The End

A new year and time for a new era in the life of the illumination dilemma. The ID is changing platforms and can now be read and enjoyed over at:

http://theilluminationdilemma.com/

The Old ID will remain here and always be available as an archive. I'm sure I will be linking back to it from time to time. But please make sure you update whatever it is you use to follow (browser favorites, RRS feed, etc).

Thank you so much to all my faithful followers/readers...it's been a fun 5 years with blogger, but time to move on and hopefully expand!

Top_5_Lists! (2011)

Here they are! (see also 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010)

Songs

1) Father Along: Josh Garrels
I needed this song in my life this year. 2011 was hard. This song spoke life back into my soul. Simple as that...killer lyric Still I get hard pressed on every side//Between the rock and a compromise//Like the truth and pack of lies fightin' for my soul//And I've got no place left go
2) Holocene: Bon Iver
We saw Bon Iver for the first time this year. SO good. Justin Vernon has the ability to instantly transform your mood, take you somewhere, and break your heart with the first two chords of a song...killer lyric say nothing, that's enough for me//and at once I knew that I was not magnificent
3) Poison and Wine: The Civil Wars 
I remember sitting in the cafeteria at UMASS this year reading the student newspaper when I stumbled upon an article about a concert the reporter had been to doing an article on Cafe 939 (cool little spot near the hotel REUNION meets in). They had seen an "up and coming new folk duo from Nashville." I looked at the photo and said: "that sure looks like Joy Williams." Turns out it was...crazy to see this old Mount Hermon connection blow up this year: Leno, awards shows, album of the year lists, and even 2 grammy's for Joy and John Paul (and it gets bigger). This song is incredible has one of the best turns in any song you will ever here...look for it right after the first chorus...killer lyric your hands can heal, your hands can bruise//I don't have a choice, but I still choose you
4) Timestretch: Bassnectar
2011, the year of dubstep. I was introduced to the phenomenon by a Berklee student on our spring break trip and I couldn't stop listening for months. This is my favorite Bassnectar track by far...killer lyric no need for lyrics, just feel that bass!
5) One Last Thing: Angels&Airwaves
I loved this band when they started...their first album blew my mind. It's been a slow decline in quality and interest since then. They released their fourth album this year (Love, Part II) and overall it's my least favorite of the four. This song, though, sounds exactly like what it is trying to say...the world is full of stuff that kills hope and belief but hope is not impossible. And it's better. And this song sounds like hope. Can't stop listening to it...killer lyric (the whole song really) I try to rest, but it starts to hurt//Living here is a lot of work//but I found, one last thing, to believe in

Books (required reading)

1) To Change the World by James Davison Hunter
I wrote about this briefly right after I finished the book. I don't have much more to add now. One of the most thought-provoking and challenging books I have ever read. Please read it so we can chat about it!
2) One.Life by Scot McKnight
Another book I posted about upon finishing. This book has quickly elevated itself as a must read for our leaders, students, and anyone who wants a primer on the language and theology of REUNION and Sojourn. Best book on discipleship available right now.
3) The Pastor by Eugene Peterson
Any regular readers know I love Peterson. It was fun to read this memoir and see the marks of his other writings present through his life story. So many great moments, here's just one: "Story is a way of language in which everything and everyone is organically related. Story is a language that insists that persons cannot be known by reducing them to what they do, how they perform, the way they look. Story uses language in which listening has joint billing with speaking. Story is language put to the use of discovering patterns and meanings--beauty and truth and goodness: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the seemingly random and disconnected pieces of experience and dreams, tasks and songs, promises and betrayals that make up daily life, words and sentences detect and reveal and fashion stories in places of hospitality." Thank you Eugene for this, for your commitment to and advocacy of the pastorate, for your writing about story, and for so much more.
4) From Wild Man to Wise Man by Richard Rohr
I appreciate a lot of what Father Richard Rohr has to say and so as I've done much reading on maleness, gender, and spirituality I was excited to check this book out. And not disappointed. His chapter on the three men in Luke 6 is worth the price of the book.
5) College Ministry in a Post-Christian Culture by Stephen Lutz
One of my staff partners read this and said, "If I didn't know better I would have thought you and Tim wrote this book." Thanks Bob, that's high praise. A big thanks to Stephen Lutz for writing this book: it describes what we do and why we do it in one handy place. We will be reading this with our student leaders this spring. 
Honorable Mentions: Insurrection, The Meaning of Marriage, The Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness, The Sacredness of Questioning Everything, The King Jesus Gospel, The Faith of Leap, The Homiletical Plot, Quitter, The Great Emergence, Love Wins

Books (non-required reading)

1) Open
As far as autobiographies go this is storytelling at its finest. Andre had some help (JR Moehringer who wrote The Tender Bar), but who cares? An incredible story of redemption, marriage, and what it means to give your life away.
2) Jesus, My Father, the CIA, and Me
If you aren't at least a little intrigued by this title than you hate books. Good writing, funny stories, and a lot of grace through difficult experiences. Ian Cron does an incredible job unpacking some sensational stuff in a beautiful and compelling way. 
3) I Am Ozzy
Quite possibly the exact opposite of Open on first glance, but extremely similar for this reason: strong second marriages saved their lives. If you don't mind f-bombs and a little craziness check out Ozzy's story. You will not forget it soon. 
4) A Band of Misfits
COME ON I HAD TO PUT THIS ONE IN HERE!!! 
5) The Millennium Trilogy
I finally took the plunge to see what all the hype was about. These books are crazy, violent, disturbing, but also the best page-turners I've read in a long time. Totally worth the week it will take to read through all three!
Honorable Mentions: Manning Up, Why Are We Bad at Picking Good Leaders, How the Mighty Fall

New Feature: Top 5 Posts of 2011

1) 64659
Even though this one is recent it makes it into the top spot. We have grown a ton as a ministry this year and I think this post reflects some of that fruit. Grown not just in numbers, but in depth, clarity, and direction. I can't wait to see what 2012 holds for Sojourn.
2) 61259/61559
These were the top 2 most read posts on the Illumination Dilemma in 2011. Only serves to highlight what a big transition my family has been through this year. Once again, well done Mom and Dad...I so admire your grace and faithfulness even when it's been hard.
3) 63259
The writing in this post is my personal favorite from the year. I am learning in all kinds of new and interesting (and hard and difficult) ways what it really means to live by a "hermeneutic of sacrifice."
4) 58659/59359
A couple of reflections on getting older. 'Layers' is another reflection post that continues to be a major life theme even months later. 
5) 62559
This post sums up a series I did on Sojourn: the what and why behind our ministry. Always good revisit this stuff.

The End...Happy New Year!!!