Reading from the Back Row

I look several books with me over the weekend and managed to read them from the back row, including Novel Preaching. This little book was interesting, as it promised to have insights gleaned from novelists and story-writers, but I was a bit disappointed in the lack of connections the author found with writers. The quotes were few and far between, but I did get her points and found her overviews helpful.

But, of course, I would much rather have read any of the novels in question or quotes, which is why I also brought along John Updike. More on him later.

Reading from the back row of the conference also gave me a fascinating perspective (the author of this book says that preachers need to be first and foremost observers and listeners).

Well, I observed plenty, and I didn't say a single word in the plenary. But I did note that some people (particularly one lay gentleman) seemed enamored by their own voice and kept returning to the microphone to make, what he believed, was a vital point of order. (How does this guy return to conference EVERY year? Don't we want to spread the goodies around in our churches?)

I also noted that most everyone outside the BAR tried to vote (don't they know that votes in the upper level don't count?). I also witnessed several pastors returning from a golf outing (the spiked shoes were a dead giveaway) and several who, like me, preferred to read.

One final observation, I'd never had so many people walk up to me and say, "Hey, aren't you that guy who writes the column in Together? I really like that column!"

I always give the same answer, "No, that's just someone who looks like me."