The Marathon Continues

April 28, 2008 @ 12:13 pm by JD

At the beginning of this year, I set a goal for myself to read 3 books per month.  Really, it was a New Years resolution, but I hate New Years resolutions, so I’ve just repackaged it as a goal for myself.  4 months in and I’ve been able to keep up (even though a recent flurry of activity has challenged it).  Here’s what I’ve knocked out so far:

January

Desiring God by John Piper

When I Don’t Desire God by John Piper

Confessions of a Reformission Rev.: Hard Lessons from an Emerging Missonal Church by Mark Driscoll

February

I Am Not But I Know I AM by Louie Giglio

Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, but Nobody Wants to Die: Or the Eschatology of Bluegrass by David Crowder and Mike Hogan

Why Men Hate Going to Church by David Murrow

March:

Pagan Christianity by Frank Viola and George Barna

The Radical Reformission by Mark Driscoll

The Cross-Centered Life by C.J. Mahaney

April:

Vintage Jesus by Mark Driscoll and Gerry Breshears

Jim and Casper Go to Church: Frank Conversation About Faith, Churches, and Well-Meaning Christians by Jim Henderson and Matt Casper

The Legacy of Sovereign Joy: God’s Triumphant Grace in the Lives of Augustine, Luther, and Calvin by John Piper

Although a few have hit me in the wrong way or didn’t captivate me to the utmost, I’ve enjoyed reading all of them.  My favorites so far would have to be the books written by Driscoll.  There’s something about his approach to Christianity and life in general that just resonates with me.  The biggest disappointment was Jim and Casper Go to Church, which is a book about and Penacostal preacher and an atheist who go around the U.S. visiting a variety of the country’s most well-known churches.  While I like the concept and the insights that these two had, the writing style killed me.  It had too much of a Leave it Beaver tone to it.  Read the book and you’ll see what I mean.  The other one that was so-so to me was Pagan Christianity.  When Viola goes into some of the histories of different church practices, I loved it.  When he started giving his opinions……not so much.

May is coming up and I’m open to suggestions on what to read next.  A few books on my Amazon cue include They Like Jesus but Not the Church by Dan Kimball, Young, Restless, Reformed: A Journalists Journey with New Calvinists by Collin Hansen, and Chosen by God by R.C. Sproul.  Drop me some suggestions on what I need to read next.

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