Recommended books
Family life and relationships
Wesley Owen and Care for the Family both have a wide range of books on all aspects of family life and relationships.
What Every Kid Wished Their Parents Knew... and Vice Versa! by Rob Parsons and Lloyd Parsons
This is a humorous book for every parent who has ever wondered what their teenagers are thinking, and for all kids who need to understand what makes their parents tick.
The Sixty Minute Father by Rob Parsons
No-one was ever heard to say on they death bed, "I wish I'd spent more time at the office". And yet so often that’s how we live. This practical, down-to-earth book helps fathers to see how they can seize the day, laugh more with their children, and give love without strings.
The Sixty Minute Mother
Mums from all walks of life have contributed to this fascinating journey through motherhood. Issues covered include:
Why do I sometimes feel so guilty?
My children are teenagers now - what happened?
Should I work full-time or stay at home?
Single mums: the challenge and the hope
I love my kids-but is it all right not to like them occasionally?
The Sixty Minute Marriage by Rob Parsons
Take an hour to read a book that could change your marriage forever! Rob Parsons gives fresh insight, humorous stories and realistic advice, including:
How to argue-effectively
How to strengthen your marriage
Five myths about sex
Loving against the Odds by Rob Parsons
Here is a book for all couples, those with strong marriages who want to protect their relationship, those going through tough times, and those preparing for marriage. With humour and honesty, Rob Parsons covers issues such as communication, financial pressure, sex and the affair, and dealing with conflict.
Love Must be Tough by James Dobson
In the light of the distressing growth of marital breakdown and divorce, James Dobson writes for all those who are experiencing a crisis or 'rough patch' in their relationship. He has found that firm yet loving confrontation restorer respect between husbands and wives and shows how this can be achieved.
When Life Changed Forever by Rick Taylor
Looking at the subject of bereavement, and how it affects your relationships with others and with God.
The Single Issue by Al Hsu
The Single Issue sets out a positive, biblical view that honours singleness as a status equal to marriage. Avoiding trite advice on how to suffer through the single life, it offers practical insights on key concerns such as sex, celibacy and the constructive use of solitude – and points the way to a Christian community in which all members are equally valued.
Single Women: Challenge to the Church by Kristen Aune
This book tackles the unique challenges faced by single Christian women through the eyes of nearly 100 women who were interviewed for the project The work views singleness as a gift that holds a distinct purpose for a woman's service to God. The book also provides practical suggestions on how the church can serve its single members.
Every Man's Battle - Winning the War on Sexual Temptation One Victory at a Time by Stephen Arterbum, published by Waterbrook Press
This book lands every punch when it comes to the challenges facing men trying to live pure, spirit-led lives in a sexually-saturated society. The book tackles the problems of sexual sin, temptation, addiction and negative behaviour patterns, in a very practical, honest and gritty way. It offers simple, direct advice on how to break old lifestyle habits and begin to live the sort of life the Bible calls us to, in a society which gives us every opportunity not to.
Every Woman's Battle - Discovering God's Plan for Sexual and Emotional Fulfilment by Shannon Ethridge, published by Waterbrook Press
This book is very honest and straightforward about the temptation women face to attach themselves emotionally to others in ways that compromise sexual purity. She offers helpful advice about ways we can guard ourselves, maintain sexual integrity and protect ourselves from emotional or physical affairs.
Growing in godliness
The teaching at All Saints’ Church, Marple, in the first part of 2007 has been focusing on the kind of Kingdom lifestyle which Jesus taught and modelled. We have been following through some of the major themes in the Sermon on the Mount as we pursue some of these themes. Here are one or two excellent books which you might like to read to go deeper into some of this teaching, books to stretch our minds, to grow our character and to feed our souls.
Uprising by Erwin McManus
Erwin McManus is one of the most creative and exciting writers around at the moment. The leader of ‘Mosaic’, an exciting and engaging church community in the heart of Los Angeles, McManus has a wonderful gift in opening up Scripture in a fresh and engaging way.
Uprising is a challenge to live a Kingdom focussed life and to embrace those qualities which lie at the heart of the radical new kind of life which Jesus came to bring, qualities which are profoundly counter cultural in our contemporary self-obsessed world. The Kingdom life is an ‘upside down’ life which looks away from self to God and to others. Different chapters take a fresh look at such qualities as humilty, servanthood, integrity, courage, generosity and perseverance. Godliness has never seemed so exciting, so sensible, nor so attainable as it appears here, and, perhaps, never quite so challenging.
The author writes of the possibility open to all of us to ‘live in the present, as if we were back from the future’. It’s an experience that is made real as you read this book and have the feeling of breathing in great draughts of fresh, Kingdom air as you read. Thoroughly recommended, it will inspire you to go for it in a whole new way.
The Fight by John White
Still one of the best books on getting established in the Christian walk and tackling essential topics such as the Bible, Prayer, Guidance, Temptation etc. Solid biblical principles for progressing in the Christian faith from an elder statesman of the Kingdom (not the John White from Derby!).
God’s Politics by Jim Wallis
Subtitled ‘Why the American Right gets it wrong and the Left doesn’t get it’ this book is vital reading for those who are concerned for godly social change. Although written from a North American perspective, it is a book which has much to say which can be applied directly to the British social and political situation.
For many years Jim Wallis has been a leading evangelical advocate of godly social policy and the embracing of God’s heart for the poor and marginalised. Critical of both right wing politics for its neglect of the poor and of the left for its anti-religious dogma, Wallis argues for a third way, a way which seeks to fall into line with God’s concerns and politics rather than which seeks simply to get God on board as a supporter of our own cherished political and social agendas. Rather than simply complain and protest or campaign against groups who displease or offend us, Wallis argues for engagement. It’s fine to oppose abortion, for example, but even better to provide proper social care for young, poor unmarried mothers.
Having laid down a foundation for understanding God’s politics, Wallis goes on to examine some of the key social issues of our day, holding them up to the lens of Scripture. The sections on war and imperialism (particularly relevant in the current climate) and on poverty and greed are both exceptionally good and make for uncomfortable reading in places. The final section on other social issues is more clearly rooted in an American provenance. Some of his comments with respect to sexual ethics may reflect a slightly more permissive position than I would personally espouse, but this is a minor criticism of a book which is otherwise universally readable, helpful and thoroughly challenging.
The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard
This is a quite superb, though rather dense, book which takes a fresh look at Kingdom living especially in the light of the sermon on the Mount. It helps us to see the sermon as Jesus’ description of what life is like in God’s Kingdom and of the kind of people who will fit in to this Kingdom. Helping us to focus on changing within in order to do naturally the things of the Kingdom, this is an inspirational, challenging and thought provoking read. One to savour, and an excellent Lent book for those who appreciate strong meat.
