Day Two

When I began planning to take this sabbatical, one of the most fun, yet most challenging tasks was choosing the books that I would read.  Over the summer I got a Nook e-reader with September in mind.

 This nifty gadget is able to hold up to 1,500 books at a time and is roughly the size of a 5x7 photograph.  The screen is much easier to read from than reading on a computer and it is much easier to carry a Nook about with me than to lug all of my books!

As of yesterday, I have 41 books loaded on my Nook and 11 "paper and ink" books stacked on my  the kids' school table.  

Today I began reading a book that, upon its release at the end of 2009, met with spectacular reviews. 

Mark Deaver is one of the pastors whose church I will be visiting this month and he had this to say about this challenging book:

I've read a few chapters and already my thinking has been very challenged.  I'm looking forward to seeing more of what the authors of the book have to say.

Finally, did you know that today is the opening day for college football season?  Enjoy it.  We actually observed a moment of silence in our home this evening in honor of the season that is to come! (It was mostly a silent moment...as silent as it ever gets around here anyway!)

Humility: True Greatness

At the end of the sermon Sunday, I made reference to a book by C.J. Mahaney called Humility: True Greatness .  This book is a small one, having only 176 pages and merely 7 inches by 5 inches.  What it lacks in size, however, it makes up for in its message. 

The author says of his experience writing the book,

“Given pride’s pervasive presence in my life, I come to this book in holy fear, yet inspired by God’s promises to be humble and sobered by his warnings to the proud (Isaiah 66:2b, 1 Peter 5:5b). Scripture reveals to us that, while pride was the first and most serious sin, God is decisively drawn to humility and is specifically supportive of the humble. Only Christ has fully obeyed Isaiah 66:2b (“This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word”), yet He did so as our representative! How marvelous that in our daily battle against pride we can rely on God’s grace, through the gospel, and thus bring honor and glory to God.” —C. J. Mahaney

In a the first part of the book, Mahaney looks at the sin of pride.  In the next section, humility is defined and the final part of the book gives practical application on how to cultivate humility in one's life.  This small is filled with such practical, useful information and inspiration, you may find that you want to keep it handy to make reference to frequently.

I found Humility: True Greatness to be a very readable book.  I especially appreciated the appendix that is included at the end of the book that lists all the practical suggestions which were made in the book.  If you happen not to be "a reader", this book would be an excellent place to begin with its very quick moving flow, logical reasoning, and a grounded Biblical base.  It is a great read about a vital topic to every Christian!

(For further information about this book and its author, simply click on the picture of the book.  It will take you directly to http://www.amazon.com/ )