Here are two that come to my mind.A Shepherd Looks at the 23rd Psalm by Phillip Keller.Why Does Jesus Make Me Nervous by Gerald MannIf you’ve never read these, may I suggest you add them to your stack of books.What books have stuck in your mind through the years________________
John Bevere’s book, Breaking Intimidation is really good, especially if offense is an issue in your life. Actually, I’ve enjoyed all of his books that I’ve read, and the same with his wife Lisa Bevere’s books________________More of Him…less of me.twitter.com/camiracle77www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=691241499&ref=name
Some of mine…
The most interesting book I have read that is related to the Bible is Dake’s God’s Plan for Man. Some of it is controversial, even unbelievable. But some of it is eye-opening.I also like the (auto)biographies of preachers. Paths of a Pioneer by Paul Walker (father of Paul Laverne Walker) was a book my dad gave me to read when I was perhaps 10or 11. I was enthralled! LAMA–especially the formation of the Church of God–was a wonderful blessing.W.A. Criswell’s autobiography helped me see that even during trying times, people care about spiritual things (perhaps even more than usual). I was especially touched by how a poor, Texas community sold things to build on to their church right during the Great Depression–this was one of Criswell’s earliest–perhaps first–church.Oral Robert’s autobiography. The confirmation that faith was a KNOWING helped solidify something that I knew, but could not articulate.Carl Richardson (name drop!) gave me some books of sermons that he had used to supplement his own preaching. I found some really good nuggets in those books.BUT…BUT…BUT…But there are very few books I have found–ones related to the Bible or the such–that are just cover to cover awesome. Like mining for gold, you read them and fine a nugget here and nugget there.
I love books that speak of other preachers’ experiences–especially those of Church of God ministers.There was a book about Carl Richardson from which I got a lot of good. He was working hard up in the Chicago area, but was not seeing the results he longed to see. He got a called from a pastor in Florida, at a church he had held a good revival at. The man told him that he believed the people would vote him in if he’d run his name. But Bro. Richardson didn’t want to quit anything, even if it wasn’t working as well as he would have liked. He apparently felt that it was a sacrifice that God would be pleased with. The other pastor–a father figure to Bro. Carl–discerned this, called him back and said, To obey is better than sacrifice. That sealed the deal…and it was up, up, up from there on.I really enjoyed a book about Arnold Godwin’s life. I don’t know how well known he was outside of Florida, but in Florida, he was a well-known leader, and outstanding preacher/pastor, and is probably best known for being one of the key singers at Campmeeting, which were the Miller Brothers, Randy and Annette Watson, the Singing Morris Family, and Arnold Godwin (I might be missing someone, but it’s been a while, I’m afraid).
I thought about including Oral Roberts autobiography, also. It’s one I read more than once. Lots of good nuggets in there. One thing I remember his saying that made an impression on me was that he read the gospels through several times on his knees as a young minister. God raised him up from a deathbed as a teenager when/after (I’m not sure which) he answered the call to preach. His book is one that will build your faith.I know most of y’all don’t like the WOF message, but another really good biography was Jerry Savelle’s book about Copeland, In the Footsteps of a Prophet. Also another I read more than once. Copeland might have gone too far with the faith message, but he started out really on track with the faith message, on a level few people understood in the 60s. The Lord called Savelle (who was saved in a Copeland revival) and he began attending Copeland’s revivals (largely in the AG then, not crusades.) The Lord told Savelle to quit his job, and he began studying 8 hours a day and believing God to meet their needs. He started recording Copeland’s messages on a reel to reel recorder and writing out his sermon outlines on faith. He eventually began writing his own when he became more confident, but that’s where he started. The book is full of miracles the Lord did in his life, as well as how he began to understand what it meant to walk by faith. My favorite miracle story is when the Lord healed his daughter’s finger after the tip of it was cut off in the church nursery during a revival service with Copeland. The doctors sewed it back on but had zero confidence that it would reattach properly or work properly again. The doctors gave him no hope of this happening. He & his wife stood on the Word of God and stayed in prayer and once the bandage was taken off, it was completely healed. Really good book________________More of Him…less of me.twitter.com/camiracle77www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=691241499&ref=name
This Book Really Moved Me
Jimmy Swaggart story
it seems the title was To Cross a River. When I read it ( this was well before certain unfortunate events), I wept because I somehow understood his heart, i think. I was probably a teenager or not much older at the time.