The List

Reading Guides

Reading Group Guide

1. Why did Renny respond so powerfully to the Parable of the Prodigal Son?  
    
2. The relationship between father and son is a strong theme throughout The List with the tradition of the Covenant List passing from father to son. How does that relationship between these earthly fathers and sons compare to the relationship between the Father God and His sons and daughters?  
    
3. Jo only attends the meeting of the List to try to discover something about her own father and refuses the money offered to her. She realizes that this money will only lead to bad things, but Renny is convinced that after the first distribution, he will disassociate from the group and use the money for good. How did the promise of a large amount of money get in the way of his faith? What do you think would have happened had he actually received the distribution?  
    
4. “[Renny] knew he was not on the same page of life’s coloring book as Jo and Mrs. Stokes. They were coloring a picture of Jesus walking on water. He was coloring, what? A sports car parked in front of a beach house? A Van Gogh-like self-portrait?” This was quoted from soon after Jo’s arrival to Charlotte, before their trip to Zion Hill. Towards the end of the novel, what picture do you think Renny was coloring? What picture are you coloring now in your life? Is there something different you would like to be coloring?  
    
5. Renny has many people praying for him—a cloud of witnesses—as he undergoes his conversion and the spiritual warfare that happens later. Do you have a cloud of witnesses who pray for you? Are you part of a cloud of witnesses for anyone in your life?  
    
6. Renny experienced a very powerful conversion at Zion Hill and then a pretty big deflation at church the next day when he saw Thomas Layne. Do you think that happens in everyday faith, especially with new converts? Have ever had “the mountain top experience” and been brought down to earth by “the real world”? How does Renny come back? What are some ways not to be discouraged by the deflation?  
    
7. There is a very tangible evil force in The List. How did that evil manifest itself in the List members? What foothold did it gain in each of the members? Have you ever experienced a force like that in your life? How do you think Satan moves in our lives? How does God triumph over the List? How has God triumphed over Satan in your life?  
    
8. Mrs. Stokes has her prayer closet and believes in the power of fasting. Do you have a prayer closet or even a quiet corner that is dedicated as a meeting place between you and God? Have you ever fasted for strength during a trying situation?