I read A LOT in the first nine months of the year. A LOT. Mostly books. My reading has slowed down this fall as life has gotten busier, but I’m still reading. Now, it’s mostly articles and some books.

I recently finished Gospel in Life by Timothy Keller, A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans and Living Into Community by Christine Pohl. I loved Pohl’s biblical commentary on important practices in community and Keller’s small group curriculum in Gospel in Life was fantastic. I was pretty indifferent to Evans’ commentary on what it looks like to live out the Bible literally for a full year.

• I could read about women in the church for forever. I’m fascianted about them on both the surface level and on a deeper level. Jen Hatmaker, who I’m a long-time fan of has recently caused some controversy. Right away Matt Walsh basically called her a heretic. But, I’m appreciated a lot of the thoughtful commentary that I’ve read from The Gospel Coalition since. However, this Christianity Today piece is my favorite that I’ve read. The Bigger Story Behind Jen Hatmaker is a fantastic look at what else is going on that led to her rise in populatity. The author clearly articulates some of my own experiences with being a woman in the church. It’s a great, great read!
• Ann Voskamp’s Invitation to Prevent Orphans is a beautiful piece. I’ve read One Thousand Gifts, read her blog and heard her speak at the Christian Alliance for Orphan’s Summit in Orlando this past year. This blog was written based on her talk about how adoption draws our eyes towards our adoption by God into His family.
• The Creative Life: Insights for INTP’s, INFP’s, ENTP’s and ENFP’s, by By Dr. A.J. Drenth was an encouraging read for this ENFP. I’ve found in my adult life, that creativity is crucial to my own thriving, but it’s harder than I would have thought.
• Are you ready for the Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life? Because I am! My whole house is ready — we started this summer with the series and were able to get the whole way through it (it helped hat two of the three of us had already seen it). If you’re trying to prepare yourself, here’s a Gilmore Guide to get yourself in the mood!
• Maybe it’s surface level and basic, but I really enjoyed this EveryGirl article about 13 Easy Things You Can Do to Reduce Stress and Lead a Less Hectic Life. A lot of the practices are habits I’ve already adopted, and guess what? They were key in changing the speed of my life.

I’ve got a couple new books in the mail: A Woman’s Place, by Katelyn Beaty; Hillbilly Elegy, by J.D. Vance, Befriend: Create Belonging in an Age of Judgment, Isolation and Fear, by Scott Sauls, and The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness: The Path to True Christian Joy, by Tim Keller. I can’t wait to dive into these very different books!