This year has been a big reading year for me, so much so that I hit a milestone in reaching my 2009 reading goal…a goal I set without anticipation of actually succeeding at since so much of my life in 09 was up in the air!
God in His providence gave me the grace and time to finish my 2009 goal and for that I am stoked! I have set the bar higher for 2010, so we’ll see how it goes.
I believe my passion for reading coincides with my passion to learn more about God, the church, the culture, teen issues and things of that nature. I just can’t get enough education on so many things, this desire however as I’ve mentioned is totally new to me as of 2006! I am overjoyed to want to learn for the first time in my life, it’s exhilarating and humbling all at once because I’ve realized that I will never stop learning for the entirety of my life and that is sweet to think about!
Anyways, all that to say I came across some GREAT books that I think everyone should read. These books hit me hard in my guts and challenged my faith, marriage, ministry, spirituality and life! (These are in no particular order of greatness, just simply placed as I remembered them)
1. Wild at Heart- John Eldridge (mainly for men, but insightful for women as well)
2. Fathered by God- John Eldridge (mainly for men, but insightful for women as well)
3. Crazy Love- Francis Chan
4. Forgotten God- Francis Chan
5. Youth Ministry 3.0- Mark Oestreicher (HUGE challenge as to how I do ministry)
6. Middle School Ministry- Mark Oestreicher (a book EVERY MS youth pastor, leader, volunteer needs to read!)
7. Vintage Church- Mark Driscoll (Made me re-look at how I view the church)
8. The Radical Reformission- Mark Driscoll
9. Death By Love- Mark Driscoll (huge challenge to me on my views of the atonement as well as what Christ accomplished for me on the cross)
10. Religion Saves and Nine Other Misconceptions- Mark Driscoll
11. Apologetics for a New Generation- Sean McDowell
12. The Abolition of Man- C.S. Lewis
13. Lost and Found- Ed Stetzer
14. Leadership from the Inside Out- Kevin Harney
15. The Big Idea- Dave Ferguson
16. It- Craig Groeschel
17. The Prodigal God- Timothy Keller
18. The Reason for God- Timothy Keller
19. The Monkey and the Fish- Dave Gibbons
20. A Million Miles in a Thousand Years- Donald Miller (The most thought provoking book I read all year)
21. Your Jesus is Too Safe- Jared Wilson
22. Luke 1:1-9:50- Darrell Bock (The only commentary I’ve been able to read straight through…very good content!)
Well, that’s the best of my 2009 in reading! What’s been your favorite 2009 book?
thanks for the list, Marvin -- i don't get to read as much as you, but appreciate your sharing these...question: have you read any Mark Buchanan at all?..."Your God Is Too Safe" and "The Holy Wild" are personal favorites...i also recently read Brennan Manning's "The Furious Longing of God" -- not bad...but i need to balance out my deep reading with fun novels, too...keep it up!...
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