What practical habits keep reading from becoming isolated, shallow, or purely consumptive?

Reading weakens when it is severed from conversation, theological depth, and output. A few simple habits can reconnect reading to those strengthening contexts.

First, read with the church. Challies encourages a humble practice: “Ask a friend or pastor” (Challies, “10 Ways to Keep Your Reading Fresh,” 2025). Counsel helps readers choose wisely, persevere through hard books, and avoid unhelpful distractions.

Second, include serious tools that slow you down and deepen understanding. Challies’ list includes “Read a commentary” (Challies, “10 Ways to Keep Your Reading Fresh,” 2025). Commentaries, when used well, model careful reasoning and supply historical and theological context that prevents thin impressions.

Third, write as a form of digestion. Challies recommends: “Write book reviews” (Challies, “10 Ways to Keep Your Reading Fresh,” 2025). Writing forces the reader to state the author’s argument fairly, test its implications, and articulate applications.

Reading stays fresh and fruitful when it is paired with church counsel, careful tools, and written output.

Related Material

• Theological Writing and Style — connects “written output” to theological integrity, showing why writing clarifies and steadies reading-driven thought

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Source: 10 Ways to Keep Your Reading Fresh

Disclaimer: Information in my “slip-box” doesn’t necessarily reflect my agreement with the source or all its content. Recording diverse perspectives helps strengthen one’s position beyond the echo chamber of like-minded thinkers. By documenting alternative viewpoints, we engage in the intellectual wrestling match that ultimately deepens our understanding.

I aspire to post one note from my “slip-box” every weekday. If you want to learn more about how to work with knowledge, click this link: What is knowledge management?