Continue | Tanner Olson of Written to Speak

04/20/22 • 32 min

During this episode of the Concordia Publishing House Podcast, listen as Tanner Olson explains his outlook on poetry, prayer, and just being happy to be here.

Tanner is the voice behind writtentospeak.com or @writtentospeak on Instagram. He is also the author of Continue: Poems and Prayers of Hope.

Show Notes:

To Tanner Olson of Written to Speak, poetry is somewhere in between a song and a sermon. In all of his poetry, Tanner hopes that you get the sense that these are words that you’d say to a friend or in a prayer to God. In this episode, Elizabeth and Tanner discuss poetry, prayer, and how they connect in his newest book. Learn how to start reading and digesting poetry, and how to begin using your own voice. Listen to poems from Continue: Poems and Prayers of Hope including: Forget, Like the Sheep, and Consider the Wildflowers.

Tanner’s Website: https://www.writtentospeak.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/writtentospeak

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tannerJolson

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writtentospeak/

Written to Speak on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6VSXq2yYD3n5MFZ5ahIUDZ?si=Mpg3E66ZQcq_wmikYy8ktQ

Questions Covered:

How does Tanner’s saying “just happy to be here” help open up conversations about mental health?
How does his new book, Continue, work towards healthy lamenting but also knowing what it means to keep going?
What does it mean that Tanner’s work is accessible?
How do writing prompts help when creating poems?
What is the significance of the poem and phrase “In All Things”?
How has Christian poetry been able to reach different demographics inside and outside the church?
Which experiences on the road have been impactful?
How do we approach reading poetry?
What should aspiring writers/poets do to begin their journey?

About the Guest:

Tanner Olson is an author, poet, and speaker living in Nashville, Tennessee, with his wife, Sarah, and dog, Pancake. For the last decade, Tanner has been writing and speaking about hope, faith, and love to audiences online and across the US. When he isn’t writing, Tanner spends most of his time watching NBA basketball, drinking coffee, being outside, and catching up with friends. For more from Tanner, visit writtentospeak.com or @writtentospeak on Instagram.

During this episode of the Concordia Publishing House Podcast, listen as Tanner Olson explains his outlook on poetry, prayer, and just being happy to be here.

Tanner is the voice behind writtentospeak.com or @writtentospeak on Instagram. He is also the author of Continue: Poems and Prayers of Hope.

Show Notes:

Tanner’s Website: https://www.writtentospeak.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/writtentospeak

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tannerJolson

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writtentospeak/

Written to Speak on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6VSXq2yYD3n5MFZ5ahIUDZ?si=Mpg3E66ZQcq_wmikYy8ktQ

Questions Covered:

How does Tanner’s saying “just happy to be here” help open up conversations about mental health?
How does his new book, Continue, work towards healthy lamenting but also knowing what it means to keep going?
What does it mean that Tanner’s work is accessible?
How do writing prompts help when creating poems?
What is the significance of the poem and phrase “In All Things”?
How has Christian poetry been able to reach different demographics inside and outside the church?
Which experiences on the road have been impactful?
How do we approach reading poetry?
What should aspiring writers/poets do to begin their journey?

About the Guest:

Previous Episode

Crash Course in Church History | Molly Lackey

Church History is important because God works through history. In this episode, Molly Lackey gives an overview of the church from Pentecost to our modern church.

Molly is the author of A Simple Explanation of Church History and Confessing Jesus: The Heart of Being a Lutheran (coming October 2022), and a contributor to Words of Strength and Promise: Devotions for Youth.

To learn more about the intersection of sexuality and church history read Sexual Morality in a Christless World by Matthew Rueger.

Show Notes:

Studying Church History can help us to understand how the church has thought through issues throughout time. It can give us insight on how to deal with the issues that arise in our own time. It also is important to understand how we got to where we are today. In this episode, Molly Lackey, the author of A Simple Explanation of Church History, gives an overview of what the church has experienced throughout time. This brief, but thorough, overview will walk through the church at Pentecost, the Roman Empire, the Middle Ages, Reformation, and to our very own Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.

Questions Covered:

Why is it important that we understand church history?
What does the history of the early church look like?
Why did Rome lump Christians in with other “new religions”?
How did Christianity move forward in a time of persecution?
In the middle ages, how did Christianity provide stability and grow?
What is the history behind indulgences?
What is the meaning behind the “age of Orthodoxy”?
What defines the “age of revival”?
Why is this period significant to LCMS Lutherans?
How did the World Wars impact our modern church?
-Should we be excited for the end of history?

About the Guest:

Molly Lackey is a wife, author, and church historian. She earned her Bachelor of Arts, with a triple major in History, German, and Latin, from the University of Alabama. She is currently pursuing her Master of Arts in Early Modern European History, with an emphasis on the Reformation in Germany, from Saint Louis University. Molly is the author of A Simple Explanation of Church History and has contributed her voice to Words of Strength and Promise: Devotions for Youth. She enjoys reading and talking theology with other laypeople, creating art, and drinking tea with her husband. To read more from her, head to abovetowne.com.

Next Episode

Deuteronomy | Rev. Adie Harstad

On this episode, Rev. Adie Harstad joins us to discuss themes found in the Book of Deuteronomy.
Rev. Harstad is the author of Deuteronomy: Concordia Commentary.
Questions covered:

Harstad recaps the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land and tells us where the Book of Deuteronomy falls in that journey.
Deuteronomy seems to repeat a lot of themes found in Exodus and Leviticus. What is the significance of this?
Deuteronomy begins with Moses repeating the journey from Mount Sinai to the Promised Land. Moses sent 12 spies to investigate the Promised Land. When they returned, 10 of these spies gave a bad report about the land, that the people living there were too powerful for the Israelites to conquer. The Israelites did not trust God's promise to fight for them and refused to go up and enter the land. How does Moses strengthen the next generation of Israelites against those same fears?
Deuteronomy 6 is referenced a lot in regards to God's plan for teaching the faith in households. Harstad explains the significance of the first part of Deuteronomy 6 for households today.
What are some key passages in Deuteronomy that predict Christ's coming? ("a Prophet like me" (18:15) and "a man who is hanged on a tree is cursed" (21:22-23))
What does the "A choice between life and death" in Deuteronomy 30 mean? How should we properly interpret this as Lutherans today?
Why are the defeats of two kings, Sihon and Og in chapters 2 and 3 so significant? They are often mentioned in the psalms.
Why didn't God let Moses lead Israel into the Promised Land? Didn't He forgive him?
Does Joshua being appointed leader in Moses' place point to Jesus?
What does Deuteronomy say to Christians today?

About the guest:
Adolph L. Harstad is Professor of Exegetical Theology, Bethany Lutheran Theological Seminary, Mankato, Minnesota. He studied at Northwestern College, Watertown, Wisconsin (B.A.), Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary (M.Div.), and the University of Wisconsin—Madison (M.A., Hebrew and Semitic Studies). He has also served as a parish pastor and missionary in Zambia, Africa.