Joshua Harris: Fitting reading into your daily life can be a challenge. How does this fit in with all the meetings that I’ve got, with just normal message preparation, with counseling, all those kinds of things? What is some practical advice to make reading a priority?
C.J. Mahaney: Well, I think first of all, you need a conviction related to reading and the priority of reading. So I think it all begins with a conviction. Once the conviction develops, then one needs to plan. Read more…
from, Leadership Interview podcast (“The Pastor and His Reading”) in which Joshua Harris, Jeff Purswell, and C.J. Mahaney discuss the priority of reading in the pastor’s schedule.
In February, about 100 Sovereign Grace pastors gathered in Gaithersburg for our Pastors College Preaching Conference. They heard from Jeff Purswell (dean of the Pastors College), Mike Bullmore (longtime homiletics professor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and now senior pastor of CrossWay Community Church in Bristol, Wisconsin) and myself [C.J. Mahaney]. As expected, the pastors left the conference with a list of recommended books on this most important topic.
But pastors can be easily overwhelmed when they hear someone recommend numerous books on a topic. It can be hard to know where to begin.
Over the last few years, rather than just recommending books, I’ve begun recommending specific chapters of books. I do this for a number of reasons. Obviously, it’s easier for a pastor to read a chapter than an entire book. Reading one excellent chapter can create an appetite for the entire book. And some books contain helpful chapters but are not worth reading in their entirety.
Rather than recommending a small library of books on preaching, today we are featuring the five favorite chapters from each of the three speakers at the conference. I think this list will serve pastors and create realistic and achievable reading assignments on the important topic of preaching. Consider creating a reading plan for the next month developed around these chapters. Read the list…*
by, C.J. Mahaney
*Also included on the books page of this site
