Are you wondering what to get the women in your life who enjoy reading? I came up with this great list of Christian books for women just in time for the holidays. Take a look at it for some wonderful book ideas to gift or read.
Nonfiction (Christian Living, Memoirs, Devotionals)
Quiet Assurance: Meditations on Peace for the Grieving Heart by Thelma Nienhuis – If you have wondered if you are forgotten or if God hears your cries for help, allow Quiet Assurance to draw you to hope and peace. Walking through the Psalms, this thirty-day devotional will remind you that when the world goes to war against our fragility and our fatigue, God embraces our weakness, pain, and suffering as a known commodity.
Life Can Be Good Again: Putting Your World Back Together After It Falls Apart by Lisa Appelo – What do you do when you are suddenly navigating a life you didn’t sign up for? You never saw this pain coming, and you’re facing a future you’d pass up if you could.
Lisa Appelo understands deeply. She has experienced the raw emotions and uncertainty that come when everything falls apart. Lisa went to bed married and woke up a widow and single mom to seven children. She wrestled with impossible questions about her future–and then found life-changing answers that gave her the strength to move forward with true joy.
Walk, Run, Soar: A 52 Week Running Devotional by Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young – As a runner, you want to accomplish your physical goals. But deep down, you long for your training to be a more meaningful experience, engaging your body, mind, soul, and spirit. Walk, Run, Soar is a 52-week devotional and training journal designed for runners who hope to experience God’s presence, purpose, and glory in a deeper way as they run.
Proverbs 31 in 5 Minutes a Day Bible Study for Women by Mari Hernandez-Tuten – You are a woman of valor! Celebrate with Proverbs 31 in 5 Minutes a Day: A Bible Study for Women. This Bible study offers short lessons on Proverbs 31, a joyful poem describing the characteristics of a godly woman. Unlock the guidance in its verses, exploring who you are as a daughter of the King—and how to better serve Him in your family and community. In this Bible study, you’ll examine womanhood and faith in Proverbs 31 through commentary, guided prayers, and more.
Let There Be Art by Rachel Marie Kang – Perhaps in no other way do we more vibrantly reflect our creator than with our creativity. Whether through music, writing, baking, painting, posting on social media, dancing, or any other form of artistic expression within our grasp, we were created to create. Yet, there are times we may be unsure about our art, times when our creating and making doesn’t feel possible or purposeful or practical.
Wounded Women of the Bible: Finding Hope When Life Hurts by Dena Dyer & Tina Samples – No matter what hurts you’ve experienced, Wounded Women of the Bible proves that God understands and that healing is not only His intention but His delight!
Waiting for God: Trusting Daily in God’s Plan and Pace by Xochitl Dixon -If your heart is weary and longing for answers—for healing, for provision, for miracles—Waiting for God renews your hope with strong biblical truth and encouraging Scripture-based prayer. Conquer your fears and frustrations as you inhale God’s Word, exhale in prayer, and rest in God’s love.
Happily Never After by Rev Angelle M Jones – Enjoy the riveting true story of a female minister who made peace with her past to find contentment with her present. Single or married, don’t be fooled by the title, Happily Never After will give you hope as you find your contentment in the Never Afters of life.
The Abundance of Less: A Social Experiment of Not Buying Anything New for One Year by Marcy Pusey –The Abundance of Less has the answer to break away from this cycle of more. In this book, Marcy bares all about their journey, outlining not only the successes, but the failures too. This book will leave you questioning whether what you’re holding on to in life is really that important, and in turn, will lead you to find your own path to happiness. *Includes a Free Action Guide to help you get started on your own journey to less!
Companions in the Darkness: Seven Saints Who Struggled with Depression and Doubt by Diana Gruver – In Companions in the Darkness, Diana Gruver looks back into church history and finds depression in the lives of some of our most beloved saints, including Martin Luther, Charles Spurgeon, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King Jr. Without trying to diagnose these figures from a distance, Gruver tells their stories in fresh ways, taking from each a particular lesson that can encourage or guide those who suffer today. Drawing on her own experience with depression, Gruver offers a wealth of practical wisdom both for those in the darkness and those who care for them.
Blessed Broken Given: How Your Story Becomes Sacred in the Hands of Jesus by Glenn Packiam – An invitation to find beauty and meaning in the ordinary and imperfect aspects of your life; not as a call to settle for less, but rather as a way to mysteriously participate in God’s power and purpose. Glenn Packiam wants to empower readers to find great joy, purpose, and passion in their daily living.
Beyond Awkward Side Hugs by Bronwyn Lea -When it comes to relationships between men and women, we have more questions than answers:
- How do we keep relationships with the opposite sex healthy—and still hug each other after small group?
- Is it possible for married men and women to be friends with people of the opposite sex?
- What does it mean to be a woman if you’re not a wife, or a man if you’re not a husband?
Jesus’ pattern for church living was one of family—of brothers and sisters living in intimate, life-giving community with each other. With story, sensitivity, and hope, Beyond Awkward Side Hugs invites us to leave behind eroticized, fear-based patterns and move toward gendered, generous relationships between men and women of character as we love one another as Jesus did.
Idols of the Heart by Elyse M. Fitzpatrick – Do you feel discouraged, even defeated, in your battle against habitual sin? Are you dismayed or surprised by the situations that bring out your fear, anger, or distress? Elyse Fitzpatrick delves into the heart of the problem: deep down, we’re all idol-worshippers who put our loves, desires, and expectations in God’s placeand then suffer the consequences of our misplaced affections. Yet God loves his people and can use even our messy lives and struggles for his glory.
Fiction
Land of Silence by Tessa Afshar – Before she stole healing by touching the hem of his garment . . .
Elianna is a young girl crushed by guilt. After her only brother is killed while in her care, Elianna tries to earn forgiveness by working for her father’s textile trade and caring for her family. When another tragedy places Elianna in sole charge of the business, her talent for design brings enormous success, but never the absolution she longs for. As her world unravels, she breaks off her betrothal to the only man she will ever love. Then illness strikes, isolating Elianna from everyone, stripping everything she has left.
Gift books (Christian Inspirational, Journals, Children’s Books)
Life is Sweet, Y’all: Wit and Wisdom with a Side of Sass by Maggie Wallem Rowe – is a collection of delightful reflections laced with timeless truths and folksy quips from the past that celebrate the sweet gifts the good Lord provides. Packed with plenty of practical life lessons, helpful household hints, and recipes that Mama used to make, this handy guide to a happy life makes a great gift for any woman who longs for yesteryear. Consider it a slice of heaven topped with a whole lot of love and laughter.
Rise up!: Poems of Protest, Poems of Praise by Mari Fitz-Wynn & Andrew W Fitz – Is a poetry collection of powerful imagery braided together from the poems of a grandfather born to parents who were slaves and his granddaughter, who have linked the travesties of racism and slavery, and the devastation and waste of war, with hope, grace, and peace. The underlying themes of the beauty and awe of creation, the wonders of nature and stars, and mankind’s sense of place and belonging are spun throughout the book.
Rest: A Journal for Lament – is a thoughtfully designed grief journal that combines the therapeutic benefits of writing with the sacred, spiritual practice of lament, offering you rest as you journal to find healing + hope.
Back to the Manger by Margaret Ann Philbrick – Throughout Inga’s childhood, visiting a historic Neapolitan nativity scene each Christmas was a time-honored family tradition. One year when Inga takes her own children to see it, she discovers that the creche is missing, Inga takes up the quest to find this Christmas treasure and restore a bit of holiday magic to the heart of the Christmas season.
Different Like Me by Xochitl Dixon –Adventure with a diverse group of children as they discover and celebrate that we all have more in common than we might think. Sometimes the things that make us different can leave us feeling like a fish out of water. Take your child on this whimsical journey where each unique child works with the others to launch a giant colorful fish balloon. Along the way, the children learn to celebrate differences and uncover what they all have in common, so that even a “fish out of water” finds belonging.
Brown Baby Jesus by Dorena Williamson – Celebrate Christmas with this unique retelling of the Nativity story featuring Jesus as a melanated baby in a story that’s rich with Scripture, historical accuracy, and a multicultural weaving of love—from the author of Crowned with Glory.
