Compound Interest
"Ezra opened the book...day after day, from the first day to the last, Ezra read from the Book of the law of God." Ezra 8:5, 18 (NIV)
I recently received a text from a young mom who was visiting New York City. Christian's text said: "Saw this bag in the NYC library and thought of you." Her text included a picture of assorted totes being sold in the NYC library gift shop. Each item was imprinted with a question that asked, "What are you reading now?" Christian's text (and thoughtfulness) made my day and still brings a smile to my face days later.
"What are you reading now?" is a great question to ask, not just each other, but also ourselves. Most of us, if we are honest, would have to answer "the internet." Nicholas Carr, author of The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains," spells out that most Americans, and young people especially, are showing a precipitous decline in the amount of time spent in reading. He says, "Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski." Author Phillip Yancey offers a similar lament writing, "I am going through a personal crisis. I used to love reading...Books help define who I am. They have ushered me on a journey of faith, have introduced me to the wonders of science and the natural world, have informed me about issues such as justice and race. More, they have been a source of delight and adventure and beauty, opening windows to a reality I would not otherwise know. My crisis consists in the fact that I am describing my past, not my present. I used to read three books a week...But I am reading many fewer books these days..The internet and social media have trained my brain to read a paragraph or two and then start looking around."
Contrast these thoughts with those of Warren Buffett. When asked by a writer from Business Insider about his secret to success, Buffett pointed to a stack of books and said, "Read 500 pages like this every day. That's how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will."
I can't begin to fathom reading 500 pages a day, but I agree with Buffett's assessment that knowledge builds up, like compound interest. This summer I read through several of The Bible Speaks Today books, specifically The Message of Luke, The Message of John, and The Message of Acts. The Bible Speaks Today series, edited by noted theologian John Stott, seeks to expound the biblical text with accuracy, to relate the biblical text to contemporary life, and to be readable. I so enjoyed reading Stott's works that I decided to re-read his most famous book, Basic Christianity. Reading this classic led me to read John Stott's biography Basic Christian written by Roger Steer. It was a fascinating read and helped me to better understand the man who has so shaped my world and life view as well as my teaching ministry.
If you asked me today "what are you reading?" my answer would be The Biggest Story ABC by Kevin DeYoung. This book is really the Bible's Big Story (Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration) written for preschoolers ages 1-3. It is beautifully illustrated and biblically accurate. I bought the book with Caroline, my three-year old granddaughter, in mind. Last Friday night while babysitting Caroline and her five-year old sister Julia, I handed the book to Julia and asked her to try and read it. I didn't really expect her to do so, but Julia did it! She had trouble with just a few words (Pharaoh, Israelites, and naughty) but Warren Buffet's words proved true. Knowledge builds much like compound interest. And the 60 library books that Julia successfully read this summer enabled her to increase her own reading skills.
So what are YOU reading now? All of us should follow Ezra's example and open the book and read God's Word. But beyond that, what are you reading and why? I would love to hear from you with your own book recommendations.
Let's redeem our time and read for God's glory!
Amen and Amen,
Donna