What would happen if you resolved that, in addition to your Bible, you would read three pages of a spiritual book every day?
Here’s what could happen:
- You could grow in your love for the great truths of the Bible by reading Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology (1291 pgs).
- You could gain a clearer understanding of the Old Testament and how it flows seamlessly into the New Testament by reading Bruce Waltke’s Old Testament Theology (1024 pages).
- You could kill your sin and love Christ more effectively by reading John Owen’s Overcoming Sin and Temptation (464 pages) and Communion With the Triune God (448 pages).
- You could strengthen your marriage by reading Sex, Romance, and the Glory of God (128 pages), When Sinners Say I Do (190 pages), Love that Lasts (176 pages), and This Momentary Marriage (192 pages).
- You could fall on your knees before the majesty of God as you read R.C. Sproul’s The Holiness of God (240 pages), John Piper’s Desiring God (358 pages), and J.I. Packer’s Knowing God (286 pages).
- You could be melted by the mercy of God as you read Living the Cross Centered Life (176 pages), The Gospel Primer (97 pages), The Disciplines of Grace (256 pages), and The Cross of Christ (380 pages).
Your spiritual life could be transformed in 2010 by the simple practice of reading three pages a day. That’s it.
Ten minutes a day, a lifetime of change.
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Nice list. I read a lot – more than 3 pages per day on average – but it's often spread across a number of different books and even a number of different kinds of books. I've found I tend to learn faster when I learn from many different sources all talking about the same topic (or different topics depending on what I'm studying). [I actually am posting about a couple today.]
However, I also like the immersion strategy as well, especially with a book like Systematic Theology. I've never taken it to a year-long extreme and focused on one massive book for a whole year (other than the Bible). That sounds like something that could be extremely beneficial.
Thank you for pointing it out.
-Marshall Jones Jr.
Yeah I read more than 3 pages per day as well, but I wanted to point out that something as simple as reading 3 pages per day could result in big results.
I tend to read a lot of books at once as well. How many do you have going at one time?
Stephen, How many books at a time do you tend to read. I also read multiple books but have found if I read too many I get bogged down because I'm always jumping around. Just wondering if you have found anything like this in your reading.
Great suggestions.
I'd add "God's Empowering Presence" by Gordon Fee to the list.
Thanks,
Dave
Thanks for the suggestion Dave!
Love this post Stephen! Really puts into perspective the reality that we DO have time to read books that will help us grow as Christians. Thanks.
That's a great list! I started Grudem's "Bible Doctrine" this week. It has been a great and enjoyable read so far. Thanks again for recommending it.
Thanks Damien. I know that this can be especially challenging for you since you don't know how to read, but I think that even you can learn to read three pages per day.
i hoap i kan lern.
My pleasure!
Hey Stephen, I started reading Dave Barrys "Homes and other Black Holes" and the three page a day routine has worked well on that book so far. I appreciate the tip. : )
Jim you're an inspiration to us all.
It's amazing how much I can learn spending an hour with a book instead of an hour with TV (which is really 43 minutes of program and 17 minutes of commercials)