General Clergy Books

A Christian Bookstore for Pastors
And the Congregations Who Love Them

General clergy books are to a pastor what wrenches and pliers are to a car mechanic: essential tools of the trade. And there's something else pastor books are good for: decoration! Books look great on a pastor's shelves.

While the Christian books listed below will look good on any shelf, I didn't chose them based on their appearance. I tried to find the best books for pastors and for people who want to better partner with and minister to their shepherds.

Many of these general clergy books make great gifts. Others are listed here to help you better understand and encourage your pastor.

In addition to these general clergy books, I also created a page with Christian discipleship books.

Pastor Appreciation Bulletins and Offering Envelopes

These bulletin covers can help encourage your congregation to show their pastor appreciation. The offering envelopes can be used for a special offering taken for your pastor and his or her family.

Pastor Appreciation Bulletins

Pastor Appreciation Offering Envelopes

Understand and Encourage Your Pastor

The general clergy books listed in this section help people better understand and minister to their pastors.

How to Keep the Pastor You Love: Caring for Ministers & Their Families By Jane Rubietta Pastors are human and experience depression, discouragement, and despair just like everybody else. Does your congregation support your minister when he needs it most? Exploring the flip side of pastoral care, Rubietta debunks the myth of the superhuman pastor and offers compassionate advice on how you can build healthy, mutually sustaining relationships with your church leaders. 180 pages, softcover from InterVarsity.

The Pastor's Family

The general clergy books listed in this section help congregations better understand the life of the pastor's family.

Counsel for Pastors' Wives
By Diane Langberg

Pastor Challenges and Burnout

The books for pastors listed in this section help pastors and congregations understand and triumph over the unique challenges of pastoral life.

In my opinion, Margin is the best resource for combating the overloaded life. It gets my highest recommendation.

Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial, and Time Reserves to Overloaded Lives, Revised Are you worn out? This book offers healthy living in four areas we all struggle with: emotional energy, physical energy, time, and finances, and will prepare you to live a balanced life.

Preventing Ministry Failure: A ShepherdCare Guide for Pastors, Ministers and Other Caregivers
By Michael Todd Wilson & Brad Hoffmann

Clergy Burnout: Recovering from the 70-Hour Work Week... and Other Self-Defeating Practices
By Fred Lehr

Clergy Killers
By G. Lloyd Rediger

The Wounded Minister: Healing from and Preventing Personal Attacks
By Guy Greenfield, Ph.D.

Leaders That Last
By Gary D. Kinnaman & Alfred H. Ells

The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict, Third Edition
By Ken Sande

Pastor Search

The general clergy books listed in this section help pastor search committees be more effective in their task.

The Big Book of Job Descriptions for Ministry
By Dr. Larry Gilbert

In Search of God's Man: A Help for Pulpit Committees
By Douglas E. DeVore

A Pastor's Decision to Leave

The pastor books listed in this section help pastors and congregations make better decisions about and during a pastoral transition.

Ten Commandments for Pastors Leaving a Congregation
By Lawrence W. Farris

The Ten Commandments for Pastors New to a Congregation
By Lawrence W. Farris

Advice to Pastors

The clergy books listed in this section provide counsel regarding the role of a pastor.

My Highest Recommendations

The pastor books listed in this section earned my highest recommendation because they help pastors better understand the nature of the church and of pastoral ministry. In my opinion, pastor burnout is caused when ministry and the church no longer make "sense" in the pastor's world. These books help change that.

The Missional Leader: Equipping Your Church to Reach a Changing World
By Alan J. Roxburgh & Fred Romanuk

Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America
By Edited by Darrell L. Guder

The Ministry of the Missional Church: A Community Led by the Spirit
By Craig Van Gelder

Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial, and Time Reserves to Overloaded Lives, Revised Are you worn out? This book offers healthy living in four areas we all struggle with: emotional energy, physical energy, time, and finances, and will prepare you to live a balanced life.

I hope that these general clergy books help you better understand, partner with, and minister to your pastor. And don't forget, many of these Christian books would be great pastor gifts.

Didn't find what you were looking for? Perhaps instead of general clergy books you might want Christian discipleship books.