Regular readers of this blog know that I average reading about 50 books each year. I just finished my 50th book for 2024, so I thought I might as well go ahead and share my top 10 reads for the year. This year I re-read a lot of books I had previously read. I also didn't read as much fiction as I had been reading. After being called to serve as pastor of North Madison Baptist Church I thought I had better retool my pastoral skills! That eliminated the Star Wars books! Anyway, here are my favorite reads 6-10.
10) The Church and the Single Mom by Jennifer Barnes Maggio. I have a burden for the single moms living in our community. According to the past census report, there are 1,700 single-parent homes in our county. I would assume at least 1,500 of them are single-moms. I am encouraging our church to begin a ministry to serve these individuals, and I admitted to them I didn't have a clue how to begin. Reading this book is helping me identify some ways we can begin to serve this population.
9) The Post-Quarantine Church by Thom S. Rainer. This was one of my re-reads. Covid hit most churches hard. People stayed away from church even when it was announced that it was safe to return. Those churches who thought they would return to normal once the pandemic ended were wrong. We now live in a new normal, and only those churches that can adjust to that new normal will thrive. Rainer points out that there are now three groups of people the church must serve: Digital-only who are unable to attend church services, Digitally-transitioning are those who are mostly connected to the church digitally but may attend occasionally; and Dual citizens who are connected to the church both through digital ministries and in person. This is a very good book for pastors and lay leaders to read who want to know how to move forward.
8) The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C. Maxwell. I have never published my top ten list without at least one book by Maxwell being on the list. He is a must read for anyone in a leadership position. In fact, I have his latest book on my desk which I will start reading next week. I have read the referenced book several times and heard him teach from the book. It has shaped my leadership style more than any other book or class. I only wish the book had been available earlier in my ministry.
7) I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Norman Geisler and Frank Turek. This book is not an easy read but one that I found very helpful. It is a book that points out the blind faith that atheists and skeptics must have in order to sustain their rejection of God and shows how reason and logic will always point one to belief in God. I love reading apologetics, and this is one of the best to give you a reason for your faith and give you some tools you can use to share that faith with others.
6) The Deconstruction of Christianity by Alisa Childers and Tim Barnett. Deconstruction is a new term in our postmodern age. It refers to the process by which people walk away from their faith in God. Several well-known Christian authors and musicians have announced in the past few years they no longer believe in God. Countless others have made the same choice. I read this book to help me understand what is happening and to give me some tools to use if someone comes to me saying they are in the process of deconstructing. This book did not disappoint. If you have not known someone yet who is going through deconstruction of their faith, you will. This book can help you work with those individuals.
Tomorrow I'll share the final five books that made my favorite list for the year.
No comments:
Post a Comment