Cheese Turds

Most men find spiritual growth overcomplicated and the needed discipline beyond their reach. But it doesn't need to be that way. In Called to Act: 5 Uncomplicated Disciplines for Men, author Vince Miller provides a simple understanding of five core spiritual disciplines that will ignite a lifelong journey of spiritual development. Leave the ranks of the hesitant and stuck and join a movement of men.

In April of 1846, 21-year-old Sarah Graves, intent on a better future, set out west from Illinois with her new husband, her parents, and eight siblings. Seven months later, after joining a party of pioneers led by George Donner, they reached the Sierra Nevada Mountains as the first heavy snows of the season closed the pass ahead of them. In early December, starving and desperate, Sarah and 14 others set out for California on snowshoes and over the next 32 days endured almost unfathomable hardships and horrors.

From the moment their hugely influential 1978 debut landed, Van Halen set a high bar for the rock 'n' roll lifestyle, creating an entirely new style of post-'60s hard rock and becoming the quintessential rock band of the 1980s. But the high-flying success was fraught with difficulty, as Eddie struggled with alcohol and drug addiction while simultaneously battling David Lee Roth over the musical direction of the band, eventually taking the band in an entirely new direction with Sammy Hagar and scaling new heights, before that iteration of Van Halen disintegrated.

When God wanted to act on his promise to save the world, he started with a family and gave them a mission. He spoke to Abram and his household, and they became a family on mission. We see Jesus operating in the same way, gathering an extended-family-like group of disciples around himself before embarking on his mission. Jesus needed a family on mission.

In this incisive memoir, Steve Lukather tells the complete Toto story. He also lifts the lid on what went on behind the closed studio doors, shedding light on the unique creative processes of some of the most legendary names in music: from Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, and Elton John to Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Springsteen, and Aretha Franklin. Lukather’s extraordinary tale also encompasses the dark side of stardom and the American Dream. Frank, engaging, and often hilarious, The Gospel According to Luke is no ordinary rock memoir.

For many, Scripture falls into much the same category as Shakespeare: valued and enjoyed, but seldom understood. It is not, however, out of reach. The ability to identify the main themes of any passage is a skill you can learn, even as you seek to apply its truth to your own life.