One of the things we're doing as we wrap up the year here at Sola Panel is to ask our contributors to share some of their highlights for the year from the world of reading and the web. Here's Scott Newling's contribution:

1. Three best Christian books of 2009:

   • Engage: Daily Bible reading notes for youth published by The Good Book Company. They are almost unique in their genre, and are well worth using as staple for a youth ministry discipleship program.
   • The Cross of Christ by John Stott.
   • Pierced for our Transgressions by Steve Jeffery, Mike Ovey, Andrew Sach.

2. Top stretching theological read of the year:

   • Prophecy in its Ancient Near Eastern Context edited by Martti Nissinen

3. Best fiction of 2009:

   • Janny Wurts's refreshingly (and uncommonly) original Wars of Light and Shadow series.

4. Best non-theological non-fiction of 2009:

   • David Allen, Getting Things Done (thanks Lionel!)

5. Favourite Matthias Media release of the year:

   • Hem hem … this is not a new release, but I enjoyed using The Blueprint again in Bible study this year (AUS | US).

6. Best website(s) discovered this past year:

   • Not much of an adventurer, sorry.

7. Three best sermons or other audio downloads heard this year (individual talks or series; could be from preachers you hear locally, and not just the overseas heroes):

   • If they are accessible online (I'm not sure), but the talks given by Mark Dever and William Taylor at the Ministry Training and Development conference are brilliant.
   • The Confess or Die conference has put its talks online.
   • The Gospel Coalition has a conversation (in 10 chapters) between Tim Keller, John Piper, and Don Carson.

8. Most memorable article(s) you've read this year:

   • ‘Christian Girls, Interrupted’ by William McGurn, Sept 7, Wall Street Journal.
   • Lionel's ‘Increase Your Biblical Word Power’ series on Sola Panel: these came just at the right time while I was preaching on the cross of Christ.
   • Peter Jensen's speech at Sir Marcus Loane's memorial: There is a video version on sydneyanglicans.net; the text is available in the Anglican Church League News.

9. Book of the year and why:

   • Engage: Daily Bible reading notes for youth published by the Good Book Company. It's more of a subscription than a single book, but I think these are fantastic. Most teen (and adult for that matter) daily bible readings (‘devotionals’) spend very little time actually reading the Bible. They usually tell a story, tie it to a verse, and get you to reflect on a verse in light of the story. I'd despaired of finding decent material (and was about to start writing my own) when a friend working at the Good Book Company told me that these were on the way. They are almost unique in their genre, and, as I said, are well worth using as staple for a youth ministry discipleship program. They actually get youth reading the Bible and asking questions about it. They also have some other materials (interviews, articles on ‘hard questions’, etc.) scattered through the notes, independent of the Bible readings. It costs about $8 for three months of readings.

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