How to Read a Book: Advice for Christian Readers | Dr. Andy Naselli
00:00:00.000 | - Thank you for coming tonight.
00:00:03.840 | It means a lot that you'd come and listen to a talk
00:00:06.580 | on a Thursday evening about how to read a book.
00:00:10.180 | I'm guessing I don't need to get your attention
00:00:12.480 | 'cause you're interested, you're here.
00:00:14.300 | So the title of this address is the title
00:00:18.240 | of one of my forthcoming books,
00:00:20.840 | How to Read a Book, Advice for Christian Readers.
00:00:24.360 | That book should release in March 2024 with Canon Press
00:00:27.880 | and in this talk, my goal is to just sketch
00:00:30.420 | the basic outline of that book
00:00:33.200 | and it's gonna be painful to pass over
00:00:35.360 | a lot of interesting anecdotes and illustrations
00:00:39.440 | and fuller explanations along the way
00:00:40.960 | but I trust you'll get the gist of the book.
00:00:43.820 | Now when you see that title,
00:00:45.080 | you probably have the same question
00:00:46.200 | that so many people have had when I told them
00:00:48.260 | I wrote a book called How to Read a Book
00:00:50.280 | and the question is,
00:00:51.460 | didn't Mortimer Adler write a book by that title?
00:00:56.440 | So there's the book.
00:00:57.360 | Yes, it's called How to Read a Book,
00:00:59.600 | the Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading.
00:01:02.640 | So then the next question is,
00:01:04.180 | how does your book differ from that book?
00:01:08.680 | Well first off, book titles are not copyrighted
00:01:11.200 | so I'm safe there.
00:01:13.660 | Adler's book is an influential book and rightly so.
00:01:16.480 | Curious, how many of you have read that book?
00:01:19.000 | Like the whole thing?
00:01:20.600 | Wow, okay, a lot of people own the book
00:01:23.460 | but they actually read it, that's good.
00:01:25.080 | So we have a literate crowd here.
00:01:26.740 | I'm indebted to Mortimer Adler.
00:01:30.960 | I don't intend for my book to replace his
00:01:33.640 | but my book differs with his in at least seven ways.
00:01:37.440 | So one is it's written by a Christian.
00:01:39.940 | Mortimer Adler did not write as a Christian.
00:01:42.000 | He wrote as a pagan philosopher when he wrote this book.
00:01:45.880 | And second, my book is specifically for Christians.
00:01:50.760 | That's why the subtitle of my book
00:01:52.440 | is Advice for Christian Readers.
00:01:54.640 | Third, my book is broader in scope than Adler's book.
00:01:59.280 | So my book is about not just reading
00:02:03.360 | only to increase understanding, which is Adler's focus.
00:02:07.000 | I'm also talking about reading for pleasure
00:02:09.160 | which Adler almost makes fun of.
00:02:11.200 | Four, my book is more accessible than Adler's book.
00:02:16.520 | You can see in his title, the subtitle,
00:02:19.680 | The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading.
00:02:22.760 | You get a little bit of a whiff there of his,
00:02:25.060 | you call it a higher culture approach.
00:02:29.000 | He has a disdain a little bit
00:02:32.420 | for those who don't share his taste for a higher culture.
00:02:36.080 | And number five, I'm a little bit,
00:02:38.680 | a lot a bit more concise than Adler.
00:02:40.680 | His book is 426 pages long
00:02:43.440 | and 120 of that is how to read specific styles of literature
00:02:47.360 | like how to read mathematics or how to read philosophy
00:02:50.880 | or science or social science.
00:02:53.120 | And I don't get into that kind of detail.
00:02:56.280 | And seven, my book's more personal.
00:02:59.080 | So he sounds like an old school professor
00:03:01.520 | who when he writes avoids using the personal pronoun,
00:03:03.560 | I or me, no personal stories,
00:03:06.320 | very old school professor with patches on his elbow type,
00:03:10.920 | which is interesting,
00:03:12.000 | but I don't think it's as interesting as you could be.
00:03:15.520 | And then seven, I think my book's more relevant.
00:03:19.280 | His book first released in 1940, 1940.
00:03:23.480 | And then he updated it with Charles Van Doren in 1972.
00:03:28.200 | So even the update is over 50 years old, 50 years.
00:03:33.000 | So that was 35 years
00:03:34.200 | before the first iPhone released in 2007.
00:03:37.480 | And readers today have new challenges and questions
00:03:40.920 | and I attempt to address those in my book.
00:03:42.960 | So there's, that question's out of the way.
00:03:45.080 | You guys were probably wondering that.
00:03:47.300 | Well, there you go.
00:03:48.440 | And in this talk going forward,
00:03:50.920 | I'm gonna share a lot of lists.
00:03:52.160 | Don't feel like you have to write them all down.
00:03:53.900 | It's all in the book.
00:03:55.000 | I'm giving you the gist of it
00:03:56.060 | so you can just kind of absorb it.
00:03:57.920 | Book's coming out in March, 2024.
00:04:00.820 | So here we go.
00:04:02.320 | When people ask me what I do for a living,
00:04:06.680 | sometimes my answer is I teach people how to read.
00:04:10.720 | And that means I'm teaching adults how to read carefully.
00:04:17.400 | So I'm teaching pastors how to read theology well.
00:04:21.340 | As a pastor, I teach people how to read the Bible well.
00:04:24.600 | And reading is something that everyone can get better at.
00:04:29.080 | And my aim in this talk
00:04:30.640 | is to help you get better at reading,
00:04:32.960 | to take your reading to the next level.
00:04:35.240 | So here's the plan.
00:04:36.480 | We'll explore how to read a book
00:04:38.320 | by answering four main questions.
00:04:41.160 | First is why should you read?
00:04:43.000 | And I'm gonna start here
00:04:43.840 | 'cause it's pointless to talk about reading
00:04:47.120 | and aspects of reading
00:04:48.600 | if you're not convinced it's worth doing.
00:04:51.000 | Second, how should you read?
00:04:53.600 | And this is where we often get stuck
00:04:56.120 | when it comes to reading.
00:04:57.280 | We learn the basics of reading,
00:04:58.320 | but don't learn how to take it to the next level.
00:05:00.800 | Third, what should you read?
00:05:04.000 | Of the amount of reading material available,
00:05:06.260 | you can read only a very, very tiny sliver of it.
00:05:10.300 | And then finally, when should you read?
00:05:12.440 | And I'll try to help you strategize
00:05:14.520 | how to prioritize quality reading,
00:05:16.520 | and then when we're done,
00:05:18.480 | we'll pause and do some Q&A
00:05:20.400 | as long as they'll let us,
00:05:22.000 | and then we'll break for the evening.
00:05:24.480 | So let's begin with that first question.
00:05:26.600 | Why should you read?
00:05:28.180 | You should read for at least three reasons.
00:05:30.240 | The first is read to live.
00:05:32.920 | What does that mean?
00:05:35.720 | I'm thinking what Jesus writes in John 6.
00:05:38.240 | He says, "The words that I have spoken to you
00:05:40.440 | "are spirit and are life."
00:05:45.020 | Life.
00:05:45.940 | So the most fundamental reason you should read
00:05:48.580 | is that you need God's words to truly live.
00:05:53.440 | This is why Christians value reading so highly.
00:05:57.440 | Second, read to grow.
00:06:01.760 | So read not merely to survive,
00:06:05.740 | but read to grow, to learn, and develop, and mature.
00:06:10.480 | So the main reason to read
00:06:12.500 | is not so that you can remember facts.
00:06:15.720 | You'll probably forget most of what you read,
00:06:19.600 | and that shouldn't be discouraging.
00:06:21.360 | I had a professor who would tell his students,
00:06:23.360 | "I've forgotten more than you'll ever know,"
00:06:25.660 | and he was probably right.
00:06:27.120 | The cash value of reading
00:06:31.280 | is not whether you can remember information.
00:06:34.820 | The benefit of reading is that you grow.
00:06:37.060 | It's like the food that you eat and drink.
00:06:40.760 | Do you remember every single piece of food and liquid
00:06:45.760 | that you have consumed?
00:06:48.160 | Of course not.
00:06:49.700 | But that doesn't mean that it's all been lacking in value
00:06:52.940 | because you can't remember it.
00:06:54.480 | It's helped keep you alive.
00:06:56.960 | And reading is like that.
00:06:59.060 | God can use reading to help you grow,
00:07:01.400 | and it can help you grow in at least six areas.
00:07:04.720 | One is intellectually.
00:07:06.240 | You can mature intellectually.
00:07:07.560 | You can increase in how you understand what's true.
00:07:10.520 | And second, reading can help you mature
00:07:12.400 | in how you see reality.
00:07:14.560 | So a good book can function like time machines
00:07:18.720 | that they take you to far off places
00:07:21.280 | and different cultures and different times,
00:07:23.040 | even fantastical ones.
00:07:25.240 | And the more time you spend in good books,
00:07:27.800 | the larger your view of God's world will be,
00:07:31.160 | and thus the more accurate your view of reality will be.
00:07:34.760 | Third, reading can help you mature spiritually.
00:07:38.200 | So you can increasingly bear the fruit of the spirit
00:07:41.440 | by reading sound teaching and stories,
00:07:44.080 | and you can be better prepared to suffer when trouble comes.
00:07:47.800 | Fourth, reading can help you mature emotionally.
00:07:51.080 | You can learn more about human moods and mindsets
00:07:54.180 | by reading good stories and proverbs and poems and studies.
00:07:59.180 | And fifth, reading can help you mature
00:08:02.540 | in how you communicate.
00:08:04.440 | So you can learn to communicate more clearly
00:08:08.640 | and concisely and colorfully
00:08:12.320 | by reading master communicators.
00:08:15.520 | And then six, reading can help you mature
00:08:18.440 | in particular aspects of your vocation.
00:08:21.040 | So you can learn more facts or techniques or testimonies
00:08:24.240 | that can help you improve how you do
00:08:26.160 | what God has called you to do,
00:08:27.880 | whether that's serving in a household or a church
00:08:30.280 | or a society or a nation.
00:08:33.420 | So that's the second reason, read to grow.
00:08:35.840 | Third reason is read to enjoy.
00:08:39.520 | So you shouldn't read a book
00:08:40.920 | so that you can check it off your list
00:08:43.780 | as I've read that book,
00:08:45.380 | and then broadcast it to other people, I've read that book.
00:08:49.140 | God invented reading for you
00:08:52.100 | so you can enjoy it in a way that honors him.
00:08:55.220 | And you enjoy God by enjoying his gifts,
00:08:59.560 | or you can think of it this way,
00:09:02.260 | reading is a gift from God.
00:09:04.500 | So rather than spurn the gift,
00:09:07.100 | I actually honor God by enjoying the gift he gave me.
00:09:11.500 | And what we like to call this
00:09:13.060 | at Bethlehem Calvin Seminary is serious joy.
00:09:17.400 | Read with serious joy.
00:09:19.180 | So that's why you should read, those three reasons,
00:09:21.460 | to live, to grow, and to enjoy.
00:09:24.780 | But do you know how to read skillfully?
00:09:27.540 | Question two, how should you read?
00:09:30.540 | We'll spend the most time on this second question.
00:09:32.940 | How should you read?
00:09:34.300 | So I'm gonna propose seven guidelines
00:09:37.780 | for how to read skillfully.
00:09:40.500 | And the first one is the most important,
00:09:43.000 | and that's to read carefully.
00:09:44.460 | What does that mean?
00:09:47.280 | To read carefully is to interpret a text
00:09:50.540 | by analyzing what the author of that text
00:09:54.260 | intended to communicate by his words.
00:09:58.580 | So let's break down careful reading into five parts.
00:10:01.820 | It's goal, reason, means, method, and need.
00:10:04.940 | So the goal of reading, of careful reading,
00:10:09.100 | is to understand what the author meant.
00:10:11.100 | Understanding a text presupposes
00:10:15.180 | that the text means what the author meant,
00:10:18.140 | and our goal is to discover what a text's author
00:10:22.380 | meant to communicate through his written words.
00:10:26.820 | The reason for careful reading is the golden rule.
00:10:30.940 | You must love your neighbor as yourself.
00:10:33.460 | So follow that golden rule.
00:10:34.860 | Interpret others as you would like them to interpret you.
00:10:39.760 | Do you want people to twist your words
00:10:41.880 | and say that you meant to communicate something
00:10:44.260 | you really didn't mean to communicate?
00:10:46.460 | You would hate that.
00:10:47.420 | So don't do that to other people.
00:10:49.740 | A text's meaning is something you discover.
00:10:52.100 | It's not something you create.
00:10:54.580 | The means of careful reading is to look at the fish.
00:10:58.060 | How many of you know what I mean by that?
00:11:01.080 | Okay, yeah, you've been around Bethlehem for a while.
00:11:02.620 | Okay, so it's an essay from 1879
00:11:05.100 | called The Student, the Fish, and Agassiz.
00:11:08.420 | So a student of natural history recounts
00:11:10.420 | how his professor taught him to look carefully,
00:11:15.060 | and the professor began with this unusual assignment.
00:11:17.380 | He pulled a fish out of a jar
00:11:19.580 | that contained specimen in yellow alcohol,
00:11:23.220 | and he asked the student to look at that fish
00:11:25.580 | with his naked eye.
00:11:26.740 | About 10 minutes later,
00:11:29.260 | the student thought, "I've looked enough."
00:11:32.300 | But the professor told him to keep looking for hours.
00:11:37.300 | The professor kept checking in with the student.
00:11:39.820 | "Do you see it yet?"
00:11:41.460 | He kept exhorting, "Look, look, look at the fish."
00:11:46.380 | And he kept this up, not just for hours,
00:11:48.220 | but for three long days.
00:11:50.620 | And the student looked at that fish
00:11:51.660 | from every possible angle.
00:11:52.900 | He felt the inside of the fish
00:11:54.320 | and the outside of the fish.
00:11:55.660 | He drew the fish with pencil on paper,
00:11:57.980 | and that helped him see even more details.
00:12:00.100 | And he didn't realize that there was so much to see,
00:12:02.820 | so much he had overlooked the first time
00:12:05.540 | when he'd spent 10 minutes
00:12:06.820 | superficially looking at the fish.
00:12:08.940 | So that's how to read carefully.
00:12:10.620 | Look, look, look.
00:12:13.500 | Then the method of careful reading
00:12:16.540 | is to discover what and how the author is communicating.
00:12:21.620 | That is, trace how the author argues.
00:12:24.940 | Mortimer Adler calls this coming to terms with the author.
00:12:29.420 | Does what you understand a text to mean,
00:12:32.820 | does that match what the author intended to communicate?
00:12:36.300 | So Gene Vaith summarizes the basic forms of literature
00:12:39.220 | in three categories, nonfiction, fiction, and poetry.
00:12:42.140 | He says that nonfiction is the art of truth-telling.
00:12:44.900 | Fiction is the art of storytelling.
00:12:46.780 | Poetry is the art of singing.
00:12:48.820 | And you can make an argument
00:12:50.580 | with all three styles of literature.
00:12:52.340 | And when a book does make an argument,
00:12:54.260 | it's crucial to trace how the author is arguing.
00:12:58.340 | And to trace the argument,
00:13:00.020 | you need to understand at least two fundamental concepts,
00:13:02.780 | how logic works, and how propositions relate to each other.
00:13:06.780 | And that's all I'm gonna say about that,
00:13:08.380 | but just those two little bits,
00:13:10.140 | we could have another three-hour lecture on just that.
00:13:12.860 | There's a lot there.
00:13:14.540 | And then finally here, the need.
00:13:16.220 | The need for careful reading
00:13:18.060 | is that it is a prerequisite to observe,
00:13:21.700 | understand, evaluate, feel, apply, and express.
00:13:26.700 | Careful reading is crucial for educating students.
00:13:31.540 | John Piper describes education
00:13:34.380 | as instilling six habits of mind and heart.
00:13:37.740 | So here's my paraphrase.
00:13:38.940 | I notice in this figure
00:13:40.180 | how the six habits build on one another.
00:13:42.780 | The first is observe, and that's foundational.
00:13:46.420 | Observe accurately and thoroughly.
00:13:49.880 | So are you seeing what's actually there in the text?
00:13:53.940 | And then you build on that by understanding.
00:13:57.260 | You understand what you observe clearly.
00:14:00.260 | Are you perceiving what the author intended to communicate?
00:14:05.140 | And then you evaluate what you've understood fairly.
00:14:09.940 | Is it true and valuable?
00:14:13.140 | And then you feel that evaluation in an intense way,
00:14:18.140 | intensely and proportionately.
00:14:21.140 | So are your emotions in accord with the truth
00:14:23.940 | and worth of what you have observed
00:14:26.420 | and understood and evaluated?
00:14:28.980 | Paul says to abhor what is evil, cling to what is good.
00:14:33.280 | So you should be loving what God loves
00:14:35.540 | and hating what God hates.
00:14:38.160 | And then five, apply your discoveries
00:14:40.620 | to all of life wisely and helpfully.
00:14:42.740 | This answers the question, so what?
00:14:44.260 | Why does this matter?
00:14:45.980 | And then finally, express your discoveries compellingly.
00:14:50.980 | Can you communicate what you have observed
00:14:54.820 | and understood and evaluated and felt and applied
00:14:58.620 | in a way that others can know and enjoy that accuracy
00:15:02.280 | and clarity and truth and value and helpfulness?
00:15:05.920 | So that first guideline about how to read
00:15:09.980 | is read carefully.
00:15:11.020 | The second guideline can revolutionize how you read.
00:15:15.380 | It's kind of like the difference
00:15:16.260 | between riding a one-speed bicycle
00:15:18.820 | and riding a multi-speed bicycle,
00:15:20.940 | or even riding a motorcycle.
00:15:23.660 | And that's this, read at different levels.
00:15:27.300 | My mentor, D.A. Carson, trained me
00:15:31.820 | to read at different levels,
00:15:33.340 | and I've adapted a system that works well for me.
00:15:36.380 | I'll share it with you.
00:15:37.420 | I read at three different levels,
00:15:39.960 | and those levels correspond to the famous advice
00:15:42.820 | from the philosopher Francis Bacon.
00:15:44.420 | Here's what he said.
00:15:45.380 | "Some books are to be tasted,
00:15:47.760 | "others to be swallowed,
00:15:51.460 | "some few to be chewed and digested.
00:15:55.360 | "That is, some books are to be read only in parts,
00:16:00.080 | "others to be read, but not curiously,
00:16:03.600 | "and some few to be read wholly
00:16:06.520 | "and with diligence and attention."
00:16:10.360 | Those three levels line up with what I call
00:16:14.360 | survey, macro-read, and micro-read.
00:16:17.200 | Tasted, read only in part, that's survey.
00:16:23.520 | Swallowed, read but not curiously, that's macro-read.
00:16:26.640 | And then chewed and digested, read wholly,
00:16:29.300 | with diligence and attention, that's micro-read.
00:16:33.160 | So, let me define quickly these terms.
00:16:35.460 | Survey means you quickly and efficiently
00:16:38.120 | size up a book without reading every word.
00:16:41.440 | I'll say more about that in a moment.
00:16:43.060 | Macro-read is you read every word,
00:16:46.120 | but you move quickly to get the big picture.
00:16:49.280 | And then micro-read, you rigorously observe,
00:16:52.480 | understand, and evaluate what you read,
00:16:54.480 | and there are various levels to that.
00:16:56.500 | Most people, when they read a book,
00:16:58.160 | they think that micro-read is the only speed to go.
00:17:01.480 | It's the only kind of reading.
00:17:02.680 | And that's why some people don't read very much,
00:17:05.520 | and if they don't like the book, they get stuck,
00:17:07.360 | and then they stop reading.
00:17:08.700 | And further, let me give you some analogies
00:17:12.360 | for these three.
00:17:14.120 | You could think surveying is like a helicopter,
00:17:16.280 | macro-reading is like a bus ride,
00:17:19.280 | and micro-reading is like a bike walk or an excavation.
00:17:22.500 | Or, the cooking metaphor, surveying is like a microwave,
00:17:26.720 | macro-reading is like an oven,
00:17:28.520 | and micro-read is like a Crock-Pot or a smoker.
00:17:31.840 | Is that okay, Jenny?
00:17:33.160 | I didn't check that with you, okay.
00:17:35.680 | We're good.
00:17:36.520 | Okay, so it may be more helpful
00:17:38.560 | to refer to these three levels as layers,
00:17:42.880 | and the reason is that the three levels
00:17:45.120 | are not distinct kinds of reading,
00:17:46.320 | but they're cumulative layers.
00:17:48.640 | So, surveying is the foundational layer,
00:17:51.960 | macro-reading includes and builds on surveying,
00:17:55.960 | and then micro-reading builds on surveying and macro-reading.
00:18:00.960 | So, surveying is the broadest,
00:18:02.520 | most general layer of reading,
00:18:04.360 | and then micro-reading is the narrowest,
00:18:06.080 | most specific layer.
00:18:07.520 | So, I'm gonna say a few things about each of these.
00:18:10.440 | I'll start with surveying.
00:18:12.320 | Surveying is quickly and efficiently sizing up a book
00:18:17.040 | without reading every word.
00:18:18.160 | So, it's learning as much as you can from a book
00:18:20.440 | in a short amount of time.
00:18:22.080 | And some people think this doesn't count as reading,
00:18:25.320 | it's not worth doing, they don't think it's valuable.
00:18:29.680 | So, let me make the case.
00:18:30.520 | I think this is a valuable skill for at least five reasons.
00:18:33.860 | One is it helps you quickly evaluate a book.
00:18:38.480 | So, you can ask questions like, who's the author?
00:18:41.260 | What's the book's genre?
00:18:42.600 | What's it about?
00:18:43.440 | What's its thesis?
00:18:44.380 | Does the author seem competent?
00:18:46.360 | Does the book seem important?
00:18:48.120 | Is it interesting?
00:18:49.800 | So, when I require my students to survey books
00:18:53.240 | for my courses, I specify how long they should spend
00:18:56.900 | with a particular resource.
00:18:58.040 | Like, I might say spend at least 30 minutes
00:19:00.240 | with this 300-page book.
00:19:02.580 | Why am I doing that?
00:19:03.640 | I'm trying to train them to read at different levels
00:19:06.480 | and I'm introducing them to outstanding tools.
00:19:08.680 | I don't expect them to master that book in 30 minutes,
00:19:12.280 | but I wanna introduce them to a tool
00:19:14.660 | so they're more likely to use it in the future.
00:19:17.720 | Second reason it's valuable, it helps you determine
00:19:20.760 | whether you should purchase a book
00:19:22.320 | so that you have access to it later.
00:19:24.540 | And you probably already do this on Amazon
00:19:26.360 | when you check the search inside feature.
00:19:28.840 | Third, surveying is a valuable skill
00:19:31.200 | because it helps you pre-read a challenging book
00:19:34.680 | so that you're prepared to macro-read or micro-read it.
00:19:38.720 | Kinda know what the argument is.
00:19:39.880 | You can x-ray the book.
00:19:40.720 | Where are we going?
00:19:41.540 | What's the thesis?
00:19:42.640 | And then four, it's helpful to determine
00:19:45.860 | whether you should stop reading a book.
00:19:47.940 | Some of you need this gift I'm about to give you.
00:19:50.640 | Your conscience is condemning you for not completing books.
00:19:53.480 | You don't have to finish a book.
00:19:55.000 | If it's a bad book, put it away.
00:19:57.680 | Read a better book.
00:19:59.300 | You're welcome.
00:20:00.520 | And number five, surveying is a valuable skill
00:20:04.040 | because it helps you determine
00:20:05.480 | whether you should macro-read or micro-read a book.
00:20:08.420 | That's surveying.
00:20:10.860 | Now, say a few things about these other two.
00:20:12.740 | Macro-reading, again, this is,
00:20:15.000 | if surveying is quickly and efficiently sizing up a book
00:20:18.260 | without reading every word,
00:20:19.560 | macro-reading includes and builds on that
00:20:21.560 | by reading every word,
00:20:23.400 | but you move quickly to get the big picture.
00:20:25.680 | And you can do this by listening to an audio book
00:20:28.400 | at a normal speed.
00:20:30.000 | I listen to a lot of books that way.
00:20:31.280 | You can move along.
00:20:33.360 | Third, micro-reading is when you rigorously,
00:20:38.200 | rigorously observe, understand, and evaluate what you read.
00:20:41.760 | So surveying is fast.
00:20:43.700 | Macro-reading takes much longer.
00:20:45.640 | Micro-reading takes the longest.
00:20:48.000 | Micro-reading is the most active reading
00:20:50.080 | 'cause you're rigorously tracing the argument
00:20:51.840 | and marking up the text.
00:20:53.600 | So that's a third, that's a second guideline
00:20:57.940 | is to read at different levels.
00:20:59.800 | Third guideline, how you should read,
00:21:02.480 | is to read systematically, read systematically.
00:21:07.320 | This refers not to how you read any one book in isolation,
00:21:11.640 | but to how you read books in relation to each other.
00:21:15.180 | And there are four aspects to reading systematically.
00:21:17.760 | You analyze.
00:21:19.640 | You analyze a book when you carefully read it,
00:21:22.280 | either surveying, macro-reading, or micro-reading.
00:21:24.760 | Then diversify.
00:21:26.000 | You diversify by reading other books,
00:21:28.600 | so books on the same topic, books on different topics,
00:21:31.680 | books upholding the same perspective and different ones,
00:21:34.640 | books in the same genre and different ones.
00:21:37.600 | And then you compare.
00:21:39.440 | You compare by noting how various books
00:21:41.400 | are similar and dissimilar, and then you synthesize.
00:21:45.300 | You synthesize by perceiving how various books
00:21:47.800 | interrelate and integrate.
00:21:49.760 | So categorizing arguments and approaches
00:21:52.080 | is what I'm talking about here.
00:21:53.340 | You show how they relate to each other.
00:21:55.080 | Reading systematically is reading comprehensively.
00:21:58.400 | It requires penetrating insight
00:22:02.240 | that's both deep and broad.
00:22:03.920 | It's the most demanding type of reading,
00:22:06.240 | because doing it well requires the ability
00:22:09.160 | to think deeply and understand concepts
00:22:11.320 | and perceptively make connections and draw conclusions.
00:22:14.880 | It's hard, and it's wonderful.
00:22:17.640 | Here's an illustration of one way I did this recently.
00:22:21.000 | In 2020 and 2021, I became increasingly concerned
00:22:25.360 | that our culture was so rapidly making sin look normal
00:22:30.360 | and righteousness seem strange.
00:22:33.280 | And I attempted to make sense of it
00:22:34.560 | by reading systematically,
00:22:36.280 | which resulted in my writing an article about it,
00:22:38.760 | 10 resources that have helped me make sense
00:22:41.280 | of our current culture and how Christians
00:22:43.320 | are responding to it.
00:22:44.480 | Read a lot more than those 10,
00:22:45.760 | but I picked 10 of the most helpful.
00:22:47.600 | So that's guideline three.
00:22:50.800 | Guideline four is read repeatedly.
00:22:54.760 | And I'm speaking about great works.
00:22:56.640 | Read great works more than once.
00:22:59.920 | And don't you already know this to be the case?
00:23:01.600 | Would any of you ever say,
00:23:04.040 | I don't need to read Romans again.
00:23:06.160 | I've already read it once.
00:23:07.520 | That's preposterous.
00:23:09.760 | We know that great literature requires multiple readings,
00:23:13.680 | and you can read it regularly for the rest of your life
00:23:15.720 | and never plumb the depths of it.
00:23:17.620 | So if you read classic literature in junior high
00:23:20.520 | and high school, as some of you are doing right now,
00:23:23.040 | I know some of you in here who are doing that,
00:23:25.200 | does that mean it would be a waste of time
00:23:26.860 | to read some of those same books again
00:23:29.080 | in college literature courses?
00:23:31.440 | Would you say, oh, I don't need to read that again.
00:23:33.640 | I already read that in high school.
00:23:34.720 | I read that in junior high.
00:23:36.080 | No, the books should get better with each reading
00:23:40.880 | if they're great books.
00:23:42.280 | And since you should be a more mature person
00:23:44.480 | each time you read a book,
00:23:46.280 | each reading should be more profitable and pleasurable,
00:23:50.160 | at least for the greatest literature.
00:23:52.400 | Guideline five, read without distractions.
00:23:56.760 | The most prominent distractions today are gadgets
00:24:01.280 | like smartphones and tablets and computers and televisions.
00:24:04.960 | People are addicted to screens.
00:24:07.160 | Some of you are checking your screens right now.
00:24:09.960 | So don't be distractible like Doug the dog,
00:24:13.620 | the golden retriever in the Pixar movie Up,
00:24:18.520 | who gets so easily distracted that at any moment
00:24:21.240 | he may snap his head and exclaim, squirrel.
00:24:24.480 | In order to read well, you've gotta be able to focus.
00:24:29.560 | And focusing means you gotta put aside distractions.
00:24:32.320 | So here are four suggestions to do that.
00:24:34.480 | One, turn off notifications on your devices,
00:24:37.400 | your computer, tablet, phone, et cetera.
00:24:40.080 | Just turn 'em off, keep 'em off.
00:24:42.480 | Two, don't incessantly check your email or text messages
00:24:46.160 | or social media or whatever else distracts you.
00:24:48.840 | Three, schedule blocks of time to read
00:24:52.320 | and treat those blocks of time
00:24:54.400 | as do not disturb appointments.
00:24:56.640 | And four, say no to spending most of your free time
00:25:01.600 | watching videos or shows or scrolling social media
00:25:04.800 | for eye candy in the form of entertaining pictures
00:25:07.660 | and memes and short videos.
00:25:09.720 | In short, train yourself to develop habits
00:25:13.240 | that cultivate a taste that prefers reading good books.
00:25:18.600 | Guideline six, read with eyes to see and ears to hear.
00:25:23.600 | Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for failing to read
00:25:28.460 | with eyes to see and ears to hear.
00:25:30.820 | What does it mean to read with eyes to see
00:25:32.620 | and ears to hear?
00:25:33.460 | It means to truly understand.
00:25:37.360 | Read to truly understand.
00:25:39.440 | That means you should read with a heart posture
00:25:42.680 | to faithfully obey God and not rebel against him.
00:25:47.000 | Sometimes we assume that a guy doesn't understand the truth
00:25:50.800 | because he's not thinking hard enough
00:25:53.240 | or because he's not smart enough.
00:25:56.000 | But the reason may actually be that he's watching shows
00:25:59.080 | with sexually charged nudity in them.
00:26:01.120 | That's why it's so important to read with a heart posture
00:26:05.360 | that is submitting to God
00:26:06.780 | and that is not rebelling against him.
00:26:08.680 | Guideline seven, read with serious joy.
00:26:15.120 | That phrase may sound like an oxymoron, but it's not.
00:26:18.800 | To read with serious joy is to read with thoroughgoing,
00:26:23.800 | wholehearted, energetic joy.
00:26:28.200 | I'm following C.S. Lewis here.
00:26:30.960 | He says that a serious reader is not a solemn reader
00:26:34.320 | in the sense of an unsmiling, long-faced, but thoroughgoing.
00:26:39.320 | Instead of that, he calls it, this is a quote from him,
00:26:42.800 | it's thoroughgoing, wholehearted, and energetic.
00:26:46.640 | It's genuine, it's resolute, it's earnest.
00:26:49.360 | That's how we should read.
00:26:50.400 | And I should qualify that reading for pleasure
00:26:52.840 | doesn't always mean reading without challenge.
00:26:55.780 | We like to do things with challenge,
00:26:57.040 | like hiking up a tall mountain.
00:26:59.160 | That's hard, and it's rewarding and enjoyable.
00:27:02.920 | And reading can be like that.
00:27:04.520 | Read a great book to stretch you.
00:27:06.720 | So that's how to read, seven guidelines.
00:27:10.320 | But you won't be putting your skills to good use
00:27:12.320 | if you're reading the wrong book.
00:27:13.440 | So that leads to question three, what should you read?
00:27:18.040 | So here are seven quick recommendations what to read.
00:27:21.400 | Obviously the first one is,
00:27:22.560 | read the book by the author of life.
00:27:25.560 | God wrote a book.
00:27:28.320 | God wrote a book.
00:27:31.680 | Reading the Bible matters more
00:27:33.620 | than everything else you read combined.
00:27:36.400 | Prioritize reading God's words over man's words
00:27:41.120 | every single day.
00:27:43.460 | Make it automatic.
00:27:45.280 | Recommendation two, read what helps you be vigilant
00:27:48.520 | about your character and doctrine.
00:27:50.240 | So here are three specific examples
00:27:54.520 | of how God has used writings
00:27:56.960 | to help me be vigilant about how I live.
00:27:58.920 | One, meditating on specific passages of scripture
00:28:03.000 | helps me focus on the type of character that God esteems.
00:28:07.720 | Two, outside the Bible,
00:28:09.080 | the stories that have most formed my character by far
00:28:12.800 | are the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis.
00:28:15.320 | And I'm not embarrassed to say that.
00:28:17.680 | I still listen to those.
00:28:19.740 | I've lost count.
00:28:21.400 | It's 50, 100, 150, I don't know.
00:28:23.600 | It's a lot.
00:28:25.200 | I started when I was a kid, and I haven't stopped.
00:28:28.920 | Here's an example.
00:28:29.760 | When everyone around you is believing lies,
00:28:33.620 | what you need is the smell of burnt marsh wiggle.
00:28:38.700 | And if you don't know what I'm talking about,
00:28:41.500 | you need to read The Silver Chair.
00:28:43.720 | Third example, the years 2020 and 2021
00:28:47.740 | were unusually difficult for many leaders,
00:28:50.220 | including pastors and professors in America.
00:28:53.320 | And some leaders wilted under emotional pressure
00:28:58.320 | from highly reactive people
00:29:00.140 | in the midst of tensions about politics,
00:29:02.640 | ethnic partiality, the infectious COVID-19 disease,
00:29:07.220 | and government lockdowns, and mask mandates,
00:29:10.100 | and vaccinations, and intolerant demands
00:29:12.660 | growing from expressive individualism.
00:29:14.560 | Sorry if I'm bringing back bad memories for you all.
00:29:18.340 | During this turmoil, I read a book
00:29:20.340 | called The Failure of Nerve by Edwin Friedman.
00:29:24.720 | Not a Christian.
00:29:25.940 | I was astounded with his common grace insights
00:29:29.380 | about leadership that applied directly
00:29:31.500 | to parents and pastors and professors.
00:29:34.100 | I learned that good leaders are stable and sober-minded.
00:29:38.980 | Good leaders don't anxiously react
00:29:41.460 | to highly reactive people by hurting the whole group
00:29:44.980 | to adapt to the least mature members of the group.
00:29:47.980 | Good leaders don't let criticism ruin them.
00:29:50.260 | Good leaders recognize that criticism
00:29:51.800 | comes with the territory of good leadership.
00:29:53.700 | That was helpful, that was really helpful.
00:29:55.420 | Reading books can help you in that way.
00:29:57.740 | Here's a third recommendation, what to read.
00:29:59.840 | Read what helps you excel at what God has called you to do.
00:30:04.440 | So if you're a Christian, God has called you
00:30:06.000 | to be a faithful church member.
00:30:08.200 | If you're a male, God has called you to be a faithful man,
00:30:11.400 | son, brother, husband, father, grandfather.
00:30:14.240 | If you're female, God's called you to be a faithful woman,
00:30:16.840 | daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother.
00:30:20.240 | God has called individuals to do various jobs,
00:30:22.960 | paid and unpaid.
00:30:24.920 | God has called us to all kinds of worthy vocations.
00:30:27.000 | So read what helps you excel
00:30:29.080 | at what God has called you to do.
00:30:31.520 | Suggestion, or recommendation four,
00:30:33.680 | is read what helps you better understand reality.
00:30:37.000 | Better understanding reality
00:30:39.960 | helps you better understand and worship God.
00:30:43.520 | So here are three overlapping categories of books
00:30:46.800 | that can help you better understand reality.
00:30:49.100 | Great books, stories about history, and fiction.
00:30:53.200 | So I'll say something briefly about each of these.
00:30:54.480 | First, great books.
00:30:56.000 | The category great books typically refers to classics,
00:30:59.920 | like Plato's Republic.
00:31:02.280 | So classic books have earned their privileged position
00:31:05.400 | by proving to generations that they're top quality.
00:31:08.300 | Does everything in the classics
00:31:10.760 | align with what the Bible teaches?
00:31:13.360 | Not even close, if you read the Greek myths.
00:31:16.940 | So every non-inspired book we read requires discernment.
00:31:21.940 | In such cases, as Augustine argues,
00:31:25.720 | Christians may glean from the classics
00:31:28.160 | similar to how the Egyptians, excuse me,
00:31:30.440 | how the Israelites plundered the Egyptians
00:31:33.400 | to decorate the tabernacle.
00:31:34.800 | Great books can help you mature,
00:31:38.200 | to develop stable, sober-mindedness.
00:31:40.840 | Great books can help stress test what you believe
00:31:45.620 | by subjecting you to contrary ideas
00:31:47.760 | and by helping you form
00:31:49.440 | deep-rooted convictions about reality.
00:31:52.780 | That's why my daughters are reading books
00:31:55.680 | in the Integrated Humanities or Omnibus courses
00:31:58.360 | from Logos Online School.
00:32:00.120 | It's why the Bethlehem College features Omnia,
00:32:04.320 | an extended academic core.
00:32:06.820 | Bethlehem College refers to our strategy as great books
00:32:10.920 | in light of the greatest book
00:32:12.600 | for the sake of the Great Commission.
00:32:15.040 | So that's great books.
00:32:16.080 | And then stories about history.
00:32:18.400 | This is my favorite way to learn history.
00:32:20.360 | It's so much more interesting to learn about
00:32:22.280 | key names and dates and events
00:32:24.080 | in the context of a gripping story
00:32:26.880 | that makes it feel like you know the main characters.
00:32:29.540 | And then fiction.
00:32:31.280 | I quit reading fiction in college and graduate school
00:32:35.220 | so that I could focus on exegesis and theology.
00:32:37.620 | And that was a mistake.
00:32:40.240 | I'm looking at the Comptons right there.
00:32:42.220 | We were part of the same church for a bit
00:32:43.660 | and our pastor, Mike Bulmore, whom we dearly love,
00:32:47.240 | he was in my home and we were sharing a meal or something
00:32:51.000 | and he said, "Hey, so Andy, what fiction are you reading?"
00:32:53.760 | I was a PhD student at the time
00:32:55.520 | and I kind of, I don't have time for fiction.
00:32:58.700 | I thought that was a good answer,
00:32:59.600 | that he would be pleased with me.
00:33:01.400 | And he said, "Oh, Andy."
00:33:02.600 | And he gave me a gentle rebuke and I took it to heart.
00:33:09.520 | You need fiction.
00:33:10.800 | Why?
00:33:11.720 | Reading good fiction is valuable for at least three reasons.
00:33:15.120 | One, it helps you better understand God and God's creation,
00:33:20.120 | particularly human nature.
00:33:22.520 | Second, good fiction engages your mind and imagination
00:33:26.960 | and emotions in a way that nonfiction doesn't.
00:33:30.000 | And third, good fiction is a gift from God for us to enjoy
00:33:34.480 | and we should treasure God by enjoying his gifts.
00:33:37.680 | So read what helps you better understand reality.
00:33:39.720 | That's the fourth recommendation.
00:33:42.160 | Number five, read what you wholesomely enjoy.
00:33:45.260 | The type of reading I'm describing here is pure leisure.
00:33:52.800 | It's reading for pleasure, reading for joy.
00:33:55.960 | It's what Alan Jacobs calls reading at whim, W-H-I-M.
00:34:00.960 | In C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters,
00:34:06.020 | the senior demon Screwtape rebukes
00:34:08.000 | his apprentice Wormwood.
00:34:09.240 | He says, "You first of all allowed the patient
00:34:12.480 | "to read a book he really enjoyed because he enjoyed it
00:34:16.440 | "and not in order to make clever remarks about it
00:34:18.620 | "to his new friends."
00:34:21.480 | He's showing how that's a satanic device.
00:34:23.820 | Satan and his demons don't want you to read
00:34:27.160 | what you wholesomely enjoy.
00:34:28.560 | Recommendation six, read what models outstanding writing.
00:34:34.000 | If you want to write well, then read outstanding writers.
00:34:40.200 | And recommendation seven, read what people you respect
00:34:44.360 | and trust recommend.
00:34:46.240 | There's just too many reading options
00:34:47.780 | for one person to filter.
00:34:49.600 | It's much wiser to work as a team
00:34:51.360 | and learn from the reading recommendations
00:34:53.040 | of people you respect and trust.
00:34:56.200 | So those are why, how, and what you should read.
00:35:01.200 | There's one last practical question to ask,
00:35:04.840 | and that's when should you read?
00:35:07.240 | The short answer to that is read whenever you can.
00:35:10.560 | And I put an asterisk there.
00:35:12.040 | Read whenever you responsibly can.
00:35:15.940 | So here are seven tips for making reading
00:35:18.240 | part of your routine.
00:35:19.640 | Number one, start small.
00:35:21.880 | It's better to read something good,
00:35:24.360 | something good, than to read nothing at all.
00:35:27.000 | Even if that means you're starting
00:35:28.040 | with just five minutes a day.
00:35:29.640 | So you may not be able to run a marathon today,
00:35:31.840 | but could you walk around a track one time?
00:35:35.460 | Just walk?
00:35:36.680 | So start small, gradually go further
00:35:39.980 | as your endurance increases.
00:35:41.700 | Tip two, plan what to read.
00:35:44.200 | Develop a feasible reading plan.
00:35:47.380 | Don't worry about getting it perfect.
00:35:48.960 | You can tweak it along the way.
00:35:50.480 | But having a plan is better than having no plan.
00:35:54.240 | So here are four suggestions to help you plan what to read.
00:35:57.520 | First, follow a Bible reading plan.
00:36:00.400 | And don't worry about getting behind.
00:36:02.520 | What matters most is that you're constantly
00:36:04.160 | feeding on God's word.
00:36:05.680 | And second, plan to diversify your reading.
00:36:08.080 | So various time periods, old and new,
00:36:11.080 | diverse styles of literature.
00:36:12.520 | Read multiple books at a time.
00:36:16.380 | Have a handful of options, like a weighty theological book,
00:36:20.540 | like Calvin's Institutes.
00:36:22.420 | An accessible devotional, like J.I. Packer's Knowing God.
00:36:26.100 | Some fiction my daughter would like,
00:36:28.980 | maybe Victor Hugo's Les Mis.
00:36:31.040 | A biography, like Ian Murray on Martin Lloyd-Jones.
00:36:34.400 | A current event book, current events book,
00:36:36.780 | like say Thomas Sowell on race and economics.
00:36:40.020 | One of those books may strike you as particularly appealing
00:36:43.620 | at different times of the day.
00:36:44.900 | So it's good to have different options.
00:36:47.540 | And then plan to study a particular topic.
00:36:50.340 | You may decide to study a portion of scripture in depth.
00:36:53.860 | Or you may want to study an influential
00:36:56.080 | and destructive ideology, like critical theory,
00:36:58.940 | or the prosperity gospel.
00:37:01.260 | So that's tip number two, plan what to read.
00:37:03.620 | Tip three, listen to audio books.
00:37:08.300 | Some of you are tissing right now.
00:37:10.180 | You're a purist.
00:37:11.020 | You're a purist, and you say,
00:37:11.840 | "An audio book doesn't count as reading."
00:37:13.900 | And my reply to that is, that's nonsense.
00:37:16.860 | It's merely a different kind of reading,
00:37:20.380 | in which someone else is reading aloud.
00:37:23.140 | Audio books are awesome.
00:37:26.100 | I love 'em.
00:37:27.460 | And I would like you to love them too.
00:37:29.740 | So here are 11 benefits of audio books.
00:37:32.380 | I'll go fast.
00:37:34.100 | I'm serious, I'm gonna prove it.
00:37:36.660 | Number one, audio books are convenient
00:37:40.020 | when it would be difficult to read a print book.
00:37:41.800 | And I'm cutting out paragraphs
00:37:43.300 | under each one of these statements.
00:37:45.660 | Audio books are convenient to store,
00:37:48.660 | convenient to transport, can be easier,
00:37:51.740 | can be easier to understand and remember.
00:37:54.820 | They're an incredible deal.
00:37:56.860 | Okay, let me say something about that.
00:37:58.660 | An audio book enables you to listen
00:38:00.620 | to a professional read aloud to you
00:38:03.220 | at any time you want, at any speed and volume,
00:38:06.620 | that you can adjust along the way.
00:38:08.600 | How cool is that?
00:38:10.500 | Six, audio books can be delightful.
00:38:13.380 | My favorite reader is Jim Dale.
00:38:15.680 | He brilliantly narrates the Harry, not narrates,
00:38:18.740 | he performs the Harry Potter books.
00:38:21.660 | My second favorite reader is Andy Serkis,
00:38:23.900 | who masterfully performs Tolkien's The Hobbit
00:38:26.580 | and The Lord of the Rings.
00:38:27.460 | He's the actor who plays Gollum in the movies,
00:38:30.300 | which is one thing the movies got just right.
00:38:32.760 | Seven, the audio books give your eyes a break.
00:38:36.600 | Eight, audio books can be a better option
00:38:39.720 | than reading with your eyes,
00:38:42.220 | especially for books you wanna macro read.
00:38:43.860 | Like, I like audio books for listening
00:38:45.460 | to biographies and histories and novels.
00:38:49.620 | Nine, audio books can helpfully supplement
00:38:51.840 | certain books with your eyes.
00:38:54.280 | I love to listen to the Bible.
00:38:56.280 | 10, audio books can enhance visual reading,
00:38:58.500 | so you can engage multiple senses
00:39:00.420 | by reading with your ears and your eyes at the same time.
00:39:03.220 | And audio books are ideal for road trips.
00:39:06.080 | That's just 11 that come to mind.
00:39:09.260 | Okay, tip four, plan when and where to read.
00:39:13.240 | Have you thought strategically about where you read?
00:39:17.660 | You can read while you're sitting or standing,
00:39:21.920 | stationary or moving, so figure out ideal combinations
00:39:26.260 | of place and time for your optimal reading.
00:39:29.440 | And here are six times you could plan when to read.
00:39:33.360 | Shortly after you wake up,
00:39:35.140 | I think that's an ideal time to feed on God's words.
00:39:37.300 | You create a routine so that your reading time
00:39:40.420 | and spot is consistent and automatic.
00:39:43.220 | Read during scheduled blocks of time.
00:39:45.220 | Put it in your calendar, and when someone asks
00:39:47.460 | if you're free at that time, you can say no.
00:39:50.660 | You don't have to tell them why.
00:39:52.460 | Third, read during predictable, redeemable times.
00:39:55.400 | This could be while you're walking
00:39:56.520 | or traveling or showering.
00:39:58.400 | It's possible.
00:40:01.260 | Read during unscheduled free times,
00:40:03.740 | like when you're waiting in line or stuck in traffic
00:40:06.060 | or waiting for a meeting to start.
00:40:08.180 | Read before you go to sleep.
00:40:10.660 | Fantastic way to end the day and prepare for deep sleep.
00:40:14.340 | And then read on retreats and vacations.
00:40:16.660 | Just schedule half a day or an entire day or more
00:40:19.180 | to rest and relax by reading.
00:40:20.700 | Tip five, read consistently.
00:40:24.120 | Would you rather eat one amazing meal one time a week
00:40:29.740 | or eat three times a day smaller bits for every day?
00:40:34.660 | And the answer is, yeah, I'd rather eat regularly, right?
00:40:37.180 | Treat reading like you treat eating.
00:40:38.940 | Prioritize a daily reading routine
00:40:41.060 | over reading big chunks sporadically.
00:40:42.780 | But it doesn't have to be either/or.
00:40:45.100 | You could devote larger chunks to reading,
00:40:48.860 | like on a Sunday afternoon.
00:40:50.460 | You could sit down and read a whole book
00:40:51.680 | of the Bible at one time.
00:40:53.780 | The key is that you read consistently.
00:40:55.120 | So make a plan, stick with it.
00:40:57.660 | Tip six, read with others.
00:40:59.140 | So you can team up with a friend or a group of friends
00:41:01.740 | to discuss what you read,
00:41:02.900 | and that will help you read carefully.
00:41:04.600 | And more systematically,
00:41:05.940 | and you can benefit from the insights of other people.
00:41:08.620 | And tip seven, read responsibly.
00:41:11.980 | So C.S. Lewis distinguishes two types of reading.
00:41:14.780 | He calls it escape and escapism.
00:41:18.400 | He says escape is fine, escapism is not.
00:41:22.460 | The point is that there's more to life than reading.
00:41:25.860 | And too much of a good thing is not good.
00:41:27.620 | If you drink too much water,
00:41:29.300 | you can die of water intoxication.
00:41:32.080 | So do good things proportionately.
00:41:34.180 | You have many responsibilities as a Christian,
00:41:36.220 | and you would be disobeying God
00:41:37.780 | if you choose to read so much
00:41:39.580 | that you fail to meet those other obligations.
00:41:42.300 | So, those are my very concise answers
00:41:47.100 | to the four big questions.
00:41:48.740 | Why should you read?
00:41:49.940 | How should you read?
00:41:50.980 | What should you read?
00:41:52.180 | And when should you read?
00:41:53.580 | And now it's your turn to ask some questions and some Q&A.
00:41:56.340 | So just go ahead and raise your hand, I'll call on you.
00:41:58.660 | And I'll repeat your question,
00:41:59.980 | and we'll go until someone asks us to stop.
00:42:02.460 | So who would like to ask the first question about reading?
00:42:05.300 | Yes, sir, Brian D. White.
00:42:07.820 | - What fiction are you reading right now?
00:42:09.420 | - What fiction am I reading right now?
00:42:11.400 | Well, I can show you on my phone, actually.
00:42:13.140 | So, I don't read, yeah,
00:42:16.140 | I don't think I read any fiction with my eyes.
00:42:19.020 | That might sound bad to some of you.
00:42:20.940 | The reason is I use my eyes for reading on the screen
00:42:24.900 | pretty much all day.
00:42:26.740 | And if I can enjoy reading in another mode
00:42:31.460 | with just my ears while I'm driving or walking
00:42:34.220 | or working out or something, I prefer that.
00:42:36.820 | So there is a book by,
00:42:41.820 | it's Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle,
00:42:44.460 | and it's read by Stephen Fry,
00:42:46.520 | who's got an amazing British voice.
00:42:50.420 | And if you subscribe to Audible,
00:42:52.380 | you can stream it from Audible.
00:42:54.020 | It's, it's good.
00:42:56.380 | I've listened to the, or read the Sherlock Holmes
00:42:58.700 | many times, but this is my favorite time so far.
00:43:01.680 | Right there.
00:43:04.340 | - How do you read false teaching,
00:43:05.980 | or if you should read false teaching?
00:43:07.980 | - How do I read false teaching
00:43:09.820 | if I should read false teaching?
00:43:12.260 | I'm a, I'm a pastor and professor,
00:43:14.260 | which means I read a lot of bad things
00:43:15.880 | for the sake of other people to help them,
00:43:18.260 | because one of my jobs is to root out error
00:43:20.300 | and destroy bad arguments and understand Satan's schemes.
00:43:24.100 | My other title, my unofficial title
00:43:25.980 | is I'm professor of defense against the dark arts.
00:43:28.620 | So I take that seriously.
00:43:30.060 | So I read bad teaching daily,
00:43:33.060 | and I do it with more seriousness than with joy.
00:43:38.980 | And my mindset is I want to love what's true
00:43:42.540 | and root out what's false for the sake of the church.
00:43:45.580 | So I read it carefully.
00:43:47.420 | My goal is to understand it accurately
00:43:50.180 | and to represent it fairly,
00:43:51.460 | such that if I represent someone's position,
00:43:53.900 | they would say, yeah, that's my view.
00:43:55.140 | You said it better than I could myself.
00:43:56.700 | Never want to misrepresent a view,
00:43:59.060 | but represent it fairly in the best possible way,
00:44:02.100 | and then show where it fails.
00:44:04.440 | So did you have more in mind there?
00:44:07.340 | Okay.
00:44:08.980 | Right back here and then here.
00:44:10.660 | Is that Jared?
00:44:11.860 | Okay.
00:44:12.700 | - So in the books over again,
00:44:15.100 | periodicals and other kinds of reading.
00:44:17.900 | - Yeah, he's asking about books versus articles,
00:44:23.340 | blog posts, news articles, that sort of thing.
00:44:27.700 | And I say in the book manuscript,
00:44:30.500 | my advice for books applies
00:44:32.140 | to all those other kinds of reading.
00:44:34.380 | It's just, those are smaller units.
00:44:35.940 | So the way you can survey an article,
00:44:38.180 | you can do that with, excuse me,
00:44:39.300 | the way you survey a book,
00:44:40.220 | you can do with an article as well.
00:44:41.840 | Same skillset, just less time.
00:44:44.100 | So is there more you're wondering there?
00:44:47.980 | - What percentage are you--
00:44:49.700 | - Oh, what percentage?
00:44:51.420 | I don't--
00:44:52.260 | - Are you curious about that?
00:44:54.220 | - It's probably 50/50,
00:44:55.340 | 'cause I keep track of over 100 theological journals,
00:44:59.020 | which come out multiple times a year.
00:45:00.340 | So I'm constantly downloading those.
00:45:01.980 | I keep track of a couple hundred blogs by RSS feeds,
00:45:05.580 | and then I have Twitter feeds.
00:45:07.420 | I'm processing a lot of those.
00:45:08.920 | I saw a hand over here.
00:45:11.180 | Yeah.
00:45:12.020 | - When this book releases in March,
00:45:13.180 | will there be an audio book available?
00:45:14.740 | - Yes, I plan to read it myself.
00:45:16.340 | He asked, will my book have an audio book?
00:45:18.260 | And I've asked Canon Press,
00:45:20.180 | I would like to read it,
00:45:21.140 | because I prefer to listen to an audio book
00:45:23.860 | by the author, read by the author.
00:45:26.380 | Even if he doesn't have a professional voice,
00:45:28.620 | I think he will pronounce things correctly
00:45:30.420 | and emphasize things correctly.
00:45:31.900 | It's just more interesting.
00:45:33.540 | So if they let me.
00:45:34.660 | They said I have to do a trial submission,
00:45:36.980 | and if I pass their test, then it will be me.
00:45:38.920 | Okay.
00:45:40.000 | Good luck.
00:45:40.840 | And here we say good providence.
00:45:42.700 | (audience laughing)
00:45:43.540 | Yeah.
00:45:44.360 | All right, so right here.
00:45:45.300 | Mr. Siegel.
00:45:47.220 | - So, Karen Swalwell Pryor,
00:45:50.580 | written a lot about writing and reading,
00:45:53.280 | had a piece in that Baptist theology book
00:45:57.140 | where she raised, it was a thoughtful article
00:46:01.620 | in which she talked about the challenges
00:46:05.260 | that we face in ministry
00:46:07.100 | in what appears to be a post-Christian culture
00:46:12.380 | emerging around this,
00:46:14.500 | is made all the more complicated
00:46:17.700 | by an emerging post-literate culture.
00:46:20.860 | And that person's obvious challenges
00:46:27.220 | to us, to his faith, to his ministry,
00:46:31.420 | to the gospel depends on books and on readings.
00:46:34.860 | My question would be,
00:46:36.240 | do you share this view of an emerging
00:46:40.540 | post-literate culture,
00:46:43.300 | and what are we to do about that?
00:46:48.300 | - Good question.
00:46:49.340 | He's asking, do I think that we live
00:46:51.660 | in a post-literate culture,
00:46:53.560 | and do I have any concerns about that?
00:46:55.100 | The answer is, if you defend post-literate
00:46:57.980 | meaning people aren't as good at reading
00:46:59.940 | as they used to be, yes.
00:47:01.380 | It doesn't mean that people in our culture
00:47:02.580 | can't read, per se.
00:47:03.860 | It's just their idea of reading is scrolling Instagram
00:47:07.020 | and looking at the captions under the pictures.
00:47:09.460 | That's reading.
00:47:11.540 | And that makes it really hard to communicate
00:47:14.220 | the most important truths seriously,
00:47:16.240 | which makes preaching harder,
00:47:18.380 | because it's hard for people to listen
00:47:20.360 | to a sustained argument for 40 minutes.
00:47:23.380 | It makes teaching harder,
00:47:24.380 | 'cause people's attention spans are warped,
00:47:27.400 | and they can't, maybe some of you can attest to this.
00:47:31.100 | I just think back 25 years,
00:47:33.220 | when I was working on papers,
00:47:35.340 | and then working on dissertations,
00:47:36.940 | I would regularly spend four, five, 10-hour stretches
00:47:41.540 | in my study with no internet access,
00:47:44.660 | lost in my books, lost in my own world,
00:47:47.660 | no email to check, no phone ringing,
00:47:49.940 | didn't have a phone, just immersed in the literature.
00:47:54.260 | And that was fun, and I was focused,
00:47:57.660 | and that was normal.
00:47:59.560 | And now, you think I'd be more mature about it, right?
00:48:02.980 | I'd be even better at it.
00:48:03.820 | Now, I read not just a chapter of a book,
00:48:06.880 | I read a section of a book,
00:48:09.180 | and without thinking, I switch over
00:48:11.820 | to my email application and hit refresh.
00:48:14.860 | I hate that, I hate that.
00:48:17.300 | If that's happening to me,
00:48:18.140 | it's gotta be happening to other people, right?
00:48:21.400 | And you're all guilty, aren't you?
00:48:22.820 | (audience laughing)
00:48:25.860 | Yeah, over here, and then over here, yep.
00:48:27.740 | - Do you have any advice for readers
00:48:29.660 | with disabilities, advice I could give?
00:48:32.420 | - Yes, I do.
00:48:35.200 | He asks about readers with dyslexia.
00:48:39.200 | Do you wanna come up and say something about that?
00:48:42.920 | No, she has read books and books about that,
00:48:45.680 | 'cause she's an educator, my wife,
00:48:47.360 | and just knows more than I do.
00:48:49.360 | But what you can do is recognize
00:48:51.760 | that someone with dyslexia is not dumb.
00:48:55.060 | Sometimes they're way smarter than you are,
00:48:57.060 | it's just they have a challenge in a way that you don't.
00:48:59.900 | And they can take in, for example,
00:49:02.020 | someone else reading a book,
00:49:03.280 | and understand it better than the average person.
00:49:06.220 | Their mental abilities are sharp, and they're all there.
00:49:09.120 | And this is where that person's parents, teachers,
00:49:13.820 | need to learn different tools and techniques
00:49:16.280 | to help them get over certain barriers
00:49:18.600 | where they can learn to overcome that impediment
00:49:22.100 | and still succeed well.
00:49:23.020 | And it can be done.
00:49:24.000 | There are many people in this room who've done that,
00:49:26.000 | I know, and who love it.
00:49:29.120 | There's a lot more to say.
00:49:30.000 | If you have specifics,
00:49:31.320 | come talk to me afterwards, or talk to my wife.
00:49:33.520 | Right there.
00:49:34.340 | - I'm wondering, in a non-fiction domain,
00:49:37.920 | where you're trying to capture a lot of ideas,
00:49:41.640 | a lot of perspectives, and terms,
00:49:43.840 | and propositions, and that kind of thing,
00:49:45.800 | and you went and archived those, and managed that,
00:49:49.160 | and then be able to synthesize that,
00:49:51.920 | and keep track of it, and so forth,
00:49:53.860 | do you just use paper resources,
00:49:57.280 | or do you have digital, or do you have lots of digital
00:49:59.840 | note-taking applications that you use any of that technology?
00:50:04.480 | - The question is, how do you rigorously follow,
00:50:07.720 | trace an argument when you're reading?
00:50:09.880 | Do you take notes in some way?
00:50:12.060 | And personally, what I do is I take notes
00:50:14.080 | in the item I'm reading.
00:50:16.100 | So if I own it in print, I always have a pen or pencil,
00:50:19.920 | and I'm marking it up.
00:50:21.360 | So you can actually pick up books I've read.
00:50:24.640 | Kara did this the other day.
00:50:25.600 | She read Desiring God by John Piper,
00:50:27.580 | and it had my markings in it from the '90s,
00:50:30.000 | and she would come, "Dad, you wrote this in the margin.
00:50:31.800 | "Do you still believe that?"
00:50:32.840 | Like, "Uh, no, I probably wouldn't say it like that."
00:50:35.060 | (audience laughing)
00:50:36.520 | So I argue with the books.
00:50:38.000 | It's kind of fun to go back and look.
00:50:39.160 | If I'm in Logos software, or with a PDF,
00:50:42.760 | I'm marking it up right there.
00:50:43.680 | If I don't own the book, if it's a library book,
00:50:45.540 | I use a program called Zotero,
00:50:47.080 | and it has a note option in there,
00:50:48.480 | and I'm taking notes there.
00:50:49.960 | When I take the most detailed notes
00:50:51.360 | is when I'm going to review that book.
00:50:53.960 | So if I'm reviewing a book,
00:50:55.500 | or I'm gonna be using it real carefully
00:50:57.080 | in something I'm writing,
00:50:58.160 | I'm taking very detailed notes.
00:51:00.800 | Sometimes I will write the outline of the book
00:51:03.480 | in a separate document so I can compare.
00:51:06.120 | My favorite, I love this, by the way,
00:51:07.360 | when a book has not just a bare-bones table of contents,
00:51:10.140 | but has a detailed table of contents,
00:51:12.880 | an analytical outline that has all the headings
00:51:15.520 | and subheadings.
00:51:16.760 | I love that.
00:51:17.600 | That helps you X-ray a book to get its big idea.
00:51:20.180 | Is that helping a little bit?
00:51:23.440 | Okay, other questions?
00:51:24.820 | Right here.
00:51:26.000 | - So how can I encourage my family members
00:51:28.920 | to love and enjoy reading,
00:51:31.180 | but they are interested in like a book about YouTube,
00:51:36.180 | or they've just been distracted by that?
00:51:38.240 | How do you encourage them to love reading?
00:51:42.200 | - Good question.
00:51:43.040 | Basically, how do I encourage family members
00:51:45.440 | to love reading when they're distracted
00:51:46.880 | by YouTube and other things?
00:51:48.460 | I have an appendix in my book.
00:51:51.040 | I forget the title.
00:51:51.880 | I think it's 22 Ways to Encourage Your Children
00:51:55.160 | to Love Reading, something like that.
00:51:56.800 | So I won't read the whole thing to you here,
00:51:59.040 | but it starts when they're young.
00:52:02.560 | My wife has been a master at this.
00:52:04.200 | So since our kids have been young,
00:52:06.540 | she would come home every week
00:52:07.680 | with about 100 books from the library.
00:52:09.880 | It's harder to do with the libraries now
00:52:11.120 | 'cause they have all these LGBT books for the kids.
00:52:13.640 | It's really bad.
00:52:15.140 | But having a home that focuses on books, books everywhere,
00:52:18.400 | use them all the time,
00:52:19.720 | don't have big screens all over the place,
00:52:21.240 | or little screens all over the place.
00:52:22.400 | Just make it a book paradise.
00:52:24.560 | Give books for gifts, for them to own
00:52:27.160 | and build their library.
00:52:28.000 | Talk about books all the time.
00:52:29.400 | Be a reader yourself.
00:52:30.320 | Read aloud, read aloud in the morning.
00:52:33.120 | My wife reads the Bible aloud at breakfast.
00:52:35.320 | She reads some kind of classic story after lunch.
00:52:38.160 | I often read in the evenings after dinner.
00:52:39.900 | The girls often listen to audio books together before bed.
00:52:42.900 | It's just, it's just in our cycle.
00:52:45.800 | It's in our routine, reading, listening to books.
00:52:48.440 | And then they do it for fun when they have free time.
00:52:50.840 | So it's kind of, it's like when you wanna cultivate
00:52:54.400 | a taste for good food,
00:52:56.240 | you can't just change something overnight
00:52:57.700 | if you've developed a love for really poor food.
00:53:01.120 | You have to do it gradually.
00:53:02.720 | But you can change your tastes.
00:53:04.760 | It can be done so that you actually enjoy good food.
00:53:08.320 | I think that's what reading is like.
00:53:10.520 | Good question, right here.
00:53:11.800 | - How do you distinguish between great books and fiction?
00:53:15.200 | - How do you distinguish between great books and fiction?
00:53:17.960 | - What's your distinction?
00:53:20.200 | - Well, some great books include fiction.
00:53:22.500 | But I was thinking that the category great books
00:53:26.680 | includes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
00:53:30.680 | And then a subset of that is fiction
00:53:33.620 | that's not great books.
00:53:35.220 | So an example of fiction that is not
00:53:38.880 | in the great books category
00:53:41.080 | might be like a modern novel about a Navy SEAL
00:53:44.080 | that I find interesting.
00:53:46.120 | That's not great books.
00:53:47.840 | But I could enjoy it.
00:53:50.160 | But reading "The Odyssey," that's great books.
00:53:54.700 | And "The Odyssey" is different than "The Odyssey."
00:54:00.280 | Okay, right there.
00:54:01.880 | - When there's a movie out,
00:54:03.840 | do you recommend reading the book first
00:54:08.520 | and then watching the movie, or watching the movie first?
00:54:11.760 | - She says when there's a movie out
00:54:13.360 | that is based on a book,
00:54:15.380 | do you recommend watching the movie first
00:54:16.840 | or reading the book first?
00:54:18.960 | You know what I'm gonna say.
00:54:20.800 | Read the book and don't watch the movie.
00:54:22.840 | (audience laughing)
00:54:25.080 | Next question, yeah.
00:54:26.360 | Yes, right there.
00:54:29.040 | - How can you micro-read fiction
00:54:32.160 | that isn't like great books?
00:54:34.520 | - How can you micro-read fiction?
00:54:36.400 | I don't think fiction typically is something you micro-read,
00:54:39.120 | unless you're analyzing it for a dissertation.
00:54:42.080 | In general, fiction is just,
00:54:43.920 | it's supposed to be for joy.
00:54:45.840 | And to micro-read it is,
00:54:48.620 | I think, to over-analyze it,
00:54:49.880 | unless you're a professional reader
00:54:51.120 | and you're gonna teach on it and write a paper on it.
00:54:53.680 | Yeah.
00:54:54.920 | Yes, right there.
00:54:56.420 | - How do you survey or macro-read theological books?
00:55:00.520 | - Yeah, how do you survey or macro-read theological books?
00:55:02.920 | So I have to answer, that's two questions.
00:55:05.080 | Survey a theological book by,
00:55:08.200 | well, am I still sharing my screen?
00:55:12.240 | I am.
00:55:13.860 | It would take too long.
00:55:14.700 | I was gonna navigate by Dropbox to a PDF and show you,
00:55:17.320 | but that would take too long.
00:55:18.700 | Basically, I get a lot of,
00:55:21.640 | I'm the administrator for Thamelias,
00:55:23.800 | and I administrate the book reviews,
00:55:25.160 | and I get hundreds of books a year from publishers,
00:55:27.680 | the books that are about to come out,
00:55:29.600 | so we can consider reviewing them.
00:55:31.160 | So as I process these books,
00:55:33.120 | I have to process large batches of them
00:55:35.560 | and then sort them in my Zotero library quickly.
00:55:38.380 | So I learn how to look at an author,
00:55:40.480 | look at the topic, the title, subtitle,
00:55:43.600 | look at the table of contents,
00:55:44.660 | figure out what is this book about.
00:55:46.060 | You can do that in less than a minute.
00:55:47.960 | That's not that hard.
00:55:49.160 | Then what I'd wanna do next is figure out,
00:55:51.960 | is this something that interests me?
00:55:53.240 | Is this an author I trust?
00:55:54.360 | Is this a topic I need to know more about?
00:55:55.940 | Is this a book that seems like it's gonna be important
00:55:57.600 | for my field or for something I'm writing,
00:55:59.320 | something I'm teaching, something like that?
00:56:01.880 | And then I have a, if so, I put it in another folder
00:56:04.340 | for reading in my reading queue.
00:56:07.300 | And so my attitude towards a book is,
00:56:11.080 | there are millions of books to read.
00:56:14.480 | I'll give you 30 seconds, go.
00:56:16.380 | You gotta earn everything beyond that.
00:56:19.100 | Like, that sounds so pretentious,
00:56:21.580 | but it's just, life's too short to waste on bad books.
00:56:24.620 | So my serving is kind of filtering out
00:56:27.860 | ones that don't merit the time.
00:56:29.300 | And if I get the sense this is good writing,
00:56:30.900 | it's a good topic, it's an author I trust,
00:56:32.560 | or it looks like this will be an important book
00:56:34.500 | to interact with, then it'll bump up into,
00:56:38.140 | let's spend more time serving it.
00:56:39.340 | I'll give it a half hour, I'll give it an hour.
00:56:41.280 | And if I, as I'm doing that, and it draws me in,
00:56:44.340 | then you know it's a good book.
00:56:46.840 | Or I was gonna give it 30 minutes,
00:56:48.240 | and oh, two hours just went by.
00:56:49.840 | I'm reading every word.
00:56:51.040 | I choose to macro-read it.
00:56:52.240 | So it's gotta earn that.
00:56:53.760 | And the macro-read is this, you're moving along,
00:56:56.400 | you're reading every word, you're no longer surveying.
00:56:59.840 | That's a short answer, but hope that helps a little bit.
00:57:02.640 | Any other questions?
00:57:05.520 | Brian Deck, and then right here.
00:57:07.120 | - Do you use all three levels of reading
00:57:09.120 | with Bible consumption?
00:57:10.680 | - Do I use all three levels of reading
00:57:13.140 | with Bible consumption?
00:57:14.140 | Yeah.
00:57:15.420 | But I would survey differently.
00:57:17.100 | So surveying in the sense of trying to figure out
00:57:20.620 | what is the theme of a book.
00:57:21.980 | You know this.
00:57:22.820 | Did I teach you for New Testament background and message?
00:57:24.220 | Yeah.
00:57:25.260 | So I require students to write a one-sentence summary
00:57:30.260 | of the theological message of every book
00:57:32.140 | of the New Testament.
00:57:32.980 | That's 27 sentences.
00:57:34.900 | So that requires surveying,
00:57:37.420 | and then macro and micro-reading to do that well.
00:57:39.620 | But the surveying is like, what's the big idea?
00:57:41.920 | What's the structure of this book of the Bible?
00:57:44.080 | So if you're reading the book of Matthew,
00:57:45.520 | you gotta know there are five discourses
00:57:47.460 | and five statements or parallels in between each of those,
00:57:51.220 | and they all fit together,
00:57:52.300 | and there's a front and a back,
00:57:53.140 | and there's a climax.
00:57:54.260 | Like, you gotta get that structure,
00:57:55.620 | and you can survey to get that,
00:57:56.800 | and then you can jump in.
00:57:58.400 | But normally, I'm macro-reading and micro-reading Scripture.
00:58:01.840 | Every morning, wake up, first thing, audible's up,
00:58:05.700 | I hit play.
00:58:06.720 | I pick up Bible reading where I left off.
00:58:09.320 | Every morning.
00:58:10.160 | This morning, I listened to Nahum.
00:58:14.000 | This is the next thing.
00:58:15.420 | Listen to the next thing.
00:58:16.720 | It's the slowest speed of all things I listen to.
00:58:20.420 | It's at 1.2.
00:58:21.980 | For Proverbs, I slow it down to one.
00:58:24.180 | But other than that, I go 1.2.
00:58:26.520 | But for everything else, it's usually 2.5.
00:58:29.540 | It's, we're moving.
00:58:31.100 | I saw a hand over here, yep.
00:58:32.980 | - How do you discipline yourself
00:58:34.500 | to maintain a macro-reading,
00:58:37.380 | and then not drop it down to micro?
00:58:38.900 | I find when I read, I get way too into it.
00:58:42.580 | After 20 minutes, 20, 30 minutes, and I'm in micro.
00:58:46.060 | - He's saying, how do you consistently discipline yourself
00:58:48.740 | to macro-read without going into micro-reading?
00:58:51.080 | Sometimes it's a mix.
00:58:53.320 | So the analogy is like you're on the freeway,
00:58:56.100 | and you're cruising at 60,
00:58:58.820 | and then, oh, down to 40, down to 30.
00:59:01.940 | We're rolling at five, come on.
00:59:04.180 | Okay, we're back up again.
00:59:05.580 | It's kinda like that when you're reading.
00:59:06.920 | It's not just maintaining the same speed,
00:59:09.160 | but you might slow down a little bit
00:59:10.360 | when you hit a patch where it's like,
00:59:12.600 | oh, this is really important.
00:59:14.080 | This is really interesting.
00:59:15.520 | And then you get going faster.
00:59:17.360 | So it's not just one or the other.
00:59:19.080 | Okay, anything else?
00:59:21.560 | Any other questions?
00:59:22.400 | Right here.
00:59:23.220 | - When you read carefully,
00:59:24.060 | do you apply it the same way
00:59:25.000 | across the three different levels?
00:59:26.500 | - When you read carefully,
00:59:27.520 | do you apply it in the same way
00:59:28.680 | across the three different levels?
00:59:30.620 | Yes, but you can't do it as well when you're surveying.
00:59:34.960 | 'Cause your analysis is going to be less accurate.
00:59:38.200 | So just recognize that as you do it.
00:59:40.360 | Okay, Mr. Siegel, how are you doing on time?
00:59:44.760 | One more, who would like the last question?
00:59:49.120 | I shouldn't have said that.
00:59:55.080 | Made it all dry up.
00:59:55.920 | Okay, you already asked one.
00:59:58.120 | All right, go ahead.
00:59:59.720 | - About how many books should we aspire to read?
01:00:02.720 | - Don't think that way, yeah.
01:00:04.080 | So I wouldn't count your books.
01:00:06.300 | My mentor, Don Carson, would say I read about 500 a year,
01:00:09.120 | but he's not counting.
01:00:10.600 | And if I told you the number I read,
01:00:14.400 | you would be impressed.
01:00:15.840 | But I'd say don't be impressed
01:00:16.920 | because a lot of that's surveying.
01:00:18.580 | So this isn't a competition.
01:00:21.980 | Just read in a way that honors the Lord
01:00:24.960 | as a good steward given what he's called you to do.
01:00:27.640 | And that's reading carefully five books a year.
01:00:31.000 | If those are five really good books, that's great.
01:00:34.020 | So don't walk out of here thinking,
01:00:35.280 | "Oh, I gotta go read 50 books."
01:00:37.640 | Just think, read to enjoy, read to live,
01:00:41.560 | read to grow long-term.
01:00:43.240 | All right, be encouraged.
01:00:46.400 | (audience applauding)
01:00:49.560 | (upbeat music)
01:00:52.140 | [BLANK_AUDIO]