Reading Basket

 

 

 

Last year my reading appetite was voracious. I blew through so many audio books as I cleaned, did yard work, conquered housework, ran errands. It is really amazing how much time I spend on tasks that I can simultaneously keep my mind busy with an audio book. I also find snippets of time to read actual books at bedtime or while waiting for a child in various activities. Many books are not worth recommending. They pass the time, are mildly entertaining or thought provoking, but aren't worth passing along. However, each month I read a few books that give me pause. These books put down roots in my heart and thinking for one reason or another (sometimes they are just purely fun), and I pass them on for anyone else looking for some quality reading material.

 

I know book tastes are incredibly subjective, so I share these with that disclaimer that just because I enjoyed them does not mean that you will. I will also try to share content that might be questionable for various ages.  

 

Bruchko by Bruce Olson 

This was our missionary biography that kicked off our new school year. I read this in high school and the three things that stayed with me all those years were his adaptation of the story of the wise man building his house on the rock, Jesus being like a man that became an ant, and the tape worm that he pulled out of his throat when he was nearly starving. There were a lot of quality moments that I forgot. This is a book with lots of "raw footage" of living in the jungle. People die, suffer from disease, battle the elements, and practice sinful lifestyles. In the end, God's forgiveness shines beautifully against this natural landscape and my kids and I both enjoyed the power of this read.

 

 

Mama Bear Apologetics by Hillary Morgan Ferrer (editor)

 I read this a while back now, and almost feel like I should read it again already. It gave some wonderful practical tips about helping your children own and defend their faith. They do also have a website with lots of resources for this: https://mamabearapologetics.com/ including a podcast. Every now and then we need a little reminder as to the importance of raising our kids to think critically and understand what they believe and why it is believable. Although we just spent last school year going through a study of apologetics, I still felt this was helpful and an encouragement to me to keep going and never stop this type of conversation in our home. 

Another Gospel? by Alisa Childers

 A must read for every Christian today. Motivated me as a mother to not stop studying the Bible with my kids and helping them accurately handle it as well. So many dangerous partial truth teachers in our world and I pray we all have eyes to see. While Mama Bear book above talks of defending our faith against outside attacks and questions, there is also a great need to recognize erroneous teaching within the church. This book addresses that in an easy to read framework. I was a little jealous that the author had found (made) the time to go back and audit seminary classes to grow herself in this area, and she definitely benefited from the effort and time she put into those post-grad classrooms.