Favorite Content of 2021

Yes, I love lists (making them, organizing them, sharing them, intaking them from others) and I'm glad the trend of making year-end lists exists. Creating this particular type of favorites list was strongly inspired by Brett McCracken, whose end of the year list of favorites is something I look forward to every year.

My intake on most everything, except for books, has decreased a good bit. The drop-off has been particularly steep for movies. Since having kids, it's been hard to find many 2 - 2.5 hour windows of time. And when I do and want to see a movie, I'm generally still catching up from the best of previous years (e.g., watching Sound of Metal this year, discovering it was DEFINITELY my favorite movie of 2020). However, I was glad I went to the theater (by myself) to see Dune a few weeks ago. It was incredible.

With music, I've thoroughly enjoyed 7 by JUDAH all year. It took me a few listens before The Million Masks of God grew on me, but once it did, and after seeing Manchester in concert several weeks ago with my friend Robert (so good!), I've grown to really love that album. 

With podcasts, I've enjoyed my weekly rhythm of Bill Simmons, Relevant, This American Life, Holy Post (new this year), and Gospel in Life, but once The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill started dropping in June, I was hooked to the end. I think I found it particularly interesting because I was in Dricoll's orbit, listening to and watching him from afar during the late 2000s and early 2010s. I also went through a church blow-up situation with some parallels (minus the fame and tens of thousands of people) to Mars Hill. 

I think Mike Cosper did an incredible job crafting and telling this tragic story. I hope it helps those who were part of this particular mess and others like it process their pain and experience healing. And I hope everyone else can learn to not empower or become a toxic leader, where charisma is outpacing character. I'd rather follow and be like Eugene Peterson, whose life, as Andy Crouch says in my favorite episode (which inspired one of my only blog posts during the year), "mattered long before The Message."

Speaking of Eugene Peterson, he shows up a number of times in my list of favorite books I read this year. And I have a feeling he'll be showing up again quite a bit in future years. I reviewed my top 10 books here recently, but wanted to share several more as the excellence factor was very high this year.

Here are my favorite pieces of content (music, movies, TV, podcasts, books) this year:

Favorite Albums

1. The Million Masks of God by Manchester Orchestra
2. 7 by JUDAH
3. I Don't Live Here Anymore by The War on Drugs
4. Star-crossed by Kacey Musgraves
5. Milk & Honey by Crowder
6. Justice by Justin Bieber
7. Never Land II by Andy Mineo
8. 24 by Swoope
9. The Ballad of Dood and Juanita by Sturgill Simpson
10. in defense of my own happiness by Joy Oladokun

Favorite Things on the Screen (Movies and TV combined since I watched little of each this year)

1. Dune
2. Pig*
3. Get Back
4. The Chosen Season 2
5. Mare of Easttown
6. Encanto

Favorite Podcasts series/episodes

1. The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill (16 episodes, June - December 2021)
2. Life and Books and Everything: Tim Keller on Reformed Resurgence (2/1/21)
3. Language of God: 70. Amy & Andy Crouch / Finding the Off Switch (3/11/21)
4. The Holy Post: Episode 478: Foreign Policy, Adoption, & Race with Esau McCaulley & Jamie Ivey (10/13/21)
5. The Tim Ferriss Show: #502: Jordan Peterson on Rules for Life, Psychedelics, The Bible, and Much More (3/2/21)

Favorite Books I Read This Year

1. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom (1971)
2. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (1985)
3. The Pastor: A Memoir by Eugene Peterson (2011)
4. Live No Lies by John Mark Comer (2021)
5. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (1997)
6. A Long Obedience in the Same Direction by Eugene Peterson (1980)
7. Rocket Men by Robert Kurson (2018)
8. Walden by Henry David Thoreau (1854)
9. The Wisdom Pyramid by Brett McCracken (2021) 
10. The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman (2020)
11. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (1996)
12. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (2021)
13. Every Good Endeavor by Tim Keller (2012)
14. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (2016)
15. Dreamland by Sam Quinones (2015)
16. Shoe Dog by Phil Knight (2016)
17. Strong and Weak by Andy Crouch (2016)
18. Leadership in Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin (2018)
19. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (1859)
20. Traveling Light by Eugene Peterson (1982)

Here are my favorite things from 2020.

*edited 1/2/21

Favorite Books I Read in 2021

I feel fortunate to have read many excellent books this year, many of which aren't listed below. It seems as the years go by, the more I read, the more I see how many great books there are in the world (and the impossibility of reading them all).

I also am thankful to have read a handful of my favorites with friends. Not only did it likely improve the enjoyment of each book, we now have a valuable shared experience that has shaped us and that we can discuss over the coming years together.

Even though I have decreased my intake of news, social media, and TV over the years, I still feel the pull of the culture's narrative to want more, be entertained, be selfish, be angry at the other, etc. What I love about books is that they help remind me of what the good life really is and what kind of person I actually want to become. 

And that's also why I love making these lists and telling others about great books, because I want to help as many people as possible discover goodness, beauty, and truth. See below for a list of my favorite books I read in 2021:

1. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom (1971)

I read this one with my guys group and it was such an engaging and inspiring read. Corrie's story is relatable and human in many ways in that she doesn't shy away from writing about her fear, selfishness, confusion, and anger. However, there were so many inspiring moments that felt out of reach. But that's part of the point. As she would say, "Whatever bravery or skill I had ever shown were gifts of God -- sheer loans from Him of the talent needed to do a job."

As amazing as Corrie's courage and perseverance was, it was striking to see how her sister Betsie became an awe-inspiring source of strength for her. One particular gift she had was the ability to care for those who were inflicting the suffering, knowing they too must be suffering. She was determined to love those who were taught to hate and in turn teach them to love. It was comments like this that made Corrie wonder, "what sort of person she was...what kind of road she followed while I trudged beside her on the all-too-solid earth" and caused her to feel that she "belonged somehow to another order of beings."

This book is a gift, showing the way of true flourishing in this life. It reveals the secret to selflessly loving others and how to endure suffering, by becoming the type of people who press into God, who is the only true source of joy and safety, our hiding place.

2. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (1985)

I began loving this book just a few pages in and I now consider it one of my favorite novels ever. And it was fun to have read it with a handful of coworkers/friends. It's an engaging read, not really because of the action, but because of the in-between spaces, when the characters are just talking about life. I appreciated how McMurtry really fleshes out many of the characters with great depth, so you get a real sense at what's driving them, be it shame or the longing to be known. Gus is certainly a highlight throughout the book, not only because of his wit and lively nature, but also because of his wise words and the way he humanizes those around him, especially Lorena.

“I see you’re in a hurry to get someplace. It’s a great mistake to hurry.” “Why?” Joe asked, puzzled by almost everything the traveler said. “Because the grave’s our destination,” Mr. Sedgwick said. “Those who hurry usually get to it quicker than those who take their time."

“Life in San Francisco is still just life. If you want one thing too much it’s likely to be a disappointment. The healthy way is to learn to like the everyday things, like soft beds and buttermilk..." - Gus

3. The Pastor: A Memoir by Eugene Peterson (2011)

This book added to my fascination with and appreciation for Eugene Peterson (big shout out to Jared for helping me see the light). I feel a kinship with his restful, thoughtful, rooted spirit. He was a great writer, a lover of language, one that was immersed in Scripture, and who labored to bring the Bible alive in the everydayness of people's lives. He was keenly aware of how the American way - consumerism, refusal to rest, competitive spirit, celebrity, individualism - has infiltrated the imagination of the church. Therefore, throughout his life, he sought to give "witness to the sheer livability of the Christian life" (learned from Karl Barth).

“Classically, there are three ways in which humans try to find transcendence -- religious meaning, God meaning -- apart from God as revealed in the cross of Jesus: through the ecstasy of alcohol and drugs, through the ecstasy of recreational sex, through the ecstasy of crowds...But a crowd destroys the spirit as thoroughly as excessive drink and depersonalized sex. It takes us out of ourselves, but not to God, only away from him. The religious hunger is rooted in the unsatisfactory nature of the self. We hunger to escape the dullness, the boredom, the tiresomeness of me.”

4. Live No Lies by John Mark Comer (2021)

I was surprised at how much I appreciated and resonated with this book. Comer's writing style is more conversational than most, but far from being shallow, he brings substance, leaning on wisdom from across church history. He argues that our main battle is fighting lies (coming from the devil, the flesh, the world). When we believe lies, "we live at odds with reality, and as a result we struggle to thrive." 

Comer calls us as Christians to be a counterculture to our modern, secular society, that prioritizes self-expression and self-determination above all. We're meant to live an alternative, beautiful, and compelling way. To do that, the “Church must become a thick web of interdependent relationships between resilient disciples of Jesus deeply loyal to the Way.” Why? Because it's hard work and we can't do it in isolation.

Thankfully, Comer makes this all very practical by highlighting what Paul says in Galatians 6: you reap what you sow. He reminds us living in reality is incredibly important and we get there through millions of choices/decisions. When we give in to a sinful desire, "we plant something in the soil of our hearts, which then begins to take root, grow, and, eventually, yield the harvest of a deformed nature." Alternatively, if we sow to the Spirit, we get life and peace. The point is, "our choices become our habits, our habits become our characters." What we think about and what we choose, even in the day to day, really matter. 

“The daily decision to rejoice – to cultivate a way of seeing our lives in God’s good world, not through the lens of our phones, news apps, or flesh, but through gratitude, celebration, and unhurried delight – will over time form us into joyful, thankful people who deeply enjoy life with God and others.”

5. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (1997)

I knew nothing of the 1996 Mt. Everest disaster going in. All I knew was, this book had come highly recommended for years. It did not disappoint and was absolutely riveting. Krakauer is a master story-teller. I was immediately and completely caught up into the world of mountaineering that, before this book, I knew nothing about. I now understand a little more why men and women risk their lives, and endure such bodily pain, to attempt to climb Everest, and other mountains like it. 

“It was titillating to brush up against the enigma of mortality, to steal a glimpse across its forbidden frontier. Climbing was a magnificent activity, I firmly believed, not in spite of the inherent perils, but precisely because of them.”

6. A Long Obedience in the Same Direction by Eugene Peterson (1980)

A wonderful book that shows how the people of God use the Psalms, specifically the Psalms of Ascent, to remind themselves of who they are and who God is. To not look to our own experience and feelings, which can be short-sighted and misleading, but to God who helps show us, as Creator, how to flourish as created beings. As Peterson says, “accepting the terms of creation, accepting God as our maker and redeemer, and growing day by day into an increasingly glorious creature in Christ, developing joy, experiencing love, maturing in peace.”

Peterson invites us to fight against the grain of the culture, which tempts us to move fast, be entertained, achieve much, and follow our feelings. Instead, he shows us how wonderful it is to slow down and walk in obedience, despite how we might feel, mostly through our immersion in the single act of Scripture and prayer, what he calls "the most accessible means provided to us for cultivating that life and maturing in it".

After reading this book, I discovered a friend who is early in the Peterson journey like me (separately finishing this book within hours of me), and who wants to start reading through all of Peterson's work chronologically. This book helped me see that's a journey I want to be on. Let's do this, Krin!

7. Rocket Men by Robert Kurson (2018)

What an incredible story. I was struck by the ingenuity and guts it took to plan, build for, and execute a mission to the moon with such precision and accuracy. I was also struck by the humility, integrity, and courage of the astronauts who made the journey. And I teared up a little when reading about how, in their first live TV broadcast from the moon, the astronauts started reading from Genesis 1. 

"To Borman, spacecraft, rockets, and computers were the products of science, the logical advance of mankind. The lunar far side, however, seemed a dreamscape, straight out of science fiction. Nothing was lit like that on Earth, or even in one’s imagination. Nothing was ever that alone. And yet he saw splendor in all of it, in the epochs of violence gone perfectly still."

8. Walden by Henry David Thoreau (1854)

I was great to read this one with some friends in Montana, who have a lot more access and insight into wilderness and nature than I do. What a fascinating book. Thoreau often crafts beautiful sentences as he observes nature and reflects on the importance of living more simply. He argues how we need the "tonic of wildness" to wake us up from living unexamined "lives of quiet desperation", dependent on our comforts, and instead see and appreciate the beauty of the world around us. As he says, “We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn.” Reading this book is an excellent way to let the "clean sea breeze of the centuries" blow through our minds (Lewis).

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life...I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life."

9. The Wisdom Pyramid by Brett McCracken (2021) 

This is a book that not only offers great truth about how to flourish in today's world, but it was also very enjoyable to read. McCracken does a great job at offering a clear, succinct diagnosis of one of our culture's major problems: the world is saturated with information, but there is less wisdom - and the solution: we need to immerse ourselves in the appropriate sources for life and wisdom (The Bible, The Church, Nature, Books, Beauty, and The Internet and Social Media) and in varying and appropriate amounts.

While I've read and enjoyed many different works on our age of distraction, how we got here and why it is a problem, I appreciate the practicality of how to move against the current that this book provides. I'm reminded to not go to the Internet (or my phone) to wander, but only with purpose. I'm reminded about the importance of not filling up every space in my life with noise or information, but to instead take time to take in beauty or nature, or just "staring at walls, which is infinitely more useful" (Earley). It's a great book that all would benefit from and I would especially recommend to read together with others, as McCracken does include some great discussion questions at the end of each chapter. I read it with my guys group and they've declared it's been our best book study yet!

“Sadly, the ease with which we can jump online in our spare moments (whether 30 seconds at a stop light or 90 seconds in the Chick-fil-A drive-thru line) conditions us to eliminate every last shred of unmediated space in our lives -- which is a terrible thing for cultivating wisdom.”

10. The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman (2020)

A masterful work helping to explain how we find ourselves in a world where expressive individualism reigns and where sex as identity is normative. Trueman leans on a few philosophers to help show how the modern notion of the expressive (Charles Taylor), therapeutic/psychological (Philip Reiff), emotive (MacIntyre) self came to be and how we've moved from a mimetic view of the world - the world has a given order and meaning and humans are meant to "discover that meaning and conform themselves to it" - to one of poiesis - the world contains "much raw material out of which meaning and purpose can be created by the individual.”

Trueman argues that the world loses its sense of teleology (having an end, purpose, or design) in the nineteenth century, mostly through the works of Nietzsche, Marx, and Darwin. He says that, these "three effectively strip away the metaphysical foundations for both human identity and for morality, leaving the latter, as Nietzsche is happy to point out, a matter of mere taste and manipulative power games.” Individuals begin to create meaning for themselves and to express their preferences, feelings, and desires as truth. The institutions and structures of society no longer become avenues of formation, but ones of oppression, holding the individual back from fully expressing oneself.

Trueman is understandably concerned about the trajectory of the chaotic world we find ourselves in: how our discourse has devolved because of the lack of a "commonly accepted foundation on which such discussions might constructively take place" and how religious freedom and expressive individualism seem to be increasingly antithetical to each other. However, he is not without hope. Much like how the 2nd century church was "a marginal sect within a dominant, pluralist society" and whose claims of Jesus as king was deeply subversive, the church today is in a similar spot, occupying a world where Christianity is a choice. Maybe another revolution is underway.

Honorable Mentions:

Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (1996)

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (2021)

Every Good Endeavor by Tim Keller (2012)

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (2016)

Dreamland by Sam Quinones (2015)

Shoe Dog by Phil Knight (2016)

Strong and Weak by Andy Crouch (2016)

Leadership in Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin (2018)

Past Years:

2020

2019

2018

2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011

Eugene Peterson, Teresa of Calcutta, and the path of sainthood

I began reading Eugene Peterson last August, after a good friend of mine spent several years reading most of his works. He's quickly becoming one of my favorites. I really appreciate his restful, thoughtful spirit and the particular way he encourages us to get God's Word in us, to form and shape us in a way that leads to flourishing.

Therefore, I was pleased to hear Andy Crouch bring him up in the latest episode of The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill. The entire podcast, while well done and fascinating, has been a troubling and sad indictment of what happens in leaders when charisma outpaces character and how abuse can be overlooked and even protected by those close to it because a lot of good is happening too. 

And that brings us to Peterson, and Teresa of Calcutta, on a different way to live and be. Here's Andy Crouch: 

Through this whole story of the rise of the mega-church, there's this incredible alternative being offered in the writing and the life of this guy, Eugene Peterson. Who then happens to perform a kind of act of media, sort of brilliance, by doing The Message thing...Then he becomes powerful in a worldly sense. Everyone was like, "Oh, Eugene Peterson." But his life mattered long before The Message. His life would matter if the Message had never been produced and sold the way it did. There was a witness, right there, in our world.

Teresa of Calcutta, not a perfect person, sometimes a little harsh with her people that she had power over. But nonetheless, a witness. I think about the fact that Teresa and Diana died in the same week. They are like these mirror images of what we want to be as a human being. The two most recognizable, visible women in the world, it was said, at the time. But utterly different paths to celebrity. Utterly different paths to influence. And of course, one of the things I said in my book Culture Making, it's fascinating that almost everybody wanted to be like Diana, but nobody could be like Diana. Only one person gets to marry the Prince of Wales. And most of us are not beautiful like Diana. We've got no shot. Zero.

Meanwhile, you have Teresa of Calcutta and anyone could be like her, because all she is is a saint. And anyone can be a saint if they open themselves up to Jesus. We have not lacked for models of godly power. We just don't want the suffering that comes with it, the long stretches of anonymity and seeming ineffectiveness, the humiliation of being like your Lord. That part we would really rather not have. There have been other options. But the way of Eugene Peterson, the way of Teresa is right there. Any day I can wake up and say, "I'm heading on that road." Whereas, if I look at some celebrity and try to imagine how I'd get to where they are, I got no chance. Yet, every day I'm tempted to divert into some facsimile of the path of celebrity rather than the path of sainthood.

Stillness and The Sound of Metal

(Mild spoilers ahead for The Sound of Metal)

I can't stop thinking about a movie I watched last night, The Sound of Metal. It technically came out in 2019, but made it on several "best of" movie lists last year. It's the story of a heavy metal drummer, Ruben, on tour with his bandmate/girlfriend, who suddenly and rapidly starts losing his hearing.

When this happens, the shock is palpable. You see and feel how hard and disorienting it must be to stop being able to hear. Ruben eventually gets connected with a deaf community, where he gets mentored by a Vietnam vet and recovering alcoholic named Joe. Ruben is clearly lost and scared. Joe wants to help Ruben learn how to be deaf and indicates that the battle at this point is not about the hearing, but about mentally learning to deal with this new reality. One thing he suggests is that Ruben start getting up early every morning, to write out his thoughts with pen and paper.

While this does not seem to go well, Ruben does eventually start settling into the community, learning sign language, and experiencing connection and joy. However, something happens to shift his thoughts on to an expensive surgery and the small bit of hearing he might get back from it, so that he can go back to his old way of life.

When Joe learns of this, he is disappointed. He not only sees how Ruben broke trust with the community there, but also sees how Ruben is acting like an addict, frantically grasping for what was lost, instead of learning to be content. Then, Joe says:

“All these mornings, you’ve been sitting in my study, sitting: have you had any moments of stillness? Cause you’re right, Ruben. The world does keep moving, and it can be a damn cruel place. But for me, those moments of stillness: that place, that’s the kingdom of God. And that place will never abandon you.”

Stillness. The place where the kingdom of God can enter in. Ruben hadn't learned this secret yet. Joe had. And what strength and contentment is on display for someone like Joe, who is in a constant state of silence, to still seek this stillness.

I began to think about Blaise Pascal's famous words, "All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” I think about the noise in my life. The constant interruptions and distractions, that both come to me and that I seek out.

Shortly after this scene, Ruben gets cochlear implants which bring back some of his hearing. He is delighted, but soon after, sobered to learn that it's nowhere near the quality and volume that he once had. It's distorted, and lots of input only increases the distortion.

In the final scene, after reuniting with his girlfriend and coming to the realization that life is not going to go back to normal, we see Ruben walk to a park bench in the middle of Paris. The church bells begin to ring, but again, they are loud and distorted. He decides to take the implant receiver off of his head, so that there is only silence. At this point, we see Ruben taking in the beauty of the day, and finally getting to a place where he is at peace with the silence.

Great movies can stir up the soul in the direction of the divine. The Sound of Metal is a movie that stirs me up to not only to be the type of person who can sit in silence and stillness more often, in order to experience true soul rest (Matthew 11:29) by more clearly listening to the voice of the one who calls me beloved (Nouwen), and experiencing his beauty, but also to take this stillness to those I come in contact with through a strong and unhurried presence.

How Our Groups and Practices Shape Our Reality

I've been struggling. I've been struggling to understand how it is that the reality of what happened at the capitol last Wednesday can be interpreted in different ways. I've been struggling with the fact that people I know seem to not care about truth or reality (or at least not publicly), because it gets in the way of their team winning. And I've been particularly struggling with how many who identify as Christian are leading proponents of different conspiracy theories and were leading participants in this violent insurrection.

When I think about all of this for too long, I feel sadness, I feel anger, and I feel a sense of despair. How did we get here? How will it get any better? What can I do about it?

One paradigm shifting book that reminds me why this is happening is called The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion, written by Jonathan Haidt in 2013. As a moral psychologist, he essentially argues what Thomas Cranmer believed: "what the heart loves, the will chooses, and the mind justifies." Basically, we are primarily emotional creatures who have our own internal press secretaries that are there to find evidence that justify our line of thinking. To put it another way, "intuitions come first, strategic reasoning second."

Another core tenet of moral psychology is that this shared morality binds and blinds. It binds us to the collective group and blinds us to alternative moral worlds.

In his excellent Mockingbird conference talk in 2014, Haidt illustrates some of these ideas further. Speaking to the bizarre way that the same event can be interpreted completely differently, he says:

"reality is ambiguous and we find the evidence out there in the ambiguous world to support what we believe. 'Once I have justifications, I know I'm right and if you disagree with me, you are either stupid or disingenuous'...This is the acceleration of righteousness."

He goes on to say that our tendency to circle around sacred objects and principles ends up creating polarization where we think, "Our side is perfectly good. Their side is perfectly evil. Anyone who says otherwise, on our side, is a traitor." Sound familiar?

So, what's the solution here? One antidote is empathy. Seeing an issue from someone else's perspective. In one of his TED talks, he also argues for moral humility:

"...step out of the moral matrix. Try to see it as a struggle that is playing out in which everybody does think they are right and everybody at least has some reason, even if you disagree with them... for what they're doing. If you do that, that's the essential move to cultivate moral humility. To get yourself out of this self-righteousness, which is the normal human condition."

Empathy. Humility. These are hard traits to come by, especially when our lives our more online that ever before. Where hot takes, rage, and de-humanization reigns. Where social media feeds and cable news networks are designed to confirm our biases, furthering our inability to understand and humanize those not in our group. And it's easy to point this out and call out how "they" are the problem.

However, I believe all of the work here starts with us, starts with me. I need to make sure I'm feeding my soul properly, spending as little time as possible on social media and being caught up in the "news of the day", and spending more time in the Word, in prayer, encouraging and being encouraged by one another, reading books, taking pauses, enjoying nature, and slowing down. To the degree I'm participating in these life-giving practices is the degree to which I'm training my soul to desire the kingdom, and walking in peace, in hope, and love for others. Please join me.