Weekend Top 10: sneak peek at new house edition
A curated list of what I've been up to lately: places, people, books, podcasts, music, links & more for your weekend downtime.
First, a photo from this week!
We’ve come a long way in a short time at our new rental house. Picture that less than 2 weeks ago we were still painting every room. And by “we” I mostly mean Brian. We invited our church (and friends) to a morning silent retreat for the first Saturday in Advent (this morning) so we were highly motivated to get things done. If you follow my IG stories, you’ll know the state of my office (in other news: I HAVE AN OFFICE!). That hasn’t changed much but the rest of the house is shaping up rather nicely. I kind of love it. Stay tuned for more at some point.
Next step: put a third of this stuff away so we can decorate for Christmas.
Things are moving along nicely here on the blog and on my new Patreon page as well. Here’s what I published this week:
On the Blog:
On Patreon:
It’s Advent Eve! {Advent Daybook 2019 Explained}
Here’s more online truth, goodness, and beauty I’ve enjoyed this week…
Top 10
Art & Faith
We had the privilege of hearing our friend (and my former worship and arts pastor mentor), David Taylor, speak at our annual Anglican convocation. We loved this opportunity to reconnect with David and I was honored to sit on the panel plenary at the conclusion of his talks. Dr. Taylor spoke on the gorgeous gift the Psalms have been to the church through all ages, and how now more than ever we need to develop a deep fluency in the language of the Psalmist. He broke the topic into 3 sections - Psalms of lament, anger, and praise. While the talk was not specifically about the arts, David’s life and work are steeped in artistic expression - as are the Psalms themselves. Here’s a recent article David wrote for Fuller on the Psalms as a biblical model of art. One of my favorite takeaways from the conference is the exercise David uses with his seminary students to write a personal psalm of lament. (Download the handout.)
Justice, Reconciliation, & Social Critique
Have you heard the good news about Rodney Reed’s stay of execution? It’s good news, but Reed is still on death row. Read what’s next for Rodney here.
Following this story makes me more excited to see this at the end of December.
Listening & Watching
Spotify aggregated the top songs I listened to in 2019 and I’ve got to admit, it’s a pretty great playlist.
People & Place
I loved listening to this conversation between two women I deeply admire for their work and the ways they encourage us toward an earthier, more consistent and biblical posture of hospitality. This is the perfect time of year to follow their advice.
Reading & Writing
Our church’s stellar reading group is wrapping up another year of reading excellent books themed around the church calendar. Here’s our Advent selection. It’s our final book for 2019, and I’m excited to read this new-to-me novel!
Seasonal
Our friend Tish Harrison Warren wrote a beautiful NYT op-ed for Advent: Want to Get Into the Christmas Spirit? Face the Darkness.
Brian’s sermon for the first Sunday of Advent addresses this same invitation to face the darkness in order to embrace and reflect light. You can listen here.
Spiritual Direction & Disciplines
I’m looking forward to reading this book from the organization which provided my Spiritual Direction certification - Silencio: Reflective Practices for Nurturing Your Soul
Wholeness & Healing
A beautiful reflection by Helena Sorenson via The Rabbit Room - “It is the process of years, this unmaking, this slow discovery that the ground beneath our feet is not solid earth. It is changeable. Increasingly, as the Spirit breathes, it is fluid.”
Work & Callings
We wrapped up another series of Work Stories this past week. I’m deeply grateful to the contributors who offered us generous and candid insights into the reality of their everyday callings. You can hear our final guest for the series, Vernée Wilkinson, on Theology of Work’s new podcast Making It Work. Her work (and out-of-work) story is featured on Episode 8: Looking for Work? Navigating Seasons of Transition with God.
Worship, Liturgy, & Church
We’re completing the first week of Advent which means we’ve completed 7 Advent Daybook posts. Have you checked them out yet?!?
You’ll find the Advent Daybook 2019 devotional posts and more of my off-the-cuff personal writing that isn’t published anywhere else (yet).
May your weekend include rest, light, and community. Peace, friends….