All of us have a list of good Christian books that have made an impact on our lives. If we have profited from what others have written, then it is really good to be able to share our recommendations – which is what this feature is all about. It is part of an occasional series of book reviews highlighting publications that we would like to recommend. All of these titles are available from the usual online sources, although we would particularly recommend the Christian bookseller eden.co.uk.
Pete Greig, How to Pray: a Simple Guide for Normal People (2019, Hodder & Stoughton)
Pete Grieg may be known to you as the founder of the 24-7 Prayer movement. He is a man whose life is immersed in prayer – but this does not mean he occupies some unapproachable spiritual peak. Far from it – this book is exactly what it says on the cover: a simple guide for normal people. I found it totally refreshing and immediately approachable, very easy to read and challenging at the same time. It’s one of those books that you want to start re-reading as soon as you’ve finished it.
In his first chapter, Pete Greig tells us ‘How to read this book in a couple of minutes’, and that is probably the best place to start in trying to sum up what the book is all about. When the disciples asked Jesus, ‘Lord teach us to pray’, he responded by giving them what we now know as ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ (Matthew 6, 9–13). Pete introduces us to the theme of his book through the acronym P.R.A.Y. This stands for: Pause; Rejoice; Ask; Yield. In a nutshell, we are being encouraged to ‘put down [our] wish list and wait’, gather together our ‘scattered senses’ and re-centre ourselves on God’s eternal presence before we do anything else. We then move on to adoration, which must be the only appropriate response to a realisation of who God is. Jesus then invites us to ask, to bring our requests to God for ourselves and for others, and we finish by surrendering to His will through contemplation, listening, confession and spiritual warfare. The rest of the book is divided into sections that expand on what these mean for us in practical terms. Illustrated with his own personal experiences and those of other Christians, Pete takes us through the Lord’s Prayer in detail, and offers very practical advice on how we can approach what Jesus himself taught us, and experience the reality of coming close to our heavenly Father through it.
Pete Greig’s whole approach to prayer is encapsulated in his advice to: keep it simple; keep it real; and keep it up. This is what first inspired me to get hold of a copy of the book, after reading an article about it in Premier Christianity. We don’t have to try and convince God that He should listen to us through the use of elaborate rituals, fancy ‘religious’ words and long speeches, and we don’t have to persuade others of our sincerity by the same means. It is truly liberating when we realise this and come to God just as we are – He knows what we want to say anyway, but He still wants us to talk to Him about it. He also wants us to enjoy being with Him, and to listen as well as to talk.
The book ties in closely with the Prayer Course (prayercourse.org), which we are currently running in HBC. At the end of each chapter there are recommendations for further reading, and for ‘prayer tools’, which can be found online in the ‘Toolshed’. These are well worth downloading and reading, covering a wide range of 30 different topics, from ‘How to have a quiet time’, and ‘How to have a non-boring prayer meeting’ to ‘Warfare prayer’ and ‘How to fast’. If you buy the book, then do look at the website and make use of these valuable resources as well.
Finally, something that stands out in my memory is what Pete says about a lesson he learned when the 24-7 Prayer movement was first set up. God first gave him a vision for this when he was a student travelling around Europe, and it was several years before the vision came to fruition. He could not at first see where this vision was leading him and asked God to make it clear. When the realisation finally dawned on him that they were connected (when the movement had begun to take off), God said to him ‘you need to understand that I never forget a single prayer you pray. You forget most of the things you ask me, but I never do’ (p. 197).
Jacqui Pearce
Looking for inspiring Christian novels?
I would like to highly recommend Francine Rivers – she is an amazing author and has written several Christian novels. I have read a number of her books, and they are all compelling, inspiring and true to life. She writes beautifully and powerfully, and quickly draws the reader into her stories.
Francine Rivers had a successful writing career for several years before becoming a born-again Christian in 1986. Her first Christian novel was Redeeming Love, and this has become a classic. She has continued to use her talent, writing more Christian novels, which have become big sellers worldwide. Francine uses her writing to draw closer to the Lord, and she desires that through her work she might worship and praise Jesus for all he has done in her life.
Redeeming Love is one of Francine’s most popular books – a powerful retelling of the book of Hosea, set in the 1800s, it is a life-changing story of God's unconditional, redemptive, all-consuming love. It is set in California’s gold country, in a time where men sold their souls for a bag of gold and women sold their bodies for a place to sleep.
My top favourite is a trilogy of three books called Mark of the Lion (A Voice in the Wind; An Echo in the Darkness; and As Sure as the Dawn). Set in Roman times, it feels so historically real that you would think the author had lived through this time herself. You won’t be able to put any of these three books down! It’s a story with many different situations happening that all tie together, as the characters struggle through 1st-century trials and the main character hangs firm to her faith in God throughout.
More recent books include Bridge to Haven. Set in the 1950/60s, this is the story of an abandoned baby girl, found under a bridge in America by Pastor Zeke. She grows up emotionally scarred and insecure – it’s a riveting saga of temptation, grace and unconditional love. Other books include A Lineage of Grace, which focuses on five inspiring women of the Bible and how God used them.
I do encourage you to check out these books. They will all inspire your faith and walk with God!
Anne-Marie Tebb
Recommended Francine Rivers titles include:
Redeeming Love (2013, Lion Publishing)
A Lineage of Grace (2009, Tyndale House)
A Voice in the Wind (2012, Tyndale House)
An Echo in the Darkness (2009, Tyndale House)
As Sure as the Dawn (2010, Tyndale House)