Shepherd the Flock

I absolutely love to read. It’s a hobby that aids relaxation. It’s a duty as a Christian, husband, and father. It’s a necessary discipline for me personally and intellectually (exercising the mind much like exercising the body). But even though I love to read, I don’t always feel like reading. Rather, it is something that I am committed to one way or another; whether I feel like it or not.

For those of you who do not know me personally, I have a full time job, I attend college courses part time (Kennesaw State University), and I also have a wonderful family (pregnant wife and soon to be two-year old!). Needless to say, my responsibilities at work, school, home, not to mention my involvement with my local church, often leave me without much spare time.

And so considering all of this, I’m often asked just how I find time to read so much. Generally, my friends and family assume that I’m just a fast reader, or that I speed-read (only reading the summary of chapters and/or skipping unimportant paragraphs). Not true. I’m actually a slow reader, and one of my pet-peeves is that I cannot put down a book until I have read every last word –including all introductions, appendixs, and references. So I never start another book until I have completely finished the previous one.

Nevertheless, I do get a fair amount of reading accomplished. I probably average 2-3 books per week when school is slow or out, and 1-2 books per week when things are busy.

Tips for reading more in 2009:

Thus, to offer a big secret plan (not really) on how you can read more in 2009, I offer this: read 30min – 1 hour before starting the day, read 30min or so during the day (usually at lunch), and read 30min – 1hour after the day is over. Of course, your Sabbath should encompass a full day of reading and worshiping the Lord, so you should be able to get a few hours in there as well. And this plan doesn’t even count the additional time you should have on Saturdays and holidays.

So it’s really that simple. Nothing special about it; just commit to a little time each day, and the plan above will get you through at least a book a week on average. Just commit to sacrifice a little time: a little sleep to get up slightly earlier; a half-hour lunch break to eat instead of a full hour; and that 30min television show or internet surfing in the evening, and you will find that reading and getting through books is really quite simple. In fact, you’ll find that if you commit even a small time (say 15minutes at the times above), then you will get into the reading itself to the point where you will magically find more time to read (in other words, you will enjoy it enough to place it as a higher priority over things such as TV, surfing, etc.)

Recommended Reading:

The list below is my top-ten book recommendations from what I read in 2008. Only one book in this list was published this year, so understand that this list is my personal recommendations based upon what I’ve read in 2008. It is not a list recommending new or even newer books. But I highly recommend these books, as I have carefully read and benefited from every one:

1) Without question, the best book I have read this year, and probably the best book I have read in quite some time, is Christless Christianity by Michael Horton. Excellent book. I can’t say enough about it. It is absolutely a must have. I would consider paying some people to sit down read this one. Go out and buy this book today. I will be buying boxes for friends and family. Lord-willing (and time-willing), I hope to post a review of it soon.

2) John G Paton Missionary to the New Hebrides, John Paton: This is a classic, best-seller of the great missionary John Paton. A phenomenal and exciting read of John Paton and his faith on an island of cannibals. I am actually re-reading this book, with my wife and daughter for family worship, and am enjoying it even more the second time around.

3) The Puritans on Prayer, Various authors: A great devotional read. This book will be a top 10 in any list I put together. It will change the way you look at prayer, and by God’s grace, it will stoke your fire for prayer.

4) Precious Remedies from Satan’s Devices, Thomas Brooks: another Puritan classic. If you’re not familiar with puritan literature, this is an excellent place to start. This is another one of my very favorites, as is everything I’ve read from Thomas Brooks.

5) Counted Righteous in Christ, John Piper: a short little doctrinal work on the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ (often called the active obedience of Christ). This book just warmed my heart. A great defense of a doctrine that is at the heart of the gospel (though much attacked in our day).

6) The Fear of God, John Bunyan: a devotional, warming, and classic puritan argumentation on an important subject.

7) War Psalms of the Prince of Peace, James Adams: this will change the way you look at the Psalms. A great Redemptive Historical argument for Christ-centeredness in our Psalm reading.

8 ) Lectures to My Students, Charles Spurgeon: A classic which I had never read before, but one that I really benefited from. A must read for any student of ministry.

9) Christ’s Counsel to His Languishing Church, Obadiah Sedgwick: Excellent book on recovering from spiritual lethargy. We all fall into those periods of struggle; this Puritan work will change the way you look at things next time you fall into a lull.

10) Rediscovering Catechism: The Art of Equipping Covenant Children, Donald Van Dyken: Short little work on catechizing. I thought the author’s argument for how children learn and thus how to catechize children was excellent.

Other honorable mentions of what I’ve read this year:

• The Day God Made, Glen Knect: best book I’ve read on the explanation of the Christian Sabbath.
• Preaching the Whole Bible as Christian Scripture, Graeme Goldsworthy: A must-read of biblical interpretation for the preacher/teacher.
• Redemption Accomplished and Applied, John Murray: classic work; one I’ve read before, but reading through it again helped stoke my fire for the gospel in all of its beautiful facets.
• A Treatise on Earthly-Mindedness, Jeremiah Burroughs: for the dedicated reader, this thorough work is a great puritan work on a very important subject.
• The Hidden Smile of God, John Piper: great gift book; short, devotional read, and an excellent treatment on suffering by John Piper.

I hope that’s enough to get you started reading in 2009! I’ve got quite a book list in front of me, but the question is, do you?