I
We shot off fireworks last week here at Greatheart’s Table headquarters as we crossed a milestone: our 100th post.1 In April of 2021, I set out to post three 800 or so word reflections each month, uncertain of the worth of it or my ability to sustain it. Measuring its worth is elusive, but with God’s help I have sustained it through all 82,860 words. I’m grateful to all who have read these words, even some of them. As well I’m particularly grateful to you who have gotten behind this with your financial support. We could not sustain this without you.
II
This takes time, however. A lot of it.
In Patrick O’Brian’s novel Post-Captain, Stephen Maturin gently ribs his friend, Captain Jack Aubrey who had just finished writing a letter.
“What a wretched tedious slow hand you are with a pen, upon my soul. Scratch-scratch, gasp-gasp. You might have written the Iliad in half the time, and a commentary upon it, too.”2
That could apply to me. I’m a “wretched tedious slow hand” on a keyboard. Sentences and paragraphs don’t flow effortlessly from my fingers. I have ideas, and I want those ideas to be read. That means, for me, to do what I can to frame those ideas into something readable. The time that is invested in doing this is considerable and a joy. At the same time, I have other projects in mind which have only received the scraps of my attention left over after GHT is done.
All that to say that I may more freely in the future begin to supplement newly written posts with “re-runs” of older ones. Even so, my goal will remain the same, a goal captured well recently by a friend who said that Greatheart’s Table is
“. . . a newsletter and podcast for pastors (or other leaders) challenging the unreachable expectations for modern pastors and encouraging them to be comfortable in their own skin.”
III
All Greatheart’s Table posts are released simultaneously as podcasts for those who read with their ears. Ninety-five of those posts were framed by the music of the band Over the Rhine. But with January it was time to make a change and I’ve been thrilled to be able to begin to use the music of Mark Nicks and his band Cool Hand Luke. Mark is a friend, a listener to the podcast, and a remarkably gifted musician. He is also someone who loves Jesus and wants to serve the church well. I’m grateful for him. You can hear his music here:
You can read about his most recent release here.
IV
One last bit of retrospective data that I find intriguing. In searching for the most read of the 100 posts, these make the top 10:
#39 Six Things I Hate About You
#73 The Victory of the Flawed
#3 Don’t let the Bastards get you down
#78 NOT Another Tim Keller Tribute
#65 Mick Jagger v. God
#96 Zombies and the People of Grace
#81 Ministry Is Not Safe. But It's Good.
#90 The Pastor, the Priest, and the Value of Doing Nothing
#72 When Preaching Is Scary
#80 Flippin’ Mad
I’m not sure there is any pattern to be discerned in this information, but there it is. If you want to track any of those down, paid subscribers have unlimited access to the archives and can do so.
V
Number six on the all-time list garnered a number of responses. Some of you rolled your eyes at the very idea of zombie movies, which I fully understand. They are not everyone’s genre of choice. The underlying conviction behind that post was that crisis pushes diverse people together and produces community among them. Shortly after that was posted, I watched the Netflix movie “Leave the World Behind.” Same idea, same result, and no zombies.
The hope embedded in that post encouraged one reader to direct me to this delightful song, “Find Your People,” by Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors.
You gotta find your people
The ones that make you feel whole
That won't leave your side when you lose control
The ones that don't let you lose your soul
I encourage you to give it a listen.
It’s still my conviction and hope that people of grace will find each other, and it is my hope that Greatheart’s Table might be a catalyst in that direction.
Thanks for reading.
I say “we” because my wife Barb has to read and proof every one before they hit the internet. It’s a group effort, for certain.
Patrick O’Brian, Post Captain (United States: W. W. Norton & Company, 1990), p. 386.