In , But Not Of

In, But Not Of

God says that we’re in the world, but not of it. So how can this apply to our reading life?

There are a lot of good books out there. Unfortunately, there are a lot of bad ones, too. One of my favourite authors S. D. Smith said, “You are what you read.” He then quoted Christian author N. D. Wilson: “Christians have sometimes been suspicious of stories because they really can influence you. If you read the Twilight novels once a month for a year, I think you’d be a different person afterward - and not a sparkly one. Stories are like catechisms, but they’re catechisms for your impulses, they’re catechisms with flesh on.”

Ingenious point on N. D. Wilson’s part. But let’s pretend that, like S. D. Smith said, you are literally what you read. Think about the books you love and enjoy. If you were your favourite books, would you be a person that was full of love, truth, good morals and Jesus? Or would you be a demoralised prideful person?

N. D. Wilson is right. Stories affect you, so that means you need to find the good ones. Just like having a bad friend that’s influencing you, when you’re reading a bad story you are letting bad things fill your mind. That’s not thinking of things that are lovely and of good report, is it?

Christians are in the world, but not of the world. That means that we are living in a broken sinful existence but we’re not participating in the evil things of it. Doesn’t that mean that we should carefully watch and monitor the books we’re reading?

Now I’m not saying that every book with a bad word or something like that is something that you definitely under no circumstances should ever read. “Huckleberry Finn”, by Mark Twain, has some less than great things in it, but that does not make it a BAD book. The purpose of the book “Huckleberry Finn” is not to encourage and smile upon the less-than-great subjects that are mentioned in it. Don’t approach reading with fear, but don’t approach it with an all accepting attitude either.

I have many friends who like a certain series and say it’s great. I love these people, but I’m not interested in that particular series. Why? Because the story is not true. The messages aren’t true. The story doesn’t end the way The Story ends, and instead of an ending of redemption and hope, it’s an ending of hopelessness and the lie that there is no difference on how you approach a situation as long as you have good intentions. This tale doesn’t edify me. I don’t want to become a hopeless, cynical person like the themes in those books, because a cynical hopeless attitude is not true.

I conclude with the fact that I think a great way to find good reading material is to find a book website or two that you trust to recommend good books to you. The one that I use and love is a Christian book website called Read Aloud Revival. On the Read Aloud Revival website you can find podcast episodes and booklists, both with great book recommendations. There’s even a search engine on the website where you can put in any book title you’ve wanted to read but haven’t been sure about. If it’s recommended on Read Aloud Revival, it will come up, and you’ll know that it’s a great book to read. On this website I have found some of my all-time favourite books!

Remember that we as Christians are in the world, but not of it, and let that encourage you to find good reading material that inspires you to grow in the things that matter.

Happy Reading,

-E G Runyan