11.10.2023

Roundup 004. “It’s Been a Quiet Week In Lake Wobegon…”

Did anyone else grow up listening to Garrison Keillor’s, A Prairie Home Companion?

It was a staple in the Meye household and is a staple this time of year for me as the sun begins to set around 5:00 p.m. not only do I want to listen to Keillor’s stories, but I also want the life he describes in the fictitious town of Lake Wobegon. I long for small-town simplicity and a quiet(er) way of life. Good meals with friends and family, work that is honest and hard, building up the local church. Perhaps that’s what the Apostle Paul was encouraging us to pursue when he said we should, “Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before.” (1 Thessalonians 4:11, NLT)

Yesterday I had coffee with a good friend we talked a bit about future goals and ambitions. We’re both in the early stages of our careers and we both desire to provide for our families while doing work that is meaningful and good. Here in Orange County, it’s pretty easy to get caught up in the rat race, so here’s to those of us attempting to build a quiet life in loud places.

And if you’ve never listened to The News from Lake Wobegon, please enjoy.

_

My friend Robbie and I were texting about books this week and it got me thinking of this now-deleted blog post by Doug Wilson entitled, How to Read Like a Methodical Madman. I hope it goes without saying that I don’t agree with everything Doug says (Heck, I don’t even agree with everything I say) but this is a helpful little post for those who would like to read more books.

He also recommends this book, Writers to Read: Nine Names That Belong on Your Bookshelf, which will be arriving at my house sometime next week.

Books

Another thing that happens to me this time of year is that I begin to wonder what Frodo Baggins is up to and feel the need to visit Middle Earth again.

So that’s what I’m doing. Slowly plodding my way through The Lord of the Rings again.

Here’s Dr. Peter Kreeft talking a bit more about why we should read (and re-read) The Lord of the Rings.

Finally, how beautiful is this edition from Juniper Books?

Advent: The Season of Hope by Tish Harrison Warren - “Christians believe not just in one coming of Christ, but in three."

We tend to think of Advent as the season of anticipation before Christmas―and while it is that, it’s also much more. Throughout its history, the church has observed Advent as a preparation not only for the first coming of Christ in his incarnation but also for his second coming at the last day. It's also about a third coming: the coming of Christ to meet us in our present moment, to make us holy by his Word and Sacrament.”

Blogs

Scripture is About PTSD - Ed Welch at CCEF - “The problem is that we tend to access Scripture by way of a concordance. For example, the words fear, anxiety, anger, and shame appear in Scripture, so we can quickly find relevant verses. But there is no concordance that lists PTSD. As such, we assume Scripture is interested in other matters, and we look elsewhere for help. This should concern us because it looks like the most pressing matter in a person’s life is met by divine silence.

An alternative is to listen even more carefully to the person who is suffering. The diagnostic category of PTSD is not the final word that dictates a prescribed plan of help; it is an invitation to understand the actual experience of the person. In the hands of a relatively skilled helper, those personal descriptions can be linked to clear themes in Scripture. Then, hope comes to life as God speaks meaningfully.”

Deep Work by J.V. Fesko - "If you want to be more productive, you must train yourself to do it. You don’t have to swear off technology and switch to a dumb phone and a typewriter, though there could be some advantages. But you should be deliberate about your work habits. Block off time in your schedule, be disciplined about it, shut yourself in, focus on your sermon prep (or whatever your task may be), and “get’er done.”

Cocktails, Commitments, and Crafting Conversation - “Your waiter will never try to take your order while texting and assure you, “Go ahead, I’m listening.” Neither will your therapist or barista. But in social settings, where we don’t pay people to be nice to us, we generally pretend that checking our phone while someone talks is neither rude nor limiting to our ability to engage with the conversation meaningfully. It’s a convenient lie.”

THE TERRIBLY GOOD NEWS ABOUT SANCTIFICATION BY SARAH CONDON - “Grief and holiness are not in opposition to one another. They hang squarely together in whatever loss has blasted its way into our lives. It is the best and worst news about us. Suffering equals sanctification.”

Music

We’re still a few weeks out, but this Thanksgiving Day playlist will be on repeat a lot here at the Meye home.

Podcasts

This was an interesting interview. Especially if you grew up watching LA Ink like I did.

I’ve always been fascinated with Kanye. This podcast is eye-opening and heartbreaking.

Film & Television

I posted on various social media platforms that we’re trying to scale back on our streaming services. We’d love to have more dinner parties, more quiet nights with a book in hand, and more evenings where we just talk.

But, it feels nearly impossible to get off of everything completely.

That said, we haven’t watched much this week because we’ve had dinners with family and friends every night this week. And for that, I am thankful.

And until next week.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

2 Thessalonians 3:18