This month we are focusing on Leadership.

Leaders are made and not born, so we all have the opportunity to rise to the occasion!  So what qualities are required to make one a leader?  Well, in my view a leader acts purposefully and will constantly refer to his/her vision.  He will surround himself with people smarter than him – that’s the only way to keep on learning and growing.  He will embrace the change that comes with the growth.  He will have good communication skills, particularly the ability to listen.  He will have respect for others, recognising them as individuals and not only as colleagues/employees.  He will always demonstrate honesty and integrity.  He will exalt those around him and will create a sense of value, purpose and enthusiasm which will keep his team motivated.  He will coach and mentor those around him and will inspire trust, clarify the purpose and empower those entrusted to him.  He will know how to delegate and to whom.  He will hold people accountable for their actions and performance (or lack thereof) and I could go on and on and on…

I believe that the leaders whom we admire and respect the most we regard as such, because they personify in many ways, the qualities that Jesus had in His life and in His leadership.  On the other hand, leaders who have been most catastrophic were exactly so, because they lacked in the qualities of Jesus.

Let’s do some soul-searching this month and grow into the leaders we are destined to be… I leave you to ponder two final quotes:

“Do not ask the Lord to guide your footsteps, if you are not willing to move your feet.” ~Anonymous;  and

“The task of leadership is not to put greatness into people, but to elicit it, for the greatness is there already.” ~John Buchan

Happy Reading!

Mel Flanegan

Plot: Tintin and Captain Haddock’s paths cross and they set off on an adventure to find the secret behind the mysterious model ship, the Unicorn. However, they are not the only ones trying to find the secret, as the sinister Sakharine is also hot on their heels to discover the secret of the Unicorn.

Steven Spielberg has always had a knack to choose wisely when it comes to directing films. Having watched The Adventures of Tintin, it’s easy to see why he chose this particular project. The film starts off with a wonderful opening title sequence that gives a nod to the original style the comic books were created in by author, Hergé. And then the animation kicks into overdrive as the story starts.

Tintin buys a model ship, the Unicorn, off an old man but is then immediately made an offer by another man, and then by a Mr Sakharine for it. Tintin refuses and takes the ship home, but is puzzled why so many people are interested in it. The ship has a secret, Tintin discovers, and as the search for the hidden secret starts to unravel, the adventure picks up. Tintin is kidnapped by Sakharine and held on a ship. There he escapes and teams up with the drunken Captain Haddock. Haddock is the key to the secret, but no-one knows why. He has been kept prisoner to fulfil his part in Sakharine’s evil schemes that has something to do with the Unicorn. But what? Their search takes them right around the world, from Europe to boats to pirate ships to planes to deserts to African cities. As clues are unravelled, the race becomes more chaotic. But who will win, and what is the prize?

Spielberg kept everything about Tintin and his adventures very close to the original cartoons and to every aspect that made them so great. Tintin is the admired reporter with his dog Snowy, always by his side. We see the bumbling twins, the Thompsons and Captain Haddock looks like he stepped right out of the comic strip. Spielberg did step up the pace though. It is frenetic! The storyline isn’t anything revolutionary and you figure out what’s going on quite quickly. The animation is jaw-droppingly good, with the most life-like movement by characters I’ve yet to see in any animation, thanks to the motion capture techniques used. And Snowy the dog is fantastic. Pure magic.

I found the antagonist, Mr Sakharine had an uncanny likeness to Spielberg. Coincidence? Spielberg is a technical genius. He knew with this movie, he could do things with the camera, that you couldn’t in real life, and this makes for wonderful set-pieces, clever transitions and wonderful additions through the animation to the story telling. If you’re a Tintin fan go see this movie! And if not, blistering barnacles, you may just become a new fan!

Reviewed by Hein Schlebusch

Note from the Editor: The reviews on this page do not imply our endorsement of the material and content of the movies. We would like to provide our readers with enough information to be able to make an informed decision whether or not they would wish to see the movie themselves, or allow their children, family or friends to see them.

PLOT: The feisty feline from the Shrek franchise gets his own animated feature. In this prequel to Shrek 2, we find Puss as an outlaw on the run. He has to clear his name and confront his past as well as make time to do what he does best and steal three magical beans from Jack and Jill in order to make all his dreams come true.

You could not help but fall in love with Puss when he first appeared in Shrek 2. He was street-smart, cute and terribly funny, a perfect side-kick for Shrek but also a well developed character in his own right. This film was first slated for a direct-to-dvd release in 2008 but Dreamworks eventually decided to make it a theatrical release and production started at the end of 2010′s, Shrek Forever After.

After the slightly disappointing last two Shrek films, Puss in Boots manages to reignite the fun and excitement of the first two Shrek films. Make no mistake, this new film is Puss’ story and does not overlap into Shrek’s at all. We learn with great fun and laughter that Puss was an orphan and as a kitten his best friend was Humpty Dumpty, voiced by Zach Galfianakis. Together these two outcasts form a close bond and find themselves in all kinds of trouble. They decide to find those mythical beans together and dream of striking it rich to escape their circumstances. Humpty’s scheming eventually lands him in trouble in which Puss is implicated for theft. With their friendship destroyed and on the run from the law, they go their separate ways. Years later they meet each other again by means of cat burglar, Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek). Humpty and Softpaws, eventually persuade Puss to join them in stealing the beans from the murderous duo, Jack and Jill.

The jokes are piled on from the opening credits and are weaved wonderfully into the story. The somber moments in the film don’t weigh it down but are poignant and make the characters motivations seem genuine. Henry Jackman’s, Nick Cave inspired score is terrific, and can only be described as a bluesy-western, dark fantasy concoction that successfully invokes all the wild themes of the movie. The animation is fantastic; those cloud scenes are a dream. All in all a fun and exciting release for kids and adults alike.

Reviewed by Neilan Adams

Note from the Editor: The reviews on this page do not imply our endorsement of the material and content of the movies. We would like to provide our readers with enough information to be able to make an informed decision whether or not they would wish to see the movie themselves, or allow their children, family or friends to see them.

From the opening Sheet of Night you realise John Mark McMillan doesn’t really sound like many Christian singers around at the moment. John McMillan certainly has a taste for raw guitar driven music. Known for great lyrics, this album is no different, lines like in Daylight “Heaven bends low for the naked and the poor, To settle up a debt, to settle up the score” or Love You Swore with the lines “Chase me down like a lion, like a bird of prey, lift me up from the ashes of my hearts own shallow grave… cause I know that I love you, but sometimes I’m so afraid”.

Murdered Son is an out pour saying what God did for us with Jesus. There is such a pain in these lyrics that it’ would be hard to sing them without meaning it. “Glory to One, God’s murdered son, who paid for my resurrection… Glory to the one who overcame in death, Glory to One, who paid for my offenses, Glory to the one”. This is the honest truth in this truly stunning song.

REVIEW by Titch Wild

The City Harmonic released their debut full length “I Have A Dream (It Feels Like Home) in October 2011. The band blends a lot of classic worship with rock creating a great sound. At first impression, I can see the similarities to bands such as U2 and The Afters.

One thing that is great about The City Harmonic is the vocals and how they blend well with the music. Musically this album reminds me of something that hymn writers would write with a modern touch.  Obviously the music is written to worship God but as a music consumer it is nice to hear some different sounds. It is not the most original but the musicianship is good.

References to scripture such as 1 Corinthians 13, Psalm 46:10 and various others are spread throughout the album while passing along the message that we are free from sin and the world.  And though some of these themes can be considered cliché, the band writes around the cliché and makes it sound like a brand new song.

Songs that will certainly make your hair stand most likely will be “Yours”, “Holy (Wedding Day)”, and “Love”.  These are all songs that I would not be surprised to hear in churches everywhere in the next coming months.

Overall: The City Harmonic have put together a great album. From start to finish every song is full of worshipful content that not only will get listeners to raise their hands in praise but glorify God the way that He intended. Full of great melody and great lyrics and good music, “I Have A Dream” by The City Harmonic is sure to be an album that will make a few cycles in CD players and MP3 players everywhere.

REVIEW by Titch Wild

Distributed by Xrossbeat Media

Eon de Bruin | Email admin@xrossbeat.com | Website www.xrossbeat.com

or contact Gustav directly at:

info@gustav.co.za

www.gustav.co.za

Gustav van Aardt launched his debut album “Maak ‘n Keuse” in 2004 which included hits like “Dis Goed”, Jesus is my Herder”, Your Name” and “Maak ‘n Keuse”.  This album received airtime on national as well as community radio stations and the music video of “Maak ‘n Keuse” received airtime on Christian and Afrikaans TV channels.

Gustav is back after a long wait of 7 years with his new CD titled “Ons gaan dit Maak”.  The album was launched on the 16^th of April 2011 and the song lyrics send out a strong positive message of hope and encouragement to serve the Lord.  The music and lyrics were written by Gustav himself and testifies of his deep relationship with God.

The recording, arrangements and production was done by Johan Rautenbach from Hit Records.  Well known musicians such as Jaconell Mouton, Denny Lallouette, Jacques Rautenbach and Johan Rautenbach all played an integral part in putting this CD together.   Mariete Labuschagne is the backing vocalist.  The album was mastered by Louis Langerman.

Publishers: Port Hole Publications (portholepublications.com)

REVIEW by Waldo Malan

It has been quite some time that a novel has touched me as deeply as “Follow”. The story follows the journey of Aram, his wife Lilu and servant-become-friend, Markad, as Aram leaves his farm to a destination he has only seen in a dream. The journey takes a number of years and along the way Aram and his party learn to rely on God  through various treacherous and dangerous situations. On the same  journey they also meet up with others who had already travelled parts of the same journey and can become mentors and guides to Aram and his family. This is a story of finding God in all circumstances, a story of trust and ultimately of hope in the fact that God truly has a dream for each of us. Terence Livingston has a gift to evoke strong emotions through his literary images, and through this ability to draw the reader into an unexplored world, where reader and fictional characters become one in the story. I simply cannot wait to get my hands on the sequel, “Given”.

This is a truly inspiring read and will live on my bookshelf in a place of prominence.

Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers

Distributor: Christian Art Distributors

About the book:

Andrew Jones was once one of the few surgeons in the world to have that rare, God-given ability called The Touch.  But after failing to save his young fiancée, Faith, at the scene of a car accident, Jones abandons his gift and shuns the operating room.  Lara Blair owns a Chicago-Based biomedical engineering company developing a surgical tool that will duplicate precisely the movement of a surgeon’s hands, reducing or eliminating failed surgical procedures.  Lara has pursued the best surgeons in the world to test his surgical tool, and all of them have failed.  As Lara pursues Jones’ skill for her project, Jones’ stubborn resistance cracks and he begins to open up to her about the wounds that still haunt him.  But when Jones discovers the urgency behind Lara’s work, he must choose to move beyond his past.  As each is forced to surrender secret fears, they are bonded together through the lives of the people Jones serves and by the healing secret that Faith left behind.

About the Author:

Randall Wallace (born July 28, 1949) is an American screenwriter, director, producer and songwriter who came to prominence by writing the screenplay for the 1995 film, Braveheart.  His work on the film earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay and a Writers Guild of America award for Best Screenplay Adapted directly for the Screen.  His other films include Man in the Iron Mask, Pearl Harbor, We were Solders and Secretariat.

Publisher: Broadman & Holman

Distributor: Christian Art Distributors

About the book:

“A man cannot be passive about what Scripture tells him to do for his family and expect to be found faithful to God in the end.  He must see with spiritual eyes and realize that future generations are directly impacted by his daily decisions.”  This is an inspiring book born out of Courageous, a new film by the makers of Fireproof.  The movie which presents a strong and powerful story of strong male leadership, is an emotionally charged wake-up call to fathers whose influence upon their children and society is immeasurable.  The Resolution for Men follows to challenge men of all ages to become as bold and intentional about embracing their responsibilities as leaders of their homes, marriages and children.

About the author

Stephen Kendrick is senior associate pastor of preaching and prayer at Sherwood Baptist Church.  He is also screenwriter and movie producer and co-wrote the New York Times No. 1 best-seller, The Love Dare, with his brother, Alex.  Stephen and his wife, Jill, have four children.  Alex Kendrick is associate pastor of movie outreach for Sherwood Baptist Church.  He is also an actor, writer and director whose film credits include Facing the Giants and Fireproof.  He and his wife, Christina have six children.

Randy Alcorn is founder and director of Eternal Perspective Ministries and a best-selling author whose books include Heaven and Safely Home.

About the book:
From the creators of Fireproof comes and inspiring new story about everyday heroes who long to be the kinds of dads that make a lifelong impact on their children. As law enforcement officers, Adam Mitchell, Nathan Hayes and their partners willingly stand up to the worst the world can offer. Yet at the end of the day, they face a challenge that none of them are truly prepared to tackle: fatherhood. While they consistently give their best on the job, good enough seems to be all they can muster as dads but they are quickly discovering that their standard is missing the mark.

They know that God desires to turn the hearts of fathers to their children, but their children are beginning to drift farther and farther away from them. Will they be able to find a way to serve and protect those who are most dear to them? When tragedy hits home, these men are left wrestling with their hopes, their fears, their faith and their fathering. Can a newfound urgency help these dads draw closer to God… and to their children?

About the author:
Randy Alcorn is the founder of Eternal Perspective Ministries (EPM). Prior to starting EPM, he served as a pastor for 14 years. He has spoken around the world and has taught on the adjunct faculties of Multnomah Bible College. Randy is the best-selling author of over 35 books (4 million in print), including the novels Deadline, Dominion and Deception, Safely Home, as well as The Chasm and Courageous. His non-fiction works include Heaven: If God is Good; Managing God’s Money; Money, Possessions and Eternity; The Purity Principle; The Treasure Principle; The Grace and Truth Paradox; and The Law of Rewards. Randy has written for many magazines and produces the popular periodic Eternal Perspectives. He’s been a guest on numerous radio and television programs, including Focus on the Family.