I love to read. By God’s grace I am a pretty fast reader; I usually read a couple books each week. I find it helpful to summarize my thoughts on each book and I offer those thoughts in the hope that you will be encouraged to either read or pass over the given title.

The Pure Flame of Devotion: The History of Christian Spirituality edited by Steve Weaver and Ian Clary. Last fall, on the occasion of his 60th birthday, Dr. Michael Haykin received an honor of which he is most worthy – a feschrift. Now, a feschrift, like any edited volume, is often be a mixed bag. Some chapters are better than others and coherent unity is not always achievable. But I am pleased to tell you The Pure Flame is excellent from beginning to end. The book is broken down into four parts: Patristic & Medieval Spirituality, Reformation & Puritan Spirituality, Evangelicalism & Modern Spirituality, and Baptist Spirituality. These sections not only correspond to a logical flow of church history, but are also linked to Dr. Haykin’s primary areas of expertise. I found every chapter edifying and insightful, but here are a few uniquely applicable to the pastor’s current ministry:

• “Martin Luther: Preaching and Protestant Spirituality” by Carl Trueman
• William Perkins: Application in Preaching” by Erroll Hulse
• “A Resolved Piety: Living in Light of Eternity with Jonathan Edwards” by Peter Beck
• “Benjamin Keach: Cultivating Corporate Spirituality and Church Covenants” by Austin Walker
• “A Gregarious Spirituality: The Personal Piety of Charles H. Spurgeon” by Tom Nettles

The Pure Flame is a fantastic achievement. Well done!

Discovering the Joy of a Clear Conscience by Christopher Ash. When I preached through 1 Timothy last year one of the letter’s striking themes was the importance of a clear conscience for the Christian life. I did some research and really couldn’t find any contemporary books that spoke biblically to the issue of pursuing and keeping a tender, Christlike conscience. Christopher Ash did the same research, noticed a dearth in the field, and decided to write a book about the Christian’s conscience. And my, my – what a book this is! Discovering the Joy of a Clear Conscience is pastoral counseling at its best. Thoroughly rooted in the Bible, centered on the cleansing power of Christ’s gospel, and filled with storied application this book should make its way onto every church’s bookshelf. My only quibble with the work is its cover and title. It may seem tangential, but I’m not sure very many church members would pick up the book, look at it, and then think, “I want to read that!” P&R could, and should, do better. I tip my hat to Ash and hope the second edition gets an aesthetic makeover.

What is the Gospel? by Greg Gilbert. Just like its subject matter, this little book is a unending treasure trove of useful truth. “Convictional clarity” is the operative phrase for Gilbert’s exposition of that which is of first importance. I’m walking through What is the Gospel? with a potential church member who is a little fuzzy on the good news and Gilbert is a steady guide. The work is ordered around a clear articulate of “God, Man, Christ, Response” and has unique value in its pastoral critique of substitute gospels common in the evangelical world. I’d love to see this little volume become a consistent discipling resource in every church.

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis. Several weeks ago I decided to read Lewis’ classic tale to my four year old son. I soon realized how much I missed Narnia and so I decided to plow through the short tale in a couple sittings this week. I’ve often said, “If you haven’t read the Chronicles of Narnia, you have yet to live.” After another reading, especially through the eyes of my son, I stand by that statement. Warmth and imagination not only permeate the pages, but the reader’s soul as well.

Back Channel: A Novel by Stephen Carter. I hadn’t heard of Stephen Carter until I saw Daniel Silva recommend his latest book, Back Channel, as a mighty fine summer read. Because I enjoy Silva’s book and had no reason to suspect his recommendations would fall flat, I picked up Carter’s latest and . . . O, this was fun! Back Channel is, as the publisher says, “a brilliant amalgam of fact and fiction—a suspenseful retelling of the Cuban Missile Crisis, in which the fate of the world rests unexpectedly on the shoulders of a young college student.” Carter vividly captures the horror of nuclear war, the “you can’t trust anyone” nature of Cold War espionage, and the quirks of various politicians and generals presiding over the crisis. I wouldn’t be surprised if readers who know little about those tense days in October 1962 actually take Carter’s tale as fact. He tells it that well.

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