I’ve tried various initiatives over Lent, such as giving up various things, the 40 acts of stewardship, and reading as many Christian books as I can. My favourite is definitely reading the books. This is the second year I have done this.
It is amazing how much more time to read most of us have than we think. I’m a working mother of three children but have found I have a lot of times in my day when I am waiting for people. Our lengthy school run involves at least 45 minutes between buses, and while the children do various sporting activities in the evenings more time is spent waiting. Rather than scroll down my phone I now take my book. I’ve found it possible to read even while walking the dog!
The first book I read was ‘I Prayed and Nothing Changed’ by Ste Casey. I’ve often struggled when there seems to be silence when I pray. Ste reminds us that God is still watching, keeping, caring and speaking to us even when we feel he is miles away. Interestingly, during the period of time I was reading this book, God answered my prayer that during that day someone would share some Scripture with me. An hour later I received a very encouraging message with a very helpful verse. This helped me enormously as I felt God’s presence during a difficult time.
‘Fearless Faith’ by Jonathan Stephen reminded me that when we face trials and storms in life we cannot only endure, but overcome. We are strong in him, even when we feel weak.
‘Where is God in all the Suffering?’ by Amy Orr Ewing took only a few days to read as it was so interesting. It was useful to explore how different belief systems deal with the problem of pain. We are reminded of how Christ can give us hope in the reality of suffering.
I enjoyed ‘The Heart of Jesus: How he really feels about you’ by Dane Ortlund. This is a concise easier to read version of Dane’s book ‘Gentle and Lowly’. It reminds us who Jesus is and how he feels about us. The book’s goal is to help Christians see that Jesus is wonderfully different from we tend to think.
There were other books I read in addition to these and I would happily give recommendations if anyone is keen to read. The church library is amazing and the hard work of those who manage this is greatly appreciated.
To end this article with a bit of humour I’ll share a funny story. I was chatting to my colleague who was telling me all about Ramadan and what the rules were. It led to her asking about Lent and whether Christians fast. I explained my alternative to fasting was to read books and told her all about what I have been doing during Lent in this area. I realised after I left her that I hadn’t mentioned the books were Christian books. She’s probably wondering to this day how on earth reading books is going to help me grow deeper in my faith…that’s a conversation for next time!