I love to read.  It can be anything.  I once said that I could just walk into the library, pick a random card out of the card catalog (this was a while ago) and read whatever book it said...and find it interesting.  That said, there are certain categories I find most interesting: history, fiction, and biographies being at the top of the list.  For the last nine years I’ve kept a running list of every book that I’ve read.  Here’s what I'm reading now or have recently finished:

Flickering Pixels by Shane Hipps.  Hipps was formerly a Porsche ad executive and his job was to convince you that your life was incomplete without a Porsche. Now he's a Mennonite pastor (talk about a career change) and he shares some amazing insights on what electronic media does to us and the gospel.

With by John Stahl-wert.  A short little book about relationships, both familial and spiritual, by the Director of the Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation.  Tremendously heartwarming stories.

A Tale of Two Sons by John MacArthur.  The Prodigal Son is my favorite portion of scripture.  I've taught on it for years. This book brought so much new insight to me that I felt like I was reading the parable for the first time. One of Macarthur's greatest achievements is to let the reader know how such a story would have been received by the religious leaders of Jesus' day.

The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns.  This is a life-changing book.  The president of World Vision shares his personal story of God's recruitment of him for this ministry, a position he did not want. That story would be challenging enough, but then Stearns goes on to lay out the need of billions of people around the world for food, clean water, health care and social justice. 

The Path Between the Seas by David McCullough (still reading).  McCullough is my favorite historian.  In this book he tells the amazing story of the building of the Panama Canal.  It is an incredible story of human achievement and international intrigue. 

The Church of Facebook by Jesse Rice (still reading). How is social media affecting the way human beings relate?  How should the church be involved? Jesse Rice had served as the worship arts director of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in California. He also has a master's degree in counseling psychology. (I had the opportunity to interview him on the air.) Good insights so far.

So that’s the last couple of months or so. Kind of a serious run for me. I need to read some science fiction or humor soon.

Tom