Each year I share the best 10 books I read the previous year. As we begin a new year it's time to give you my top books for 2019. Today I'll share 6-10, and tomorrow we'll look at 1-5.
10. How to Lead in a World of Distraction: Four Simple Habits for Turning Down the Noise by Clay Scroggins. The author tackles a problem common to anyone in a leadership position in any organization, including churches. He is the lead pastor of one of the largest campuses of North Point Ministries in Atlanta so you know he has plenty of distractions. In the book he shares four habits to help leaders overcome the distractions they face: the habit of finding simplicity, the habit of speaking to yourself, the habit of getting away and the habit of pressing pause. I found it to be a very practical book that most leaders would find helpful.
9. God Attachment: Why You Believe, Act, and Feel the Way You Do About God by Tim Clinton and Joshua Straub. Clinton was one of my professors when I earned my doctoral degree so I was familiar with some of the material before reading the book. Actually, this was a re-read as I first read it a few years ago. The book looks at how our relationships with others, especially family, affects our relationship with God. The authors list four attachment styles: avoidant, anxious, fearful and secure. They help the reader understand better how to improve the way they relate to God regardless of which attachment style they may currently have. I found myself in the book which triggered a lot of self-reflection on my part.
8. Thinking for a Change: 11 Ways Highly Successful People Approach Life andWork by John Maxwell. This is another re-read. Actually, I've read this book a couple of times before reading it again this year. Most of us, at least me, could learn to think better, to think deeper and to think more creatively. As Maxwell writes, "Good thinkers are never at a loss to solve problems, they never lack ideas that can build an organization, and they always have hope for a better future....A person who knows how may always have a job, but the person who knows why will always be his boss." If you want to have tools to help you think better you'll want to read this book.
7. The Prodigal Prophet: Jonah and the Mystery of God's Mercy by Tim Keller. If you've followed my top 10 book lists in the past you might remember there is always at least one book by Keller on the list. In this book he looks at the story of Jonah and then relates him to both the prodigal son and to Jesus. More importantly, he points out how this Old Testament prophet points us to the grace of God. I'll also add that if you are looking for some great sermon material, this book will preach!
6. Cultural Apologetics: Renewing the Christian Voice, Conscience, and Imagination in a Disenchanted World by Paul Gould. We live in a time when the Christian message is often muted, ignored and mocked. The author asks the question, How does the gospel get a fair hearing in this day and age?" He believes the answer lies in practicing cultural apologetics which he defines as "the work of establishing the Christian voice, conscience, and imagination within a culture so that Christianity is seen as true and satisfying." Cultural apologetics seeks to understand the culture we want to reach, how it thinks and what it is seeking from life. The believer is then ready to show how Christianity speaks to those deepest needs. This is a very good book for anyone wanting to better relate the Gospel to his or her community.
Tomorrow we'll look at the final five books on the list.
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