On our van ride back from New Mexico some of the girls were asking me about good books to read and some resources that might be helpful to them for growth in Christ. They asked me to compile a short list so I did. I thought it might be helpful to other students and parents. 

Obviously this list is not exhaustive. Some of these books came up because of specific things we were talking about. And some just because I always recommend them to students. 

If I had to start somewhere I’d have them do the recommended reading of the gospel of John and Proverbs. And for books, I’d have them read ‘Don’t Waste Your Life’ and ‘Crazy Love’ first, or maybe Basic Christianity by John Stott. 

See below. Hope this helps some folks! 

•Don’t Waste Your Life, John Piper

•Crazy Love, Francis Chan

•Basic Christianity, John Stott

•A Life Well Lived (Ecclesiastes), Tom Nelson

•Contentment: Seeing God’s Goodness (31-Day Devotionals for Life) Megan Hill

•New Mercies, Paul Tripp (daily devotional)

•Passion and Purity, Elibabeth Elliot

•Taking God at His Word, Kevin Deyoung

•The Meaning of Marriage, Tim and Kathy Keller 

•The Reason For God, Tim Keller

•What Does the Bible Really Teach about Homosexuality? Kevin DeYoung

•Cross-Cultural Servanthood by Duane Elmer

Where do I start reading the Bible?

Start with the gospel of John. Read it slow and as you do, look for, note, and ponder all the I AM statements. Also, note the miracles and encounters with Jesus. They’re not just events. They teach us about him and how we relate to God.

Some of my favs ch’s are 3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 12, 15. I love the whole book

Also, here’s a simple study guide on John https://www.blueletterbible.org/study/intros/john.cfm

Also, Proverbs is FULL of wisdom for wise godly living. The book has 31 ch’s. Make it a goal to read 1 ch a day for the entire month. 

A sermon everyone should hear about the sovereignty of God, but especially young people who are worried about messing up their life 😅 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MDbKCZodtZI