Bookstore

Welcome to the Disciples of Christ in Georgia Christian Bookstore in association with Amazon.com. We hope you enjoy the recommendations and reviews written by various Georgia Disciples.

Camp Benefits. If you purchase books from Amazon.com using the links in this bookstore, Camp Christian receives a percentage of each purchase of a book recommended here and a slightly lower percentage of anything else you purchase after starting from one of these links. And its not just books! Anything, from video to electronics that you purchase after starting from the Amazon.com logo or one of the links below, earns money for camp.

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Good Goats: Healing our Image of God by Dennis Linn (Author), Sheila Fabricant Linn (Author), Matthew Linn (Author), Francisco Miranda (Illustrator)
The book is colorful and filled with drawings that make you think it’s a children’s book. The material; however, is adult in nature. The book is divided into two parts: “Healing Our Image of God,” and, “Questions and Answers.” The book beautifully explains how we as Christians have so often been raised with the “fear of God” inside us. We have been raised to believe that God is just sitting there waiting for us to mess up so God can judge us. God will separate the goats from the sheep so to speak. The thing is, we have all done what Jesus asks us to do by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the imprisoned and healing the sick. We have also all walked by a homeless person on the street and ignored them at some point in our lives. We are goat like and sheep like, which makes us all “Good Goats.” I highly recommend this book. It may be little, but it is filled with great depth.
Reviewed by Courtney Chandler

An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith by Barbara Brown Taylor.
One of my favorite writers and preachers has done it again - written a book that has caught my attention and caused me to ponder and grow in my own faith. In her newest book, Episcopal priest Barbara Brown Taylor gently challenges us to wake up to the holy that is all around us, if only we have eyes to see. Early in the book she says, "Earth is so thick with divine possibility that it is a wonder we can walk anywhere without cracking our shins on altars." Then she proceeds to walk us through spiritual practices that you may not have considered spiritual until you begin to see these with new eyes: practices like "getting lost," "being grounded," and "blessing others," as well as more familiar practices such as prayer, Sabbath, and vocation. This is a book for anyone who is longing for a glimpse of the holy in everyday life.
Reviewed by Kathy McDowell

Wounded but Triumphant: Winning the Battle over Abuse by Paul Lucia
Abuse is one of the greatest problems in the world and can be devastating to an individual for life. This book gives a step by step process to understand abuse in relationships. It shows that it is not about abuse, but control in all forms of abuse. It is not how you can cope with the problem, but how you can overcome it and be triumphant. Anyone interested in becoming free must first go through the pain of their past, forgive, and never be allowed to be controlled under any circumstances.
Reviewed by Frances Shumake

Reflections on My Call to Preach: Connecting the Dots by Georgia’s own, Dr. Fred Craddock, becomes available in June 2009 and can be pre-ordered through Amazon for only $13.59. It’s written by him who needs no name but “Fred”==we need say no more!!
Reviewed by Landa Harris Simmons

Renew Your Congregation: Healing the Sick, Raising the Dead (TCP Leadership Series) by William T. McConnell
For the last 35 years, Bill McConnell has been the Lead Pastor of the First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Harrison, Ohio where he has led the congregation through major transformation. Here is why spending time with him is important:
• If you have ever wondered why Transformation is so difficult or even “scary” (and yet worth it), he has something to tell us.
• When you have people in your congregation who: (a) say they want to be transformed (but have not counted the cost and don’t really mean it); or (b) they only wish 1955 would return, when they should know that “what got you here won’t get you there”; or (c) if you have ever heard those in your congregation easily dismiss needful transformational processes as just “so much of the latest management theory,” without any spiritual nourishment…well…Bill’s counsel is a welcomed relief.
• You may be wondering if Transformation is for you? Or what might be the difference between a “New Church start” and an “Old Church start.”
• Endorsers describe his presentation as: “practical and profound” and an “excellent resource for leaders,” written in a down - to - earth, even “folksy” style, and with a great, self-effacing, sense of humor. (*William H. Edwards, Disciples Regional Minister in Ohio).
• Unlike many other books in this field, Bill speaks especially for Disciples congregations, with many poignant examples.
Reviewed by Roger Sizemore

Resurrecting Excellence: Shaping Faithful Christian Ministry (Pulpit & Pew) by L. Gregory Jones and Kevin R. Armstrong
Our 2009 Voices Clergy Retreat leader, Rev. Bill Lee, has requested that all participants read the first two chapters of this book before coming to Voices!

The Shack by William P. Young
Selected as the Book Club Reading for the 2008 Women's Retreat.
The Shack does not claim to be great literature, and will win no Pulitzer Prizes. At the same time, Eugene Peterson’s quote on the cover may describe its potential impact on Christianity more than adequately, “This book has the potential to do for our generation what John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s progress did for his. It’s that good.” What, then, makes The Shack so good? The author, William Paul Young, allows hardly a single them in Christian theology to go untouched in the telling of his story. Rarely does he pursue any issue long enough or hard enough to edge to the right or the left on major theological themes. In many instances, the reader fills in the gaps….which is why it offers such potential as a teaching and learning tool. Session I of a new study guide on The Shack, authored by Rev. Landa Simmons, is now available at the Christian College of Georgia website, www.ccofga.org. The study guide goes not chapter by chapter but theological theme by theological theme. Pastors and church leaders who want to invite the community into their church could find no better way than to offer study classes on The Shack multiple times per week.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch
The Last Lecture expands on the inspirational, top YouTube hits of 2007, video of Randy Pausch’s “last lecture”. Many universities have the tradition of offering professors a chance to give a “last lecture”—what they would say about life, philosophy, and their subject if they were giving their last lecture ever. Shortly before giving the lecture Randy learned that he only had months to live. After the lecture, he worked with another writer to expand the lecture into the book. It’s a book about how to lead your life; it’s a book he wrote for his three children. It’s an inspiration and a great graduation gift!
Reviewed by Landa Harris Simmons

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortensen.
Mortensen got lost climbing mountains in Pakistan and ended up in a remote village. When Mortensen saw the children of the village doing their school work outside and working math problems by drawing numbers in the dirt with sticks, he promised to build them a school. The book details his Herculean and often naïve and bumbling attempts to get the school built. Over the course of 10 years he eventually builds over 50 schools. He gets charged by the Taliban and meets with several leaders later taken captive by American forces in the war on terrorism. He meets and falls in love with his future wife (you will not believe this story), and he lives a story of how one person can change the lives of thousands! Every one who reads this book loves it. Yesterday I ran into my daughter’s first grade teacher. She read the book, met Greg Mortensen and will spend this summer doing staff development with teachers in Pakistan! This is an amazing book. Buy it for your graduates—but buy an extra for yourselves.
Reviewed by Landa Harris Simmons

The Year of Living Biblically by A J Jacobs.
Wow! A J Jacobs writes for Esquire and if funny! At the same time, he’s poignant, a little obsessive-compulsive, and inquisitive about the commandments of the Bible. He pledges to spend 365 days living by all the Biblical commandments. This book became a “not-to-be-put-down” read for me and also the source of many interesting comments and observations for my Sunday School class. This book is recommended for adult Sunday School classes—it’s an easy way to learn more about the Bible while laughing all the way through. Plus, Jacobs does a lot of research. In the process of reading this book, he visits snake handlers, the Creation Museum, talks to a polygamist and reads Marcus Borg, Karen Armstrong and Jack Miles. He’s no lightweight, but his book is easy to read! A great book for the beach or the airplane because the chapters are usually 3-5 pages long. Buy it for the summer!!!
Reviewed by Landa Harris Simmons

Myspace to Sacred Space: God for a New Generation by Christian & Amy Piatt
My wife and I have just finished reading Christian and Amy Piatt's book MySpace to Sacred Space. While both of us have read more books on church growth than we can remember (my wife is a pastor), we have rarely come away from any of them as charged and excited about the possibilities for church in the 21st century as we did with this one. Far from being yet another program for growth, MySpace to Sacred Space focuses on the much more ancient and important task of building community. Christian and Amy weave personal stories, experiences, and insights together to illustrate the power of story and community in the life of the church. Whether my wife and I find ourselves planting new churches or helping older congregations revitalize, I am confident that the ideas of MySpace to Sacred Space will be with us for a long time. [Ed. Note - Christian and Amy are Disciples of Christ Pastors]
Reviewed by: Will Boyd, FCC Macon

Two Old Women: An Alaska Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival
by Velma Wallis
This book has been selected as the starting point for the regional clergy women’s retreat at Camp Christian in August 2007. If you're going to the retreat, order your copy now!

The Tent of Abraham: Stories of Hope and Peace for Jews, Christians, and Muslims
by Joan Chittister (Author), Saadi Shakur Chishti (Author), Arthur Waskow (Author), Karen Armstrong (Author)
The Challenger Class of Sandy Springs Christian Church will be reading and discussing The Tent of Abraham the summer of 2007. A Christian, a Jew and a Muslim share the stories of Abraham from their tradition. An exciting journey into our common, and not so common, faith journeys.

Creating Congregations of Generous People by Michael Durall
Published by the Alban Institute, Creating Congregations of Generous People presents stewardship and the generosity of your congregation in a new, refreshing and exciting way. Instead of teaching pastors how to fund-raise, this book invites the stewardship team to lead the congregation as they grow in their faith and their generosity. Absolutely phenomenal—but not for the faint of heart or pocketbook!
Reviewed by Landa Harris Simmons

Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? By Phillip Yancey
Those of us who love to read Phillip Yancey’s books (including Soul Survivor: How Thirteen Unlikely Mentors Helped My Faith Survive the Church and What's So Amazing About Grace?) have found another great read in his new book about prayer. As always, Yancey is honest and penetrating in his search for truth. He shares not only insights from great Christian thinkers (like Augustine and Martin Luther) but also he shares the thoughts and journaling of his friends, associates, mentors, and fellow authors. His publishing house did an online survey to determine interest in this book and found that an overwhelming percentage of Americans pray, and an equally overwhelming number find themselves dissatisfied with their prayer lives. Yancey’s work not only tells us why we pray but also helps us understand why we’re dissatisfied. This is not a guide to prayer and/or the spiritual disciplines (try Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth). Instead Yancey invites us to reflect on the subject of prayer and perhaps think of it in ways that hadn’t occurred to us before.
Reviewed by Landa Harris Simmons

Unbinding the Gospel: Real Life Evangelism by Martha Grace Reese, Brian D. McLaren
A book for church groups to use to enrich and begin to share their faith. It's a book for pastors who want to re-envision possibilities for evangelism that really fit their beliefs. Easy to read, witty, thoughtful and genuinely spiritual, Unbinding the Gospel is based on a four-year research project on superb evangelism. It has been recommended by Sharon Watkins, General Minister of the Disciples and Dick Hamm, former General Minister and President.
Reviewed by Dr. Rev. Ray Miles

This Old House by Dean Phelps (Music CD) by Rev. Dean Phelps.
Dean Phelps, former pastor and regional staff member in Georgia, has released his second CD, This Old House. In addition to original arrangements of traditional gospel, This Old House contains songs about people, life and faith.
For more information on Dean's Music visit www.goingoverhome.com.