2023's Top 3s

What I believe might be worth your time in 2024

Every year we give our time, money, thoughts and feelings to hundreds of thousands of different things. Some well worth the investment, others… end up being a learning or growing opportunity (if we choose the more optimistic view). After a year of consumption here are some of the things I gave my time and or money to that ended up being beneficial (that Id love to recommend) and a few things that did not.

BOOKS

With a year full of writing my own manuscript, I did not set a reading goal but still managed to get some great reads in (thanks to the Libby App!). Here are my top three, which I would highly suggest if you have not already read them.

3. Mere Christianity by CS Lewis

   Call me late to the party on this one: I am not sure if it is because I grew up as a christian that the name has grown familiar and therefore slightly unexciting, but upon reading Mere Christianity I could not believe what I had missed out on by not reading it sooner. The way Lewis synthesizes theological beliefs through lived expression is incredibly helpful, convicting and encouraging. I know Ill be returning to it again.

2. More Than A Body by Lindsay and Lexie Kite (PhD)

   When I say everyone (women and men) needs to read this book, I mean everyone needs to read this book. For the sake of finding freedom, peace and resisting the millions of products, procedures and programs selling us lies…for the sake of the people around you created in the image of God…for the sake of being correctly educated on health…this book was gifted to me in the hight of struggles surrounding body image and dare I say has changed my entire outlook on my body, how I view others, how I go about pursuing health etc. Not to mention the undercurrents of this book that help us to understand why purity culture has had such damaging impacts on women. If I had a “required reading” for being alive it would be the Bible and this.

   

1. All My Knotted-Up Life by Beth Moore

   Gut wrenching, honest, challenging, vulnerable, hopeful, a gift. Perhaps one of the dearest lives to step into teaching the Bible in our modern day, Beth Moore not only proves there is always so much more going on in people’s live than we know...she illuminates the way God meets us in those dark nights, weeks, months and years. I felt seen and wildly encouraged and I believe you will too if you choose to read.

Podcasts

Perhaps more present in my life than books this year, podcasts have served me in a number of ways. From continued education to staying informed on current events, subsidizing Biblical teaching and just listening to other’s lived experience, the world of podcasts is vast. Here are a few I think might be worth your time.

3. Theology in the Raw, Preston Sprinkle

   With such a significant range of topics and guests, Theology in the Raw is probably one of the best podcasts you can give your time to. Why? It requires critical thinking. You wont be fed from one camp, one train of thought, one denomination or even one religion. Atheist’s, progressive christians, rabbis..you’ll hear from them all AS WE SHOULD! Preston takes care to not only challenge his guests (asking them questions from the perspective of someone who finds the Bible as authoritative) but listen to them with a deep curiosity.

2. The BEMA Podcast, Marty Solomon

   I need to be honest, I am new to this one but the episodes I have listened to have blown my mind. If you love the Bible or want to learn how to love the Bible, this podcast will wreck you. Looking into the context of the Bible through a jewish perspective brings so many things to new light. This podcast brings me back to the feelings I felt as student studying Bible in university. Nerds and non-nerds alike will find it moving.

1. Park Hill Church, Evan Wickham and Pastors

   I am not sure I have been able to get into Austin’s car without listening to a sermon or lecture from Park Hill and let me tell you…all of a sudden I am hopeful for the future of the Church. The way Park Hill integrates the importance of real, deep, authentic, messy community into how christians have been called to live is significant and unlike anything I have experienced in my 28 years of life. Not to mention their commitment to the Biblical text which includes difficult topics…wether you need to subsidize your weekly teaching or just want more, Park Hill is worth tuning into: they are doing something disruptive through the embodiment of peace. And that is my prayer for myself, my family, my church community and the body of Christ.

   

Movies and Shows

Perhaps obvious by my lack of “new” suggestions, I have not found the consumption of this kind of media anywhere high on my list of things to give my time to, but even still, there are a few.

3. Knives Out, Glass Onion (Netflix)

   Well filmed, clever, easy to watch. Austin and I enjoyed this as one out of two movies we watched together in 2023. It is rated PG-13 for violence, sexual content and language, all things I found expected but not over the top.

2. Great British Baking Show (Hulu, Netflix)

   I walk a handful of miles on the treadmill every morning and have found watching something helps the time go by. I have enjoyed the light heartedness of cooking and baking shows to be one of the safest forms of media to consume (more on this later) as it lacks a narrative, sexual/violent content etc. GBBS can have some jokes from the hosts that some might find inappropriate. For the most part, it is a show I am completely okay with my kids walking in on and that is another reason why I love it. That and the inspiration to bake and cook better (;

1. Maid (Netflix, Apple TV)

   Okay, I did not watch this in 2023…but I have not stopped thinking about this beautiful story since 2022. If you have time for a miniseries and are aching for something that does not glorify sex, mental health issues, abuse or gloss over the difficulty of complicated relationships and brokenness of the system I know this story will be a gift to you. I specifically love the way the main character parented in this show. The themes are probably best suited for 14 years and up, but I imagine watching this with high schoolers would give way to helpful and needed conversations.

For Our Kids

Between Austin and I’s jobs we have gotten an incredibly unique gift of being able to be home with our kids as their primary care givers. Teaching, speaking and writing ministry is either done on week nights or weekends giving me the opportunity to be home with them 90% of the time. When I travel, Austin’s job has the option of working from home or using his unlimited PTO to either accompany me (we are fortunate enough to live close to family that help with the boys) or be with the kids. With that though also comes unique challenges: writing deadlines might mean having to take advantage of the distraction of TV. Weekends away are hard and a price to be weighed. What all of these aspects of our life has shown me is this: discipleship matters, implement it everywhere that you can. These are the top three things that aided in that for us this year.

3. Praying Out Loud with Them

   The days we start praying over our kids have seemed to change the entire outcome of our day, even if it just encourages honest communication. I always start by asking the boys what they would like prayer for: usually help obeying, being kind to their friends, having fun at school or even a fear that they have been wrestling with. Then I ask our oldest to pray for me: this can often reveal a way I have inadvertently hurt him in the prior few days (“I pray that mom does not yell today, that she is nice and calm” tips me off to the apologies I need to make and what I need to be asking God for more help over). Centering our day on the King of our Heart’s has never been a waste of time.

2. Saturday Coffee Talks

   My oldest and I butt heads on the regular, which came to a pretty discouraging peak in the last year. While praying over it I also realized much of our time together has not been one on one since our youngest was born and if it was…it wasnt anything that enjoyable. Since then, we have been spending Saturday afternoons together at a coffee shop, often accompanied by discipleship or character discussion cards. We both get treats and have fruitful conversations sprinkled in with dance moves, eye-spy and plenty of extroverted introductions to everyone who walks in (my oldest…not me). I have grown to love these afternoons and our relationship has changed, we butt heads less and I find that we listen to each other more.

1. The Biggest Story Bible Storybook, by Kevin DeYoung

   Austin and I split bedtime duties and since our youngest was born I have gone with him (since it initially meant nursing). This has also given Austin consistent one on one time with our oldest. A handful of years ago our pre-school gifted us the kids version of Jesus Calling which our oldest absolutely absorbed. After re-reading it over 10 times through it started to fall apart. Our oldest was also ready for something more age appropriate. Since Austin started reading him The Biggest Story I have been amazed at the regularly brought up Bible and theology questions in our day to day life. The way it explains Biblical stories in theologically accurate and age appropriate ways is incredible. It has become our go to gift for other parents as well, as it is cultivating a love for God’s word in our children’s hearts.

“Give-Ups”

The older I get the more I understand 1 Corinthians 10:23-24 “all things are permissible but not all things are beneficial”. The MSG version says it like this: Looking at it one way, you could say,

“Anything goes. Because of God’s immense generosity and grace, we don’t have to dissect and scrutinize every action to see if it will pass muster.” But the point is not to just get by. We want to live well, but our foremost efforts should be to help others live well.”.

That has been growingly convicting. And so with yearly consumption also comes with yearly “give-ups”, things I feel *personally* convicted over (personal conviction being different than Biblical conviction. What I may struggle with, you may not and so this section is not to shame you into also giving up the same things, but to encourage you to maybe ask God what personal convictions he has for you in your life).

3. Narrative Focused Media

   I love a good story, I get sucked right in and that is the danger. Post high school I realized the need to avoid media that presented same sex relationships as it brought me into a place of longing. Post getting engaged, Austin and I agreed ditching shows and movies with nudity was a good boundary for us to implement. With kids came wanting less violent media but could good stories continue to be just that? A good story and nothing more? The wakeup call came for me after watching The Queen’s Gambit, being half convinced that I myself am also probably brilliant and with the aid of drugs it would be evident to everyone else. Even though I *knew* that was faulty thinking, I was still thinking about it. That is when I realized how much power story has in my life. Since then my consumption of media focused on stories is close to zero. While I miss nightly Netflix shows after the kids bedtime, it has been easier to take my thoughts captive and I have found myself longing much less.

   2. Metric and Aesthetic Based Goals

   I love cardio. It has significantly helped my mental and physical health but at one point, just as I have done for much of my life, my focus shifted from feeling good to “looking” good…and after that was in place for a while, I started to feel awful all over again. This year I ditched the scale and took my sights off sizing, choosing to workout in order to have a healthy brain and heart and to feel good. For me, that meant working out less when the amount I was previously working out was making me absolutely exhausted. It has meant learning to eat intuitively and not restrictively. It has meant taking rest days as seriously as training days. It has meant less time in front of the mirror, choosing clothes based on comfort rather than looks, adjusting the way I talk about other people’s bodies etc. And you know what? I am started to feel a new sense of peace that I have longed for since 6th grade.

   1. Always saying “yes” just because I “can”

   As an introvert I have wrestled with the guilt over social boundaries for the majority of my life, leaving me exhausted, grumpy and overextended. A handful of years ago I read Boundaries by Dr Henry Cloud and started to implement the complete sentence of “No”. However, my margins did not really exist. I always thought if I had the time I also had the obligation. During my sabbatical I felt a great sense to get some habits and practices in order now so that later in life those practices and habits would be strong and “built in muscle memory” instead of floundering in the moment. When home I stopped working on Saturdays to maintain a real sabbath, or if I had a speaking engagement over the weekend, I always took Sunday night to Monday night off. We started strictly maintaining our date nights instead of skipping them for other social events. Meetings, interviews and casual coffee get togethers get one day a week — if I am already busy that day, I can meet the next week (this does mean so much of my life is planned months in advance). While this way of life has caused some friction, especially in a ‘last minute’ world, it has also brought peace and stability. This season of life with kids young enough to be home all the time is short, but I feel convicted both to stay at home with them and travel to teach. Between those two things, we fit the rest but not “all the rest”. We do 75% of what we can and hold the line so that 25% is there to be a family, date, sabbath and reset for the following week.

   What were your “top threes” for the year? Anything we had in common? What are you planning on Implementing this coming year? Id love to hear about it and share with the rest of this community!

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