Books I've read

I'm ashamed at how few books I have read in the last few years. Granted I know I have an excuse (motherhood, babyholding= no hands to hold a book and I don't read on a Kindle), but still. For the amount of Netflix I've been able to consume, I probably could have swapped in some book reading here and there. Anyway, I'm not beating myself up about it, but I really do love reading and am striving to make more time for it (ie... reading instead of doing another time wasting activity). I have discovered a podcast a totally love called "The Happy Hour" hosted by Jamie Ivey. She interviewed an author I like, so that's how I discovered it and since then I've gone back and listened to a bunch of them. She's a Christian, Texan, who interviews her friends (who all happen to be extraordinarily accomplished and giving) and they basically just chat about life. It's so enjoyable to listen to in the car and I feel like I'm just listening in on a fun conversation. One thing she always asks her guests is, "What are you reading?" She also tells what she's reading and since listening to the podcast, I've developed quite a list of books to hit up. So I have a new goal. I'm going to read 20 books by next Sept. Since setting the goal a month ago I've already read two books, so I'm on pace. And for the sake of record keeping and putting recommendations out there, I thought I would write about what I read.

So here I go...

"The Royal We"- A fiction novel based on Princess Kate and Prince William. There are definite similarities between the royals and the book's fictional couple, but the story itself is made up. It's a fun read, and they did a lot of research about English culture and language to make it sound authentic. It was a fun, fluffy read (it's a thick book!) and would be great to take to the pool (if you aren't stressing about watching little ones).

"For the Love"- by Jen Hatmaker. This is the author that was interviewed when I originally found the Happy Hour podcast. This pastor's wife is insightful, faithful and funny. She writes with great candor about Christian perceptions and overcoming the comparison trap in this day and age. Each chapter is an unrelated essay and I especially enjoyed the one about coddling your kids through school and teaching her kids about noticing the hurting kids and being kind. She says, "You have to learn to see hurt people, because they figure out how to act invisible. Kindness needs recipients (p.72)." I love that. She also goes into detail about her Supper Club that she has with a few other couples. It sounds like so much fun to be a part of. I want in! They rotate houses and cook an elaborate meal for each other ( I don't think I have the cooking chops to be a part of it though). I would definitely recommend this book. It's a fun, thought-provoking read.

"Interrupted"- by Jen Hatmaker (again). In the interview with her, she talks about how being an author is tough and when a book of hers gained some popularity, readers were shocked to find out that she has authored a total of 11 books! Bestselling authors usually aren't born overnight. But she said that if she were to tell anyone to go back and read one of her works, she would say read, "Interrupted." So I did. And it was really fascinating. Her husband worked at a big, contemporary church in Texas, when she (and he eventually) felt a pull to do something different with their lives. They felt like they were "blessing the blessed" and creating programs for people that lacked purpose in the context of what Christ has called us to do as disciples and missionaries. She felt like her life was hardly any different than her non-believer neighbor down the street who was just as nice as she was, but just spent less time doing churchy-activities. She realized to be authentic and truly live her faith, she had to become more servant-minded towards the people and become more "un-normal" in her daily life, just as Christ was. So they left the comfort of their life and started a new church focused on service and outreach in the community. She gave some startling statistics about the underprivileged:
-Of the six billion people on Earth, 1.2 billion live on 23 cents a day.
-The wealthiest one billion people average seventy dollars a day (if you make $50k you are in the top 1%)
-Someone dies of hunger every 3.6 seconds
-27 million  children and adults are trapped in a form of slavery because of economic crisis (more slaves exist today than ever before)
-143 million children in the developing world have been orphaned
-780 million people lack basic water sanitation
-57 million children worldwide work instead of go to school

It's so easy to live in our little bubble and develop our faith according to what we are already doing, but we're called to more than that. It's quite humbling to think about. She says, "When a Christian consistently treats someone with compassion or demonstrates integrity at work, the gospel wins a hearing." Our role is not just to preach to someone about Jesus Christ and the gospel, it is to exemplify it in our daily lives. "We can continue to invite unbelievers to church, but we must first invite them into our lives." I love that. She quotes another author who says, "Jesus doesn't need us to stick up for him; he needs us to represent him." I think it's sad how contentious religion can be. It's sad that the very thing that can bring about such joy and peace in one's life, is also the thing that makes others feel like outsiders or less than. And that is not God's fault... that is our fault. When we are not consistently acting in a Christ-like way (serving others, being humble, not judging, etc...), how are others to come to know what Christ is like?

It's a thought-provoking book and I admire their faithfulness in being willing to give up their comfortable life to pursue the Lord's path. No matter what church you attend, these principles are good for all of us to think about.

So that's 3/20 books and it's the end of November. Next up is "Hands Free Life" (about parenting intentionally and being present with your kids) and "Bird by Bird" by Anne Lamott (about writing).