2023 Raymond Presbyterian Reading Challenge

The old maxim says, “You are what you eat.” The same can be said of our media diet - “You are what you read.” Our culture constantly inundates us with words, words, words. Let us take an opportunity to slow down and read words of value that will deepen us in our love for Christ and our usefulness to His Church.

Seeing how our church has her fair share of readers, let me propose to you our first annual “Raymond Presbyterian Reading Challenge.” This challenge does not name particular books; instead, it names particular categories. Some are to deepen your faith, and some are just fun. For that reason, let me provide the categories and some helpful recommendations. Also, a pdf version of the Raymond Presbyterian Church Reading Challenge can be found here. These recommendations do not come from Mount Sinai, nor are they exhaustive. They are either derived from our family’s list or ones which have proved beneficial to me over the years.

1. A Book About a Book of the Bible.

   • Derek Kidner on the Psalms

   • More Than Conquerors (William Hendrickson)

   • Sarah Ivill Bible Studies

   • The Lectio Continua Series

   • A Volume from Dale Ralph Davis’ Focus on the Bible Series

   • How The Gospel Brings Us All The Way Home (Derek Thomas)

2. A Book By a Dead Pastor

   • One from the Puritan Paperback Series

   • Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices (Thomas Brooks)

   • Searching Our Hearts in Difficult Times (John Owen)

   • Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (J.I. Packer)

3. A Book About an Attribute of God

   • God Is (Mark Jones)

   • An Ark For All God’s Noahs (Thomas Brooks)

   • None Greater (Matthew Barrett)

4. A Book of Letters

   • Selected Letters of John Newton

   • Letters of Samuel Rutherford

   • Thomas Charles’s Spiritual Counsels

5. A Work of Fiction

   • Gilead (Marilyn Robinson)

   • Jayber Crow (Wendell Berry)

   • To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper)

   • The Space Trilogy (C.S. Lewis)

6. A Book Recommended by CCEF (Christian Counseling and Education Foundation)

   • Embodied Hope (Kelly Kapic)

   • Anything by Ed Welch or David Powlison

   • Safe and Sound: Standing Firm in Spiritual Battles (David Powlison)

7. A Book of Poems

   • The Soul in Paraphrase (Leland Ryken)

   • George Herbert: The Complete English Works

8. A Christian Biography

   • Memoir of Robert Murray M’Cheyne

   • John Paton: Missionary to the South New Hebrides

   • Princeton Seminary: Volume 1 (David Calhoun)

   • The Pastor of Kilsyth (Islay Burns)

   • Jonathan Edwards (George Marsden)

   • Confessions (St. Augustine)

9. A Book About Prayer

   • One From the Five Things To Pray Series

   • A Way to Pray (Matthew Henry)

   • The Lord’s Prayer (Kevin DeYoung)

10. A Book About a Modern Issue

    • A Strange New World (Carl Trueman)

    • God, Technology, and the Christian Life (Tony Reinke)

    • What Does the Bible Really Teach About Homosexuality? (Kevin DeYoung)

11. A Book About the History of Your Country and/or State

    • Elmo Howell Series on Mississippi Stories

    • Leadership in Tumultuous Times (Doris Hearns Goodwin)

    • The River of Doubt (Candace Millard)

    • Trials of the Earth (Mary Mann Hamilton)

12. A Book For Personal Development

    • Reset (David Murray)

    • Do More Better (Tim Challies)

    • Social Chemistry (Marissa King)

    • Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Stephen Covey)

    • Amusing Ourselves to Death (Neil Postman)

For a PDF of the 2023 Raymond Presbyterian Church Reading Challenge, click here. Print it out, fill it out, and hang it on your fridge. Then, let’s compare lists and read together! Tolle Lege!