I grew up loving to read; getting lost in adventure, being transformed into a different place and time.  Climbing up in grandma’s four poster cannonball bed;  on one side, the stack of green and gold Book House books and Mama on the other.

We called my grandma, Mama – pronounced Mawmaw.  The sweet smell of honeysuckle drifted through her open bedroom window.  My favorite green and white gingham blankie, my thumb, Dr. Seuss, Mama and I snuggled together at the end of the evening.

Even now, forty years later, that smell carries me back to the middle of Mama’s big bed.  If I close my eyes, I can hear the familiar rustle of the wind through the forest of trees in her back yard and the soothing song of the train in the distance.

One of my favorite books is Shell Silverstein’s, “Where the Sidewalk Ends.”   I love the poem titled, Sick.  As a child, it brought me unbridled joy.  It’s about a precocious little girl who came up with every ailment she can think of to get out of going to school; however, she didn’t realized it was actually Saturday.

“What…what’s that you say?  You say today is Saturday?  Goodbye, I’m going out to play.”   I wanted to be that little girl who broke the rules; I memorized every word of that poem.

As an adult, my passion for reading continued mostly with fiction; Stephen King, John Grisham, some romance.  Truly an escape.

But I now found myself in a foreign place; my life was in chaos and my marriage was failing.  No time for reading or much else, I was physically, emotionally and spiritually drained.  Searching for answers and begging Him to change me, I thought, I should start with reading the bible.  

I could never read the whole bible.  It’s too hard.  

Plagued with the inability to sleep and up each morning at 4am, it seemed like the time to give it a try.  I mean, seriously, what else does one do at that hour, besides sleep?   No one has ever described me as a morning girl.   But nevertheless, each morning, I would visit my soft leather chair, a cup of strong black coffee in one hand and my trusty bible app in the other.

365 days later, I had done it.  Surprising even myself, I read the whole bible, the Message version.  My friend, Kevin teased declaring “that’s cheating”; like there is some reward for reading the bible in the King James even if I don’t understand a single word.  The Message reads more like a story and HIS power shot like a flaming arrow through my soul.

I craved more of HIM and reading became a way for me to find Him.  In the bible, at first, but then in other books too.  Each time, I would repeatedly hear of a book, I would think, I‘m supposed to read that book.   (See my Palms Up blog post.)

As if drinking from a firehose, I would grab the next book and dive in; ready, excited and a little scared to see what He had for me.

God is weaving an incredible tapestry in and through my life; in all of our lives.  In the small daily moments, peering through the fog, it’s hard to see but looking back the picture begins to comes into focus.  There is a thin God sewn thread that runs through each of these books, leading me from one to the next.

And, the list keeps growing…just like he’s growing me.

I would love to hear from you, share with me, what book has transformed you?  I would love to add it to my list! 

1. Jesus Calling by Sarah Young : A daily devotional.  Sarah writes as if Jesus is having a personal conversation directly with us, one on one, and embedded with scripture.
2. Love Dare by Alex and Stephen Kendrick : A book with a call to action.  40 days to change your marriage, but something more; a true picture of the unconditional love God has for us and wants us to have for others.
3. Boundaries by Henry Cloud and John Townsend  : Creating personal boundaries for safe relationships, overcoming guilt and fear.
4. Love Does by Bob Goff  : Showing up and loving others how Jesus loves us!  Love does stuff.
5. Blue Like Jazz by Don Miller : Life, Love and redemption.  Transformed the “rules” of Christianity into freedom in Christ.
6. Lineage of Grace by Francine Rivers  : The Biblical Stories, historical fiction, of five imperfect women in the bible who were transformed by God’s love and grace and who were ultimately used by Him.
7. Life Interrupted by Priscilla Shirer : Navigating the unexpected in life through the life of Jonah.
8. The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis : Fictional novel of two demons playing with a human to bring about temptation and chaos.  Incredible picture of how satan creatively plants his lies into our hearts and minds.
9. The Shack by William P. Young : Fictional novel that challenges us to “see” God differently; gives personal tangible human qualities to God.
10. Scary Close by Don Miller : Don’s personal story of stepping into fear and grabbing ahold of intimacy to find our true identity and real relationships.
11. Wild at Heart by John Eldridge  : A book written for men, but not only men.  A picture of a man’s heart, a woman’s heart but also taking risks and stepping out to discover our deepest desire.
12. The Art of Work by Jeff Goins : Discovering your life’s work, what you were meant to do – your calling.
13. Crazy Love by Francis Chan : Going all out for God, living above the status quo.  Falling in love with God and our passionate pursuit of HIM, daily.