my bookshelf

I am working on a book list right now. I know that's a rather extravagant and unnecessary list, since I am just started my last semester of college and have one class where we will read a new novel or set of short stories each week, as well as a history class in which we will read four books and numerous articles, then proceed to write papers on the different books. I am still working on my thesis, which I must defend in April, and I have two other classes and a lab to keep up with as well. I have commitments with my student staff position in Campus Crusade, including leading two Bible studies and discipling four wonderful girls and the like.

But the point of this post is not to prove how crazy (yet wonderful) my life is. It's to talk about my book list. And my reading needs.

I am in the middle of multiple books. I don't know why I have a habit of starting a book, then dropping it in the middle to read something else, but it's a disease that I have yet to find a cure for. A few of the books I am currently reading are:

Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard. This is my second time to read this book all the way through (I first read it my sophomore year and blogged about it; since then, I have reread various passages that stuck out to me that first time.) I really like allegories, and the first time I read the book, I felt that I was on the same journey as Much Afraid.

Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist. Shauna's first book, Cold Tangerines, immediately became a favorite. I completely envy her writing style, and if I could ever write a book, this is the type of book I would want to write. Both are a collection of essays about her life and what she is learning and how she sees God. Most often, there is a "moral of the story" in each chapter, but it is not presented in a cheesy way. Her storytelling ability is very natural, and she writes with honesty. While Cold Tangerines was very upbeat, Bittersweet has been just that - bittersweet. There have been moments where I wished I was the crying type when I read books because I just wanted to cry with her. Hardships in post-college, post-marriage life have become more of a reality through reading about her experiences, and sometimes I wish she was telling the bubbly version of what we all hope life would be, but at the same time I am so grateful for her honesty, and I am struck by the way she has handled so much change in the past few years. I could go on and on, but instead you should just read both of these books.

The Knowledge of the Holy by A. W. Tozer. This one is heavy on doctrine but not heavy on the brain. A few of the reasons we must understand the true nature of God: "It is impossible to keep our moral practices sound and our inward attitudes right while our idea of God is erroneous or inadequate... What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.. Low views of God destroy the gospel for all who hold them... The essence of idolatry is the entertainment of thought about God that are unworthy of Him." I am moving slowly through this book, underlining key points and rereading those sections, because I don't want to miss anything.

Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership by Ruth Haley Barton. I picked this one up at the Campus Crusade Winter Conference a few weeks ago. I was in the book store reading through the introduction, and this passage caught my eye: "Jesus indicates that it is possible to gain the whole world but lose your own soul. If he were talking to us as Christian leaders today, he might point out that it is possible to gain the world of ministry success and lose your own soul in the midst of it all.. he might also point out that when leaders lose their souls, so do the churches and organizations they lead" (or, in my case, the students I lead). I definitely identified with this, and am looking forward to reading more about Barton's thoughts on how to overcome this tendency many leaders have - including myself - to become consumed with pushing others in their walk with the Lord that they don't spend enough time on their own walk and lose sight of God in their "work."



My problem in reading is that I cannot find good fiction that I enjoy. I will somewhat ashamedly admit that I like young adult fiction, because it is a quick, easy read and relaxing to me. And I don't necessarily mind slightly cheesy. I struggle with finding adult fiction, though, that isn't too suspenseful for my taste - yet isn't cheesy. I don't know why it's okay to have YA cheesy, but not adult.

I do have a number of nonfiction books on my list, though, including Discipline: The Glad Surrender by Elisabeth Elliot, Through Painted Deserts by Donald Miller, The Gospel of Ruth by Carolyn Custis James, and Knowing God by J. I. Packer. And rereading classic fiction such as the Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett and The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham.

That's the problem with (but also the joy of) wanting to read so many books - the list will never end!