The Best of 2016

The Eagles and The Beatles and Chicago and Frankie Valli can get by with “Greatest Hits” albums because they in fact had sufficient “hits” from which to choose. Other bands can only release “Best of” albums, choosing favorites regardless of whether any were hits or not.

One of my favorites.

This post is a “Best of” listing. I’m at best a local band with a small, but quality, following.

That said, how can I choose even the best among the 70 posts of 2016? There are a couple of paths open to me.

If I were to base my choice upon those posts most viewed, the following three emerge.

• “A Lot of Jesus” – in which I muse on the importance of maintaining the regular practice of worship even on Christmas, especially in a year that has been hard.
• “A Bonhoeffer Bio Worth Reading” – a review of Charles Marsh’s Strange Glory and some reflections on what the church today can learn from Bonheoffer’s struggles in Nazi Germany.
• “The Post-Election Church” – written before the results of the 2016 presidential election and published the day after, considering the fact that the church’s essential calling and vision is unaffected regardless of who would win.

However, that method is somewhat skewed. I’ve found that if I refer to a post on FaceBook, those who at least click into the post rises astronomically. If in addition it’s the least bit controversial, it rockets to the top.

If, on the other hand, I were to choose the ones that I was most proud of, the ones I felt were the most important, I’d draw your attention to those below. This is kind of like picking one’s favorite child. But these are ones whose ideas continue to float around in my mind. I think they are important.

• “Possession or Profession?” – I really am not taking on R. C. Sproul here, but rather a stream of thought in which his words have been placed. HOW we hold onto the assurance of salvation is such an important consideration and often mishandled.
• “How to Experience Awe and Intimacy with God” – I really don’t want a career as an iconoclast, but after the post that referenced Dr. Sproul, I reviewed Tim Keller’s book on prayer. As much as I’ve benefited from Keller over the years, this book was a disappointment.
• “God Is Faithful” – The final post in my series on David’ Crum’s book Knocking on Heaven’s Door includes some personal correspondence with the author that I’ve been thinking about ever since. The entire series on that book was important to me.
• “A Lot of Jesus” – I would add this to my list because of how much of my heart’s desire is in it. Maybe that is why it’s received so many views.

If you missed any of these along the way, I invite you to check them out.

I may never have sufficient attention to put together a “Greatest Hits” album. Nevertheless, I’m proud of my “Best of.”