Ordinary

Radical. Crazy. Transformative and restless. Every word we read these days seems to suggest there’s a “next-best-thing,” if only we would change our comfortable, compromising lives. In fact, the greatest fear most Christians have is boredom—the sense that they are missing out on the radical life Jesus promised. One thing is certain. No one wants to be “ordinary.” Yet pastor and author Michael Horton believes that our attempts to measure our spiritual growth by our experiences, constantly seeking after the next big breakthrough, have left many Christians disillusioned and disappointed. There’s nothing wrong with an energetic faith; the danger is that we can burn ourselves out on restless anxieties and unrealistic expectations. What’s needed is not another program or a fresh approach to spiritual growth; it’s a renewed appreciation for the commonplace. Far from a call to low expectations and passivity, Horton invites readers to recover their sense of joy in the ordinary. He provides a guide to a sustainable discipleship that happens over the long haul—not a quick fix that leaves readers empty with unfulfilled promises. Convicting and ultimately empowering, Ordinary is not a call to do less; it’s an invitation to experience the elusive joy of the ordinary Christian life.

An ordinary leader is someone who leads a small organization or team that is doing great things. They manage the majority of the world’s workforce, but they don’t lead large corporations or big government agencies. Ordinary leaders are rarely written about in books or quoted in magazines. They are, however, important. Maybe not globally, but in their own realm of influence, their leadership makes a difference. The term “ordinary” is also used to highlight the belief that no one ever arrives as a leader. In fact, if someone thinks of themselves as extraordinary, they will not be a very effective leader. Author Randy Grieser presents 10 key insights for building and leading a thriving organization. These are the principles he identifies as instrumental to success as a leader. Writing for leaders everywhere, he inspires, motivates, and explains how to make each insight a reality in your organization. Become a more passionate, productive, and visionary leader by exploring and embracing these 10 insights: Motivation and Employee Engagement: Organizations flourish when employees go beyond what is expected of them. Passion: A passionate, inspired workforce begins with the leader. Vision: Visionary leaders energize and inspire people to work towards a future goal. Self-Awareness: Knowing your strengths and weaknesses is vital for leading any organization. Talent and Team Selection: The right employees must, first and foremost, fit the workplace culture. Organizational Health: Employees are most engaged when leaders are committed to the emotional well-being of everyone. Productivity: Focusing on how and what things get done increases efficiency. Creativity and Innovation: Building processes for innovation puts creativity to work. Delegation: As you free up your time, you will also increase employee engagement. Self-Improvement: Personal development makes all the other principles easier to achieve. Also included are the perspectives of 10 ordinary leaders from a range of professions, survey feedback from over 1,700 leaders and employees, and a resource section that provides detailed guidance and examples for putting these ideas into action.

'Ordinary theology' characterizes the reflective God-talk of the great majority of churchgoers, and others who remain largely untouched by the assumptions, concepts and arguments that academic theology takes for granted. Astley coined the phrase in his innovative study, Ordinary Theology: Looking, Listening and Learning in Theology, arguing that 'speaking statistically ordinary theology is the theology of God's Church'. Exploring Ordinary Theology presents fresh contributions from a wide range of authors, who address the theological, empirical and practical dimensions of this central feature of ordinary Christian existence and the life of the Church.

Presenting original research studies by leading scholars in the field, Orders of Ordinary Action considers how ethnomethodology provides for an 'alternate' sociology by respecifying sociological phenomena as locally accomplished members' activities. Following an introduction by the editors and a seminal statement of ethnomethodology's analytic stance by its founder, Harold Garfinkel, the book then comprises two parts. The first introduces studies of practical action and organization, whilst the second provides studies of practical reasoning and situated logic in various settings. By organizing the book in this way, the collection demonstrates the relevance of ethnomethodological investigations to established topics and issues and indicates the contribution that ethnomethodology can make to the understanding of human action in any and all social contexts. Both individually and collectively, these contributions illustrate how taking an ethnomethodological approach opens up for investigation phenomena that are taken for granted in conventional sociological theorizing.

Ordinary Injustice is the unique and riveting story of a young Latino student, Juan Rulfo, with no previous criminal record involved in a domestic violence dispute that quickly morphs into a complex case with ten felonies, multiple enhancements, a “No Bail” order, and a potential life sentence without the possibility of parole. Building from author Alfredo Mirandé’s earlier work Rascuache Lawyer, the account is told by “The Professor,” who led a pro bono rascuache legal defense team comprising the professor, a retired prosecutor, and student interns, working without a budget, office, paralegals, investigators, or support staff. The book is a must-read for anyone interested in race, gender, and criminal injustice and will appeal not only to law scholars and social scientists but to lay readers interested in ethnographic field research, Latinx communities, and racial disparities in the legal system. The case is presented as a series of letters to the author’s fictional alter-ego, Fermina Gabriel, an accomplished lawyer and singer. This narrative device allows the author to present the case as it happens, relaying the challenges and complexities as they occur and drawing the reader in. While Ordinary Injustice deals with important, complicated legal issues and questions that arise in criminal defense work and looks at the case from the time of Juan’s arrest to the preliminary hearing, indictment, pretrial motions, and attempts to obtain a negotiated plea, it is written in nontechnical and engaging language that makes law accessible to the lay reader.

Ordinary People Exhibiting Extraordinary Greatness is a heartfelt exhortation for all people to accept Jesus Christ and use their God-given gifts, talents, and abilities in conjunction with their spiritual character to edify mankind and glorify God. The book begins by asking, “Who are the ordinary people?” Next, it explains that gifts, talents, and abilities from God make ordinary people extraordinary. Followed by discussions on true greatness in the eyes of God, spiritual character, natural fruit and the correlation between these concepts are discussed. This is followed by biblical examples of Rahab, Ananias, and Mordecai, who exhibited extraordinary greatness, including exhortations about spiritual fruit, the true worship of God-not idols, and the glory of God. Next, is a detailed analysis describing David’s conflict with Goliath and a simple blueprint for exhibiting extraordinary greatness, including a synopsis of repentance, salvation, righteousness, the covenant, forgiveness, and the new creation. Completed by a discussion on purpose, vision, goals, standard, and mission. This exhortation should encourage and edify anyone with a desire to please God.

The ordinary things of life receive less than their fair share of attention. Pastor Mark Goodman draws attention, through humor, story, and scriptural texts, to the benefits of appreciating more than just extraordinary achievements. When a person ceases to recognize the value of “good,” “OK,” and “ordinary,” he or she tends to devalue their own and others’ significance. The Ordinary Way introduces the importance of the quest that seems countercultural. Goodman connects the theme to the teachings of Jesus, specifically those found in which He provides His view of how His followers were to read and follow the Ten Commandments, and provide specific examples of how to “live the ordinary life” day-to-day. Recognizing the variety of life events, Goodman also addresses the subject of appreciating the extraordinary times of life as well as the less-than-ordinary times of life. The Ordinary Way shows you how to appreciate all of life. Welcome to the ordinary way of living.

Skillfully organized introductory text examines origin of differential equations, then defines basic terms and outlines the general solution of a differential equation. Subsequent sections deal with integrating factors; dilution and accretion problems; linearization of first order systems; Laplace Transforms; Newton's Interpolation Formulas, more.