Beyond Shame and Showmanship: Why You Should Read Christian Books

I love to read. But I have not always loved to read. In fact, there was a point in my life where if someone tried to convince me to love (or even to like) reading books, I would have disregarded it as a personality preference: “I’m glad you love reading, but I’m into other things like listening to music and playing drums.”

I was mistaken to think that there are only two types of people: those who read, and those who don’t read. Why? Because we are all reading something every day—whether it be social media posts, recipes, instructions, text messages, emails, and so on—we do not go a day without some type of reading. Whether you like reading or not, let me encourage you: If you are reading this blog post, you are reading!

So the question is not whether we will be readers, because we read all sorts of things every day. The question of this article is, “Why and how should I start a habit of reading Christian books?” I still love listening to music and playing drums.¹ However, I personally needed to grasp the purpose behind reading books, particularly Christian books.

My intention in this article, then, is to offer encouragement from my own personal experiences and struggles with reading Christian books. In so doing, I hope to provide a framework that has helped me think about why and how I should read.

Why not to read? Negative motivations

Looking back, I had positive and negative motivations for starting a habit of reading Christian books. But perhaps it’s best to begin by identifying what should not be one’s primary reason for reading Christian books: shame, shackles, and showmanship. Such unhelpful motivations stemmed from a sense of pressure or performance.

Shame, shackles, and showmanship

In my early twenties, I moved from Michigan to Virginia to pursue music with a friend who attended Liberty University. I started hanging out at local coffee shops with people pursuing theological degrees. As theological conversations ensued, I would get asked, “What books are you reading?” or “What are your favorite books?”

Shame, shame, shame.

I did not read books, let alone Christian books. But I started reading them because I didn’t want to feel ashamed for not reading like everyone else at a university campus.

Once I started reading Christian books, I felt I had to read and finish them. Why? So that I could then boast to others that I, too, had read those theological books. What motivated me to start reading Christian books at that time? Shame, shackles, and showmanship.

Years later, a friend encouraged me to check out Goodreads because I wanted to track what I was reading, what I had read, and what I wanted to read. Brilliant!

But while my original intention (a positive motivation) was to use a resource to track my reading list, it also led to shame, shackles, and showmanship. Why?

1. Shame in what books I had not read that others on Goodreads had
2. Shackles in how I felt compelled to finish whatever book I said I had started
3. Showmanship in displaying a badge of honor that I finished my yearly reading challenge

Shame, shackles, and showmanship led me to develop reading habits driven by a fear of not knowing as much as others.

The heart of the matter

Some might read these negative motivations and conclude, “Well, if that is what motivates you to read, then don’t read! No one is making you read books, right?”

But consider if we treated our Bible reading this way? Should we read Scripture only when we feel like it, or only when we have good intentions? No. Read Scripture even when you do not feel like it, for if we only read when we feel like it, we might never read it at all.²

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gets to the heart of the matter. While Jesus condemns actions that stem from outward performances (Matt 6:1–18), he does not say, “Don’t do these things at all if you are doing them for the wrong reasons” (cf. Matt 23:23). Instead, Jesus calls for whole-hearted devotion to God, where our mind and heart match our outward actions (Matt 5–7, 15:18–19, 22–37–38).³ In other words, while people cannot see what is going on in my heart, God sees (Luke 16:15; Acts 15:8).

I’m reminded of Jesus’s rebuke of those who prided themselves in merely possessing the Scriptures (John 5:39). Comparatively, it is one thing to read Christian books for the sake of reading (or to collect books to have more books); it is quite another to read for increased understanding and growth (Jer 9:23–24).

So my encouragement to you as you start a habit of reading Christian books is to consider: Am I motivated to read due to pressure or performance, for outward appearances, or as a way to be shaped by others who can help me in becoming more like Jesus?

Why read? Positive motivations

My positive experience in making a habit of reading Christian books came when I discovered a purpose beyond reading: Reading shapes people.⁴

Whether we are aware of it or not, we are being shaped by and becoming like whatever gets our attention.⁵ By first recognizing that other things in my life were already shaping me (Rom 12:2), I came to recognize reading was too—as well as not reading!⁶

While no attempt at reading is without temptations, I have since found a better approach, mindset, and motivation: formation, formulation, and fructification.

1. Formation

Reading is formative.⁷ We are shaped by reading and thinking (Phil 4:8–9; cf. Ps 1:1–3); as Ronni Kurtz states, “What Paul understood, and what we must understand, is that whatever we give our attention to will form us as a people.”⁸ Reading ought to shape you into someone who seeks after truth (humility) rather than presumes to know (pride) (Prov 18:2, 13; Jas 1:19).

2. Formulation

Reading serves to formulate thoughts, ideas, and convictions.⁹ For instance, I would be kidding myself to think I can come to Scripture and interpret it without also seeking out what others have said before.¹⁰ So reading helps me formulate theological convictions and beliefs by hearing what others have to say about God, theology, and the Christian life.¹¹

Reading slows us down to think and ponder theological truths, rather than quickly digesting bite-sized information in our digital age, which often prevents deep thinking (or thinking at all).¹²

3. Fructification

Finally, reading should “bear fruit.”¹³ Reading for the sake of knowledge is not the end goal; instead, read to sharpen your mind for the purpose of loving God and others (1 Cor 8:1, 13:1–2; 1 Tim 1:5).

Commenting on 1 Corinthians 8:1, Thomas Schreiner elaborates on the proper use and perspective of knowledge; he says,

Knowledge should not become an instrument to advance oneself, but should be a vehicle for helping others … True knowledge is adorned with humility and accompanied by love, and if these qualities are lacking, one’s knowledge has not been applied.¹⁴

In short, we read Christian books to grow in Christlikeness.

1. Formation: the process of reading shapes how we think and process information
2. Formulation: the purpose of reading helps us in developing ideas and convictions
3. Fructification: the product of reading brings forth transformation, which bears fruit

Practical strategies

If starting a new habit takes about two months to develop, then forming a new reading habit will require harnessing the right type of motivation and outlook (see above).¹⁵ So allow me to close with two practical ways I’ve maintained this perspective while starting (and sustaining) a reading habit.

1. Create a (realistic) plan

First, I plan to read just one chapter at a time rather than the whole book.

For instance, assuming the average chapter is 25 pages, if I set a goal of 5–10 pages per reading session, then I can read one chapter a week. If the average book contains 10–12 chapters, then reading a book in a couple of weeks now feels less daunting.

Very specifically, I’ll jot down the total number of pages in the book, as well as the number of pages in each chapter. For example, if a book I am reading has 193 pages and the first chapter is 13 pages, I know that after reading the first chapter, I will have 180 pages left. This method might not work for you, but it motivates me to get a little done at a time and serves as a mental and visual roadmap when reading Christian books.

In Logos, you can create custom Reading Plans and set them to your own pace. I do this for my seminary classes that assign weekly readings. It is another way for me to keep a mental and visual roadmap for reading Christian books.

A custom Logos Reading Plan of John Murray’s book, Redemption Accomplished and Applied.

2. Use a format you’ll actually use

Admittedly, I can be a moody reader: Sometimes I like reading physical books and writing in them; other times, I prefer listening to audiobooks.¹⁶ And at different times, I read digitally so I can enlarge the font to focus in closer.

Thankfully, I do not have to choose only one format for reading (nor do you!). Rather than recommending one format that is best for everybody, find whatever format serves you best, then use that. No shame, shackles, or showmanship here!

Your books are smarter in Logos. Start a free trial!

Conclusion

Instead of starting a new habit of reading Christian books for negative reasons, start and sustain a new reading habit with positive motivations that will produce positive outcomes. Read Christian books to figure out, to formulate, and to be formed into Christlikeness.

Find whatever format works for you and start reading Christian books that will shape, develop, and grow your heart and mind in godliness and increased love for God and others—all for the glory of Christ.

Steven Stanley’s suggested resources on reading

• The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction, Alan Jacobs

Steven Stanley’s recommended books for your new reading habit

Related content

• See Word by Word’s various articles on books and reading recommendations
• Get a free chronological Bible reading plan
• Discover Reading Plans in Logos
• Consider why Logos libraries are an ideal way to buy books
• What is Logos and what makes your books so powerful in it?