The K Mills

This is Part 3 in a 4-part series on Giving. Specifically, giving passionately. (You might wanna go read the others I wrote first. Not required reading, but just a suggestion…)

Aside from Books, I’m also passionate about Music. Music not only helps me relax and worship God more intimately, but there’s been numerous times where He’s spoken into my life directly through songs. As in, He’s told me exactly what I needed to hear at the time through a singer’s lyrics. (It’s always quite cool when that happens.)

Every December I scour the music sites in search of only the best Christmas songs to add to my collection. Most of the stuff I hear is bland or just uninspired, so I’m quite picky when I find a song I like. Well, this year I found some really good stuff, and I wanted to share it with someone else.

I have a handful of friends who I know appreciate music as much as I do, so I created a custom playlist on iTunes and sent it to them. It was about $10 each, so it cost me around $30 overall. Not a bad investment, I figure, lovin’ on people with the gift of music. To be perfectly honest, though, I wasn’t giving to them as part of the experiment. I’m a passionate guy, I love giving, so giving music comes naturally to me.

I also sent a former missionary student of ours (from our time in Indonesia) a flash drive filled with MP3s that I no longer wanted. (I figure I PAID for ‘em. Might as well send them to someone else to enjoy, since the songs didn’t rate high enough for me to keep. And for those who are curious, that would be a rating of 3 stars or above. 3 Stars = I’d like to hear it again. 4 Stars = I REALLY like this song. And 5 Stars? Well, if it’s a 5 Star song you’d best not play it while I’m in a coma. ‘Cause I won’t be waking up, people.)

Those were what I gave away. And the return? Well, the return has been shocking.

The other weeknight a friend dropped by the house. I had asked him a few weeks ago if he happened to have an older iPod shuffle on hand, the postage stamp version from a few years ago. I just wanted to have something to plug into in the car stereo once in a while, enjoy my tunes on the road (or in the sauna at the gym). He said he did, and he’d drop it by that evening. So I was pretty stoked when he came in and handed me the box with the iPod inside.

As I looked closer at the box, however, I saw it was not only wrapped, it was unopened. At first I thought he had found the original box and sealed it up, to make it look like new. But as I opened it, I realized this wasn’t the case. This box WAS new. Brand spankin’ new. And unopened. And inside was a brand new, state-of-the-art 4gb iPod Shuffle. Titanium. Engraved with a consolidated version of my Mills Creative Minds scripture, no less. (Colossians 1:16)

Blew. Me. Away.

I’m used to being the guy who GIVES this stuff. To other people. Aside from my MacBook, given to me from my wife, this is the biggest Mac-related gift I’ve ever received. I’m still in shock, to tell the truth.

Now, you might think this was just a coincidence. That my giving music and receiving an iPod are completely unrelated. But if that IS what you think, then you’ve obviously missed the last two posts. There is a direct link between what we give and what we receive, people, and even though it’s not always clear or in proportion (which is a good thing), it’s there. It exists. I’m convinced of it.

My hope is that some of you reading this will be changed as I’ve been changed. Will stop looking at your life as what you don’t have, but see what you DO have. And then you’ll take the next step to release your white-knuckled grip on your STUFF and give some of it away. Sacrificially. Passionately. Immediately.

Because the mysterious truth about how giving works has already been clearly stated:

Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

– Kevin

As I considered the idea of passionate giving, I asked myself, “What am I passionate about?” Well, if you’ve ever been to my house a quick glance around my office answers that question. It’s books. I’m passionate about Books. I love to read. A lot.

That’s when I came up with a plan.

As a longtime member of “PaperBackSwap.com”:http://www.paperbackswap.com/index.php?n=2&r_by=jackardiac, I’m constantly mailing books to other members in exchange for credits. I can then use these credits to request books that I want to read (and keep). So I decided I would conduct an experiment. Instead of the standard exchange where I’d get a credit for each book I send out, I decided I would start giving away extra books to requestors, at no charge to them. Just to see what would happen.

I began with a total of 6 credits in my account. On my next incoming book request, I made my unheard of offer to the requestor: “Feel free to choose 2 more books. On the house.” I explained that I’d send them some of MY credits to reimburse them, and they’d end up getting 3 books for the cost of 1 credit. Granted, it cost me 2 of my own credits and a few extra cents to ship ‘em via Media Mail, but the benefits quickly became clear. Not only would I get those 3 credits BACK when they made their requests, but I’d feel good, knowing I was able to give books away, showing a total stranger some unmerited favor and kindness.

So I did this repeatedly, giving people extra books as my personal credit amount would allow. You’ll recall how I started with 6 credits? Well, within 3 short weeks of this giving spree I ended up with a total of 21 credits in my account. Twenty-one! That was more than I’d ever seen at one time in my entire 3 years of being a site member!

How did this happen? Well, for one thing, a lot of the requestors went on to pick MORE than the extra books I offered to cover. So just making the offer it resulted in more books being requested in the end, which meant more credits for me to share. Secondly, and more interestingly, I had a sudden increase in book requests. More and more people were requesting books, so I was suddenly receiving a windfall of credits.

I’ve since found I don’t even have to make the OFFER to get this giving stuff to work. Sometimes just the THOUGHT ALONE is enough to jump start things. Just last Friday night I was looking at my account and saw I was down to a measly 5 credits. I thought to myself “Man, looks like it’s time for me to give some books away.” The very next day I received an e-mail from a woman who sent me a list of 11 books she wanted, and was wondering if I’d be willing to “make a deal” with her.

I was. 11 books for the price of 5. It’ll be interesting to watch my credit amount soar once again (and I fully expect it will).

Kevin

Update: Just this week I had another example of how outrageous giving resulted in amazing results. I had a request come in from a club member named Kathleen, and I made the same offer to her: pick an extra book on me. She did, and we thankful for it. As I later browsed her Wishlist (books she’d like to receive some day, but is in a waiting line for each one), I noticed she was wishing for Max Lucado’s “Fearless.”

I had received that very book back in August as a blog reviewer, and was kind of underwhelmed by it. Because I had underlined in it, however, I wasn’t able to put it in the system for other people to request it. When I saw it was on her wishlist, however, I wrote to her and offered it to her for free, if she was interested in it (rather than her having to wait months or years for her request to rise to the top of the queue). I also offered her my copy of his book, “Facing Your Giants.”

She graciously accepted my offer. So in essence she was going to get 4 books for me for the cost of 1 credit. Not a bad deal. But then the unexpected happened.

You see, Kathleen decided to browse MY Wishlist as well, and in doing so she found that SHE in turn had 2 of the books I’ve been wishing for (but was facing a long wait in the queue.) And since they weren’t entered into the system, she was free to offer them to me outright as well, without charging me a single credit.

So… here’s the recap. She requests one book, and winds up with four, skipping a long wait for two of them. I, in return, will receive two books on my wishlist (which I’d have ALSO been waiting a long time to receive) for the cost of nothing.

See how that works?

Even if we don’t fully understand HOW outrageous giving works, we can still understand and practice this truth: It Works. And it works wonders, often in unexpected ways.

(More to come, so stay tuned.)

 

 

 

 

 

Something interesting has been happening in my life the past few months, and I think it’s time I shared it with you guys. In fact, I think it would be good if I shared it with as many people as possible. To be honest, it’s still a bit confusing, ’cause the phenomenon is kinda mind-blowing, but I’ll do what I can to summarize it in plain English.

The bottom line? When you give from the heart you will reap a reward. Every single time.

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m an extreme giver by heart. I don’t know how I came to be this way (aside from the grace of God), but as I grew up I quickly learned that I REALLY like to give stuff to other people. Whether it’s my time, my resources, my friendship, whatever - I just love sharing what God’s given me.

As I’ve been establishing Mills Creative Minds and preparing to be in a position to give in a BIG way (visit The Vision section at Mills Creative Minds for more info), I’m learning how to handle money wisely when it comes to generous giving. I’ve also studied giving in general, as well as the harvest principle of sowing and reaping.

I think one of the most overlooked (yet key) elements to effective giving is giving away things that we’re passionate about, in the specific AREAS that our passion is in. It’s almost as if our giving is “supercharged” when we make a point to give PASSIONATELY.

Don’t believe me? I don’t blame you. So here’s a few personal examples from the past few months. Read ‘em and make your own conclusion.

In late August Kim and I received an e-mail from some friends detailing a tragedy they were going through with their youngest son. Under 3 years old, and he had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. 3 years old. Can you imagine the terror they must have felt as parents? Well, that’s what went through MY mind. So Kim and I looked at our bank account and talked about what we could give to them to help. They weren’t ASKING for money, but I figure the medical bills they were going to be facing would be significant. So after a few days of talking it over, we decided to send them $500.

Now, that’s a lot of money. But again, when it comes to medical bills? That might barely make a dent. So we sent that to them in August, and didn’t think anything more of it. Until November. Because that’s when we received an unexpected check (from a source completely unrelated to our friends) in an amount slightly greater than $5,000. You read that right. That’s a 5, with four zeros tacked onto the end. Now THAT, ladies and gentlemen, is a considerable amount of money. Quite a bit more than the $500 seed I had apparently planted.

Now, I must admit that I didn’t see a link between the giving and receiving until a few days afterwards. And even when I DID think about it, I kind of brushed it off as a coincidence. The only thing that piqued my curiosity was the fact that I had read somewhere about how we can expect to be blessed tenfold what we give. But I think this is in reference to giving to God, and I certainly didn’t expect it would be so literal. Or so relatively quick. If this was the only anecdote I had to share, it wouldn’t hold much water.

Don’t worry, though. I have a handful of other interesting stories to share.

Kevin

This was my first Lubbock Book Fair to attend, and it was quite awesome. They’re doing it again in February, and Half Price! So for all you locals who missed it this year – now you have no excuse. :)And without further delay, below is the list of my Book Fair Kills this time around.

– Kevin

Fiction:
The Mountain King – Rick Hautala
The Bradbury Chronicles – Stories in Honor of Ray Bradbury
Contest – Matthew Reilly
Ice Station – Matthew Reilly
Scarecrow – Matthew Reilly
(I always buy Reilly’s books because they are, without question, some of the most enjoyable action-packed stories I’ve ever read)
Breakout – Richard Stark
Flash Fiction – 72 Very Short Stories

Writing:
The First Five Pages – Noah Lukeman
No Plot? No Problem! – Baty
The Big Book of How To Say It Best – Jack Griffin & Robbie Miller Kaplan
Fiction Writer’s Brainstormer – Smith
Slang and Euphemism – Richard A. Spears
Word Power Quiz Book

Money & God:
The Treasure Principle – Randy Alcorn
Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff About Money – Richard Carlson, Ph. D.
The Money Answer Book – Dave Ramsey
Generous Living – Dayton
My Money and God – Hastings
God Is My CEO – Larry Julian
Obedience: The Key to Prosperity – Wayne Coleman
Holiness, Truth and the Presence of God – Francis Frangipane
Wisdom for the Way – Charles R. Swindoll
Grace for the Moment – Max Lucado
Praying God’s Will for Your Life – Stormie Omartain
The Power of Praying Together – Stormie Omartain, Jack Hayford

Baby Sleep Books:
Health Sleep Habits, Happy Child – Marc Weissbluth, M.D.
Sweet Dreams: A Pediatrician’s Secrets – Fleiss

Creativity:
The Artist’s Soul – Linda Coons
The Artist’s Way – Julia Cameron
Breathe In, Breathe Out – James E. Loehr
Introducing Mind & Brain – Agnus Gellatly and Oscar Zarate
Brainpower – Laureli Blyth
Inventions and Patents – Steve Barbarich
How to Sell & Promote Your Idea, Project or Invention – Reece A. Franklin

 

Every October my older brother Eric organizes a “Man’s Weekend” up in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This is where he gets together with a select group of friends to play poker, smoke cigars, shoot guns and eat manly food like steak and potatoes. Aside from the eating, I attend Man’s Weekend for none of those things. I go there to watch DVDs with Ken, the guy hosting the whole thing. (This year we rewatched the excellent Firefly series, which he thankfully introduced me to a few years back.)

As I drove back to Lubbock from Tulsa, I had a good 7+ hours to think and pray. I listened to various podcasts (Andrew Wommack, Charles Stanley, InventRight), but eventually turned everything off and just drove in silence, pouring my heart out to God.

And my heart wasn’t happy.

Since May of 2008, God’s been faithful in everything He’s called me to do. In creating Mills Creative Minds, in giving where He’s led me to give, in placing my ideas into the hands of other people to develop - in everything. Everything I’ve needed or cried about, He’s brought me to it and through it, respectively. But as I drove I was increasingly frustrated, and I let Him know it.

Ever since Kara was born back in June, I feel like I’ve been moving in slow motion. All the projects that I’ve been working on are slowly, very slowly, coming together. But there’s still so many questions and worries trying to take root in my mind. What if the ideas I’ve handed off don’t make it to market? What if weeks and months pass and I’m STILL where I am now, making little visible progress? What if, what if, what if?

The primary factor of my frustration was my lack of time. Last year I had a good 5 hours a day to devote to my ideas and educating myself in how to protect and license them. These days I’m pretty much limited to Tuesdays and Thursdays, with a paltry three-hour window on each. So going from 25 hours a week of productive, devoted work time to a meager 6 hours was… well… downright depressing.

So I poured my heart out to God, in shame and frustration. Why did He order things the way He did? Why did He call me to work on my ideas, to work on a book and now care for a newborn - all at the same time? The task seems impossible sometimes, because what I have to offer is so limited and what needs to be done is so overwhelmingly huge. I’m stuck at Point B and I’m trying to get to Point Z. And I’m strapped to a tortoise for a taxi. It just didn’t make sense.

And then God spoke to me. Kind of.

He didn’t speak audibly, or even with words. He just flipped a switch in my head and reminded me of a story from long long ago. 

Jesus was teaching a large group of people, and they were getting hungry. When his disciples came to him and complained that he needed to send them away to they could eat, he threw them for a loop.

“You feed them,” he said casually.

I’m pretty sure their jaws dropped in disbelief. What did he say? What…? How…? So they tried to reason with Jesus, explaining how feeding a group of 5,000 people would cost eight month’s of a man’s wages. That wasn’t pocket change, and even if it WAS they didn’t carry that kind of cash around with them anyways. (Much less a pocket large enough to hold it.)

Jesus wasn’t deterred. He asked them what they had to give to the situation. They asked around and came back with a dismal report: only five loaves of bread and two cooked fish. That was it. THAT was what they had to offer. Five loaves. Two fish.

Then Jesus did the impossible. He took what little they brought to the table, devoted it to God and His glory, and sent it back among the people. Who were fed. Until they were full.

The Bible says they started with five loaves of bread and two fish. And ended up picking up baskets of leftovers. BASKETS.

The meaning behind the vision was immediately clear to me. My complaint? “I don’t have enough.” God’s solution? “Give me what you’ve got - I’ll take care of the details.”

So according to God, if I’ll give Him what little time I have to offer each week, He’ll bless it and make it productive and send it out to accomplish His will. That’s a pretty incredible concept. And I’ll be honest, if He hadn’t injected this truth into my heart like that, I’d have a hard time believing it.

But as impossible as the concept is, I’m choosing to believe it. I’m choosing to believe that He’s in control of these things, and that nothing that’s happened or will happen surprises Him. It surprises ME, without question. I’m surprised (read: “freaked out”) all the time by the circumstances of my life. He’s not.

The coolest part? Confirmations. When I’m serious about opening my heart and my schedule to Him, relinquishing my control of accomplishing His visions with my power, He sends me signs to reassure me I’m on the right track.

Today’s sign came through a book I was recently given, “Pearls of the King” by Lee Domingue. Domingue talks about the fact that God needs kings to accomplish His will on earth. In the same way He provided for the baby Jesus by sending three kings to supply his needs, God wants to raise up kings today to continue to provide for His Kingdom’s causes.

As I was reading the first chapter this morning, I came across this sentence:

“With the heart of a king, all you need to do is use whatever is in your hand to give and allow God to multiply it.”

Wow. I had planned on writing this column for a while, but reading this only confirmed for me that today’s the day to do it. Right now. Before I do anything else with my time.

So I share all that with you in the hopes that you’ll be inspired to also release the stranglehold you have on your dreams and goals. God needs you, needs your willing heart to accomplish what He’s called you to do. But it’s not up to you alone to do it. 

Rely on Him. Trust Him. Believe that He will be faithful to the completion of your vision. All we need to do is bring Him what little we have to the table, and trust that He knows how to spread it accordingly. After all, it’s not our buffet - it’s His. He’s just letting us help Him in setting it up.

 

-Kevin

“Being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.” - Philippians 1:6

 

I admit it. I’m a huge fan of ABC’s “Shark Tank.“

Tuesday’s episode inspired me for two reasons. The first was Leslie Haywood, inventor of Grill Charms. I had heard of Leslie a few months ago when Stephen Key of InventRight interviewed her back in the Spring. It was great to put a face to the name & voice, and she did an incredible job on the show. (Nothing like having a pack of sharks fighting for your idea.) Stephen has a follow-up interview with her on her experience on the show, which you can listen to here.

The second part that inspired me was Sawyer Sparks, the college kid who came up with the idea for Soy-Yer Dough.  (Soy-Yer Dough is a wheat-free kinda Play-Doh, since 1 out of 8 kids have an allergic reaction to wheat.) This guy took an idea and pursued it in EXACTLY the way Stephen Key and so many other inventor mentors suggest. Study the market, establish there’s a need, and get a provisional patent to protect it. THEN seek and field licensing options.

As it turned out, Play-Doh had contacted HIM and offered $500,000 for the patent. Which is significant, but not the MOST significant part of this kid’s story. The element that impressed me the most was the fact that he had the idea first.

Play-Doh is huge, right? I mean, they’re the supposed experts when it comes to malleable playstuff. So why didn’t THEY come up with this idea first? Why didn’t the in-house gurus in Research & Development think of this new extension to their current product? Too busy keeping the status quo in the office? Too focused on promoting their current products? Lack of caffeine? There’s no telling, but the fact is they DIDN’T. And Sawyer Sparks DID.

Contrary to what we think, the people at the top of the product development chain don’t have all the ideas. They have the means to take an idea and make it reality, but they haven’t thought of every possible product out there. They don’t have the time or the means. They need help. And this is great news for inventors and dreamers and the creative class.

If you have an idea, I encourage you to DO something about it. Check out InventRight and see how it’s done, what the steps are and how you can go from Point ? to Point $. It’s not impossible, it only takes time and effort.

And… I think I’m done. Can’t wait for next week’s Shark Tank. Check it out if you haven’t already!

Kevin

 

Psalms 15:1-5

1 Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary?

Who may live on your holy hill?

2 He whose walk is blameless

and who does what is righteous,

who speaks the truth from his heart.

3 and has no slander on his tongue,

who does his neighbor no wrong

and casts no slur on his fellowman,

4 who despises a vile man

but honors those who fear the Lord,

who keeps his oath

even when it hurts,

5 who lends his money without usury

and does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

He who does these things

will never be shaken.

When you read these verses you quickly realize that it’s nearly  

impossible to adhere to. We might excel in one area and then fall flat  

on our faces in another the very next day. Thankfully David goes on to  

explain (in Psalms 16) that our righteous comes from God alone, so the weight  

is lifted a bit more and we’re able to breathe again.

The one verse that stood out to me is the second part of verse four, which reads: 

“Who keeps his oath even when it hurts.” 

Here in Lubbock Kim and I attend Experience Life Church where they

just wrapped up an excellent series called “Redefining Marriage.” If

you’re not a member or a Lubbock native, you can still catch it either  

online at http://experiencelifenow.com/ in the podcast section, or  

subscribe to it here at the iTunes Music Store. Chris Galanos has always been

known to preach the Bible, regardless of whether it offends anyone or not,

and he didn’t hold back on this series. God has laid out some very specific

guidelines on how to get the best out of our relationships and marriages,

but the burden falls to us whether we want to follow through with them

or try make our own way.

In my opinion, keeping an oath in marriage is the key to its  

survival. A marriage simply can’t sustain itself on passion or emotion alone.  

Even a close friendship and companionship won’t help it weather the  

storms that life has in store. I strongly believe that the ONLY way to keep a

marriage together is to remain committed to it, regardless of how you feel.

I say this with passionate conviction because I’m speaking from experience.

A little over four years ago Kim and I were on the brink of divorce.  

Our lines of communication had broken down to such a point where we  

could hardly tolerate each other. We shared a house, a bed, a life,  

but there was no genuine intimacy between us. When we talked to each  

other our conversations were salted with misunderstanding or  

accusations. We were both hurt, and harbored unspoken resentment for the other.

We considered divorce, but not seriously. We’d seen enough of our  

friends get divorced to realize it didn’t solve any of their problems.  

In fact, it was clear that divorce only helped exacerbate whatever internal

issues they struggled with, resulting in their not only being more miserable than  

before, but being miserable and ALONE. After some long talks and  

professional counseling, Kim and I had some hard questions to ask.

We weren’t “in love” anymore, so what were we going to do? Did we want  

to stay married? And if so, how did we go about doing that, exactly?

When talking about my options to a friend from college, he cut through  

my circular arguments and bluntly asked me who I wanted to be.  

Regardless of how Kim might have hurt me or what she’d said and done,  

I had a decision to make. I could either cut the ties and run like  

hell, hoping to make a better life for myself somewhere and with  

someone else. Or I could stay with her and use my stubborn, creative  

streak to figure out a solution to the massive, imploding problem in  

our marriage.

I had arrived at a crossroads that I never, ever anticipated. One road (Divorce)  

led to more pain relief for the short term, followed by lifelong pain  

and confusion afterwards. The second road (Dedication) held the promise of less  

pain later on, but forced me to go through MORE pain in the short term by

staying in the marriage and aggressively dealing with our problems. 

I chose who I wanted to be that night, and that was to be someone who

keeps his word. I had promised Kim years earlier that I would be committed

to her for better or worse - and this was definitely WORSE - but I wasn’t

going to go back on that promise. Keeping that promise was, without question,

the most painful event I’ve ever endured in my life, but I can honestly say it was also the best decision I’ve ever made.

Keeping an oath even when it hurts.

If we decide who we’re going to be based on emotion alone, our  

character is going to shift like sand. We’re emotional, moody people,  

and we’re going to FEEL everything under the sun when it comes to our  

relationships. Love. Hate. Passion. Indifference. Gratitude.  

Selfishness. The list will never, EVER end. We simply can’t define ourselves  

by our emotions alone.

There comes a point where each one of us will have to decide who we  

are and who we’re going to be. REGARDLESS of how we feel or how  

someone hurts us or doesn’t meet our “needs” or whatever believable  

excuse we give ourselves to bail out. (And let’s face it, we’re pretty  

convincing liars when we’re justifying to ourselves WHY we do what we  

do.)

I share this with you to give you encouragement if you’re going  

through a rough time in your marriage. Sometimes people look at Kim  

and I and just assume that because we’re so crazy gah-gah over each  

other that we never have problems or fights. It’s just not true. We  

both have fantastic capacities to become classic, Grade-A jerks. But  

despite our jerkiness we’re 100% committed to each other. We’re

committed to talking, to crying, to opening up and making ourselves

vulnerable to each other on a regular basis. Contrary to popular opinion,

true intimacy isn’t all roses and perfume. It’s downright painful sometimes.

 

But it’s worth it. 

To be known and loved by someone despite all our faults and mistakes

and emotional upheavals and tantrums and everything else that makes

us HUMAN. I believe that’s something that only God alone can do, and

that it’s only when we focus on Him MORE than the people He’s placed

in our lives that we develop the capacity to truly love them. 

Warts and all.

 

- Kevin

To be honest, my review of Max Lucado’s new book “Fearless” is a mixed bag.

 On the one hand, there’s his writing style. Some people find it to be fresh and edgy, constantly interjecting dialogue and descriptive, true-to-life stories to make a point. I may be in the minority when I say this, but I found it distracting. I suppose I’ve come to expect self-help books to be more focused on giving readers direct, clear-cut solutions to a problem, rather than biblical scenes. I found myself looking for bullet points but wound up with characters and disconnected voices instead.

 On the other hand, it’s a well-rounded book, to be sure. It not only addresses a wide variety of common fears (Fear of Death, Fear of Change, Fear of What if…?), but tackles some that are more unspoken but nonetheless real (Fear of Insignificance, Fear of Scarcity, etc.). He especially does a good job of addressing the endless “What if…?” mindgames that we tend to play with ourselves.

 Overall? While I think there are better books out there to help one work on overcoming their fears, I think Max Lucado’s “Fearless” is a good starter book on the subject. Easy-to-read and well-organized, it leaves the reader with a profound feeling of hope and confidence.