Reformed Readers discussion

Anyone have an interesting read lined up for the summer?

I'm enjoying my week of summer vacation and am hankering to dive into something new (preferably something that has a high probability of being interesting and readable).

Figured this would be a group that might supply good recommendations.

I'm reading "The Confessions" by Augustine. I'm really diggin' it.

Also, you can't go wrong with Calvin's "Institutes." Here's a shorter, abridged version if you don't have time for 1600 pages: LINK

if you read the confessions, make sure you get a good translation... I guess what I say should be taken with a grain of salt since I'm a lazy reader, but the first translation I tried kept quickly putting me to sleep. I eventually switched translations and it was like night and day!

If you haven't already read his stuff, C.S. Lewis has a lot of good stuff. Mere Christianity and A grief observed are my favorites.

Thanks for the recommendations -
I admit to being reluctant to break out 'The Confessions' again...I didn't make it through a couple of summers ago. I'd rather not associate another summer to the attempt - think I'll shoot for winter before I break them out again.

Sound advice on getting a good translation - too much of a slog can be a deal breaker for me. Any chance you remember the publisher of the version you like?

I ended up breaking out A.W. Pink's Attributes of God, The, repack, and was thoroughly convicted. It was a great read!

A friend of mine and I are working through Marrow of Modern Divinity , which is tough, but totally worth it.

Laura wrote: "Thanks for the recommendations -
I admit to being reluctant to break out 'The Confessions' again...I didn't make it through a couple of summers ago. I'd rather not associate another summer to th..."

So, I wasn't kidding when I said I'm a lazy reader- I listened to an audiobook version of the confessions that I checked out from NetLibrary. It looks like the translator was Henry Chadwick and narrated by Richard Ferrone and published by Recorded Books. I should also add that even with the better translation, I'm pretty sure I still missed the point of at least the second half of his confessions. For any philosophers/theologians who come across this don't hate me, but I think he was yammering about some metaphysical stuff that I didn't care too much about. I guess if I'm good I'll go back and listen to it more carefully some time.

For those of us who struggle to read The Confessions, I recommend one of two things. If you insist on getting that particular work down, Augustine for Armchair Theologians is a great guide. If you just want to read some Augustine, his Homilies on the First Epistle of John are easier to read, and just as good theologically (and very likely available free online somewhere).
And if you're just at the point where you don't want to read Augustine at all but feel guilty about not doing so, Ken Samples has some great talks on him here: http://www.monergism.com/directory/se...

I had forgotten about Augustine for Armchair Theologians; thanks for the reminder, Coyle!

Gotta love the Armchair series (think I even have Augustine on my shelf). Although, I was reading 1John last month and don't feel like I've gotten to a good understanding yet - so the homilies sound intriguing.

No guilt for me. Even though the women of my family are excellent, subtle (and not-so-subtle) purveyors motivational catholic guilt, I gave it up when Christ got a hold of me. Unless it's the Holy Spirit convicting me of something, I say "Reject the Guilt Trip! (don't pick it up or acknowledge it, and whatever you do...don't make eye contact)". I'm thinking audiobooks and messages and summaries are a perfectly fine way to go-

For books on prayer, don't read Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? by Philip Yancey. I read halfway through it so far, and I really don't like it. However, I have only heard good things about A Praying Life by Paul E. Miller. Try it out.

Reading some of Watchman Nee's books (Sit Walk Stand was excellent/inspiring/building up) and hoping to get into Augustine's City of God and some related essays. I really loved The Confessions, but it did take me a while and some putting-down-picking-up of the book between other reads before I finished it. I have the.........Penguin Classics version translated by R.S. Pine-Coffin and thought it was fine, though I haven't compared translations at all.

May take a look for Miller's book on prayer, as I've been wanting to delve a bit deeper into the subject.

I've never heard of the armchair theologian series. Are they life cliff notes or outlines? Is Aquinas for Armchair Theologians any good?

If you're looking for books on prayer, you could try Answered Prayer. This is really just me passing on John Piper's recommendation since my own review of it is sort of middle of the road.

Aquinas for Armchair Theologians is the weakest of the "Armchair" books I've read so far. It's good, in that it conveys Aquinas fairly well without bogging down the reader in Scholastic terminology; but it's also not-so-good in that his language tends to be a little bit corny (and sometimes a LOT corny).
The books are not outlines or cliff notes, they're short introductions to major thinkers/movements in Christian history designed for people who might not be familiar with them. I haven't read them all yet, but I think the best so far have been (in ascending order)Heretics for Armchair Theologians, Augustine for Armchair Theologians, Jonathan Edwards for Armchair Theologians, Luther for Armchair Theologians. The "Luther" one has been the best so far, especially if followed or preceded by On Being a Theologian of the Cross: Reflections on Luther's Heidelberg Disputation, 1518.

You can skip Calvin for Armchair Theologians - there's not much to it.

On prayer:
Like Devin, I've had 'A Praying Life' recommended to me.
And this is the third time in a week that Valley of Vision has been mentioned to me - think I'll have to check that out.

I tend to prefer books that walk me through prayer instead of tell me about prayer. To that end, I've benefitted from these (all are easy to self-edit for theology and still very helpful):
Praying in the Word of God: Advancing Christ's Kingdom - a compilation of scriptures divided by section that makes it convenient to pray God's word.
Face to Face: Praying the Scriptures for Intimate Worship by Boa (Volume II and I) are also super-convenient in that regard.

Too Busy Not To Pray Journal - Haven't read the book, so can't vouch for it. But enjoyed working through the journal (3-5 week duration).

Whispers of Hope - The cover looks feminine, but the content is solid. If that seems too odd to you, maybe work through it with your sweetie. I appreciated the format of this - geared for practicing writing your prayers. (70 day duration).

With Christ in the School of Prayer (31 Days) and Prayer Power by Andrew Murray. Whitaker House publishes the most readable translations. The Prayer Power book is interesting because its a publication of conclusions from a 1912 gathering of ministers in South Africa - discussing their own sins of prayerlessness and consensus on solutions. Their first recommendation? - in the pursuit of a powerful prayer life, don't put 'strive for a powerful prayer life' at the top of your action item list.

Thanks for the armchair advice! I'll take a closer look after I finish nibbling my way through Grudem. :)

This might qualify as to timing.... I just got the latest mailing from RHB and there were two titles which piqued my interest. "Taking Hold of God:Reformed and Puritan Perspectives on Prayer", edited by Joel Beeke and "Stop Loving the World" by William Greenhill. Has anyone else seen these books? I will more than likely get both of them, as I have a particular interest in both topics and the challenges they present to us as Christians.