In 2019 I read over 20 books! Which is far more than I’ve ever read before (I can’t suggest audio books enough).
With that said, they were all very good, but I thought I’d share my favorite 7 books with you and a brief summary of each in case you’re interested in reading any of them as well. Enjoy!!
(I’ve written this list putting my favorite book first, at the top)
#1: Letters To The Church by Francis Chan
Our church read through this book together in the beginning of 2019 and it was definitely a great read. Francis Chan has such a passion for Jesus and His Church that shows though every book he’s written and His message is always so clear and simple: Let’s desire nothing less than a complete and whole relationship with Jesus. It’s a great book that I suggest you read if you haven’t already.
#2: The Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson
This is one of the few biography style books I’ve read and I’m so glad that I did. I’ve already written about The Cross and the Switchblade, sharing my favorite quotes from the book which you can read at this link.
This book was so encouraging and inspiring to read as it follows David Wilkerson though many ups and downs, both in the ministry and in his personal doubts and struggles. It has many extremely important reminders for the Christian life and I can’t recommend this book enough.
#3: The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment by Jeremiah Burroughs
This was one of the first books I read in 2019 and it’s still one I reflect on occasionally a year later. I can still remember listening to it and pausing it to reflect on the truths that he wrote. This is also a book I’ve shared some favorite quotes in a previous post which you can read at this link.
#4: Dangerous Calling by Paul Tripp
Dangerous Calling is certainly geared towards Pastors and church leaders, but I can see benefit for anyone to read it. Paul Tripp gets extremely personal in the book and is such a breath of fresh air when it comes to some of the issues often left ignored or even hidden on purpose today. If you are in church leadership in any way, I cannot recommend it enough, and even if you aren’t, I think this book would help you know how to better encourage and pray for the leaders in your church.
#5: The Case For Miracles by Lee Strobel
I read “The Case For Miracles” kind of on a whim. The book came up in a conversation and I decided to check it out – and I’m so glad that I did. This book is filled with tons of stories of God working in miraculous ways and gives ample reason to believe that we serve a God Who is clearly still working today. There was fantastic insight, interviews and stories throughout the book, but my favorite part was actually the chapter dedicated to when God doesn’t provide a miracle. In a book surrounded with miraculous stories, he was sure to cover what to do and believe when we don’t see the miracle we prayed for. I quote the book a little in a recent post “What Should I Expect When I Step Out In Faith?” but I think you should also read this book in its entirety for yourself.
#6: The Next Right Thing – Emily P. Freeman
My wife suggested I read this book as we’ve experienced a massive amount of loss and transition in our lives these past 2 years. The author is a well-listened to podcaster who compiled and expanded upon a series of episodes to write this book. It was a great devotional style read, with her own prayers at the end of each chapter and action steps/things to consider that summarize the stories and ideas for that chapter. This book was specifically good for our previously mentioned situation in life, but I think anyone, at anytime, could benefit by reflecting on the things she writes about in this book because they are simple, yet overlooked, practices that we should incorporate into our daily lives to continually be sensitive to what God has for us, even when we’re not explicitly in a life stage of change.
#7: The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer
A.W. Tozer is one of those authors who I could just keep pulling quotes from. So many things he wrote were simply said so well that I write it down and just kind of sit there thinking about it. This book in particular was an incredible one to read because it was so broad in its topic that it felt like each chapter was a different mini topic with tons of encouraging and thought provoking quotes. I definitely suggest reading this book and taking the time to think about the various areas of Christian living that he covers.