Groundhog Predicts More Winter Reading
At Linden Grove Ministries, we celebrate good reading and listening. Here are five more leadership-rich titles to help you survive the groundhog-predicted additional weeks of winter.
Leadership Pain: The Classroom for Growth by Samuel R. Chand (Thomas Nelson 2015). Throughout his book, Chand reinforces this truth: “You’ll grow only to the threshold of your pain.” The events that transpired between his 1973 job as janitor at Beulah Heights Bible College and his 1989 election as president of this same college are a story of pain and learning from that pain. And the pain didn’t end then. Chand looks at all types of leadership pain including topics such as criticism, compassion fatigue, competition. Chand looks at leadership pain from many perspectives—from root causes and reframing to tenacity and friends as pain partners. Each chapter ends with pointed, helpful questions to guide in facing leadership pain.
The Case for Heaven: A Journalist Investigates Evidence for Life After Death by Lee Strobel (Zondervan, 2021). I’ve read several heaven-themed books, and this is my favorite so far. Lee Strobel, the journalist known for his investigation and eventual salvation story in The Case for Christ, turns his skills to considering differing world views of the afterlife, near-death-experiences, the gospels, and theology to first justify and then explain a Christian view of heaven. A Case for Heaven is lively and engaging, informative and exhilarating.
Cling: Choosing a Lifestyle of Intimacy with God by Kim Case Tate (Our Daily Bread, 2017). For Tate, clinging to God is both discipline and joy. Her book discusses the reason to cling to God, how to cling to God, and how to heal from immoral clinging to what is not God. I also like Tate’s “Cling Journals,” such as the one on James (FaithLove Press, 2019), where she divides the epistle into brief sections, and then provides commentary, searching questions, and copious room for reflecting on, praying about, and applying these sections of Scripture.
Hero with a Mission: A Path to a Meaningful Life by Donald Miller (HarperCollins, 2022). At first, I did not want to recommend this book because of Miller’s copious reminders to check out his website, download his bonus material, and subscribe to his podcasts. But, even though this author of Building a Story Brand (Harper Collins, 2017) lives up to his own advice, Miller’s most recent book does offer helpful direction. Isolating the four characters that live within each of us (victim, villain, hero, and guide), Miller enjoins his readers to choose the hero role and write a story of purpose and passion. His book is practical, and its tools transferrable.
How to Be Heard: Secrets for Powerful Speaking and Listening by Julian Treasure (Mango, 2017). The best leaders are adept at both speaking and listening. Chair of the Sound Agency, Treasure leads a firm that designs spaces around optimal communication and positive sound. Beloved for his five TED talks, in this book, Treasure puts together a complete course in the why, the what, and the how of great speaking and listening. This book is memorable, inspiring, and applicable.
