People To Be Loved by Preston Sprinkle

The subtitle reads Why Homosexuality is Not Just an Issue.

This book, in my opinion, is very balanced and fair giving a lot of understanding to the LGBT community. The author is both a scholar and a pastor and thus treats the scriptures from this perspective.

Sprinkle says the Christian church needs to get past the “straight people” versus “gay people” mindset. Biblical love does not mean affirming everyone’s behavior. Yet people, gay and straight, will never have the power to change unless they first experience genuine acceptance. It’s time for the church to start treating the LGBT community as people to be loved.

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Making Vision Stick by Andy Stanley

This is not a book about discovering and developing vision. It is a book about casting your vision so that your people will understand and embrace it. This process involves (1) stating the vision simply (2) casting the vision convincingly (3) repeating the vision regularly (4) celebrating the vision systematically and (5) embracing the vision personally.

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Insurgence by Frank Viola

The subtitle reads Reclaiming the Gospel Of The Kingdom.

Insurgence talks about three different Gospels defined by our allegiance to Jesus. The first camp are those Christians whose relationship with Jesus is understood in terms of an allegiance to external rule keeping. The second camp are those Christians whose relationship with Jesus is understood in terms of a supplement to their already busy lives. The third camp is what the rest of the book talks about an undivided loyalty to Jesus and the advance of His kingdom on earth.

The book begins with a warning that the reader may become infuriated with the content and may be tempted to fling the book or kindle across the room. The content is challenging but it is the truth.

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Faces In The Fire by F.W. Boreham

This is an older book written by F.W. Boreham a Baptist minister from New Zealand first published in 1916. It is a series of essays conveying Biblical truth written on some of the most ordinary and unusual subjects. Some of the unusual subjects Boreham writes about – the baby among the bombshells, a forbidden dish, the feeling of the tree, and a philosophy of fancy-work. Some of the ordinary subject Boreham writes about – linoleum, the postman, a box of tin soldiers, a pair of boots and an old maid’s diary.

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The Early Church from Ignatius to Augustine by George Hodges

This is an older book first published in 1915 but it is full of fascinating historical information about the early church from 100 AD to 400 AD. This book examines the Roman world during this period, the political climate in the Empire, the Christian persecution and its struggle with paganism. It gives attention to the early Christian defenders of the faith, the Nicene Creed, the Arian debate and monasticism. There are chapters given to the live of Ambrose, Chrysostom and Augustine.

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Sticky Church by Larry Osborne

The first section of the book, The Sticky Church Advantage, talks about the front door and back door of the Church. People come to the Church through the front door and leave through the back door. The sticky Church advantage come with closing the back door.

The second part of the book, How Small Groups Change Everything, talks about how small groups promote relationship, spiritual growth and maturity in God’s people.

The third part of the book, Sermon-Based Small Groups, talks about how sermon-based small groups can work to make a Sticky Church.

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A Contrarian’s Guide to Knowing God by Larry Osborne

The subtitle reads Spirituality for the Rest of Us.

Osborne has three types of people in mind in writing this book. This book offers hope to those who “have tried the standard recipes for knowing God” but have failed. The book answers the tough questions of those who “have learned to play the church game well” but still have nagging doubts. Finally, this book will help those who “have mastered the standard disciplines of spirituality” to understand the rest of us.

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Gay Girl Good God by Jackie Hill Perry

The subtitle reads The Story of Who I Was and Who God Has Always Been.

Jackie Hill Perry tells her story “a gay girl once…Now I am what God’s goodness will do to a soul once grace gets to it.” This book is addressed to two groups of people to the LGBT community because they desperately need to know God and to the Church because they need “to show the world God, as He is, and not as we would prefer for Him to be.”

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Live Love Lead by Brian Houston

The subtitle reads Your Best is Yet to Come.

Brian Houston the founder and senior pastor of Hillsong Church, talks about many of the lessons he has learned growing the ministry of Hillsong. Hillsong has become a global ministry with Churches all over the world.

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Surprised By Hope by N. T. Wright

The subtitle reads Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church.

Wright says that “what we believe about life after death directly affects what we believe about life before death.” He talks about the present confusion concerning the Christian’s future hope showing how this deeply affects the way we live.

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Simply Christian by N. T. Wright

The subtitle reads Why Christianity Makes Sense.

This book looks at the Christian faith much like Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. It looks at the beliefs and practices of the Christian faith examining the major characters and teachings of the Old and New Testament. The book makes a case for the Christian faith amongst the other religious faiths in the world with the assumption that the reader knows nothing about Christianity.

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God in the Wasteland by David F. Wells

The subtitle reads The Reality of Truth in a World of Fading Dreams.

This book is a follow-up to the previous book No Place For Truth. In this book David Wells proposes the steps needed to reverse the problem in the evangelical church that he exposes in his first book.

This is not a book for everyone, it is very philosophical and scholarly but it is worth reading.

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No Place For Truth by David F. Wells

The subtitle reads Or Whatever Happened to Evangelical Theology?

This book talks about how modern culture has influenced the evangelical church.

This is not a book for everyone, it is very philosophical and scholarly but I waited through the book because I felt it was worth reading.

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The Unseen Realm by Michael S. Heiser

The subtitle reads Recovering the supernatural worldview of the Bible.

Dr. Michael Heiser shows us a Biblical worldview that we are unfamiliar with in the evangelical church. A worldview understood by 1st century Christians and Jews, a worldview that 21st century Christians need to understand in order to interpret the Bible in its historical context. This book will put you in the head of the 1st century Christian and their understanding of what the scriptures say.

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What Was I Thinking by Caspar McCloud & Linda Lange

The subtitle reads Get Your Thoughts Working for You and Not Against You.

This book confirms what the Bible teaches “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” Prov. 23:7. Right thinking or Biblical thinking leads to mental, spiritual and physical health. Scientific studies have proven that right thinking leads to good health and well-being.

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The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch

The subtitle reads Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place.

This is not a book about eliminating technology but not letting it control you or your family. The book is divided into ten tech-wise commitments to help the family navigate through their relationship with modern technology.

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Present Over Perfect by Shauna Niequist

The subtitle reads Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living.

It is hard not to get caught up in performance in our present culture. This book will help to move you away from this destructive way of living. Shauna talks about how she did it.

The book is full of personal stories that illustrate how one can moved from the frantic to the soulful.

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Gospel Fluency by Jeff Vanderstelt

The subtitle reads Speaking the Truths of Jesus into the Everyday Stuff of Life.

Gospel fluent people think, feel, and perceive everything in light of what has been accomplished in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The reality is we talk about what we love and we love most what we talk about most.

An inspiring book giving the Christian practical advise in speaking to our friends, co-worker and neighbors about the Good News.

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Spirit Wars by Kris Vallotton

The subtitle reads Winning the Invisible Battle Against Sin and the Enemy

A book on spiritual warfare from Kris Vallotton’s own personal experience. It is full of personal stories and insightful teaching about a spiritual battle that all Christians are involved in whether they realize it or not.

Vallotton talks about how we engage the world, the flesh and the devil. He reveals the lies and strategies Satan uses to attack and trap the Christian. The believer has been assured victory over the devil through the redemptive work of Christ.

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What Jesus Started by Steve Addison

The subtitle reads Joining the Movement Changing the World.

Jesus started a movement that literally changed the world. It began with Jesus discipling twelve men and continued after His death through these men and later through Paul and the early church. These men changed the world through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit and their obedience to the instructions of Jesus.

This book clarifies how the early church evangelized their culture and multiplied churches.

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