We made it through March, friends! Can you believe we are already 1/4 of the way through 2021?! I feel like I was just writing Christmas blogs, and here we are gearing up for Easter. CRAZY.
I had a month full of some great reads that I cannot wait to share with you!
Here's what I read in March:
Breaking Free From Body Shame
I've been a fan of anything Jess Connolly writes for years and this did not disappoint. I've watched Jess lead out in this area of loving our bodies because God made them – she believes that's a good enough reason to love them. Breaking Free From Body Shame encouraged the heck out of me, and challenged me a whole lot as well.
Good Apple: Tales of a Southern Evangelical in New York
I was nervous about reading Good Apple being something that criticizes the church, and honestly those are hard for me to read because I LOVE the church. BUT I was wrong. Elizabeth Passarella describes herself as someone who is content with being complicated. Facing the nuance of someone who grew up in a Christian conservative home who later moved to NYC and went on a journey of figuring out how loving Jesus and changing certain views could coexist. This book is down right real-life stories from a woman loving Jesus and living life in NYC. I laughed out loud and even shed a few tears. Highly recommend!
Redefined
I'm a big fan of the Bevere family, so when I heard about Arden Bevere's book Redefined, I couldn't wait to read it! As a millennial himself, Arden has a big passion for his generation and, as his subtitle reads, confronting the labels the limit us. It's so easy to view ourselves from the lens of our failures and fearfully turn away from our calling because we feel unworthy. This book was a great reminder about where our identity is!
Until Unity
I had the opportunity to read Francis Chan's new book Until Unity early, but good news: it's out tomorrow, April 1st! I feel like I am the non-official sponsor of this book because I can't stop talking about it. It is exactly what we need in this moment in time. Francis calls for us believers to take seriously God's command to fight for unity and realign our hearts to His calling. This book was so humbling and encouraging and convicting and I'm so thankful for Francis' obedience to Christ in speaking out on these important commands from scripture. I cannot recommend this book enough.
Mother to Son
Jasmine L. Holmes' book Mother to Son: Letters to a Black Boy on Identity and Hope is a must-read. In this book, the author shares a series of letters with her young son about her journey as an African American follower of Christ, and all of the things that she wants her son to know as he grows up in the world as a black man. It is beautifully packed with truth and our identity in Christ – I am just so thankful that this book was written.
Have you read any of these? What books have you been diving into the last few months? Give me all the suggestions!
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Note: Just a reminder, as you read the list of books I recommend, remember to use discernment. While I may recommend a book or author, it does not suggest that I am in full agreement with every opinion/statement that the author portrays.
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