John Wesley said once that "Reading Christians are growing Christians. When Christians cease to read, they cease to grow." Of course, he lived in a time when books didn't have to compete with screens, but he's definitely got a point. Being intentional about reading is planning for growth.
So what kinds of books are helpful for us to read? Wesley called himself 'homo unius libri' (a man of one book) - meaning that for him, the Bible was primary. Having said that, he was very well read (and owned over a thousand books), but the Bible came first. If you, like me, have struggled to maintain a practice of systematically reading the Scriptures, can I recommend two free apps:
1. the YouVersion Bible app, which gives you access to pretty much any Bible translation and comes with a multitude of reading plans and
2. the ReadingScripture app (I've been enjoying this recently) which gives you a year-long reading plan, interspersed with excellent overview videos from the Bible Project.
The Bible may come first, but we absolutely should also be exploring a range of other books - some which are fun reads, others which will stretch us - both fiction and non-fiction. Our library team has done such a great job in the last number of weeks to organise the books we have here at WMC. The Christian books are arranged in the family room / prayer chapel at the back of the sanctuary - these are for borrowing only. In the lounge, you will find a range of other books that can be borrowed or bought (chat to Pam Miller if you have any questions). Come and explore when you have a chance!