2013 - A year of intention

My second 2013 resolution isn't really a resolution, per se. It's more of an idea, an awareness. I want to be more intentional about how I spend my time. God only gives us a set amount of time per day, per week, per year and I believe it's our responsibility to make the most of it.

I don't really have a lot to say about this intention of mine (ha!) to be more intentional. One aspect of my life I can immediately apply it to is my reading.

Last year I had very little forethought as to what books I was reading. A few were selections from my to-read list and a lot were random selections from the library. This year, I would like to be more focused so that I (overall) choose higher quality books. I selected three specific categories - nonfiction, classics, and books that have been turned into movies.

Here is my list for 2013.

Nonfiction
1. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond
2. Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine by Wayne A. Grudem
3. The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel
4. 1776 by David G. McCullough
5. Discovering Jesus: Why Four Gospels to Portray One Person? by T. Desmond Alexander
6. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand
7. The Hidden Art of Homemaking by Edith Schaeffer
8. Lit!: A Christian Guide to Reading Books by Tony Reinke
9. The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

Classics
1. Wives and Daughters Elizabeth Gaskell
2. Uncle Tom's Cabin Harriet Beecher Stowe
3. Middlemarch by George Eliot
4. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
5. Tolstoy - title yet to be selected
6. Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas
7. The Grand Inquisitor by Dostoevky

Books into Movies
1. Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally
2. A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks - Finished 1/11
3. Master and Commander (Aubrey/Maturin, #1) by Patrick O'Brian
4. The Shunning by Beverly Lewis
5. Middlemarch by George Eliot
6. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
7. A Girl Named Tamiko by Ronald Kirkbride
8. Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
9. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy by John Le Carré
10. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

I am also reading the Gospels and several books on Jesus. I'm sure there will be a few random library selections and other books added to the list throughout the year, plus the Reading to Know selections. It'll be a great year of books!