I’m just going to be honest, the contemplative writers aren’t my favorite. The mystics. The poets. The feel-ers. I get lost in the imagery and similes. I skim the repetitive and verbose. I like writers who answer questions more than those who ask questions.
But maybe I’m turning the pages too quickly. I’m spending so much time with the Pauls I’m missing what I can learn from the Johns. Or with Moses, who wrote out the law, instead of David, who mostly wrote about the emotional roller coasters he was on. After all, John was called “the disciple Jesus loved” and David “a man after God’s own heart.”
Matthew 22:37 says, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” My favorite way to love Him is with my mind, maybe even to the neglect of the heart and soul.
So in August, I’ll be spending time with the contemplatives. Here’s where I’ll start: (affiliate links)
- Life of the Beloved: Spiritual Living in a Secular World by Henri J. M. Nouwen
- The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up, and Burnt Out by Brennan Manning
- A Circle of Quiet by Madeleine L’Engle
- The books of Psalms and 1 John
I’ll share what I’m learning on Fridays with my usual posts on what I’m reading from blogs, my Bible, and books. I’m open to what God will teach me through these new voices.
