52 Deep Thoughts. (Hint: They're in the books).
Millennials don’t read as many books as we should. And Millennials also aren’t as busy as we convince ourselves we are. Sure, I could chalk up my lack of page-turning to the busy equation...
“young family + pastoring + pursuing master’s degree + life = diminished amount of time”
... but I’m convinced that if I read the books I already own, not only would I stumble into the most inexpensive hobby, but I’d also be taking huge steps forward in my own personal growth. It’ll only cost me time. And time I have.
Somehow I’ve been blessed to have a Netflix-style library at my disposal. OK, I suppose I can give credit to my Grandpa (who doubles in life as my “book dealer”). Between him and my course work, I have an insane amount of books in my personal library, filled with classics, both fiction and nonfiction.
So for the next 52 weeks, I plan on reducing the amount of time I spend skimming blogs, and instead sitting down and digging into 52 books. Here’s my plan on how to do this, and I’d challenge you to join me.
One book at a time.
I’ve catered to a lack of attention when it comes to reading, simply because I dive into a topic instead of a book. So instead of hearing one author’s voice all the way through, I’ve started many books on the same topic and finished none of them. One book at a time means I’m focusing my attention to one author, one story, one big idea.
One genre at a time.
I hope to mix up my reading list to include fiction and nonfiction, the profound and the simple, the practical and the philosophical. But never back-to-back. I know myself too well… I want to read a certain style, but I hope to grow in my appreciation of literary diversity and thought development.
One tribe at a time.
My friend Jacob Sweeney, who just started out on his church planting efforts and blogs here, wrote a post that I resonated with. He says,
“It’s easy for all of us to read those we know we will agree with. It’s comfortable. But, is that really beneficial? It may feel like learning, but as Keller says, you may just be a clone. At best you’re confused. The reason I was so disturbed by the lack of diversity in my library was because I knew that none of these books would challenge my assumptions or convictions. This wall of texts became a wall against challengers. I think that is foolish.”
Much of my work at Wheaton is challenging me to read those outside of my tribe. But I’m taking Jacob’s advice seriously, and I plan on reading stuff from outside of my small slice of Christianity. And I know it’ll be challenging and I’ll have much to wrestle through. But I see the wisdom in it.
One review at a time.
To help me stay on track, I’m going to tag short book reviews on this blog. That way you can play along at home.
Next Week's Book: How God Became King, N.T. Wright
On Deck: Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis