Although he was considered a very well-read man back in the day (during the eighteenth century), before he died in 1791 the Christian theologian, itinerant preacher and Methodist Church founder, John Wesley, exclaimed: "Let me be homo unios libri [a man of one book]."
Even though he was a voracious reader, I suspect John Wesley would loudly "Amen!" the words of the Preacher in Ecclesiastes 12:12, "Of making [and reading] many books there is no end, and much study is wearisome to the flesh."
Yet even the Apostle Paul who authored by Divine inspiration a good portion of the New Testament, requested in his very last letter to his protege, Timothy, "Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come — and the books, especially the parchments"(2 Timothy 4:13).
I have hundreds of books ... Actually, I'm sure I have several thousand. I've added quite a few more to my collection this summer. Here are the titles of some I have read, and, in most cases, have been benefited from and even blessed by the past few months. [My goal is to list them alphabetically by author]. Most [if not all] of these entries will not be annotated in this brief bibliography. If my readers have a comment to make on any one or more of them, please feel free to do so at the end of the post.
Books I Have Read [Summer, 2010]
Claeys, John / Apocalypse 2012 [2010] "The ticking of the end time clock. What does the Bible Say?"
Hagee, John / Can America Survive? [2010] "Ten prophetic signs that we are the terminal generation."
Hybels, Bill / The Power of a Whisper [2010] On "hearing God and having the guts to respond."
O'Dell, Shannon / Transforming Church in Rural America: Breaking All the Rurals [2010] A must read for pastors serving small churches in rural America.
Rosenberg, Joel C. / Dead Heat [2008] An end-times political thriller novel.
Rosenberg, Joel C. / Epicenter [2008] "Why the current rumblings in the Middle East will change your future."
Simpson, William Anderson / Midnight Rising [2009] "Warning signs for this generation."
Sweet, Leonard & Viola, Frank / Jesus Manifesto [2010] "Restoring the Supremacy and Sovereignty of Jesus Christ."
Books I Am Currently Reading [September, 2010]
Anderson, David / Free Grace Soteriology [2010] Excellent work!
Jeremiah, David / Until Christ Returns [1999] Vintage Jeremiah - one of my favorite preachers.
Rainer, Thom & Geiger, Eric / Simple Church [2006] A must read for church leaders.
Stanley, Andy / The Principle of the Path [2008] "How to get from where you are to where you want to be."
Books Waiting to Be Read (Fall, 2010]
Dungy, Tony / The Mentor Leader [2010] "Secrets to building people and teams that win consistently."
Morley, Patrick / A Man's Guide to the Spiritual Disciplines [2007] "Twelve habits to strengthen your walk with Christ."
Yorkey, Mike / Playing With Purpose [2010] "Inside the lives and faith of the NFL's top new quarterbacks - Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy, and Tim Tebow."
Oh, because I agree with the sentiment Wesley expressed about being "a man of one Book," I have also read this summer: 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon and Hebrews. Working through James right now . . .
Speaking of John Wesley, here is one final admonition from that avid reader of yesteryear that those of us who love to read really need to heed: "Beware you be not swallowed up in books! An ounce of love is worth a pound of knowledge." [From a letter by John Wesley to Joseph Benson (7 November 1768); published in The Letters of John Wesley (1915) edited by George Eayrs].
James would say it something like this, "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves" (James 1:22).
2 comments:
Interesting list. I will have to look at some of those. The best one I have read lately is Drive by Daniel Pink on motivation. I think it can be integrated with Christian theology quite nicely to provide solid insight on motivation.
Thanks, Tim, for your book recommendation. I am curious to see what insights Daniel Pink has to share on the topic of motivation. The subject of the biblical perspective of motivation has captivated my attention for some time now, flowing from a lot of personal reflection in recent years on the [often misunderstood and frequently overlooked and/or neglected] biblical doctrine of eternal rewards.
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