Book of the Month
May
The Everlasting God is one of those mind-shifting, life-changing books that has become a classic that rightly belongs in the personal library of every Christian.
Dr Knox’s very helpful explanation of predestination and ‘free will’ is worth the price of the book alone, but he also encourages and challenges us from the Scriptures by showing that God is living and true, is infinite in power, wisdom and goodness, is three-in-one, reveals himself to us in the Lord Jesus Christ, and is rich in mercy and grace.
April
This month we have two books! We have two versions of the Pilgrim’s Progress.
The first version is the original by John Bunyan. His classic work is a vividly imagined allegory that follows the adventures of a young everyman named Christian as he undertakes the perilous journey from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City.
The second version was written by Helen L. Taylor, who took John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress and simplified the vocabulary and concepts for young readers, while keeping the storyline intact.
March
Sam Chan equips everyday Christians who are reluctant and nervous to tell their friends about Jesus with practical, tested ways of sharing their faith in the least awkward ways possible.
Drawing from over two decades of experience as an evangelist, teacher, and pastor, Chan explains why personal evangelism feels so awkward today.
And utilizing recent insights from communication theory, cross-cultural ministry, and apologetics, he helps you build confidence in sharing your faith, and teaches you how to evangelize your friends and family in socially appropriate ways.
February
Rosaria Butterfield invites us into her home to show us how God can use this same “radical, ordinary hospitality” to bring the gospel to our lost friends and neighbours.
Such hospitality sees our homes as not our own, but as God’s tools for the furtherance of his kingdom as we welcome those who look, think, believe, and act differently from us into our everyday, sometimes messy lives—helping them see what true Christian faith really looks like.
December – January
We believe in God, we serve God, we trust God, but would we say that we enjoy God on a day to day basis? What exactly does a personal relationship with God look like, and how is it even possible?
Tim Chester shows us how we can enjoy God in every moment of every day, whether we are experiencing good times or hard times; whether we are changing diapers, or stuck on a train. He explores how the Father, the Son and the Spirit relate to us in our day-to-day lives, and how to respond.
October – November
Sixty-six books written by forty people over nearly 2,000 years, in two languages and several different genres. Sworn by in court, fought over by religious people, quoted in arguments. The Bible is clearly no ordinary book.
How can you begin to read and understand it as a whole?
This book gives you the big picture of the Bible! It provides both the encouragement and the tools to help you read the Bible with confidence and understanding. And it points you to the Bible’s supreme subject, Jesus Christ, and the salvation God offers through him.
August – September
This book is our best shot at commending the Christian message to our friends and neighbours. It’s driven by the universal human instinct to increase the joy of finding a good thing by sharing it with others. We both think we’ve found a good thing‚ the best thing‚ in finding God through Jesus. We want to share it.
Taking the ancient but timeless Apostles’ Creed as their starting point, pastor Rory Shiner and atheist-turned-theologian Peter Orr introduce you to the fundamentals of the Christian faith. Fast-paced, entertaining, personal, and compelling, The World Next Door invites you into a world where Jesus Christ reigns supreme and where lives are changed forever.
June – July
Christians believe that history is moving towards a dramatic conclusion – that one day Jesus Christ will return in glory to judge the living and the dead. But there seem to be so many different views about how this will happen, and when it will take place. How can we make sense of it all?
This short, readable book explains clearly and simply the liberating reality of what the Bible is actually saying about the return of Christ and the end of the world.
April – May
Whether you are married or single, whether you long for a child or shepherding a full house, you are part of a family. Family can be the source of some of the most transcendent human joy, and family can leave us crumpled up on the side of the road. This is not just another book about some practical steps to having a perfect family. Instead, it is a book that is painfully real about the struggles that we all have with our families while living in a broken world. Moore argues that we often actually damage our families by attempting to make them central in our lives when the gospel should be central instead. Moore’s book is challenging and helpful, whether you are a parent, a child, a spouse, or a single person.
March
Have Christians become so preoccupied with “major” sins that we have lost sight of our need to deal with more subtle sins? Navigator author Jerry Bridges addresses the “acceptable” sins that we tend to tolerate in ourselves, including pride and anger. He goes to the heart of the matter, exploring our feelings of shame and grief and opening a new door to God’s forgiveness and grace. Travel down the road of spiritual formation with Jerry and discover your true identity as a loved child of God.
February
Prayer is so hard that unless circumstances demand it—an illness, or saying grace at a meal—most of us simply do not pray. We prize accomplishments and productivity over time in prayer. Even Christians experience this prayerlessness—a kind of practical unbelief that leaves us marked by fear, anxiety, joylessness, and spiritual lethargy. In A Praying Life, author Paul Miller lays out a pattern for living in relationship with God and includes helpful habits and approaches to prayer that enable us to return to a childlike faith.
December
In Life Together , Dietrich Bonhoeffer, renowned Christian minister, professor, and author of The Cost of Discipleship recounts his unique fellowship in an underground seminary during the Nazi years in Germany. Giving practical advice on how life together in Christ can be sustained in families and groups, Life Together is bread for all who are hungry for the real life of Christian fellowship.
November
The church used to be recognised as a force for good, but this is changing rapidly. Christians are now often seen as the bad guys, losing both respect and influence.
In our post-Christian culture, how do we offer the gospel to those around us who view it as not only wrong but possibly dangerous? And how do we ensure that the secular worldview does not entice us away with its constant barrage, online and elsewhere, of messages about self-determinism?
October
How do I know what God wants me to do? How can I make decisions which are in line with his will? If God still speaks, will I recognize his voice?
These are important questions, and many Christians grapple with them.
Guidance and the Voice of God charts a way through these often confusing issues, and shows how for those who have ears to hear, God is still speaking loud and clear through his Son.
September
Christians know what Jesus Christ has done—but who is he? What is his deepest heart for his people, weary and faltering on their journey toward heaven? Jesus said he is “gentle and lowly in heart.” This book reflects on these words, opening up a neglected yet central truth about who he is for sinners and sufferers today.
August
For some of us, resting seems like a waste of time—it means we’re missing out on other things. For others, rest seems like a luxury—there’s simply too much to do. And for almost all of us, we crave rest, but don’t always know how to.
This book helps shows us how rest gives us time to spend with God and remember his grace. Discover how rest fuels our joy and confidence in God’s sovereignty as we learn to depend on him, and not our own efforts, and are refreshed by the power of the Holy Spirit.
