Our friend and IFWE contributor, Dr. Stephen Presley, recently highlighted five helpful books for pastors. I wanted to contribute my own list of recommendations for our readers who may be in different life stations to expand your thinking about faith, work, and economics.
Each of these are books I read recently, although not all were published recently. If you have a book list, consider adding these must-reads!
1. The Crisis of Dependency
By: James Whitford
This book is a worthy successor to titles like “When Helping Hurts” by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert and “The Tragedy of American Compassion” by Marvin Olasky. In The Crisis of Dependency, Whitford, co-founder of Watered Gardens Ministries, shares how our compassion often perpetuates the very problems we aim to solve in society.
The recommendations included in this book place an appropriate emphasis on how we can protect the dignity of the people we are trying to serve by empowering them to discover meaning in their work and participate in earning their success.
Disclaimer: The author is a personal friend of mine. My Bellwether Communications team played a small role in organizing and editing the manuscript of his book. However, I am in no way benefiting from making this recommendation (the book is just that good)!
2. Here I Am: Now What on Earth Should I Be Doing?
By: Dr. Quentin J. Schultze
This little book came out twenty years ago (2005), meaning it pre-dates a lot of the current faith and work research that has come out in the last couple of decades. The author, Dr. Quentin J. Schultze of Calvin University, wrote it to help his college students figure out how to navigate life and careers after graduation.
I found its wisdom just as applicable for my college students today, and his approach is quite refreshing because he doesn’t use the familiar vocabulary that the modern “faith and work” movement has mostly adopted.
3. Faithful Work: In the Daily Grind with God and for Others
By: Ross Chapman and Ryan Tafilowski
This book was published last year by our friends at the Denver Institute for Faith & Work. This is very much written as a “guide” and would be a great option for small group study.
4. The Seamless Life: A Tapestry of Love and Learning, Worship and Work
By: Steven Garber
This book came out in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and I’m sad that it took me so long to come across it. It is a collection of essays by the always thoughtful Steven Garber, and each one left me with something positive to think about for the rest of the day. I would strongly recommend reading an essay a day as a part of your morning devotions.
5. Build the Life You Want
By: Arthur Brooks & Oprah Winfrey
Hang in with me here and don’t jump to immediate judgment about this book being co-authored by Oprah Winfrey. The primary author, Arthur Brooks, has been a long-time friend of IFWE’s and wrote the forward to our book, For the Least of These.
Build the Life You Want is a summation of the ideas that Brooks has been publishing in his Atlantic column, How to Build A Life, for the last several years. It would be a great read for people who are not Christians (or not actively practicing their faith). It could also create opportunities for believers to initiate gospel conversations with non-Christians as it speaks on spiritual principles like vocation, the importance of taking faith seriously, etc.
Including Winfrey’s name on this book is clearly a marketing effort to get it in front of more people, and I hope it is successful.
6. Theology of Work Bible Commentary Box Set
The Theology of Work Bible Commentary is a free resource from our friends at the Theology of Work project. Many of our readers have probably benefited from its online material for years, but I recently purchased the book set and have been very pleased with it.
Having the commentary in physical form makes it much easier to use for personal study and devotion, while the online version is still a great option for deeper dives into specific verses or topics. This would make a great gift for anyone who wants to grow in their knowledge of scripture.
7. Your Omni Year: Step into All God Has in Store
By: Pastor John Pletcher
It may already be February, but it’s not too late to read a book about how to invite God into all areas of your life this year. This is a new book by our friend and blog contributor, Pastor John Pletcher.
If you prefer to listen, John has been preaching on the topics of this book at his church, Manor Church, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. You can access the sermon archives here.
