Do you know what's good for you?

There is nothing like a nice summer day to lay in a comfortable lawn chair while reading a book.  During the winter, there is nothing like the fake electric fireplace giving off its warmth and glow while being enraptured in a book.  There is nothing like a book that can challenge a person, provide entertainment, stir the imagination, and educate all at the same time.

I admit it.  I love to read. My mom says that I was reading at the age of three, and at three and-a-half, I read the Christmas story.  As a child, every two weeks we went to the library, and I would read at least a book a day.  No, I was not the child who always had his nose in a book... only part of the time. :)  I was very much into sports, bike/motorcycle riding, exploring the countryside, a honor student, and very involved in church events.  But even with all of those activities, I always found time to read.

Reading is good for the mind.  For my children, I've tried to instill in them the desire to read.  Those who read well will also write, spell, communicate, and understand at a higher level.  I believe that if you become a strong reader, you will be stronger in all school subjects.  For adults, it will make you a more rounded person, giving you an deeper understanding of a larger world.

Reading is good for the spirit.  I completed my first Through-the-Bible-In-A-Year plan when I was around eight and since then have read the Bible through several more times in my life.  I believe God gave us His written word for a reason.  We can then go back over it again and again, learning new things. I've also read many other Christian books throughout the years, looking and learning how to live out this life.  Our spirits need food, and one way to feed them is through spiritual books.

Reading is good for learning.  It is oftentimes said that those who have not learned from history are doomed to repeat it.  Whether that is historical books, the Bible, or even historical fiction, those books help us to understand life situations, choices, and how to overcome obstacles and avoid the mistakes of those past societies.  We all may have certain historical interests.  Mine happens to be the Civil War era and the life of Abraham Lincoln.  I've read many books on those subjects.  I'm not entirely sure why, but I believe God put those interests there for a reason: for me to learn.  We can not only learn about history, but about practically any subject that interests us.

Reading is good for the soul.  Our society is so busy.  We are so easily distracted.  We get caught up in technology entrapments far too easily.  We are on the go, always wanting to do something.  Reading calms us.  It allows us to disengage from the hectic-ness of life.  We can then become lost in the world of the book; we can allow ourselves to learn. We can just be quiet.  With my family, we go to the library every few weeks.  One of my favorite times is right after coming home from the library.  All of the kids are excited about their new books and immediately disperse to various corners of the house.  We are not all together, but all together we are reading.  And all is quiet.

Yes, this blog may seem quite different from the "heavy" subjects that I've been touching upon.  But it might make as much difference in the long run if we all become avid readers.  Learning is not the highest goal, but God created us with the ability to learn.  Continual learning helps us to understand our past, to understand God better, and keep our minds & spirits alive and active.

For those of you with electronic readers, whether that is a smartphone, iPad, Nook, or Kindle, I have a few links for free books!  I'm assuming the publishers like to give some away so that you come back for more.  :)  Over the past six months, I've downloaded at least 100 books from these three links.

• For those who have a Kindle or a Kindle app: http://www.best-ereaders.com/tag/free-kindle-books/ is a list of free Kindle books.  This list is updated once or twice a week.  Some are Christian, some are not. 
• For those of you who have a Nook or a smartphone: http://www.christianbook.com/apps/easyfind?Ntt=&N=1120877&event=EBRN%7CM&Ns=product.curr_sell_price&Nao=0 This sorts the ebooks by price order.  These are all Christian books.  The site is updated once or twice a week.  The books are in DRM format, so getting them to your reading device may require a couple of steps.  
• And then there are the classics - millions of books that were written pre-1929: http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page.  There are lots of great books available.

Of course there are always books you can buy, which I encourage you to do.  For anyone who writes, or desires to write, they know that it is a huge amount of work to publish a book.  Buying books help support those writers, who then (hopefully) will write more books!

And finally, there is nothing like the feel of an physical printed book.  E-readers are great, but bookshelves filled with books are even better.  :)

Do you enjoy reading?  If you do, I'd love to hear your reading interests.  If you don't enjoy reading, I encourage you to start today!

Keith