MY FAVORITE CHRISTIAN BOOKS

I confess to a fondness for my library of hard-cover and paperback books. I own more than 1,000 books, including dozens and dozens of books in the Christian genre. They include histories of Israel, meditations, pictorials about archaeological digs; faith-building books; dream dictionaries; prophetic Some were published 100 years ago or more and have stood the test of time, while many more are contemporary products.

Interestingly, I don’t often read other authors’ devotionals because I don’t want their heartfelt thoughts and meditations to be infused into my own writings. The one exception is the classic My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers. Nearly 100 years after its publication, it still powerfully challenges all your preconceived notions about

If I were to select other books that in my opinion are the most useful to serious Christian readers and writers, I would choose:

Strong’s Concordance—Anything and everything you want to reference in the Scriptures is at your fingertips.

Haley’s Bible Handbook, Deluxe Edition—As much as I devour the commentaries, I really appreciate the illustrations and photos that bring to life the geography and timelines of the Scriptures. This is a great resource and almanac for rounding out your Biblical knowledge. There have been n revisions over the course of more than 50 years.

If you want to pull out all the plugs and go for deepest meat-and-potatoes course, then read anything by Dr. Kevin Zadai. He burst on the ministry scene less than four years ago with a compelling life-after-death experience. His writings focus on developing the mature Christian to know and understand Christ in the most intimate ways possible, strengthening your desire to evangelize. One of my favorites is Praying from the Realms of Heaven.

How to Find Your Mission in Life by the late Richard Nelson Bolles. I can honestly state that this tiny gem revolutionized my thinking about my own life’s purpose. By following its instructions, in one evening I was able to succinctly write my life’s mission statement. More than 25 years have passed, and I haven’t changed a word. Most people know Bolles’ name for his more popular series of career books under the banner of What Color is Your Parachute.

Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl—A liberated Jewish occupant of a Nazi concentration camp expresses profound thoughts on the need for purpose in life.

The Bridge of Love by Grace Nies Fletcher—I fell in love with this book decades ago. It’s the true story of an American architect and his wife, a member of a Japanese imperial family, who left behind their life of comfort to devoted themselves to ministry in Japan through teaching and sharing Christ’s law of love—the Golden Rule.

For business-minded individuals, there is a little gem called Jesus CEO by Laurie Beth Jones. Just like the title implies, it encourages effective leadership by taking on the characteristics of Christ.

I would recommend just about anything by the late Kenneth Hagin Sr. He broke new ground for his time, leaving behind behind dozens and dozens of pamphlets and modest-size books full of insights and true stories, using the purest and simplest of language to explain the Scriptures.

Healed of Cancer by Dodie O’Steen—Yes, she is the mother of Joel O’Steen. Wow, oh wow. Her journey of struggle, suffering and faith is a must read for anyone who faces a serious illness.

If you just want to focus exclusively on the New Testament quotes and parables of Jesus, then you will appreciate the Red Letter Editions of the Bible.

I don’t want to ignore ebook readers. Many of the above titles are available through Amazon/Kindle. In addition, the online resources I find particularly useful for Scripture references are:

BibleHub.com

BibleGateway.com

There are so many more favorites that I will have to probably post a follow-up blog article in the near future.