Thoughts on Christian Books and Bookstores
Daniel Valles 10/31/04 www. informedchristians.com

Christian bookstores are an interesting spiritual gauge for any country. There are many things that a doctor can tell about you and your health just by looking in your refrigerator and pantry. If you eat a lot of junk food, then your health will reflect it. By taking a look at what literature most self-proclaiming 'Christians' feed on, we can get a general idea of their spiritual health as well. A obvious misnomer is Christian fiction. A pastor recently pointed out to me that the majority of most 'Christian' bookstores today is 'Christian' fiction. Serialized novels, short stories, 'Christian' romance and intrigue, etc. make up at least fifty percent of most stores (not counting 'music').

Do not get me wrong when I say that Christian fiction is harming our spiritual well-being. Christian fiction is not necessarily evil by itself. There have been several Christian works that I have enjoyed. The danger is when Christians make works of fiction on par with doctrinal study and the Word of God. When any Christian, myself included, relegates less than half of their reading input to truth and and yet gorges on partial truths for the majority of their spiritual diet, an inevitable malnourishment will occur. In the plant realm, there are many edible plants that seem filling, yet have marginal nutritional value. You can fill up on one plant yet not meet your nutritional requirements. Some plants even leave you with a deficient of nutrition in that they take more energy to process and digest than they give.

When I visit various 'Christian' bookstores, one of the ways I determine if I want to spend time and money there is by examining several factors. First of all I like to determine if they are truly Christian (versus Catholic, Mormon, etc). Secondly, I see how large their music section is in ratio to the books and resources. Some Christian bookstores hardly qualify for either 'Christian' or 'bookstore'. Sometimes just by looking over what type of music they carry can give you an idea of what type of books will be there.

Thirdly, I look around for how much of the 'popular' Christian movements they endorse or carry, i.e. Purpose Driven, the Passion, etc. Usually they are near the door as you enter. If a Christian bookstore likes to carry and promote all of the 'latest', then that puts me on guard that I may be spending some time digging around to find something palatable. Fourthly, I glance at their various 'per-versions'. If they only have a few it at least appears that they may have certain reservations or be more 'conservative'. If you walk into some secular bookstores, they will carry everything in their 'Christian' section that happens to have the word 'Bible' slapped on it - and then some.

Perhaps one of the greatest litmus tests that I have found (whether or not I want to spend time or money in their bookstore) is to find out what they are carrying in the occult/discernment section. Since this is often a 'taboo' subject and most Christians do not go out their way (or money) to study such things, if a Christian bookstore has even several shelves devoted to the subject of exposing cults, movements, and bad doctrine, I know that chances are pretty high that there are at least several excellent books worth looking at in this store. It also tells me that either someone on the purchasing department knows enough to recognize their importance, or that enough people in the area are interested that the store keeps many on hand. If people in the area are interested, chances are that they are also 'picky' with not wanting fluff and may request good information.

Usually I have found that if this section is good, their commentary and doctrine section will have some books worth looking at. As always, discernment and discretion is needed, but those other factors at least alert me to the fact that there is enough 'meat on these bones' to spend some time there. When I go to a barbeque restaurant, I don't order ribs or chicken wings. It is probably just a personal pet-peeve of mine, but I do not consider them having enough meat to justify all the work of picking through the bones. When I sit down to eat, I want to eat - not work. Too many times, I hear the phrase that Christians need to eat the meat and spit out the bones when it comes to certain things. That is true to an extent (just read any book on doctrine), but we should make sure before we start that we are not sitting down to a bone-filled sandwich. Yes, perhaps there may be meat on that spare rib somewhere, but I want to stick to something that has as little bones as possible. Are Christians today so used to a fictionalized diet of doctrine and example that they choke on pure meat?

I will be the first to admit that reading 'deep' books is not always of great enjoyment to the flesh. Usually it tires the eyes, keeps you up late, or stays on your mind for days. However, such books contain a wealth of information that the soul and mind can chew on and be nourished by for years. If we make Christian fiction the mainstay of our Christian literature, not only are we malnourished, but we are feeding our mind and soul with often shallow emotionalism.

In the Old Testament, God constantly reminded the people that they should keep His Word constantly before them. It was to be an integral part of their life and daily conversation and thoughts. I find it very beneficial to play audio cds of Bible reading while I do various tasks around the house. In Deuteronomy 6:7-9, God commands the people "thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates." The Word of God, the Truth, was to be foremost before anything else in their life. What about us? Do we spend enough time with God that conversation with fellow Christians can easily discuss spiritual matters and what the Lord has shown in His Word? Do we have Scripture verses posted throughout our house or workplace? They are not just for other people to see and spark conversation on, but they are more for us to be constantly reminded and our appetite whetted for more of His Word.

In closing, what is the ratio and balance of your reading? Do you spend more time reading the Bible or more time reading Christian fiction? I think it is safe to say that one will not be long in between. One is strong meat, the other is fiction. What about books on doctrine, discernment, and Christian biographies? Even Hebrews makes reference that the lives of certain Old Testament individuals were given as examples of faith. Fiction (even 'Christian') can become wrong when it steers us away or steals time from the nourishment that is needed from strong meat. A good guideline for selecting books could be: Will this whet my appetite to read God's Word and to serve Him more?

Psalms 119:18 "Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law."

Psalm s 119:47-48 "And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will meditate in thy statutes."