As we turn the final pages of 2024, I offer my annual list of favorite reads for the year. This was another great reading year with many happy hours invested in the “Big Three” of mellow music, strong coffee, and a good book.

As always, this is not a list of my favorite books published in 2024 but books read in 2024. If a book is on my “Best Of” list, I recommend you read it in 2025.

The publishing date range on this year’s reads is once again wide: from the 12^th Century (Spiritual Friendship by Aelred of Rievaulx) to 2024 (A Sharp Compassion by Chase Replogle, De-sizing the Church by Karl Vaters, and Shepherd for Sale by Megan Basham).

As is true every year, in 2024 I read a few great books, some good books, and some why-the-big-deal books.

I am decidedly not a fad reader. Fad reading breeds fat minds. Jack Kerouac said it this way:

“Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion.”

When people tell me, “You just have to read this latest and greatest book,” I run the other way. I am not a follower of crowds when it comes to books and authors. I’ve often said I’d like to compile a list of each year’s “must read” books and then track their “must read” status in the coming years. With limited time and resources, I wait for the dust to settle before putting my money down on a book that may be a great investment of my time and money or a waste of both. 

Rather than follow the “latest-and-greatest,” I follow the sage counsel of C.S. Lewis, who said,

“It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.”

It’s advice I follow with joy as rereads of previously read books are like visits with the oldest and best of friends. Every reading of them brings ever deeper riches. How can you beat an evening with C.S. Lewis, Francis Schaeffer, Elisabeth Elliot, Os Guinness, or Thomas Sowell,

Lewis again:

“I can’t imagine a man really enjoying a book and reading it only once.”

HOW THIS YEAR’S READING IS PRESENTED:

This year’s reading is presented in four lists: 

• 1.  The complete list of books I read;
• 2.  Old friends I read again;
• 3.  Books that help us better understand American culture today;
• 4.  The most important reads of 2024.

THE COMPLETE LIST OF BOOKS READ IN 2024 (LISTED ALPHABETICALLY):

A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis. 1961. 75 pages.

A Quest for More: Living For Something Bigger Than You by Paul David Tripp. 2007. 210 pages.

A Mentoring Guide by VantagePoint3. 2019. 100 pages.

A Praying Church by Paul Miller. 2023. 304 pages.

A Sharp Compassion by Chase Replogle. 2024. 182 pages.

Back on Murder by J. Mark Bertrand. 2010. 384 pages.

Barbarians Inside the Gates by Thomas Sowell. 1999. 268 pages.

Belgium: Its Cities, Vol. 1 by Grant Allen. 1904. 345 pages.

Beyond Mayberry by Thomas D. Perry. 2020. 249 pages.

Carpe Diem Redeemed by Os Guinness. 2019. 176 pages.

Christ Chronological by Various. 2017. 139 pages.

Crucified by Christians by Gene Edwards. 1994. 115 pages.

De-sizing the Church by Karl Vaters. 2024. 230 pages.

Deep Mentoring by Randy D. Reese and Robert Loane. 2012. 240 pages.

Ephesians by A. Skevington Wood. 1978. 92 pages.

Fault Lines by Voddie Baucham. 2021. 270 pages.

First Samuel by Matthew Henry. 1708. 171 pages.

Second Samuel by Matthew Henry. 1708.130 pages.

Hearing God by Dallas Willard. 2021. 312 pages.

Hebrews by Ray Stedman. 163 pages. 1992.

In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership by Henri Nouwen. 1989. 81 pages.

Intellectuals and Race by Thomas Sowell. 2013. 192 pages.

Jonathan Edwards on Revival by Jonathan Edwards. 1984 (Original: circa 1735-1742) 160 pages.

Mondays With My Old Pastor by José Luis Navajo. 2012. 207 pages.

Of Other Worlds And Other Essays by C.S. Lewis. 1966. 148 pages.

Shepherds for Sale by Megan Basham. 2024. 325 pages.

Spiritual Friendship by Aelred of Rievaulx. (Original: 12^th Century) 2010. 159 pages.

Strange New World by Carl R. Trueman. 2022. 208 pages.

The Anxiety Cure by Archibald Hart. 1999. 263 pages.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. 1956. 800 pages.

The Gospel as Center, edited by D.A. Carson and Tim Keller.  2012. 320 pages.

The Gospel Shaped Leader: Leaning on Jesus by Scott Thomas. 2021. 168 pages.

The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis. 1946.146 pages.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. 2008. 206 pages.

The Pastor: A Memoir by Eugene Peterson. 2012. 336 pages.

The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind by Carl R. Trueman. 2011. 41 pages.

The Secret of Guidance by Frederick B. Meyer. 2015. 87 pages.

The Story of Reality by Greg Koukl. 2017. 208 pages

There’s a Little Girl in Every Daddy’s Heart, Volumes 1 and 2. 2015 and 2017.

Values Driven Leadership by Aubrey Malphurs. 2004. 188 pages.

Women of Belgium: Turning Tragedy Into Triumph by Charlotte Kellogg. 1917. 210 pages.

OLD FRIENDS READ AGAIN

This year I reread these old friends. Most would make my “Best Reads of the Year” list in any year. Because these are re-reads, they will not be considered for my 2024 “Best Reads” list.

A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis. 1961. 75 pages.

A Mentoring Guide by VantagePoint3. 2019. 100 pages.

Barbarians Inside the Gates by Thomas Sowell. 1999. 268 pages.

Deep Mentoring by Randy D. Reese and Robert Loane. 2012. 240 pages.

Ephesians by A. Skevington Wood. 1978. 92 pages.

Intellectuals and Race by Thomas Sowell. 2013. 192 pages.

Mondays With My Old Pastor by José Luis Navajo. 2012. 207 pages.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. 1956. 800 pages.

The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis. 1946.146 pages.

The Pastor: A Memoir by Eugene Peterson. 2012. 336 pages.

There’s a Little Girl in Every Daddy’s Heart, Volumes 1 and 2. 2015 and 2017.

UNDERSTANDING THE TIMES BOOKS

These are uniquely challenging times for pastors and churches. Churches continue to hemorrhage attendees, and many who remain in the church cannot address the issues of our times substantively.

Two primary reasons are that the Church fails to understand the times or adequately address them from a Christian worldview perspective. For this reason, I continue to earnestly encourage Journey members to read in the area of worldview. Pastors who give their people the lens of a Christian worldview and teach them how to use it will not only see their churches strong and stable, but these churches will be an oasis for nonbelievers searching for truth and meaning in this often upside-down world. Churches that neglect to teach worldview will eventually go the way of the world (I John 2.15-17)

Several books I read this year focus on worldview directly or indirectly, and so, address our times and culture. They deal with the foundational issues that help us understand the changes taking place in America and how Christians should address them. Books by Os Guinness, Nancy Pearcey, and Francis Schaeffer are always essential reads on church and culture. Read anything by them you can find. Books by Sowell are essential reads on culture; I reread at least one Sowell book every year.

The worldview books I read this year:

Barbarians Inside the Gates by Thomas Sowell. 1999. 268 pages.

Carpe Diem Redeemed by Os Guinness. 2019. 176 pages.

Fault Lines by Voddie Baucham. 2021. 270 pages.

Intellectuals and Race by Thomas Sowell. 2013. 192 pages.

Strange New World by Carl R. Trueman. 2022. 208 pages.

The Story of Reality by Greg Koukl. 2017. 208 pages

THE BEST READS OF 2024

In alphabetical order, A “Baker’s Dozen” of favorite reads for 2024 PLUS a bonus I have to include for a reason I will share. Each title is followed by the author’s name and a brief description of the “what” and “why” that lead to the book making our list. Enjoy.

You can always find our list of recommended books online in the Journey Library. Check out our shelves at journeypastoralcoaching.com/the-jpc-library/

A Praying Church by Paul Miller

Publisher: In our current culture, the church and prayer are often dismissed as irrelevant. But when believers gather and pray together, powerful things happen: the Spirit equips the saints for ministry, the helpless are met with help, and believers experience the joy of being led by the Spirit of Jesus. In this book, Paul E. Miller, bestselling author of A Praying Life, casts a vision for a return to the simple yet life-changing practice of praying together.

Through personal stories and biblical examples, Miller teaches the why, what, and how of praying together. Readers will learn how praying with other Christians can transform their communities into beacons of hope and be given practical strategies―such as finding a prayer partner and prioritizing a structured prayer time―to implement these changes in their own church. 

Note: Miller has made the heart and practice of prayer his life work, not only in his own life but in the church. The organization of his material lays out in a logical, “journey” approach, with each chapter building on all that precedes it. It’s clear this is material he has taught many times, so he has honed down to the essentials. Very well-written as well. What struck me most about APC is Miller’s attention to exploring what the church really is and can be. This is far more than a how-to book or another attempt to cajole us to prayer; it is an invitation to live in a living relationship with God, including strong relationships with other believers. Loneliness is an increasing plague in the church; believers feel less connected to God and each other. They are finding Sunday morning events to be less than fulfilling and are longing for meaningful relationships with God and others. Miller argues rightly and well that praying together is the beginning, end, and means of that journey.

A Sharp Compassion by Chase Replogle

Publisher: According to Google, the phrase “I’m offended” has increased in usage by more than 5,600% in just the past century. Humans have always taken offense, but never have we been so obsessed with it. Offense stunts our conversations and divides our relationships. It infects our families, politics, entertainment, and churches. Yet few seem to be asking why or what it might be costing us.

If you trace the offense deep enough, you’ll find a culture and our individual lives drowning in insecurity.

For all our self-help, self-affirming, and self-esteem rhetoric, we can’t seem to overcome it. Just beneath our awareness, our insecurities distort our desires, poison our relationships, and leave us increasingly sensitive to offense. But there is a worse consequence.

Offense makes it harder to hear the truth. It can even prevent you from hearing Jesus’s good, but sometimes hard, words. 

A Sharp Compassion offers readers a closer look at some of Jesus’ most challenging words. Through a careful study of the conversations in which Jesus offended, you will discover a savior willing to risk offending you to heal you from your deepest insecurities. Because his love is great, his truths are often hard, and his compassion sharp. But perhaps it’s Jesus’ hard words we need most right now.

Note: Forget that I am privileged to walk with the author and count him a friend. No, don’t forget that fact. Because the author is a friend and we do walk together, I can recommend this book – I know what he put into it. This is a labor of love, a love for God’s Word, God’s people living in the whole counsel of God’s Word, and for God Himself. We live in a time when the right to claim offense is almost an eleventh commandment: “Thou wilt live offended.” But living offended, we live on thrones of self-idolatry, isolating ourselves from others and God. With this continual claim to offense, we are missing a startling truth: the Word of God is salted, front to back, with offense! And, get ready for this; it teaches the value of offense, even presenting it as a vital means to redemption and restoration in the abundant life God offers us. Taking us to the Word of God, Chase demonstrates the necessity, even beauty, of biblical offense. You will find yourself leaning into God’s “sharp compassion” as, in His love for us as daughters and sons (Hebrews 12.5-11), he calls us to confront the things that prevent us from coming into a full and free relationship with Him. Your deepest desire is to walk with your Creator-Redeemer as closely as possible, right? Here’s a substantive and well-written book that will help you do just that. You’ll thank me later.  

Barbarians Inside the Gates by Thomas Sowell

Publisher: Thomas Sowell once again demonstrates why he is one of the most thoughtful, readable, and controversial thinkers of our time. With his usual unrelenting candor, he cuts through the stereotypes, popular mythology, and what he calls the “mush” surrounding the critical issues facing the American social, economic, political, legal, racial, and education scenes. Sowell’s hard-hitting, and ruthlessly honest, views include his commentary on Affirmative Action, Cultural Bias, The Media, Immigration, The Minimum Wage, Multiculturalism, Social Security, and The Litigation Explosion.

Note: I reread at least one book by Sowell every year. A purveyor of an all-too-rare common sense, he is one of the greatest minds of the 20th  or 21st centuries. He proves it again in Barbarians, a collection of topically organized essays on American culture. As an economist with a sociologist’s bent, Sowell blends these two sciences, producing sharp and well-reasoned writing. While others pontificate, Sowell demonstrates, supporting his positions with studies and research. He is gifted in making the complex simple and clear, and he has no fear of taking on political correctness or offending when necessary. In a time defined by soundbite thinking and writing, Sowell breaks the mold. His essays on American culture are apologetics for reality and reason. If you don’t like being challenged, don’t bother. But if you want an honest and forthright pursuit of truth and facts, Sowell is your man. Barbarians is a great place to start.

Carpe Diem Redeemed by Os Guinness

Publisher: You only live once―if then. Life is short, and it can be as easily wasted as lived to the full. In our harried modern world, how do we make the most of the time we have?

In these fast and superficial times, Os Guinness calls us to consequential living. As a contrast to both Eastern and secularist views of time, he restructures our very notion of history as linear and purposeful, not as cyclical or meaningless. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, time and history are meaningful, and human beings have agency to live with freedom and consequence in partnership with God. Thus we can seek to serve God’s intentions for our generation and discern our call for this moment.

Our time on earth has significance. Live rightly, discern the times, and redeem the day.

Note: Why read Carpe Diem Redeemed? Os Guinness is the author; reason enough. Read anything you can find by Os Guinness for sound Christian thinking on church and culture. In CDR, Guinness answers the question, “What is my life about, and how do I make it count? His answer is not found in the all-too-common Christian fortune cookies offered in many Christian books. Instead, Guinness takes the reader out of themself for a global view, God’s view, of the world and time – Christian worldview. As we see the big picture of God, we can better understand our place in God’s world and work. You’ll want to stop and prayerfully reflect as you read. The result will be more than a book with underlined passages. Instead, you’ll close the book with a satisfying answer to the questions we began with, an answer you can walk every day. 

Deep Mentoring by Randy D. Reese and Robert Loane

Publisher: “God is in the business of raising up leaders.” ―J. Robert (Bobby) Clinton

When good leaders are needed, when the work is urgent, our immediate reaction is to enlist new leaders.

Instead we are called to invest in new leaders. Good leaders are developed in and through slow, deep mentoring. To think otherwise is to embrace the myth of the quick fix. We proceed, instead, by paying careful attention to and joining in the work God is already doing in people’s lives.

This book is designed to help you know better how to come alongside others as a guide and a friend, to invest in their spiritual formation and leadership. If you want long-term impact on the lives of future leaders, how you guide must be as important as the content you impart. Only then will you see lifelong change and empowerment in those you mentor.

Randy Reese and Robert Loane show you how to make the most of the crucial ministry of mentoring. They offer a biblically grounded approach that draws on the research and teaching of Bobby Clinton as well as their own experience in resourcing churches and Christian organizations.

Jesus Christ still calls people to become leaders in a lifelong journey of conforming to his image. Join him as you guide others through deep mentoring.

Note: Count this book another welcome nail in the coffin of leadership by dictate, a return to the biblical, relational leadership of Jesus. Yes, the church will continue to be plagued with platform pastors who have their followers in large or small numbers. But their “success” does not erase the promise of God through the prophet Jeremiah that He will give his people pastors after His own heart, pastors whose ministries are not built on the models of secular leadership techniques but grown according to the model of the Good Shepherd, Jesus. Deep Mentoring is a refreshing walk through what we know in our hearts to be true: relational leadership, i.e., mentoring. Pastors, this book will be both a homecoming and a release for you to return to what God formed and called you to be: a pastor walking people to green pastures and still waters. Deep Mentoring isn’t about leadership techniques or church growth. It’s about making disciples and forming leaders the way Jesus did and taught us to do. How does this work for a pastor with hundreds under their care? Read Deep Mentoring and learn. Then, read Gordon MacDonald’s Going Deep for stage two in your learning.

Hearing God by Dallas Willard

Publisher: “God spoke to me.” “The Spirit spoke to my heart.” “God revealed the idea to me.”

Being close to God means communicating with him–telling him what is on our hearts in prayer and hearing and understanding what he is saying to us. It is this second half of our conversation with God that is so important but that can also be so difficult. How do we hear his voice? How can we be sure that what we think we hear is not our own subconscious? What role does the Bible play? What if what God says to us is not clear?

The key, says best-selling author Dallas Willard, is to focus not so much on individual actions and decisions as on building our personal relationship with our Creator. In this updated and expanded edition of Willard’s beloved book, originally published as In Search of Guidance, you’ll gain rich spiritual insight into how we can hear God’s voice clearly and develop an intimate partnership with him in the work of his kingdom.

Note: In a church world becoming more binary in its views on what it means to hear from God, Willard finds a welcome middle ground – not in the goal of finding a middle ground, but biblical ground. He eschews the extremes of charismania and its obsession with incessantly receiving “words” from God about everything under the sun. At the same time, he does not allow this abuse of a truism to abandon the biblical truth that God does speak to us today. Instead, Willard calls us back to a biblical approach and application. The focus and strength of the book are not on how to receive words from God. Willard would be greatly disappointed if this were to be our takeaway. Instead, its focus and strength are on hearing from God and growing in a living relationship with Him. Willard writes that as we walk with God in relationship, we will not require the equivalent of text messages from God telling us what to do, but in walking with him, we will know what to do. It’s the difference between communicating with an acquaintance and communicating with a treasured family member. Hearing from God will not be so much mouth-to-ear as heart-to-heart.

Jonathan Edwards on Revival by Jonathan Edwards

Publisher: This volume contains one of Edwards’ most analytical treatises on revival, Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God, and his famous Narrative of Surprising Conversions, a detailed account of the famous revival of religion at Northampton, Massachusetts.

Select works of Jonathan Edwards. Included are A Narrative of Surprising Conversions, dealing with religious revival in Northampton in 1735, The Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God, Edward’s analytical treatise on revival, and An Account of the Revival of Religion in Northampton 1740-1742. This work hopes to further familiarize readers with Edwards and his timeless writings. The works are prefaced with some introductory material.

Jonathan Edwards is widely recognized today as perhaps the greatest of all North American thinkers, philosophers, and theologians. He began his ministry in Northampton, Massachusetts, and exemplifies the Puritan influence which had been felt in New England.

Note: Do we pastors even think like this anymore, much less talk and teach like this? In a world of sugary Christian writing, Jonathan Edwards calls us to push away from the sweets and feast on meat. You’ll have to deal with language differences, but it is helpful as it helps us learn to think more deeply outside of our ingrained approaches. You’ll have to consider old ideas as new ideas in your prayer for reading, as Edwards’ writing stirs you to seek God’s revival in our time.

Mondays With My Old Pastor by José Luis Navajo

Publisher: A totally burned-out young preacher reignites his faith and gathers wisdom for life while spending successive Mondays with an eighty-three-year-old pastor.

“Deep inside in some uncertain part of my soul persisted this strange exhaustion that was difficult to explain and hard to endure,” writes pastor and author José Luis Navajo. Thinking of quitting the ministry, Navajo doesn’t know where to turn until he begins meeting with a seasoned man of the cloth―his “old pastor”―who, through successive Monday visits, offers a legacy of wisdom in the form of 15 unique principles. 

In lyrical prose, Navajo shares the personal anecdotes, fables, and deep spiritual insights offered by the old pastor and his wife. By turns funny, heartbreaking, and thought provoking, Mondays with My Old Pastor is a comfort to anyone who struggles in his or her walk with God. As readers follow Navajo’s journey from desperation to rejuvenation, they will find themselves similarly transformed and inspired. This moving, beautifully written account is sure to reignite every soul’s longing for renewal.

Note: “Mondays” was the recommended book at Journey in 2024; I asked every member to read it. Slowly. Meditatively. A Journey member recommended this book to me some time ago. I read it last year and found it so rich that I read it again this year. Why? Imagine sitting down every week with your pastor over coffee and talking about your life in ministry. Especially when you are facing burnout and contemplating dropout. Imagine the questions you would pose. Imagine the conversations that would ensue. Imagine the compassion and wisdom your pastor would share with you and the transformation that would take place in your life. And don’t forget the life-giving ministry you would give to your pastor as you shared your journeys. “Mondays” reads like a diary or journal as this young pastor records his visits with his old pastor. Whatever your age, it is sure to touch your heart and renew it, especially if you are a pastor in need of refreshing. PS, if you don’t have an “old pastor” to walk with, be sure to find one.

Strange New World by Carl R. Trueman

Publisher: From Philosophy to Technology, Tracing the Origin of Identity Politics

How did the world arrive at its current, disorienting state of identity politics, and how should the church respond? Historian Carl R. Trueman shows how influences ranging from traditional institutions to technology and pornography moved modern culture toward an era of “expressive individualism.” Investigating philosophies from the Romantics, Nietzsche, Marx, Wilde, Freud, and the New Left, he outlines the history of Western thought to the distinctly sexual direction of present-day identity politics and explains the modern implications of these ideas on religion, free speech, and personal identity. 

For fans of Trueman’s The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self, Strange New World offers a more concise presentation and application of some of the most critical topics of our day.

Note: A must-read worldview book, written for those who want what the publishers rightly described as a “more concise presentation and application” of current worldview topics. Trueman takes the reader behind the curtain to understand how our culture and Western civilization have arrived at their present feeble and disoriented state. Many (most?) pastors are addressing these issues individually rather than holistically. As a result, believers are left with a conclusion but no biblical worldview foundations for those conclusions. Because the world is philosophically disoriented, even surreal, state, flash card answers to cultural issues are neither sufficient for believers as they interact with nonbelievers nor are they satisfying for believers as they consider their own lives and beliefs. For this reason, many have left and are leaving the church. Truman provides pastors with a tremendous resource for their own personal study and teaching. Churches whose pastors read and teach Christian worldview will be equipped to live and minister in this broken world. This book would be a tremendous tool in this effort.

The Gospel Shaped Leader: Leaning on Jesus by Scott Thomas

Publisher: How do you grow as a leader in the church? Should you read church growth books? Take a few seminars? Or just wing it? Scott Thomas, former President of Acts 29, church planter, and pastor has a different approach. He unpacks how leaning on Jesus empowers not just your teaching, but also grows the humility and biblical wisdom you need to lead.

Through many years of ministry experience, Thomas has seen the importance of the “soft skills” of leadership—empathy, kindness, and listening—and how not developing those skills negatively impacts churches. Yet simply knowing the need for what the world calls “emotional intelligence,” doesn’t guarantee growth in these areas. But understanding and applying the gospel will bring transformation.

Thomas gives practical, specific help in navigating spiritual and emotional challenges that leaders commonly encounter and unpacks how a gospel-shaped response brings healing. Complete with reflection questions at the end of each chapter to encourage self-inventory and further study, The Gospel Shaped Leader will encourage church leaders of all ages in the categories of self-awareness, self-management, relational awareness, and relational management, with the goal of recognizing strengths and weaknesses so they can continue growing more like Christ.

Note: A new Top Ten book on pastoring. No question. Why? Thomas looks at pastoral ministry through the lens of the Gospel, asking what a church would look like if the Gospel demonstrably defined it. What would a church look like if the Gospel clearly defined its leaders? We often use the word “Gospel,” but have, in many ways, emptied it of its meaning. This is particularly true in church leadership, where the church has been flooded with CEOs, executives, programs, and metrics. All too rare are the shepherds who take their lead not from leadership techniques but from Jesus and His Gospel. The author does a masterful job walking the pastor through what it means to be a Gospel-formed person and pastor who fulfills their God-given calling to be a disciple-maker in the lives of those they lead. This is not a long, hard-nosed sermon about “shaping up.” Quite the contrary. It is a refreshing walk through the wonders of the Gospel and its power to make Jesus’ undershepherds in His image as pastors—a very encouraging and compelling read. If I could, I would put this book in the hands of every pastor in America.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis                                 

Note: What is left to be said about this literary Hall of Fame classic? Seven books that will transport you out of this world and into the world of Aslan (and Jesus). Just read them. The only real decision is how to read them: chronologically or by publishing date. My annual dilemma. This year, I read them chronologically.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

Publisher: A lot of professors give talks titled “The Last Lecture.” Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can’t help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy? 

When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn’t have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave–“Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams”–wasn’t about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because “time is all you have…and you may find one day that you have less than you think”). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living.

In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come.

“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.” –Randy Pausch

Note: The publisher’s comments tell you almost everything you need to know about this page-turner. Almost. Not only does Pausch share with us what he came to believe about life and living, but he also describes his own internal process and that of his family as he deals with his impending demise. Far from morbid, the book is moving and inspirational. As I read, I had to stop often and think of my own life and how I am living it. Though the author does not appear to be a Christian, his book is a compelling call to consider what life is all about and live it to the fullest. All of life points to our own last lecture and considering well what our life will say on that day. You may need to keep a box of tissues nearby to dab your eyes from time to time, especially when Pausch draws his book, his final lecture, to a close.

PS; This book was so uniquely meaningful that we gave it away to all Journey members who requested a copy this fall.

The Story of Reality by Greg Koukl

Publisher: Biblical Christianity is more than just another private religious view. It’s more than just a personal relationship with God or a source of moral teaching.

Christianity is a picture of reality.

It explains why the world is the way it is. When the pieces of this puzzle are properly assembled, we see the big picture clearly. Christianity is a true story of how the world began, why the world is the way it is, what role humans play in the drama, and how all the plotlines of the story are resolved in the end.

In The Story of Reality, bestselling author and host of Stand to Reason, Gregory Koukl, explains the five words that form the narrative backbone of the Christian story. He identifies the most important things that happen in the story in the order they take place:

1. God
2. Man
3. Jesus
4. Cross
5. Resurrection

If you are already a Christian, do you know and understand the biblical story? And for those still seeking answers to the questions of life, this is an invitation to hear a story that explains the world in a way nothing else will. This story can change your life forever.

NOTE: The Story of Reality is perfectly titled: it really is the story of reality. The author looks at the big picture of the world: why it is here, how it came to be here, where it is going, and, most importantly, how we can know the answers to these questions. You would be hard-pressed to find a more readable book on apologetics. Koukl’s book would be an excellent resource for a teaching series or group study. For those who find the subject of apologetics daunting, TSR takes the complex and makes it simple, not as in a children’s book, but in everyday language, complete with illuminating analogies and illustrations. If you’re still unconvinced, world-class apologist and writer Nancy Pearcey writes the forward. Great content. Reasoned thinking. Clear presentation. All these lead to understanding the most crucial subject in the world, your life and mine: worldview or reality.

Two Special Mentions:

Having served as a missionary to Belgium for many years, I will always have a love for this country. As well as being the nation that was home to most of our family’s memories as my daughters grew up, its people and history will always have a special place in my heart. This past year, my daughters gave me two special books on Belgium, each one more than a century old.

Belgium: Its Cities, Vol. 1 by Grant Allen

Women of Belgium: Turning Tragedy Into Triumph by Charlotte Kellogg

FINAL THOUGHT

As is always the case, the listing of a book above is not an endorsement of all of the ideas contained in its pages. This should not be surprising: the wise minister of the Gospel makes it a point to read outside his echo chamber.

A minister who is afraid to read outside of his own predilections remains childish in his insistence that his world be preserved, while a minister who is willing to choose carefully and read critically, even outside of his personal tastes, remains childlike in his passionate and teachable pursuit of God’s truth and its application. 

In his book, Under the Unpredictable Plant, Eugene Peterson describes the result of this mindset. In his case, it was the people he pastored. How much sadder and dangerous it is when this quote describes those charged with handling the Word of God and watching over the souls of God’s people (Hebrews 13.17)

“The people who gathered to worship God under my leadership were rootless and cultureless. They were marginally Christian. They didn’t read books. They didn’t discuss ideas. All spirit seems to have leaked out of their lives and have been replaced by a garage sale clutter of clichés and the stereotypes, securities and fashions…It was a marshmallow culture, spongy and without substance.”

And so, to encourage – and challenge – you to quality reading in 2024, ten quotes on the value of reading well, and thinking deeply as you do. May these quotes stir you to grow in the knowledge of God’s Word, the knowing of God, and the wisdom of living God’s Word and Ways in this world:

Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers. President Harry Truman

We lose ourselves in books. We find ourselves there too. Anonymous

You will not see anyone who is truly striving after his spiritual advancement who is not given to spiritual reading. Athanasius of Alexandria

Time must be found for reading. . . . The first (area of reading) is theology. There is no greater mistake then to think that you finish with the learning when you leave seminary. The preacher should continue to read theology as long as he is alive. The more he reads the better. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

The reading of all good books is like a conversation with the finest men of past centuries. René Descartes

Sadly, we live in an age when books are no longer read as they were, and the classics are rarely taught as they once were – books that have stood the test of time and are therefore worthy of the attention of all times and all places. Os Guinness

Books are standing counselors and preachers, always at hand, and always disinterested; having this advantage over oral instructors, that they are ready to repeat their lesson as often as we please.  Oswald Chambers

The business of books is to make one think. . . . The function of reading is to stimulate us in general, to stimulate us to think, to think for ourselves  D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. Joseph Addison

Christians, of all people, should reflect the mind of their Maker. Learning to read well is a step toward loving God with your mind. It is a leap toward thinking God’s thoughts after Him. James Sire

Click here to read our 2022 Best Reads of the Year article.

Click here to read our 2023 Best Reads of the Year article.

Here’s to more great reading in 2025, should the Lord delay His coming.

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Saddled with large student debt, just beginning to set up homes and start families, and serving in low paying first and second positions, Millennials are those who most desire but can least afford to pay for pastoral coaching.

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“Of all vocations, surely the gospel ministry is the one whose paradigm is most radically formed by the dynamics of godly mentorship.” 

Stephen Baldwin