I confess, I had a hard time picking these titles. I was only going to pick 10, but when I started counting, I had a lot more. And I forgot to think about the kids books I love. That really got me counting... The books are grouped in loose categories. I tried not to repeat the information and reviews you can find at Amazon or CBD. I wanted to share how God has used them in my Christian journey. Please, enjoy!

Christian Basics

Case for Christ    by Lee Strobel
   For Easter 2000, our pastor put us in touch with this wonderful little book. Rich & I were so enamored by it, we took turns reading it out loud every spare moment we had. We finished it in 3 days!

   Lee Strobel was an atheist turned preacher. When he set out to prove that the Bible was fiction after his wife converted to Christianity, Strobel got a bit more than he bargained for: a saving faith in Jesus Christ. The book deals with questions surrounding the credibility of the written record, examining the claims of Jesus and the medical possibilities of the resurrection among other things. All in all it answers quite a few commonly asked questions about Christianity and Jesus. Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006

Sacred Romance    by John Eldredge and Brent Curtis
   Eldredge: you either love him or hate him. I happen to think that God has used him in a powerful way to shake up the church. I love him. Yup. He's got bones in his work, but so do I. And so do some people on the other side of the theological fence.

   I cannot tell you how many pieces of Scripture this book put together for me. It took me all of 2001 to read and digest the truths about God and the big picture of Christianity. Christianity is an adventure story, God is our hero and you are a character along with a plot line to uncover. Will you willingly join The Story full of love and action? Or will you run the other way? Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006

Fresh Power    by Jim Cymbala
   A powerful book on prayer. The church as a whole doesn't know God. As a result, we also don't know how to talk to him. God placed this book in my life back in 2004 for one of those Esther 4 "for such a time as this" times.

   I was part of the woman's ministry leadership team for a large church. We were experiencing growth pangs. God encouraged us to be bold in prayer and he answered in some pretty amazing ways. Little did I know it would be the spring board to some serious personal prayers being answered. God is big. We just need to humbly let loose and trust him to answer when we call! Jim Cymbola shares his experiences and Scripture that inspires boldness. Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006

Experiencing God    by Henry Blackaby and Claude King  
   In the Experiencing God study, Blackaby talks about memorial stones. He shows where God commands the Israelites to place them and why. He then goes on to share that we have 'memory stones' in our life as well, we just don't often recognize them as such. Doing this study in 2000 was indeed a boulder of a memorial stone for me. Blackaby helped me view and relate to God in a way I didn't know possible. Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006

For the Battle-scarred and Struggling

Lord I Want to be Whole     by Stormie Omartian
   Being emotionally healthy is a delicate balance. It takes forgiveness, love, grace, truth and a willingness to look at and correct sin in your own life. It can be a tall order.

   Stormie defines 'emotional health' as being at peace with your past, present and future. I like that. By the time I got to this book, late last winter, I found that I've walked a lot of the road she teaches about. It was good encouragement for me to see how far God has brought me and that my journey with the Lord has brought me to the same conclusions via a different road. It's a wonderful message for those struggling with making godly peace with your past or current life.  Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006

Allure of Hope    by Jan Meyer
   I have a special place in my heart for this book. I truly hope God will let me meet Jan Meyer some day and give her a hug because she has a heart for him.

   God dropped this book in my lap back in October of 2000 on a day when I had all but given up hope. The story of how this book got into my hands is one of those cool God things in itself. In any case, it was the first step I took on the path to spiritual maturity and finding the love of Christ in my day to day life, not just in a lofty sermon on Sunday. Jan explores 3 types of hope among other things and encourages us to pick up and move on with God, even when it hurts. Excellent book! Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006

Fool-proofing Your Life    by Jan Silvious
   There are just some people who don't get it no matter how you explain it, how you encourage them, how you let them be or how to chastise them. They are clueless and make your life miserable. You really wonder if they learned the same language as you despite being native. They do ignorant things and then anguish that the world is falling in on their head. They make you want to scream, "HELLO???? Anybody hooooome??"

   Scripture tells us there are 2 types of people that behave this way. One is simply immature, the other is unsaved, the are both called fools in Proverbs. Jan does a wonderful job of identifying the two types and helping you come up with wise ways to uncomplicate your life when you deal with them. I highly recommend this if you have difficult people in your life or you exhibit some of the above symptoms and want to 'cure' yourself. Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006

Maturing Women

Women Who Do Too Much    by Patricia Sprinkle
   When I feel well, I have so much going on that if I'm not on top of everything, I go wild trying. If I'm not feeling well, I sit and obsess about all I'm not getting done. Ugly cycles. This book really made me stop, evaluate life from God's eyes and realize that I don't have to save the world single handedly. I just need do what God hands me, weed out what isn't of God and do the remaining well. Her involvement map (or whatever she called it) is priceless to see what you're involved in and WHY you're so busy. The rest to solid advice on finding your call and living with peace. Reviewed by: Janel
       Buy the Book at Amazon.com
       added April 24, 2006