Penguin presents the audiobook edition of How to Grow Old by John Bishop.
Whether he likes it or not, John is getting older. His hair is greying, it's getting that much harder to stay fit, and the potential to become something of an embarrassment is ever increasing.
But hope is not lost.
How to Grow Old is John's offering to the world. With sage advice on how to avoid the common pitfalls of age, intimate confessions and spit-your-dentures-out hilarious commentary on his own advancing years, this is his observational comic writing at its very best. If you were concerned about how not to be boring or how to get rid of your should-be-old-enough-to-manage kids, this the book has the answers.
If you didn't already know it John Bishop's Liverpool accent would tell you instantly that he comes from the same city as The Beatles. John has found massive success in the last 5 years in the UK, to such an extent that he is now one of the top 5 comedians in Britain.
John Bishop's second recording took him to another level of popularity in Britain. The Liverpool born comedian charms his audience with anecdotes about fame, what his family really think about him and the Internet.
If you're a man of a certain age you'll know there comes a point in life when getting a sports car and over-analysing your contribution to society sounds like a really good idea.With a good job in sales and marketing and a nice house in Manchester that he shared with his wife and kids, John Bishop was no different when he turned the dreaded 4-0. But instead of spanking a load of cash on a car that would have made him look like a senior stylist at Vidal Sassoon, he stumbled onto a pathway that ultimately lead him to become one of the nation's best loved comedians. It was a gamble, but boy, did it pay off.How Did All This Happen? is the story of how a boy who, growing up on a council estate dreaming of ousting Kenny Dalglish from Liverpool FC's starting line-up, suddenly found himself on stage in front of thousands of people nationwide, at an age when he should have known better.In his own inimitable style, John guides us through his life from leaving the estate and travelling the globe on a shoe string, to marriage, kids and the split that led him to being on a stage complaining to strangers one night - the night that changed his life and started his journey to stardom.Wonderfully entertaining and packed with colourful reminiscences and comical anecdotes, this is a heart-warming, life-affirming and ultimately very, very funny memoir from one of the nation's greatest comedians.
Dangerous churches should be norm. Church leaders and church people alike shrink back from danger because we want safety. Jesus said that he's overcome the world and its troubles. Dangerous churches put everything on the line for the one thing that matters most: reaching lost people.
It's dangerous not to be a dangerous church. The book is less about methods or even the message of God, but about a church that risks everything it has to reach lost people. Living Hope was birthed 8 years ago and has grown from five families to 5000 attendees, grown from one to 19 services on many campuses, and baptized 5,000 people along the way. A dangerous church sees what 'only God' can do when it acts upon what the church is supposed to be. It risks everything to reach people.
God wants us to live on the edge of our margin when it comes to mission and methods. So much of Living Hope's journey has been going back to the Book of Acts and trying to live authentically with the givens of who they were, where they were and what they had to work with. They learned to abandon agendas and short-sighted human plans, especially ones that copy what other churches are doing. That's when they found God's blessing. 'We went from being a good church to being God-honoring church,' he reports.
Drawing insight from the book of Acts, this book unfolds the very personal journey of a pastor, and then his entire church, when they finally began to live a dangerous faith. The transition had a dramatic impact on the pastor's life and marriage, as well as on the congregation and its outreach. It opened a new sense of mission and incredible spiritual fruitfulness. The pastor is not only a radically different person today, but the entire church has become an atmosphere that values taking dangerous steps of faith. It will lead Christ's followers to become risk-takers who change the world through a revolution that begins with a dangerous grace.
The book is story-rich with examples of the grace-filled culture from Living Hope Church through the experiences of its pastor, John Bishop. It will avoid a smug attitude that implies 'we've arrived,' 'we're the first to live out grace' or 'we're the best at giving grace.' Instead, the book will convey a humble attitude of 'we've got a lot to learn,' including examples of mistakes the church has made along the way. The rapid transition of Living Hope will not be projected as a speed for other churches to follow (lest the book invite a crash-and-burn outcome at other churches). Thus the book will find its primary story in and from Living Hope.
In 2007 Outreach Magazine ranked Living Hope as the seventh fastest growing church in the US. They have also been listed among the 50 most influential churches in America.
