Beth and I got to take a trip, years in the making, to celebrate our anniversary. In Lisbon we saw the world’s oldest bookstore (1732) and also the coolest bookstore I’ve ever seen (Ler Devagar).

OK, now to a few books I read this year that I’m glad to recommend. And as my art teacher, Mrs. Hendry, used to say, “Read til you bleed.”

The Anxious Generation
Parents, educators, and policy-makers must read this. Don’t wait. Haidt’s research does not cut corners, and his practical suggestions need our attention. His central claim is this: “Overprotection in the real world, and underprotection in the virtual world are the major reasons why children born after 1995 became the anxious generation.” Beginning around 2010 the rates of anxiety, depression, and self-harm skyrocketed in ways we’ve never seen.

What happened?

Smart phones and social media happened.

Smart phones have replaced real world experiences – experiences necessary for kids to develop in healthy ways. He lists the four primary negative impacts of a phone-based childhood:  
1-Social deprivation 
2-Sleep deprivation 
3-Attention fragmentation (Reels & short videos are the worst for our brains; the mere presence of a smartphone can reduce cognitive capacity.)
4- Addiction

Haidt is not religious, yet he loves how churches can be part of the solution to our problem. If people actively participate in a local church, they strengthen their chances of being emotionally healthy. Our HP leaders felt so strongly about the spiritual, relational threats caused by social media and the 24-hour news cycle that we launched the Be Still Challenge. We implored people to fast from all social media and 24-hour news for at least one week and see what they learned. The results are encouraging.

Church leaders, I encourage you to listen to Russell Moore’s interview with Haidt. Their conversation about what church leaders can do will spark some thoughts we need to process.

Raising Disciples
It’s pretty cool when a dear friend writes a book. It’s even cooler when that book makes a significant difference in your life.

Teresa Roberts writes, “Every child―from infancy to adolescence―is being discipled by someone or something. The question is: Are you willing to disciple them for Jesus’ sake?”

This book gives parents and anyone spiritually caring for young people Biblical wisdom and specific practices to put in place. Teresa provides a discipleship roadmap that you can implement immediately.

Teresa came to our church to lead a one-evening seminar that inspired, encouraged, and equipped our church family. I can’t recommend this event enough.

Master, Slave, Husband, Wife
What would you do if you were trapped in perpetual abuse, mistreatment, and the denial of basic human rights? What would you do if you could be ripped away from your spouse at any point? What would you do if your official designation (slave) would be passed down to future generations?

Ellen and William Craft made the most daring of escapes. Ellen disguised herself as a sickly gentleman, and William pretended to be her slave. (Ellen was light-skinned and the half-sister of her mistress – a reminder of the absurdity and sexual brutality of slavery.) A harrowing train ride was only the beginning of their journey to freedom. Keeping their freedom would prove just as daunting. This true story highlights three lessons I must mention:

1-Evil thoughts –> fear-mongering –> injustice
In John C Calhoun’s 1837 address to the Senate, he called slavery a “positive good,” an institution that kept lesser human beings separate from white America. He manipulated people’s emotions, warning them of the disaster coming if slaves were granted freedom: “[Slavery] exempts us from the disorders and dangers resulting from this conflict.”

This strategy is as old as time. Pharaoh followed the same playbook in Exodus 1: His fear-mongering created a permission structure for Egyptians to brutally enslave the Israelites.

I hope manipulative, derogatory language chills your heart to the core. It seems to be growing in acceptability. Don’t be naive about where it leads.

2-Love your neighbor through Habeas Corpus
The book sheds light on the brutality of the The Fugitive Slave Act and what happens when a nation denies Habeas Corpus (the right to not be imprisoned without lawful, careful justification) to any group of people. Woo tells of one church who had one-third of their members kidnapped and drug back South into slavery. No trial. No defense. We ought learn the horrors legally chained upon Black people during this time. Alarm bells ought be blaring today when anyone is arrested without due process. In 2025 our own government has acknowledged targeting people based upon “the way they look,” arguing for the legal right to “round-up” people based upon their accent and skin color. The Supreme Court has allowed this to continue, at least for now. Scores of US citizens have been arrested, mistreated, and traumatized without legal repercussions. According to ICE’s own numbers, of those arrested in the ramped up immigration raids, 73 percent had no criminal conviction and only 5 percent had a violent criminal conviction. A preacher-friend of mine told me recently that his neighbor, a US citizen, has experienced this injustice. The threat never goes away. He can’t drive anywhere without concern that he’ll be roughed up, arrested, not allowed to call an attorney, and not permitted to show documentation.

Our founders asked the question, “How many wrongfully-arrested-people is too many?” Their answer is a resounding, “One.” The protection of people from unlawful practices or government overreach is one of the most beautiful bedrocks of America. We should protect it.

As a Christian, I’m also compelled. I simply cannot honor the second greatest commandment in all of Scripture if I don’t care for the rights, safety, and dignity of ALL people.

3-God grants courage
What nourished the great courage of the Crafts? Books? Seminars? No, their courage cames from God. The Crafts were made in the image of God, an image that includes bravery, courage, and strength.

I deeply appreciate the book’s focus on what the Crafts did to pursue their own freedom. Please read this book, and let their story inspire you too.

Destiny of the Republic
“I guess I’m a poor hater” (James Garfield rejecting pressure to add retribution to his politics).

I’ve believed for a while that Garfield might have been one of our greatest Presidents if not for the bullet of a madman. Millard’s biography of Garfield only affirms that belief.

He was gentle, firm, anti-corruption no matter the political cost, and patient even in a long, awful death. He especially hoped to give Black citizens full rights and dignity.

As a bonus, if you read this, you’ll learn a lot about his wife (Lucretia), Alexander Graham Bell (who was feverishly trying to invent a device to save Garfield’s life), and his VP (Chester Arthur), one of the few men of history to change from bad to good as he gained power.

The Demon of Unrest
Larson is one of the great historians and writers of our time. “Devil in the White City,” is one of my all-time favorites. His most recent masterpiece drops the reader into the five months between the election of Abraham Lincoln and the start of the Civil War. Larson’s source material includes public speeches, personal diaries, secret communiques, slave ledgers, and plantation records.

While some displayed great character (Frances Adeline Seward, the wife of Secretary of State William Seward, scolded her husband for his willingness to compromise with the South regarding the expansion of slavery), others laid the foundation for the Civil War. Darkness was brewing. Violence was coming.

The lessons we learn from history prepare us to spot the demons of unrest still lurking today.

Sorrow’s Voice
I’ve known Halee for two decades, watched her lead Celebrate Recovery, sat under her teaching, served with her in ministry, and appreciated her family’s close friendship.

Halee understands loss and grief all too well, yet in that grief God has given her wisdom, strength, and compassion. She draws upon all of these gifts in to offer a valuable liturgy for the grieving.

When sorrow comes crashing down, we often have no words to give. This book will help you find those words. Each prayer is informed by her knowledge of trauma and bounded in her love of the Bible (her “Covered” Bible study can also bless your life.)

Relationships, health, and expectations may fail, but God’s love never fails. I encourage you to get this book for you and any friends in the midst of grief.

Necessary Endings
Henry Cloud’s background in psychology and leadership allowed him to write this super-practical book.

There’s almost always something we need to end in each season of life. I struggle letting go, but it can be necessary in order to receive something new.

His section on the three responses from people you may have to correct (page 119) is golden. I advised a group in a sticky staffing situation, and I just brought this book to our meeting. We read this section together. It proved so helpful.

The Tears of Things
“How do we live compassionately in a time of violence and despair? What can we do with our private disappointments and the anger we feel in such an unjust world?”

Rohr looks to the lesser-know prophets for answers, a place that feels foreign to most. Upon closer inspection, the prophets identify so well with humanity. They knew the goodness of God, but they felt the suffering of humanity.

This book came during a season of struggle for me. His vulnerability shines through. Nearing the end of his life, he acknowledges this is probably his last book.

Rohr made me think a lot (I don’t agree with him on every angle, but I appreciate his perspective), and it nourished my soul. The prophets understand tears, but those tears don’t wash away their faith.

Who is my Neighbor
“It took us a few minutes, but we eventually put the pieces together. Four of us from church stood in the living room of a mom, her pregnant daughter, and son-in-law. Yesterday they were homeless, but today they were in a safe, cool apartment on a hot, Tulsan day.
They were different than us, probably in more ways than we could count. I can’t grasp what their life has been like. Homeless. Overheated. Pregnant. Scared. When I said we knew people often experienced loneliness when they moved to a new neighborhood, they nodded their heads. They were already wondering how to build new community.
Interactions like these remind me of the gravity of our obligation to love our neighbors. If we don’t do it, everyone suffers: they suffer without the needed care and community we could provide, and we suffer without the ways they can draw us closer to the heartbeat of God, not to mention the dangerous, constant tug of apathy and selfishness that threatens us all.
All of this leads me to the million dollar question:
How in the world do we build God-honoring relationships with our neighbors who have different backgrounds, cultures, perspectives, values, or political preferences?“

That’s how my foreword for Bill Thomas’ excellent book begins. By equipping ministry students and leaders to serve across local and global differences, the church can preach Christ’s gospel and demonstrate God’s kingdom to a diverse world and fulfill its mission to make disciples, calling people to belief in and obedience to Jesus Christ.

Colossians
If Nijay K Gupta writes it, I’ll read it. He combines scholarship and pastoral care to help us see the fullness of the letter to the Colossians.

As I preach through a book, I begin with a dozen or so commentaries that I consult. By the time I get into the weeds, I cut that list in half. By the end of the series, I know my favorites. As I preached through Colossians this summer, my appreciation for this resource grew. It moved into the top spot on my resource list.

Gupta writes in a way that makes this commentary accessible for both scholars and anyone just wanting to further understand the book.

Intervarsity Press continues releasing top-notch resources. Here’s how they describe the book: “The enduring message of Colossians is uniquely challenging and instructive precisely because it testifies to the church’s cruciform life in obedience to this crucified cosmic Lord, Jesus Christ.”

Revenge of the Tipping Point
25 years ago Gladwell wrote how movements, organizations, ideas, and businesses can tip the right way, leading to a cascade of success. It often begins with something small. In this book he explores how things can tip the wrong way.

I recommend the immersive audio book. Gladwell employs his podcasting chops to create an audio book with music, voices, and sound effects. It works! Gladwell’s data research and storytelling takes the listener to the world’s most successful bank robbers, a forgotten television show from the 1970s that changed the world, the site of a historic experiment on a tiny cul-de-sac in northern California, and an alternate history of two of the biggest epidemics of our day: COVID and the opioid crisis.

Oh, one more thing. If I ever find myself in a seat next to him, I’m convinced I can change his tune about tennis. He needs to hear how inclusive my daughter’s tennis team is!

Disarming Leviathan
I have family and friends who live in Oregon and California. They know how difficult it can be to love their ultra-progressive neighbor. And while there are plenty of folks on the Left in Tulsa, our state is controlled by those on the Right. It’s fertile ground for Christian nationalism, which has been on the rise within the Right. (Christian nationalism believes Christians should impose their preferences onto others through the use of political power.)

It’s one thing to advocate for conservative policies, it’s another to baptize the Christian faith into partisan politics. Just a few weeks ago a suburb of Tulsa erupted into nasty rhetoric when the Muslim community sought approval to build a mosque. Angry shouts of, “We don’t want you here,” and, “Get these threats out of here, this is a Christian nation” echoed through a city meeting and social media.

These people are making the compassionate and effective Gospel-spreading work of local Christians so much more difficult. They make the work of evangelism more difficult for all of us. They claim they want a Christian nation, but they ignore the clear commands of Christ: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But Christian nationalists are not my enemy. They’ve been manipulated by the voices of fear, so they twist their faith to fit their politics. How do we love them anyhow? How can we help them better represent Christ?

“Campbell argues that while it’s possible to be both a Christian and hold Christian nationalist ideas, Christian nationalism itself is an un-Christian worldview, rooted in ideas about power, race, and property that are irreconcilable with Christian faith. Campbell has come to see himself as a missionary to Christian nationalists, reaching out to them with the love and freedom found in Christ” (IVP).

Have you read any from my list? What would you add?
What books should I add to my 2026 list?

best of 2025 books reading