As part of the Litfuse blog tour for The Good Book, I am pleased to welcome Deron Spoo to the blog today!
Deron Spoo is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Over the past 16 years, Spoo has guided the church as it transitions from being simply a downtown church to a regional church committed to urban ministry. Church members describe him as “down to earth” and “authentic.” His television devotionals, “First Things First,” reach 100,000 people each week. Spoo is a graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Paula, have three children
You can connect with Deron Spoo on his website, Facebook and Twitter.
His new release, The Good Book, came out April 1st from David C. Cook.
The Good Book offers a user-friendly guide to the Bible’s biggest ideas.A chapter from the Bible accompanies each chapter of the book, which helps readers understand the context and content of the Scripture passages in a way that can open the whole Bible.
Designed as a forty-day journey through forty key chapters of the Bible, The Good Book will appeal to those who already love and read the Bible regularly as well as to those who are just beginning their Christian journey.
-encourages Scriptural literacy as it pushes readers to read both one chapter of the book and one chapter of the Bible each day for forty days.
Hi Deron! Welcome to the blog! I start all of my guests out with a fast four:
Deron: Oranges. I am a runner. When I run on a hot summer day, for some unknown reason I crave really juicy fruits like oranges or peaches. They are perfect for cooling off after a long run.
Carrie: Mmmm now i’m thinking about peaches!
Deron: Winter. I love silence, and winter seems to be a quieter season. Life slows down a bit. And there is something special about snow on the ground.
Carrie: Yes. Absolutely. My fave too – for those reasons.
Deron: Dogs. Dogs are loyal. My dog thinks I am a better person that what I really am. What’s not to like about that?
Carrie: Amen to that.
Deron: Coffee. Strong coffee is the best. I am the first to get up in the morning. I enjoy a cup of coffee while I write a bit at my computer.
Carrie: I have several authorly friends who would agree with you 100%
Around here I like to say that reading is my superpower. If YOU had a superpower, what would it be?
Deron: Listening. Because I am a pastor, I spend a great deal of time listening to people’s questions, concerns and personal problems. As best I can, I try to listen deeply to better understand the core of a person’s concern or issue. Jesus had this gift. He could listen to a person’s words and understand the true state of their heart. Also, the superpower of listening would help in my relationship with God! I am typically in too great a hurry to truly listen to him.
Carrie: I love this answer. Yes.
Other than the Bible, what are five of your most cherished books?
Deron:
- The Cloud of the Unknowing
- Letter’s By a Modern Mystic by Frank Laubach
- The Table of Inwardness by Calvin Miller
- The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
- The Rule of Saint Benedict by Saint Benedict
Carrie: I love The Practice of the Presence of God!
Writing spaces are as diverse as authors and books. Where is your favorite space to write?
Deron: I have a small closet in my study I have converted into a writing space. I designed a standup desk that allows ample workspace. On this desk, I have my favorite books (some of which I have listed above) and my collection of antique copies of The Pilgrim’s Progress. Immediately over my computer screen is a landscape of two mountains near my hometown. I grew up in west Texas where the landscape is barren and flat except for two mountains called the Twin Buttes. The Buttes remind me of home.
Carrie: I’m drooling a little over the antique Pilgrim’s Progress collection!
Why write about the essential chapters in the Bible? Why is that important to you?
Deron: I wrote The Good Book, not so much as an aspiring author but more as a desperate pastor. I saw the need to give people a useful tool to make the intimidating Bible more accessible. My mentor, Calvin Miller once told me to write about something that makes me passionate. I am very passionate about the Bible’s ability to help us know and love God!
Carrie: Yes! Amen! me too!
What is something that surprised you as you researched The Good Book?
Deron: The Bible is inexhaustible. Even after almost 30 years of reading it and almost 25 years of teaching it, I have not even begun to exhaust its wisdom. Even with this book, I discovered I have so much more to learn about the Bible. I am not an expert on the Bible. I am a fellow-discoverer. But I am down the road a bit further than many readers, so if I can offer some direction along the way, I am happy to do so.
Carrie: My husband has always compared the Bible to a gold mine. There’s always more to unearth – it just depends on how deep you dig!
What do you most want readers to take away from The Good Book?
Deron: This book is about more than understanding the Bible. This book is about falling in love with God. Let’s do more than accumulate knowledge about the Bible; let’s allow the love of God to alter our heart and transform our lives.
Carrie: Absolutely. Amen.
Thank you so much for taking time to talk with me! 🙂 Before we say goodbye for today, tell us what‘s coming up next for you.
Deron: I have a few ideas in the works, but The Good Book still has most of my focus right now. Because The Good Book has a curriculum component, I am helping small groups launch their own studies of the Bible’s biggest ideas.
Carrie: I am a big champion of small groups – I love that The Good Book is available to them!
What about you? What’s a chapter or verse in the Bible that helps you fall in love more with Jesus?
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