Recommended Summer Reads  

Trevor offers some suggestions for books that might inspire or encourage you over the summer.

A book about culture war: Us For Them by Austin Fischer

As we all know, we live in increasingly fraught and angry times and in a world where people seem to have given up on conversation, resorting instead to shouting at one another from a distance. Sadly, instead of modelling the salt and light of reconciliation and respect, the church has often mirrored the ways of the world, working through its own disagreements in ways that are toxic and divisive.
In Us For Them, the Texas-based pastor Austin Fischer helps us to understand that the arts of conversation and laying aside difference are not compromise, but rather necessary if the church is to be faithful to the vision set before us in the New Testament, a community where slaves and free people, Jews and Gentiles, and men and women live side by side. While Fischer writes from a primarily American perspective, this book has lots of insights for British readers.

A book to help you speak to people about Jesus: Fully Alive by Elizabeth Oldfield

Many of us will have been encouraged by recent reports of the ‘quiet revival’ that’s bubbling up across the UK, with many people, especially younger ones, now open to a conversation about faith. But how can we share the good news of God and the gospel to those who might be coming to church with no inherited faith tradition?
These questions are explored brilliantly by Elizabeth Oldfield, a British theologian, writer and podcast presenter. Oldfield recasts the seven deadly sins in modern form, describing, for example, individualism as the new form of pride, and status anxiety as the modern equivalent of envy. She describes the ways such sins dehumanise us, while also exploring how turning to God can be the beginning of healing. If you’re offended by the occasional swear word or frank explorations of sex and relationships, this book probably won’t be for you, but I recommend it as one which will open our eyes to the struggles and questions of many of our friends and neighbours.

A book about priorities and slowing down: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer

It isn’t new news for most of us that we live in a time that feels busier than ever, when many of us are ‘always on’, struggling to fulfil multiple commitments and haunted by the realisation that whatever Jesus meant by ‘life to the full’, this probably isn’t it. John Mark Comer explores these issues with powerful honesty in The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, encouraging us to think with greater clarity about what matters most and to be more resolute in our determination to live in a slower and more thoughtful way.

This is an excellent book for anyone who wants to take the summer to reevaluate before the busyness of the autumn kicks in. 

A book about the Bible: The Narrow Path by Rich Villodas

Finally, a recommendation for those who want to delve deeper into Scripture. The Narrow Path is an accessible and thought-provoking introduction to the Sermon on the Mount by the American pastor, Rich Villodas. It manages to be both readable and also profoundly challenging, probably not a surprise given the radical nature of the words of Jesus which he explores. This book is a healthy and helpful reminder of why the narrow path is also the way to greater life and security