Want to be a better reader?

I do. I didn’t grow up being a book lover. I grew up loving Nintendo and my Carvin Telecaster… But in the last several years I’ve grown to see how beneficial good reading can be. I trust that we are all seeking to grow more in our practice of good discernment so I’ll let you define what “good” reading is. And if you’re unsure and want to grow in your discernment pick up this thoroughly biblical book called The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment by Tim Challies. It was very helpful for me in learning what true discernment is.

In my growing love for book reading I’ve learned that being able to read is much more than just knowing bigger words than the next guy. It’s about much more.

I came across this post from blogger Trevin Wax where he made a goal to read 100 books in 2010. Crazy. He included 7 ways to improve your reading skills and your ability to read more books. See below.

1. Set a reasonable goal.
If you’re not already an avid reader, don’t try for 100. You might try for 40-50 in 2008. Let me encourage you to set the bar high. But don’t make it so high you can never make it.

2. Read everywhere.
Waiting for a haircut? Read. Waiting at the doctor’s office? Read. Going on a trip? Read. Watching TV? Read. Taking a bath? Read. Getting dressed in the morning? Listen to an Audio Book while you’re combing your hair, brushing your teeth, taking a shower. Boring sermon? Read. (Just kidding on that last one… although I will admit that as a kid I used to read Scripture if the preacher was making me sleepy.) Get in the habit of reading anywhere and everywhere.

3. Read faster.
I’ve given some tips on faster reading before on this blog, so let me just summarize them quickly. Don’t read out loud. Use your finger or a bookmark to follow the lines on the page. Pace yourself so that you are forcing your eyes to take in the lines and paragraphs faster than you normally would read. Stop reading word-for-word, and start reading line-by-line.

4. Read smarter.
If you’re reading an intellectual work, read the introduction and conclusion of the chapter first. Glance at the subtitles and get an idea for where the author is going. Then go back and read the chapter quickly. You will be able to fly through the chapter because you’ll already know what the author is saying.

5. Turn off the TV.
Start using your down time to read good magazines and good books. Don’t let entertainment rob you of your brain cells. Wake up a little earlier in the morning to get some reading in (if you can stay awake).

6. Read what you like.
Find books on topics that interest you. Read widely. Don’t get into a rut of only reading one type of book from one theological persuasion. Read some fiction. Read biographies. Read the classics. Mix it up and keep it interesting. If you start a book and don’t like it, put it down. Don’t slow yourself down by sludging through a book. Better to find another book you like more and read it.

7. Stretch yourself.
Don’t read just what you like. Push yourself to read important books and not fluff. Take a look at what great Christian thinkers are reading and read those books too. Read famous authors. Read hard books. Just make sure you read hard books in between more enjoyable books so you don’t lose your passion for reading. Who knows? You might start liking the books that stretch you.

So here I am at a great little coffee shop in Greensboro called Coffee and Roses and I thought I’d just write a bit about the latest on my life.

My soul is probably in the best place it’s ever been. I’m so grateful!! God has given me a beautiful wife who is a joy to partner with, a great circle of friends who love God and seek to serve him, a deeper joy in his Holy Scripture, a desire to be more consistently filled with the Holy Spirit, to have the word of Christ richly dwelling in me (Col 3:16), and to let the implications of the gospel come forth in my day to day life…

Here are the headlines:

Currently at Grace:

• I was ordained last fall in October! So thankful for our local church… What a privilege to serve such awesome people!
• Working on a new website for Grace Church. Really excited about this! Presently the launch date is Valentine’s Day…
• The Grace Choir is really beginning to flourish under the leadership of Mark Muleta. What a great example of what it means to get a vision in your local church and serve. He is doing a great job. The Choir currently sings once a month.
• We’re all pretty stoked about the upcoming ‘Global Impact Celebration’, Grace Church’s annual missions emphasis. Great events, great stories, great people!

School and Education:

• Still enrolled in a Master Certificate program at Berklee College of Music. Studying Theory, Harmony, and Ear Training. I’ll finish this program (Lord willing) in the summer of 2011. Check out my profile page at Berklee.
• Currently working on finishing my Bachelor’s degree at Grace College of Divinity… (Slowly but surely!)

Latest Reads:

• The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment (Tim Challies)
• A Pilgrim’s Progress (John Bunyan)
• Four Views on the Book of Revelation (Stanley Gundry and C. Marvin Pate)

Musical News:

• Working with my buddy Matt Templeton on his upcoming EP. More on this later.
• I’ve been thinking about doing a new record with Grace Church. Just in the conceptual stages. More on this later too.
• Breaking out an old guitar, the TL60, by Carvin. Needs some serious TLC before I use it again.

Current Favorite Songs:

• Psalm 62 – Aaron Keyes and Stewart Townend
• Christ Is Risen – Matt Maher
• All I Have Is Christ – Na Band
• Every Other Way (Radio Edit) – BT

Current Favorite Podcasts:

• Renewing Your Mind with Dr. R.C. Sproul
• The Bible Answer Man with Hank Hanegraaff
• Canon Press Online Sermons (w/ Douglas Wilson)

Taken from Bob Kauflin’s blog.

Part 1

Part 2

Download it at iTunes.

Order the physical CD at CD Baby.

Listen in the widget below…

TRACK LISTING-

1) You Are Good – (CHART)
2) Hallelujah, Praise The Lord – (CHART)
3) Magnify – (CHART)
4) Delight Yourself – (CHART)
5) Because of You – (CHART)

(get more charts here.)

The voting has started for the Black Eyed Peas remix! The Beatportal website has been experiencing some technical difficulties so if the link doesn’t work at first, just refresh your browser. It should work fine…

Vote by “spinning” it at the remix site here.The voting phase of the contest will be between Sept 15th and Sept 28th.

Thanks so much for your support!!!!

nf

So… Please spread the word and get everyone you know to vote for my mix (including yourself… haha)

This is of course if you like it…

You can listen to the song right now at the remix site here.The voting phase of the contest will be between Sept 15th and Sept 28th.

The prizes
The top 10 remixes will be exclusively featured on Dipdive.com, the online community for The Black Eyed Peas. The top 3 remixes will also receive the following prizes: (of course I’d love the first place prize…. check out that gear!!)

1st prize
A Native Instruments Machine
Traktor Scratch Duo
A Pacemaker portable DJ system
Korg Kaossilator
Korg miniKP
Moog MIDI MuRF Effects Processor
Moog Multi-Pedal USB/MIDI/CV Controller
V-Moda headphones
$500 Beatport gift card

2nd prize
$100 Beatport gift card

3rd prize
$50 Beatport gift card

A catchy and classy pop/rock genre graced with rhythmic arrangements, ambient guitars, percussive keyboards, and soul lifting melodies might help describe the music of Nate Fancher. And if you call yourself a fan of “modern worship”, you’ll feel right at home.

Nate has been leading worship and writing accessible praise choruses for over 10 years. His vision is to see local churches resourced with fresh songs and sounds, centered around the gospel of Jesus Christ and it’s call to worship God in response to His mercy. “My hope is to see our songs serving and benefiting communities of believers that are being built on God’s grace”, says Nate. “I’ve always loved going to different places and playing music with my band, but more than touring and doing all the fun stuff that bands can do, my hope is that our songs reach further than we ourselves can go. It’s really about the songs themselves helping people connect to God through Jesus.”

From 2001 to 2005 Nate traveled with the Christian indie rock band Mali, playing with artists such as Sanctus Real, David Crowder Band, Charlie Hall, and even Christian rapper Mase. Mali was also privileged to lead worship at events like The Call Texas, One Thing Kansas City, and on the main stage at the country’s oldest Christian music festival, Ichthus.

Near the end of Mali’s time together as a band Nate was brought on as the worship pastor of Grace Church, in Chapel Hill NC where he currently oversees the worship ministry. His primary job description is leading worship, writing songs, and developing worship teams.

In the spring of 2009 Nate released his self-produced, debut solo EP entitled The Cross of Jesus. It’s sound could be likened to that of Delirious, Tim Hughes, Emerson Hart, and Magnet. While not forgetting Nate’s skills as a musician and producer, the new EP highlights the strength of his songwriting talents. Nate’s wife Katie also joined him while in the studio to give her vocal touches on the project.

Visit Nate’s page at Worship Journal below for free mp3’s and resources from other worship leaders…

CLICK HERE FOR BOOKING INFO

Listen to it by simply hitting the play button in the widget. Then if you liked what you heard, I need you to vote for it.

Click where it says “vote”. Easy as 1….2….3!

Listen to the original recording of their single “This Momentary” at the video post below.