10 Million Words is a year-long project by Christian author/blogger Tim Challies to learn about life and culture by reading all of America’s bestselling books.

Check out his book reviews by clicking HERE.

Check it out by clicking HERE.

The first two books really stand out from the rest and I wish that everyone at Peace Lutheran would buy copies in the days ahead and immediately delve into the riches contained therein.

The Treasury of Daily Prayer

I have talked about this book a lot since it was published -  The only thing I can add is this: Buy it now and use it daily!

You can find out more about The Treasury of Daily Prayer by clicking HERE and HERE. 

The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism by Tim Keller

I have written about Tim Keller‘s book elsewhere and have given it away to many people over the last year.  Keller addresses important questions that nag believers and non-believers alike. This is one of the most thoughtful and relevant books I have read in the last ten years. Buy it, read it, and give it away to your family members, friends, and neighbors.

Click HERE to find links to the book, study guides,  and downloadable Mp3s. Click HERE to watch Tim Keller on video.

If you won’t read this book then I beg you to take 60 minutes and watch the video of Keller’s presentation to the employees of Google by clicking HERE– it is well worth your time.

The following books are all good and presented in no particular order

The Hope of Glory: 100 Daily Meditations on Colossians by Sam Storms

This book is good example of what a daily devotional should be like (except for one bad chapter on Baptism).

Publisher’s Description: A collection of 100 daily meditations on Paul’s letter to the Colossians designed to deepen one’s knowledge and enjoyment of the glory and greatness of Christ.

You can browse the chapters of the book HERE.

To the One Who Conquers: 50 Daily Meditations on the Seven Letters of Revelation 2-3 by Sam Storms

Publisher’s Description: Fifty brief meditations bring these first-century letters into the twenty-first century, demonstrating their enormous relevance and practicality for the church today.

The seven letters of Revelation 2 and 3 are utterly and unequivocally Christ-centered in their content. The message is clear: Jesus is to be the center of all church life. When it comes to his church, Jesus cares comparatively little about numbers, cultural relevance, social influence, or financial prosperity. The only thing that ultimately matters is the degree to which a church and the lives of its members are shaped according to the likeness of Jesus.

These daily meditations lead readers to ask several questions: Is my church centered on Jesus? Am I? Is Jesus prized above all earthly treasures? To the One Who Conquers will help believers fashion their lives and ministries according to what pleases him, inspiring a lifetime of faithfulness.

You can read some of the meditations on which this book was based HERE.

Vintage Jesus: Timeless Answers to Timely Questions by Mark Driscoll 

This book is about Jesus and what he has accomplished for us. Probably the most straightforward, funny, and controversial book about Jesus written by a conservative preacher you will ever read. I encourage you to read it and tell me what you think.

This note from the ultra-confessional (Reformed) Westminster Seminary says it well: Note from wtsbooks: Style of presentation and use of language in this book do not necessarily represent that which would be condoned or encouraged by the staff or management of Westminster Bookstore. We offer this book for sale as an example of a young pastor committed to presenting the Reformed faith in "edgy" ways that he believes communicate effectively to an unchurched generation. Readers should be aware that Rev. Driscoll’s style and choice of words may be disturbing to some.

You can browse the chapters of the book HERE.

You can watch the sermons on which the book was based online by clicking  HERE.

You can read a book review that is generally positive but has some pointed criticisms HERE.

Game Day for the Glory of God: A Guide for Athletes, Fans, and Wannabes by Stephen Altrogge

I have written about this book elsewhere. If you love sports or know someone who does then you must read this book.

You can read an interview with the author HERE.

You can read the author’s blog by clicking HERE.

You can read chapter three in PDF format HERE.

You can read a positive book review by clicking HERE.

The Peacemaker Student Edition: Handling Conflict without Fighting Back or Running Away by Ken Sande and Kevin Johnson

I have written about this book elsewhere. I would recommend this book for all parents and teens. I would also recommend this book to anyone who wants a quick overview of the Peacemaker Ministries approach to discipleship and conflict resolution.

Christless Christianity: The Alternative Gospel of the American Church by Michael Horton

I believe that this is one of the most thoughtful analyses of the American Church available to the average reader. Horton shows us the ways that so many Christians and churches have become captive to legalism and need to return to the freedom of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Publisher’s Description: Christians have always had their differences, but never in church history have there been so many statistics indicating that many Christians today are practicing what can only be described as "Christless Christianity." Christless Christianity guides the reader to a greater understanding of a big problem within the American religious setting, namely the creeping fog of countless sermons in churches across the country that focus on moralistic concerns and personal transformation rather than the theology of the cross. Michael Horton’s analysis of the contemporary church points believers back to the power of a gospel that should never be assumed.

You can find out more about the book, read chapter one in PDF format, watch an online video, and order the book at the official website by clicking HERE.

As I said these are just a few of the excellent books published this year that I would like to recommend to the people of Peace. Remember, if you are looking around for something to read and want suggestions please let me know!.

There are many books available in the marketplace that seek to promote a thing called "Christian living". Most of these books end up driving us away from God’s grace because they put the focus on what YOU can do to overcome obstacles while finding greater wealth and prosperity in this life. Books that put the emphasis on YOU, YOU, and YOU are bound to sell well because we love to hear about new and improved ways of find self-fulfillment. As you read this book you will find all your self-centered approaches to believing and living cut off at the knees. Instead you will find yourself led to a more deeply satisfying focus on who God is and what God  is doing as a result of the Cross of Jesus Christ.

I wish the author would have spent even more time proclaiming the compassion of God demonstrated on the Cross, but Christ is central to Tripp’s work and for this we can be grateful. He also does an important service by drawing our attention to the importance of humble Christ centered communities, the necessity of a life marked by "groaning", and how asking for forgiveness reveals the goodness of God. If you are the kind of  person who works hard to succeed  or does whatever you can to ensure that your loved ones have every advantage, and yet still find that something is missing, then this book will be very helpful. God willing you will consider reading this book and take time to ponder the ways that the Glory of God is greater than the cheap imitations offered up by this world or by our own sinful nature. You will be humbled by what you read here, but I’m willing to bet that you will also be refreshed once again by the beauty revealed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Read a book review HERE

Order the book, read chapters 1-3 in PDF format, and view a video of the author discussing how transcendence figures into being a disciple by clicking HERE

If you would like to borrow our copy of this book please let me know.

“Parents are going to ludicrous lengths to take the bumps out of life for their children. However, parental hyperconcern has the net effect of making kids more fragile; that may be why they’re breaking down in record numbers.”

This is the thesis of Hara Estroff Marano’s recent book A Nation of Wimps: The High Cost of Invasive Parenting.

The author’s website can be found HERE.

The click HERE for listen to an excellent interview of the author

This is one book I wish every parent living in the suburbs would read. At the very least I would hope you would take 40 minutes and listen to the interview (HERE). Marano tries to illustrate the many ways that child-focused families and anxious parenting have helped create a generation of young adults who are manifesting significantly increased rates of anxiety, depression, and binge-drinking.

ChristianAudio.com is offering of John Bunyan’s classic book Pilgrim’s Progress (10.5 hours) free in the month of June. This book is considered to be one of the classics of English literature and one of the finest examples of Christian devotional writing ever written. John Bunyan was a puritan who was imprisoned for twelve years for preaching the Gospel outside of the Church of England. Bunyan’s devotional writings offer great comfort to the reader because they point to the beauty of God and the cross of Christ.

Just use the code JUN2008 when checking out.

“What is the basis for our security with God?  How do we know that he listens to our prayers and forgives our sins and takes care of us each day?…We get fearful and anxious because our default thought pattern is that God will do his part if we do ours.  The reality is, however, that there is no if.  God has already done his part by sending his Son, and in so doing he completed forever our eternal security and adoption into his family.  God hates our attempts to earn his favor, not only because they deny the finished work of Jesus, but also because those attempts keep us from enjoying his fellowship.

Trust: A Godly Woman’s Adornment by Lydia Brownback

You can browse this book online and download several pages in PDF format by going to the Crossways web site… Click HERE

Crossways in one of favorite publishing houses. One of the benefits of ordering from them online is that they allow you to download a PDF copy of most books you order for personal use which means you can start reading them right away and have a copy of the book on you computer.

Here is a quote on biblical spirituality from the book Hearing God’s Words: Exploring Biblical Spirituality written by Peter Adams, and Anglican biblical scholar from Ridley College in Melbourne Australia.

For the Bible is a great God-given resource and guide to true Christian spirituality. Its common neglect results in confusion about spirituality……….

Using another image, we can think of spirituality as being a kind of spiritual diet, in which the various resources provide necessary elements of that diet. Here are some examples: (1) A good dose of the creation reminds us of God’s eternal power and greatness. (2) Christian fellowship provides personal encouragement, support, rebuke and correction. (3) The Bible gives us God’s point of view on every area of our lives, and is the means God uses to speak to us.

It is easy to see what will happen if any of these three examples is missing from our spiritual diet: (1) If we neglect the great world God has made, which he sustains every moment, we may become over pressured by humanity, its needs and achievements, and forget God’s greatness and that he does not need us or our achievements. (2) If we neglect fellowship, we may easily become erratic, unloving, unrealistic, self centered or hardened by the deceitfulness of sin: close Christian fellowship is a gracious provision of God to help us live in reality! (3) If we neglect the Bible as a spiritual resource, we will easily slip into confusion, error, imbalance, idolatry, lack of spiritual discernment, and be seduced away from the worship of Christ. We will not make the right use of the varied spiritual resources God has given us. To find God in fellowship but to neglect the Bible will leave us vulnerable to the pressures of the people around us, to be too concerned about the approval of other people rather than the approval of God, and subject to the spirit of our age and friendship group.

So I am not claiming that the Bible should be our only spiritual resource, because the Bible itself encourages the use of many other resources, including reflecting on God’s creation, enjoying Christian fellowship and taking part in the Lord’s Supper. If the Bible is not used, our spirituality will easily and quickly lose its moorings. (pp. 19-20)

“We have enough Bibles for every household in America a couple of times over.  We have churches galore; religious organizations; educational institutions; religious presses that never stop pouring forth books, Sunday school materials, and religious curricula; and unparalleled financial resources.  What don’t we have?  All too often we don’t have what the Old Testament people didn’t have.  A due and weighty sense of the greatness and holiness of God, a sense that will reach into our lives, wrench them around, lift our vision, fill our hearts, make us courageous for what is right, and over time leave behind its beautiful residue of Christlike character” (pp. 132-3).

Tim Challies wrote an excellent review over at Discerning Reader. Read it here.

Here is a link to site that accompanies a recently published book by one of my favorite theologians, Thomas Oden. Oden’s general thesis is that “Africa has played a decisive role in the formation of Christian culture from its infancy. Decisive intellectual achievements of Christianity were explored and understood first in Africa before they were recognized in Europe, and a millennium before modern North America.” I stand with a great many people in believing that God is using African Christians in a powerful way to bring spiritual revival to the western world. This book helps us see how the ministry of African Christians is a part of a story that is much older than most of us can imagine. If you are interested in the history of the Church, the history of Africa, or world missions then you will probably like this book.

You can find read more about the book and download an excerpt by clicking HERE.

Seven ways Africa Shaped the Christian Mind

1. The western idea of the University was conceived in Alexandria.
2. Christian Exegesis (biblical interpretation) first matured in Africa.
3. African biblical interpreters powerfully shaped most of the important Christian doctrines.
4. Africa was the region that first set the pattern and method for seeking wider ecumenical consent on contested points of scripture.
5. The African desert gave birth to worldwide monasticism.
6. Christian Neo-Platonism emerged from Africa.
7. Rhetorical and Dialectical Skills were sharpened in Africa for the Europe’s benefit.