The most recommended books on Psalms

Eugene Peterson writes, “Morning prayer anticipates the day in hope.” This gentle book of Psalms and prayers is a gem. Each day has just a few sentences from Eugene Peterson to take me deeper into the Psalm or scripture passage. The thoughts are reassuring and peaceful, helping me start the day with a focus on God. 

Mary’s Oliver’s nature poems are like psalms: full of beauty, wisdom, and spirituality that touch my heart. I read her poems over and over again.

In particular, during a silent retreat I attended near Gloucester, Massachusetts where scripture is assigned for reflection, her poems became my meditations. Every morning in the dining room overlooking the sea, I watched the sun rise, glowing across the waves and rocks. “Hello, sun in my face…” Oliver writes and ends with, “Watch, now, how I start the day / in happiness, in kindness.”

This is one of my all-time favorite books.

Why?

First, I love sheep. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because I identify with all of Jesus’ examples about those simple creatures.

And I get that I need as much of God's help as they do.

Second, I love the way Keller applies the gospel to his life as (a shepherd) in helpful and practical ways that help readers more fully understand what Jesus meant by what He said.

Just talking about this book makes me want to go back and read it again.

If you’re a dog person, Keller also wrote a similar book called Lessons from a Sheep Dog. That’s a good one, too! (Please don't tell my sheep dog I recommended the sheep book over of the dog book. ☺️)

This is a very funny book about a very serious game’ and has a foreword by David Lloyd, the famous comical cricket commentator and ex-professional player.

This is a true book describing all the events involved in getting a team together to play cricket each week. It’s hilarious some of the excuses they come up with for not turning up each week.

There is a magnificent photograph at the end of the book showing all the members of Mike Harfield’s XI in 1981. People’s names have not been changed and no one’s identity is protected.

There are also some real gems of information that you wouldn’t find even in Wikipedia about the finer points of the derivation of the word ‘Nelson’. Also some humorous quips about real-life famous figures, not necessarily connected with cricket, but the descriptions are depicted in cricketing terms.

We want kids to learn that peacemaking is first an inside job. And we can experience this peace in the presence of God. Before we respond to the conflicts around us, God wants to calm the conflict within us. This is a big part of what it means to know Him as the Good Shepherd.

This book makes David’s most famous song into a meditative prayer–and it helps parents invite their children into the peace of God. If our kids can learn to slow down and find peace through being with the good Shepherd from their youngest ages, they will naturally become peacemakers as an overflow of His leading! 

The Steinsaltz Haggadah is a traditional Haggadah with a traditional translation, but what makes it shine are the explanations. The traditional Haggadah is in many respects a difficult book – much of it is hard to understand as is. Rabbi Steinsaltz provides explanations that bring some degree of clarity to these difficult passages. In addition, Rabbi Steinsaltz provides marvelous explanations of the Psalms of Praise recited at the seder and on Jewish holidays. I’ve recited these psalms many times over many years, and Rabbi Steinsaltz explains them in a way that I’ve never seen. When I study Talmud, I use the Steinsaltz translation, because in both the Talmud and the Haggadah, the explanations are spectacularly clear.

This beautiful book includes thirty morning and evening readings of Celtic prayers, poetry, and quotations. I love the fresh look at nature and God through the eyes of the Celts. Readings are from Psalm 119 and from the Carmina Gadelica, a collection of traditional Gaelic Songs.  A lovely and inspirational way to start and end your day. 

This book surprised the heck out of me. In a genre where overpowered main characters are the norm, this story proved that even the greatest of powers can have limitations. It proves that with enough creativity, even the simplest of abilities can astound and amaze. The story also does an amazing job of mixing in intrigue and mystery without needing to constantly explain or do information dumps. I could blather on about this story, but above all else, the way in which it was executed makes it a must-mention on this list.

I love this book for several reasons, not the least being the feeling of nostalgia I get just from the illustrations. With one look at the Bear family on the cover, I am transported back to hiding under the covers to read after lights out, and the storyline brings back memories of all the summer fun with our church youth group.

The author doesn’t dance around the issue of lying—and that takes me back to my childhood, as well; we did not tap-dance around the truth! As a person of faith, I also appreciate that the text uses some wisdom scripture from Psalms as an anchor. 

Sometimes the pain of our suffering is multiplied because those around us act as though grieving is a sign of weakness and lack of faith. Although we live in a world with many wonderful things, we will all experience suffering at some point. And trying to numb or avoid our pain doesn’t make our hurt and grief disappear. For that reason, I’ve been helped and encouraged by Mark Vroegop’s book because it teaches us to lament, which is acknowledging our grief and pain to God, giving ourselves the space and time to grieve while holding onto hope at the same time.