Wednesday, September 16, 2009

More Recommendations for Bibliophiles


Looks like it's a literary week around here. If you’re like me, you’re always on the lookout for a new treasure (aka "book")—and this summer, I made two discoveries that I’m dying to share.

Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God’s Will, by Kevin DeYoung

I honestly wish I could put this tiny little book in the hands of every Christian I know. Kevin DeYoung’s style is irresistibly fresh, full of memorable examples, highly quotable, and humorous in appropriate places. Most of all, he applies the Word clearly and honestly to a massive issue in our generation.

If you’ve ever spent hours agonizing over God’s will for your life—if you’ve ever found yourself mired in passivity, or downright unsure about how to make a big decision— well then. I don't want to sound controlling or anything (ahem), but I have a four-step command for you.

Open a new tab. Go to Amazon.com. Buy it used for $5.79. Send me a thank-you card.

I literally felt like jumping out of my chair in sheer exhilaration on several occasions. Chapter after chapter unfurls gloriously liberating, roundly biblical truth that our Christian sub-culture has largely forgotten. The way I think, pray, and act has been changed. Please, go ahead and open that tab, won’t you?

The Prodigal God, by Timothy Keller

It’s short, it’s easy to read, and it still ranks among the most powerful books I’ve ever picked up.

The subtitle is “Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith”, and that’s exactly what the book does, through a fresh exposition of the familiar Prodigal Son parable-- making it a deeply refreshing awakening for believers, and a wonderful introduction to genuine Christianity for unbelievers. There aren’t many books that you can read as a seasoned believer or a young believer, and then hand to an unsaved friend-- but The Prodigal God was designed for all three.

From the book: “Jesus does not divide the world into the moral "good guys" and the immoral "bad guys." He shows us that everyone is dedicated to a project of self-salvation, to using God and others in order to get power and control for themselves. We are just going about it in different ways.”

Keller gives one of the most balanced, rich, and accessible presentations of the Gospel I’ve discovered to date. If you don’t gain something from it, I’ll buy your copy off you. I want another one anyway.