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On reading (and counting) books
I use Goodreads. To some reading this blog that may have created visceral reactions that I don’t understand because Goodreads (as it is with most giant conglomerate type things these days) creates those responses. I’ve used it because it’s the easiest ways to set my hopeful goals of “books read” and track what I’ve done. I can use a Kindle…
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Lead with love not fear
The currency of our culture today is fear. It generates political activity and holds people in power. To the “right” or to the “left,” the currency of our political religions is fear. It raises money fast. It gets people to vote. And all of that is going to lead to power and control. This is not the way of Christ.…
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Books that stood out to me in 2023
I am looking back on books I’ve read this year. It’s been awhile! I don’t have any particular order of preference, but here are some books that stood out to me:
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We need to move past our easy labels
Esau McCaulley’s memoir, How Far to the Promised Land? dives into his family history, specifically spurred on by his father. What McCaulley shows in the book is it’s easy to put labels on people and events to simplify how we see people.
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Learning to “quit” books
A discipline I’ve had to learn later in life is when to STOP reading a book. Too often I felt “obligated” to finish a book once I had started it. I would often read a book because it had come highly recommended and I wanted to plow through it, but it was just a huge chore. Other times I’ve tried…
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Learning what is CORE
“After the disruptions of the past few years, though, the primary critique of evangelical Christianity — from the outside world as well as from those of us who’ve found ourselves accidental exiles within the church — is not that evangelical Christianity believers and practices all these things, but that we don’t.” (Losing Our Religion, p. 20)
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On the road
We are on the road for a few weeks as we wrap up summer. It’s a trip to see family and friends. It also means less time reading, more time listening to audiobooks and podcasts, and then reflecting on them.
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Influential books
I reflected HERE on some of the most impactful books in my theological thinking. I wanted to look at books that will probably stand the test of time. Maybe they won’t, but there are some that have truly become spiritual markers for a generation and not just me personally.
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Impacting my theological thinking
The other day I pulled out some books that have had some deep impact over the years in my theological thinking. There are a couple that impacted me because of the place in life I find myself currently. If I had to have an essential reading list, these would be on it.
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Reading Fiction
I’ve not been very good at reading fiction. I read constantly, but drift more toward theology and history/biography. I’ve learned over the years to read fiction I truly like and not torture myself on skipping things I can’t really “get into” all that well, like James Joyce.
Tag: Books
