I wanted to mention some awesome books I read this summer. I know it seems strange that I would want to say anything about them now, in October, months after reading them. But one day, when I make this blog into a book (and I WILL, one day make this blog into a book), I will remember these books and why I liked them.
First I did Beth Moore’s bible study on the book of Esther. It kinda goes without saying that I enjoyed digging into the Word with Beth Moore. Her studies are so insightful and thought provoking. One might consider them too deep except that her light, witty writing style reminds us that if a country girl from deep in the heart of Texas can grasp the Word of God, by golly we can too!
Along with the Esther study I read a book called “Chosen: The Lost Diaries of Queen Esther“. It tells Esther’s story from her point of view. I knew the book was fictional (no diaries have been found) but it so closely follows the biblical story that at times I found myself wondering what was fact and what was fiction. I think I would have liked it better if I had not read it while simultaneously doing the Beth Moore study, because it is a really cool book in how it’s written.
Next came Radical by David Platt. Oh my. What a book. I don’t even know where to start on this one. In a nutshell? It made me feel like I am totally wasting my time as a Christian on this planet. But in a good way. It’s challenging and encouraging. It’s focus is on the gospel and what it means and what that means to us. How we should live. How we should be spending our time and our resources. It was convicting and I liked that. I needed to hear the truth in what he had to say. And I’m excited about the changes I’ve made since finishing it.
Oh, and a funny side note: I had two more chapters of Radical to read one afternoon when Jeremy asked me to go to the golf course with him. I took the book with me and, like I said above, was feeling really convicted about wanting to do something outside my comfort zone to reach others for Christ. Just as I finished the section on world missions our golf cart broke down. We hailed a ride with the next group of golfers that came by. One gentleman commented on my book and told me he had just heard the author speak at a conference a few weeks earlier. Come to find out, our good samaritan works for the Southern Baptist Mission Board!!! I just had to laugh. I said, “So Carlos, when I finish this book and I’m feeling like I need to end my selfish ways, are you the guy I need to call?” He replied, “No. First sell everything you own. Then call me.”
After the heaviness of Radical, I opted for a little lighter reading. My sister turned my attention to Stuff Christians Like by Jonathan Acuff. I had seen this guys’ blog a few times but didn’t realize he had made a book out of it. (See…blog to book is a good idea!!!) If you are a Christian and you like sarcasm…you have to read this book! I laughed so hard I cried. There were parts of it I tried to read to Jeremy but was laughing so hard he was just looking at me all confused because I could barely get it out of my mouth! Oh my gosh…it’s so funny!
The last book I read this summer, (is September still summer…I guess so in Georgia) is called The Core. This is a book all about educating your children using the classical method, which is the way kids were taught prior to the 1950’s. I incorporated classical education with my kids last year and really liked it. But having gone to a public school, I was floundering a good bit trying to teach them some things the way I was taught and also using this method that was new to me. I was very glad to hear that Leigh Bortins, a highly respected classical home educator, had written this book. And it’s not just for homeschoolers. Anyone with kids or access to teaching kids can help them learn in a different way. The best way to sum up a classical education is that it teaches HOW to learn, and once you know HOW to learn, you can learn anything you want for the rest of your life.
