As a Christian, we are called to live out of this world. After all, it's not our home. We are just travelers here, waiting for the day when we will be with our Father in Heaven. Lots of books have been written and sermons preached about worldliness in the life of a Believer. We have to beware of being too much in and like the world, for it can lead us away from Christ.
So why should we bother writing books? It all will come to nothing, right? Everything in this world will pass away. Why waste our time?
If we are not of this world, then why should we bother reading and writing? Have you ever faced this question before? Have you ever had anyone question your writing (or even your reading)?
Reading saves us
God has given us the Bible. This is not an accident. We are to learn to read, to understand what we read, and act upon that understanding. That is one of the means God uses to save us - His Word. That's why we read the Bible daily, why we hear it read, preached, sung, and prayed on Sunday. It's why we meditate upon it, day and night.
But in order to do so, we have to learn to read. And then we have to practice reading, so we can read better.
Reading is a fact of life
When you're going to a friend's house, you have to look for their street sign. You read labels to see what's inside the package. A sign "do not touch the electric fence" can keep you from getting zapped. "Wet paint" keeps you from siting down on a newly-painted bench. And on and on...
Reading is how we learn and grow
When we need to learn how to do something, we often look it up on the internet and watch a YouTube video. But until 3-5 years ago, people would buy instruction books. Any bookstore you go to is bound to have a shelves of DIY books. My family has lots of books where we can learn how to do things.
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| One shelf from the bookcase. |
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| Horse things, running, publishing, chess...you name it! |
And this isn't the only way books teach us things. A novel can teach us new words. Historical fiction can give us a closer look at what life was like hundreds of years ago. Even contemporary fiction can provide a taste of what life is like in other sections of the world (or even in another state in the US).
Reading is an excellent activity for children
Everyone is always complaining about how children are constantly on their phones or playing video games these days. They need to read more, people say. Homeschoolers are especially notorious for reading a lot.
No one complains about seeing children sit around reading, right? (Unless they have chores they're supposed to do...)
No one complains about seeing children sit around reading, right? (Unless they have chores they're supposed to do...)
Not everyone enjoys reading or has an easy time of it
One of my sisters struggled with reading, and really had no interest in books at all until we came across the Dragons in our Midst series. She sped through them, and started reading a lot more - going so far as to read books on her own that weren't even required readings for school. :)
My friend Evangeline hated writing and was a pretty bad speller until she and I started handwriting stories together. Her handwriting, legibility, and spelling all got waaaaay better!
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I would argue that reading is not a waste of time. We need to learn how to do it, and we have to practice it. It's something we have to get good at doing.
(I will argue that if you read the same book over and over and over and read nothing else, than yes, perhaps that might be a waste of time...but that's just common sense. We need to branch out and read new things!)
But all of this being said, there's an even bigger question.
(I will argue that if you read the same book over and over and over and read nothing else, than yes, perhaps that might be a waste of time...but that's just common sense. We need to branch out and read new things!)
But all of this being said, there's an even bigger question.
What are we supposed to read?
Everyone talks about the good things that reading does, but what can we read? I don't know if anyone has been to a bookstore these past few years, but a lot of the middle grade/young adult books just...don't look that great, y'know? I can't tell you how many times I've grabbed a new book and found out it was cringy, boring, or plain awful.
With a countless number of books coming out that hold questionable content, a lot of people turn to older books (the classics genre) for their children to read. And let me just say this...those often aren't that great either. Either they're dull, pushing un-Christian agendas, or have immoral characters and scenes.
That book downright made me fear a lot of "classic" literature.
And even those classics that are nice (who doesn't enjoy a little Jane Austen now and then??) can loose their enjoyment when re-read over and over - not to mention it's rare for boys to enjoy them. And they need good books to read, too. Hardy Boys are great, but what did I just say earlier about re-reading?
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| Honestly, a good read! |
That book downright made me fear a lot of "classic" literature.
And even those classics that are nice (who doesn't enjoy a little Jane Austen now and then??) can loose their enjoyment when re-read over and over - not to mention it's rare for boys to enjoy them. And they need good books to read, too. Hardy Boys are great, but what did I just say earlier about re-reading?
So to all you people who might scratch your heads and wonder why we write, who think we're wasting our time, who think that our books will never amount to much...
We're writing for you. We're writing for your children. We're writing for those like us who want good literature. We're writing for ourselves. We're writing because we want to honor God by writing good literature.
Perhaps our books will never be seen sitting near the front door in bookstores.
Perhaps they'll never get made into a movie.
Perhaps lots of people will never even read them.
Perhaps lots of people will never even read them.
But some people...maybe 10...maybe 100...maybe 1,000...some people will find our books. And they'll be so excited to have something new to read, something to enjoy reading without worrying about content.
That's why we write.
