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30 Great Books Favorites from My Shelves

By Joe Ready

Book lovers everywhere have their favorites. If you love them li ke I do, you know its

not easy to pick and choose favorites. But Ive thought about doing this for a while.Over 30 years of ministry, many books have been gifts from God, enriching,

illuminating and challenging me in many aspects of life.

Some are permanent parts of my library. Others had their say, so to speak, and were

passed along to friends or occasionally donated to a local library. But thats the

exception, not the rule, for me. Im one of those people who find it very hard to part

with any of my books!

I had some fun recently pulling out books Ive had on my shelf for years and reflecting

on what each of them meant to me when I first read them. To keep a favorites list

manageable, I had to be pretty selective. This list comprises many of my favorites.

I have to send a couple of caveats along to anyone who may be interested in my list.

First, its a very eclectic list. These are arranged in no particular order. Its a personal list

of books I especially enjoyed reading.

I read from many sources and enjoy stumbling across anecdotes and little-known facts

that help me grasp a new concept or gain a fresh perspective on life, or on the persons

life I am studying or, in many cases, a new insight on a passage of Scripture.

Ive found, particularly as a preacher, that some of the most useful anecdotes and

illustrations come to me as serendipity.

Preparation for preaching makes it essential to understand how people view life from a

wide variety of angles. To bring the power of Gods Word to bear, accurately, on the

problems and possibilities that people face every day, a communicator must mine the

treasuries of knowledge that God has placed in all fields of human endeavor.

An anecdote from a historian, an axiom from a scientific journal or an odd series ofreflections from a writer that few have ever heard of stir thoughts in my mind that send

me studying in a new direction.

Secondly, this list will probably feel a bit dated to some people. It is mostly comprised

of books that are at least a decade old. It isnt that I dont like new books but there are

so many great reads still awaiting me from a decade or two ago (or a century or two

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23.Glory and Honor: The Musical and Artistic Legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach, byGregory Wilbur (copyright 2005 by Gregory Wilbur, Published by Cumberland

House Publishing, Inc., Nashville Tennessee)

24.Through Gates of Splendor, by Elisabeth Elliot, (Living Books/Tyndale HousePublishers, copyrights 1956, 1957 and 1981 by Elisabeth Elliot)

25.Men Made New by John R.W. Stott (Intervarsity Press, copyright 1966, reprintedby IVP in 1976)

26.Glorious Intruder by Joni Eareckson Tada (Multnomah Publishing, 1989)27.Whats So Great About Christianity? By Dinesh DSouza (copyright 2007 by

Dinesh DSouza, Regnery Publishing Inc., Washington D.C.)

28.He That Is Spiritual: A Classic Study of the Biblical Doctrine of Spirituality, byLewis Sperry Chafer, D.D., LITT, D. (copyright, 1918 by Lewis Sperry Chafer,

Zondervan Publishing House, revised edition copyright, 1967)

29.The FACE that Demonstrates the Farce of Evolution by Hank Hanegraaff(copyright 1998 by Hank Hanegraaff, published by Word Publishing, NashvilleTennessee)

30.Brave Companions: Portraits in History (copyright 1992 by David McCullough,published by Touchstone, a division of Simon and Schuster, New York, NY)

Well, thats it - a sampling of 30 favorites from my last 30 years of reading. Several of

these selections are also on the list because they are a work by one of my favorite

authors.

In biblical studies, F.F. Bruce is a writer who has immeasurably enriched my life. Interms of theology and spiritual growth, Dr. D. James Kennedy and Dr. Charles Swindoll

are two of my favorites. In history, one of my unfulfilled goals is to read every book

produced by David McCullough and Paul Johnson both incredibly gifted writers

whose love of history is evident on every page of their works.

In terms of todays most controversial issues, no one does a better job than Dinesh

DSouza and Charles Colson in addressing hot topics in a thorough, objective and

compelling way. And, as devotional writers, Joni Eareckson Tada and Eugene Peterson

each bring a wealth of insight from their years of walking with God and ministeringlife-giving truth to the hearts of millions of readers.

I hope you find some treasures in this list for your own quiet times in 2010 and beyond.

Joe Ready

Westminster Maryland, March 11, 2010

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