Books for Every Christian’s Home Library
Asking someone who loves to read and owns a wall of books in her home library to compose a blog that contains the essential books for every Christian’s library is like requesting a favorite recipe from a chef. I absolutely love books, and I confess that I even have a baker’s rack full of cookbooks in my kitchen! Beautifully illustrated with photos on every page, the LOVE & LEMONS Cookbook: An Apple-to-Zucchini Celebration of Impromptu Cooking organizes delicious recipes by common ingredients, so I will model this article after its simplicity to suggest a few kinds of books with a handful of specific titles that I think every Christian ought to have in their home library. Enjoy the feast of savory and satisfying books!
Bibles
Paul’s message for Timothy is for all Christ-followers, “…from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3: 15-17).” The most highly recommended book to read again and again is the Bible, of course, and every member of the household should have their own Bible, so here are some suggestions:
The Read-Aloud Bible Stories – For Babies and Preschoolers
NIV Adventure Bible for Early Readers – Excellent first full Bible for elementary-aged children
ESV Journaling Bible
ESV Study Bible
NIV First-Century Study Bible – To explore the historical and archeological context of the Bible
Theology (One-Volume Commentaries)
A simple reference book about the doctrines of God, His Word, Mankind, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and Redemption is helpful in understanding Theology, the study of God, as well as a one-volume collection of academic explanations of the scriptures, will complement a person’s home library with other books that promote spiritual maturity.
I recommend the following books in this category because I have personally found them to be useful in my own life:
Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem
Matthew Henry's Commentary on The Whole Bible
The Tony Evans’ Bible Commentary
Classics
Reading fiction and biographies allow the Christ-follower to explore meaning in the stories that cause one to pause and have conversations around the life of faith. Some of my favorite narratives include:
The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom
The City of God by Saint Augustine
The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss
Hinds’ Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard
Picture Books and Fiction for Youth
With a child on my lap or a teen beside me on a big comfy couch, I have experienced that reading picture books and novels has given our family members opportunities to explore our faith in Jesus together as we consider the characters on the page and the choices they make. Some of our family favorites include:
Miss Fannie’s Hat by Jan Karon
The Tale of Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speares
Marriage and Family Books
Families who choose to emulate the proclamation of Joshua in 24:15: “…as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD…” discover early on that we need Gospel-centered, Biblical help in this endeavor. Book stores have shelves of books to aid people in marriage and parenting, but here are a few that I recommend:
Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas
The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy Keller
The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch
Shepherding a Child’s Heart by Tedd Tripp
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Spiritual Disciplines
Spiritual disciplines are one of the foundational parts of being a Christian, and sometimes we need some guidance and direction in learning to talk with God. I have discovered several books that have improved my own practice of the spiritual disciplines:
Praying the Attributes of God by Rosemary Jensen
Praying Circles Around the Lives Your Children by Mark Batterson
31 Days of Prayer for My Teen by Susan Alexander Yates
Prayers for Today by Kurt Bjorklund
Praying for Purpose by Katie Brazelton
The Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Marc Comer
“It is a good rule after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.” - C.S. Lewis
