Our Preach Christian book reviews build a reading list for preachers and leaders.
Each detailed review is based on a thorough reading, and provides an excellent introduction to the text and its usefulness for students, preachers and church leaders.
The book – which is immensely readable – then moves on to consider our present status in Christ, what it means to be part of the new community of the church, what we need to put on and discard, and how we stand in our faith.
Read MoreWriting on Amos, Gregory Mobley gives archeological evidence for an earthquake also covered by Zechariah (14:5): ‘Did this earthquake… offer cosmic validation of Amos’s preaching?’
Read MoreLooking for new resources to use this Lent? Michael Marshall takes us through the Gospel of John. Amongst the new titles for Lent this year is Lent with the beloved disciple, a short series of studies in the Gospel of John, designed to be used over the 6 weeks of Lent.
Read MoreWhat did Jesus mean by his last desperate words from the cross, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York, explores their meaning.
Read MoreThis Grove booklet will be of particular interest to church leaders and pastors but also to anyone who is interested in learning the lessons from the revivals of the past.
Read MoreMany Christians suffer from poor mental health, and many struggle with the belief that such illness is a barrier to their relationship with God. But, as Christopher Cook, Isabelle Hamley and John Swinton remind us, in Struggling with God, Jesus reached out to everyone.
Read MoreRecent world events have focused attention on the Jews worldwide, and those in Britain have not escaped it. In this book Harry Freedman share what it means to be Jewish in today’s Britain.
Read MoreThis is the fourth book in a series described by Dallas Willard as ‘The best practice I have seen in Christian spiritual formation. In The Good and Beautiful You, James Bryan Smith looks at how we can become the people God created us to be.
Read MoreIf you are looking for something to joyful to counteract the dark days of January, or even as a Lent read, this could be the book for you.
Read MoreCole Moreton explores the human race through a series of encounters, with the famous, infamous and completely unknown. The result is a wonderful read and celebration.
Read MoreA fascinating delve into the archives of Radio 4’s religious affairs programme, published to mark its 50th birthday
Read MoreThe film of Oppenheimer was one of the smash hits of the summer of 2023, but what was the real story?
Read MoreRev Kate Bottley shot to fame a few years ago, and her engaging personality has kept her on our screens ever since. Peter Crumpler reviews her latest book.
Read MoreShould Christians get involved in politics? Or is it impossible to do so and to lead a righteous life? In his book A Mucky Business, veteran Christian politician Tim Farron looks at the issues.
Read MoreHow familiar are you with the entire story arc of the Bible, and why does it matter to mission? Christopher J H Wright explains in his book, The Great Story and the Great Commission.
Read MoreIn A Call Less Ordinary, Rich Wilson, founder of student movement Fusion, considers how we find out what God wants us to do, and how we should act on that call.
Read MoreWhat effect is increasing cultural and religious diversity having on the Christian church in the UK? In Multicultural Kingdom, Harvey C Kwiyani finds out.
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BOOK: Working from a place of rest: Jesus and the key to sustaining Ministry
AUTHOR: Tony Horsfall
(BRF, July 2023)
Tony Horsfall has been writing books to encourage Christians, particularly leaders, for many years, and this one is a revised and reissued version of a previous book. It is definitely worth a read.
His main thesis is that Jesus models a different way of working, that is not only counter-cultural in the sense that it goes against the way the western world works, but it also goes against the way the church tends to act in the Western world as well. Because as far as idolising hard work and overcommitment is concerned, the church and the Western world tend to be in lockstep.
It doesn’t have to be like this.
Taking the John 4 story of Jesus meeting the woman at the well as his foundation, Horsfall explores what made Jesus different, his security in his identity and his ability to say ‘No’ – there is even a list in the back of occasions when he did so! He points out that we tend to believe the Protestant work ethic is God-ordained, piling pressure upon pressure, either upon ourselves or each other. Our measure of success is ‘numerical growth’ which leads, he believes, to greater pressure on those who work for the big successful churches – both to ‘keep producing results’ and through an ‘unacknowledged perfectionism’.
But at the well, Jesus stopped. He rested.
He was tired and stopping was okay. Not only was it okay, it turned out to be fruitful. Stopping, says Horsfall, is a discipline – whether we want to do it or not, we need to intentionally build it into our lives, in order for our ministry to be sustainable. ‘As Christians,’ he writes, ‘we have a strong theology of work but virtually no theology of leisure’, and he sets out to reset the balance a little here, exploring what leisure does, the different types of leisure, and why it matters. But he goes beyond that, to point to a new way of working – allowing God to work in and through us, finding our security in him, leaving the results to him, and developing the spiritual disciplines necessary to integrate resting and working.
Reviewer: Ali Hull
Ali Hull has spent nearly thirty years working with words, as a writer, editor and writing coach. Now the Book Editor for Preach magazine, her ‘to be read’ pile is approaching frightening proportions.
Christians need to take more seriously the prayer of Jesus that we should be united, and be able to model to the world a better way of disagreeing with each other. Jonathan Lamb sets out the issues clearly. What matters? What doesn’t?
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Lighting the beacons: kindling the flame of faith in our hearts
BOOK: Lighting the Beacons: Kindling the flame of faith in our hearts
AUTHOR: Jill Duff
(SPCK, February 2023)
This book is the spiritual equivalent of lemonade on a hot day: it fizzes with the joy and vitality the Spirit brings. Like Jesus, Bishop Jill delivers her message mainly through story-telling – stories from scripture, personal accounts of people in her community and faith-fanning ‘God-incidences’ and serendipities of the Spirit drawn from a rich devotional life.
The main aim of this book is to kindle flames of faith which collectively blaze like beacons, lighting the way so that ‘many lost daughters and sons might come home.’ It’s refreshingly accessible and crammed with contemporary references to popular culture – music, movies and football. The author’s favourite analogy for school assemblies, that Jesus paid the ultimate transfer fee to have us join his team, reveals her heart to communicate the gospel in ways people can relate to, as well as her strong ties with ‘key beacon-lighters - the poor, the humble and children’.
The greatest strength of this book is that it identifies the biggest danger for church-leaders: ‘That we all grow weary and give up,’ and opens our eyes to how we might quench the fire of the Spirit, for example through an intellectual cynicism which does not take God at his word. The author offers powerful antidotes to discouragement, including pragmatic insights drawn from a deep dive into Nehemiah on facing opposition, resisting and overcoming. I loved the testimonies of spiritual giants like Polycarp; it’s a stirring reminder that we are called to share in Christ’s sufferings, that we overcome by not loving our flesh (or egos) so much as to shrink from death.
It would have been good if Bishop Jill had used this opportunity to correct the fallacy about Mary Magdalene which is unsupported by scripture, ie, that she used to be a prostitute, but this is a tiny quibble in an otherwise inspiring book.
Lighting the Beacons is highly recommended for all church leaders, especially for those feeling the effects of burn-out. This writer has been climbing the mountain to meet with the Lord and this book is written from that place of humility and encounter.
Reviewer: Charmaine Yip
Charmaine Yip writes for Preach magazine, occasionally preaches short sermons for Premier Radio, and is the 2022 winner of Sermon of the Year.
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