Righteous Insanity

Martian Queen review online!

The verdict is in on Martian Queen: The Adventures of Stewart John Jones of Mars, at least according to the Christian SciFi and Fantasy Review.

The bad news is - I am a horrible proofreader.

The good news is - they loved just about everything else about the book!

Check out the review by clicking here.

Get the book from Amazon.com by clicking here. (It's on Kindle too.)

Big thank you to Christian SciFi and Fantasy Review for giving Martian Queen a look!

Company Man: Are Christians Christianity's worst enemy?

Over the last few years, I've come to realize a hard truth about Christianity today: Christians are the worst enemy of Christianity. Not atheists, not liberals, not the media, not Hollywood, but Christians. In fact Christians are a bigger obstacle to people coming to Christ than the gospel - a message that Jesus himself described as offensive to the world.

The world still finds it offensive that it is sinful and in need of redemption. But more offensive than that are the people who wag their fingers telling the world "you must repent" who fail to live up to the standard of Christ in every conceivable way. Christians are gossips. They constantly judging others. They are complete hypocrites, condemning people for sinful actions while excusing their own. They walled themselves off from the world completely, and then they self-righteously wept for the fate of the world that doesn't get it 

If Jesus walked into a modern day church, I wonder how many disciples he'd see vs. Pharisees. I bet we'd be astonished at the ratio of pure white sheep to white-washed tombs. I'm lumping myself into that latter category because most of my life, that's where I've belonged.

Biblical Christianity is not the way of judging and hypocrisy and legalism, but that's what we've made it. Until we go back to the model of Christ, we will continue to be the biggest stumbling block on the road to salvation for the people we claim we want to see saved.

That's why I want you to read "Company Man." It's a business parable written to help Christians go from legalistic, self-appointed judges to true followers of Christ. It's about learning to live by the second greatest commandment: love your neighbor as yourself.

Our world is dying apart from Christ, and until we get out of his way, they will continue to die apart from him. We will be held accountable for our actions one day, and self-righteous excuses are not going to let us off the hook. Please pick up a copy of "Company Man" today, and share it with your fellow believers.

 

Top Sellers on Kindle for Summer

These were the top sellers for me on Kindle over the summer. Give them a look when you get a chance!

Left Overs: A Left Behind Parody. A short and sweet spoof of the Left Behind franchise that takes on everything from Kirk Cameron's sitcom roots to the blatant rip off of GI Joe that is the Anti-Christ's origin story.

Demonica: Confessions of a Small Town Super-Villain. I'm surprised but pleased to see this book doing well. It's a memoir of a former super-villain who returns to her home town for Christmas, only to find her arch enemy and her past stalking her. Can a former super-villain find redemption?

Company Man. A business parable about learning to be the kind of Christian who draws others to Christ. We seem to have gone the other way the last few decades with our judgmental outlook on sinners and sin. It's about time we remember how Jesus modeled personal evangelism for us.

Throwing Eggs in the Shower: Embracing and Enjoying the Single Life. Another surprise hit on the sales chart. This memoir of a single life was written as an extension of the singles website parody www.getyoked.net. It seems to be finding an audience on Kindle, which shouldn't really be a surprise because there aren't many voices out there encouraging singles to embrace their single status and use that time to further their relationship with the one who matters most, Jesus.

There's plenty more of my work on Kindle, especially if you like science fiction. Paperback editions are available for all except Left Overs.

Christian Horror on the Web

I've found a few new friends and blogs online that I thought I would pass along. These sites are recommended for those of you who are fans of Clive the Zombie and Fluffy; those of you who call yourselves fans of Christian horror; and those of you who are Christian horror fans in denial.**

Christian Horror blog - http://christianhorror.apostate.com/

Maurice Broadus, the Sinister Minister – http://mauricebroaddus.com/

**If you are a fan of Frank Peretti or Ted Dekker, you are a fan of Christian horror. No, they are not writers of supernatural thrillers. They are mose definitely artisans of the horror genre. "Supernatural thrillers" is Christian-speak for horror just the same as "interpretive movement" is Christian-speak for dance. Embrace it. Accept it. By all means enjoy it. These sites and these writers will give you all the reason in the world to call yourself a Christian AND a horror fan.

 

Company Man: Pre-screening for salvation?

I applied for a job in inside sales a few years back, a job that I knew I could do because I had done the job before. I had a very good first interview with the HR rep, followed by what felt like a very good job with two of the "team members" I'd be working with. The people were very warm and welcoming, and I felt like I had a foot in the door. 

 

I was then invited back to take a test - a psych profile. I took the test, shook hands, and went home. A week or so later, I got the form letter that I had been eliminated from consideration.

 

It's very likely the reason I wasn't selected had nothing to do with the psych profile, but ever since, I've wondered about that profile. What was it that came up that caused them to all of a sudden cut me out? Am I a psycho? A loser? One has to wonder about these things.

 

Whether we want to admit it or not, Christians do the same thing when it comes to inviting people in the church. Sure, we say we will welcome anyone. And if a family with special needs or someone living a lifestyle we do not approve of walked in the doors, we'd smile and shake their hands. But how many of us would actively seek out these people and invite them?

 

Christians are guilty of a lot when it comes to welcoming others in Jesus' name. We screen and select whom we want to share the gospel with based on any number of factors - not the least of which is how our fellow believers will judge us for associating with such people. The simple fact is we cannot say we are Christians, or Christ followers, or whatever you want to call us unless welcome all comers without prequalifying them.

 

Jesus went to the sinners, lepers, prostitutes, and tax collectors. We all know this. We all like to point this out when we're debating the gospel. But few of us live this truth ourselves. We're afraid our own faith and standing with God will be judged. That, or we are too judgmental ourselves.

 

That's why I want you to read Company Man, and share it with someone else. I believe in this book because I believe it's past time for us to stop screening people who need the gospel and learn to love our neighbors as Christ loved us.

 

The great miracle of the gospel is not that Christ loved the prostitures and the tax collectors. It's that he still loves and forgives the hypocrites.

Top Sellers on Kindle for June

The top 3 sellers on Kindle last month from my fiction works: 

1. Demonica: Confessions of a Small Town Super-Villain

2. Left Overs: A Left Behind Parody

3. Company Man

Company Man: How do you see the people around you?

Question 1: Why do good employees flock to certain companies and not others? Because different companies treat their employees differently.

A company that sees employees as cogs in the wheel, totally replaceable, replaces a lot of parts all the time.

A company that values people and understands that people are unique individuals, not simply parts lying in a box, will build loyalty, trust, and long-term relationships with its employees.

Question 2: Why do certain churches do a better job reaching the lost?

Some churches believe that all Christians should be the same. We must dress the same, act the same, live the same, listen to the same music, and vote the same. As Steve Taylor once said, "If you want to be one of his, you gotta act like one of us."

Some churches realize that God has made everyone unique. They also understood Jesus' approach to the lost. Jesus went to the people where they were and accepted them in that condition. Zacchaeus, Mary Magdalene, Matthew the tax collector, the woman at the well - Jesus didn't wait for these people to change their clothes and their lives before he let them in the church. He went out and found them and embraced them, just as they were.

Yes, God wants us to repent. Yes, God wants us to live his way. But the first step in leading people to that kind of change is loving people HIS way.

Company Man is a story about changing the way we view others. It's not about glossing over sin or letting new believers live how they want. It's about opening our hearts to loving those who are different than us. It's about letting go of pre-requisites for new believers and realizing the only pre-requisites that matter are the ones the Lord places on HIS people - to love our neighbors unconditionally, the way he does.

Company Man is on Kindle and in paperback on Amazon.com. If you're interested in sharing the book with your church group or small group, please email Righteous Insanity to inquire about bulk purchase pricing.

Company Man: A new book from John Cosper

Company Man is not a book about business. If you're looking for a new way to connect with your employees and infuse company morale - you might find something useful. But that's not the main point.

Company Man is a parable - a story about God and man, even though God never enters into the story at all himself. Like all parables, Company Man has a message and a purpose: to change the way Christians interact with the world around them.

Christians are not popular people. To be honest, we never have been. Jesus himself said the gospel is offensive to the natural man. But let's face it, Christians today have done a great deal of damage to the cause of Christ. We're so worked up about things and issues and politics that we've lost sight of what matters most to God: PEOPLE!

Company Man is about a paradigm shift. It's about becoming Christians who draw people to Christ instead of sending them running for the hills with their hands over their ears. It's learning to see past the surface and focus on the people we interact with day by day. Not that we let everything fall by the wayside, mind you, but that we learn to let things go that hinder us from embracing the people God has placed in our lives. 

Company Man is available for $7.99 in paperback and $1.99 on Kindle. I hope you'll get a copy with yourself, and if you like it, share it with a few friends. 

Company Man: Contagious or Quarantined?

Willow Creek once put out an evangelism curriculum called Contagious Christianity. It was a wonderfully named program that gave a great visual for how Christians should be in the world: the Gospel is such good news, people who come in contact with Christians should be quick to catch it and spread it themselves.

I doubt many people on the outside looking in would consider Christianity to be something worth catching. More likely, they'd want to take the lot of us and have us quarantined. Sadly, many believers, disgusted by the decline of the world around them, would be all to eager to go along with that, condemning the world to die apart from Christ while they live blissfully ignorant in their religious bubble.

There's no question the world at large is more hostile toward Christians than ever, but Christians by and large have responded not in love, but with hatred and bile. Christians are openly hostile people who vote for the wrong political party. They hate the sinner on top of the sin. They write posts on websites that are just as hate-filled and inflammatory as the most militant anti-Christian writers. The only difference is they leave out all the cuss words - usually.

Can you blame the casual seeker - or even the staunch unbeliever - for not wanting any part of whatever's infected us? We're not acting like a bunch of Christ followers. We're acting just like everyone else. Why would someone buy into the idea that Christ will give them a new life if Christians are just as bitter and nasty as everyone else?

It's far past time for Christians to repent of our hate, our bias, and our bitterness. Yes the world has rejected Christ. This is no surprise; Christ himself said it would. But that does not give us the right to respond with anger, with screaming, with flames fired across the Internet.

We as believers need to go back to the Word and re-learn lessons long lost. When someone strikes you on the cheek, turn to him the other cheek as well. If a soldier asks you to carry his pack a mile, go with him two.

Render to Caesar what is Caesar's - and do it without grumbling. Pray for those in power, for they are indeed the Lord's anointed. It doesn't matter what you think of them and their actions. Remember, God even used Nebuchadnezzar. 

Above all - and this is the big one, folks - love your neighbor. Love unconditionally, for you are God's hands and feet in this world. And God's love is for everyone: conservative or liberal, gay or straight, rich or poor, famous or infamous.

When you struggle to love someone, pray for them, and pray for yourself. God help me if someone misses a chance at heaven because I was the one who failed to show them God's love.

“Company Man” was written to call Christians back to a life of love, grace, and mercy. Not that we accept the sin, but that we embrace the sinner unquestioningly. My prayer is we'll learn to hold our anger, to lay it at the feet of the Lord, and to respond to anger and bitterness with a gentle answer. I pray that we will learn to love people without condition, and welcome them to God's family just as they are. It is God's place to mold and shape them, not ours.

Above all, I pray that we become a church with open doors, not locked doors, that we leave our little bubbles and go where the people are that Jesus loves - which is pretty much everywhere.  

Company Man: What (or who) is a Seeker?

Is your church a seeker church?

You know, a church that attracts seekers?

Seekers, you see, is the new code word for the unsaved, the unchurched, the non-believers - on other words, "The Lost." They are the ones we hope to draw in with modern music, casual attire, fluffy sermons, and of course, good coffee.

Seekers didn't always mean people come to church seeking God. Jesus was the original seeker, who had come to "seek and save the lost." Note that he never built a building in one place to "draw in the seekers." He went out to seek and find them.

Company Man is, in part, about turning the definition of seeker on its head. It's about coming out of our church doors and going out where the people are. It's a call to return to seeking the lost, and not "attracting seekers." It's a call to get back to living the way Christ taught us.

Company Man will be released June 7 on Kindle and paperback. I hope you will check it out when it arrives!