The Christian History Devotional: 365 Readings & Prayers to Deepen & Inspire Your Faith

by J. Stephen Lang

Could you spare five minutes per day to get acquainted with some truly fascinating people and events?  If so, you’ll love The Christian History Devotional, where each day you’ll learn more about your “spiritual family,” people who are as much a part of the rich Christian heritage as the people of the Bible.

In these 365 vignettes you’ll meet some names that will be Billy Graham, Martin Luther, C. S. Lewis, John Wesley, Mother Teresa, Francis of Assisi, Augustine, Corrie ten Boom.  You’ll also meet Christian athletes (Olympic runner Eric Liddell), scientists (George Washington Carver, Johannes Kepler), authors (G. K. Chesterton, John Milton, Anne Bradstreet), statesmen (William Gladstone, William Jennings Bryan), missionaries (Gladys Aylward, William Carey, Francis Xavier), evangelists (Billy Sunday, Dwight L. Moody, “Gypsy” Smith), artists (Rembrandt, Michelangelo), social reformers (William Wilberforce, Josephine Butler), soldiers (“Stonewall” Jackson, Oliver Cromwell), and many others, from the first century to the present, a diverse cast of truly amazing people.

Turn to August 12, the day in 1973 when political “hatchet man” Chuck Colson gave his life to Christ.  March 21, read about devout composer Johann Sebastian Bach, born on that date in 1685.  April 1, learn about Communist-spy-turned-Christian Whittaker Chambers, born in 1901.  October 15, meet evangelist Sam Jones, for whom the Ryman Auditorium (Grand Ole Opry) was built.  October 31, discover what led Martin Luther to launch the Reformation in 1517.

Whether you’re a history buff or someone who always thought history was boring, here’s a book to enlarge your spiritual family and teach you valuable lessons about life and faith.  Here is history with a heart.

Genres: Christian, History, Nonfiction, Devotional, Christianity, Church History

384 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 4, 2012

About the author

J. Stephen Lang is the author of the bestseller The Complete Book of Bible Trivia and sixteen other books, including 1,001 Things You Always Wanted to Know About the Bible and 1,001 Things You Always Wanted to Know About the Holy Spirit.

Reviews

[Rhenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting and informative.

This is a daily devotional with an interesting bit of Christian history for each day all year. I really enjoyed it and will probably read it again.

[Keith Beasley-Topliffe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of brief accounts of significant people and events in Christian history arranged by date (except Feb 29) usually the death or birth date for a person or the date of the event. Some are famous, some obscure. Some are early, a few modern (mostly defenders of biblical literacy) and the great bulk are between the beginning of the Reformation and the end of the 19th century. Overwhelmingly white men. I have been reading this as part of my daily devotions from 1 Nov 2017 until yesterday (31 Oct 18). I found many of the readings interesting, a few irritating. I found most of the prayers (usually one sentence) superficial or pat. Often they served the place of morals in Aesop's Fables, telling me what I was supposed to have gotten out of the reading.
Who's done it better? W. Paul Jones in An Eclectic Almanac for the Faithful. Robert Ellsberg in All Saints: Daily Reflections on Saints, Prophets, and Witnesses for Our Time. Richard P. McBrien in Lives of the Saints (overwhelmingly Catholic and Orthodox). Those were part of my devotions in 2014-15, 2015-16, and 2016-17, respectively.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of daily readings from Christian history than a devotional, nevertheless I learned a lot from this book and would recommend it.

[Joyce Day · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay but Could Have Been Better

I enjoyed reading the short bios of Christians throughout the ages but was disappointed at the unbalanced approach that ignored many of the women of faith. Reading this book, one gets the feeling that with a few exceptions, men are the only Christian heroes. Even some of the entries that started out being about women shifted to shine the light on men in their lives. There are other biases as well. I was especially disappointed in this quote, “France was not always the land of culture, good food, and men afraid to fight.” Culture and good food are indeed parts of the French society, but “men afraid to fight?” That statement is mean, unfair, and unnecessary in the point the author wanted to make.

[Steven Yoder · Rating 5 out of 5]

J. Stephen Lang has written 365 devotionals, mainly about specific people of the faith and how they responded to the challenges of their times. You have people like Josephine Butler who took on the issue of sex trafficking. Or there was John Wanamaker, who was a Christian businessman. Or there was archeologist William Ramsay, who came to faith because of his exploration of the ruins in the Middle East. There are many more interesting and important figures described within this devotional. I enjoyed it a lot.

[Linda M Poole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent daily devotions

I’ve include this devotional in my daily devotions for the last couple years & will continue to use it. Very well written, full of historical stories of the Christian faith.

[B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent daily devotional. Short and easy to read. Not deep in terms of Scripture study, but lots of inspiring stories.

[Jay A. George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading about people who made a difference in the history of Christianity.k I think everyone, whether a history buff or not, could benefit from knowing about these individuals in our past.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, a confession.

I am horrible at sticking to reading devotionals.

That is why I bought this one. I thought that getting a daily injection of historical fun facts would help me build a better habit. Unfortunately, most of the days that I read this were rather lackluster. The stories were only sort of interesting and not at all inspiring. Some of them were even stories of people who worked against Christianity or persecuted Christians, which I found odd. It read more like a history of the day calendar than a devotional.

So, I'm still horrible at reading devotionals. Sigh.

[Evelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

God's Sovereignty Seen in Church History.

This book is titled a devotional. I would title it more as informational. It includes stories of all kinds of people, some saints, some villains that have over the past 2000 years been a part of God's master plan for the church. God is sovereign and is not limited. An interesting and worthwhile read.

[Lynn Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. The daily devotionals are easy to read in 2-5 minutes. I learned a lot of church history which was interesting and it gave me a good discipline to start my day focusing for a few minutes on spiritual things.

[Jeani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative and well written

I planned to read one devotional each day and instead finished the book in no time! I recommend it highly and I plan to keep it in my library for future reference.

[Phil Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting Devotional

While not necessarily from an evangelical perspective, this devotional provides some interesting historical information. Recommended for those who are interested in church history.

[Jo May · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great look into early Christian life

I used this book as part of my daily devotions. It amazes me how much our early Christian brothers went through for their faith. I am thankful for their faithfulness. It inspires us through the challenges we face everyday.

[Suzanne Noakes]

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