My Library

A good book and some Chemex coffee is my happy place. Here are some of the books and authors that have influenced my thinking over the years.

Dallas Willard

• Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God

• Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ

• The Divine Conspiracy

• The Great Omission: Reclaiming Jesus’s Essential Teachings on Discipleship

• The Scandal of the Kingdom: How the Parables of Jesus Revolutionize Life with God

• The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives

N.T. Wright

• How God Became King: The Forgotten Story of the Gospels

• Paul: A Biography

• Simply Christian

• Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church

• The New Testament in Its World: An Introduction to the History, Literature, and Theology of the First Christians

Timothy Keller

• Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters

• Encounters with Jesus: Unexpected Answers to Life's Biggest Questions

• Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God's Work

• Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I?

• Generous Justice: How God's Grace Makes Us Just

• God's Wisdom for Navigating Life: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Book of Proverbs

• Hidden Christmas: The Surprising Truth Behind the Birth of Christ

• King's Cross: The Story of the World in the Life of Jesus

• Making Sense of God: An Invitation to the Skeptical

• Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God

• Preaching: Communicating Faith in an Age of Skepticism

• The Freedom of Self Forgetfulness: The Path to True Christian Joy

• The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God

• The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith

• The Prodigal Prophet: Jonah and the Mystery of God's Mercy

• The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism

• The Songs of Jesus: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms

C.S. Lewis

• Mere Christianity

• Miracles

• The Abolition of Man

• The Great Divorce

• The Problem of Pain

• The Screwtape Letters

• The Weight of Glory

Eugene Peterson

• A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society

• Eat This Book: A Conversation in the Art of Spiritual Reading

• Five Smooth Stones for Pastoral Work

• The Contemplative Pastor: Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction

• The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language

• The Pastor: A Memoir

• Under the Unpredictable Plant: An Exploration in Vocational Holiness

• Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity

John Mark Comer

• Garden City: Work, Rest, and the Art of Being Human.

• God Has a Name: What You Believe About God Will Shape Who You Become

• Live No Lies: Recognize and Resist the Three Enemies That Sabotage Your Peace

• Loveology: God. Love. Marriage. Sex. And the Never-Ending Story of Male and Female.

• Practicing the Way: Be with Jesus. Become like him. Do as he did.

• The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry: How to Stay Emotionally Healthy and Spiritually Alive in the Chaos of the Modern World

Bible Study

• An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination by Walter Brueggemann & Tod Linafelt

• Dominion and Dynasty: A Theology of the Hebrew Bible (New Studies in Biblical Theology, Volume 15) by Stephen G. Dempster

• Gospel Women: Studies of the Named Women in the Gospels by Richard Bauckham

• Jesus and the God of Israel: God Crucified and Other Studies on the New Testament's Christology of Divine Identity by Richard Bauckham

• Jesus and the Eyewitnesses: The Gospels as Eyewitness Testimony by Richard Bauckham

• NIV Compact Bible Commentary by John H. Sailhamer

• NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture by Craig S. Keener & John H. Walton

• Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God by Gordon D. Fee

• Reading Revelation Responsibly: Uncivil Worship and Witness: Following the Lamb into the New Creation by Michael J. Gorman

• Reading Romans Backwards: A Gospel of Peace in the Midst of Empire by Scot McKnight

• Read the Bible for a Change: Understanding and Responding to God's Word by Ray Lubeck

• Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus: How a Jewish Perspective Can Transform Your Understanding by Lois Tverberg

• Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus: How the Jewishness of Jesus Can Transform Your Faith by Ann Spangler & Lois Tverberg

• The Exodus You Almost Passed Over by David Fohrman

• The Good Shepherd: A Thousand-Year Journey from Psalm 23 to the New Testament by Kenneth E. Bailey

• The Lost World of Adam and Eve: Genesis 2-3 and the Human Origins Debate by John H. Walton

• The Lost World of Genesis One: Ancient Cosmology and the Origins Debate by John H. Walton

• The Lost World of the Flood: Mythology, Theology, and the Deluge Debate by John H. Walton

• The Lost World of Scripture: Ancient Literary Culture and Biblical Authority by John H. Walton

• The Sermon on the Mount and Human Flourishing: A Theological Commentary by Jonathan T. Pennington

• The Theology of the Book of Revelation by Richard Bauckham

• Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus: How the Jewish Words of Jesus Can Change Your Life by Lois Tverberg

Prayer

• A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World by Paul E. Miller

• How to Hear God: A Simple Guide for Normal People by Pete Greig

• Prayer: Our Deepest Longing by Ronald Rolheiser

• Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools: An Invitation to the Wonder and Mystery of Prayer by Tyler Staton

• Seeking God's Face: Praying with the Bible through the Year by Philip Reinders

• The Way of the Heart: Connecting with God Through Prayer, Wisdom, and Silence by Henri J.M. Nouwen

Spiritual Formation

• Confessions by Saint Augustine

• Creative Ministry by Henri J.M. Nouwen

• Domestic Monastery by Ronald Rolheiser

• Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: It's Impossible to Be Spiritually Mature, While Remaining Emotionally Immature by Peter Scazzero

• Fasting: The Ancient Practices by Scot McKnight

• In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership by Henri J.M. Nouwen

• Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation by M. Robert Mulholland Jr.

• Invitation to Retreat: The Gift and Necessity of Time Away with God by Ruth Haley Barton

• Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God's Transforming Presence by Ruth Haley Barton

• Making All Things New: An Invitation to the Spiritual Life by Henri J.M. Nouwen

• Relational Spirituality: A Psychological-Theological Paradigm for Transformation by Todd W. Hall

• Sabbath as Resistance by Walter Brueggemann

• Sacred Fire: A Vision for a Deeper Human and Christian Maturity by Ronald Rolheiser

• Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership: Seeking God in the Crucible of Ministry by Ruth Haley Barton

• The Art of Forgiving by Lewis B. Smedes

• The Familiar Stranger: (Re)Introducing the Holy Spirit to Those in Search of an Experiential Spirituality by Tyler Staton

• The Good and Beautiful Community: Following the Spirit, Extending Grace, Demonstrating Love by James Bryan Smith

• The Good and Beautiful God: Falling in Love with the God Jesus Knows by James Bryan Smith

• The Good and Beautiful Life: Putting on the Character of Christ by James Bryan Smith

• The Good and Beautiful You: Discovering the Person Jesus Created You to Be by James Bryan Smith

• The Holy Longing: The Search for a Christian Spirituality by Ronald Rolheiser

• The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others by Scot McKnight

• The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel

• Unwanted: How Sexual Brokenness Reveals Our Way to Healing by Jay Stringer

• Water from a Deep Well: Christian Spirituality from Early Martyrs to Modern Missionaries by Gerald L. Sittser

• You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit by James K.A. Smith

Family Reading

• Amon's Adventure: A Family Story for Easter by Arnold Ytreeide

• Bartholomew's Passage: A Family Story for Advent by Arnold Ytreeide

• Ishtar's Odyssey: A Family Story for Advent by Arnold Ytreeide

• Jotham's Journey: A Family Story for Advent by Arnold Ytreeide

• Tabitha's Travels: A Family Story for Advent by Arnold Ytreeide

• Telling God's Story, Year One: Meeting Jesus by Peter Enns

• Telling God's Story, Year Two: The Kingdom of Heaven by Peter Enns

• The Ascendance Series (5 Books) by Jennifer A. Nielsen

• The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

• The Wingfeather Saga (4 Books) by Andrew Peterson

• God’s Big Picture Bible Storybook by N.T. Wright

Various Other Books

• Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business by Neil Postman

• Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport

• Destroyer of the gods: Early Christian Distinctiveness in the Roman World by Larry W. Hurtado

• Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport

• Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown

• Living Fearless: Exchanging the Lies of the World for the Liberating Truth of God by Jamie Winship

• Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout by Cal Newport

• The End Is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments, from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses by Dan Carlin

• The Intentional Father: A Practical Guide to Raise Sons of Courage and Character by Jon Tyson

• The Lost Letters of Pergamum: A Story from the New Testament World by Bruce W. Longenecker

• The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to Sexual Revolution by Carl R. Trueman

• The Triumph of Christianity: How the Jesus Movement Became the World's Largest Religion by Rodney Stark

• Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging by Sebastian Junger

• Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect by Will Guidara

• Why on Earth Did Anyone Become a Christian in the First Three Centuries? by Larry W. Hurtado