2009/03/08

Have you been outdoors? It's so great.

My spirits have been lifted these past few days, thanks to the brightness of the sun and the warmth of the air. God is making all things new, once again, and it's beautiful to be a witness.

"The sun illuminates only the eye of the man, but shines into the eye and the heart of the child." -- R. W. Emerson

2009/03/01

J'ai lu, Fevrier 2009

Another month of successful and enlightening literature. I realize I set my goal at 5 books each month, so I must now confess that I have fallen short, and made it only to 4 in February. However, I would like to contend that if February were like normal 30-31 day months, I would have easily reached this goal. But, seeing as the dispute for February's length was settled long ago, I will leave this point alone. Here it is, friends, Romans, and countrymen.

The Prodigal God (Keller) – Tim Keller is awesome anyway. I thought this was an excellent exposition of the well-known parable from the Gospel of Luke. Keller draws out some powerful points from the text and I appreciated his insights. Also read The Reason for God. (8)


Putting Amazing Back into Grace (Horton) – Horton did a great job with this book, in presenting both the Gospel and Biblical support for several doctrinal ideas that often come under fire. I really appreciated the depth of his analysis, the careful thought he put into his presentation, and the incredible resources and appendices found at the end of the book. A really great presentation of the Gospel and certain key theological ideas, especially for new believers. (8)

TwentySomeone (Dunham&Serven) – Aside from the fact that this book was co-authored by an incredible man I have the honor of knowing (and the best campus minister of all time), the book itself has plenty to recommend itself. An excellent survey of frequent questions pre-adults face and practical advice of how to deal with life’s curveballs. Practical application of Scripture and the things we’ve heard over and over growing up in the church really helps to put the pieces together. (8)

Beggars and Thieves (Fleisher) – This book I read as recommended reading for my Criminal Justice class. It contains a series of interviews and case studies with street criminals, drug dealers, and inmates in Seattle’s Central District. The style is a little dry, like reading someone’s report, but it was definitely interesting to get into the lives and heads of a culture I know nothing about. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it as easy reading material, but for what it is, I give it a (7).

I have really great friends. This is just a side note.

This month I'm listening to Over the Rhine, Ben Folds, Sigur Ros, and William Fitzsimmons.

Currently obsessed with: to-do lists on post-it notes and welch's white grape juice.

Things I want to do in March:
Fingerpainting
Pie Baking
Songwriting
Summer Conference registering
Camping
New favorite band discovering