Home Pastors Articles for Pastors 22 Must-Read Books for Preachers in 2018 (Recommended by Preachers and Church...

22 Must-Read Books for Preachers in 2018 (Recommended by Preachers and Church Leaders)

No Silver Bullets: Five Small Shifts that will Transform Your Ministry by Daniel Im

From Amazon:

This book explores five micro-shifts that have the potential to produce macro-changes in your church. As you read, you will discover how to integrate these micro-shifts into the life of your church, starting with the way you disciple. You will finish by developing a plan to structure, communicate and evaluate these changes to ensure that they take root and pave the way for lasting change and kingdom impact.

Get No Silver Bullets

Captivate by Vanessa Van Edwards

Captivate -Vanessa Van Edwards

From Amazon:

When you understand the laws of human behavior, your influence, impact and income will increase significantly. What’s more, you will improve your interpersonal intelligence, make a killer first impression, and build rapport quickly and authentically in any situation—negotiations, interviews, parties and pitches. You’ll never interact the same way again.

Get Captivate

The Art of Pastoring by David Hansen

The Art of Pastoring by David Hansen

From Amazon:

Named one of the Top Ten Books of 1994 by the Academy of Parish Clergy! Hundreds of books, tapes, workshops and seminars promise to answer these impossible questions. Some offer a set of practical guidelines; others suggest a system or pattern to follow. Some stress various ministry functions; others feature case studies as models of success or failure. Some are helpful. Others are not. But in The Art of Pastoring, David Hansen turns pastoral self-help programs on their heads. He tackles the perennial questions from within his own experience.

Get The Art of Pastoring

How Your Church Family Works by Peter Steinke

How Your Church Family Works by Peter Steinke

From Amazon:

Drawing on the work of Bowen, Friedman and his own many years’ counseling experience, Peter Steinke shows how to recognize and deal with the emotional roots of such issues as church conflict, leadership roles, congregational change, irresponsible behavior and the effect of family of origin on current relationships. Discover why working relationships may be “stuck” in certain behaviors. Psychologically sound, theologically grounded and practically illustrated with case studies, How Your Church Family Works will help you better understand how your congregation works and how to keep it healthy. Featuring a new preface and a fresh redesign, the book is a classic work by one of the most respected names in congregational consulting.

Get How Your Church Family

The Power of Moments by Chip and Dan Heath

The Power of Moments

From Amazon:

Readers discover how brief experiences can change lives, such as the experiment in which two strangers meet in a room, and 45 minutes later, they leave as best friends. (What happens in that time?) Or the tale of the world’s youngest female billionaire, who credits her resilience to something her father asked the family at the dinner table. (What was that simple question?)

Many of the defining moments in our lives are the result of accident or luck—but why would we leave our most meaningful, memorable moments to chance when we can create them? The Power of Moments shows us how to be the author of richer experiences.

Get The Power of Moments

Ego Is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday

Ego is the Enemy

From Amazon:

Ego Is the Enemy draws on a vast array of stories and examples, from literature to philosophy to his­tory. We meet fascinating figures such as George Marshall, Jackie Robinson, Katharine Graham, Bill Belichick and Eleanor Roosevelt, who all reached the highest levels of power and success by conquering their own egos. Their strategies and tactics can be ours as well.

In an era that glorifies social media, reality TV and other forms of shameless self-promotion, the battle against ego must be fought on many fronts. Armed with the lessons in this book, as Holiday writes, “you will be less invested in the story you tell about your own specialness, and as a result, you will be liberated to accomplish the world-changing work you’ve set out to achieve.”

Get Ego Is the Enemy

Preaching Killer Sermons by Lane Sebring

Preaching Killer Sermons

From Amazon:

“Lane provides practical tools to help pastors deliver engaging messages. Anyone who preaches or teaches will benefit from this book.” —Mark Batterson, New York Times Bestselling Author of The Circle Maker, Lead Pastor of National Community Church.

Today’s audiences are more distracted than ever, but sermons can only be effective if people are listening. You have to capture people’s attention. But how? In Preaching Killer Sermons, author and pastor Lane Sebring reveals practical preparation and delivery techniques that will enable you to better connect with your listeners.

Get Preaching Killer Sermons

Preaching Sticky Sermons by Brandon Kelley and Joe Hoagland

Preaching Sticky Sermons

From Amazon:

Preaching remains relevant even as America becomes less Christian. Preaching Sticky Sermons is a practical and accessible book for pastors young and old. Kelley and Hoagland reveal how to make your sermons stick. They focus on four main areas of creating a sermon: Preparation, writing, delivery and evaluation. This book will help you write sermons that stick not only on Sunday but also throughout the week.

Get Preaching Sticky Sermons

What About You?

So there we have it. These were all recommended by preachers and church leaders. What would you recommend as must-read books for preachers in 2018?

This article originally appeared here.