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Culture Watch:I'll Take the Thousand Words
by Lee Warren (Lee's bio)
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Television reruns during the Summer can only mean one thing. It's time to read those books that have been collecting dust on the bookshelf until the "time was right."
I know, something else is always calling your name when "free time" rolls around. For me, it's baseball games. But, as much as I love a good baseball game, it doesn't have the same lasting effect that reading does. Reading stimulates your mind, takes you to places you've never been, challenges you, and yes, even entertains you, but in a different way than a movie or a television program does.
I attended a retreat a couple of years ago where the speaker asked us to think about the way we amuse and entertain ourselves. She broke the word "amusement" down for us. The letter "a" before a word means "not" or "the opposite of" and the word "muse" means "to think about or to ponder." I'll let you draw your own conclusions.
Movies and television programs show you the setting and the characters physical characteristics. They supply the background noise—including the soundtrack that is designed to either pump you up or touch your emotions. We are just passive observers without much need for an active imagination.
A few weeks ago, I had a telephone conversation with my pastor. He told me that one of the best ways to grow spiritually is to read what other's have written on the subject that we want to grow in. If you are struggling to understand a certain biblical truth, what better way to grasp it than from a trusted person who has devoted massive amounts of time to searching the scriptures?
When I read I Kissed Dating Good-bye by Joshua Harris and then his follow up book, When Boy Meets Girl, I was stunned to learn how self-centered I was when it comes to looking for a spouse. Those two books have revolutionized my thinking on the subject.
When I read Randall Terry's Why Does A Nice Guy Like Me Keep Getting Thrown In JAIL?, I was challenged like never before to take stands in society for righteousness and at the same time, I was awed and moved by his view of mercy. In my mind, Terry nailed the perfect balance in the Christian life between law and grace.
I don't think my pastor's admonition only applies to non-fiction though. One of the main characters from a novel I read a few years ago is a struggling writer. She doesn't want to write the book that she thinks God is leading her to write. She wants to write a novel instead—a book that she's always wanted to write. I was right there struggling with her. I often struggle with God when a writing project comes to a close. I struggle because I don't always know what to write next. And even when I do, I don't always want to do it. So, I struggled along with the character in this novel and I feel like I am better prepared to write what God wants me to.
When I read Jan Karon's Mitford Series, I saw myself in Father Tim as he struggled to move out of his comfort zone to marry the woman he loved. I often struggle with change and not wanting to move beyond what I am comfortable with.
You can see that I have a passion for books and if I had to pick between a picture or the thousand words it is supposedly worth, I'll take the thousand words any day.
I've pulled together a few links for you if you are interested in looking at some suggested summer reading lists. I've also included a few links to online bookstores. Happy reading!
- Barnes and Noble Summer Reading List
- Amazon.com Summer Reading List
- New York Times Bestseller List
- Chuck Colson's 2001 Summer Reading List
- Christian Booksellers Association Best Seller List
- Half.com Used Books
- Abebooks.com Pulitzer Prize Winners
- Parable.com Recommended Books
- Campusi.com Book Price Comparison Page (Compares prices at 45 different online bookstores, including shipping and it even offers coupons)
Copyright 2002, Lee Warren. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
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About Lee Warren: Lee Warren is a freelance writer from Omaha, Nebraska. He has written for various publications and is currently working on a novel. If you are interested in reading more of his work or in receiving his column via e-mail, please go to his website: www.leewarrenjr.com or drop him an e-mail: LeeWJunior@cox.net.
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