TLDR: I like to read!
I read about 75 books this year, and rather than a generic “Top 10,” these are the books that most shaped how I thought this year—about calling, culture, the church, leadership, and faithfulness in unsettled times. Some affirmed instincts I already had. Others complicated them. A few unsettled me in necessary ways. All recommend for different reasons.
Listed in alphabetical order.
Don’t Let Nobody Turn You Around: How the Black Church’s Public Witness Leads Us out of the Culture War — Justin Giboney
The book that hit me the hardest this year—for its critique of both the left and the right, and for how it humbled me by attending to the testimony and moral imagination of the Black Church.
About the book:
Giboney draws on the Black Church’s social action tradition to offer a vision of Christian public witness rooted in faith, justice, and moral clarity rather than reactionary politics. Using the spiritual “Don’t Let Nobody Turn You Around” as a guiding image, he shows how the Black Church has historically held together orthodoxy and orthopraxy—conviction and action—and invites Christians today into a faithful engagement with the public square that rises above the culture wars without surrendering moral commitments.
Forming Communities of Hope in the Great Unraveling — Alan Roxburgh & Matthew Searle
A book I’ve recommended so often the authors probably owe me royalties! One of the authors also told me I was one of the few reviewers who “got” the book, so you’re welcome!
About the book:
Written for leaders navigating disorientation and decline, this book argues that the church’s task in a season of unraveling is not to fix itself through strategy, but to return to faithful practices rooted in Scripture and tradition. Roxburgh and Searle invite leaders into patient attentiveness, communal discernment, and hope shaped by God’s ongoing work rather than institutional anxiety.
Funding Forward: A Pathway to More Sustainable Models for Ministry — Grace Duddy Pomroy
The best book I read this year on church funding and sustainability—an increasingly important topic. (Until next year… HINT…!!!)
About the book:
Pomroy argues that many churches struggle financially not simply because of declining giving, but because of a lack of mission clarity and connection to their communities. Rather than offering a single funding formula, she presents a discernment-based approach to sustainability, exploring tools such as social enterprise, property repurposing, grants, and multi-vocational ministry. The book insists that economic models must emerge from a congregation’s particular mission and context.
Healthy Calling: From Toxic Burnout to Sustainable Work — Arianna Molloy
A book I found incredibly helpful when thinking about my own calling and career.
About the book:
Research shows that people with a strong sense of calling are often deeply motivated and resilient—but also uniquely vulnerable to burnout. Molloy explores how passion without boundaries can lead to exhaustion and argues for a sustainable vision of vocation rooted in humility, rest, and self-awareness, helping readers pursue meaningful work without sacrificing their health or faith.
How to Reach the West — Timothy Keller
Perhaps my most controversial “like” this year. I don’t agree with all of Keller’s theological perspectives, but his cultural critique seems increasingly prudent.
About the book:
Keller argues that Christianity’s decline in the West should prompt a fundamental rethinking of evangelism rather than panic or retrenchment. Drawing on the early church, he invites Christians to examine themselves, their cultural context, and Scripture in order to engage secular society in ways that make the gospel both credible and compelling—without simple accommodation.
Knock at the Sky — Liz Charlotte Grant
A book I didn’t agree with at every turn, but one of the most imaginative and beautifully written theological works I read this year. Grant is such a talented writer!
About the book:
Grant offers a lyrical engagement with Genesis for readers navigating faith after inerrancy or deconstruction. Drawing on nature, Jewish midrash, and art criticism, she invites readers to encounter Scripture as sacred art rather than a weapon in the culture wars, offering a spacious and creative model for seeking God through Scripture as faith continues to evolve.
The Church in Dark Times — Mike Cosper
A sobering and necessary book that reminded me of our temptation to align with ideology and power, even within the church.
About the book:
Drawing on Hannah Arendt’s concept of the “banality of evil,” Cosper examines how harm in churches often emerges not from obvious malice, but from thoughtlessness, misplaced loyalty, and good intentions gone unchecked. Focusing on abuse and institutional failure, he names the subtle dynamics that allow corruption to persist and calls churches toward practices of truth-telling, repentance, and renewal.
The Church Must Grow or Perish — Mark Mulder & Gerardo Martí
The best book written by sociologists I read this year—it helped me understand how one ministry model reshaped the American church (for better and for worse).
About the book:
Mulder and Martí trace the life, theology, and ministry strategy of Robert H. Schuller—showing how his “church must grow” conviction helped generate a business- and media-shaped model of church: entrepreneurial leadership, marketing instincts, and the borrowing of best practices from big business and entertainment. The book explores Schuller’s massive influence on American Christianity and why his model was both celebrated and criticized, especially as the Crystal Cathedral story unfolded.
Unlocking Mission and Eschatology in Youth Ministry — Andrew Root
My favorite Andrew Root book of the four I read this year. Thanks Andy Beck for sending me this!!!!
About the book:
Root argues that youth ministry should help young people see themselves as participants in God’s ongoing action in the world. By connecting mission with eschatology, he reframes faithful service in the present as a sign of the future God is bringing about in Christ, resisting both pragmatic program-building and despair.
Walking with God Through the Valley: Recovering the Practice of Lament — May Young
A DEEPLY important book for this moment, especially given how underutilized biblical lament has become in many churches. Lament is resistance! Lament is to trust in God.
About the book:
Young argues that lament is not a marginal or optional practice, but a central biblical form that has shaped God’s people across Scripture. Drawing from texts such as the Psalms, Habakkuk, and Lamentations, she shows how lament allows individuals and communities to name pain honestly before God without rushing toward resolution, opening space for renewed hope grounded in the biblical witness.
Personal Bonus Picks
Braving Difficult Decisions: What to Do When You Don’t Know What to Do — Angela Williams Gorrell
A book that spoke to me SO POWERFULLY while I was braving some difficult decisions of my own.
About the book:
Gorrell offers a thoughtful blend of spiritual insight and practical wisdom for navigating uncertainty and transition, inviting readers into a repeatable process of discernment marked by trust, curiosity, and attentiveness to God and others.
The Fearless Christian University — John Hawthorne
The first author I’ve been able to interview in my home studio. Plus, he lives nearby so we get coffee together on occasion!
About the book:
Hawthorne critiques how fear has come to define much of Christian higher education and offers a bold alternative: institutions confident enough to center student questions, pursue meaningful research, and engage culture without defensiveness.
Bonus Bonus: Podcast episodes with the authors:
And hopefully some more yet to come!