Reading, Relaxing, Recovering on a Snowy Day

I have been doing some reading for the past couple of days. Just relaxing, for me, reading. Work has been taking up so many hours that it has been a long time. On a bookshelf in the bedroom are rows of favorite books. A book by Lori Wick, The Rescue, was a selection that I hadn't read for a while. It is actually the 2nd book in a series called The English Garden. I like these fiction books because they point out how important it is to be saved and to seek a saved companion and scripture is included.

There are 2 points that stick out in my mind in this series. One is the fact that these English characters state that revival came to their area congregation. They may have been "good" people before that, but one by one they came to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It made me pray for some of those that I work with that are in that same category and that a revival may come to them in the same way.

The second thing that actually blessed me as I was reading today was a passage about the main characters' father. Because of the fathers' health, his thinking was not always clear or correct. The daughter was concerned about his salvation. When they were sharing their testimonies of salvation, the conversation came to this: (Quote from the book)
"And your father, Anne?...Did he ever make a commitment?"
"Not that I know of. He was always willing to have my mother read to us from the Bible, but he never yearned for God or studied the Word on his own. Such a lack of interest has never given me much hope."
"We will pray, Anne...If God can break through my stubborn heart, I know He can reach your father, no matter his present emotional state."
... Her father did have moments when he was lucid, and her God was a saving God. Anne knew that she needed to remember this more often.

My prayer and hope is that my own mother, who is slipping into dementia, will make her calling and election sure. She has been a "good" mother but never one willing to talk about the Bible or salvation with me. Also, as we need to remember this as we work with people at the rest home. There have been numerous times when God has dealt with those precious, aging souls.

While I know that fiction cannot be our steady diet and not lifted above the Bible, there are times when the body and mind are tired and we need some relaxation. And I appreciate reading something that also nudges me spiritually.