Don't wait too long to write YOUR acknowledgments

You (if you’re a certain age) have probably—like me—waited too long to realize the impact certain people have had on you. At some point, though, you will likely have an a-ha moment or two and you will realize that person mentored me … and I didn’t. Even. Know it.

So you’re overwhelmed with gratitude at the profound impact they had on your life and … cue intense dark bass notes … they are no longer around so you can say this to them. I don’t mean they’ve died (although that could be the case, too) but they are no longer in close proximity, or in contact. They might have retired or pulled back from public life. They might be impossible to track down. There are many reasons, but I am telling you—and myself—to say those things to those persons now. Today, if possible.

My co-editor and I had just such an opportunity with Jesus Was. In fact, it’s one of the very best things about writing a book—you not only get to dedicate the book to someone(s), but you also get to write acknowledgments (and there’s no limit on how many persons you can acknowledge!)

One of those mentors we acknowledged is our beloved seminary professor, Scot McKnight, and the truth is that Jesus Was would not have happened without his influence on us. Scot has a big and influential life outside of the classroom, and you can find out more about that part of his life here.

But inside the seminary classroom, he was “Scot” to us, and you should have seen us taking notes, trying to drink in and record every word and idea. Scot likes to talk about sports as much as theology, he’s not locked away in an ivory tower but is an astute observer of the culture, and he saw and appreciated each one of us as individuals. At the end of every day, he’d say, “Now go and make this the best Monday of your life!”

Not to mention, Scot and his wife Kris are huge champions of women in the Church. If you haven’t yet read The Blue Parakeet, do that as soon as you possibly can. You will be both challenged and delighted.

For your consideration, here is the beginning of Scot McKnight’s foreword to Jesus Was: Not what we expected but better than we imagined. (The rest you can read on his newsletter; the link is below.)

“One of the most dramatic moments, at the literary level, in the Gospels is an incident reported in the Gospel of Mark. Jesus had directed his apprentices to go to the other side of the lake so they could get away from a growing crowd. The crowd made Herod Antipas nervous, who lived in Tiberias, an easy distance from Capernaum where Jesus was. On their trip across the Sea of Galilee, a fierce storm erupted. The apprentices perceived they were on the threshold of death while Jesus was sound asleep – it’s an easy scene to imagine because the author is using an ancient technique called ekphrasis, or the purposeful use of vivid language to stimulate the emotions and persuade us, readers or listeners, to embrace Jesus. After expressing dismay with Jesus, the Lord silences the storms. But the most dramatic moment of this vivid scene closes down the curtain on the paragraph. The apprentices in the boat ask, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him?” (Mark 4:35-41). The question, “Who is Jesus?,” is the ultimate question of evangelism. The answer to that question reveals the condition of the one being asked that question.

When I heard from the editors of this volume that students and friends were responding affirmatively to writing essays with the opening title Jesus Was, I was excited as one of their professors, as a professor who tried to motivate students to write, and even more as one who believes the question and the answer at work in this book are fundamental to the health of the church.

Too many churches and pastors and others think first about salvation and church growth and status and spiritual gifts, but not enough about Jesus – who he was, what he did, and therefore our answers to such questions … (continue here or click on the box below).

To read the rest of Scot’s foreword, please click on the box below. If you want to subscribe, DO! If not, click “No thanks” and continue on to read. This post is free for everyone:

"This is a book that brings Jesus out of the headlines and back into our hearts."
—Pastor Josh Burtram and Will Wright, hosts of the Faithful Politics podcast

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