On My Shelf helps you get to know various writers through a behind-the-scenes glimpse into their lives as readers.
I asked Ian Harber—author of Walking Through Deconstruction: How to Be a Companion in a Crisis of Faith—about what’s on his bedside table, his favorite fiction, the books he regularly revisits, and more.
What’s on your nightstand right now?
I try to have at least three books going at once: one nonfiction I’m reading straight through, one nonfiction I’m popping in and out of, and one fiction. Unfortunately, I didn’t start reading fiction until recently.
The nonfiction book I’m reading straight through right now is The Intellectual Life by A. G. Sertillanges. In a job, there’s a time to think about not just your work but how you work on your work; I think the same is true about different aspects of our lives, like our intellectual life. Reading Sertillanges is a key step in my effort to not just read more but read better. I want to read more foundational texts in theology but also read more widely so I have a better understanding of different aspects of God’s world. I want to make sure I’m approaching my reading and intellectual life as a whole person, thinking and living well in the way Sertillanges defines the intellectual life, and not just haphazardly.
I also recently finished reading Jared C. Wilson’s book on writing, The Storied Life, and it’s phenomenal for folks wanting to take their writing more seriously.
The book I’m popping in and out of is Christian Parenting by Andrew Murray. I haven’t finished it so it’s hard to speak for all of it, but so far, I wish I could convince every Christian parent to read this book. I have two small boys and, coming from a broken family, I feel the weight of fatherhood every single day. I want to be as faithful a father as I can be for them. Jon Tyson’s The Intentional Father really helped set the course for what that could look like right after my first son was born. Christian Parenting is challenging me in all the right (and specific) ways.
What are your favorite fiction books?
I wish I could convince every Christian parent to read this book.
As I mentioned, I’ve only recently started reading fiction. I basically took a fiction hiatus between Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and two years ago. I’m not proud of it; it’s just what happened. It took me entirely too long, but I eventually realized that not reading fiction was a serious flaw, so I set out to fix that.
I initiated myself back into fiction by reading The Lord of the Rings, and I’m so glad I did. It’s cliché, but that has to be my favorite fiction series so far. That said, I read Brave New World after Neil Postman said it was a more accurate depiction of our world than 1984, and Aldous Huxley’s insight into our day has become hugely influential on me. I also recently read a new novel called Theo of Golden. That’s a beautiful book.
On the other end of the spectrum, I’m finishing up the Red Rising trilogy right now. Not exactly highbrow or insightful, but it’s a whole lot of fun. I’ve got C. S. Lewis’s Till We Have Faces on deck for as soon as I finish Morning Star. I don’t have a plan per se, but I don’t want to be stuck to just one genre. I’d love to read everything from classics, to sci-fi and fantasy, to modern literary fiction, and more.
What biographies or autobiographies have most influenced you and why?
This, unfortunately, is another gap in my reading I’m trying to fix. That said—and this almost feels like cheating—Augustine’s Confessions wrecked me. There is before I read Confessions and after I read Confessions. There’s just nothing else like that book.
Having spent more than 10 years of my life deconstructing and reconstructing my faith only to read about Augustine going through nearly the exact same experience over 1,500 years before me was humbling, inspiring, and emotional, to say the least.
Other than that, while it’s not a biography, I also read Mary Beard’s SPQR last year to get a good overview of the history of Rome. It was excellent. She does such a great job of getting you into the Roman world. It inspired me to shore up my history knowledge and read a survey of Western history. That’s something I’ll work through this year, and I imagine some biographies will be a part of that project.
What are some books you regularly reread and why?
I’ve become almost obsessed with old books that are simply about the Christian life. They’re usually short but pack more punch than some of the longest books I’ve read. I’m constantly revisiting The Life of God in the Soul of Man by Henry Scougal, On the Christian Life by John Calvin, The Imitation of Christ by Thomas À Kempis, The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence, and The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius. And, while this isn’t a Christian book (and certainly has its flaws), I find a lot of value in Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.
The Christian life is lived in our day-to-day moments, not just in our theological formulations. What I love about these books is that they speak to how to live in those moments with God but freed from the assumptions of our time. They put our contemporary challenges and anxieties in perspective by either assuming them as normal or by never even mentioning them. I love theology, but theology isn’t meant to live in your head; it’s meant to get into your bones. That’s what I love about these books. They show how to live in light of what is true without the pitfalls that modern authors fall into. Maybe they fall into different ones, but they don’t fall into ours.
What books have most profoundly shaped how you serve and lead others for the sake of the gospel?
It’s nearly impossible to overstate the influence that Sacred Fire by Ronald Rolheiser had on my life and how I minister to others. Rolheiser is Catholic and there are a few things in the book that I don’t agree with and wouldn’t endorse, but the majority of that book has been incredibly influential on me.
I love theology, but theology isn’t meant to live in your head; it’s meant to get into your bones.
It helped me understand how we experience our life with God as the seasons of our lives change. Rolheiser gave me categories to think through both personally and with others to navigate the changing complexities of life while remaining faithful to God.
I have to add Dallas Willard’s Renovation of the Heart and The Great Omission too. Willard’s vision of humanity, of God’s work in forming us into Christ’s image, and of discipleship have completely altered how I view the Christian life and talk about it with others. The entire category of spiritual formation permeates everything I do and say. Whether I’m in conversation, leading a Bible study, or writing, I’m thinking about it through the lens of spiritual formation thanks to Willard.
What’s one book you wish every pastor would read?
The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius. This is one of the books that was the most influential on C. S. Lewis and is standard in the Western canon but has recently become more obscure. It’s time to bring it back. We need to retrieve Boethius for our day.
The first reason is for pastors themselves. Unfortunately, so many of the pastoral scandals and burnout that we see are due to pastors chasing the false gods of power, pleasure, wealth, and status. Churches built on Fortune instead of Wisdom will never stand. I think this is a book that will help pastors be healthier, more faithful, and more resilient.
The second reason is to help them better shepherd people in a therapeutic age. My main takeaway from this book is the simple fact that wisdom is therapeutic. This is something that is helpfully expanded on in Christian Philosophy as a Way of Life and also After Stoicism. Both of those are incredible reads in their own right, though there’s nothing like reading Boethius himself.
We find consolation in aligning our lives with God’s wisdom. This is true regardless of circumstance. Boethius wrote The Consolation after being condemned by a king he thought was a friend, taken from his family in the night, unjustly imprisoned, and awaiting brutal execution. We need the message Boethius has for us in our moment. Please, drop everything and read this book.
What are you learning about life and following Jesus?
The thing I’m thinking about and learning most right now is that when Jesus gave us the greatest commandment (“Listen, Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is, Love your neighbor as yourself.” Mark 12:29–31, CSB), he was giving us his theory of everything.
The greatest commandment gives us everything: the nature of God; the Creator/creature distinction; the covenant God has with his people; a fully-fledged vision of humanity with a will, rationality, personality, body, and relationships; and our purpose and meaning in life: love.
As basic as it sounds, I’m learning what it means to live in that vision of life. There’s nothing easy about it, and the more I become aware of it, the more I become aware of all the ways I don’t fulfill those commands. I see more and more obstacles in my way that I need to repent of and allow God to change in me. But I’ve come to see something that was once an almost trite clichè as an endlessly deep well around which to orient our entire lives. In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col. 2:3). The further into the Christian life I go, the more true I find that to be.