Read much, but not many, books.

Verily, when the day of judgment comes, we shall not be asked what we have read, but what we have done.

It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.

A book is a mirror: if an ass peers into it, you can't expect an apostle to look out.

The best book on programming for the layman is "Alice in Wonderland"; but that's because it's the best book on anything for the layman.

"Books," said St. Augustine after his conversion, "could not teach me charity." We still keep on thinking they can. We do not realize... the utter distinctness of God and the things of God. Psychology of religion can not teach us prayer, and ethics cannot teach us love. Only Christ can do that, and He teaches by the direct method, in and among the circumstances of life. He does not mind about our being comfortable. He wants us to be strong, able to tackle life and be Christians, be apostles in life, so we must be trained by the ups and downs, the rough-and-tumble of life. Team games are compulsory in the school of Divine Love -- there is no getting into a corner with a nice, spiritual book.

A decade ago, I became involved in leadership development within my denomination. I soon learned, however, the mental models, language, and metaphors I acquired, as an Air Force officer and corporate CEO were inadequate. An aggressive reading program focused on church leadership was disappointing; most materials spoke to a culture like my own. The good resources I found were little known and not readily available to most church leaders. I opened a "bookstore" to pull together resources available on leadership and offer them at a discount. My quest touched a need of many. Today, the market place is both rich and saturated; demand is strong, and church leaders have good access. Good books abound, but there are also a lot of "Ho-hummers." A lot of books promise "how to" answers. While potentially useful in the short term, such books tend to reinforce dependence on "authority", diminish the deeper learning that results from the hard work of personal discovery and experience, and postpone or cover over the real change that needs to occur. My denomination is littered with congregations that have sought to embrace any number of dynamic church leaders' materials and failed because their situation, personality, gifts, and call are not the same. Kurt Lewin said, "There is nothing quite as practical as a good theory." I believe that. In this series I will share with you the books that have provided me "good theory" and concepts, models, language and metaphor, and practical guidance and those who have simply spoken to my soul. Robert Greenleaf wrote Servant Leadership, A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness or see Seeker and Servant, Reflections on Religious Leadership, the Private Writings of Robert K. Greenleaf, by Fraker and Spears. I believe every church leader should read one or both of these books. Neither are religious both are spiritual. But both bring the Biblical image of servant as leader into our contemporary world. The transformative power of Greenleaf's thought is in the premise that leadership is best understood and evaluated by looking at the served and asking the question: "Are the served becoming healthier, freer, wiser, more autonomous and more likely themselves to become servant leaders." and the paradox of "servant" and "leader". Like many words in the leadership lexicon of today, "servant" is misused and over used. In Greenleaf's view a "servant" is not weak or powerless but power-filled. Control and conformity give way to growth and development. To understand Greenleaf I believe that you must also understand the Situational Leadership model Paul Hersey, and Ken Blanchard offer in Management of Organizational Behavior: Utilizing Human Resources (5th Ed) Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1988. Servant leadership is not a style; it is a commitment to growth and development of people recognizing that people, their social context, their task at hand, and their "leadership" all differ. What works in one place will likely not work in another. Control and conformity may be appropriate but always as a means and never as an end. The key is continually asking the Greenleaf question and involving all the gifts present in responding to the answer. To me this is the essence of the model Jesus offered us. In The Name of Jesus by the late Henri Nouwen has been equally important because it helped me spiritualize Greenleaf in ways that spoke to my soul. Greenleaf's writings have also encouraged me to see the corporation, which is so fundamental to the social and economic fabric of our society, as a legitimate and necessary goal for Christian outreach. Historically, we in the church have defined ourselves against the state and society, yet today it is the corporate form that dominates our lives. Most churches seem uncomfortable dealing with corporations because it does not fit into the domains of private faith or public faith. Few writers have ventured into this arena (I will have more to say later on the need for churches to see themselves with new eyes). Greenleaf suggests that if we as a society are to care for people in such a way that they are becoming healthier, freer, wiser, more autonomous and more likely themselves to become servant leaders then we will have to do so through the various corporate (institutional) forms in our society. If such changes are to become reality, then we must begin somewhere. Greenleaf singles out colleges and universities, foundations, and churches as the places to start. Seminaries have an especially important role to play. One of my greatest challenges is to find the language and metaphors to clarify, assimilate, and communicate the ideas and concepts that fill my life. Models help me make associations and organize my thinking in coherent ways. The Hersey-Blanchard model for situational leadership has been foundational. Another important model is the Technical- Adaptive Work model Dr. Ronald Heifetz offers in Leadership Without Easy Answers, Harvard University Press 1994. Heifetz writes of senior government leaders and ordinary people facing major decisions. Sometimes their work is "Technical" where the problem is understood, the solution and implementation clear, and the responsibility to often; however, "Adaptive Work" is required. "Adaptive Work" is undefined work where continuous learning is required to understand what is happening, solutions and implementation strategies are unknown, and is it not clear who is responsible. "Adaptive" work is hard work. It requires leadership, it requires a commitment to seeing the potential in people and seeking to develop it, it requires creativity, and it requires a willingness to honor difference in how we think and the commitment to enter into dialogue. The leadership challenge is to connect the source of meaning in people's lives with the challenge they face. While leadership is not limited to people with authority, authority is an invaluable asset in helping an organization work adaptively. Authority enables you to manage the environment, direct attention, define reality, manage information, frame issues, choose the decision making process, and influence the presence and essence of conflict and whether and how to unleash it. The absence of authority allows you to deviate from the norms of authoritative decision-making and focus on specific issues. People who exercise leadership from the "foot of the table" lead across the boundaries of formal organization in networks. Without authority you can shape the stimulus but not the responses, spark debate but not orchestrate it, have a front-line feel but not the broad sense of the multiplicity of challenges. Leadership must draw attention to an issue not embody it. Just as leading with authority requires protecting the voices of dissent; the leader without authority needs to listen. Over the years I have worked from both the head of the table and the foot and along the sides. Heifetz's discussion of leadership with and without authority has been a powerful insight for establishing expectations and boundaries. I find the root of the difficulty many organizations have in responding to change is that they do not differentiate among the type challenges they face and wind up attempting to apply technical solutions to adaptive work and vice versa. Click here for the books mentioned in this article: Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness by Robert K. Greenleaf http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0809125277/leadershipnetworA Seeker and Servant: Reflections on Religious Leadership: The Private Writings of Robert K. Greenleaf Robert K. Greenleaf,Larry C. Spears (Editor),Anne T. Fraker (Editor) http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0787902292/leadershipnetworA In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership by Henri J. M. Nouwen http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0824512596/leadershipnetworA Leadership Without Easy Answers by Ronald A. Heifetz http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0674518586/leadershipnetworA

Some New Book Releases: How to Write Big Books by Warren Peace The Lion Attacked by Claude Yarmoff The Art of Archery by Beau N. Arrow Songs for Children by Barbara Blacksheep Irish Heart Surgery by Angie O'Plasty Desert Crossing by I. Rhoda Camel School Truancy by Marcus Absent I Was a Cloakroom Attendant by Mahatma Coate I Lost My Balance by Eileen Dover and Phil Down Mystery in the Barnyard by Hu Flung Dung Positive Reinforcement by Wade Ago Under the Bleachers by Seymour Butts Shhh! by Danielle Soloud The Philippine Post Office by Imelda Letter Things to Do at a Party by Bob Frapples Stop Arguing by Xavier Breath Come on In! by Doris Open The German Bank Robbery by Hans Zupp I Hate the Sun by Gladys Knight Prison Security by Barb Dweyer Irish First Aid by R.U. O'Kaye My Career As a Clown by Abe Ozo Here's Pus in Your Eye by Lance Boyle I Didn't Do It! by Ivan Alibi Why I Eat at McDonalds by Tommy Ayk I Hit the Wall by Isadore There The Bruce Lee Story by Marsha Larts Take This Job and Shove It by Ike Witt Rapunzel Rapunzel by Harris Long Split Personalities by Jacqueline Hyde How I Won the Marathon by Randy Hoelway Songs from "South Pacific" by Sam and Janet Evening

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Every age has its own outlook. It is specially good at seeing certain truths and specially liable to make certain mistakes. We all, therefore, need the books that will correct the characteristic mistakes of our own period. And that means the old books. All contemporary writers share to some extent the contemporary outlook �even those, like myself, who seem most opposed to it� None of us can escape this blindness, but we shall certainly increase it, and weaken our guard against it, if we read only modern books� The only palliative is to keep the clean sea breeze of the centuries blowing through our minds, and this can be done only by reading old books. Not, of course, that there is any magic about the past. People were no cleverer then than they are now; they made as many mistakes as we. But not the same mistakes.

Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested. Worthy books are like mentors -- available as companions and as solitude for refreshment.

When I get a little money, I buy books and if any is left, I buy food and clothes.

If time is precious, no book that will not improve by repeated readings deserves to be read at all.

Read no history: read nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.

Excerpt from "Love is the Killer App" Considering how much knowledge is out there to dine on, what do you eat? When your'e a student in college, the answer is simple: You anchor your diet around assigned textbooks, your augment your books through additional research, you take notes during your professor's lectures, and you pass a test to prove you did all of the above. But you're no longer in college. You can do whatever you want. Do you go for variety or do you catch as catch can? Do you try an even mixture--magazines, books, television, and radio? I say there is no option. I've looked at all the possibilities, and for the student of business, books are the answer. Books should be your diet's staple because they are the complete thought-meal, containing hypotheses, data, research, and conclusions, combined in a thorough attempt to transfer knowledge. If they're good, they contain that essential value prop, the meta-idea, or that statement of fact that gives the reader a unique perspective.... Magazine articles are between-meal snacks. They are Ideas Lite....The news media--electronic or print--are the equivalent of candy or soda: fun to eat, but hardly appropriate to live on.... Books give you knowledge. The news gives you awareness. The latter is a measurement of today. Knowledge is a measure of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Awareness is finite. Knowledge is forever.... Here's another 80/20 rule: spend 80 percent of your time on books, and 20 percent on articles and newspapers. And by books, I don't mean just any book. I mean hardcovers. A paperback is meant to be read. A hardcover is made to be studied. There's a huge difference. I don't read a book just to say I've finished it. I read it so that when I'm done, the inside covers are filled with enough notes that I can use this book for as long as I need to. True, hardcovers are more expensive. But I'm talking about your career. If you can afford to party, or to buy new techno-gadgets, or to eat at fancy restaurants, you can afford a few hardcover books. And if that extra cost makes it a barrier-to-entry for your peers, remember that there are barriers to entry in any competitive field. Not only is this one you can easily overcome, but by removing those barriers you give yourself a chance to shine. The books you read today will fuel your earning power tomorrow. Simply put, hardcover books are the bomb. They are fun to hold, They become personal the first time you mark them up, the first time you bend back the binding. There's something wonderful about the sound of rustling pages. There's something exciting about writing down the ideas that interest you. Soon your book becomes more than just pages between covers. It becomes your ticket to success. Congratulations! You have just achieved traction as a student.

In a book I read recently the author says that some people get up to age thirty-five or forty, level off and never climb any higher. He said that during the younger part of your life just being alive is enough to drive you forward, but then that energy starts to level off and unless you have a spiritual urge to drive you forward, the physical urge runs out and you level off. The non-physical urge that drives you forward is the thing that is a great motivation. One of the sources of motivation is reading. We can't keep up without reading. Let me ask you --- what do you read? Do you read objectively for yourself? Do you say, "what do I need to read to improve me?" Until you do, you miss the best of reading. It is impossible to read everything. You need to make clear decisions about what you read and why. I wear glasses and maybe you do, too. Mine probably cost about the same as yours. Would you trade lenses with me just because I asked you to? Of course not! That would silly because yours fit you and mine fit me. Reading is the same thing. Are you reading what the boss is reading or are you reading what fits you? Are you reading a book because someone sent it to you? How about because it is on the Best-Seller list? You wouldn't wear someone else's glasses - don't let them pick your books. Understand what your purpose is for reading and carefully discipline your choices. This week, look at the books on your desk or nightstand and ask why you are reading each one. Read to keep up, but not to keep up with the Joneses.

Beware you are not swallowed up in books! An ounce of love is worth a pound of knowledge.

New York University professor Atwood H. Townsend wrote in his <em>Good Reading: A Helpful Guide for Serious Readers</em>, “Never force yourself to read a book that you do not enjoy. There are so many good books in the world that it is foolish to waste time on one that does not give you pleasure and profit.” <a href="http://www.levenger.com/PAGETEMPLATES/WELLREADLIFE/WellReadLife.asp?Params=category=541|level=2|pageid=3221&FileName=column">source</a>

How rebuked are they by the apostle! He is inspired, and yet he wants books! He has been preaching at least for thirty years, and yet he wants books! He had seen the Lord, and yet he wants books! He had had a wider experience than most men, and yet he wants books! He had been caught up into the third heaven, and had heard things which it was unlawful for a man to utter, yet he wants books! He had written the major part of the New Testament, and yet he wants books! The apostle says to Timothy and so he says to every preacher, "GIVE THYSELF UNTO READING." The man who never reads will never be read; he who never quotes will never be quoted. He who will not use the thoughts of other men’s brains, proves that he has no brains of his own. Brethren, what is true of ministers is true of all our people. YOU need to read. Renounce as much as you will all light literature, but study as much as possible sound theological works, especially the Puritanic writers, and expositions of the Bible. We are quite persuaded that the best way for you to be spending your leisure, is to be either reading or praying. You may get much instruction from books which afterwards you may use as a true weapon in your Lord and Master's service. Paul cries, "Bring the books" — join in the cry. Paul herein is a picture of industry. He is in prison; he cannot preach: WHAT will he do? As he cannot preach, he will read. As we read of the fishermen of old and their boats. The fishermen were gone out of them. What were they doing? Mending their nets. So if providence has laid you upon a sick bed, and you cannot teach your class — if you cannot be working for God in public, mend your nets by reading. If one occupation is taken from you, take another, and let the books of the apostle read you a lesson of industry"