Joseph F. Radosevich

This is my reading so far this year. These are the entries in my reading list. I published 20 years of my reading list here . 830. The Silkworm , Robert Galbraith. 1/25/21 * * * (This is J.K. Rowling’s mystery series under a penname. I listened to this when I had 4 hours of driving and no podcasts to listen to. It was brutal and violent. The tradeoff was my temptation to brood for four hours or listen to a violent and grotesque book. I thought that brooding and depression were a worse option. I told myself that if I had nightmares, I would stop. The mystery was great. I love the characters, and I couldn’t figure out what happened or who did it. Audiobook.) 831. Who Moved My Pulpit? , Thom Rainer. 1/29/21 * * * * (This is a book about change theory in leadership. It is like a Cliff’s Notes for John Kotter’s book Leading Change , but this is focused on leading change in the church. I found some application in this to helping anyone change. I plan on picking up Kotter’s book next because ...

 We ordered most of the seeds that we need for this growing year. We don't yet know where we will live come summer, so we ordered in faith that we will grow something no matter where we go.  I heard that there were some issues with ordering seeds and that ordering early was especially important this year. Then my preferred seed companies weren't taking orders, so I went to my next favorite just to make sure. We usually order around the first of the year. This year we were behind by 3 weeks. As I thought about seed companies, I thought I'd list and describe our experience with a few. If someone is interested and wondering where to order from. Gurney's --This has been our favorite company to order from. We've ordered from them for years. The seeds are reliable and produce as described. That is what we like so much. We especially like the squash, beans, corn, and cucumbers that we order from them. Most of their seeds seem to be hybrids. That doesn't both me. I like...

I did a lot of Zoom calls before 2020, but 2020 increased that for all of us. Most in-person meetings were canceled. I even got some counseling by video several times. My background tended to be in front of a bookshelf in our house or in the studio at my old job. I saw an article that caused me to think of revamping my Zoom background. When we finally land somewhere permanently, I've been thinking of what kind of Zoom background to use rather than just anything I've got available. The author of the article talks about using the background to communicate something about yourself. Here's where I've landed: Three themes: Gardening, Apples, and Coffee. Posters on one side, a display shelf on the other. Vintage Gardening posters. I've had my eye on them for our house decor for a while. A picture of the first apple we ever grew. Something to do with coffee.  I've wanted to do something with Harry Potter for a while, so I may ask the kids to make me the Knight Bus out ...

I have a recipe for every type of brewer that I have (It's at least 5 off the top of my head). I wanted to share a recipe that I really like with my Aeropress because it was hard to find a good recipe for brewing a large cup of coffee in the Aeropress. I had to wade through comments on a messageboard to find something that sounded right. This is the second Aeropress that I have received as a gift. I wore the first one out several years ago. I've been experimenting with brewing a really good 16 oz cup of coffee for my favorite mug. It actually is best at only 14 oz. Here is what I've arrived at: Use the Aeropress the standard way over a cup, not inverted. Weigh 20 grams of whole bean coffee Grind it in between espresso and regular drip. That makes it fine, but not too fine. Boil the water. Let it sit for 30 seconds to cool down. Add the grounds to the Aeropress. Pour hot water over the grounds and stir for 30 seconds. You want some of the water to drip through into the cup s...

Psalm 23 has been working on me for over a year now, and I'm still not finished with it. I've been pondering all the ways that I could sing or pray Psalm 23. I can pray Psalm 23 as a prayer of worship--God, how incredible it is that you would care to be my shepherd.... I can pray it as a prayer of confession--Father, forgive me for calling you a bad shepherd who is not worthy of trusting..... I can  pray Psalm 23 as a prayer of thanks--Thank you for being my shepherd who cares so much for me.... I can pray it as a a prayer of asking--Father, I need you to shepherd me and my family right now.... I've been pondering a "Bad" Psalm 23, though, that I more often live with. Here is a stab at it: Bad Psalm 23 The Lord is a bad shepherd; I never have enough. He makes me lie down in hard places. He leads me into raging rapids. He depletes my soul. He ignores me on whatever paths I find myself because he doesn't care. Because I walk through the valley of the shadow of d...

Russell Moore published a list of the best books of the last 20 years. I liked that list better than most end of year reading lists because what I think is important right now and what is actually important and lasting are often different. Instead of a list of what I've read this year, I thought I'd list my favorite books of the last 10 years. Several of them were written in the time period, others were written a long time ago. Either way, these are books I think about or recommend often. Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry. I really enjoy novels like this that only makes sense when you've read the last lines. Those last lines tie everything together. The Children of Men by P.D. James. I loved the movie, and then read the book and fell in love with it. I talk about it often. And I always intend to reread this at Christmas. The Pastor by Eugene Peterson. This is a really important book for me in thinking about pastoring. I love this.  Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. This series is...

* This is a series of posts answering questions that I searched for and couldn't find a good article or post on. I'll add to this series as I come across questions that don't have answers. I hope that if I'm interested in the topic, someone else will be too. The first piece of fitness equipment I ever bought was a pull-up bar that I bought in high school and installed by my family's pool. I bought it because I wanted to be a Navy SEAL. I swam laps and then got out to do pull-ups.  The second piece of fitness equipment I bought was a doorway pull-up bar. I bought it when I wanted to lose weight when I was 25.  I never learned much else to do with a pull-up bar until last year when I hurt my elbow and couldn't do pull-ups. I got creative and found exercises that I like as much or better. Here are 5 things to do with a pull-up bar besides pull-ups: Knees-to-Elbows--this is my new favorite exercise. I honestly like it better than pull-ups. You engage your shoulders ...

*This is a series of posts answering questions that I searched for and couldn't find a good article or post on. I'll add to this series as I come across questions that don't have answers. I hope that if I'm interested in the topic, someone else will be too. My last church was a small church in a small community. Sometimes it was hard to find resources that applied to me and my situation. I found myself at conferences as the pastor of the smallest and most rural church. I was in conversations with pastors and staff of churches 5000+. Books tended to be my best resource to help me think through ministry in a small, rural church.  Here are 3 of my favorites: A Big Gospel in Small Places by Stephen Witmer. This is by far the best book on pastoring in a small community. My community was 1/3 the size of Witmer's, though. He thinks theologically about ministry. This isn't practical in focus but it has a lot of application. His biggest encouragement is that there are t...

 This year went by quickly. I had many plans and they changed many times. The big news is that I resigned my position as pastor. We are sad, but know from Acts 17 that God controls the movement of people so that they will seek him. We seek him even in this move that we didn't want. We are currently selling our house as I write this, and I'm looking for a new position as pastor.  I'm using this season to work on a few writing projects, heal with the help of a good counselor, and enjoy my time with my family. Oh, and we're getting a dog! I hope to write some more here. I had plans to do that this fall, but life changed pretty quickly.

  Learn Out Loud *I wrote an article this week on going to seminary in a pandemic. Here are some ideas that didn't make the cut for the final article, but I think they are important enough that I wanted to publish it anyway. One of the biggest things you can do is show what you are learning in seminary. Your persistence and creativity in a time of disruption will go a long way when you finish school. People want to know the finished project as much as the journey to getting there. Your goal is to show what you are learning so that others can learn too. It also helps in the search process because people can look back and see that you are motivated, creative, and persistent. It is much more powerful than a resume, it is proof. Here are some ideas to get you started: Create a blog and post one note every week describing something you learned. Don’t make it long or prescriptive, just post what you heard a professor say or something you read.  Create a podcast with a couple friends...

I've heard from a number of people in recent weeks who are worried, frustrated, discouraged right now. Some are outraged because of the coming election. Some are worried because of race and justice issues. Some are angry because of people's response to COVID-19 and others because of the non-response to COVID-19. Many people are concerned and anxious because of divisions in the United States. I felt some of that anxiousness this last Spring, and I wanted to share a strategy that my wife and I have used to help deal with that anxiety. It is totally unhealthy to stay in a constant state of outrage . It masked in my own heart what I was really upset about on a day-to-day basis. It is also not the fruit of the Spirit to live that way. Most of the things I was outraged about had nothing to do with me, my family, or my community. Most of all, that way of living was not going to produce in me the life God wants: "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become...

We are 3 months into the pandemic of 2020.  I haven't disappeared, but I've been really busy. Here are some projects and things, I (we) have been working on: Finished and published my book, Every Book: 20 Years of Reading. Started our vegetable garden (so much work, but I love it. It makes me forget my troubles). Started Emma's bird garden. Renovated our front yard flower bed. Dealt with so many animals (chipmunks, rabbits, groundhogs, etc.) Started renovating our bedrooms and hallway. Had all-new HVAC put into our home. Learned simple fingerpicking on the guitar.

I finished two rain barrels this weekend with platforms to put them on. Here are the instructions that I followed: https://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-a-rain-barrel-1/ The difference is that I used a jigsaw to cut out the drain hole and used a spade bit instead of a forstner bit for the other holes. Everything else was the same. I made my own plan for the platforms. I like the fact that they are 2 feet high because it means I don't have to bend over to screw on the hose, and it gives a better pressure for watering. Two things: I don't mind watering when I know I don't have to pay for the water. I'm grateful for being free to collect rain water. In Israel, any water that falls belongs to the government. If you collect it, it is still their's.  I cannot believe that a light rain fills up the barrel. We had less than 1/4 inch of rain last week and it overflowed one barrel. 

Right now, we are in week one of the lockdown from the COVID-19 pandemic. Thankfully, I have work still to do, although I'm restricting my movements to help stop the spread in the community. We can still be about our mission as a church which is to equip and engage people on every block in our community for mission with Jesus. Here is how I hope to use my time outside of work for the next few weeks: Doing creative work. I want to be glad for the writing and podcasting and videos and plans that I made. I think people need distraction in these days. Creative work helps do that. I want to plant seeds. I want to plant seeds for our literal garden, but also plant the seeds of other things that will produce fruit later. I'm considering starting a side business, and this is a good time to work on it. I want to read good books. Reading has taken a back seat the last few months to other projects and needs. I hope to work through several of these. I want to play a few gam...

I'm still making progress with my New Year's Resolution to listen to all the Beatles music in order. I'm currently listening to their 2nd album With The Beatles . A few things I'm learning and thinking about: Our kids are enjoying this project. I didn't include them at first, but the music came on after they listened to "Baby Shark" one time. Now, they love The Beatles. They especially love "Love Me Do," "Twist and Shout," "Ask Me Why," and "Come Together." I am reading The Beatles: Ultimate Album-by-Album Guide along with my listening. It is brief but detailed enough to help me understand and enjoy each album better. I am astounded that The Beatles recorded their first album in 1962 and their last one in 1969. They went on a huge musical and personal journey in 7 years. With the Beatles  was released in the USA without half the songs of the British version. The USA version cut out all the covers, which was ...