Truth be told, I don't have a pretty voice. I am not the crooner in our family. Nope, not a rock star when it comes to singing either. I think I sound more like a medium sized dog attempting to carry a tune.
For those who have heard me sing, you may be scratching your head and think that I just paid myself to much of a compliment. No worries - I telling you what I hear in my own head when I sing. Let's just say that people in front of me at church will turn around sometimes while we are singing. They politely smile and nod and then slowly turn back to the front. All as if to say "Someone needs to put that medium sized dog, attempting to carry a tune, out of his misery..."
Regardless, I sing. I like to sing. Honestly, it makes me feel good. I decided to do a bit of research of singing and the benefits of it. Interestingly enough, singing is good for you. Many studies done over the years have focused on the health benefits of singing, and the evidence is pretty amazing.According toProfessor Graham Welch, Director of Educational Research, University of Surrey, Roehampton, UK;
Singing
releases endorphins into your system and makes you feel energized and
uplifted. People who sing are healthier than people who don’t. Singing gives the lungs a workout. Singing tones abdominal and intercostal muscles and the diaphragm, and stimulates circulation. Singing
makes us breathe more deeply than many forms of strenuous exercise, so
we take in more oxygen, improve aerobic capacity and experience a
release of muscle tension as well.
Others have said; Singing can prolong life. Singing lifts your mood. Singing encourages blood circulation. Singing drives away depression. Singing means fewer doctor visits and fewer medications. Singing drives away fear. Singing improves your mood. Singing releases the same feel-good brain chemicals as sex and chocolate. Singing is an effective stress reliever and improves sleep. Singing releases pain-relieving endorphins, helping you to forget that painful ________. Singing improves posture. Singing clears sinuses and respiratory tubes. Singing tones your facial and stomach muscles. Singing helps you find friends (well... most of the time...) Singing strengthens concentration and memory. Singing broadens expressive communication. Singing adds a rich, more pleasant quality to speech. Singing is an ageless enjoyment – you are never too young or too old.
I would argue, that singing for purely exercise is missing what it was really intended to do. Singing with a mission has the ability to do so much more than just a selfish exercise. For in the realm of the heavens, singing, or worship rather has the ability to demolish cities - think of Jericho. Singing brings one into a conversation with our Creator. Singing gives us the ability to bring our petitions before the Father. Either alone or collectively. Singing has the ability to teach us - helping us remember the actions of God and reminding us of the grace of God. Singing helps us to put life into perspective - recognizing that our problems may not be as big as we think them to be. Singing reminds us Who is on the Throne. Singing helps us to be evangelistic. Singing helps us to pray. Singing helps us remember the Great Wedding song that is yet to be sung on that great and glorious day.
Friends, let me remind you to sing. Don't hold back. The church, even the world, needs more men, women and children singing - worshiping Christ. Lift your voices today and all your days.
And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! (Revelation 15:3)
The folks over at Igniter Videos are pretty creative when it comes to putting together videos for churches to use for almost anything. Periodically they will come out with one that is "out of norm" for them. Typically it's a comedy.
Below is a video that I love to watch. It features two characters, Johnny and Chachi along with Gary Smalley. In it, they share some "killer" marriage tips.
Hopefully, you'll find this as funny as I do... and yet, like me, be able to learn from it.
I found this great article on the Biblical Counseling Coalition blog titled 10 Ways that Satan Loves to Watch Marriages Fall Apart by Deepak Reju. In it, Deepak encourages those of us who are married to be on guard for the devil. Satan's intention is clear - to steal, kill and destroy. Not just our life, but in every facet of our lives. Especially in our marriages.
Deepak explains that often times, the devil can sit back (in a sense) and not do anything with our marriages, because we are destroying them enough on our own. He suggests 10 areas where marriages have difficulty. See if any of these resonate with you:
Spouses live in the flesh and not in the Spirit.
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. (Galatians 5:16-26)
No sex in marriage.
Couples who don’t have regular sex are allowing a barrier to come
between them. No sex in marriage means the couples is less unified.
A husband is consumed by pornography.
Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you. (1 Thessalonians 4:1-8)
Lofty, sky-high expectations.
I’ve seen men crushed under the weight of their wives’ perfectionistic
expectations. The husband says things like, “She expects me to be a holy
man.” He constantly feels like a failure, and therefore has little to
no incentive to actually work at the marriage. She beats him up
(verbally, not physically) because (in the words of one spouse I
counseled) “nothing else seems to work to get him to do anything.”
Nuclear war.
No explanation needed.
Avoidance and withdrawal.
Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. (Ephesians 4:26-27)
Hate speech.
How many times have we said something that we later regretted? Oh be careful "little" tongue what you speak...
Weak boundaries.
Guys, know where the boundaries are and stick to them. No flirting with friends or strangers. No pictures of other ladies in your home gym or garage.
Work - idolatry.
Where is your passion? We all know that we could work more and harder, but not at the expense of our marriage.
Lying.
All lying destroys. Our marriages are not exempt from that truth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. (Colossians 3:9-10)
So men, women, guard your heart and you'll guard your marriage. It's worth it. "But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:43-45)
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.
Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.
Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.
Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art. High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all
Sure, this may not be a spiritual issue, but I know that so many of my friends are having a hard time falling asleep and even staying asleep. We all know the importance of sleep. If we don't get enough sleep, we end up not being as healthy as we should be. Here is a list of problems that can occur with a lack of sleep: - depression - heart disease - immune system breakdown - weight gain - driver fatigue - poor performance at work or school - emotional imbalance - memory problems
I ran across an article on the Men's Fitness blog and it had some really good points. I will share them with you here.
1 - Establish an electronic curfew for yourself. About .30 minutes to an hour before you go to bed, turn the TV off. Put down the phone. Walk away from the computer. Give yourself a break. In the article, the author wrote, "A study by Applied Ergonomics showed that the brightness from iPad
screens, when set to the brightest setting, can suppress melatonin by
22% which can fake your body into thinking it’s morning when it’s really
night."
2 - Eat a good and healthy breakfast in the morning. The author continues, "People who eat breakfast
are smarter. A study of 6,000 students found that the ones
who ate breakfast had better grades and higher graduation rates.
Breakfast eaters are also 40% less likely to develop fat around the
belly than those you don't. Eating a protein-and-whole-grain-packed
breakfast as close as possible to your wake-up time will keep you alert
and focused throughout the day."
3 - Put down the caffeine after lunch. I would say never have soda. If you are a soda drinker though, stop having the caffeine once you hit lunch time. For those of us who drink coffee or tea - same thing. Water for the rest of the day.
If you find yourself getting a little drowsy in the afternoon, that means that you body needs a break. Do these simple little exercises to wake yourself up: - go for a walk - do some stretches - go for a walk - take a 10-15 minute break by doing something opposite of what you were - go for a walk 4 - Keep your exercises time to at least 3 hours before you hit the pillow. The author states, "A study done back in 2008-2009 by Oregon State University showed that
people who exercised regularly, about 20 minutes of cardio a day, slept
better at night than those who didn’t. Just don’t exercise too soon
before bed as the rush may disrupt your sleep."
The psalmist wrote "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding." (Psalm 111:10) If one were to google the term "the fear of the Lord" the results would be over 35 million. It seems that there is a lot of people giving their input into what God meant when He spoke that term into the minds of the Bibles authors so many years ago. So what does that term mean? Is God telling us that we should be afraid of Him? Should we approach Him in worship with our heads covered, crawling on our knees, terrified of being put to death? Without trying to get to carried away, we need to remember that the Bible was not just written to those of us in the 21st century. A phrase like this carries with it so much weight that we don't fully understand in our western mindset. When I think about the term "the fear of the Lord," this is what I come up with. Years ago, our family spent a weekend in the bleak mid-winter with four other families. It was a great time of playing in the snow, eating, sleeping, singing - enjoying each others friendship.
On the first evening, around midnight, all the guys decided that it would be fun to have a bonfire. At this point, it was well below zero outside and a wildly hot fire would be great. We were out in the middle of the country, so all was safe for us to do this. After a time of warming ourselves by the fire, my mind began to drift. I began to think of the power of that fire. For if I were to leave it, and wander in the countryside, I would last only a few hours in that frigid air. Or if I were to approach the fire too closely, it would certainly burn me. With that in mind, I imagined that that fire was similar to that of the terminology of "the fear of the Lord." When we approach our Father in Heaven, it's not casually. It's understanding that if we were to walk away, we would certainly die. Consequently, if we were to get too close to Him (without reverence) we would certainly be consumed. The fear of the Lord is about fear. Healthy fear. Not fearful fear. Understanding that we are loving the One who has so lavishly loved us first. The fear of the Lord IS the beginning of wisdom. Lean heavily on Him in all things.
Seems like the schedule of our home is always on fast. I can't believe that I would be the only one to have a schedule like this. We certainly are not alone.
As soon as the morning buzzer goes off, both my wife and I are out of bed. Most of the time, she even beats the alarm. I head out the door for a run and she takes sometime to unwind.
The past year or so, a competition has crept up between us. We have yet to speak of it, but I believe that both of us know that it's real.
We are in a race to see who can make the bed in the morning.
By the time that I get back from my morning run, it's my turn in the bathroom to get ready. Sometimes the bed is made by then.
On occasion, I can "trip" my wife up a bit and scoot in the bedroom before it's her turn in the bathroom so that I can make the bed.
Now keep a few things in mind here. We don't make the bed in different ways. There is not a "his way" or "her way" of making it. If one of us is making the bed, the other person tends to let him or her continue to make the bed.
Here is the deal though. God has continued to grow me in my love for my wife through the years. In doing that, I am noticing in my own life that I used to "work" for my wife. In a way that if she asked me to do something for her or the house, I would do it rather begrudgingly. It was work. It wasn't love. But God, as stated, has continued to grow me. I am noticing now that I do love making the bed. Not as a chore. Not because I think I can make it better. I love making the bed, because I love my wife. The example of husbands loving their wives well in Scripture is found in Ephesians 5:25. "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." Christ's love towards the church, found in serving her is our example of how we men should be loving our wives.
A lofty goal. Only by the power of Christ in our life.
What about you? How are you loving your wife more these days?
“Husbands, go all out in your love for your
wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not
getting. Christ’s love makes the church whole. His words evoke her
beauty. Everything he does and says is designed to bring the best out of
her, dressing her in dazzling white silk, radiant with holiness. And
that is how husbands ought to love their wives. They’re really doing
themselves a favor—since they’re already “one” in marriage. No one abuses his own body, does he? No, he feeds and pampers it.
That’s how Christ treats us, the church, since we are part of his body.
And this is why a man leaves father and mother and cherishes his wife.
No longer two, they become “one flesh.” This is a huge mystery, and I
don’t pretend to understand it all. What is clearest to me is the way
Christ treats the church. And this provides a good picture of how each
husband is to treat his wife, loving himself in loving her, and how each
wife is to honor her husband.” ~ Ephesians 5:25-33, The Message
I continue to think about the role that men are intended to play in
God’s plan, as husbands and fathers. I continue to go back to Ephesians
5:25-33, and believe that those verses have a lot to say about males
being Christian men. What I often forget is the stewardship mandate God gave to all of
humanity in Genesis 1:28: “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and
subdue it.” God created us to principally be productive.
Our overarching purpose was that each person might grow, and generate,
and govern what is grown- from ideas to infants, and from cattle to
communities. When God saw His original vision for man to be productive,
He said it was good. And in man’s labors to grow and govern, he would
bring glory to God, emulating His creativity and concern for His
creation. Each of us was made to be productive. In Ephesians 5, though, Paul narrows his scope in on what a family
man should be in his household. As I’ve read through these verses, I
saw four things that stood out to me worth noting, two relating to his
relationship with his wife, and the other two relating to the home
front.
1. In his partnership with his wife, the man is intended to be the pilot. This does not mean the man is more important that the woman, but
rather, that the man bears the brunt of responsibility in leading his
family through life. Like a scout in the military, the man is
responsible to run point in the home in an effort to lead his wife and
children toward growth and life. This does not mean he is an autocrat,
or even that he does not counsel with his wife about life direction and
decisions. But in the end, he is responsible for leading the family
forward in life.
2. In relation to his wife, he is to prize her. What this does not mean is that a husband simply adores his wife like
an idol, neglecting her person and heart. The godly man engages and
encourages his wife to live a full life. To prize his wife, the godly
man really has three initiatives he maintains. The wife needs to be
pursued (with love). The wife needs to be purified (to love). The wife
needs to be promoted (by love). I really like how Peterson puts it in
his translation above: everything the husband does is designed to bring
out the best in his wife. A godly man looks to build up and to empower
his family members.
3. In relation to his family, he is to provide for their basic needs. We usually think of this in material terms- which certainly have
their priority as basic human needs must be met. But above material
needs, the man is also meant to provide spiritual leadership- hope- to
the members of his family.
4. In relation to the household, he is to provide protection. I heard it said that the man should provide a buffer between the
family life and what goes on in the outside world. The godly man is
responsible not only to protect the welfare and health of his family (as
a shepherd in the home), but he is also responsible for protecting and
nurturing the heart of each family member. It is my conviction that if a
man can stand up and provide a strong cover for his family in his
household, he frees his wife to develop and demonstrate her gifts and
abilities as an individual. His strength provides her the safe and
encouraging environment she needs to blossom as a woman and a wife. What must remain in mind when considering these principles, and
especially in relation to his wife, the godly man is still in a
partnership with his wife, which is made of two equal partners. It was
never intended that the home be a seat of an authoritarian regime. Both
husbands and wives are called in Ephesians 5 to be first servants of
God, and then servants of one another (Ephesians 5:21). As Christ
created the way for the enslaved prostitute to be redeemed and restored
and made His purified bride, God asks men to follow Him as leaders and
lovers- taking the initiative when needed, forgiving amply when
necessary, and laying down their lives to build up their wives in Him
daily.
My oldest is a high school graduate (by the time) with two years of work
experience. Not just summer experience, he worked throughout his junior
and senior years of high school while maintaining a 3.0 g.p.a, playing
sports, and participating in clubs.
As a father, seeing him grow in character was just as important as
his high school diploma. Our children become more resilient if we allow
discipline to prepare them for life after high school including college.
Teens should work. They will find time for video games or hanging out
with their friends. When teens turn 16, they are job seekers, as
defined by their parents, and when possible the fathers.
These are my suggestions in creating teen job seekers:
1. Employ them early
Give your three and four year old a job, pay them, and watch them
work. Notice and remember his or her enthusiasm and zeal. Think about
how you can build on their willingness. Oh yeah, did I say pay them?
2. Teach them how to work
If you don’t work with them and teach them, he or she may never work.
The younger the easier, the older the harder —then you’re on your own.
3. Don’t make them fill out 100 applications
Instead, dress them up and take them around to small businesses to
talk to adults. If they do not like adults during the teen years, they
will with pay.
4. Coach your children in their relationships with adults
Yes, they need coaching and monitoring by YOU the parent. Everything
un-taught will appear ugly, so prepare them now. Networking 101 starts
with conversations, shaking hands, eye contact, and the parent starring
as the loving weirdo. Take a bow. You’re welcome.
5. Explain to them what you do
Show them how you do it and make sure they can explain your career to
peers and teachers with clarity. Even if you’re unemployed, provide
examples of your work and your career.
6. Be honest about your career struggles
You will connect with them in positively profound ways. I did this
with my oldest son. At 18, he has more working experience than his under
30 cousins with two years at the same job.
7. Make it clear that at 16, they are job seekers
No matter what your economic status, your teen should work at minimum
during the summer. They can buy their own school clothes and treat the
family to lunch or dinner. The pride he or she displays is priceless. I
promise.
8. Show them your accomplishments
Awards, prizes, accommodations, or certificates send a subtle message
what you expect of them. If they are not proud of you, your work has
just begun.
9. Inspire them
Chastising, hazing, stalking, or harassing doesn’t work. Trust them to the seeds of knowledge and experience to grow over time.
10. Anticipate resistance
It is not a cakewalk for many teens as peers claim to lead the
glamorous life on Facebook. Have them think about the job they want, and
a target company. Is it that bad to work at The Gap because he or she
loves clothes?
11. Allow working peers to influence them
There is nothing wrong with them wanting to work where peers already
work, unless it is illegal or the friend is a bad influence.
12. Reveal to them that money is not the only incentive
Restrain your inner Warren Buffett and make experience attractive.
Don’t be surprised that relationships sprout from working with people
from different cultures, genders, and ages. She may be cute, sure he is
charming, but work will cultivate character.
My son works out his budget, understands his financial obligations
and responsibilities, and values time. Most of his friends still think
money grows on trees and aggravate their parents to pay for everything.
My son has imperfections and immaturity like many young adults, but he
can experience making a few adult decisions as he treats for family
dinner on payday.
Is it tough to get your teen to work? I think teens should work. Do you? Please share, I would love to hear.
Featured image courtesy of orphanjones licensed via Creative Commons.
There’s
a crime wave going on in your neighborhood—possibly even in your own
home. It’s a crime wave that won’t make it to the nightly news, but not
because it isn’t serious, for it scars generations and teaches them to
commit the same crime.
Who are the criminals? Absent fathers.
I’m not talking about full-time absent fathers, those never home at
all. I hope that’s a rarity. I’m talking about your average dad, the one
who commits this crime most mornings, during dinner, and especially
during the hour before little ones go to bed.
It’s a crime wave, and I’ve been an offender. You might be one too.
You’re guilty when you skip breakfast with the family to prepare for
that early morning meeting, when you’re distant at the dinner table
because you’re resolving an issue at work in a long email conversation
on your smartphone, and when you forfeit a healthy family night-time
ritual because you’ve got something important to do—like write a blog
post.
I’ve succumb. Have you?
I Don’t Have Time! Yes You Do.
Time management is a difficult task for the best of us. It can often
seem impossible to give our children and wives the time they deserve.
Douglas Wilson, writing to wannabe writers in his book Wordsmithy, offers a healthy reality check to the objection of having no time:
“When an extra load develops, try to have it land on you
and not on the family. If it has to get done now, then get up at five,
and nobody else pays. So if you need to, get up at five, but always try
to go home at five. Think of it this way. A 60-hour work week is an
honest job and a significant load, but a lot of the problems that come
to people who work this much happen because of where those 60 hours are
placed. Apportion 40 hours to your regular job, the calling which pays
the bills, and then 20 hours for your half-time job of getting a writing
career started. It is possible to work those 60 hours and still have
lots of time left over for family. A week has a total of 168 hours in
it. Sixty hours of work leaves 108, and 8 hours of sleep a night take
away another 56 hours, leaving you with 52 hours a week to play tag in
the backyard with the kids.”
Maybe you have more time than you think? If not, maybe you need to cut back on some of your commitments?
If you’re aware of this sin in your life, repent. It doesn’t please
God. After you repent, believe the gospel. Know that Christ was diligent
in all His duties where we fail daily. Know that Christ
suffered for every scar you’ve left on the hearts of your children.
Forgiveness is available. Rejoice in this grace and parent like a
forgiven sinner.
#1 Tip To Regularly Give Time To Your Children
Walking by the grace of God, it will now be a daily battle to break
this culture enforced habit. Here’s my #1 tip for you to begin giving
time back to your children:
Be Intentional
To succeed you’ll need to be intentional. Commit to giving time to your children. Seriously.
Write it in your schedule. Breakfast time? Theirs. Dinner time?
Theirs. The hour before bed? Theirs. And if it is their time, then turn
off work and the social media world. How? Put your smartphone in
airplane mode so you’ll not get notifications from Twitter or emails
from the boss. Ban smartphones and iPads from the dinner table.
Remember, the world won’t collapse during this time. Be present in body and in your mind. Stop thinking about work.
If you’re not intentional about keeping boundaries, you’ll likely
fail. I fail. Be ruthless in your boundaries, and desperately ask for
God’s help to enforce them.
My Motive
I’m thankful God is a better Father than I’ll ever be. This blog post
is what I desperately needed to hear months ago. I’ve written this so I
won’t forget. The Lord used a variety of means recently to bring to my
attention the severity of my “minor,” but regular, offenses. Please
don’t receive this post as a burden to carry. Pray about it. Repent of
any failures. Thank your Heavenly Father for Jesus. Then leave work on
time tonight rejoicing and ready to give attention to your children who
need it.
Nathan W. Bingham is a Christian, technology and
social media enthusiast (geek), seminary graduate, and blogger. He
serves as Internet Outreach Manager for Ligonier Ministries and is
passionate about the relationship between faith, technology, and life.
“It is so blessed to think that there is a Gospel that will suit the man
who cannot read—and that will suit the man who cannot put two
consecutive thoughts together—and that will suit the man whose brain has
almost failed him in the hour of death—a Gospel that suited the thief
dying upon the cross—a Gospel so simple that if there is but Grace to
receive it, there needs no great mental power to understand it! Blessed
be my Master for giving us a Gospel so simple and so plain as this!”
Writers in the suspense/thriller genre are a unique breed.
They weave words so you sense the tempo of each paragraph (and your heart rate)
quickening toward crescendo; crafting stories with near-superhero ability.
Frank Peretti is the quintessential suspense novelist. Like most superheroes,
it took Frank awhile to discover his unique talent. But unlike them, he was far
from alone in his journey…
John: Good
afternoon Frank, why don’t you kick things off by telling us a little about
your upbringing.
Frank Peretti:
Well, I was born in Leftridge,
Alberta. I was Canadian for a
month or so and then my folks moved right down to Seattle. I was up in Canada just long
enough to mess up my citizenship, so now I can’t run for president or anything…
JOHN : Oh, did
you have aspirations for that?
Frank: Well, no,
I wouldn’t know the first thing about that! (Laughs) My dad was an American
citizen who grew up in Seattle, went up to Canada to work
for the summer and met my mom who was a Canadian citizen. About a month or so after
I was born they came [back] down to Seattle.
JOHN : So that’s
where you grew up. Well now we know you didn’t want to be president, but you
did have aspirations of becoming a musician…?
Frank: Yeah I
did, that was clear back when I was just getting married. Man, I was between
the ages of 19 and 22, right in there [somewhere]. I was starving (laughs), but
yeah, I traveled with a couple of groups…
JOHN : And you
played banjo for a band called Northern Cross, right?
Frank: Oh my,
yeah! I’ve played [banjo] for over 30 years. I’m learning the guitar now, maybe
that’s because I’m mellowing in my old age (laughs). Well way back when I was first playing, [my
wife] Barb wasn’t even old enough to come in and hear us play. We were playing
in lounges and things and the banjo was my primary instrument. I actually
played the bass too, come to think of it. Then we got out that group and traveled
with a Christian ministry group called Living
Waters for two years. I think that was the sum and total of my musical
efforts. I tried to do some solo ministry and that bombed (laughs), so I ended
up being a carpenter and a printer working in a print shop, doing whatever I
could to make a living. The thing is, after all of those early years of just
doing this and doing that, I didn’t really figure out that I was supposed to be
a writer until I was pushing thirty.
Family: So how
did you make that transition from musician and print shop worker to your first
novel?
Frank: I think two
significant things happened. Number one (I don’t remember the exact year, close
to about 1982 or 83 but I remember where I was), I was at Deception
Pass in Washington. Barb and I were on a little
mini-vacation just to get away – we were so burnt out in ministry we didn’t
know what to do. I had pastored a church with my dad for five years and we were
just worn to a frazzle. I was kinda feeling like, well, here’s another thing
I’ve failed at – I didn’t succeed at being a musician, didn’t succeed at being
a carpenter and now I’ve kind of burned-out of the ministry. What am I supposed
to do? I remember sitting on this bluff above the ocean just talking to the
Lord and it was so clear, such a peace, such a joy, the Lord finally confirmed
in my heart, “Frank you’re supposed to be a writer.” That’s what I’d always
wanted to do. Through all this other stuff I was doing, I always went back to
the writing, and it was writing that made me feel whole, complete. So, man!
That was when I finally figured that out. Now the second thing that happened: I
had started This Present Darkness, [but]
I’d been pecking away at it for five years, so I just concentrated and got that
book done. Then I went through the process of trying to get it published, which
was long and tedious - about fourteen different publishers... and finally it
got published in 1986 – 26 years ago… 26 years!
JOHN : Wow, so did
you have other books in the works before that time?
Frank: I’d
written screenplays mostly. I was trying to get something going in movies and
television (laughs), but [those scripts are] still sitting in a drawer
somewhere… Interestingly, back in 1983 I told a story to some junior high kids
at a camp and the other camp folks and pastors said, “You should write that
down and get it published.” And so I wrote and sent it to Crossway Books and that
was The Door in the Dragon’s Throat
which turned out to be the first of the Cooper
Kids’ Adventures [Series]. So that was published and (I think) Escape from the Island of Aquarius before
This Present Darkness. As a matter of
fact, it was The Door in the Dragon’s
Throat that kind of opened the door for This
Present Darkness because Crossway turned that [proposal] down the first
time. But they liked the kids’ books and that convinced them that I knew how to
write. So they said “Could you send us that other idea you had?” I hadn’t even
typed [This Present Darkness] up yet,
it was still in rough draft form, so Barb and her mom and I got three
typewriters going, typed that up and mailed it to them (that was back in the
old days when you mailed things) and by
cracky! They published it! (In a booming voice) And the rest is history.
I was working in a ski factory up until just about 1988, and
I didn’t really become a full- time writer until Crossway decided they needed the
sequel, so I started Piercing the
Darkness. They asked me how long it was going to take, and so I told them “well
it took me five years to do This Present
Darkness,” so they said, “well how much do you need to live on?” (laughs) They
gave me an advance to live on, so I knuckled down, finished Piercing and sent it to them. I remember
my first day as a full-time writer. I got out of bed (I didn’t have to go to
the ski factory!) and I turned on my very first computer: a Corona 4 megahertz computer with a big five-inch
floppy drive. And so I wrote Piercing on
that computer…
JOHN : What kind
of computer did you write Illusion
on?
Frank: I have a Mac!
I’ve moved up in the world.
JOHN : After both
of the Darkness books you wrote a
book called Tilly which was quite a departure
from the other two. What brought about that transition?
Frank: Wow,
that’s a good question. Let’s see, I’ve got to turn back the pages of time here…
Tilly had her beginning clear back before
I was a published author. I was working odd jobs and thinking, Boy I’d like to
do a movie or TV and so I came up with this story of Tilly. I realized I couldn’t do that [TV], but I did have a tape
recorder, so I thought, I’ll write and produce a radio play. So I had this reel-to-reel
tape recorder and I borrowed some microphones from my church. I was living in a
25-foot travel trailer at the time with Barb (laughs), so we hung sleeping bags
and blankets up in the trailer to make a sound studio and I brought in actors (just
people from my church), and we recorded this story. I managed to get it
broadcasted on KCIS, the local radio station in Seattle at the time. From there we had a
little bit of interest perked [so] then (they did, or I did, or someone) sent
it down to Focus on the Family, and I remember someone told me that copies of Tilly (on little cassette tapes) were
passing each other in the hallways at Focus... So they bought the rights to
produce their own version for the radio and broadcasted it, and I think maybe
they still are! That turned out to be one of their most popular broadcasts. Somewhere
down the road [after that], I’ve got books out with Crossway and the radio show’s
popular, so [my publisher] said “maybe we should come out with a book version”
so then I wrote Tilly as a novel. So
see, she had a history going way back before I wrote my other books but then became
a book much later.
JOHN : Very
interesting. You’ve been consistently keeping people on the edge of their seats
with your suspense thrillers for years now. Tell us a little bit about your mindset
for Illusion.
Frank: Any book [I
write] is just a whole bunch of different ideas that fall together. I wanted to
do a book that was relational – which would talk about the marriage
relationship – that was kind of a metaphor or parable of the body of Christ and
its longing to be with the Bridegroom, Jesus. Ya know, that whole pervasive
spiritual longing to be reconciled to our Creator and to be right with things. So those were kind of
the thematic elements. I created Mandy as a metaphor for a lost soul wandering
around wondering who am I, where do I belong, why do I feel lost? And then there
was the cool story-vehicle that I found: let’s use stage magicians, because
then we can create this situation where Mandy is reverting in time through some
kind of a weird inter-dimensional “timewarpy” thing that also enables her to
make these incredible illusions. [Then] that opens up the opportunity to create
mystery and suspense and good guys and bad guys and the chase at the end. So
all of these things come together and finally form a story, but those are the essential
ingredients I started out with.
JOHN : At the end
of the book you make reference to the story being a lot about you and your wife.
How much of Illusion is actually you
and Barb?
Frank: Oh it’s
woven through there! Mandy and Dane are their own characters, but boy-oh-boy
yeah, as far as the spiritual journey and the emotion – really getting into the
heart of the matter – I drew upon my own love and relationship with Barb. Mandy’s
devotion to Dane, I modeled that after Barb’s devotion to me. And Dane’s (shall
we say) awe at this wonderful woman that would love him and be so tenaciously
devoted to him for 40 years, well that’s drawing upon my own feelings and
experience. See, I’m 61 now and it’s interesting, you get to this age and you start
looking back and reflecting on the journey you’ve been on. And that’s what Dane
does. A lot of that happens in this book; Dane is looking back and reflecting
on his journey and his relationship with Mandy over the years. So you don’t see
a direct correlation between Barb and me with Dane and Mandy, but the content,
the fiber, the grist, the experience from which the writer writes – that’s Barb and me.
Frank Peretti's ILLUSION
JOHN : Have you
ever approached a book and found it emotionally difficult to write?
Frank: Yeah, The Wounded Spirit is the first one
that pops into my mind. That was a very difficult book because it was talking
about all of the bullying and harassment I got growing up. Dealing with wounds
that go way back, it was still kind of a cathartic experience for me because
there’s all of this stuff in there [that]
just lies in there all your life. So I started writing about it and I had to
dredge all that up and start dealing with it. So that was a real tough book
emotionally. Illusion wasn’t
difficult emotionally, but it was emotional. I went through a lot of emotions
writing that because I was reflecting on my own love for Barb and what that’s
been all about. It’s a very, very human book. TheWounded Spirit was human
too, but also very difficult.
JOHN : At certain
points in your career various people have used your books as sort of “manuals”
for dealing with the spiritual realm. How comfortable are you with that?
Frank: I’m not
comfortable with that. That opens up this whole conundrum that (maybe other
fiction writers haven’t run into, but for some strange reason I have, where at
least in the realm of spiritual warfare) readers have a hard time
distinguishing between fact and fiction. Maybe it’s because the books came out
at a time when fiction was not a widespread genre in Christian publishing. Maybe
Christians weren’t used to fiction being fiction! (laughs) But, I’ve had folks
ask me, “Are you going to come out with a study guide to go with your Darkness books?” No, no! Study the Bible,
don’t study these books. These are just an imaginative treatment on a theme, ya
know, they’re just to paint a picture that inspires, uplifts and provides a
fictional, imaginative model of what it could be like. Over the years, my books
(as far as that goes) have been given a lot more credence than they should. I
don’t think people should take them quite that seriously. They’re not a theological
treatise; they were never intended to be. I find myself in awkward situations sometimes
because people think I’m some great authority on spiritual warfare, but I’m
not. I never have been.
JOHN : So, when
you’re confronted with that, how do you respond?
Frank: When I wrote
those books and afterward, I opened myself up to all kinds of people with all
kinds of experiences, some real and some delusional. I’ve gotten letters and
books and conversations from people with the most sordid stories of demonic,
satanic abuse and all kinds of things. I’ve talked to some who are clearly in need
of professional help, who have a serious problem but now they’ve attributed it
all to demons. Ya know, the second coming, the rapture, there are certain
topics out there that are just juicy; they’re appealing, there’s a certain
fascination with things like that. Over the years, I’ve taken a much more balanced
and sober view of all of this. I believe in the realities of what I’ve written
about, but [I think] we can get a little too obsessed with it and start getting
into realms that really aren’t healthy, I don’t like going there anymore. I
tell people I’m not a specialist about spiritual warfare… it was 26 years ago I
wrote that book. I would hope as any Christian should, that I’ve grown and I’ve
gone through other seasons and lessons of my life, and that the Lord is leading
me on to other things... That’s the interesting thing about it: you write this
book that [becomes] so popular that it’s
thebook you are known for, and people
are still picking up it up and enjoying it – which is fine with me, but then I
have to make an adjustment because wow, I’m not there anymore! (laughs) So when
I meet people in the bookstores and that’s what they’re all excited about, I
still have to engage them in conversation and show my appreciation (of course!)
for how they’re enjoying [This Present
Darkness]. You can look at all of the books I’ve written over the years,
and each book reflects a different place I was in my Christian walk. In TheOath,
I was concerned about sin, how we were harboring sin and being cavalier about
it. Then in TheVisitation I wrote from my own frustrations with my ministry and with
Christianity in general, how we can go through times of darkness and disillusionment
but the Lord is still with us. I wrote Prophet
to talk about my concern at how the gatekeepers of information can control what
we think. I wrote Monster just to take
a stab at evolution, and Illusion because
I’m reflecting on how beautiful it is – the gift of marriage and the gift of
love – and how it’s so sorely needed in our culture right now. I sure would
like people to catch a spark when they read this book [and say] wow, I’d love for
my love to be like that or I’d like to find a love like that, instead of all
this flaky stuff going on. It would be nice to find something that really endures.
JOHN : Frank, we
really appreciate you giving us grace to ask a question like that. Switching
gears a bit, are you a book reader?
Frank: Oh yeah! Usually
the pattern I fall into is reading fiction, to keep my own creative juices
under discipline, keep learning. It’s the same way I learned how to play the banjo.
I’d listen to other banjo players and pick up licks and see what they’re doing
– that’s how I learned. I read other fiction readers and see what they’re
doing, keep a good awareness of style and where fiction’s going. So I’m always
learning. The other area of reading I do is usually whatever I’m interested in at
the time, whatever God’s speaking to me about at the time. For example, right
now I’m gravitating toward books that deal with church history, worship, where
the church is now and where it’s going. I’ve got just a few pages left and I’ll
be done with Where in the World is the Church?
by Michael Horton. That was a good book because it shook me up in terms of the
old “four wall syndrome.” [He talks about how sometimes] everything the church has
to be within the four walls and we can’t touch the outside culture because that’s
worldly. He’s just addressing hey, God made music, He made beauty, He made literature,
and it’s to be created and used everywhere. We don’t want to get into a Christian
ghetto where we stop engaging the culture and just come up with a Christian
version of everything – staying within our four walls. So it’s a neat book
anyway. And then I read Church History in
Plain Language by Bruce Shelley and that was good because it gave a whole
history of the church, real nice read for a layman like me to go through there
and see where the church has been. That really provides context for what I’m
thinking about now because I’m struggling a lot with what the church is doing,
where it’s going, so that’s where I feel God prodding, ya know? It’s like when
I write a book I try to figure out, what’s God saying to me? What’s the subject
for today, or this year? And The Church is [the current subject], so that’s
what I’m reading now.
JOHN : One last
question: what do you do to relax?
Frank: (laughs)
Well I’ll tell you, I go out and work in the yard. I hadn’t been out to work in
awhile and the weather finally broke a little bit, we had a little sunshine. So
I went out and spaded the garden, pulled weeds, worked on our water fountain a
little bit, and boy that felt good. (In a booming voice) There’s something to
be said for nice manual labor out in the sunshine! (laughs)
JOHN : Well Mr.
Peretti, we are huge fans of your work, and we appreciate how you’ve always
been a witness for Jesus.
Frank: Well, I
appreciate that, ya know - I just want to let Jesus work through me. That’s the
big lesson I’m working on from the Lord right now, “Frank, write from your heart
and be honest.” There’s so many strains on the market ya know, write this,
write that, this is what’s hot right now, and I’m dealing with what is God saying
to me. What am I going to write about? What is from my heart and not just my
wallet (laughs). I’m glad what I’ve written resonates with you.
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