Books I Read in 2023
“In 5 years, you’ll be the exact same person you are now apart from the books you read and the people you meet.”
-Charlie Tremendous Jones
If ever a quote has landed so hard with my entire being, it is that one. There are few things I love to do more than sit with a hot cup of coffee with a book that will help me grow in wisdom, in my relationships, or in skill that will benefit those around me. To that end, books have the power to transform my life and my future, and that means the books I read impact my family plus those I lead as well.
If time and money were no object, what I would do with my time is read for 3 hours every day. Then I would have a heart-to-heart conversation with someone I love. But time and money is a thing, 😆 so I don’t get to do that…yet.
One day, though.
For now, I have a habit of getting up early before the rest of my family so that I can spend time alone with the Lord and so I can read.
Here are the books I read in 2023 and the value I got from each:
This one was very interesting to me. I love to learn about what makes people behave the way they behave, or respond the way they respond to circumstances and situations. This book was about shame, and how shame drives behavior in relationships. I learned the different ways shame shows up, often masked as other things. Being able to recognize shame in people has helped me better relate to them, coach them, and lead them. I definitely loved this book and learned a lot from it. I listened to this one on Audible.
The Fruit of Her Hands: Respect and the Christian Woman by Nancy Wilson
This one was a very short listen on Audible (2 hours, 15 minutes) but it’s one of those that really packs a punch in a short amount of time. Lots of wisdom and lots of gut checks while listening to this one. 😆
I want to be a godly wife to my husband, and my husband would probably tell you that (for the most part) I honor him well. But this book helped me see just how much I can improve in that area, and how honoring your husband has a great deal to do with what we do, and not only what we say.
This one I also listened to on Audible, and I learned why journaling is effective for gaining clarity and self-awareness. Clarity is important to me because anytime I don’t have clarity, then I won’t be taking the right actions or having the right habits to get the result I want. And self-awareness is important because out of the Top 10 qualities that the highest paid CEO’s in America have in common, self-awareness is at the top of the list. When you are aware of your own tendencies, desires, motivations, and fears, you relate to people better and therefore lead people better.
However, I did feel like this book had a lot of “fluff” in it, and the points made could have been made with less words and in less time. Also, the tone of author often laid down vibes of a victim mentality, which is the opposite of how I want to be, so I probably would not recommend this book and likely won’t read anything else by this author. 😬
Twice Freed by Patricia St. John
This one was a read-aloud to my kids (and was assigned reading for school). I loved it 😍 It was a nice change in genre from my norm. I don’t read much fiction but I do enjoy it, and this one was a historical fiction based on the story of Philemon in the Bible. It gave context to the actual events and therefore deeper understanding of the meaning of that part of Scripture. I definitely recommend this one as a read-aloud to your kids.
Delay, Don’t Deny: Living an Intermittent Fasting Lifestyle by Gin Stephens
This was a quick listen on Audible and a great introduction to the benefits and results of intermittent fasting. It definitely intrigued me and was a gateway to learning more about intermittent fasting. She’s not the most health conscious and doesn’t care as much about the quality of the food as she does about the results with her weight and appetite control, so I wouldn’t call this a health or nutrition book. 😬 But it was interesting and easy to listen to and short, and I read one of the books she frequently referred to which I’ll talk about next.
AC: The Power of Appetite Correction by Bert Herring
This one actually was written by a doctor and discusses the science of appetite plus how to correct an appetite that is causing one to overeat. It’s another intermittent fasting book, and I really enjoyed the science in this one. It was a short listen on Audible.
I LOVED this one!! My team read this one together as a book study and this is one I highlighted most of every page because it was SO good! I had a hard copy of this one and I was glad I did. I love a book about habits and how successful people think and how successful people behave, because I want to be a successful person! HIGHLY recommend this one for any woman with goals!!
Boundaries for Leaders: Results, Relationships, and Being Ridiculously in Charge by Dr. Henry Cloud
This one I am going to go ahead and call transformative. I learned SO much from this book. In February of 2023, I was able to meet Dr. Cloud in person and receive a whole day of training from him, and my company gifted us several of his books. I started reading this one on the flight on the way home, thinking it was going to be a book about how to have better balance between my work and my personal life, but it was actually not about having boundaries around your work until the last chapter! This book was about how as a leader, you have to have boundaries around your attention! And not just your own attention, but your team’s attention! This book helped me realize just how many distractions I was putting before my people and actually impeding their focus and therefore their progress! So this one helped me drill down to exactly what we needed to focus on to drive our businesses forward, get everyone focused on those things, and say no to anything that distracts from the key drivers!
I think EVERY leader who feels responsible to help others make progress needs to read this book!!
This book wins the award of most impactful book I read all year!!! I might even put this one on Top 10 list of favorite books I’ve ever read. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt SO seen and understood as a Christian entrepreneur than I did while reading this book.
This one wrecked me, actually. In all the best ways. It helped me realize areas where I was trying to do everything in my own power and strength instead of trusting in the Lord’s resources to do things I cannot do. It revealed to me how my thinking was causing me a lot of unnecessary stress as a business owner! And it drew me closer to the Lord.
Hands down my FAVORITE book all year! Every entrepreneur needs to read. This one impacted me so much I actually recorded several podcasts with my thoughts on it and how it changed me.
If you struggle with anxiety in or about your business, you’re going to want to hear episodes 43 and 44 on the LeadHerShip podcast, because those will help you be free of that.
10. A Call to Prayer by J.C. Ryle
If you know you need to improve your prayer life, and you need a perspective that is going to MAKE you want to pray, then this small but mighty book is going to be the call to action that you need. It was probably the most transformative book I read all year, and it was super short! So far this year I have cultivated a very consistent prayer habit, and I have so much more peace in my life when my tendency is to worry! This little book made me want to pray like nothing else I’ve ever read before. Highly recommend this quick but powerful read!!
11. Knowing God by J.I. Packer
I wanted to read at least one good theology book in 2023 and this one I read with a few ladies from my church and I loved it. One chapter in particular stands out to me that was about why Christians suffer. I happened to be on that chapter the week of the shooting that happened at the small presbyterian school in Nashville, where 6 people were murdered, 3 of them being children. That shooting was so disturbing to me emotionally and spiritually, because the description of that school could’ve fit a description of my kids’ school, and the kids that were murdered were one of my kid’s ages! It was so sobering and heart wrenching and I had to take some time to grieve and process it and even asked God, “why?”
This book brought me great comfort with its sound theological perspective on suffering in our lives. And I loved reading this one with friends and getting together in person once a month to discuss.
12. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry: How to Stay Emotionally Healthy and Spiritually Alive in the Chaos of the Modern World
This one I loved. As a mom of 6 kids ranging from married to toddler, plus growing a thriving business, life can feel so fast-paced at times!! And when things feel fast-paced, it can rob me of peace and even joy sometimes if I am not careful. This book helped me make some changes in my life and put some boundaries in place that helped me to be more present in the moment, get more rest, and walk closer with Jesus as I depend on him to carry my burdens because his yoke is easy and his burden is light. It was a stark reminder of Who is control, and that it’s His power when something gets done, not mine. Except for a few liberal-leaning remarks he made in the book, I really enjoyed this one.
So in 2023, I read 1 marriage book, 3 theology/Christian living books, 5 personal development/leadership books, 2 nutrition books, and 1 fiction novel for a total of 12 books finished last year. I started many others that I will likely finish this year. Have you read any of these? I’d love to hear your thoughts about the ones you read! 🤍
