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My favorite space at home is a tiny office that should have been a walk-in closet. One wall houses my personal library that I think of as my friends and teachers.
Years ago, my English professor Steve Blue caught my attention when he explained how writers have been conversing with one another through the ages.
Looking at my shelves, I have invited the majority of my collection on the topic of Christianity.
I am in a couple book groups, so there is another shelf of novels, both read and to-be read, but my priority remains on Christian authors, revisited when time allows.
A non-reader friend asked why I keep books after I have read them. Well, my memory is not as sharp anymore, but mostly I simply enjoy occasionally revisiting them.
With novels I do not have that same relationship. They mostly get passed along on a seasonal clear-out.
I imagine you have a similar love for your favorite books.
My library begs this question though: "With the Bible the only complete resource necessary for the believer, why do we enjoy various explanations about it?"
For me, part of the reason I explore various teachers is to learn other examples of a Christ-centered life from people of my own era.
Learning of others' success through their trials, their answered prayers and miracles, their healing and how they were restored helps me see that I am not the only one going through things.
Books are one way we can influence one another as we walk the paths of life. Through reading we can see how God brings people to us who have God-given wisdom and insights.
My long-time favorite teachers include Oswald Chambers, Thomas Moore, C.D. Lewis to Henry Nouwen, Lee Strobel, John Piper, Billy Graham, and Charles Stanley.
As with many things, choosing teachers is personal. I have found that browsing bookstores and talking with friends can offer recommendations, but the Holy Spirit is the best guide.
Sometimes a particular author or book title hits my listening ear like a forte musical notation. It stands out to me, and I feel drawn to jot it down, check it out.
Elisabeth Elliot's "Shadow of the Almighty, the Life and Testament of Jim Elliot," for example, is a first-person witness of perseverance to faith in God. Her written narrative of devotion strengthens and inspires. Mrs. Elliot and her missionary husband were part of the ongoing Christian conversation.
I met Mrs. Elliot at a seminar I attended with a friend on a last-minute decision. Before that weekend, she was an unfamiliar name to me, but I was drawn to go.
After having heard her teach, and having later read her books, my faith has been enriched by the witness of her life and her wisdom. Again, my thanks go to the Holy Spirit for leading me to her seminar in the first place.
Until Jesus comes again, the Holy Bible will be our living treasure, our compass, our answer book, our comfort, our reassurance. The Bible has time-tested answers to our toughest questions about God and life in general.
And with the Holy Spirit's personal and complete guidance, we will persist to witness to each other through books as well as through sharing experiences growing together in our understanding of God's continuing goodness and grace.