12 Types of books to read in 2017

I don’t know how often you read.  I don’t know what types of books you enjoy reading.  To be honest, I don’t know if you like to read at all.  However, reading is still one of the best ways to learn and grow in life.  My Grammy (my Dad’s mom) is a prolific reader.  She has read too many books to count.  While I have not always loved to read, she has (along with others in my life) instilled a great appreciation for good books.  And being that today is her birthday – I thought this list would be particularly appropriate.

In my Christian walk I have found that sometimes I need to adjust the style of writing I read in order to sharpen my knowledge and even to train my mind to learn in different ways.  With that being said here is a list of the types of books I would like to recommend that you read in the coming year.  (I decided to recommend a book for each type- just for good measure).  The following list is intended to challenge you to read one book a month in 2017 – I hope you can take the challenge.

  1. A book of the Old Testament (Genesis)
  2. A book about an Old Testament book (Worthy to Worship- a study of Habakkuk)
  3. A book of the New Testament (John)
  4. A book about the New Testament (To Live is Christ to Die is Gain – A study of Philippians)
  5. A book on the Holy Spirit (Forgotten God)
  6. A history book (For the Glory)
  7. An autobiography (George Mueller)
  8. A Biography (Swan Series)
  9. A book about evangelism (The Master Plan of Evangelism)
  10. A book on missions (Let the Nations Be Glad)
  11. A book about God (The Attributes of God)
  12. A book concerning current issues (Counter Culture)

The Most Wonderful Time of Year?

Why do people say this is the most wonderful time of year?  Why is their an entire song dedicated to this very idea?  Don’t people see the frustration on people’s faces as they frantically storm through the mall parking lots and stress out over things on lay away?  Did the writer of that song ever really hear “kids jingle belling?” Don’t people notice the frustration as they try to remember all of the people on their Christmas list?

So why is it true that it is the most wonderful time of year?  It’s not because of all the snow (especially here in the south).  It’s not because of the parties, tasty food, and time off of work.  It’s not because of the family gatherings filled with laughter and fun.  It’s the most wonderful time of year because of who we celebrate and what we are celebrating that He did.

This time of year is devoted to the celebration of the coming of the promised messiah, the prophesied rescuer.  Jesus the Christ came to earth as a man, leaving His place in Heaven for the momentary affliction of the flesh of man.  Jesus’ birth is spectacular not only because the Son of God became the Son of Man, but because He came to die.  He was born for the very purpose of death.  So, His coming was further proof that the promises of God would be fulfilled.  Study the Old Testament and you will see promise after promise later fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.  Continue to read in the New Testament and note the promises Jesus made and how He fulfilled those as well.  For those promises that are still to come to fruition we can take great solace in a perfect track record up to this point.

Therefore, despite all of the reasons that this is NOT the most wonderful time of year…the celebration of the coming of the King IS the most wonderful time of year!

Advent

Hope, Joy, Peace, Love, and Christ are the words of Advent.  The truth is, without Christ, none of the other words are even possible.  Have you ever thought of that?  Do you realize that without Christ you would have nothing to find confident guaranteed hope?  Do you remember that without Christ you would have no joy because there would be nothing to be genuinely happy about?  Do you think about the fact that peace comes only through relationship with the one true king?  Do you remember that Scripture tells us that the only reason we love at all is because He first loved us?

With those realities in mind we can should be all the more thankful for the gift of Jesus’ birth.  Because, let’s face it, without it – we wouldn’t have anyone to hope in, anything to rejoice in, anyone to grant us peace, and we would have no experience of love at all.

So pause this season and celebrate the gift of grace that is Christ the Lord!

The ABC’s to describe your wife

Ok fellas, this one is for you.  I just recently celebrated 12 years of marriage with my wife and was trying to think of the best way to describe her.  Sometimes, let’s be honest, we need a little help.  So here is a way to get the wheels turning in your head when you just can’t think of the right word to put in your Christmas card this year.

The truth is that it is nice to hear kind things said and or written about us from the one’s we love the most.  Take time to use these words and/or other deliberately kind words to your wife this Christmas and every other day as well.

I hope these ABC’s prove to help you.  And yes…Gloria fulfills all these words and many more.

A- Awesome, Amazing

B- Beautiful, Blessing, Best, Brave

C- Creative, Charming, Caring, Cultivating, Cute, Calming, Compassionate

D- Delightful, Dedicated, Determined, Dependable, Desirable

E- Engaging, Exquisite

F- Forgiving, Funny, Fun, Faithful, Fixer

G- Generous, Gracious, Gorgeous, Godly, Good, Great, Gentle

H- Humble, Happy, Hospitable, Helper

I- Incredible, Irresistible, Insightful, Irreplaceable

J- Joyful

K- Kind

L- Lovely, Loyal

M- Marvelous, Mesmerizing

N- Needed, Nurturing, Noble

O- Optimistic, Organized

P- Photogenic, Pretty, Patient, Peaceful, Provider

Q- Quiet

R- Relentless, Reliable, Remarkable

S- Supportive, Strong, Smart, Steady, Stunning, Stylish, Selfless

T- Trustworthy, Tremendous

U- Undaunted, Upright, Unassuming

V- Vivacious, Valued

W- Wonderful, Wonderfully Made, Wanted, Welcoming

X- eXcellent (sorry thats the best I can do)

Y- Youthful

Z- Zealous

10 books on missions

These books are in no particular order but I do recommend these for anyone interested in reading books on missions.

Let the Nations Be Glad – John Piper

The Insanity of God – Nik Ripken

The Insanity of Obedience – Nik Ripken

Back to Jerusalem – Three Chinese House Church Leaders Share their Vision to Complete the Great Commission – Brother Yun, Peter Xu Yonge, Enoch Wang, and Paul Hathaway

What Is the Mission of the Church? Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom and the Great Commission – Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert

When Missions Shapes the Mission You and Your Church Can Reach the World – David Horner

MissionShift Global Mission Issues in the Third Millennium – David Hesselgrave and Ed Stetzer

Revolution in World Missions – K.P. Yohannan

The Bridges of God A Study in the Strategy of Missions – Donald Anderson McGavran

Introduction to Global Missions – Zane Pratt, David Sills, and Jeff Walters

16 Ways to Pray for Missionaries

This is a list provided by David Platt during a sermon on August 24, 2016.

  1. Confidence in God’s Word (Acts 13:4-5)
  2. Filled with God’s Spirit (Acts 13:6-9)
  3. Victory in Spiritual Warfare (Acts 13:10-12)
  4. Success in Gospel Witness (Acts 13:12)
  5. Peace with Other Believers (Acts 13:13)
  6. Favor with Unbelievers (Acts 13:14-15)
  7. The Gospel will be Clear Through Them (Acts 13:16-47)
  8. God will Open Hearts Around Them (Acts 13:48)
  9. Joy in the Midst of Suffering (Acts 14:1-2)
  10. Kindness in the Midst of Slander (Acts 14:1-2)
  11. Supernatural Power to Accompany Them (Acts 14:3)
  12. Christ-Like Humility to Characterize Them (Acts 14:4-18)
  13. Patience (Acts 14:8-18)
  14. Perseverance (Acts 14:19-20)
  15. God would use Them to Make Disciples (Acts 14:21-23)
  16. God would use Them to Multiply Churches (Acts 14:24-28)

6 books on short-term missions

These books are in no particular order but I do recommend these to anyone involved in leading the church in short-term mission efforts.

Short-Term Mission An Ethnography of Christian Travel Narrative and Experience – Brian Howell

Mack and Leeann’s Guide to Short-Term Missions – Mack and Leeann Stiles

Maximum Impact Short-Term Mission The God-Commanded REpetiticue Deployment of Swift, Temporary Non-Professional Missionaries – Roger Peterson, Gordon Aeschliman and Wayne Sneed

Serving with Eyes Wide Open Doing Short-Term Missions with Cultural Intelligence – David Livermore

Effective Engagement in Short-Term Missions: Doing it Right! – Robert Priest

Transformission Making Disciples Through Short-Term Missions – Michael Wilder and Shane Parker

10 books on preaching

These books are in no particular order but ones that I would recommend to anyone pursuing the ministry of the pulpit.

Preaching With Passion – Alex Montoya

The Supremacy of God in Preaching – John Piper

Spirit Empowered Preaching Involving the Holy Spirit in Your Ministry – Arturo G. Azurdia III

The Greatest Fight in the World  The Final Manifesto – Charles Spurgeon

Preaching Communicating Faith in an Age of Skepticism – Timothy Keller

Power in the Pulpit How to Prepare and Deliver Expository Sermons – Jerry Vines and Jim Shaddix

Preaching How to Preach Biblically – John MacArthur

Preaching the Cross – Sermons from Together for the Gospel

Preparing Expository Sermons A 7 Step Method for Biblical Preaching – Ramesh Richard

Expository Apologetics Answering Objections with the Power of the Word – Voddie Baucham Jr.

8 ways to make your meals missional

This is taken from an IMB article that I thought to be a great help and I hope it helps you think differently as well.

  1. Invite someone to join you for lunch
  2. Put your phone down
  3. Be attentive
  4. Be vulnerable
  5. Be bold
  6. Surprise someone by picking up the check
  7. Eat outside your comfort zone
  8. Pray

Dear Mrs. Clinton

Dear Mrs. Clinton,

I would like to congratulate you on a hard fought campaign for presidency.  You made clear the issues you hold, and brought clarity to those areas in which you wanted to keep the same or bring change.  You have shown women of all ages that they can fight for what they believe in and that they too can aspire to great things in this country.

I want to be honest, I did not vote for you nor did I vote for President-Elect Trump.  While I did participate in the election my vote was cast in a different direction.  However, I wanted to write you to say thank you.

Thank you for a well-worded, purposeful concession speech.  Thank you for making the final words of this campaign ones of unity and not of discord.  Thank you for displaying a necessary willingness to support our next president.  For that matter, thank you for doing that with our current president as well.  Thank you, most specifically, for being a leader in our country.  You see, I am a pastor at a church in Mississippi, and as such I believe that it is my responsibility to lead others to follow the truths found in Scripture.  As Romans 13:1 reminds us, all governing authorities are placed there by the hand of God.

While there may be actions that you have taken that I disagree with, I know of only one perfect person, Jesus.  No matter how you feel about certain social issues.  No matter what sort of decisions you make or have made for good or bad – you are not perfect.  But I am so thankful that Jesus is.  I am so thankful that Jesus, the perfect one, came to earth, lived, died, and resurrected as the one perfect Savior.

I noticed in your concession speech a reference to a passage of Scripture.  I am so glad you can cling to such truths during such a difficult time. If you are not in the habit of using Scripture for the answers in life then I want to urge you to find all of your hope and joy in these truths.  Scripture tells us that if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts and that God raised Him from the dead, we will be saved.  If you have never done this, I plead with you to turn from your sin and run to Jesus.

So, here is a list of things that I commit to doing for you.

  1. I will pray that God draws you to Himself.
  2. I will pray that you surrender your life to God.
  3. I will pray that God grants you wisdom and discernment in the decisions you make.
  4. I will pray that God pours out blessing on you and your family.
  5. I will lead others to ask God for blessing in your life.
  6. I will lead others to pray for you often.

Be Joyful,

Chad Hunsberger