Growing in Grace: Resources, Summer 2023, Vol. 4
Quarterly mini-book reviews for Christian leaders
Summer Reading is the Best!
Christian Leadership
Patrick M. Lencioni, The Six Types of Working Genius: A Better Way to Understand Your Gifts, Your Frustrations and Your Team (Matt Holt, 2022).
Lencioni (author of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team) is considered an expert on maximizing team performance. In this book, he discussed the different work involved in leadership and explains why some jobs are easy and others are not. The bottom line: teammates have differing “geniuses.” Lencioni’s book proves its title, and he also offers a corresponding, and fairly inexpensive, evaluation instrument on his website.
Education
Jay Mathews, Escalante: The Best Teacher in America (Henry Holt, 1989).
Summer is a good time for reading inspirational biographies. This “older” biography tells a story about excellent teaching, and it is even better than the one in the movie. Get inspired in your teaching by reading how “ganos (the drive to win)” transformed not only one calculus class but also an entire school.
Understanding the Times
Kelly M. Kapic, You are Only Human: How Your Limits Reflect God’s Design and Why That is Good News (Brazos, 2022).
Kapic brings his wisdom as a Bible scholar to bear upon the confusion of our cultural moment. He provides a practical and powerful discussion of human limitations and the sovereignty of God. If God designed these limits, then we can thrive within their borders. Kapic tells us how to do just that—thrive joyfully, expectantly, and communally.
Discipleship
Timothy Keller, The Prodigal Prophet: Jonah and the Mystery of God’s Mercy (Viking, 2018).
In light of the recent death of this giant of the faith, I am slowly rereading many of Keller’s books. One of his life themes was the mercy of God. In this commentary/reflection, Keller shows how we all need the mercy of God just as much as Jonah and Assyria did. His book speaks to both the Church and the individual: a powerful read.
