By Jesse Jost

I finished 50 books this year. Here are 10 I found most enjoyable and/or beneficial:

10. Thinking, Fast and Slow

by Daniel Kahneman

We have to sort through a ridiculous amount of data and complexity as we try to make sense of things and endeavour to make wise choices. Often times we don’t have time for thoughtful reflection, so we develop mental shortcuts that work most of the time. However, these shortcuts and assumptions end up causing truly troublesome errors in belief and judgement.

This is a comprehensive book examining our biases and what we can do to mitigate their harm.

9. Suspicious Minds: Why We Believe Conspiracy Theories

by Rob Brotherton

Obviously we will never agree on what ideas are overblown conspiracy theories and what are verified facts that are being suppressed. This book takes a historical look at how conspiracy theories have played a role in events, and what makes us susceptible to conspiracy thinking that is not warranted by the evidence.

This book was written before many of the emotionally charged theories common today, so it should be able to be enjoyed regardless of how you interpret current events.

By Jesse Jost

When you pause to consider all the ways life can take a tragic turn, it can be terrifying: Rare medical disease, cancer, accidents, financial ruin, chronic pain, sudden physical disability, brutal nature events, economic collapse… you get the idea.

If you’re like me, you manage to block out most of these harsh realities, but occasionally one of these items starts to feel like a plausible and imminent threat. Once the emotional brain is triggered, it becomes a near impossible battle to find reassurance.

We think about God’s power and try to tell ourselves: a good God wouldn’t let this bad thing happen to me, would He? Then you remember that He HAS allowed such tragedies and far worse to happen to millions of other people, so why should I get to be the exception? And so the anxious torment wheel rolls on.

However, Jesus and the Apostles command us firmly to not be anxious about anything.

 What truths can combat the vicious mental cycles of fear and anxiety?

These are the truth combinations that calm my troubled mind:

By Jesse Jost

In the movie “A Beautiful Day In The Neighbourhood” there is a powerful scene where Mr. Fred Rogers asks his friend to take a moment and just remember all the people who have loved him to where he is today.

It’s an exercise I have been trying to do lately: Making an effort to remember and focus on all the ways that those around me have sacrificed for me, and poured their love and affirmation into my life, and have shown me acts of service and kindness.

It’s amazing the effect this has on me. The fear of rejection, and sense of insecurity and alienation starts to dissipate and is replaced by a sense of feeling loved and protected.

It’s so crazy how our thoughts naturally gravitate to the ways we have been hurt and obsessively doubt if we are liked or loved. Left to its own paths, our brain will constantly focus on what could go wrong and compulsively pick at the scabs of doubt and confusion.

My experience of the world is so different when I firmly direct my mind to focus on all the gifts in my life and the ways people have loved and supported me.

By Jesse Jost

I have numerous posts that come across my feed asking “Are you awake yet?” and telling me to “Wake Up!”

I hear warnings that a new world order is coming, the church is headed for persecution, our freedoms are a thing of the past, and that we are headed straight for economic collapse and communist dictatorship.

These things may all be true, only time will tell, but what is driving me crazy right now, is that hardly any of these posts give me any practical steps I can take to do anything constructive with this ominous information.

It’s as if people just enjoy casting prophecies of terror and just letting them hang in the air like a horror movie sound track.

I’ve seen over the years that God has given me a sphere of responsibility – actions He is calling me to take.

But there is also a sphere or jurisdiction that is way bigger than me, things that are out of my control. These things are God’s responsibilities.

By Jesse Jost

I finished 50 books this past year. Here are my top 10 with a word of recommendation, as well as the 10 that just missed the cut but are still highly recommended, and also a complete list of all 50 books.

10. Only Yesterday: An Informal History of the 1920’s

by Frederick Lewis Allen

The 1920’s were a fascinating and often overlooked time in North American history, a decade of religious decline, sexual revolution, family upheaval, and booming business. Frederick Allen wrote this book in the early 1930s. His voice is fresh and his eye for interesting detail makes for a riveting read. I loved his sequel about the 1930s:

Since Yesterday: The 1930s in America, September 3, 1929–September 3, 1939

by Frederick Lewis Allen

9. Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God

by Timothy J. Keller

Timothy Keller always writes with simplicity, but profound depth, and has much practical application. His book on prayer covers the subject in rich historical detail and draws from a wide range of Christian thinkers on the subject. An excellent and soul-stirring overview.

8. Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World

by Cal Newport

Is modern technology serving us, or are we becoming enslaved? I got an eye-opening look at the ways that social media and our devices are designed to make us addicted and take more from us than we intend to give.

Newport is not anti-technology and he sees the value in social media, but he challenges us to live the life we want to be living rather than carelessly throwing away our most valuable possession: Our time.

I also high recommend “Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life” by Nir Eyal, Julie Li which also covers similar themes.