Pastoral Reading Reflections

This is a space for our pastoral staff to reflect on what they are reading. These are not reviews, recommendations, or summaries, but short reflections on books they've read.

6 Types of Working Genius by Patrick Lencioni

By Brian Gault | February 24, 2023

When two friends whose organizational minds I trust (shout out to PH and EF!) recommend the same book in the same week, I take notice. Now I find people talking…

The Loneliness Epidemic by Susan Mettes

By Brian Gault | February 24, 2023

A 2015 BYU study showed that loneliness and social isolation actually shorten your life—as much as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Relationships (or the lack thereof) affect our physical health!…

Right Color, Wrong Culture by Bryan Loritts

By Brian Gault | May 19, 2021

We’re narrative creatures, and sometimes the best way to make a point is by telling a story. Bryan Loritts calls his book Right Color Wrong Culture a ‘Leadership Fable.’ It’s…

Grace Defined and Defended by Kevin DeYoung

By Brian Gault | May 3, 2021

The Canons of Dort were written in 1619 in response to the Remonstrance of 1610. Hey, wake up! Did I lose you? Sometimes we have a “present bias” where we…

A Solitary Blue by Cynthia Voigt

By Brian Gault | March 23, 2021

“I’m sorry.” “It doesn’t make any difference.” These were the two lines that Jeff Green learned to use at age 7 when his mom left. He felt invisible. He didn’t…

Think Again by Adam Grant

By Brian Gault | March 5, 2021

Red Sox fans hate Yankee fans. And Yankee fans hate Red Sox fans. How would that change? Adam Grant is an organizational psychologist who teaches at the University of Pennsylvania…

Just Mercy by Bryan Stephenson

By Brian Gault | June 29, 2020

Just Mercy is heavy. Really heavy. It’s a compelling read—a real page turner—but it’s filled with injustice and brokenness. And that fills my soul with grief. Bryan Stephenson tells the…

Mother to Son by Jasmine Holmes

By Brian Gault | June 17, 2020

Jasmine is married to Phil and they have two boys: Wynn and Langston. They’re members at Redeemer. Wynn, now 4, is named after Wynn Kenyon, who was an Elder at…

Telling the Truth by Frederick Buechner

By Brian Gault | June 10, 2020

This book is for preachers. Some of you just stopped reading—but may I suggest that we’re all preachers? Martin Luther said we are to preach the gospel to ourselves every…

Good to Great by Jim Collins

By Brian Gault | May 26, 2020

Jim Collins’ book Good to Great is a study of what distinguishes successful companies from the rest. For this study, a great company had to beat the market and comparison…

Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward

By Zack Owens | May 19, 2020

I was first exposed to Jesmyn Ward while sitting under the teaching of Dr. Patrick Alexander and Dr. Otis Pickett (one of our elders). Lecturing in one of the only…

The Shallows by Nicholas Carr

By Brian Gault | April 30, 2020

“It’s day 45 of quarantine, and I’ve finished Nexflix,” the joke goes. In these days of physical distancing to protect life and flatten the curve, our working, studying, exercising, shopping—and…

Parenting by Paul David Tripp

By Brian Gault | April 22, 2020

I believe the gospel; sometimes it just doesn’t show in my parenting. You know what I mean, don’t you? Some days, in my sorority house of 6 girls ages 11-18,…

Boundaries by Cloud & Townsend

By Brian Gault | April 14, 2020

“I wish I had read this earlier.” It’s the sentiment of many who read this book. Imagine living with an aging mother who manipulates with guilt, a 9-year-old son who…

Why Does He Do That? by Lundy Bancroft

By Brian Gault | April 8, 2020

Abuse is prevalent in our culture. [1] Perhaps you’ve seen pictures of bruised bodies and broken bones from domestic violence. Maybe you’ve read of deaths. But abuse is more than…