Turn off the TV, turn on a lamp and turn the pages of a good book. It's a great way to turn yourself into a more knowledgeable, more interesting, and more productive Christian.Of course, the Bible stands tallest among all the books ever written. After all, God authored the Bible, and it communicates His plan of salvation and guides the believer's steps in the right way.
Therefore, the Bible is the best Book to read, everyday and all our days; but we can profit from additional reading. Writing in the "The Christian Teacher," Victor Sneadon observed: "Reading for pure enjoyment is legitimate. It is a gift of God to soothe ruffled spirits, to soothe nerves. and to rest flagging spirits. We should learn to appreciate the beauty of good literature. It is the gift of God. We should enjoy it and praise Him for it."
Terry Anderson, the last of the American hostages to be released by their captors in Lebanon, testified that reading helped to sustain him during his ordeal. He recalled giving a Bible "lots of service" and reading over three hundred books a year while locked up in drab lonely quarters.
Another prisoner, centuries before Anderson, also valued reading. He was the apostle Paul. Awaiting the inevitable flash of an executioner's sword, Paul implored Timothy to bring him "the books, but especially the parchments" (2 Tim. 4:13).
Paul could quote Greek poets (Acts 17:28) and recall the words of a Cretian prophet (Titus 1:12). It shouldn't surprise us, then, that among his last words were those requesting "books and parchments."
As a writer and editor, I owe a debt of gratitude to my Scottish parents for introducing me to enjoyable reading when I was a child. Although both had been removed from elementary school in Scotland and forced to work―Mom in domestic service and Dad in a coal pit―they knew the value of reading. Both read and quoted Robert Burns to me and kept me supplied with children's books. When I was in high school, no one listened more patiently to my French, German, and Latin vocabulary recitations than my mother.
I also owe a debt of gratitude to teachers who plunged me headlong into the works of poets and authors, including Shakespeare. In his Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare affirmed that "the quality of mercy is not strained' and stressed that without it, "none of us would see salvation." Shakespeare, of course, scooped these thoughts and many more from the Bible, the true foundation of knowledge.
Although reading has always been a big part of my life, my wife, Gloria, reads more than I do. She devours books and therefore is able to amaze me with her knowledge of current events, practical tips, insights into human nature, and even sports facts. More than a few of my best illustrations for sermons and articles have come from her literary grist mill.
Our grown children are reading, too. Their memories are full of such episodes as that of their mother―and sometimes their Dad―reading to them when they were preschoolers, visits to Christian bookstore, trips home from the library sales and garage sales with bags and bags of books, and the joy of receiving personalized books at birthdays and Christmases.
Reading can take you around the world and back at very reasonable cost. It can build a bridge of communication with unsaved associates and friends. It can stretch your mind and expand your horizons, spark your creativity, and extinguish your burning stress. But, best of all, reading can help you appreciate how wise and powerful God is. Only our eternal Heavenly Father could invest this world with enough interesting and intriguing subjects to fill thousands of huge libraries and millions of minds.
Now, where did you put that good book you've been meaning to read?
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