On the Books I’m Currently Reading

It’s always nice to read, especially in the Summer when one actually has time to read what one wants. So, I’ll give a quick overview of what I’m reading right now.
Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem. As the title suggests, this isn’t exactly light reading. It is exactly what it sounds like: Systematically going through theology. It explores different facets in every chapter. For example, a section may  be on Jesus, so one chapter will be on his crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. Then it goes through, sort of super expanded bullet point style. Its got verses to go with everything, but some of the best stuff is the difficult passages that seem contradictory or different theories that make one look at something in a whole new light. Of course, most are explained excellently and really help me gain a great appreciation for the Bible for how true it is. I mean, when one sees a passage of Scripture that doesn’t seem to line up with the rest, it can create a lot of doubt, but then to get it explained and for it to make sense feels so reassuring. I actually had started reading it last year, and read a lot over the Summer, but then sort of took an extended hiatus during the school year, and now I decided to pick it back up again. I’m on like page 640 and there’s over 1,200, so I’m uh, either well on my way or not even close, depending on the way you look at it. But I’m in no rush. It’s been a great book and really has set a great foundation for my faith. The only big gripe I have with it is that it seems to lean toward an interpretation of Genesis 1 that has the earth being millions/billions of years old. Now this is one issue that I was raised on strongly, and I believe in a literal day/apparent age theory, so I was frustrated by that. And a lot of these issues I haven’t really explored or never really knew it to be an issue so it’s been enlightening.
Introduction to Comparative Politics by Mark Kesselman et. al. Not really light reading either, this 600+ page college level textbook is something to prepare me for the AP Comparative Government and Politics exam. It’s one of the more interesting textbooks I’ve read because of the way information is presented. Basically, it goes through numerous case studies of countries around the world, “Democracies, transitional democracies, and authoritarian regimes” are the three main topics and there are over 10 countries studied, from the US to India, to Mexico, to Iran, and everything in between. It has really been an eye opener for me and has been very interesting. Here-to-fore I had never really known anything about the actual way the governments of other countries worked. I mean, I knew most were parliamentary, but that was the miniscule extent of my knowledge. Annoyingly though, being a “normal” college textbook, it oozes liberalism through every page. I kid you not, I believe every single time the word “conservative” was used, it was negatively. People who believed in free markets in places like Brazil were called “Neoliberals” in terms of economics. I mean, ugh. On the bright side, the book has really made me appreciate my country a lot more. Regardless of how they slam the Constitution as creating a government that is purposely inefficient and contentious (ie. the way a President and Congress can be of other parties and be diametrically opposed to the point that legislation is extremely difficult to pass) I really am thankful I do not live in Brazil or Russia. And I haven’t even reached the Authoritarian regimes section either!
The Greatest Among You by Randy Sims. I just received this book from a friend at camp a few weeks ago, but I have just gotten around to reading it now. When I heard it’s title mentioned, my ears immediately perked up. It sounded cool and I was told I could have it soon. Lo and behold, there it was in the package at camp (Which also contained some delicious chocolate chip cookies). The title is self-explanatory. The book speaks to people my age (Specifically students) about how to become leaders through servanthood (How is that not a word? Two words? Are you kidding me?). As it may sound already, the book is written from a Christian perspective, and emphasizes first of all that none of the change and growth encouraged in this book is possible without Christ in you, it takes an entire chapter to emphasize that the foundation for our character is Christlikeness. (Grr, that’s a word. Don’t give me this dictionary…). I’ve only gotten through that part because I’ve decided to schedule out my reading to one chapter a day so I can be consistent, take it in, and not read through it too quickly.
I guess I should put it up there, but I’m also reading through the Bible in a year. Our church did it last year chronologically and this year we’re going through “normally”. Basically, in order to keep things fresh and cool, we start at Genesis, Psalms, Proverbs, and Matthew. Genesis goes through the entire old testament (Sans Psalms and Proverbs obviously) and Matthew goes through Revelation. We go through Proverbs once and Psalms twice. I’m going through it with my ESV Study Bible that I got for Christmas. It is really beneficial and is the best Bible I’ve ever had, not only because of it’s insight and lodes of information that help one understand things better, but also the fact that it’s an ESV (English Standard Version) translation. In short, I think it’s the best, but more on that later. So I really hope that by the end of the year, I will be able to say more about myself than that I’ve finally read the Bible from cover to cover, but that it’s really changed my life and made me a better person, more sensitive to the prodding of the Holy Spirit and more like Christ than ever before.
Oy vey, I need to get ready for bed. I need to get up early tomorrow and I’ve got a long day…