On Reading Aloud

Do you like to have someone read to you? Do you like to read aloud for others?

Paul is reading aloud to me a series that we’ve read numerous times. We’ve read this series on our own. We’ve read these books to our children. We’ve read them to our grandchildren. Why read them again? And why now?

Again? Because these stories engage our minds and comfort our spirits. Now? Because as my health has further limited me this year, Paul and I are further limited in our ability to do things together that would be either normal or desirable for a couple to do together. Paul is very physically active and I am not. Reading aloud offers a pleasant experience we can share together.

Paul is reading The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis to me. We are finishing tonight our fourth book, Prince Caspian. Reliving the Narnia stories takes us on adventures that cost little physical energy. Attention is needed, which does require some energy, and attention opens the mental door of imagination. Even at the age of 70, we imbibe biblical and virtuous lessons from these tales. We smile, laugh, and discuss.

Oh, did I write 70?

Today Paul turns 71!

Happy Birthday, my Sweetheart!

.

.

.

Speaking of adventures through books:

In the last post I told you that I was going to start teaching a Bible study that very week based upon my book, A Traveler’s Guide to Suffering and Joy. And so we did by God’s grace! With fifteen ladies from four different churches meeting in my home! While we just completed the last class, we’ll get together one more time this month for a Tea and Testimony time. The ladies are planning everything. (They’ve insisted that I do nothing!) We’ll enjoy listening to each other’s hearts, hearing how God has been feeding and leading each one of us. (Remember, the book’s subtitle is Changed by Theology that Feeds and Leads.)

I’ve approached this study differently than I’ve approached any class and differently than I’ve seen done in any Bible study. Each week I’ve been the scout, leading the ladies through a preview of the chapter(s) they are to study that week. Instead of the ladies preparing for the coming class time, the class time prepares them for their coming, personal study. (The ladies or students are called Pedestrian Theologians and their personal study or homework is called homewalk, as they walk through the chapters, the Word, and their lives. (Note Colossians 2:6.) Since my book is such a different kind of Bible study, I thought this approach would increase their confidence in pursuing the chapters, promoting their comfort/joy and hopefully making the experience more meaningful. (I’m not sure if I’ll stay with this approach. There are so many possibilities.)

One thing I’ve done each week is to read aloud to them key portions — quotations and stories. This goes back to my love of being read to. Having heard the author of this study read aloud sections of her own writing puts my voice in their heads. I also read Scripture aloud. I encourage thinking by “thought bites,” and the way you read aloud can model this. The way you print a passage and the way you mark up a passage identifies “thought bites.” I always encourage marking up a text, so I have bouquets of colored pencils always handy.

I am excited to hear testimonies at our coming Tea and Testimony gathering. The ladies are collecting their favorite points and quotations (“Ps and Qs”) from our eight-week study and will be sharing (reading aloud?) some of those and explaining how they connect with their lives (i.e. their testimonies) at the Tea this Thursday.

I love oral reading. It creates a warm, shared world of thought and experience with children, your spouse, or among friends. Oral reading of God’s precious Word and of uplifting literature enriches our lives.

I encourage you to read aloud with someone. It takes you away from technology. It draws you together. It helps to rest your body. Reading or listening to reading can please the Lord. Really?

Faith comes by hearing the word of Christ/God (Romans 10:17),

and with faith it is possible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6).

Hear! Hear!

Amen.

By the light that we see the page, we hear the word.