Radio Transcript
“Adventure is an attitude, not a behavior,” says Luci Swindoll in her illustrated autobiography I Married Adventure: Looking at Life through the Lens of Possibility. Luci credits her father for giving her a new way of viewing life when she was just ten years old. Their small boat had been hit by a sudden storm on the lake, and Luci was frightened until her daddy told her to remember how she was feeling in that moment so that she could tell everyone about it later.
The theater, music, painting, and literature have been a large part of Luci’s seventy years, her age when she authored this book. “The arts exist inside every human being,” Luci says, “So, express yourself! Every time we chronicle our thoughts and activities, we are verifying our existence and thanking God we’re alive.”
Nearly every page of Luci’s memoir is filled with her own artistic efforts to capture the moments of her life. Photographs of her world travels, journal entries, to-do lists, postcards she sent to herself, sketches, poems, memorable quotes, and correspondence from friends remind the reader that seizing each day means being alert, curious, and open-hearted. Luci quotes Diane Sawyer, “The most important thing in life is to pay attention.”
I love Luci’s succinct sayings, wise witticisms, and her passionate imperatives. “Say yes to the unknown. Go the extra mile. Nothing of value can be had for nothing. Never stop asking questions.” I Married Adventure is truly a road map and a reference guide for adventuresome life-travelers, whether or not they already have a spouse.
What happened to the VeggieTales? They all but disappeared after their movie debut ofJonah in 2002, and are just now returning with new DVDs, a Saturday morning television show, and another movie. In his autobiography, Me, Myself, & Bob, Phil Vischer, the founder of Big Idea Productions and the inventor of Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber, tells us why and how it all came down.
Phil Vischer was an odd sort of kid–creative, entrepreneurial, religious, curious and quiet. The first half of the book chronicles Vischer’s coming of age, coming to Jesus, and coming to idolize and imitate Walt Disney. Vischer had a dream, a dream he believed was God-given.
Vischer’s plan was to make a living during the day by doing commercial animation, and then in the evenings to develop an animated kid’s show. It was Phil’s wife Lisa who came up with the vegetable format, but it was always Phil’s vision to show kids how special they are and how much God loves them.
At the end of the book, an on-line link to an additional unpublished bonus chapter of Me, Myself, and Bob gives those interested in digital art detailed technical descriptions of how Bob and Larry actually came to animated life.
The demise of Vischer’s dream is a heartbreaking and humbling tale which gave me a better understanding of how God could stand back and allow my own dreams and earnest efforts to fail. “What kind of a God would do that? And why?” That’s the question this book ultimately answers.
Angela Hunt is one of my favorite fiction writers primarily because her contemporary tales usually remind me of a biblical story in the subtlest way, without forcing the analogy. The Novelist, published in 2006 by Thomas Nelson, is especially intriguing because it is a story-within-a-story.
Jordan Casey, a famous author of super spy, action novels, agrees to teach a fiction-writing class at a community college. When criticized by one of her students for the unemotional, plot-driven novels she’s accustomed to writing, Jordon agrees to write a novel over the weeks of the course, allowing the class to observe and question her writing.
Excerpts of the novel Jordan writes are interspersed within the pages of Jordan’s own story which is the major part of the book. That story centers around her twenty-one-year-old, mentally ill, alcoholic son, Zack. Jordan’s classroom novel, titled The Ambassador, is a loose allegory of the Genesis account of Adam and Eve. Free will, temptation, and Jordan’s plotted provision for her character’s ultimate redemption are all reminiscent of God’s creation story. Jordon, the teacher and author, writes herself into the plot of The Ambassador.
Of course, it isn’t possible for a created character in a book to initiate interaction with the author. Nor is it possible for Adam, Eve, or me, as human beings, to initiate a relationship with our Creator. However, the Creator or Author, in this case, can establish an interactive relationship with His characters by writing Himself into our story, just like Jordan did in hers.
Denver Moore was an uneducated, belligerent, black man, a homeless ex-convict living on the streets of Fort Worth, Texas. Ron Hall was a wealthy art dealer, married and the father of two, whose materialistic lifestyle had driven him to an estranged relationship with his wife Debbie, and eventually to an affair.
Since its release in 2006, Same Kind of Different as Me, the autobiography of Ron Hall and Denver Moore, has been raising millions of dollars for homelessness across America. But, actually this book is about Debbie and her desire to obey God in forgiving her husband and in serving the people at the Union Gospel Mission.
Ron and Denver tell their stories in alternating chapters until their lives merge in 1989 at the Fort Worth Union Gospel Mission. To this day, their individual stories coincide as they live and work together.
Penitently, Ron persisted in coming to the Mission, despite the confrontations and challenging questions he faced from the homeless about his motives. “Mr. Ron, I heard that when white folks go fishing they do something called ‘catch-and-release,’” Denver dared. “If you is fishing for a friend you just gon’ catch-and-release, then I ain’t got no desire to be your friend.”
Ron and Denver’s friendship, which has weathered unpredictable and incredible circumstances, has changed the world. Not only is it the ongoing story of this book and the making of a new movie, but it is also the depiction of God’s grace and restoration given to us. “But, if you is lookin’ for a real friend,” Denver finally offered, “then I’ll be one. Forever.”
