It seems a little odd to encourage you to read a book that won the Pulitzer. It’s much like saying, “You should try my mom’s banana pudding.” Its greatness goes without saying and certainly doesn’t require my endorsement. However, I saw something in the book that was noble and good.  

The Road, written by Cormac McCarthy in 2006, tells the story of a father and his young son trying to survive in a post apocalyptic world. It is currently in production as a movie to come out in November 2008. I won’t spoil the story but I want to point out two elements and make a point. In the story, the father instills in his son at a very early age a sense of destiny and goodness. 

Throughout the book the father and son (no names are ever given) talk about being “good guys.” The boy has a certainty about this and comments from time to time, “Because we are the good guys.” His father always reassures, “Yes, because we are the good guys.” The other element of the story that I love is a phrase that appears several times in the same fashion, the father tells the boy, “You carry the fire.” Though the author doesn’t explain it, the boy understands what it means and it is a critical part of his destiny throughout the story. 

At several junctures in the story, the boy calls his father back to his humanity. The goodness, that fire, set in his heart was there to pull his father back to his true self. Do your kids know that we carry the fire? Do they display that heart and character that embraces goodness? Does the nobility of their young hearts, show through when life throws struggles in their way?   

Perhaps you’re ahead of me but allow me to make this point. Paul wrote, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son” (Romans 8:29). God made us to be like Jesus. We are to do good things, to help others, to love the unlovable, to serve the ungrateful, to give to the selfish, to right wrongs, to lift the fallen, to challenge tyrants, to defend the helpless, to express God’s heart to a world who doesn’t know him. Teach your children, we carry that fire. 

telemicus out

I am a member of the Rockwall Christian Writers Group. One of our members is helping a fellow author promote a new book through a Blog Tour. The Telemicus Files is one stop on the tour.  The book is Informed Consent and the author is Sandra Glahn. Some of the information here is story summary and a few interview questions, but I want to share a few thoughts of my own as well. 

My Thoughts: 

I enjoyed the book. I love stories that have unique twists and plot changes that you don’t see coming. There were several times I thought I had it figured out and Sandra zigged when I zagged. The characters were realistic and developed well. The emotional turns were strong and the story didn’t let me off the hook, (I found myself experiencing anxiety.) I also enjoyed the subtle Christianity displayed in the fabric of the story. It didn’t feel like window dressing, it seemed the texture of the glass, clear, but unobtrusive. If you enjoy fiction and especially if you have a medical background, you’ll enjoy Informed Consent. 

Book Description:

Jeremy Cramer, M.D. is the next Einstein of infectious disease research. While working on a way to revive water submersion victims, he makes a breakthrough discovery in AIDS research that thrusts him into the center of a media frenzy. But the publicity turns negative and his marriage reaches the breaking point when he accidentally infects a colleague and his negligence allows his son to contract a lifethreatening disease. The viruses test the limits of his new formula and his ethics. In his frantic efforts to save his son and his marriage, he must decide whether to allow his child to die or violate the rights of a young transplant donor. The choice forces him to stand face-to-face with the unfathomable love required to sacrifice an only son. 

Interview Questions:

How did you come up with this story? Was there a specific ‘what if’ moment?

The story had a thousand or more ‘what if’ moments. I’m pursuing a PhD in Aesthetic Studies, and I worked on the setting, characters, a lot of the plot, as well as my narrative voice during three novel-writing classes taught by a novelist who writes fiction reviews for Publishers Weekly. And I got some great feedback from fellow students who don’t believe in Christ about ways to address faith issues more naturally. I also took a Dante class, which influenced my choice to give my characters five of the seven deadly sins. (I’m saving the other two for a future work.) 

What made you decide to write a book that deals with AIDS?
   
The church in Africa is doing a fantastic job dealing with HIV-AIDS. The North American church not so much. So I wanted to tackle some of our misconceptions, challenge some of our stereotypes, and hopefully help readers consider their own involvement with AIDS patients. 

Who is your favorite character in the book and why?
   
Dr. Nate Barlow. He’s imperfect, but he cares so much for his patients. And he’s a good friend. He has every reason to be arrogant, but he’s oblivious to his own greatness. 

Author Bio:

Sandra Glahn, ThM, teaches in the media arts program at Dallas Theological Seminary, where she edits the award-winning magazine Kindred Spirit. The author of six books and co-author of seven others, she is pursuing a PhD in Aesthetic Studies (Arts and Humanities) at the University of Texas at Dallas . She recently released her first solo medical suspense novel, Informed Consent (Cook). She is the co-author of three other such novels, which include the Christy Award finalist, Lethal Harvest.

If you would like to order Informed Consent, click here and it will take you to the book on Amazon.

telemicus out

Pieta’ 

I’m reading a book by Ken Gire called, The Work of His Hands. The subtitle is, The Agony and Ecstasy of Being Conformed to the Image of Christ. It’s a compelling idea. The agony is the process. The ecstasy is those thrilling moments when we find that we’ve actually done what Jesus would do. Becoming like Jesus is an impossible task for a human to achieve, and the more the Lord, by His grace, allows us to grow in resemblance to Christ, the enemy wants to bust us up! 

Pieta’ is perhaps Michelangelo’s greatest work of sculpture. This is the foundation of Gire’s book. The statue depicts Jesus – held in Mary’s arms after the crucifixion. In the early 70s, a man stood in line and waited to view the masterpiece. When he reached the area where the statue sits, he jumped the barrier, pulled a hammer from his coat and assaulted the Pieta’ striking it almost 20 times before being stopped. The damage was significant. 

The message of the book is that each of us is supposed to be God’s masterpiece. Through the attacks of the enemy and the ravages of sin, our God like image is marred, but it is not gone. The part of any of us that is good is God in us. I’m not unaware (double negative intended) of the horrible corruption that sin has brought into our souls. But I don’t believe that man is a seething helpless bag of depravity (see Romans 2:14-16.) The second point is that God uses a process to restore us to His image that is both agony and ecstasy.  

If you’ve been hammered by the enemy, assaulted by the world, tortured by sin and terrorized by your own selfishness – then take heart. Paul wrote, ”For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10).  

When we walk with Christ, He is always in the process of repairing our hearts and restoring our souls. Run to Him for strength, renewal and comfort. Dive into his arms and offer your burden as a sacrifice to Him – whether guilt, shame, remorse or pain. He is the Master and we are the Work of His hands. 

telemicus out

In my office, I have a poster that hangs on the wall. It reads, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Joshua 1:5). This is the promise of God to Joshua and claimed by most people who have ever walked with God. We trust that whatever life may bring our way, whatever the enemy throws and the Lord allows that God will not forsake us. I believe this to be true. This does not mean that life won’t drag us through hardship, that the enemy won’t attack us or that He won’t allow it all to come tumbling down on top, around and in us. However, it does mean that when the dark times come – He is there. He is not absent from our pain, but asks us to trust His Presence through it. 

As I mentioned in my last posting, I am reading a book called Ghost Rider (not related to the movie by the same name.) The author, Neil Peart, tells about a friend who is going through one of these lonely dark places in his life. In a letter to his friend, he affirms his love and promises to look after his family and that he should not worry about their needs. Then came the sentence that grabbed me.  He wrote, “Whatever you need, I’m here for you . . .  and even if I’m not here for you, I’m somewhere for you!” Man, I wish I had written that, but even more, I want to be that for my friends. I want to be so solid that they know that when I’m not with them in the flesh, I am somewhere for them.  

Our Father has a longing in His heart that is the same. He wants us to believe that he is “somewhere” for us. Someone said, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” I know there are times when we feel like he is absent. Today, if you are sitting in the darkness of your soul wondering why He isn’t there for you – you can be sure of this; He is somewhere for you.  telemicus out

Last week I took Caleb to see the new movie, Eragon. If you’re a fan of this type movie, its good and don’t listen to the critics. There are many good things about the film… but this story is about the aftermath. On the way home from the movie I was telling Cale that the book was written by a 17 year old boy. Caleb was surprised that there was a book. He reads a lot, (gets that and other good things from his dad,) and his interest was peaked right away. So on Saturday we stopped by a store and looked at the books. He was looking at Eragon and wanted to read it, but the sequel is out as well, its called Eldest. So he was struggling with which one to get. Then it happened. What Caleb calls, his Christmas Miracle. A teenage girl saw him looking at these two sizable books and heard him arguing with himself about which one to get. She spoke up and said, “Tell you what, if you’ll buy the sequel, I buy you the first one for you for Christmas.” He couldn’t believe it. He said, “For real!?” The clouds parted. A light from heaven shown all around and Angels sang. She said, “Sure, I’ll do that for you.” 

She was a total stranger. We found out later that her name was Valen. She told us that she liked to encourage kids to read and this was something that she did as a practice.  Caleb wont soon forget her. I hope if he ever writes a book, the heroin of his story is named Valen. She displayed nobility in a number of ways. She listened to a child. She admired what was good. She practiced giving. She initiated the blessing. She was selfless and gave only her first name. She did not seek attention or acknowledgement. She asked nothing in return.   Caleb couldn’t believe that a total stranger would give to him simply because. When Jesus Christ was born, the Angel proclaimed… “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of