What have been the defining moments of your life? What experiences have forever altered the course of your life? What books, relationships, choices, events have changed your direction and brought you where you are?
I can think of several, and for me some of the most powerfully influencers over the years have been books. I can look back at key crossroads, at moments of decision that forever changed my life, and almost always I can recall the influence of a powerful book.
When I was a teen, a random person gave me a cassette tape that contained a scratchy audio book of I Kissed Dating Goodbye. Whatever strengths or weaknesses of that book, it completely changed my path … for good. Several years later, The Reflective Life opened my eyes to the presence of God in all things. The Pursuit of God helped birth the Sacred Mundane. The Hole in our Gospel destroyed our neat-and-tidy American Dream and sent us (literally) packing our bags and moving in an entirely different direction. The key books will be different for all of us, but I feel strongly impressed that there are three key books that would forever alter the course of your life, if you would take the time this summer to delve into their pages.
Could this be the summer you never forget? Could this summer not only be life-changing but world-changing? Everyone with a pulse knows this to be a critical time in our country, and in our world. It can be confusing to even know how to navigate the turmoil. No matter how you lean or vote, all Christ-followers can agree on our mission: To spread the good news of the gospel by word and deed, to shine as lights in a dark land by our generosity and love, to stand in the gap as intercessors who will, with unwavering faith, believe God at His Word and carry out His Great Commission.
There are three books, I believe, that will powerfully shake us out of status quo living, that will awake our hunger for God and give us HOPE for the future. I encourage you, I challenge you, I plead with you: Consider reading these three books this summer. What are they?
Rees Howells, Intercessor by Norman Grubb
For just $30, you could invest in these three. That’s it! We could easily spend that much eating out one time, we’d spend four times that much on a concert or a conference. We’d think it was a steal to find jeans for that price. Just now I was at the garden store and almost spent that much on a hanging flower basket. (I really wanted to!) How much better to take $30 and invest in the eternal course of your life, to invest in the eternal course of the world?
Perhaps the Holy Spirit will lead you to something different, but I plead with you: Invest in eternity this summer. Do not seize the summer by (only) swimming and sun-bathing, as lovely as those things may be. Now, I’d love to hear from you: What books have been game-changers for you in life? I’d love to hear.
Plan now for a summer you’ll never forget. Thanks for reading.