I’ve referenced this book several times in messages. The story is inspiring (and heart wrenching!). The only reason it’s not more highly ranked is because a lot of the book is diary entries, and it doesn’t flow quite as well as some of the higher entries on this list.

I finally got around to reading this classic on evangelism. If you want to feel more comfortable in sharing your faith, definitely check this one out.

Our staff reads one book together every year, and we read this one in 2021. It’s the story of The Brooklyn Tabernacle and how they’ve grounded their church in prayer.

I finished reading the Chronicles of Narnia (“The Last Battle” is book 7 of 7) to our twins back in January. Lewis’ take on heaven in this book is amazing! If your kids are 7+, read them The Chronicles of Narnia. They’ll thank you, and you’ll love it too!

My friend, and a leader here at church, Sarah Hawkins, told me last year that I need to “read for fun” more often, so I read this Christian fantasy book this year. Pretty solid, if you’re into that sort of thing.

I try to read one parenting book every year, and this is one of the better ones I’ve read. Unlike other books that stay ultra-practical, this book gets you focused on broader (and more important) Gospel themes.

This is an excellent fantasy book about rabbits fighting wolves. This is a children’s book (a 365 page one!) written in Narnia-style, and it’s great for ages 7 and up. I read it aloud to my twins, and the series itself develops great Christian themes!

I must admit that the basic “Christian Living” genre is not really my favorite, but so many people told me to read this book that I gave in and read it. It’s actually very good and has lots of solid, practical advice. John Mark Comer might be this next generation’s Timothy Keller.

The Sherrills are the best Christian biographers of the last 100 years. Period. They wrote, “The Hiding Place,” “God’s Smuggler,” “The Cross & the Switchblade,” and more. This story chronicles one of the leaders of the Pentecostal movement. The theology is slightly different for many readers, but the story is a really engaging read.

This is the gripping story of Martin & Gracia Burnham who were missionaries in the Philippines taken hostage by Islamic terrorists in 2001. The “afterword” of this book (which was written 10 years later) was one of the best chapters I read all year.

In some ways I was tempted to make this #1, but if you don’t like philosophy and thinking deeply when you read, this book is definitely not for you. If you do, you HAVE to read this. If you want to understand exactly HOW our culture has gotten so confused on so many things (especially when it comes to sexuality and gender), this is the best book out there.

Richardson is a great author, and this is his own story of how he brought the Gospel to the cannibalistic tribes of Papua New Guinea. This book has such a great “turn moment.” I gasped out loud and pumped my fist when it happened. It takes a bit to get there, but when it does, wow!

This is the autobiography of a female missionary who had to trust God through some incredibly difficult circumstances in Indonesia during WWII. This book is filled with amazing stories of God’s providence!

The true story of a Christian woman in Romania who is persecuted for her faith under the communist regime. It’s riveting, inspiring, and strengthened my faith. A must read!

This was the best “short” book I read to my kids this year. This book was a little too short for me to count on my list of 14 books, but it is fantastic! If you have kids ages 5-12, seriously, spend the money on this book, and read it out loud to them. It’s an illustrated kid’s version of the 2nd best-selling book of all-time, “Pilgrim’s Progress.” Our kids LOVE this book, and so do I!