On Reading Many Books, Part 2

We continue our meditation this week regarding the reading of many books. Last week we saw that it is better to read fewer books, digest them well, and retain their information than to overload the brain with more books than it can process. Today I want to impress upon my readers the importance of thought. As you read a book, take time to think about what you are reading. Allow yourself to sit back and reflect on what you read so that you may absorb the information. Here is another excellent quote by Charles Haddon Spurgeon taken again from his work entitled Lectures to My Students:

I would impress upon you the truth, that a man who is short of apparatus can make up for it by much thought. Thinking is better than possessing books. Thinking is an exercise of the soul which both develops its powers and educates them....Without thinking, reading cannot benefit the mind, but it may delude the man into the idea that he is growing wise. Books are a sort of idol to some men. As the image with the Roman Catholic is intended to make him think of Christ, and in effect keeps him from Christ, so books are intended to make men think, but are often a hindrance to thought.

That paragraph is profound in its implications. There is no benefit in reading just for the sake of reading or to convince yourself or others that you are intelligent, because you read a lot. In my profession one comes across a great deal to read. It is easy to fall into the practice of reading through things just to say that one has read them. But this is a waste of time if the information is simply run through the brain without any retention. It is better to be selective in what you read. Sometimes you may be able to skim something and discern whether it is worth your time or not. With limited time and energy I need to be selective with respect to what I read. Reading should be done with a view to personal growth, not pacifying everyone who gives you something to read.

Mr. Spurgeon went on to point out that a man who does not have a lot of books can make up for that lack by being a man of thought. If a man is thoughtfully observant of nature, of men, and of himself, he can learn a great deal. The heavens are an open book that declares the glory of God and much can be learned by thinking about them (Psalm 19:1-3). It is worthwhile noting the many lessons Solomon, the wisest man, drew from the study of nature. When reading the book of Proverbs, notice how many times Solomon makes a point by referencing something in nature. When speaking of Solomon's wisdom, Scripture has this to say:

1 Kings 4:32 And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five.
33 And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes.
34 And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom.

In addition to Mr. Spurgeon's words, I found this interesting passage in a book I possess entitled Lord Chesterfield's Letters. Lord Chesterfield wrote:

It signifies nothing to read a thing once, if one does not mind and remember it. It is a sure sign of a little mind to be doing one thing, and at the same time to be either thinking of another, or not thinking at all. One should always think of what one is about; when one is learning, one should not think of play; and when one is at play, one should not think of one's learning. Besides that, if you do not mind your book while you are at it, it will be a double trouble to you, for you must learn it all over again.

Lord Chesterfield's words remind me of a quotation I cited to you in the series of meditations I did on listening. The quote came from an article entitled Improving your Memory.

You can’t remember something if you never learned it, and you can’t learn something — that is, encode it into your brain — if you don’t pay enough attention to it. It takes about eight seconds of intent focus to process a piece of information through your hippocampus and into the appropriate memory center. So, no multitasking when you need to concentrate! If you distract easily, try to receive information in a quiet place where you won’t be interrupted.

Reading must be accompanied with thought to be profitable. And this brings us to that very important word in Scripture, the word meditate.

Meditate - To muse over or reflect upon; to consider, study, ponder.

It is obvious that meditation requires thought, focusing the mind upon a given subject. When Paul instructed Timothy to "give attendance to reading," he also instructed him to meditate in order to profit from his reading.

1 Timothy 4:13 Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.
14 Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.
15 Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.

No amount of reading is a substitute for meditation, for careful thought. Recall that last time we pointed out the importance of mastering one book above all other books, that book being the Holy Bible. Today's point about combining thought with reading applies here as well. It is not enough to simply read the Bible. You must also think about what you read; you need to meditate upon it. It is by this means that you will derive the greatest benefit from the time you spend in the Scriptures. The following passage powerfully drives this point home.

Psalms 1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

I for one am not a fan of programs for reading through the entire Bible in a year. I find it better to read less and think about what you read, than to consume more chapters just to satisfy a deadline. Granted, one should strive to read the whole Bible. But one should also strive to understand what is being read. And that understanding comes from careful thought or meditation.

Psalms 119:99 I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation.

So read something in the Bible each day. Then think about it throughout the rest of your waking hours and your life will become more prosperous in the ways that count.

And as for mastering this one book, the Holy Bible, I can do no better than to close with the advise of Solomon, the wisest of men:

Ecclesiastes 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.