Recommendations from our Shelf

Written by Erika Castiglione

If you come into the church from the back parking lot and turn left, you’ll see the Waypoint “library” (a couple of bookshelves with a clipboard to keep up with what is checked out). Periodically, the staff will add to our collection with books that have been helpful or encouraging to us, and I enjoy sharing those recommendations from time to time. As you consider your summer reading, you might want to check one of the following.

The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith by Timothy Keller

Last month I read Colin Hansen’s recently released biography on Tim Keller, Timothy Keller: His Spiritual and Intellectual Formation (also on our shelf) and I found it to be interesting for those already familiar with Keller’s writing and ministry, but if you are new to his teaching or if you haven’t read any of his books, The Prodigal God is a great place to start. Using the familiar parable of the prodigal son, Keller makes insightful observations about the wayward son, the elder brother, the gracious father, and the gospel itself. The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness: The Path to True Christian Joy (which is only 49 pages long), is also a great entry point into Keller’s writing and one of the best books I’ve ever read on identity in Christ.

All My Knotted-Up Life: A Memoir by Beth Moore

So far, All My Knotted-Up Life is my favorite book of 2023. Moore’s writing is wise, poignant, gracious, and at times, hilarious. I went through my first Beth Moore Bible study almost twenty-five years ago and God used it in my life as I was growing in my love of scripture, so it was a joy to get a glimpse of both the trials and the encounters with God that shaped Moore, as well as God’s faithfulness that continues to guide her.

Surprise the World: The Five Habits of Highly Missional People

Michael Frost

I loved the tone, the heart, and the simplicity of this book that focuses on being an evangelistic believer by blessing others through meals and friendship, listening to the Spirit, learning more about Christ, and being ready to share the hope that we have.

If you’d like to see some previous bookshelf recommendations, you can look here. If you read any of these, I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Intimacy with Christ

Written by Stephen Buckley

We Americans like to boast in our busyness. We humble-brag to our friends and family about the long hours we work, our crammed weekend, all our plans (both on the job and at play) in the coming weeks. And it’s all usually punctuated by a faux-dramatic sigh.

(We are, of course, not too busy for Tik Tok and Facebook and Instagram, but that’s another post.)

Let me say this: busyness is not bad. Being overwhelmed and distracted and constantly anxious—that’s bad. And that’s where many of us find ourselves.

Jesus offers an antidote: intimacy with Him. In a world aswirl with activity, He calls us to calm. To hang out with Him. To sit and stay a while.

In John’s gospel, there’s a recurring picture: the disciple reclining against Jesus. No other disciple depicts himself this way, which suggests that no other disciple rested against Jesus’ chest. This is the same John who captured Jesus’ command to, “Abide with me.”

I suspect this isn’t a coincidence. At some point, this Son of Thunder learned that transformation comes by being in Christ’s presence. That making Jesus our home, as The Message puts it, changes us in ways that are deeper and sweeter than we know.

John also called himself the Beloved. That’s probably not a coincidence either. One result of hanging out with Jesus is that he reminds us relentlessly of how much He loves us. He does that in many ways—by bringing to mind scripture, sermons, spiritual songs, and memories of His goodness in years and days past.

Time with Him often reminds us of the power of salvation. In my own life, I find that Christ is always bringing me back to the Cross. Having a lousy week (or month or year)? Anguished by disappointment and hurt? Doubting God’s goodness? His answer is always the same: Look to the cross.

It is hard to find time for Jesus. That’s especially true for those of us with young children. Suzanna Wesley, the mother of John and Charles Wesley – both of whom became legendary preachers and hymn writers – had nine kids. When she needed to spend time with God, she perched herself on a chair in the corner of her kitchen and hid her head in a dishtowel. We may have to get creative too.

Ultimately, time with Jesus speeds up, and deepens, our surrender. It is hard to trust people we haven’t spent much time with. When we make time for Jesus, our trust in Him takes root, which makes it easier for us to give ourselves wholly to him.

All of this takes patience, especially with ourselves. There will be seasons when days and weeks whoosh by without our sitting with the One who loves us beyond measure and beyond reason. That’s okay. He will always be waiting, with open arms. He will always welcome us home. And he’ll always make our time with Him worth it.

Realigning My Life with Jesus' Counter-Cultural Teaching

Written by Pierce Finley

I work as a Systems Engineer managing requirements and verification for an aerospace defense company. I started my career working on several missile programs, which included modeling system performance and testing our algorithms.

After a couple years of this work, I was slowly confronted with the moral demands of the job. In brief, I was working on optimizing the performance of weapons used to kill people. It was easy to hide behind statements like "it's for national defense," "we need a deterrent to prevent more conflict," or "plenty of Christians work in this field" - after all, I spent every day working in a community of people who genuinely believed this work is good. However, I had never actually considered the alternative myself, until I encountered several key sermons and Biblical passages that challenged this status quo. The core of it centered on Jesus' teaching in Matthew 5:38-48. Instead of assuming that working on weapons systems is in line with the Christian life, these lessons challenged me to reconsider the serious implications of Jesus' teachings on non-violence and enemy love. Through this reevaluation, I learned that allegiance with Jesus means a love of all peoples and a rejection of violence, particularly towards enemies. Because of this, I was strongly convicted to leave the projects I had been working on in favor of one that aligned with a non-violent ethic.

This transition was intimidating. For one, I really enjoyed and worked well with the team. I had also joined this team rather recently, and I would have to explain this personal reasoning to my manager to justify moving on so soon. I was really worried to be met with rejection, judgment, and even anger - as I mentioned, many people I work with strongly believe that this work is necessary and good for the world. Instead, I was met with respect and acceptance. My manager (also a believer) may not agree with my conclusions on Jesus’ teachings, but he fully supported my need to live by them. He was quick to connect me with several other projects to find one that I could support with both my talents and convictions. Everyone on my team was also very receptive and encouraging, and one fellow believer even told me he was struggling through some of the same decisions and that my openness was an encouragement to him.

This journey has been one of both internal struggle and deep repentance - but it has also been one of great wonder at God’s mercy and goodness. Through the process, God has shown me again and again how he desires all parts of my life - including work - to align with his kingdom, and that he will open doors to make that possible. Taking the step to follow him can certainly be scary, with risks of rejection or job insecurity, but He has never stopped providing for us as we trust in Him. I'm excited to see the next area of my life that Jesus confronts with his bold teaching!