This book is a very practical guide to
understanding the worldview presented in the Bible, and the various worldviews
represented in American History and pop culture. It ends with a guide to
developing a lifetime habit of fine tuning your own worldview in light of
what the Bible says.
Let
me answer your questions.
1.
Tell me about your book. How did you come up with that (story, angle, idea)?
As with so many books, it is a synthesis of my other
reading. The Four Question rubric is based on the questions raised by
Brian Walsh and J. Richard Middleton, in The Transforming Vision.
Their rubric has been used and modified by others including Chuck Colson and N.
T. Wright.
2.
How did you get interested in writing this particular genre (historical novels,
mysteries, sci-fi, children's books, etc.)? Worldview
has been a serious interest of mine for decades. I really believe that
the relevance of the Gospel is found in those places where it challenges people
to rethink their values, their lifestyles, and their daily decisions. It is
here that worldview becomes important.
3.
What kind of research did you do for this book? I
read other books on worldview—most of them see a worldview as something we
“adopt”, but I am convinced that it is really something that “develops” over
time—and I read theologies dealing with specific biblical topics.
4.
What's a typical working day like for you? When and where do you write? Do you
set a daily writing goal? I am a teacher—much of my
time is spent dealing with students and lessons. I have not set a daily
writing goal, but I am beginning to see the value of it. It is part of my plan
for the coming year.
5.
What is the hardest part of writing for you? Developing
the outline. I make many attempts and end up throwing them out because
they seem artificial and wooden, or they take on a life of their own and go
where I don’t want to go. Once I have a good outline, though, the process
becomes easier (once I get started, which is the other difficult part.).
6.
What’s the best thing about being an author? Knowing that I have
produced something that will bless peoples’ lives many miles away, and that
will continue being a blessing to some people, long after I am gone.
7.
What are you working on now? A new book on having a
genuine “personal relationship with Jesus”—we use that language to describe our
Christian experience, but I don’t think most people know what it really means.
8.
What advice would you give aspiring writers? Look at your own writing—and
others’ writing—critically. See if you can discover why a paragraph or
sentence “works”. Why is it clear? Why does it move you? How did the
author make an idea vivid? What was there in the order of the
words, the sentences, the choice of sub-clauses etc. that lifted a particular
paragraph from the level of “information” to something richer and more
glorious?
9.
Do you have any favorite authors or favorite books? C.
S. Lewis is a great favorite. I also like Ron Chernow’s biographies Hamilton,
Washington, and I enjoy reading good short stories.
10.
What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview? How would you
answer that question? What is the hope of the World? It is Jesus
Christ—put your faith in him and he will make of your life something good and
true and beautiful.
11.
If you were writing a book about your life, what would the title be? Locusts
and Mercy: How God Restored One Man’s Life. (I am someone
to whom God gave “the second chance.” After spectacular early failures,
God took my life and set me on a level place and has fulfilled my greatest
dreams. It is quite a story, but too long to tell here. My
testimony is summed up in Joel 2:25 “I will restore the years which the locusts
have eaten. . .”
Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions about your new book. If you are interested in reading it you can buy it if you just click here.
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