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I almost can't believe it's August already!
This month, in honor of how much it is used on our students summer trips, we are featuring my favorite collection of liturgies: Every Moment Holy. This book has captured my heart and awakened my soul more times than I can count. The introduction begins with a quote from Wendell Berry, "There are no unsacred places; there are only sacred places and desecrated places." It goes on to describe that the many authors featured hope that the liturgies inside help us to recapture the "dream of Eden that simmers at the edge of things." It might be helpful to quickly define what a liturgy is. A liturgy is simply a prayer, meant to be read by one or more people, with the aim of helping us recognize God's movement. To quote the author, "these (prayers) are ways of reminding us that our lives are shot through with sacred purpose even when, especially when, we are too busy or too caught up in our busyness to notice." There are liturgies for sunsets, to begin purposeful gatherings, for the changing of diapers, and for husbands and wives at the start and close of the day. You can find a full list by following this link if that interests you. https://store.rabbitroom.com/products/every-moment-holy This book is for anyone who would like to get better at recognizing the sacred in the ordinary. It also is a great resource for those who feel pressure to pray "well" in front of a group, because (at least in my experience) reading a prayer removes that pressure. Our copy lives on a small table in our reading nook that someone in our house picks up almost daily, and I would love for you to have a similar experience. |
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Kickoff is finally here!
With schools, sports, extra-curricular activities and yes, even church programs ramping up, I want to re-feature a book that I think is especially helpful in seasons like this! We last featured Jefferson Bethke’s book “Take Back Your Family” this past April, but I want to make sure you see it in case you didn’t then! Admittedly, I (Noah) am a little biased here. This book addresses the heart of the greatest issues I think families face today – burnout, busyness, individualism, and the nuclear ideal. If you’re thinking, “that's a lot of big words in a row,” don’t worry. Bethke’s voice comes through strongly, and this book reads far more like a conversation than a textbook. Jefferson explores the reasons why families seem to find themselves in a cycle of busyness and burnout (spoilers, it hasn’t always been this way) and lays out what he calls a “biblical blueprint for families” that I find super compelling. He doesn’t just name the problem and outline what he believes the solution is though – he also provides a very practical framework for assessing your own heart as parents and seeking to live as a “family team on mission together.” This resource is geared toward parents of all ages. I like it so much that just typing this summary has me re-reading it to keep it in the front of my mind. I know it probably sounds like I’m overselling it a bit, but don’t just take my word for it – read it for yourself so we can geek out together 😊 |
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I'm sure it's obvious that some of these recommendations are totally selfish. Right now, I’m only halfway through Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation but it has already been so impactful for me I can’t help but feature it this month.
If you talked to our high school students, you would know that I have a few “soapboxes” I like to jump onto regularly and rant a bit. Social media – especially the way that it has changed how students learn and interact with each other – is one of those soapboxes. I really don't like social media. Up until this book (at least to my knowledge), sociologists have only established a correlation between excessive screen time, smartphone usage, and social media and things like depression, poor self-image, and anxiety. In a fascinating and horrifying development, this book sees Haidt clearly demonstrate a causal relationship that starts around 2010 alongside the widespread adoption of smartphones. Haidt spends the first half of the book making the case that we have traded a “play-based” childhood for a “phone-based” childhood and discussing the consequences of that shift. Children are safer than ever (statistically) but now enjoy far less unsupervised playtime with peers. This results in children failing to engage in crucial developmental risks and challenges. A child who never falls never truly comes to respect and healthily fear heights. It isn’t just our kids though – our middle and high school students are spending substantially less time together outside of structured (and adult-supervised) extracurricular activities. As a result, our youth grow up with a lower “tolerance” for adversity in the real world. As much as it hurts having a group of students on the playground tease or disagree with you, those kinds of interactions form the basis of our coping mechanisms for adult disagreement. Haidt proposes that phones and screens have served as a digital barrier to these interactions, allowing undesirable opinions to be scrolled past or filtered out by an algorithm. He spends a chapter discussing how these kinds of negative effects (especially anxiety and poor self-image) disproportionally affect young girls who use smartphones before the age of 14-16. The end of the book suggests ways that school and parents might practically begin to push back against a “phone based” childhood, and his suggestions feel pretty realistic and attainable. I think this book is for any parent interested in exploring how smartphones and social media are capable of negatively affecting their children. Fair warning – this book is a bit more academic than the others that I have recommended here, but I really believe it's worth your time. If we are still called to be a generation that is “set apart” (and I think we are) I think that the often-thoughtless use of technology and social media might be a good place to start. |
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Hello, November!
Last month I was brave enough to feature a nerdier-than-usual book, and it actually received the most interest yet! So to lean into the sociology momentum a bit, this month I want to share a book that has deeply shaped the way that I view (and do) youth ministry. To be fair, it’s not a book that is geared toward parents, but I think it has lessons for all parents to learn and reflect on regardless. The book in question is Andrew Root’s “The End of Youth Ministry?” While the title is attention grabbing all by itself, I think the subtitle is even more so - “Why parents don't really care about youth groups and what youth workers should do about it.” I’m not recommending this book because I think none of you care about youth group... but there is a not-so-secret hope that you might be a little more invested after reading it. In some ways, this recommendation is far more personal than any before it – in reading Andrew’s words, you will learn about my heart for ministry. Among the myriad footnotes, Root invites you to journey with him as he tries to answer the question “what is youth ministry for?" In a super personable (but still deeply academic) tone, Root tells the story of how he researched this question, and the realizations and conversations he had along the way. What he finds has crucial implications for both parents and youth workers alike, and this book is best suited for anyone who fits those categories. Without spoiling too much... he ultimately contends that youth ministry is for joy. If that sounds weird to you, or if you strongly resonate with it, I would seriously love to have you read this book so that we can talk about and implement some of his ideas together. |
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During the Thanksgiving eve service, I mentioned that the second most influential book in my life (save for the Bible, of course) has been Henri Nouwen’s Life of the Beloved, so it only feels appropriate to feature it this month as well!
Before describing the book, introducing Henri feels necessary. For almost two decades after receiving his doctoral degree, Henri taught at Harvard, Yale, and Notre Dame divinity schools. His intelligence is clearly reflected in all his work but near the end of his life, he left academia to serve as a pastor to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities at the L'Arche Daybreak community in Richmond Hill, Ontario. I owe a great debt to him, because I was on a similar journey of trying to experience God by growing in knowledge when I first read this book. I lived with a sense that more information would naturally lead to transformation, and Life of the Beloved shattered that assumption. This book isn’t actually a book at all, or at least it wasn’t intended to be. Henri began writing it in response to a question from a dear friend who did not believe - “why don't you write something about the spiritual life for me and my friends?” So, without theological or technical language, Henri does. He contends that our understanding of being God’s beloved sons and daughters changes everything. In four movements, he further explores how all of God’s Beloved are taken, blessed, broken, and given. Especially in a season of advent, this is one of my favorite books to return to. This book is not terribly long, but it often requires a slow reading to fully process the things that Henri writes. I would say that this book is for anyone, but especially those who are need of a powerful reminder that despite life’s circumstances, you are God’s beloved child. My favorite quote comes in the first few pages, and if you resonate with this, you should absolutely take the time to read it. “...The only thing I want to say to you, with all the tenderness and force that love can hold. My only desire is to make these words reverberate in every corner of your being. ‘You are the Beloved.’” |
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We are starting the year off with a book that is primarily targeted at our kids, but I have become rather infamous for reading it to high schoolers and adults! That book is Max Lucado’s You Are Special.
As our students continue to be deeply formed by the digital milieu they swim in, comparing themselves to others has become far too easy – unconscious, even. You Are Special is a simple but deeply profound reminder that your worth is not measured in other people’s opinions of you, but entirely by the fact that you are made in the image of your Creator. While this is a kid's book (and you should definitely request a copy if you have young children to read it with) I want to especially encourage my middle and high school parents to grab one as well. Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, and almost every other social media platform that our students engage with uses “likes” in the same way the Wemmicks use their star stickers. I read this book to our students at least once a year because I believe that this reminder can’t possibly come often enough. I wrote this last June when I recommended a different Max Lucado book, but I’m going to paste it here as well. In a world that is loud, fast, and anxious, Lucado’s children’s books remind us of simple but unimaginably profound truths. It’s amazing how easily we forget that we are special, loved, protected, beautiful, and made with a purpose. Work, entertainment, sports, kids, bills, drama, and all kinds of other (dare I say unimportant?) things demand the bulk of our moment-to-moment attention. Opening one of Max’s books feels like stepping out of those immanent concerns and through a portal to a world full of calm, beautiful clarity. So this book is for EVERYONE! This book is a classic, but what more appropriate way to start off the new year than a reminder of how deeply beloved you are. |
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Instead of writing a longer review this month, I simply want to feature a resource that Leah came across while she was at a children's pastors conference this past month! As soon as she share it with me it shot to the top of my reading list, and we thought it might be helpful for you guys too! Here is what the authors have written about the book:
We struggle to keep up with the demands of life―but God invites us into freedom. We feel anxious and overwhelmed―but God promises peace. We’re stretched and empty―but God offers purpose. The Intentional Year is an invitation to stop right now, right where you are, and choose to live on purpose. With stories, practices, and a road map into intentionality, Holly and Glenn Packiam will guide you into simple ways to grow personally. Experience freedom to invest time and energy into the people you value most and into the purpose you were made for. This book will help you...
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For Moms and DadsGrowing With
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For Parents Who are TiredTake Back Your Family: From the Tyrants of Burnout, Busyness, Individualism, and the Nuclear Ideal
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If you happened to hear my sermon this past October, this is the book that I kept referencing. Comer's voice and heart are so present in this book, and it is wonderfully easy to read as a result. This is the book that caused me to trade my smartphone for a "dumbphone" for nearly three months, and it has been instrumental in helping me slow down and Sabbath well. If you find yourself struggling with hurry in your life, this is a great place to start tackling that.
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