happy new year! as i mentioned in my last post, the carnival in my head just celebrated its 3 year birthday. every year i re-evaluate and wonder if i’ll keep it going or not. some days i think i’ve said everything i want to say & then other days i get a host of new fun ideas i want to try here. i think i’ll stick around in 2011. i am so thankful for each of you–those who read & comment, those who read & email, those who read & tell me in person what parts you liked (or didn’t, ha ha) & those who read & never make yourself known. the primary purpose of this blog was always to help some people feel less alone, to stir up some challenging thoughts & to share whatever i am learning or wrestling with along the way related to life & church & faith.
i don’t think i’ve ever done this before (but sometimes i forget) so i thought i’d do a little summary of the past year & also a little dreaming for 2011.
- most read posts of 2011:
#1. a nifty chart for the journey: stages in our life of faith – this 2008 post continues to get a lot of love. i think so many of us can identify with the wall, the journey inward & the journey outward that follows.
#2. wrestling with the word christian – a video conversation. this was the first of 3 video interviews i did with my friend john. it stirred up a lot of lively discussion, that’s for sure.
#3. drinking the company kool-aid – a rant, this one got a lot of traction from both perspectives. many of us connected with the sadness of these stats & just how truly messed up “christian womanhood” is, others chalked it up to me being angry and bitter.
#4. the difference between “building churches” and “cultivating communities” – this is still one of my favorite posts about church cultivation. i hope more communities are cultivated, less churches built in the years to come
#5. Jesus school – not the most inspiring in town. i am constantly reminded how hard it is to be a student in Jesus school.
#6. dignity restorers – i was only going to post the top 5, but this was one of my favorite posts of the year, a letter to the north american church as part of the 8th letter synchroblog hosted by rachel held evans.
oh well, i’ll just do 7 through 10, too:
#8. “the kingdom isn’t going to just drop out of the sky”
#9. it’s easy to be against health care reform when you have insurance
- one thing i’m really happy about related to blogging in 2010 is the revival of the monthly synchroblog. my friends liz dyer & sonja andrews stepped up to help organize & i love reading the wide variety of posts each month. there’s an open invite to anyone who wants to participate, so if you’re interested, join the facebook group or check out the synchroblog site.
- i have been writing every month or so for communitas collective. some are re-posts from here, some are new thoughts. i think my favorite original post there was: it’s about the people, people.
so, there you have it, a very quick recap of 2010 here. over the next month i need to update my blog roll. i am not the best at keeping up with lots of blogs regularly but i try to read when i can & there are some new voices i don’t have listed yet.
- for 2011, the only things i know i want to do for sure are:
1. more video conversations here and there, i need to get a better microphone first
2. a few more interviews for a view from the margins & out of the darkness
3. a series on the beatitudes in practice
4. a series on advocacy, based on the monthly group we have at the refuge that’s focused on cultivating skills & passion for journeying with people in hard places.
4. a series on 8 ways to shrink a church, one of my all-time favorite refuge blog posts
5. most importantly, what would you like to see explored here? let me know, i’m always open to input & your feedback really helps! you can put it in the comment section or send me an email.
lots of love for the new year. again, thank you for reading & for caring about some of the things i care about, too. it makes me feel far less alone.