The Importance of Re-reading

For anyone who has pursued higher education, or for those who have not, going back and re-reading books is very valuable. After completing 8 years of under and post graduate education, I was excited three years ago about the chance to finally read some books that I wanted to read as opposed to reading books that I had to read. This was a lot of fun and I learned a lot, but here recently I have felt the need to get back to my roots so to speak. On my shelves in my office sit tons of books that haven't been picked up in years. Some I must confess, will never be picked up again. However, I do have a list of books that I want to re-read again. My reasons are varied, but primarily I feel as if I did not get to really read these books the first time through. The first book that I picked up to re-read was Desiring God by John Piper. Whether you like Piper or not this book is one that should be read. Here are a couple of quotes that stood out to me the second time through that I didn't quite grasp the first time.

"The most precious truth in the Bible is that God's greatest interest is to glorify the wealth of His grace by making sinners happy in Him."- p. 159

"Not to pursue our joy everyday in the Word of God is to abandon the revealed will of God. It is sin."- p. 152

"When our back is to the breathtaking beauty of God, we cast a shadow on the earth and fall in love with it. But it does not satisify."- p. 293

"If you come to God offering Him the reward of your fellowship instead of thirsting after the reward of His fellowship, then you exalt yourself above God as His benefactor and belittle Him as a needy beneficiary- and that is evil."- p. 111

As I grow older I understand more fully the need to have absorbed more in my first go round with learning. It is for that reason that I am enjoy this season of re-reading. Whether it was an arrogance that prevented me from seeing truth the first time around or just a simple desire to read what was required to satisfy a course, I do no justice to what I was taught to learn if I do not desire to continue learning.