Any books you’re reading right now?
Currently, I am reading Leadership in Turbulent Times, by Doris Kearns Goodwin and A Praying Church, by Paul Miller.
Who are some authors who have shaped your thinking and walk with Christ?
Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology. John Piper, Desiring God; Supremacy of God in Preaching; and his series of mini-biographies, now in a single volume titled 21 Servants of Sovereign Joy. Tim Keller (nearly all of his books). James Montgomery Boice and Philip Ryken, The Doctrines of Grace. Graeme Goldsworthy, Gospel and Kingdom and Preaching the Whole Bible as Christian Scripture. James Davison Hunter, To Change the World.
In your bio, it says you like to read non-fiction. What are your top non-fiction favorites? Fiction favorites (if any)?
Besides the previously mentioned non-fiction Christian books, I enjoy reading presidential biographies because I gain perspective on how past presidents led through hard times. Most of the works by Doris Kearns Goodwin and David McCullough have been enjoyable. Decision Points, by George W. Bush gave me insights into how he responded to crises like 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, including his reflections on what he could have done better. One major takeaway from Decision Points is the conviction that leadership requires making hard decisions and living with the consequences; in moments of decision, we don’t have the benefit of hindsight, which will always be 20/20. Two more secular titles that have been helpful in recent times are (1) Leadership on the Line, by Ronald A. Heifetz and Marty Linsky, one of the best books on the dynamics of organizational change and (2) Same as Ever, by Morgan Housel, a book about human behavior and habits that helped me with short and long term vision casting–in a world that is constantly changing.
As for fiction, honestly, the last novel I read was The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexander Dumas—and that was a long time ago. However, I truly enjoy books like John Mark Reynolds, The Great Books Reader, with an assortment of essays about the Classics–from a Christian perspective.
Are there any books you reread on a regular basis? Why?
Thomas Watson’s, Doctrine of Repentance, is a book I regularly pull off my shelf because the sentences I ran my yellow highlighter over (decades ago) can still save me from the foolishness of my own pride today.
Time and time again, I reread portions of David Powlison’s Good and Angry because in every new season of life, anger puts on new and refined garments, always threatening to unseat the reign of Christ over my heart. Powlison has been to me a Yoda of biblical counseling–teaching me to examine each emotional layer of my heart through the lens of Christ and Scripture.
Finally, there’s Tim Keller and C.S. Lewis. Each time I’ve reread Tim Keller’s Reason for God and C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity, I gain new insights that cultivate winsome ways to converse with non-Christians.
What’s one book you wish every Christian would read?
The Doctrines of Grace, by James Montgomery Boice and Philip Graham Ryken because this was the book that rescued me from the exhaustion of basing salvation and discipleship on personal volition and religious performance.
Photo Credit: Pickawood