Recommended reading by topic

 The resources listed below are, for the most part, easily accessible online or a local bookstore This list includes both spiritual and non-spiritual resources that can be helpful fo certain topics.  There are books for both the lay person and also those in leadership who desire to grow in the area of people helping.

How to Counsel

  • The Biblical Basis of Christian Counseling for People Helpers (Gary Collins)

  • Called to Counsel (Timothy Foster)

  • Modern Psychotherapies (Jones & Butman)

  • The Complete Life Encyclopedia (Minirth, Meier, Arterburn)

  • Christian Counseling (Gary Collins)

  • The Transformation of the Inner Man (John & Paula Sandford)

 General Marriage Books

  •  Rocking the Roles (Robert Lewis and William Hendricks) “Examines what the Bible really has to say about the male and female roles.  A far cry from the restrictions of the traditional marriage or the formlessness of the modern marriage…” 

  •  Marriage Spirituality (R. Paul Stevens)  “Ten Disciplines for couples who love God.”

  •  Married for Good (R. Paul Stevens) “The lost art of staying happily married.”

  • Love & Respect (Dr. Emerson Eggerichs) “The love she most desires, the respect he desperately needs.”

  •  Love Busters (Willard F. Harley, Jr.) “Overcoming the habits that destroy romantic love”

  •  His Needs, Her Needs (Willard F. Harley, Jr.) “ Building an affair-proof marriage”

  •  The Five Love Languages (Gary Chapman)

Pre-marital

  • Preparing for Marriage (Beohi, Nelson, Schulte, Shadrach & Rainey)

Communication

  • Cracking the Communication Code (Dr. Emerson Eggerichs) 

  • Communication: Key to Your Marriage (H. Norman Wright)

  • Boundaries (Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend)  “When to say Yes, When to say No, to take control of your life.”

  • Margin (Richard Swenson) Older book but great insight into putting margin or white space in our lives.  Could be under communication heading or personal disciplines.

Family and Parenting

  •  The Smart Step-Family (Ron L. Deal ) One of the best books dealing with step-families… a rare find on the topic.

  •  How to Talk so Kids will Listen & Listen so Kids Will Talk (Faber and Mazlish)

  • The Five Love Languages of Children (Gary Chapman & Ross Campbell)

  • Positive Time-Out (Jane Nelsen)

  • The Way They Learn (Cynthia Ulrich Tobias)

  • Parent Talk (Dr. Kevin Leman & randy Carlson)

  • The Parent’s Handbook (Dinkmeyer, Sr. McKay and Dinkmeyer, Jr.)

  • The Complete Parenting Book, Practical Help from Leading Experts (David & Jan Stoop)

  • Bringing Up Boys (James Dobson)

  • Parenting Isn’t for Cowards (James Dobson)

  • Helping Your Struggling Teenager (Les Parrott)

  • Making Children Mind Without Losing Yours (Kevin Leman)

  • loveandlogic.com A website on verbal discipline techniques.  Discusses matching consequences with behavior, etc..  Lots of free downloadable articles and handouts.

ADHD

  •  Healing ADD, The Breakthrough Program That Allows You to See and Heal the 6 Types of ADD (Daniel G. Amen)

Adoption

  •  Shepherding a Child’s Heart (Ted Tripp)

  • The Primal Wound, Understanding the Adopted Child (Nancy Newton Verrier)

  • The Connected Child (Karyn B. Purvis, David R. Cross, Wendy Lyons Sunshine)

 Special Needs

  •  Gospel Lights Special Needs Smart Pages (Joni Eareckson Tada)

  • Autism and Your Church (B. J. Newman)

  • The Special Needs Ministry Handbook (A. Rapada)

Men’s and Women’s Issues

  •  Healing the Masculine Soul (Gordon Dalbey) “By holding up Jesus Christ as the model of authentic manhood, Dalbey reveals Christ-centered methods for pursuing and attaining genuine masculine virtues and identity.”

  •  Wild At Heart (John Eldredge) “Discovering the Secret of A Man’s Soul"

  •  Captivating (John & Stasi Eldredge)

  • The Woman’s counterpart to Wild at Heart

Healthy Sexuality

  • Sexual Intimacy in Marriage (William Cutrer, MD and Sandra Glahn) 

  •  Authentic Human Sexuality (Balswick & Balswick)

  • The Gift of Sex (Clifford and Joyce Penner)

  •  A Celebration of Sex (Dr. Douglas Rosenau) “A guide to enjoying God’s gift of married sexual pleasure.”

  •  Male Sexuality (Archibald Hart) A phenomenal 30-year study of Christian men and the realities of their sexuality by noted Christian psychologist A. Hart.

  •  The Secrets of Eve (Archibald Hart, Catherine Hart Weber and Debra Taylor) The female counterpart to Male Sexuality, written by Dr. Hart and his daughter.

  • Parent’s Guide to Preventing Homosexuality (Joseph & Linda Nicolosi)

 Sexual Addiction

  •  Every Man’s Battle (Stephen Arterburn and Fred Stoeker) “Winning the war on sexual temptation one victory at a time.”

  •  Every Woman’s Battle (Shannon Ethridge and Stephen Arterburn)

  •  Every Young Woman’s Battle (Shannon Ethridge and Stephen Arterburn)

  •  Every Young Man’s Battle (Stephen Arterburn and Fred Stoeker)

  •  Preparing Your Son for Every Man’s Battle (Stephen Arterburn and Fred Stoeker)

  •  Preparing Your Daughter for Every Woman’s Battle (Shannon Ethridge and Stephen Arterburn)

  •  Out of the Shadows (Patrick Carnes) Understanding Sexual Addiction

  •  Contrary to Love (Patrick Carnes) Helping the Sexual Addict

 Homosexuality

  •  A Strong Delusion, (Joe Dallas) “Confronting the ‘Gay Christian’ Movement”

  •  Homosexuality A Freedom to Far  (Charles W. Socarides)

  • A Parent’s Guide to Preventing Homosexuality (Joseph Nicolosi & Linda Nicolosi)

  •  NARTH.com a great website with lots of free downloadable material

 Emotional Healing

  •  Released from Shame (Sandra D. Wilson) “Recovery for adult children of dysfunctional families.”

  •  The Search for Significance (Robert S. McGee)

  •  Changes that Heal (Dr. Henry Cloud) “How to understand your past to ensure a healthier future.”

  •  Healing Is A Choice (Stephen Arterburn)

  •  Emotional Intelligence (Daniel Goleman)

  •  Healing is a Choice (Steve Arterburn)

  •  Healing for Damaged Emotions (David Seamands)

  •  Wounded Healer (Henri Nouwen)

  •  Emotional Wholeness (Dick & Jane Mohline)

 Forgiveness

  •  Forgive & Forget (Lewis Smedes)

 Spiritual Abuse

  •  Faith that Hurts, Faith that Heals (or Toxic Faith) (Arterburn & Felton)

  •  The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse (Johnson & VanVonderen)

  •  When God’s People Let You Down (Jeff VanVonderen)

  •  Growing Up Holy & Wholly (Understanding and Hope for Adult Children of Evangelicals (Donald Sloat)

  •  The Dangers of Growing Up in a Christian Home (Donald Sloat)

  •  Recovering From Churches That Abuse (Ronald Enroth)

 Grief

  • Grief’s Courageous Journey (Sandi Caplan & Gordon Lang)

 Alcohol, Drugs, Co-dependency

  •  Codependent No More (Melody Beattie)

  •  Love is a Choice (Hemfelt, Minirth & Meier)

 Abuse

  • Caring for Sexually Abused Children, a Handbook for Families & Churches (R. Timothy Kearney)

  •  The Wounded Heart (Dan Allender)

 Anxiety

  •  The Anxiety Cure (Archibald Hart)

  •  Thrilled to Death (Archibald Hart)

Divorce

  •  Starting Over (a Step-by-Step Guide to Help You Rebuild Your Life After a Breakup) (Thomas A. Whiteman & Randy Petersen)

  • Growing Through Divorce (Jim Smoke)

  • Helping Children Survive Divorce (Dr Archibald Hart)

  •  I Don’t Want a Divorce (Cindy Miller) UPC author