There are a number of books set to be published over the next few months that I think you might be interested in. Here are 12 of them, and I’ve included their description from Amazon except where otherwise noted:
Three books in R.C. Sproul’s Crucial Questions series will be published August 12. All of the books in the Crucial Questions series are free in the Kindle edition.
How Can I Live by Faith?
“Becoming a Christian doesn’t come at the cost of your intellect. In fact, the Christian faith provides the most compelling, logical explanation for life in this world. In this booklet, Dr. R.C. Sproul demonstrates that Christianity is rational because it is based on the promises of God, who has proven His trustworthiness in His Word. These promises provide an unshakable foundation for our salvation, faithful living, and hope for the future.”
What is the Gospel?
“Many people think that since God is good, He will accept us as long as we lead good lives. But this isn’t good news, because none of us is as good as God. If left to ourselves, we will receive what our lives actually deserve: His judgment. In this booklet, Dr. R.C. Sproul explains the gospel, God’s good news for sinful people like us. While we could never save ourselves from His just condemnation, God calls us to trust in His Son, Jesus Christ, who alone can redeem us through His righteous life, atoning death, and victorious resurrection.”
What is Biblical Wisdom?
“Wisdom isn’t something only needed by the foolish and immature. All of us are called to grow in wisdom, for true wisdom has to do with pleasing the God who made us. In this booklet, Dr. R.C. Sproul introduces the Wisdom Literature of the Old Testament. He shows that wisdom goes hand in hand with being godly, and he demonstrates the Bible’s practical guidelines for a well-lived life that honors the Lord.”
A Way with Words: Using Our Online Conversations for Good by Daniel Darling
I’m on the “launch team” for this book, so I’m getting to read it in advance of its August 18 release date.
“Social media was made to bring us together. But few things have driven us further apart. Sadly, many Christians are fueling online incivility. Others, exhausted by perpetual outrage and shame-filled from constant comparison, are leaving social media altogether. So, how should Christians behave in this digital age? Is there a better way?
Daniel Darling believes we need an approach that applies biblical wisdom to our engagement with social media, an approach that neither retreats from modern technology nor ignores the harmful ways in which Christians often engage publicly. In short, he believes that we can and should use our online conversations for good.”
Just Jones: Sometimes a Thing Is Impossible . . . Until It Is Actually Done by Andy Andrews
I’ve enjoyed several of Andy Andrews’ books, including the first two books in the Noticer Trilogy (The Noticer, The Noticer Returns). The book will be published September 8.
From New York Times bestselling author Andy Andrews comes the return of one of our favorite fictional characters: Jones, the noticer. A mysterious elderly man with white hair and endless wisdom who always appears to show up exactly when he’s needed most.
At 3:29 a.m. on May 22, a telephone rings in Orange Beach, Alabama. Breaking the sleepy silence inside the bedroom of New York Times bestselling author Andy Andrews, a hastily whispered message heralds the news that Andy has been waiting on for seven years: Jones is back in town. Apparently, however, he is also in jail.
The old man is tight-lipped about the circumstances surrounding his brief incarceration. After arriving to bail him out, Andy is shocked to discover that his trusted friend has already opened an unusual business in one of the resort town’s most high-profile shopping districts. Jones’s Five & Dime seems to always have exactly what visitors are looking for, even as their fate steadily becomes entwined with Jones’s.
As the town moves from spring to summer, a practical joker is becoming bolder and more inventive with every prank that is pulled. Could Jones be behind some of it? Why? And what will happen if he is? What’s the truth about that four-hundred-pound table in his Five & Dime? What compels certain people to gather around it every morning? And why does it look as if every person Jones meets has a secret, they will reveal only to him?
With rare insight, Andy and Jones take us on a journey that proves the importance of perspective, the power of connection, and the ability we all have to make the impossible come true.”
I Am Restored: How I Lost My Religion but Found My Faith by Lecrae
This book will be published October 13.
“The never-before-told story of Lecrae’s loss of faith after the experiences of his past threatened to ruin his career and life.
Two-time GRAMMY winning hip-hop artist and bestselling author Lecrae had inspired millions with his redemptive and gut-honest art. But when his personal life spun into chaos, he was forced to face the buried impact of the unhealed wounds–sexual abuse, physical trauma, addiction, and depression–that threatened to tear it all apart. Along the way, he realized the wounds we all carry have the potential to be unlikely guides to healing and freedom for ourselves, and others.
With vulnerable honesty and transformational yet simple steps you can apply today, Lecrae shares the personal practices he uses in his daily life for mental, emotional, and spiritual health. With powerful prose, he gives an unflinching look at the personal and public spaces that sadly hurt us so often–culture, politics, family, church, personal failure–and reminds us that learning to let go and forgive is the birthplace for the life of creativity and freedom God has for us.
I Am Restored is an inspiring charge to embrace the lasting healing and restoration available now, and that we all desperately long for, because no matter what you’ve experienced, God is near, He hears, and He’s not done with you yet.”
The Nazarene: Forty Devotions on the Lyrical Life of Jesus by Michael Card
This book will be published November 24.
“Jesus’ life is a song that still resonates down through the ages. His deeds and words speak with beauty and mystery, both comforting and confounding us. Who is this man? Over the course of his career, singer-songwriter Michael Card has explored the depths of Scripture by bringing together biblical study and the power of the imagination. Now he sheds light on the life of Jesus through lyrical reflections on the four Gospels. These forty meditations lead us to a place where Jesus becomes real and we can hear him with both hearts and minds. Listen again to the life of the Nazarene. And discover anew the music of Christ in your soul.”
How to Fight Racism: Courageous Christianity and the Journey Toward Racial Justice by Jemar Tisby
This book, by the author of The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism, will be published January 5, 2021.
“Racism is pervasive in today’s world, and many are complicit in the failure to confront its evils. Jemar Tisby, author of the award-winning The Color of Compromise, believes we need to move beyond mere discussions about racism and begin equipping people with the practical tools to fight against it.
How to Fight Racism is a handbook for pursuing racial justice with hands-on suggestions bolstered by real-world examples of change. Tisby offers an array of actionable items to confront racism in our relationships and in everyday life through a simple framework–the A.R.C. Of Racial Justice–that helps readers consistently interrogate their own actions and maintain a consistent posture of anti-racist action. This book is for anyone who believes it is time to stop compromising with racism and courageously confront it.
Tisby roots the ultimate solution to racism in the Christian faith as we embrace the implications of what Jesus taught his followers. Beginning in the church, he provides an opportunity to be part of the solution and suggests that the application of these principles can offer us hope that will transform our nation and the world. Tisby encourages us to reject passivity and become active participants in the struggle for human dignity across racial and ethnic lines. Readers of the book will come away with a clear model for how to think about race in productive ways and a compelling call to dismantle a social hierarchy long stratified by skin color.”
Providence by John Piper
I’ve been hearing about this major work (752 pages!) for some time now. The book will be published January 12, 2021.
“The providence of God is his purposeful sovereignty by which he will be completely successful in the achievement of his ultimate goal for the universe. God’s providence carries his plans into action, guides all things toward his ultimate goal, and leads to the final consummation. Pastor and author John Piper draws on a lifetime of theological reflection, biblical study, and practical ministry to lead readers on a stunning tour of the sightings of God’s providence―from Genesis to Revelation―to discover the all-encompassing reality of God’s purposeful sovereignty over all of creation and all of history. Exploring the goal, nature, and extent of God’s purposes for the world, Piper offers an invitation to know the God who holds all things in his hands yet remains intimately involved in the lives of his people.”
Change Your World: How Anyone, Anywhere Can Make A Difference by John Maxwell and Bob Hoskins
This book will be published January 26, 2021.
“Two of today’s most respected world-changers, leadership expert John C. Maxwell and global development leader Rob Hoskins, share their real-world experiences helping to transform millions of lives, communities, and businesses around the world to show people how to be the change the world needs and help others do the same.
We see poverty, homelessness, violence, mental illness, corruption, and the breakdown of the family, and we think, Why doesn’t somebody do something? The institutions we’ve depended on aren’t making the world a better place the way we thought they could and should. So now it’s up to us.
The good news is, YOU can change your world.
In this book, John Maxwell and Rob Hoskins guide readers through the entire process. These two leaders have been making a positive impact for decades, transforming millions of lives, communities, and businesses around the world with a sense of mission and regard for human dignity.
And whether you influence only one other person or you’re the leader of a large organization, you too can bring about positive, lasting change.
Throughout these pages, Maxwell and Hoskins share their real-world experiences and encourage readers to make a difference based on the needs they see around them and the desires of their heart.”
Crush Your Career: Ace the Interview, Land the Job, and Launch Your Future by Dee Ann Turner
This book, from the author of Bet on Talent: How to Create a Remarkable Culture That Wins the Hearts of Customers, will be published March 2.
“We all know someone who is dissatisfied with their career but feels trapped in their current trajectory. What’s not always clear is how they got there or, more importantly, how we can avoid the same fate as we develop our own careers. In a competitive job market, we need concrete, field-tested advice to help us ace the interview, land the job, and launch a career we love.
Enter Dee Ann Turner. After more than three decades leading teams and coaching staff members at Chick-fil-A, she knows what it takes to build a fulfilling career. In this practical, hands-on book she reveals the secrets of
– finding a job
– preparing for an interview
– conquering the first 90 days
– managing work relationships
– overcoming mistakes
– adding value to your team
– and so much more
Anyone entering the job market or hoping to make a transition in their career–along with the parents, teachers, college counselors, or career counselors who coach them–will find invaluable, hard-won advice on how to create a work life you love.”
And here’s one final upcoming release that we don’t have a publish date for yet:
Devoted to God’s Church: Core Values for Christian Fellowship by Sinclair Ferguson
From the Banner of Truth description:
“Being a Christian is not an individualistic or isolated activity. Believing also involves belonging. Being a Christian, by definition, involves belonging to the church.
This is not a book full of ideas about how your church ought to change or what it needs to do in order to grow or to be successful. Rather it is about how we fit into our own church. There are hallmarks of church life that should be stamped on all our churches because they are applicable everywhere and anywhere — New Testament values for any size of church, in any part of the world, at any time.
Devoted to God’s Church will serve to help new Christians understand what it is to be part of a church, and will also be a refreshing reminder to every Christian of what it should look like to belong to the family of God.”
I hope you found some books here that you are looking forward to. If there are others coming out that you are looking forward to, please let us know.
