The Pastor as Scholar and The Scholar as Pastor, Reflections on Life and Ministry by John Piper and D. A. Carson
More attention is being given of late to the value of theology and scholarship in the life of the pastor. Much of this apparently stemmed from a 2009 gathering by the same name as this book, and by the same men, at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, coming on the heels of the Gospel Coalition National […]
The Pastor Theologian, Resurrecting an Ancient Vision by Gerald Hiestand and Todd Wilson
There was a time, as Hiestand and Wilson document, when local pastors led the church theologically. They preached doctrinally solid sermons, wrote theological works and interacted with the scholarship of their day. But all that began to change with the rise of the university prior to the Reformation (p. 33). Ultimately the role of theological […]
A Pastor Prays for His People by Wendell C. Hawley
When Kent Hughes retired as pastor of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois, Wendell Hawley was asked to write and deliver the pastoral prayer each Sunday morning. This book is a collection of 73 of those prayers. There is one for every Sunday of the year plus others for special occasions. Many of those reading A […]
Shattered Shepherds Finding Hope in the Midst of Ministry Disaster by Steve Swartz
Pastor Swartz has written a helpful resource to offer hope to pastors who have faced (or are facing) difficult times, even disasters, in their ministries. He writes to help wounded pastors gain traction with the hope that they will stay on the battlefield as shepherds of the local church. It is obvious that Swartz is […]
The Trellis and the Vine, The Ministry Mind-Shift That Changes Everything, by Colin Marshall and Tony Payne (Australia: St Matthias Press, 2009) 202 pp., paper $9.99
The Trellis and the Vine is an excellent resource, not only concerning the importance of concentrated discipleship efforts in the church but also for ideas, methods and the practical “how to” in developing disciples. The authors see the church’s mission as “a commission that makes disciple-making the normal agenda and priority of every church and […]
Finding the Balance in World Missions, by Steven E. Ray (Steven Ray: 2012) 130 pp., paper $14.95
Steven Ray, founder and director of Messiah Missions, seeks to offer a biblical balance to the ever changing world of missions. I believe in many ways he succeeds. He first, and rightly, deals with evangelism, offering clear insights and analysis of various evangelistic approaches (pp. 13-26). He shows the dangers of syncretism (combining Christianity with […]
Surviving Shattered Dreams, a Story of Hope after Despair by Yvonne Partyka and Joanne Klinger, (Enumclaw, WA: WinePress Publishing: 2009), 133 pp., paper $16.95
Many who enter pastoral ministry do so with romantic and idealistic dreams that defy reality. The pressure of ministry can lead to tragic ends if responded to incorrectly. Both Partyka and Klinger experienced the shattered dreams as wives of pastors who gave into temptations which ultimately led to divorce. Along the way these men were […]
Well-Driven Nails, the Power of Finding Your Own Voice, by Byron Forrest Yawn (Greenville, SC: Ambassador International, 2010) 124 pp., cloth $16.99
Byron Yawn, pastor of Community Bible Church in Nashville, TN, wrote this little volume to deal with a common struggle for all pastors—delivery (p. 13). Believing that the root problem for most preachers lies in the areas of clarity, simplicity and passion or a combination of all three, Yawn sets out not only to discuss […]
Short-Term Mission, An Ethnography of Christian Travel Narrative and Experience,by Brian M. Howell (Downer Grove: IVP Academic: 2012) 256 pp. paper, $12.00
Short-term missions (STM) is all the rage in Christian, and even secular, environments. The author suggests that over two million Americans per year, many of those teens, take a STM trip, with over 50 percent of Christian college and seminary students having gone on such trips (p. 27). While STM trips can be longer most […]
Dangerous Calling, Confronting the Unique Challenges of Pastoral Ministry, by Paul David Tripp (Wheaton: Crossway, 2012), 227 pp., Hardcover $22.99)
Paul Tripp, who has ministered as a pastor, seminary professor, counselor, conference speaker and author, is the president of Paul Tripp Ministries and executive director of the Center for Pastoral Life and Care in Fort Worth, Texas. With this wide range and depth of ministry as a backdrop, Tripp is certainly one who would understand […]