Although he was considered a very well-read man back in the day (during the eighteenth century), before he died in 1791 the Christian theologian, itinerant preacher and Methodist Church founder, John Wesley, exclaimed: "Let me be homo unios libri [a man of one book]."
Even though he was a voracious reader, I suspect John Wesley would loudly "Amen!" the words of the Preacher in Ecclesiastes 12:12, "Of making [and reading] many books there is no end, and much study is wearisome to the flesh."
Yet even the Apostle Paul who authored by Divine inspiration a good portion of the New Testament, requested in his very last letter to his protege, Timothy, "Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come — and the books, especially the parchments"(2 Timothy 4:13).
I have hundreds of books ... Actually, I'm sure I have several thousand. I've added quite a few more to my collection this summer. Here are the titles of some I have read, and, in most cases, have been benefited from and even blessed by the past few months. [My goal is to list them alphabetically by author]. Most [if not all] of these entries will not be annotated in this brief bibliography. If my readers have a comment to make on any one or more of them, please feel free to do so at the end of the post.
Books I Have Read [Summer, 2010]
Claeys, John / Apocalypse 2012 [2010] "The ticking of the end time clock. What does the Bible Say?"
Hagee, John / Can America Survive? [2010] "Ten prophetic signs that we are the terminal generation."
Hybels, Bill / The Power of a Whisper [2010] On "hearing God and having the guts to respond."
O'Dell, Shannon / Transforming Church in Rural America: Breaking All the Rurals [2010] A must read for pastors serving small churches in rural America.
Rosenberg, Joel C. / Dead Heat [2008] An end-times political thriller novel.
Rosenberg, Joel C. / Epicenter [2008] "Why the current rumblings in the Middle East will change your future."
Simpson, William Anderson / Midnight Rising [2009] "Warning signs for this generation."
Sweet, Leonard & Viola, Frank / Jesus Manifesto [2010] "Restoring the Supremacy and Sovereignty of Jesus Christ."
Books I Am Currently Reading [September, 2010]
Anderson, David / Free Grace Soteriology [2010] Excellent work!
Jeremiah, David / Until Christ Returns [1999] Vintage Jeremiah - one of my favorite preachers.
Rainer, Thom & Geiger, Eric / Simple Church [2006] A must read for church leaders.
Stanley, Andy / The Principle of the Path [2008] "How to get from where you are to where you want to be."
Books Waiting to Be Read (Fall, 2010]
Dungy, Tony / The Mentor Leader [2010] "Secrets to building people and teams that win consistently."
Morley, Patrick / A Man's Guide to the Spiritual Disciplines [2007] "Twelve habits to strengthen your walk with Christ."
Yorkey, Mike / Playing With Purpose [2010] "Inside the lives and faith of the NFL's top new quarterbacks - Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy, and Tim Tebow."
Oh, because I agree with the sentiment Wesley expressed about being "a man of one Book," I have also read this summer: 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon and Hebrews. Working through James right now . . .
Speaking of John Wesley, here is one final admonition from that avid reader of yesteryear that those of us who love to read really need to heed: "Beware you be not swallowed up in books! An ounce of love is worth a pound of knowledge." [From a letter by John Wesley to Joseph Benson (7 November 1768); published in The Letters of John Wesley (1915) edited by George Eayrs].
James would say it something like this, "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves" (James 1:22).
