TITLE: The Sacredness of Secular Work: 4 Ways Your Job Matters for Eternity (Even When You're Not Sharing the Gospel) AUTHOR: Jordan Raynor PUBLISHER: Colorado Springs, CO: Waterbrook & Multnomah, 2024, (224 pages).   One of the most popular resources for Christians is to find meaning in everyday work. The interest revolves around questions about practicing one's faith in the world. What does faith in the marketplace mean? How do we live the spiritual life in an increasingly secular world? What does it mean to be a Christian in the workplace? What should we do if our workplaces ..read more

TITLE: Christian Academic Writing: Twelve Practices and Principles for Becoming a Successful Writer AUTHOR: Benjamin L. Merkle & Adrianne Cheek Miles PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2024, (pages).   Is academic writing only for academics? No. Is it limited only to people with writing experience? Not really. Is it difficult to even write to publish? Difficult but not impossible. Writing is hard work. Getting it published is even harder. Yet, we should not be deterred by anything difficult. Let our passion for sharing our knowledge and experiences inspire us to write ..read more

TITLE: Crisis of Confidence: Reclaiming the Historic Faith in a Culture Consumed with Individualism and Identity AUTHOR: Carl R. Trueman PUBLISHER: Wheaton, IL: Crossway Publishers, 2024, (216 pages).   Why should anyone take creeds seriously? Why do we need creeds when we have the Bible? Why should churches incorporate creedal statements especially when the words are not in the Bible? Are not the creeds some old-fashioned documents that are no longer relevant for our era? What will we lose if we ignore the creeds? What is the crisis of confidence all about? Essentially, this book i ..read more

TITLE: Trust.: Responsible AI, Innovation, Privacy and Data Leadership AUTHOR: Dominique Shelton Leipzig PUBLISHER: Charleston, SC: Forbes Books, 2024, (399 pages).   It is not easy to trust what we see today. From Artificial Intelligence to Deep Fake technologies, it is becoming easier to manipulate data for illegitimate ends. With innovation comes the tendency for cheating and criminal activities. Data security is critical to preserve the integrity of businesses and maintain positive public trust. All it takes is a data leak, hacking, systems malfunction, or an infiltration o ..read more

TITLE: Prayers for the Pilgrimage: A Book of Collects for All of Life AUTHOR: W. David O. Taylor PUBLISHER: Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2024, (208 pages).   There are many different ways that Christians can pray. From Sunday worship time to daily thanksgiving over a meal, prayer is a sign of devotion to God. It is a reminder that for all of our talents and know-how, we still need God. Many Christians learn to pray using the ACTS acronym: Adoration-Confession-Thanksgiving-Supplication. Each of them helps us focus on a particular form of prayer. Whether it is for worship or pray ..read more

TITLE: Practices for Embodied Living: Experiencing the Wisdom of Your Body  AUTHOR: Hillary L. McBride PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos Press, 2024, (160 pages). Our experiences do not define us. Our real selves do. Our bodies are not simply what we have but they are who we are. We are more than mere subjective people. We are valued for who we are and not what we do. All that we encounter in this life, the highs and the lows, can all be experienced in the very bodies we have. Unfortunately, many people still have not learned how to appreciate their bodies. In doing so, they fall ..read more

TITLE: Gender as Love: A Theological Account of Human Identity, Embodied Desire, and Our Social Worlds AUTHOR: Fellipe do Vale PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2024, (272 pages).   One of the biggest contentions today in the Church has to do with gender. In the past, there used to be constant debates about what it meant to be male or female, and what roles they were supposed to be playing. Then we have the feminist movement that pushes back against male dominance. Those issues remain active in many parts of society but are increasingly eclipsed by debates surroundin ..read more

TITLE: Waiting in Gratitude: Prayers for Joy AUTHOR: Walter Brueggemann PUBLISHER: Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2024, (148 pages).   Prayer is more than asking for things. Prayer is listening to God. It is cultivating our relationship with God. Whatever it is, regardless of emotional conditions, we can all pray to God at all times. Having written considerably on the prayers of lament, author and retired professor Walter Brueggemann focuses on the movement of tears, desperation, and pain toward joy. Savoring the "peculiarities" of our life's journey, we turn our very ..read more

TITLE: The Practice of Remembering: Uncovering the Place of Memories in Our Spiritual Life AUTHOR: Casey Tygrett PUBLISHER: Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2023, (216 pages).   "Memories light the corners of my mind," so sings Barbra Streisand in one of the most cherished classics of the modern age, "The Way We Were." As author Casey Tygrett writes, "Without memory, there is no formation," that we are "memory-made people," and that without memories, "we cannot become." We are who we are by learning and remembering. Whether it is writing a memoir or penning a journal, our acts of r ..read more

TITLE: The Lost World of the Prophets: Old Testament Prophecy and Apocalyptic Literature in Ancient Context AUTHOR: John H. Walton PUBLISHER: Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2024, (192 pages).   What comes to mind when we hear the words, "prophets," "prophecies," and "prophetic word?" For many, prophets are seen as "predictors" of the future, and "prophecies" are like future events waiting to be fulfilled. Such an understanding has unfortunately crippled the original meaning of what biblical prophecies mean. Calling this situation a "lost world of the prophets," esteemed ..read more