book recommendations

A graphic of four women from the back shows them linking arms. The text reads "6 Books for Successful Christian #BossBabes."

More and more in this social age, women are looking for the perfect balance of raising their families, saving money, and earning income, all while hoping for the miraculous schedule of time managed by yourself. Wow! It’s no wonder that there are so many books on self-improvement, time management, and character building. And while those are helpful and great experience often lies between the pages, it is doubly refreshing to find a book that teaches you practical ways to better your business ventures while nourishing your soul and deepening your relationship with God.

This post may contain affiliate links. For more on that, check here.

Girls with Swords by Lisa Bevere

In Girls with Swords, Lisa likens our prayers to swords, and goes through practical steps on how to sharpen your prayers. With shared personal experiences and analogies to sword fighting, this will empower to better your spiritual life.

2. Fervent by Priscilla Shirer

I’ve mentioned this book before, but that hasn’t stopped me. And I will definitely post about it again, because it is my favorite devotional book I’ve read in years. The full title, Fervent: A Woman’s Battle Plan for Serious, Specific, and Strategic Prayer says it far better than I can. I love how Shirer does not pull any punches. She lays it out just like the Bible says: this is war. But our war is spiritual, and no physical weapons of ours will have any effect. She gives practical applications and tools, all while citing Scripture, to enable you to create prayers to defend you, your family, and claim your territory for God through prayer.

Perhaps if you’re like me, prayer is something you know you should do, and do often, but it never feels like you’re really doing much. Not anymore! Shirer pulls back the curtain on spiritual warfare, exposes the tactics of our Enemy, and illuminates the struggles of our day to day for the spiritual battle they really are. This book is part manual, part journal, and part exposé of Satan’s playbook. In similar fashion to C.S. Lewis in The Screwtape Letters, she skillfully gets into the enemy’s mindset to fumble our greatness in Christ.

I mean, just zoom in on these clips. Top right: She starts each chapter with, “If I were your enemy.” Top left: The book includes cards for you to personalize with your personal struggles and the prayers she helps you build with the framework of Scripture. And look! Bottom left: she opens the book with a quote from The Lord of the Rings! Trust me, you will love this book.

It will challenge you. It will inspire you. You cannot read this book as a child of God and not leave changed and empowered.

I know I have said a lot more about this work than I will about the rest, but that is how much this book has changed my life. I am absolutely not inflating its potency. While all of these books have added to my life and knowledge and opened my eyes to truth, this one in particular is my favorite. If you buy just one, this is the one to get!

3. Grace Not Perfection by Emily Ley

Oh, dear sweet Emily. She is a fantastic author who endears readers to her immediately through her warmth and authenticity she conveys expertly through the pages. It’s almost like sitting down with her over a cuppa in your favorite coffee shop as she chats honestly about her life, its challenges, and the lessons God has taught her along the way.

Especially if you’re like me, always pushing yourself to get more done, seeking efficiency, grinding for results, hustling – Emily offers a quiet admonition to pause and appreciate rest and how to give yourself grace through the growing process. This is definitely the book for those who have a hard time saying no!

4. Make it Happen by Lara Casey

Don’t let life happen to you – make it happen! I could say a lot about this book, but Lara says it best:

You were created for a purpose, and it’s time to make it happen.Make It Happen is the story of how I surrendered my fear, took the leap, and got a life. In my case, a perfectly imperfect, fulfilling life as a mama, a working woman, and a grateful wife. This is the story of how I chose to make “it”―a greater purpose than mine―happen, and how you can too.
Make It Happen is for

women who find themselves worried, anxious, and completely overwhelmed by the constant chase for perfection
those seeking the courage to jump into a new venture
working women who are struggling to “do it all”
weary wives and moms looking for relief from burning the candle at both ends
anyone who dreams of a life lived not by accident, but on purpose

Your time has come to take a leap of faith. Join me as we surrender our fears, end the chase for perfection, and say yes to cultivating the meaningful lives God desires for us.

You know all those things you’ve always wanted to do? You should go do them.

5. 100 Days to Brave by Annie F. Downs

If you have not been moving due to fear or insecurity, 100 Days to Brave will take on a journey – over the course of 100 days – to tackling your fear and embracing faith so that you can accomplish the dreams God has planted in your heart. This is a great companion to any of the books listed. The devotions are short and sweet, and are encouraging word alongside your daily Scripture reading.

6. Cultivate by Lara Casey

If the garden of your life feels overrun and overgrown, or dry and neglected and withering, Lara is here to help you navigate through the seasons of life to a place of nurture through cultivation.

We can’t do it all, and do it well. But, we can choose to cultivate what matters.
Lara Casey, Cultivate

Lara grace-filled advice helps you get to the nitty gritty and not be afraid of getting a little messy for what matters.

I have so many more books to recommend to you! (I love reading self development and devotional books.) Be sure to stay tuned for more of my fave reads!

Adieu!

If we get right down to it, knowing a good thing from a bad thing is elementary, and the Christian walk is easily summarized in Micah 6:8, where all we must remember is “to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.”

Why then do we trip over ourselves when opportunity comes our way, wondering if it is from God?

It is good to consider and to seek godly council when a door opens. But you probably know that’s not what I mean. I mean the running around in our minds, our thoughts in circles, reciting “what ifs” and “but thens” until we’ve reasoned ourself in and out of agreement with the possibilities ten times over. It would be so much easier if a neon sign dropped down from heaven, flashing “Go here” with a handy directional arrow to save me the act of choosing. (Ya feel me?) So if something is good, and it could help people, how are we supposed to know how to move forward without a literal sign from heaven?

Remember, friends, that Satan is a clever deceiver. He knows better than to tempt the children of God who seek to walk with Him with outright rebellion. Recall his interactions with Christ in the wilderness? He tempted Christ with “good” things: to eat bread when he was hungry and to display His godhood, all things that are inherently not sin. But they would have been sinful to Christ, because it was against God’s plan.

So how do we know?

*Photo by* *Priscilla Du Preez* on *Unsplash*

After reading Fervent by Priscilla Shirer (the book inspired by the movie War Room), I had taken to the task of studying my weakness that the Enemy likes to exploit and curating targeted prayers against his attacks.

Only a few months later, I had the opportunity to utilize these battle planning tactics in order to help me better understand whether an opportunity was just a good thing or a God thing.

While there is certainly no “one size fits all” version of how God will direct His children’s paths, we can always count on Scripture to give us the principles we need to make righteous, eternally effective decisions. Remember, some things are good and lawful, but not expedient (1 Cor. 6:12). Dictionary.com defines “expedient” as “tending to promote some proposed or desired object; fit or suitable for the purpose; proper under the circumstances.”

In other words, good things aren’t always good for you.

I don’t know about you, but that takes a huge weight off my shoulders! Have you ever heard the phrase, “You might be the only bible someone may ever read.” A thought provoking concept, and it’s intent is good to be sure, but what an erroneous thought, that we could be as effective as the Living Word Itself in showing needy human hearts the condition of their soul and their relationship to the Creator! Or maybe you’ve heard it said, “If you can do it, you should?” Well friends, that’s not biblical. And yet, as for myself and many other Christian women, this tends to be the standard by which we fill our agenda.

Nursery ministry? Good. Visitation? Good. Cooking for our families? Good. Volunteering as a chaperone for youth night? Good. Writing that devotional for the ladies’ Sunday school? Good. Good, good, good.

And so on and so on. We fill our agenda up seeking to do good with this pseudo sense of responsibility and validation.

Good things aren’t always good for you.

As kindly as I can say it (and I do mean it to be a relief to you, friend!), God doesn’t need you. He doesn’t need me and he doesn’t need the church. He said the rocks would declare him if we didn’t! (Luke 19:40) It is a privelege and blessing that God will allow us to be a part of His kingdom building. I mean, think about it! We sinful yet redeemed, imperfect yet pardoned creations get to witness the miraculous each time God lets us be a part of his work. Remember, His burden is light! It should be a joy to do the work we do. Nothing will turn people away from the Truth faster than a sour Christian. (I mean, we all know someone who is suffering for the Lord and wears it on their grimaced face like some sort of badge. They mask complaining with a veil of false spirituality, and it sucks the life right out of you!)

It cannot be explained. That’s the beauty of God’s work. It is light. It is a cross. There will be suffering mingled with joy. But my favorite part is this: you only have to do what He asks of you! Listen again: what GOD asks of you. Not the church. Not religion. Not your own internalized expectations of what “good Christians” should do.

So here is the tactic I came up with for use in my own life. I encourage you to read Fervent before coming up with your own plan of attack, and feel free to print off this plan if it resonates with your spirit. Edit it, make it your own, etc. The Scripture and prayer are key, so don’t skip!

Battle Plan for Opportunity

I. Get alone (Edwards, Religious Affections; Ps. 63; Matt. 4:1; Matt. 14:23; Mark 1:35)

II. Make room for God
(Ps. 46:10) Be still! Don’t spend your time apart doing all the talking. Invite God into this time with you.

III. Get specific – PRAYORITIZE!
Tell God the opportunity that has come your way. Tell Him everything! What you are excited for, concerned about . . . God wants to hear it all!

IV. Cross-reference your calling
You already have responsibilities. Does this enhance or improve your current priorities? If there is a conflict, are any of your current obligations not a true priority?
Relational priorities:
1. God (Ps. 37:4) Am I delighting in God?
2. Spouse – am I displaying God to my . . .
3. Family
4. Vocation
5. Church/Community

What is your spiritual gift(s)? Does this align with that?

V. Confess sins
Why do I want this opportunity? Who am I aiming to glorify? Are there any sins in my life that would prevent me from hearing God?

IV. Consult desires
What do I really want? (Ps. 37:4)

Remember, fear does not equal doubt. Fear is a tool of the Enemy! Doubt is simply a yellow light. Slow down, get all the facts, and yield to the Holy Spirit.

That is what I have taped up in my prayer closet to remind me how to proceed when opportunity comes my way. I hope that you find it helpful.

For further study and learning to listen to God better, these three books have made a huge impact in my life.

Fervent by Priscilla Shirer

By teaching you the ways that our Enemy seeks to weaken us, Priscilla leads you through soul and Scripture searching exercises to help you craft a plan of attack for each scenario before you encounter it. We are in a spiritual war. She helps me get serious!

The Journey of Desire by John Eldredge

In The Journey of Desire, John walks you through ways that God uses our desires to point us to Him – and the path He wants for us. With personal, discipleship like advice, John opens his heart and soul and gets straight the heart of desire.

The Best Yes by Lysa Terkeurst

If you’ve ever felt “thin, sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread,”¹ it’s time to learn what sort of “yeses” belong in your life. This book was instrumental to me in learning to use my time to make the biggest difference without feeling overwhelmed.

I honestly highly recommend all of these books. They are full of invaluable information all sourced from Scripture. When I pick up these books, they all feel like I’m getting to sit down with a wise friend and learn over a cup of coffee. Have you read them? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Tell me how you choose between good and best in the comments below.

Until next time,

¹ . J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

This post may contain affiliate links. For more on that, check here.

Category: book recommendations

6 Books for Successful Christian #BossBabes

Is the Good Thing a God Thing?

Battle Plan for Opportunity

Book Recommendations