January 2019 Book Review

 One of my goals this year is to stay off my phone as much as possible (see last post) and instead, spend more time engaged with my children. I also want to read more books. Last year, other than the books I read aloud to my kids, I only managed to read a handful of books for myself. My goal is to read 10 books this year.

As I read them, I'll blog about them here.

First up, was a little book that packed a BIG punch.

When I say little, I mean in size as well as in pages. The Freedom of Self Forgetfulness is only 48 pages long. It's more like a booklet and could easily be read over a meal but I'm still digesting it, long after being read. Keller uses 1 Corinthians as the basis for understanding how the gospel gripped and transformed the Apostle Paul.

The result: gospel humility. Or, in other words: self-forgetfulness.

I'm certain I could read this book every year. It's powerful and concise. It's like a sermon that we need to hear often.  

"If we were to meet a truly humble person, we would never come away from meeting them thinking they were humble. They would not be always telling us they were a nobody (because a person who keeps saying they are a nobody is actually a self-obsessed person). The thing we would remember from meeting a truly gospel-humble person is how much they seemed to be totally interested in us. Because the essence of gospel-humility is not thinking more of myself or thinking less of myself, it is thinking of myself less.

Gospel-humility is not needing to think about myself. Not needing to connect things with myself. It is an end to thoughts such as, ‘I’m in this room with these people, does that make me look good? Do I want to be here?’ True gospel-humility means I stop connecting every experience, every conversation, with myself. In fact, I stop thinking about myself. The freedom of self-forgetfulness. The blessed rest that only self-forgetfulness brings."

Next, was Strong and Kind. Honestly, I picked up this book because I found it for only a few dollars.
I've always thought Duck Dynasty was a silly show but I've admired the Robertson family for their uncompromising faith and family values. I didn't expect to like this book. I expected to maybe skim through it and find it to be a bit shallow. Although I didn't read anything particularly new or revolutionary when it came to biblical parenting, I still got something out of this book. It made me think about the character traits we want our children to have and reminded me that it all starts with us, as parents.
I also enjoyed the personal stories. In the end, I grew in admiration for Korie and felt like I had spent some time with a sweet friend.

So, there you go! Two books down for 2019.

I'm working my way through 2 more this month but I've

got an upcoming orphan care meeting I'm organizing at church so my free time is limited right now. However, I'm still hoping to get through at least one book in February!

Have you read something you think I'd like?

Let me know!