Grace & Salt #2
Pastor Cam Huxford Recommends Resources to Encourage & Challenge Men
Grace & Salt is meant to encourage & challenge you to keep growing. Each month, we send two lists of recommended resources to do just that. In this issue of Grace & Salt, our list comes from Pastor Cam Huxford.
How many pastors do you know who have led exponential growth in the same church for nearly 40 years? Cam Huxford has done just that! Cam stepped into the pulpit of Compassion Christian Church (then Savannah Christian Church) the first Sunday of September 1984, and has pointed more people in South Georgia toward Jesus than anyone I know. Cam baptized me in 1989, hired me in 1995, and has been inspiring, encouraging, and challenging me ever since.
Cam is an extraordinary communicator, a leader of leaders, a pastor of pastors, a man of deep conviction, and a committed follower of Jesus. Just a week before Father’s Day, I asked Cam for a list of resources sure to encourage and challenge men to keep growing, and he did not let me down. Dig in, enjoy, & keep growing! - John Crosby
Here’s Cam’s list:
The New Testament I love books and I believe that leaders are readers...but the most important book I’ve ever read is the Bible, particularly the New Testament. No other book is inspired by God; Jesus said that the Scriptures all pointed to Him (John 5:39). Reading the New Testament is 100x more powerful than reading any book about the New Testament. Reading a chapter a day keeps spiritual weakness away. I would encourage every man who wants to grow to embrace some Bible reading plan... and execute it every day.
Soul Strength, Alan Ahlgrim This book was written specifically for men! Alan has been a 50 year friend and mentor and he distilled all that he has learned in his long ministry about how “like iron sharpens iron,” one man can sharpen another. You’ll discover not only strategies and environments that promote spiritual growth...but a language to use to talk about it. Every man should read this book.
Heaven, Randy Alcorn In this book, Randy compares going to Heaven to going to Australia. If you were moving there for a year...think of all the preparation and planning and research you’d do in anticipation of that move. Yet, followers of Jesus plan to spend all eternity in Heaven and most men have a cursory understanding of their future home at best. This book will introduce you to what the Bible actually says about your future destination where you will spend your eternal life and help you develop an excitement and anticipation about going there.
Loving God, Chuck Colson Chuck was involved in the Watergate Scandal and went to prison for his crimes. Just before his incarceration he was led to a life-changing relationship with Jesus by Tom Phillips, the President of Raytheon. Colson said that God used his most embarrassing failure to open the door to the most meaningful work of his life. This book challenged me to do more than just talk about loving God. It will challenge you too.
7 Men and the Secret of their Greatness, Eric Metaxas This book is about 7 godly men who made an indelible impact on their world. From athletes to politicians these men were used by God to make positive change in their generation. I found their examples inspiring.
Leadership Pain, Samuel Chand “The level of success to which you rise is directly connected by your ability to endure pain” is one of the quotes from this book that helped me embrace the realities of leadership. I thought if I was a skilled leader I would be smart enough to avoid pain...but I’m facing all these painful situations...I must not be a very skilled leader. The opposite is true! If you have great leadership ability you will have to push through pain to see the fruit of your efforts. The de-mystifying of pain by this great book was very helpful to me. --
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