Reading More in 2012

If I only had time for one thing besides mothering, that place would go to reading deep, thought provoking books—and lots of them. Thankfully, I don’t have to chose only one thing and one of the things I love most about not having a 9 to 5 job is the freedom to do many things besides parent…as well as many things along side parenting. But let’s just say that we are in an alternate universe and my time was packed with mothering and I could only chose one thing extra. That one thing would be reading and thinking about what matters most in this world.

I would rather give up bathing then reading…gross, I know.

Sadly, I find too many young moms accepting the fact that mothering & reading don’t go together. I think the joke I most often hear at baby showers is how challenging it will be to read a verse in the Bible, let alone a chapter. I find this very disconcerting and terrible advice.  It is interesting how many of us women find hours a week to exercise, do laundry, shop, etc but don’t find the time to read. But more then reading God’s word (which is a necessity, I don’t know how we can survive without at least this reading consistently)—I don’t think it is wise to go most of your early years of mothering without books by your nightstand that you are slowly working your way through (and I don’t mean parenting books)--keep one in your diaper bag too, I am surprised how much I have gotten to read just waiting in doctors offices, dentist appointments, etc.

I don’t say this to guilt trip already overwhelmed moms who find it hard to pick up their Bible’s, let alone a book. All of us are made differently. Some of my friends are extroverts and they need play dates and adult interaction with other moms to survive, but that is not me. I long for time to sit down and read, dissect, and think about something.  But even if you do not love reading, I can almost personally guarantee that a good book will help keep your eyes focused on eternity, your hand to the plow, and your feet busy going about God’s business.

Reading nourishes me and helps me be a better mom. I love talking to my kids about what I read early in the day by Jonathan Edwards, CS Lewis, or DA Carson. I had so much fun last year explaining Mextax’s Bonehoffer biography to my oldest son in words he could understand. But I still didn’t get to read in 2011 what I want to read in 2012…so that is what I want to do more of this next year (and hopefully I won’t have to sacrifice too many showers).