A Potpourri of Great Christian Books

I’ve prepared a potpourri of book reviews of the great Christian books I’ve been reading since December 2018. Sit back and enjoy the different “scents” and “textures” of these eight wonderful books, just like you would do with a fresh bowl of spring-scented potpourri.

Growing Forward

I found this book to be the most inspirational of this potpourri collection. Laurie Pawlik runs a popular blog and tells her difficult stories in this hope-filled book. She has endured so many challenges and tells her stories with honesty and joy.

In each chapter, she applies a beautiful growth metaphor to one of the Bible’s famous women. Even though I was familiar with each of these ladies’ stories from the Bible, I gained great insight from Laurie’s insights into their pain and faith. She also weaves her own stories and stories of other modern women into each chapter, making the flow of words highly engaging.

I love practical theology, because I can take a truth from a book and apply it right away. Each chapter is loaded with practical applications for growing forward in everyday life. This helped me really appreciate this book, because it has lots of helpful tools to help me get over my hangups.

Favorite Quotes from Growing Forward:

• Jesus is your kindred spirit. He knows your name just as intimately as He did Mary’s. He accepts your feelings, problems, and fears.
• Practice meeting God in the clamor, noise and distractions of daily life. Tune your heart so you hear Him above, below, and through the roar. If you can sense the Holy Spirit in the hubbub, you’ll see Him anywhere and everywhere.
• God uses tragedies to lay the foundations for triumphs–even when we can’t see how, why, or where. His endings lead to fresh beginnings; life springs from death.

Thanks goes to Bethany House and Netgalley for providing me a review copy of Growing Forward.

Chosen for Christ

Do you feel like you were left out growing up? Maybe you still feel left out, awkward, or even unwanted. Heather Holleman gently guides you back to the life you’ve been missing, because Jesus has already chosen you and would surely choose you again.

Heather’s book is an intelligent read based on solid doctrine, like many others I’ve enjoyed from Moody Publishers. She describes how she has struggled with feeling chosen, even as a longtime Christian. She helps you examine where you are now with your feelings, struggles and faith. Then she leads you through seven different invitations Jesus extends to you in Scripture. Finally, she encourages you to take forward steps into the life God has chosen for you.

If you’re looking for encouragement from a wise, trustworthy friend who will teach you something new, this book is a great pick for you! I’m still mulling on its truths, weeks after reading.

Favorite Quotes from Chosen for Christ:

• It’s always the right decision to worship Jesus. It’s never wrong to choose to worship where you are. Worshiping Jesus is something you will never regret, and you can never do it too much.
• I became a different woman when I saw myself as God’s treasured possession. I woke up with the expectation that God would attend to me as someone He greatly values and cares for.
• God makes space for us to use our gifts. He knows how to open doors, use our gifting, and make our contribution matter. When we feel crowded out, Jesus is right there, appointing and enabling the fruit for our lives.

Thanks to Moody Publishers for providing me a review copy of Chosen for Christ.

The Ministry of Ordinary Places

Are you building your hospitality muscles, as is the trend in Christian circles these days? This book will challenge you to look at hospitality in a totally new way, stretching you to think outside the box.

Shannan Martin and her family live in a low-income area and build a unique ministry right from their own home. Though her husband serves in prison ministry, Shannan has a diverse, everyday ministry as a wife, mother and writer. This book challenged many of my preconceived notions about what ministry and hospitality looks like.

It was a slightly uncomfortable read for me, but not in a bad way. It challenged me to lay aside my hidden judgments and see others as precious children of God. The book’s language is unique as well, which caused me to slow down my normally fast reading pace and absorb the colorful stories.

The story that moved me most is when Shannan met with a woman who insisted on taking her out to lunch at Burger King. I appreciated the transparency and humility in her story and the spiritual lessons she shares from it. This is a book that I need to read again so I can glean even more truths from it.

Favorite Quotes from The Ministry of Ordinary Places:

• Though our lives feel ordinary and small, we’re compelled by the possibility of making a difference where the problems loom large.
• God is calling to us from the world we’re in. He wants to meet us right here.
• Once we understand that pain is not an indictment on our faith, we’re at liberty to feel sadness with our joy, a sprinkling of salt on bittersweet chocolate.

Thanks to the BookLook Bloggers Program and Netgalley for providing me a review copy of The Ministry of Ordinary Places.

Freedom!

Within the first two chapters of this powerful book, I had made a mental list of over 20 “me too” links between my story and Jennifer Renee Watson‘s story. She openly shares her stories about her father wound, struggle with depression, lack of confidence, and other common problems Christian women face. You will read it and find yourself nodding your head while Jennifer unfolds her stories alongside God’s truths.

Jennifer has been in ministry for more than two decades, so you can trust that she knows what she’s talking about. I like the sass and transparency mixture in her writing voice, and the way she helped me feel pumped up after each chapter. Facing your deepest hurts isn’t easy, and Jennifer never pretends it is. She comes alongside you and helps you be honest about your struggles so you can find healing and freedom from them once and for all.

I love the pretty pearl finish of this book as well as the lines to fill in your thoughts. The reflective questions are great for personal application, and you could also use them for group study. I think this book would be an excellent resource for mentoring between women of different generations.

She is also one of the featured speakers on a new podcast, More Than Small Talk, with authors Suzanne Eller and Holley Gerth. I encourage you to check out the podcast and the book. You will find Jennifer’s candor to be refreshing and motivational.

Favorite Quotes from Freedom!:

• You can’t be a victim when your hands are in the air praising God.
• Seeds are planted by others who have spoken hurtful things to us, but only we can water and feed those thoughts.
• There are treasures hidden in dark places, and sometimes we have to mine for diamonds in the stark, cold night.

Thanks to Bethany House and Netgalley for providing me a review copy of Freedom!.

Winning the Battle for Your Mind, Will and Emotions

I am highly interested in the topic of this book, as my own book “Transforming Your Thought Life: Christian Meditation in Focus” will be published later this year. This book is a powerful resource for transforming your thoughts and learning how they affect all parts of your being.

Robert Hotchkin writes from a somewhat charismatic perspective in this book. It’s different from what I normally read as a conservative Christian, but I found his insights to be practical and rooted in Scripture. In each chapter, he carefully unpacks his main point and how it applies to your thought life, leaving you with a strong takeaway.

He shares personal testimonies of how God helped him overcome chronic illness and other struggles by refocusing his mindset. I found his stories to be uplifting and inspiring. One story I enjoyed was when Robert was at a photo shoot. He doesn’t particularly like having his photo taken, and he was in a grumpy mood which was showing on his face. The photographer then asked him to think about his wife, which totally changed his demeanor. He writes:

“The only thing that changed during that photo shoot was the kind of thoughts I allowed to fill my mind. The lighting…backdrop…clothes…photographer…camera did not change. My thoughts changed. And that shifted everything.”

This story is a good example of how Robert uses a life story to make a spiritual point. I highlighted many key teachings in each chapter, and I think you will also find helpful applications from this interesting book.

Favorite Quotes from Winning the Battle:

• If God seems to be taking longer than expected, it is simply because He is about to exceed our expectations.
• The divine setup of His shakings helps reveal any inferior systems we have come into agreement with, so that they can be removed and replaced with His truth.
• In His goodness, He wants to help you see anywhere that you are believing, agreeing with or relying on an inferior system of self, as opposed to resting and trusting in Him and His eternal Kingdom.

Thanks to Chosen and Netgalley for providing me a review copy of Winning the Battle for Your Mind, Will and Emotions.

Bless Your Husband

Angela Mills hosts an encouraging Facebook group for wives who want to improve their marriages. She includes many tips and feedback from her readers, making this a wonderful resource of ideas for blessing your marriage.

I enjoy the girlfriend tone that is uplifting and inspiring. You can pick and choose from the ideas she shares, customizing them for the unique needs of your marriage.

The book provides four weeks of ideas, five days per week. It also includes ideas for two bonus weeks. You’ll have both weekly and daily challenges to complete. There are spaces on many of the days to work through your thoughts and come up with plans for blessing your husband.

If you’re looking for ways to freshen up your marriage, this book is packed with creative ideas. You’ll enjoy Angie’s sunny tone and honest stories of successes and failures. The organized layout is easy to follow and will help you get started right away.

Favorite Quotes from Bless Your Husband:

• These days, I’m free from the pressure to appear the perfect wife and homemaker, and because of that, I have freedom to be me.
• In whatever way we’re serving our husbands, we should approach it as an honor that belongs to his wife alone.
• God intended you to be a full partner in your marriage, not an assistant. And when we help our husbands, we’re fulfilling part of our purpose in life.

Thanks to Bethany House for providing me a review copy of Bless Your Husband.

10 Choices Successful Couples Make

Who doesn’t want the secret to love that lasts a lifetime? In this book, you’ll find 10 practical guideposts to believe so your marriage can thrive.

Dr. Ron Welch has over 25 years of experience as a clinical psychologist, and through his counseling with thousands of couples, he has put together the keys for success. I like that he states them as choices, because even if I have the wrong mindset in a particular area, I can choose to change it and see better results. He gives sound advice about improving communication, forgiveness, becoming servant-hearted, and believing the best about your spouse.

What I like most about this book is the personal application. For example, Dr. Welch provides a selfishness quiz that you and your spouse can take separately, then discuss together. He also gives a helpful “Learn to Avoid the Falls” tip that you can use before every argument. I got more than expected from the “Determine Your Unspoken Truths” exercise. It has helped me identify some problem areas after 18 years of marriage, which I can work on myself. I feel empowered and hopeful after reading this book.

I have read many different marriage books, and this one is especially valuable because it is so practical. I also appreciate that Dr. Welch writes with compassion and encouragement, even about truths that can be hard to face. This book can help you forge new paths in your marriage, whether you are a newlywed or have been married for a long time.

Favorite Quotes from 10 Choices Successful Couples Make:

• The first major choice you must make is to stop doing what has not worked in your relationship so far.
• You both have to agree on what times and places do and don’t work for serious discussions and what land mines to avoid in the process.
• If you will use what you learned…to identify the assumptions in your relationships…you can make a clear choice to live your life together differently.

Thanks to Revell for providing me a review copy of 10 Choices Successful Couples Make.

Life-Changing Prayers

For years, I’ve enjoyed Leading the Way, a radio ministry program hosted by Dr. Michael Youssef. His practical teachings and love for God’s Word have deeply inspired me, and I was excited to open this book, the first I’ve read from him.

Dr. Youssef’s down-to-earth, to-the-point preaching style translates perfectly into his writing. He writes seven power-packed chapters based on specific prayers recorded by different people in the Bible. His writing lends new insight into these passages which you can use to strengthen your prayer life.

This is an inspiring book for the confusing and difficult times in which we live. It is filled with hope and direction. It will help your prayers have a firmer shape. They will also be based on a more solid foundation of faith.

Many of us want to know how to improve our prayer lives, and this book gives instructions based directly on God’s Word. I appreciate Dr. Youssef’s commitment to help us steep ourselves in God’s Word. This book will help your prayers become infused with truth from Scripture.

Favorite Quotes from Life-Changing Prayers:

• We should not confuse a supernatural miracle with a natural sign. A simple sign is sufficient when you want to discern God’s will in any matter.
• His timetable is not necessarily my timetable, and His ways are not my ways, but God loves to hear us make our requests in a specific way, in accordance with His Word and His will.
• I ask God to shut all the doors except one. I ask Him to leave open only one door–the door to His perfect will.

I purchased my own copy of Life-Changing Prayers and just had to share my review with you since it’s so good!

Looking for more book recommendations? I have dozens more on my Book Reviews page!

If you liked this post, I would appreciate your shares on social media!

This post may be linked up at these linkups.

If you make a purchase through the provided links, I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you in advance for supporting my writing ministry!

My weekly newsletter Tea on Tuesdays is delivered at 3:00 p.m. Central time every Tuesday. I write an exclusive devotion for you each week that I share with you first.

To receive the newsletter, please subscribe below. I can’t wait to share personally with you each week!