What I’m Reading (Summer 2023)

I’ve read some pretty great books lately, and am starting to re-read a few that I can’t recommend often enough - so I thought it was a good time for a post highlighting a few of them.

Waymaker by Ann Voskamp

This is one I just read for the first time, but it’s still sitting on my coffee table where I can flip through it now and then and I can tell it’s one I’ll read on over and over. The way that she uses words and imagery to express biblical truth is just so, so good. And the theme of “the way,” this image of following Jesus being a journey on a road, is one that has been coming up everywhere in my life lately - this book, and in my Bible reading, and the next book on this list:

Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan

This is neither a new book nor a first-time read for me, but I was discussing it with some friends a month ago and decided to pick it up again. To be honest, I’m having a little troubling staying focused on it, and I can’t say that I agree with all of his metaphors. (Sometimes it seems like Christian is always one step away from falling off the way and being lost forever, which seems to me to downplay the way God’s sovereign grace keeps us from going astray.) But there are also plenty of very good and helpful parts, and it deserves to be a classic.

The Personal MBA by Josh Kauffman

I’ve been trying lately to have one Christian book that I can read in the evenings, and one business or personal development book that I can read in the times during the day when I would usually reach for my phone. I haven’t been doing so well at that habit for the past few weeks, so this book has been pretty stop and go, but it has very short, punchy sections and it’s well-suited to reading a little bit at a time.

Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson (Audible)

I always regret downloading non-fiction books on Audible, because my brain just can’t process information without seeing it, touching the pages, and underlining important points. But fiction works better, and I’ve been in the tractor enough lately to be tired of all my podcasts and music. So I’m re-listening to the Wingfeather Saga, which in my opinion is the greatest fantasy series after Narnia and Lord of the Rings.

Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund

I wrote a review of this book three years ago when I first read it - I’ll probably repost it here at some point, but for now here’s the link to the post on my old blog:

Gentle and Lowly: the Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers

I still re-read it almost once a year, and I just picked it up again the other day. So good for the soul.

You Are a Theologian by Jen Wilkin and J.T. English

This book is brand new and I haven’t even read it yet, but it’s next up on the list and I’m so excited to get into it. I’ve listened to Jen and J.T on their podcast, Knowing Faith, for years. In fact, I probably already know most of what they’re going to say: that theology is not just for academics and pastors, but for everyone who wants to know and love God more.

Have you read any of these? What else are you reading this summer?

Note: all of these links are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon affiliate I earn from qualifying purchases.