VT Christian Reading Challenge discussion

Hi guys! How did you do on your April reads? I’m happy the sun finally came out and gave us some good days. My kids have been enjoying reading outside. One even asked to bring her book to the park to read in a tree. 😂

I finished my list for April, but haven’t settled on a stack for May. I would like to get through some classics...maybe Beowulf, Meditations, and Gilgamesh (ones I’ve had sitting here forever!). Hopefully I’ll update soon with a more thorough list.

Happy reading!

Well, April reads took a bit of a detour from my planned ones since I got a stack from the library but it's all good! I did finish the 2 I had in progress, I finished one from my April stack and didn't even touch any of the possibilities. Again, all good since I did get through almost all the books I borrowed from the library, working on the last one now and I just picked up one more today. So that's my 2 definite reads for May: finish There There and read American Dirt. Working on the rest of the stack yet!

Yay for library books! 😁. I love it when holds come in, and yes, I rearrange my reading schedule to accommodate them, too. 😉

If my holds come in I would like to read:

Confronting Injustice without Compromising Truth: 12 Questions Christians Should Ask About Social Justice
The Yearling
The Divine Comedy

I’d like to finish:
A Woman's Walk with God: Growing in the Fruit of the Spirit
Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner

And still trudging through Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief.

Beth, it's always so fun when the library stack is ready! :)

Christabelle, I love that your kids are bringing books to the park!! It makes me feel like mine are more normal ;) It's not warm yet, but the sun is out more regularly, and the grass is turning green! I ordered my garden seeds, so I'm excited.

April reads went well. I found Religious Affections challenging to read, so I switched to The Doctrine of Repentance which I'm using as a devotional reading. This month I have some seminary reading to do on culture and social justice, so there's The Reason You Walk, Disfigured: On Fairy Tales, Disability, and Making Space . I also started Paul: A Biography which I'd like to finish.

For Christian living, up next for me is:
Love Your Church: 8 Great Things about Being a Church Member
Hope in an Anxious World: 6 Truths for When Things Feel Overwhelming

Some Christian fiction on the library pile is
Night Fall
Beauty Among Ruins

Christabelle, I really enjoyed Elizabeth George's Woman After God's Own Heart, but haven't read anything else by her. I'll be interested to know how you enjoyed confronting injustice too! Oh, and here's a question, I love that you've been making your way through systematic theology, it's a big text. Do you do tidbits every day, or bigger chunks here and there? I'm wanting to go through Calvin's Institutes, but I"m always a little hesitant about my commitment to make it through!

Ah...the joys of living further north! I never understood the concerns of “green grass” in spring until we moved to Alaska. Those are very heartening signs of spring for sure!

I have had Religious Affections on my list for a while. I am guessing the mood will have to be right for it, though. Some of the older books can be challenging for sure!

I was introduced to Elizabeth George though A Wife After God’s Own Heart which we read as a group in our ladies study. I was determined not to like her —I’m a bit prone to legalism — but found her clear-cut, Scriptural manner useful and grounding. As I age and see some of my own tendencies toward complacency, I find her encouraging. I still check ever now and again and ask, “Is this for me?” or “Is this for me in this season?” Sometimes the answer is “No,” and that’s okay. But most of the time there is a challenge that God has already been addressing in my life and it’s good to see it plainly.

I have been listening to chunks of Systematic Theology in the afternoons during quiet time (when I can focus). I will sometimes jot down a few notes after a session or just chew on it for a while. I have discovered I am not perfectly aligned with some of the writer’s conclusions, so there are times when not having the book in front of me can be frustrating. But it is giving me overall thoughts for meditation and has been really good!

Hey guys! I’ve been really convicted that some of the books I’ve been drawn to lately are not immediately Christian. If you could pray for wisdom in what to choose next, I’d appreciate it, thanks!

Hi Christabelle, praying for discernment. Thank you so much for sharing, it's a good word for me too, to pay deeper attention to what I'm reading.

Thank you! I reworked it so my primary reading is Christian based. Praying you guys have good reading sessions! Maybe get some reading done outside. 😉

Thank you! I reworked it so my primary reading is Christian based. Praying you guys have good reading sessions! Maybe get some reading done outside. 😉