Books of vacation 2013

I guess I forgot to include the books I read while in Myrtle Beach in my post yesterday. I didn't read much while the kids were there, but on Thursday I started reading Chris Norman's 'Seeking God: An Investigative Journey.' I picked this up at Midwest Region Conference the week before, where Chris was our main speaker. He was also my huddle coach for awhile last year, and I have been to his church in New Haven. It is really a Bible study type book intended to be read and discussed with a friend or a group of people. It is designed to help people who have little or no relationship with God to lead them on a spiritual journey where they can embrace the difficult questions of faith and try to make sense of it all. For me, it was a really good reminder of the basics of what it means to follow Jesus. Chris does a nice job of laying out the significance of the Bible, and the biblical story, and what it means for all of us. He helps us understand our purpose as a part of God's design, and why it matters. I am thinking of using this at our church, or even with people not a part of our church. Good basic stuff; but also deep enough for those who are already walking the path. We should always be seeking God as long as we have life. You can purchase it through the above link, or apparently there is a free pdf of it for study at this link too: http://ebookbrowse.com/seeking-god-and-finding-him-grace-gathering-pdf-d228519662.

I finished Seeking God on Friday and then began reading The Grapes of Wrath. It is an American classic novel written by John Steinbeck and set during the great depression. I think it was published in 1939. Jane bought this for me at the start of my sabbatical. For the past several years I have read a book by Steinbeck on vacation every year. I like his writing. It kind of slows me down or something. This is a rather long book so I didn't expect to finish it, but I got to about the 10th chapter or so. Hopefully I can finish it before my sabbatical is over.

The day we left for vacation Isaac and Ricci also brought my Father's Day gift. It was Steinbeck's book 'East of Eden.' I don't know if I will save it for next year, or maybe just start into it as soon as I finish Grapes. We'll see. I have wanted to read it for some time, so I was happy to get it.