End of Year Rundown and Fun Stuff

Our top posts of 2016 were:

1. Why are Women more eager missionaries?  John Piper’s opinions miss the mark.
2. Twitter sheds light on non-physical forms of abuse
3. Egalitarians on Twitter using #CBMW16
4. Was Jesus really a complementarian???
5. Q&A on Christian feminism

My favorite thing to watch is where people are reading from.  We had hits from 116 countries.  The most common search terms that bring newbies to our blog are related to sex and porn, and names of pastors, historical figures, and inspiring women we mention.

This is our third year blogging.  In year one, there were 88 posts.  Last year, we only posted 15 articles, and this year we doubled that and posted 30.  Our blog visitors and views have also doubled since last year.  My New Year’s resolution is to blog more regularly.  My favorite thing is sharing resources from more knowledgeable Egalitarians, so I will keep the links and book reviews coming and spatter in my own thoughts as the mood strikes.  I think one post a week is a reasonable goal!  I always keep resources and recent gender-related news coming on our Facebook page but don’t always remember to share the best things here.

Introvert Doodles are my new fav. 🙂

I thought I would share some non-Egalitarian/Christian feminist stuff today, things I have enjoyed reading, watching and listening to this year.  I have only recently learned that I am an introvert!  Truly a surprise, I’m telling you.  I’ve always tried to be extroverted per our culture’s emphasis on honoring extraverted characteristics.  Now I give myself permission to read, Netflix and listen to podcasts as needed for necessary self-care.  This is my kindness to myself.

Fiction:

I once posted a Ted Talk by Isabel Allende here, so I picked up her novel A Daughter of Fortune at the library early this year and blazed through it.  So good!

A writer friend of mine encouraged me to read Bel Canto by Ann Patchett.  And now I encourage you to do the same.  Patchett somehow manages to humanize even the bad guys in this riveting story.

I’ve been hearing about Paulo Coehlo’s book The Alchemist for years, so I made it a priority to read.  I am telling you, fiction is powerful.  We should all be reading more novels.  Please share your recommendations in the comments!

Non-Fiction:

I always intend to write reviews for the non-fiction books I read, so I’ll just list them here and won’t elaborate for now.

The Very Good Gospel: How Everything Wrong Can Be Made Right by Lisa Sharon Harper
Love Warrior: A Memoir by Glennon Doyle Melton
Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living by Shauna Niequist
Uninvited: Living Loved When You Feel Less Than, Left Out, and Lonely by Lysa TerKeurst
The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery by Ian Cron and Suzanne Stabile (I did review this one, the link leads to that)
Rising Strong by Brene Brown
For the Love: Fighting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards by Jen Hatmaker
Out of Sorts: Making Peace with an Evolving Faith by Sarah Bessey

I have to admit, most of my “self-care” has not involved books.  I read tons of articles and share my favorite on our FB page, and I listen to tons of podcasts while I’m working.  It’s usually well after 9 before our children are put away, so Logan and I have had some favorite shows we watch at that point in the day.  I’ll just share my very favorite things to listen to /watch:

Christian Podcasts:

On Being with Krista Tippett – interviews with artists, theologians, writers, activists
The Liturgists – topical episodes including interviews, poetry, music, and more
The Bible Project – creators of The Bible Project have in-depth conversations about the theology behind their excellent videos
Woodland Hills Church – besides my own local church, I usually have one well-known pastor that I listen to regurlarly, and this year that has been Greg Boyd.
The Deconstructionist Podcast – their interviews are always fascinating, leaving me with a lot to chew on
Westminster Town Hall Forum – hosts incredible thinkers for a talk and q&a; archives go back decades and include Desmond Tutu, Maya Angelou, etc.
Split/Frame of Reference – an egal couple discussing Biblical interpretation of difficult passages that complementarians teach gender roles from.

Non-Religious Podcasts:

Serial – I love investigative reporting.  I binged on season one about Adnan Syed and then agonized week to week for season 2 episodes on Bo Bergdahl.
Homecoming – six episodes aired this fall and were AMAZING.
Judge John Hodgman – this is just pure fun.
Real Crime Profile – this is not fun at all.  They discuss infamous crimes as behavioral analyists. I have learned a lot about domestic violence from Laura Richards.
The Moth – short stories told to live audiences

Favorite shows of 2016:

Madam Secretary
This is Us
Good Girls Revolt

Let me know what you enjoyed reading/listening to/watching in 2016!  See you in the New Year!