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I have always loved books.

I love turning actual pages of a book or journal and I’m not sure if I could ever get used to reading books solely on an iPad or Kindle. I can get lost for hours in Barnes & Noble or Books-a-Million and rarely walk out without something to add to my library.

As a result, my library has grown considerably over the years. But I’ve never had an actual place for it. Most of my books have been very hard to access because they have been boxed up or in various stacks around the house. They have followed me to apartment after apartment and most stayed in storage at my parent’s house during my divorced years. I have loaned out books to people I can’t remember over the years and so part of my library is scattered who knows where.

But now my library has a home!

This past weekend, I realized a dream that I have had since High School…one that frankly I didn’t think would ever come true. I drove to IKEA Atlanta last Saturday morning, loaded up with box after box of their BILLY bookcase system, and came home and began putting together said bookcases. Melody and I decided that a key part of the transformation from home office to “study” included paint, so we donned our painting attire Saturday night and began covering our pale walls with Behr’s “Chocolate Swirl”.

A little background is needed in order for you to fully understand how important last weekend’s events were to my own story. During the spring of my Junior year in High School, I was invited by Rev. Winfred Harris to preach a weekend revival at the small Baptist church he served in rural Clay County, Alabama. “Preacher Harris”, as he was known in those parts, had been my mother’s pastor growing up at Ranburne First Baptist Church.

Before the service started on Friday night, Preacher Harris pulled me aside and, in his gruff Southern drawl, said,

“Tray, I’ve been preachin’ a long time and I’m gonna retire in a couple of years. When I do, I want to give you all my books.”

Winfred "Doc" Harris

I honestly didn’t know what to say. I had already spent lots of time flipping through the CBD catalog and knew how expensive it could be to build a complete library. I was already making plans to continue my ministerial studies at Samford and that two year mark would be during the second semester of my Freshman year. On the way home that night I grinned when the thought crossed my mind that I’d most likely be the only Freshman ministerial student with a complete library!

At about 10:30 the next morning I was outside washing my car when I looked up to see a huge, white Lincoln pulling into our driveway. Preacher Harris parked, and as he was getting out of his car, I could see that the backseat was piled high with a treasure of thick, old, BEAUTIFUL books!

“Son, I got to thinkin’ after I got home last night,” Preacher Harris said, carefully eying the water hose in my right hand. “I’m not gonna be using these books much in the next coupla’ years, so I wanted to go ahead and bring ‘em over here to ya.”

I was so excited and couldn’t believe it. Preacher Harris walked behind the car and popped the trunk. I got even more excited when I saw that it was as full of books as the backseat.

“Are you sure, Preacher Harris?” was all I could get out. “Thank you so much!”

We unloaded the books and Preacher Harris spent over an hour telling me story after story of how he had acquired his library. It turned out that many of the books he had inherited from older scholars, so there were books with copyright dates as early as 1817. Preacher Harris was being a faithful steward of the library that he had inherited and had added to over the years by passing it along to the next generation. I was the blessed beneficiary of his faithfulness.

Preacher Harris' signature from one of the volumes.

Knowing that I had been entrusted with such a treasure only added to my shame after my life took a detour in 2002 when my secret life of porn and sex addiction was exposed. I felt confident that ministry would never be in my future and therefore would have no need for these precious books. The enemy was relentless in reminding me of all that I had squandered.

As I put the last volume on our new BILLY shelves last Sunday night, I stepped back and took it all in. A tear trickled down my face as I experienced God’s smile and loving embrace.

I sensed Abba say, “Tray, you’re going to need these books. I called you to ministry when you were in High School and have never revoked that call. Let them see your brokenness. I love you.”

An avalanche of emotion flooded me. It was another gift of the Father that spoke directly to my shame and insecurity resulting from my past.

I’m so glad my books have a home. I’m even more glad that I’m home!

Here is a before and after shot followed by a slideshow of the new study.

The wall of my study before the bookshelves and after the makeover.

10912 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.ragamuffinreflections.com%2F2011%2F03%2F17%2Fmy-library-has-a-home%2FMy+Library+Has+a+Home%212011-03-17+12%3A38%3A38Traylor+Lovvornhttp%3A%2F%2Ftraylorlovvorn.com%2F%3Fp%3D1091

dubdynomite

I love this! And I'd love to check out that library sometime.

I am also a lover of books, but due to space limitiations in my house, I've had to give away, donate or sell most of the books I've owned over the years. Hardly a day goes by that I don't miss having those things.

Hopefully I'll get my library, too.

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Traylor Lovvorn

You are welcome to check it out anytime, brother. Don't give up on the dream! I never thought I'd have them all in one place.

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