Pastor's Book Club

June 2006

The Gospel of Judas

Edited by Rodolphe Kasser, Marvin Meyer, and Gregor Wurst

May 2006

Piercing the Darkness by Frank E. Peretti

This sequel to Peretti's This Present Darkness is built upon fundamentalist Christian ideas. As it tells the story of Sally Roe, who goes from spiritualism to conversion, it also traces a battle to save a Christian school from demon-inspired litigation. Leaders in the realm of darkness have mounted a new attack that will create chaos and cause defeat in the human beings who claim unity with their enemy, Christ.

Readers will find themselves rooting for a most unlikely hero as her quest for inner peace exposes the most frightening war of all, the battle for the human soul. Be captivated anew as you enter the world of battling angels and demons that author Frank Peretti so masterfully uncovered in This Present Darkness.

April 2006

This Present Darkness by Frank E. Peretti

Ashton is just a typical small town. But when a skeptical reporter and a pastor begin to compare notes, they suddenly find themselves fighting a hideous plot to subjugate the townspeople--and eventually the entire human race. A riveting thriller, This Present Darkness offers a fascinating glimpse into the unseen world of spiritual warfare.

March 2006

Fast Your Way to Health by Lee Bueno

Having received a death sentence from her doctors, Lee Bueno has found that God has given her a better prescription - fasting to regain her health. From her own and others’ experiences, as well as sound scriptural and medical guidelines, Bueno discusses many instances where prayer and fasting bring miraculous results. As you read this book, you will discover the amazing ways God has designed your body to restore itself and your spirit to be uplifted during a fast.

February 2006

Black Religion and Black Radicalism by Gayraud S. Wilmore

Since its first publication 25 years ago Black Religion and Black Radicalism has established itself as the classic treatment of African American religious history. Wilmore shows to what extent the history of African Americans can be told in terms of religion, and to what extent this religious history has been inseparably bound to the struggle for freedom and justice. From the story of the slave rebellions and emancipation, to the rise of Black nationalism and the freedom struggles of recent times, up through the development of Black, womanist, and Afrocentric theologies, Wilmore offers an essential interpretation of African American religious history.

January 2006

Good to GREAT by Jim Collins

Based on an extensive five-year study conducted by Collins and a research team, Good to Great defines and analyzes the practices that allowed 11 companies to make the rare transition from solid to outstanding performance. The companies chosen have all met the rigorous criteria that Collins developed to measure the good-to-great transition. Some of the other revelations in the book concern the lack of correlation between executive compensation and corporate performance; the fact that technology did not in itself engender corporate transformation; and the scant attention that these upward-trending companies paid to such issues as managing change or motivating people.

Collins's philosophy is summed up in one noteworthy phrase from the book -- "Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice." Anyone who wants to make the right choices for their business will find Good to Great instructive, accessible, and well worth reading. It is sure to be a business book that will be consulted and referred to for years to come.

The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

What can the call to discipleship, the adherence to the word of Jesus, mean today to the businessman, the soldier, the laborer, or the aristocrat? What did Jesus mean to say to us? What is his will for us today? Drawing on the Sermon on the Mount, Dietrich Bonhoeffer answers these timeless questions by providing a seminal reading of the dichotomy between "cheap grace" and "costly grace." "Cheap grace," Bonhoeffer wrote, "is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship ... Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know... It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life."

The Cost of Discipleship is a compelling statement of the demands of sacrifice and ethical consistency from a man whose life and thought were exemplary articulations of a new type of leadership inspired by the Gospel, and imbued with the spirit of Christian humanism and a creative sense of civic duty.

November 2005

Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby

Experiencing God shows you how to deepen your own personal relationship with God and discover your special place in His Kingdom. This book challenges Christians to experience the fullness of a life lived in fellowship with a loving, personal God. This is a newly revised edition of a book that has profoundly changed the lives of Christians around the world.

October 2005

the five people you meet in heaven By Mitch Albom

From the author of Tuesdays with Morrie, a novel that explores the unexpected connections of our lives, and the idea that heaven is more than a place; it's an answer.

Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination. It's a place where your life is explained to you by five people, some of whom you knew, others who may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie's five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his "meaningless" life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal question: "Why was I here?"

September 2005

I May Not Get There with You: The True Martin Luther King, Jr.  By Michael Eric Dyson

A private citizen who transformed the world around him, Martin Luther King, Jr., was arguably the greatest American who ever lived. Now, after more than thirty years, few people understand how truly radical he was. In this groundbreaking examination of the man and his legacy, provocative author, lecturer, and professor Michael Eric Dyson restores King's true vitality and complexity and challenges us to embrace the very contradictions that make King relevant in today's world

August 2005

Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman

Thurman identified the central spiritual problems faced by black folks as the overwhelming stresses of poverty, racism, and a sense of spiritual disconnectedness. He then turned to the life of Jesus as a primary example of the power of love to drive the spiritual regeneration required to sustain a vision of God and self in modern society. The life of Jesus serves as a guidepost to the kind of love that is a hallmark of human spirit, success, and personal salvation.

While Jesus and the Disinherited was influential in shaping the philosophies of the early civil rights movement, it remains topical and deeply relevant even today.

July 2005

God of the Oppressed by James Cone

God of the Oppressed remains a landmark in the development of Black Theology - the first effort to present a systematic theology drawing fully on the resources of African-American religion and culture. James Cone went back to his experience of the black church in Bearden, Arkansas, the tradition of the Spirituals and black folklore, and the black history of struggle and survival, to construct a new approach to the gospel. In his reflections on God, Jesus, suffering, and liberation, Cone relates the gospel message to the experience of the black community. But a wider theme of the book is the role that social and historical context plays in framing the questions we address to God, as well as the mode of the answers provided. Revised, including a new introduction by Cone, God of the Oppressed remains invaluable for scholars, students, clergy, and everyone concerned with vital, contemporary God-Talk.

June 2005

Entertainment Evangelism: Taking the Church Public by Walt Kallestad

The result of going public with the church's ministry is entertainment evangelism. One of the best examples of this kind of innovative, public church is Community Church of Joy, a Lutheran congregation that has five different kinds of worship services. Walt Kallestad explains how worship is integrated with evangelism and how the result of this combination is a renewed passion for the praise, adoration, and service of the Lord. It is controversial for church leaders to admit that human drama, or an appeal to our emotions and senses, has always been part of Christian worship. But Entertainment Evangelism makes a fresh case for the kind of church that takes an unflinching public stance in favor of the good news that comes in Jesus Christ. Walt Kallestad is Senior Pastor of The Community Church of Joy in Phoenix, Arizona.

May 2005

Those Preaching Women: Volume 4

Edited by Ella Pearson Mitchell and Jacqueline Glass

When it comes to preaching, Ella Pearson Mitchell is one of the most highly respected and admired individuals. For over five decades, she has reached untold numbers of female preachers not only through her own preaching, but also through her scholarship and by the example of her life. Editing the Judson Press Those Preaching Women series is yet another vehicle Rev. Dr. Mitchell has employed to promote excellence among women in the pulpit. Early volumes featured some of the best African American female preachers alive. Volume 4 is no exception. With co-editor Jacqueline Glass, Mitchell continues this worthy tradition with contributions from more than 20 preachers. Readers will find these model sermons both educational and inspirational from this stellar group of dynamic women in the pulpit.

April 2005

God’s Armor Bearer by Terry Nance

This book is a MUST READ for anyone called to the ministry. You must first learn how to be a servant before you can become a leader. Terry Nance tells us from his own personal experiences, how and why we should serve the leaders and shepherds that God has called us to serve under. Ministry Leaders cannot do every single thing in the church that is why it is your job to step up to the plate and get off from warming the bench and stop watching everyone else play the game. We as servants must help fulfill the God given vision given to our Apostle or Pastor and God will ensure that our own visions and dreams come to pass. We must bloom where we are planted and be willing to submit not only to God, but also to the leaders He has set over us.

1 Peter 4:10 sums it up plainly: "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." - 1 Peter 4:10 NIV

March 2005

Theology and the Black Experience  Edited by Albert Pero and Ambrose Moyo

The Lutheran Heritage Interpreted by African & African American Theologians

This book presents key essays from an international conference of Black Lutheran theologians held in Zimbabwe in September 1986.  Chapters discuss various themes in Lutheran theology and contemporary issues.

January/February 2005

Reclaiming the “L” Word by Kelly A. Fryer

Renewing the Church from Its Lutheran Core

Reclaiming the "L" Word is a book about renewing congregations by recognizing and living out the core teachings of the Lutheran faith. In the introduction, the author states: 

"I hope that people of every denomination will find this book helpful as they wrestle with these important issues within their own traditions. But this little book is primarily written for those who call themselves Lutheran and, specifically, those who are members of ELCA congregations, and it is intended to help us answer central questions: Who are we? What DOES it mean to be a Lutheran today, anyway? And, why does it matter?"

Inspirational, engaging, and challenging, this book is a must-read for pastors and congregational leaders! 

December 2004

Natural Church Development by Christian A. Schwarz

A Guide to Eight Essential Qualities of Healthy Churches

In this book, Schwarz presents the practical conclusions drawn from the most comprehensive study ever conducted on the causes of church growth—more than 1000 churches in 32 countries on all six continents took part in this project.

The most important finding?

The true causes of church growth are not what we have often believed them to be.

October 2004

The Great Permission

An asset-based field guide for congregations

This asset-based process for stewarding your congregation's maximum potential is outlined in the easy-to-read 140-page field guide. It includes theological background, case studies and how-tos for congregational leaders, all directed toward an asset based approach to congregational life.

September 2004

Biblical and Theological Issues on the Black Presence in the Bible

Foundational research and a major contribution toward our understanding of Biblical, theological, hermeneutical, historical, and cultural perspectives on the Black and African identity of the Biblical world, nations, and persons in redemptive history.

August 2004

What Next: A Memoir Toward World Peace by Walter Mosley

Walter Mosley's What Next dares to propose that African Americans can have a voice and play a leading role in creating world peace. Drawing on memories of his father's struggle against racism, he argues that blacks' experience of racial injustice in the United States obligates them to sympathize with oppressed peoples elsewhere and to understand the murderous rage directed at America by many in the Muslim world. Directed primarily to African Americans, embraceable by all, What Next is a call to action for bringing about world peace.

July 2004

Understanding Your Potential by Myles Munroe

Myles Munroe will help you discover the untapped wealth of your potential ability and rise above your past experiences to unearth hidden treasure within. This book will enable you to rise above the opinions of others. Allow you to explore the principle keys to realizing, exposing, and maximizing your true capacity, reaching beyond the expectations of others.

African American Church Growth by Carlyle Fielding Stewart, III

Going beyond a simple call for social justice, the author addresses both spiritual and social tyrannies, within and without the church, that preclude church growth in our center cities and rural communities.  Stewart offers theological directives through the concept “prophetic ministry” which are necessary for the liberation of the church.  The church might indeed be free to grow and witness to the people of the world providing we utilize the concepts offered by Carlyle Stewart.

The Wounded Healer is a hope-filled and profoundly simple book that speaks directly to those men and women who want to be of service in their church or community, but have found the traditional ways often threatening and ineffective. In this book, Henri Nouwen combines creative case studies of ministry with stories from diverse cultures and religious traditions in preparing a new model for ministry. Filled with examples from everyday experience, The Wounded Healer is a thoughtful and insightful guide that will be welcomed by anyone engaged in the service of others.

April 2004

Tuesdays with Morrie  by Mitch Albom

Most of us, at some point in our schooling, have had a teacher who had a major impact on our thinking and the way we've lived our lives. What a treat would it be now, all these years later, to reacquaint ourselves with that treasure advisor, to learn again those lessons he or she shared when we were young. Mitch Albom was given that opportunity. He spent several months regularly visiting his college professor, Morrie Schwartz, during the elder man's final year of life. Tuesdays with Morrie is Albom's best-selling tribute to the man who gave him so much

Tuesdays With Morrie is a magical chronicle of their time together, through which Mitch shares Morrie's lasting gift to the world.

March 2004

Meditations of the Heart by Howard Thurman

This collection of fifty-four of his most well known meditations features his thoughts on prayer, community, and the joys and rituals of life. Within its pages are words that sustain, elevate, and inspire. Thurman addresses life's moments of trial and uncertainty and offers a message of hope and endurance for people of all faiths.

February 2004

The Envy of the World: On Being a Black Man in America by Ellis Cose

A frank and realistic examination of the daunting challenges facing black men in America.  In stirring prose, Cose documents the amazing journey the black race has made illuminating the social tragedy of wasted black potential.

Woman Thou Art Loosed: Healing the Wounds of the Past by T.D. Jakes

Bishop Jakes discusses the sensitive issues that have haunted the hearts of so many women.  His writing carries with it the healing touch of a strong medicine, gently applied, yet powerfully effective.