book?
1 — Men, in fact, manly men, tough men, men who dream of being tough, in fact anyone who enjoyed any of the Bourne movies. I told one person at my table that Jonathan Steel was like a “Christian Jason Bourne”. Jonathan Steel is one tough, angry man with skills that will definitely protect him against just about any assailant. But, he does have a soft side. He is a Christian. He thinks!
2 — Women will enjoy this book. I told one teenage girl there was a “bit of romance” in the book and her mother jerked it out of her hand. I shook my head and told her it was in anyway related to the “Twilight” series. There were no doe-eyed girls mooning over sparkly skinned guys. But, there is a growing love story in the book. Four very strong women populate the world of Jonathan Steel and one of them is very evil!
3 — Teenagers will enjoy the book. Why? Because one of the main characters is a teenager and he will become a recurring character. As my editor told me, “every teenager is a hero is his/her own mind”. So, if you are a teenager, check out “The 13th Demon” and ask yourself how you would react if you were chased by a giant . . . sorry, “Spoilers, Sweetie”!
4 — Median and Senior Adults will enjoy this book. Two of my favorite characters surface in this book and will be with us in the future. One is Jonathan Steel’s mentor, a Yoda like Einstein look a like with a definite attitude. The other is one of the warmest people you will ever meet, Dr. Liz Washington. If she doesn’t melt your heart . . . sorry, I don’t want to give too much away.
There, I hope that gives you some idea of the broad based appeal of my book. I know it is a bit scary. It is supposed to be. It is, after all, about spiritual warfare and the forces of evil. But, the story is ultimately about forgiveness, sacrifice, and unconditional love. It is worth facing the creatures that lurk in the dark shadows of Jonathan Steel’s world to see the Light that God brings to that darkness. Take a chance!
Jonathan Steel is an Angry Man!
By now some of you may have picked up a copy of “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye”. If not, why not? If you like exciting, fast paced thrillers you’ll like this book! If you want a touch of romance, you’ll like this book! If you want to see a tough guy fighting against the forces of evil, you’ll like this book! And, if you’re a teenager tired of sparkly vampires and doe eyed lovers, you’ll like this book!
Right off the bat, you’ll learn that my main character, Jonathan Steel is an angry man. His fuse is very short. And, his fury comes quickly and full blown. Why would I create a character with so much anger?
Because all of YOU are full of anger! And, of course, me, too! Our society is on the simmering verge of violent anger all the time. Just try and drive down a crowded highway and see if someone doesn’t blare their horn at you because you were a microsecond too slow in coming off the brake. Or listen to the person at the next register scream their way through a botched sale. Better yet, try and convince your customer that you did all you could to please them. Anger is all around us. Why are we such an angry society?
In our postmodern society, relativism is the rule. What is good for you is not necessarily what is good for me. This frame of reference puts an awful lot of stress on an individual. You see, when there are no external absolutes, then it is up to us to decide what is right and wrong. Now, I don’t know about you, but accessing each and every tiny little interaction with the world around to decide if it is “right” or “wrong” can get very tiring. Not only that, but when I decide something is “wrong” you might decide the same action is “right”. And, instantly we are at each other’s throat.
Not only that, but our naturalistic society claims that human beings are NOT special. Just look at that shark billboard not too long ago put out by PETA. I mean, they actually felt sorry for the shark (not the human whose leg was bitten off) because it would be thrown on dry land and smother to death. Come on! You’re telling me that if your significant other falls into the ocean and is about to be eaten by a shark and all you have at your disposal is a rifle, you would let the shark chow down? That is INSANE! Human beings are SPECIAL because we are made, wait for it, in God’s image. We are not animals. We are not equal to sharks. We are at the top of the food chain. And, while God has given us specific instructions to care for the planet and its inhabitants, (which we have ignored!) we are still omnivores. And that means that somewhere along the line, something has to die for us to survive, even if it is a banana!
This lack of respect for humans as special and made in the image of God, reduces our value in the eyes of society and in the eyes of other humans. Suddenly, my rights are more important than anyone else’s rights. I’m not sure how that plays out given that each individual is NOT special, but we are, after all, wonderful at rationalization even when the rationalization is decidedly NOT postmodern. And so, when everyone else’s value falls to zero, my value rockets to new heights. It is I who deserve special treatment. My needs are paramount. Forget my fellow man. Let them go feed the sharks! Hey, idiot in the green car? Forgot how to signal? Well, take this!
This weekend, I am traveling to Lexington, Kentucky for the “God in the Dock” apologetic conference. I am sure that somewhere between my home and the final destination at the airport, I will get angry. But, in spite of that inevitability, what I have just talked about is an “apologetic” issue. The issue of human value and human worth is part of a person’s worldview, how you view reality. Apologetics is the defense of the truthfulness of the Christian faith based on sound, rational evidence. And, so, losing one’s temper is really a matter of applying an apologetic issue. Is every person equal in the eyes of God? Is every person deserving of respect? Is every person of value? Important questions for our times. For, if we answer ‘no’ to any of these questions, we ultimately doom ourselves to a fate worse than death. We head down the path toward Nazi Germany or Stalin’s Russia or Pol Pot’s Cambodia. As our anger spirals more and more out of control, the day will come when a car horn will be replaced by a gun; when an organization will no longer put up billboards but start dumping sharks into swimming pools; when anger is the dominating emotion. To conquer anger, you must begin with respect for others. Tough? You bet you. Hard? No doubt. In fact our country fought a bitter civil war over this issue.
Want help understanding anger? Pick up a copy of my book, “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye” and join me on a journey with Jonathan Steel as he tries to understand the source of his anger and ultimately, how to control it instead of letting it control him!
What do you think about the value of human life? Do you struggle with anger? Or, is it just the other guy? Let me hear from you!
Book Launch Countdown — “Think Different”
My debut novel, “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye” is available this week and my launch party is Friday night, October 7th, 2011 from 6 to 8 P.M. at Brookwood Baptist Church (corner of I49 and Bert Kouns) in the Well, the coffee shop. I will be introducing the ink*well, a regional Christian artists’ community and speaking briefly on “One Book’s Journey: How to Get Published”. Those who purchase a book are entered into a drawing for one of the following: an Ipad2, a nook touch, and a Kindle WiFi. Coffee and snacks are complementary. Click on this for a flyer: bruce-flyer
I bought my first macintosh in 1991. I was disgusted with the PC world and my favorite computer, the Amiga had gone bankrupt so I bought this thing called a Powerbook 140. It had a black and white screen, a trackball, and one mouse button but I fell in love with its simplicity immediately. It wasn’t long before I was a Macintosh convert. Not sure why but I realized that I had a tendency to gravitate to the underdog. Everyone else was using PCs and passive matrix laptops with this new operating system called Windows.
But, I sensed that there were some people out there who thought differently from the mainstream. I saw this in the Powerbook and in the Macintosh desktops to come. I saw my first “Personal Computer” in 1977. It was called an Apple II and it consisted of a beige box with an integrated keyboard, a funky looking thing called a mouse, and a green and black monochrome monitor on which you could play this game called “Pong”. I wanted it! But, it was only selling for a measly $4500! And, being a starving medical student, a computer was out of the question.
Now, 16 years later, I had my first Apple computer and this thing was truly science fiction come to life. It was different. Just like I enjoyed being. Different, unique, thinking outside the box, looking at life from a different perspective. When Apple was almost gone under the hands of Gil Amelio and selling for $11 a share on the stock market, I heard rumors Steve Jobs was coming back as part time interim CEO. I told my wife to buy as many shares of Apple as we could afford! People thought I was crazy. But, I knew that Steve Jobs, like Walt Disney had a singular vision of creating the highest quality experience. Jobs did this with a personal computer and made it more than just a box with buttons and mouse. He wanted it to become a tool of creativity; a natural extension of the artist’s mind.
Well, the rest of the story is history. I had one of the first blueberry iMacs. I had one of the first lime iBooks. I had one of the first aluminum Powerbooks. And, those machines served one purpose for me — to allow me to continue to express my writing in a creative way. Just using a Macintosh fired up my imagination. Just thinking about “think different” had just that effect.
In 1999, I really “thought” different when I wrote “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye”. I had a dream that people would want to ready a gritty, realistic novel about the conflict between good and evil and learn in the process there is a God and the evidence for God is overwhelming! But, I ran into editor after editor that could not think “different”. Publishing is a business. It is about selling books. And, it is about predicting the future. What will people be reading two years from now? I thought I knew. I was right. But, it would be more like five years before people would be reading books by authors like Ted Dekker. I like to think I was there at the beginning, and maybe just a little premature. I was thinking “different” and no one else could think with me.
It took 12 years. I had to be persistent like Steven Jobs. He left Apple at the height of his creativity, the launch of the Macintosh in 1985 and it would be, well 12 years before he came back to Apple and made them see how his “dream” could change the world. It was a slow climb after that but look how his imagination and creativity have changed our world.
It took me 12 years to get “The 13th Demon” to the marketplace. Now, I am nowhere near the level of a Steven Jobs. I may fade quickly into obscurity after this book launches. But, I know that God gave me a dream and when God places us in the position to become a part of His work and His Story, we have to think “different” from the world; we have to think way outside the box.
My conclusion is this: John Maxwell said it well, “There are dreamers and then there are those who make their dreams come true.” A dreamer can go back to sleep at night and come up with another dream. One who makes his Dream come true focuses all of his/her energy; all of his/her resources on accomplishing that dream. And that requires the creativity of thinking “different” of thinking “outside the box”. Thank you, Steven Jobs for your legacy. But, more than that, thank you God for thinking outside the box and becoming flesh and dwelling among us and showing us ultimate love and dying the final sacrifice for our disobedience. For, finally and completely, Steve Jobs is responsible for how he spent his life and I do not know where his heart and soul were in relation to God, but he will stand before Christ and answer for his life. When I stand before Christ, I want to know that I thought “different” from the world and did everything in my power with great focus and perseverance to change this world through the love of Christ!
Bruce Hennigan 
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