Resources on Book Reviews
Christian parents should never stop praying for their children. Nor should they be satisfied with vague and general prayers. Kathleen Nielson’s four books will prove a valuable resource for parents wanting to pray specifically and comprehensively for their children’s spiritual and moral development. One way we learn to pray is by listening to the prayers of others. She models for us how to pray for our children (and grandchildren) at every stage of their lives – for young children, teens, young adults, and adult children. I highly recommend these books.
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Preachers need books on the theology of preaching, works that demonstrate its biblical warrant. Preachers also need how-to books on the preparation and delivery of sermons. Carelessly crafted sermons dishonor the Savior, as does a delivery that fails to compel attention. But there is a third kind of book on preaching that preachers will do well to read. These books offer the mature reflections on the intangibles of preaching—matters of pastoral bearing, mental attitude, and habits of preparation. Jonathan T. Pennington, preaching pastor at Sojourn East Church in Louisville, Kentucky and associate professor at Southern Seminary, provides just this kind of book in Small Preaching. The book’s twenty-five brief essays fall under three headings: the person of the preacher, the…
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Vernon Dahmer is a hero of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement. A business owner and president of the Forrest County NAACP, he worked tirelessly to register black voters in Hattiesburg and surrounding communities. He was murdered in 1966 when members of the Laurel-based White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan set his home ablaze. This horrific crime is the subject of Curtis Wilkie’s When Evil Lived in Laurel: The “White Nights” and the Murder of Vernon Dahmer. At the center of this riveting story is Tom Landrum, a courageous FBI informant. His infiltration of the Klan helped bring about the arrest and trial of the man who authorized the deadly attack on Dahmer’s home – Sam Bowers – as well the…
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I love how-to books that offer practical advice on church leadership. Most pastors benefit from step-by-step instruction about organizational management, church finances, crisis response, leadership recruitment and training, and other areas of church administration. Comparatively few seminary students come from backgrounds where they have received extensive training in these areas – and when they arrive at their first church, they need guidance. Right out of the starting gate, ministries can be crippled when godly men are ill-equipped to tend to the quotidian details and processes essential to effective leadership. The pastor who minimizes the importance of practical know-how is foolish. So you may be surprised that I am enthusiastic about Paul Tripp’s Lead, a leadership book that has little or nothing to…
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Reformed Theological Seminary is blessed to have campus presidents who are gifted theologians, skilled pastors, and accessible communicators – which is why I was eager to purchase Persistent Prayer by Guy Richard, president of Reformed Theological Seminary, Atlanta. God’s people are always in need of teaching on the nature of prayer and exhortations to its faithful practice. My goal as a pastor is for my church family to pursue lives of prayer: pouring out their hearts to the Lord in their private devotions, family worship, and the prayer meetings of the church. Persistent Prayer will prove a valuable tool in reaching that goal. Of all the helpful reminders I found in this book, perhaps this was most needed: “Prayer…
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When Lynne and I moved to Mississippi, we wanted to find a church home. We had two requirements: a church with both Sunday morning and evening worship services (we love the Lord’s Day!) and a pastor committed to expository preaching. What a blessing to find both at First Pres Jackson with David Strain’s preaching! David’s Expository Preaching is a gem – every Christian should read it. The Bible is indeed God’s word – and faithful preachers bring the words from God’s heart to the hearts of his dearly beloved people. Had David done no more than provide us with eleven arguments in favor of expository preaching, he would have served the church well. But his practical advice on getting…
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