Chase Snyder | Co-Pastor, FBC Loganville
Your spiritual growth begins once you become a Christian. But how should you grow spiritually? In this post I’ve listed some of the best books on spiritual growth that I have come across in my studies.
Spiritual growth is a process called sanctification. Sanctification is being made into the likeness of Jesus. This process is a cooperative work between a Christian and the Holy Spirit that makes you more like Jesus.
“The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deeper people.” — Richard Foster
The Bible instructs all Christians to grow spiritually, but each Christian matures at different paces. Jesus desires for His followers to be deeply rooted in their faith.
Below are a few resources I have used in the past to deepen my own spiritual growth. I wanted to pass them along to you. I don’t have any affiliate links in this post—I simply believe in the effectiveness of these resources to encourage Christians to grow in their relationship with Jesus.
Here are a few books that I highly recommend, so you can gain a deeper understanding of spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, and how to study God’s Word.
A few reminders:
Spiritual growth is a process called sanctification. Sanctification is being made into the likeness of Jesus. This process is a cooperative work between a Christian and the Holy Spirit that makes you more like Jesus.
“The desperate need today is not for a greater number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deeper people.” — Richard Foster
The Bible instructs all Christians to grow spiritually, but each Christian matures at different paces. Jesus desires for His followers to be deeply rooted in their faith.
Below are a few resources I have used in the past to deepen my own spiritual growth. I wanted to pass them along to you. I don’t have any affiliate links in this post—I simply believe in the effectiveness of these resources to encourage Christians to grow in their relationship with Jesus.
Here are a few books that I highly recommend, so you can gain a deeper understanding of spiritual disciplines, spiritual formation, and how to study God’s Word.
A few reminders:
- There is no substitute for studying God’s Word. Books are meant to be supplementary.
- This is not an exhaustive list. There are hundreds of insightful books that will encourage your faith.
Books About Spiritual Disciplines
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life — Donald Whitney
Drawn from a rich heritage, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life will guide you through a carefully selected array of disciplines. By illustrating why the disciplines are important, showing how each one will help you grow in godliness, and offering practical suggestions for cultivating them, this book will provide you with a refreshing opportunity to become more like Christ and grow in character and maturity.
Celebration of Disciplines — Richard Foster
Dividing the Disciplines into three movements of the Spirit, Foster shows how each of these areas contribute to a balanced spiritual life. The inward Disciplines of meditation, prayer, fasting, and study offer avenues of personal examination and change. The outward Disciplines of simplicity, solitude, submission, and service help prepare us to make the world a better place. The corporate Disciplines of confession, worship, guidance, and celebration bring us nearer to one another and to God.
Ten Questions To Diagnose Your Spiritual Health — Donald Whitney
Are you spiritually healthy or just spiritually busy?
This book’s ten probing questions will help you look beyond your spiritual activity to assess the true state of your spiritual health and help you on your journey of spiritual transformation. See how the spiritual disciplines―including prayer, worship, and meditation―can take your spiritual health from fair to excellent.
Drawn from a rich heritage, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life will guide you through a carefully selected array of disciplines. By illustrating why the disciplines are important, showing how each one will help you grow in godliness, and offering practical suggestions for cultivating them, this book will provide you with a refreshing opportunity to become more like Christ and grow in character and maturity.
Celebration of Disciplines — Richard Foster
Dividing the Disciplines into three movements of the Spirit, Foster shows how each of these areas contribute to a balanced spiritual life. The inward Disciplines of meditation, prayer, fasting, and study offer avenues of personal examination and change. The outward Disciplines of simplicity, solitude, submission, and service help prepare us to make the world a better place. The corporate Disciplines of confession, worship, guidance, and celebration bring us nearer to one another and to God.
Ten Questions To Diagnose Your Spiritual Health — Donald Whitney
Are you spiritually healthy or just spiritually busy?
This book’s ten probing questions will help you look beyond your spiritual activity to assess the true state of your spiritual health and help you on your journey of spiritual transformation. See how the spiritual disciplines―including prayer, worship, and meditation―can take your spiritual health from fair to excellent.
Books About Reading The Bible
How To Read The Bible For All Its Worth — Gordon Fee
Understanding the Bible isn’t for the few, the gifted, or the scholarly. The Bible is accessible to everyone. It’s meant to be read and comprehended by anyone from armchair readers to seminary students. A few essential insights into the Bible can clear up a lot of misconceptions and help you grasp the meaning of Scripture and its application to your twenty-first-century life.
Reading The Bible Supernaturally: Seeing and Savoring the Glory of God in Scripture — John Piper
Best-selling author John Piper teaches us how to read the Bible in light of its unique ability to reveal God’s glory in a way that informs our minds, transforms our hearts, and ignites our love.
How To Study Your Bible: Discovering The Life-Changing Approach To God’s Word — Kay Arthur
Now you can cultivate the inductive skills of observation, interpretation, and application, and become an active participant in God’s Word. In fifteen easy-to-understand chapters, the authors present a systematic approach that includes key words, context studies, comparison and contrasts, topical studies, and more.
This life-changing way of understanding and exploring Scripture reveals the Bible’s message and helps you live boldly and confidently in God’s truths.
How to Eat Your Bible: A Simple Approach to Learning and Loving the Word of God — Nate Pickowicz
How to Eat Your Bible will help you cultivate a hunger for God's Word and teach you how to make Bible-reading a regular part of your daily life.
Understanding the Bible isn’t for the few, the gifted, or the scholarly. The Bible is accessible to everyone. It’s meant to be read and comprehended by anyone from armchair readers to seminary students. A few essential insights into the Bible can clear up a lot of misconceptions and help you grasp the meaning of Scripture and its application to your twenty-first-century life.
Reading The Bible Supernaturally: Seeing and Savoring the Glory of God in Scripture — John Piper
Best-selling author John Piper teaches us how to read the Bible in light of its unique ability to reveal God’s glory in a way that informs our minds, transforms our hearts, and ignites our love.
How To Study Your Bible: Discovering The Life-Changing Approach To God’s Word — Kay Arthur
Now you can cultivate the inductive skills of observation, interpretation, and application, and become an active participant in God’s Word. In fifteen easy-to-understand chapters, the authors present a systematic approach that includes key words, context studies, comparison and contrasts, topical studies, and more.
This life-changing way of understanding and exploring Scripture reveals the Bible’s message and helps you live boldly and confidently in God’s truths.
How to Eat Your Bible: A Simple Approach to Learning and Loving the Word of God — Nate Pickowicz
How to Eat Your Bible will help you cultivate a hunger for God's Word and teach you how to make Bible-reading a regular part of your daily life.
Devotional Books
New Morning Mercies — Paul David Tripp
This modern classic gives you daily readings that will help you understand the Gospel of Jesus as it renews your passion for Jesus.
Foundations: A 260-Day Bible Reading Plan for Busy Believers — Robby Gallaty
With Foundations, you can read through all sixty-six of the miraculous books of the Bible in one year, while still having the flexibility of reading five days per week. Along with supplementary devotional content each day, you can experience the miracle of reading and responding to the entirety of God’s Word. By using the H.E.A.R. journaling method, you will be guided through Highlighting, Explaining, Applying, and Responding to passages, allowing for practical application throughout the year-long plan.
This modern classic gives you daily readings that will help you understand the Gospel of Jesus as it renews your passion for Jesus.
Foundations: A 260-Day Bible Reading Plan for Busy Believers — Robby Gallaty
With Foundations, you can read through all sixty-six of the miraculous books of the Bible in one year, while still having the flexibility of reading five days per week. Along with supplementary devotional content each day, you can experience the miracle of reading and responding to the entirety of God’s Word. By using the H.E.A.R. journaling method, you will be guided through Highlighting, Explaining, Applying, and Responding to passages, allowing for practical application throughout the year-long plan.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chase Snyder
Pastor Chase is a Co-Pastor at FBC Loganville. He and his wife, Annie, and their two kids have been at FBC Loganville since 2017. His heart is to help people faithfully follow Jesus. Chase loves spending time with his family, being outdoors, drinking strong coffee, reading, and cheering on the Tennessee Volunteers.