On Reading
Read lots.
One of the best ways to read lots is to read a little bit every day. Over the course of sixty or seventy years if you read a little bit every day, it will add up to lots!
Read the Bible. Aggressively. Plan to make it through the entire Bible at least once a year. While this is a topic I covered previously, in this context it has to come first. Of all the reading we do, reading of Scripture is of first importance. Luther insisted on teaching people to read for this particular purpose.
Read the newspaper* and a weekly news magazine. You need to know what is going on in your community and in the world. You need to “read the culture” in which you live. Papers and news magazines will accomplish this. Many small neighborhoods provide a weekly paper. Read it. Big cities often have neighborhood papers. Read them.
*By newspaper I mean whatever is the latest delivery system of local, state, national and international news. As you know, more of these are on-line and less of them are on front doorsteps.
Read old stuff. In his book, A Contrarian’s Guide to Leadership, Stephen Sample encourages people to read only books at least fifty years old. He reasoned that we should let history sift out books that are not worth reading since time for reading is limited. This is good advice. I wish I had followed it more.
Read new stuff. This is important not because of what’s new. We know there is nothing new under the sun. Read new stuff so that you are aware of what’s now. This will help you converse with your contemporaries.
Read hard stuff. Don’t worry if you read books that you can barely understand. Such challenge will keep you sharp.
Read varied stuff. Check out a book on the human genome. Enjoy one about the Civil War. What about something on economic theory or the geology of the Australian outback? One of my favorite books was one on manners, Miss Manners Saves Western Civilization. It is especially important to read books that take positions antithetical to what you think or that are in a field totally unknown to you.
Read novels. Classic ones. Not so classic ones. Fun ones. Novels will expose you to storytelling and people. You will learn how people live, think and feels. Novels will teach you the psychology of people. If you are going to be a leader of people (there is no other kind), you need to understand them and their stories. Reading novels will help you “get people.”
Read poetry. Poetry must be read slowly, deliberately. Reading poetry is more like sipping a glass of wine than drinking a cold light beer.
Read leadership books. Much of what makes you effective in the home, at work, in the community and in the congregation hinges on your ability to lead. Leaders come in all sorts of styles, personalities and approaches. Learning how to lead will help you extend the effectiveness of your areas of expertise. For instance, doctors often limit their effectiveness not because they are not experts in their field, but because they cannot lead an office or a practice or a surgical team.
Read more than one book at a time. When you have multiple books on your desk and night stand, you are more likely to experience a serendipitous insight.
Read the funnies. This is something I should do more of.
Read theological works. Some. Not lots. If you practice all of the above, including aggressive Bible reading, you will have already done lots of theological reading!
Read. At the very least, time spent reading will not be time spent watching TV or playing video games!