My 2021 reading list is composed of 78 books I read during the year. It’s the value I’ve always placed on reading and the compilation of my annual list that made a recent article stand out to me. In the November/December 2021 issue of Success magazine, it says that “American adults spend less than 10 minutes per day reading printed materials, compared to a whopping 7 hours and 50 minutes of screen time.” If correct, this statistic reflects the greatest loss we might suffer as people; to develop through the collected wisdom of the written word. The article continues, saying “The benefits of reading are far-reaching, with research showing bookworms experience less stress, reduced risk of depression, lowered blood pressure and improved sleep.” These benefits are probably true, but interacting with written ideas expands your own wisdom and knowledge, an invaluable exercise.
As I record each title in my journal, I add a rating of 1 to 5. Those rated 5 of 5 are the best, memorable pieces of writing that deserve to be widely read. Three books at the top of my list stand out because their rating exceeds the boundaries, rated as 10 of 5 stars. These 3 books would make a list of must-read volumes for Christians. Perhaps I’ll touch on each of these in separate posts to pique your interest. The books at the bottom of the list rated 2 stars are not worth your time, falling short of their promise (or, in the case of Dr. Flowers’ book, it’s potential). The other note you’ll notice on this list are those books marked 2x, indicating they were read twice or a second time with years of separation. As I look at these volumes, I’m tempted to add Henderson’s book Old Paths, New Power (read twice last year) to the 10 of 5 list. If revival interests you, this is a good place to start.
Make a list of your own for 2022. It might just motivate you to read more and build a growing library of wisdom and ideas.
| Fresh Encounter | Blackaby | 10 |
| Spent Matches | Moran | 10 |
| Keep in Step with the Spirit | Packer | 10 |
| How to Take Smart Notes | Ahrens | 5 |
| Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership | Barton | 5 |
| Praying with Paul | Carson | 5 |
| The Law of Innocence | Connelly | 5 |
| Revival | Edwards | 5 |
| Come Down, Lord | Ellsworth | 5 |
| Praying for One Another | Getz | 5 |
| Stop Loving the World | Greenhill | 5 |
| Rediscover Church | Hansen | 5 |
| Old Paths, New Power (2x) | Henderson | 5 |
| Ego is the Enemy | Holiday | 5 |
| Effortless (2x) | KcKeown | 5 |
| Famine in the Land | Lawson | 5 |
| When You Pray | Lindell | 5 |
| The Trellis and the Vine | Marshall | 5 |
| 21 Days of Breakthrough Prayer | Maxim | 5 |
| Why Elders? | Merkle | 5 |
| Calling on the Name of the Lord | Millar | 5 |
| Digital Minimalism | Newport | 5 |
| A Voyage for Madmen | Nichols | 5 |
| Transforming Worship | Noland | 5 |
| Prayer | Onwuchenka | 5 |
| How Do I know if I’m Really Saved? | Ortberg | 5 |
| Deeper | Ortlund | 5 |
| Praying in Public | Quinn | 5 |
| How to Think Like a Roman Emporer | Robertson | 5 |
| Qualitative Research | Sensing | 5 |
| The Case for Keto | Taubes | 5 |
| Whatever Happened to Worship? | Tozer | 5 |
| Dangerous Calling | Tripp | 5 |
| Do You Believe? | Tripp | 5 |
| Lead | Tripp | 5 |
| In the Day of Thy Power | Wallis | 5 |
| How Can I Be Sure I’m a Christian (2x) | Whitney | 5 |
| How the Bible Describes Election | Bulow | 5 |
| Skip the Line | Altucher | 4 |
| The Message of Ruth | Atkinson | 4 |
| Chasing the Thrill | Barbarisi | 4 |
| Exegetical Commentary on Ruth | Block | 4 |
| Common Sense Investing | Bogle | 4 |
| The Church | Clowney | 4 |
| The Soul of Prayer | Forsyth | 4 |
| A Craftsmans Legacy | Gorges | 4 |
| Continuous Revival | Grubb | 4 |
| Transforming Presence | Henderson | 4 |
| Reclaimed Church | Heward | 4 |
| Praying Together | Hill | 4 |
| Later | King | 4 |
| The Kind of Preaching God Blesses | Lawson | 4 |
| How to Worship a King | Neese | 4 |
| Spiritual Gifts | Schreiner | 4 |
| Disney’s Land | Snow | 4 |
| What Does it Mean to be Saved? | Stackhouse | 4 |
| Authentic | Van Doren | 4 |
| Pray in the Spirit | Wallis | 4 |
| Radical Christian | Wallis | 4 |
| Introducing Practical Theology | Ward | 4 |
| Researching Practice for Missions and Ministry | Cameron | 4 |
| True Community | Bridges | 3 |
| Ecclesiology | Brown | 3 |
| Small Giants | Burlingham | 3 |
| Intercessory Worship | Eastman | 3 |
| Upstream | Heath | 3 |
| How to Pray in a Crisis | Henderson | 3 |
| Steering the Craft | LeGun | 3 |
| Frictionless | Lemieux | 3 |
| The Reset | Riddle | 3 |
| Made from Scratch | Taylor | 3 |
| A Creative Minority | Tyson | 3 |
| The Imperfect Disciple | Wilson | 3 |
| Unmasked | Ngo | 3 |
| God’s Provision for All | Flowers | 2 |
| Man Up | Kevilian | 2 |
| Quick Start Writing Guide | Nash | 2 |
LOVE | ACCEPT | FORGIVE 