I can honestly say that I have never heard a song written about the two women fighting over the same baby and King Solomon’s decision to cut the baby in half. (1 Kings 3:16-28) Before I heard the song, “Real Love and the Whole Truth,” I might not have believed that a children’s song could be written about this rather odd story. And yet, Richard Bruxvoort Colligan has managed to write a song that is fun, interesting, appropriate for children and conveys the importance of telling the truth.

It's a great time to be a liberal Christian! Books by progressive authors have been hitting the shelves with some frequency. Curriculum companies have sprung up with materials that are helping church members to embrace a new kind of Christianity. Podcasts from members of the Emergent Church movement are saying things that many churches on the left have been declaring for years. These are just a few of the reasons I am not completely filled with despair when I look at the state of Christianity today.

Over the past few months I have reviewed several books and resources I think every progressive congregation should have and use (see links below), and in coming weeks I'll share 2 more that I have been enjoying. But of all of the introductions to progressive Christianity I've read, I think I would most enjoy using Jesus Was a Liberal: Reclaiming Christianity for All by Rev. Scotty McLennan (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. 260 pp.) with a book group that was held in a neutral, secular setting.

Although I have written one devotional book and contributed to another, I have to admit that daily devotional resources have never truly been my thing. I could give you many excuses, of course—I can't find a devotional book I like, I have other books to read that are more "important," blah...blah...blah—but the bottom line is that I just never formed and committed myself to the habit. My sense is that many progressive Christians share a similar experience.

A series of devotional books from Augsburg Books could finally change that for me. The 40-Day Journey series features several of my favorite authors, as well as a few who I've intended to read at some point. Eight books have been released so far, with two more scheduled to come out late this year. First up for me: 40-Day Journey with Parker Palmer, as Palmer's book To Know as We are Known was my favorite Christian education text in seminary. After that, I'll pick up the one that features Joan Chittister , a Benedictine nun who writes powerfully about peace, justice, the church, and many other topics.

Over the past six weeks or so, I have been working on my latest book, a 6-week study for youth on creation care, which will be published later this year. The project gave me a chance to explore some of the latest resources for congregational environmental ministry, and I thought I'd share 3 of them with you today.

The Green Bible. HarperOne, 2008.

Every time I walk past the Bibles in a Christian book store, I'm pretty sure I let out an audible groan. Did the world really need, after all, the "wedding edition" of the Lighting the Way Home Family Bible by painter Thomas Kinkade, to name but one of the books that seem to me to be a desperate attempt to reach every niche audience out there? No doubt there are many people in the world who will feel similarly dismayed about The Green Bible, but this is one of the few Bibles I wholeheartedly recommend.

Printed on recycled paper, using soy-based ink and a unique cotton/linen cover, The Green Bible is the most ecologically-responsible Bible available. A highly unique feature of the Bible is that verses with a connection to God's creation are printed in green, making it easy to see just how many things the Bible actually does have to say about creation. The Bible uses the NRSV translation and includes 100 pages of exceptional introductory articles, written by a diverse and interfaith audience including such well-known authors as Brian McClaren, Bill McKibben, and Barbara Brown Taylor. These provide tremendous insight into reading the Bible with green eyes.

Today let’s talk about stewardship! And to make things more interesting, let’s talk about teaching stewardship to children! In the minds of many adults, the word stewardship has become linked to “asking for money”. Many churches discuss stewardship once a year, when asking people to make a pledge to support the church’s financial needs. Not many children have financial resources of their own, and therefore, with this narrow definition of stewardship, children are often not involved in stewardship programs.

Let the Children Give: Time, Talents, Love, and Money by Delia Halverson reminds us that stewardship is a broader concept than simply raising money to meet a budget. A steward is one who manages the affairs of others. As Christians, we are all (regardless of age) called to be caretakers of God’s creation by using the talents God has given each one of us.

I often reread books, sometimes multiple times. For me, rereading a book is like eating comfort food. The familiarity is soothing. I often notice things I had either missed the first time or forgotten.

During the last month, on three separate occasions, I was reminded of Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos, a book I read for the first time a couple of years ago. Taking the hint, I dug it out and reread it.

As I read The Dawn of Days by Denis Horgan, I found myself transported back to high school English. I could see the essay question in front of me, “Did the author intended to portray David Rhodes as a Christ-figure? Support your answer.” (The actual question many years ago was about Billy Budd.) Of course, this is one of those questions where, if the answer were “no” the question would not have been asked.

A subscriber to The Daily Voice recently asked for my thoughts about online and downloadable curricula, and I've been giving this subject some extra thought as a result. Over the next few months, I'll be reviewing a few of the many options now available for downloadable curricula. My hope is that as I share a few thoughts about each of them, you'll take some time to think through and weigh the pros and cons of digital vs. other forms of curricula.

First up: The Wired Word, a product of Communication Resources, Inc.

The stack of books on my desk keeps growing, and these three are similar in the fact that they are summaries of research in three very different topics. The first I recommend to everyone; the others are for those with more specialized interests.

What Americans Really Believe by Rodney Stark. Baylor University Press, 2008, 208 pp.

The Pew Forum's US Religious Landscape survey has gotten a lot of press in recent weeks, and it's absolutely essential reading for church staff members and leaders. Another book, though, is equally valuable reading. Stark's research is highly respected by those who study the development of Christianity in our country, and his expert analysis of other writers and studies is concise and clear. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in knowing how Christians in different denominations think about everything from views on sin and evil to who believes in UFOs and angels. Want to know what the statistics say about youth participation in church? Want to know why Americans have such high rates of church attendance? Is religion "hardwired" into certain kinds of human personality? The answers to those questions and much more are in this fascinating (and well-written) book. It would be an interesting book to read as a church staff, I think.

By its own admission, Nature’s Witness: How Evolution Can Inspire Faith by Daniel M. Harrell, is a book that may raise more questions than it answers. Such is often the case when one discusses theology. Nature’s Witness is part of the “Living Theology” series, a cooperative effort between Emergent Village and Abingdon Press. The goal of the series is to make theology approachable and to encourage conversation.