Allow me to make a confession of sorts. We like going to the bookstore. Almost to a fault. And when I say that, we really like going to the bookstore. So much so that, even though we’re sure there was a long list of things to do and places to go and see, we looked at each other and said, ‘Let’s just go to the bookstore.’
Where’s this coming from?
We spent our Saturday bookstore hoping. Sad, I know. But we did stuff between stops if that helps.
I went for a bike ride while she stayed home and worked on picking up the house.
Before and after that, yes, we went to the bookstore. No, not the same one. Two completely different types offering two completely different experiences.
The first one we went to was your general run-of-the-mill bookstore. The kind you go into searching for just the right book to whisk you away into some fantasyland. Or just the right leadership book.
While we’re here, we tend to find it as a place of comfort. A thinking man’s safe place if you will.
The other bookstore we frequent is a Christian bookstore. I, we, never realized until now that this kind of bookstore makes us feel pretty inadequate.
I’ll explain.
How could a Christian bookstore make anyone feel inadequate? When was the last time you went to one would be my response? Honestly? Picture if you will, an entire section devoted to telling you how to be a better father or mother. The father section was only a fraction of the size for the mother section.
This begs a whole list of other questions to be asked. Mostly, what are we telling mothers?! You’re doing it wrong and if you buy this book or that book you can be a better mom? And the same could be said about fathers.
I get it, Christ was perfect and we are imperfect. We’re full of imperfections!
What about a section devoted to telling you your marriage is failing but that it can be saved if you buy a couple of books to help get you on the right path? You guessed it, there’s an entire section for that too! What message are we telling married couples?
Need a book on how to pray properly? You’ll find it. Need one on gospel cooking? Yep, it’s there too.
Needless to say, once we realized our thought process while perusing the racks, we realized just how comical it was. By the time we were ready to leave, we were laughing at many of the titles. We were even asking one another if we needed this one or that one.
Side note: As I was writing this, I realized that Christian bookstores are the equivalent of WebMD. If you think you have a problem then you could have this or that or even this and that! And, yes, we’ll still continue to go because there are some good reads to be found.