The following is a list of some of the books, music, ministries, and other things that have had an impact on us. If you decide to check them out we hope you will enjoy them as much as we have!
The Final Quest Trilogy by Rick Joyner
The Final Quest by Rick Joyner is an epic book that has impacted countless lives. Many people consider it one of the best books they’ve ever read.
Description from the book: “The Final Quest is a panoramic vision of the ultimate quest. It is about the greatest battle between light and darkness, which is happening now. Published in nearly fifty languages, it continues to call all who will go on to the greatest and most noble adventure of the age.”
Note: You can also complete the Trilogy with The Call and The Torch And The Sword, or you can get all three in one book. We highly recommend all three books in the Final Quest series.
Driven By Eternity by John Bevere
Note: You can listen to the audio book version Driven By Eternity, as well as several other of John Bevere’s books, courses, and other life-changing resources for FREE through his app MessengerX
Description from the book: "One day you will stand before God and give an account of your life. The most important question you can ask yourself now is, will you be ready?
Most Christians know their response to the cross determines where they will spend eternity. But did you know that how you’ll spend eternity is determined by what you do in this life?
God wants you to discover your calling—he’s not trying to keep you in the dark. In fact, He longs for you to find the meaning and purpose that comes with knowing why you’ve been placed on this earth.
In Driven by Eternity, best-selling author John Bevere uses an eye-opening allegory and extensive Scripture to unveil how our daily choices shape our eternal existence.
Life beyond the final breath is much more than a destination. Don’t wait until it’s too late. Discover your God-given destiny and make your life count both today and forever."
Note: You can listen to the audio book version Driven By Eternity, as well as several other of John Bevere’s books and courses for FREE through his app MessengerX
God's Generals by Roberts Liardon
God's Generals is an amazing series of books that chronicle the lives of some of the most remarkable men and women of God throughout history. Each book focuses on a specific group of individuals who have had a major impact for God's Kingdom: 20th Century Revivalists, the Reformer's, the Revivalists from the 18th and 19th Centuries, the Healing Evangelists, the Missionaries, and the Martyrs.
Description from the first God's Generals book: "In God's Generals Roberts Liardon will help you recapture God's glory with twelve compelling spiritual biographies of some of the most powerful ministers to ever ignite the fires of revival....Roberts Liardon faithfully chronicles their lives in this work, along with their teachings, their spiritual discoveries, and many revealing photos. He also draws crucial life applications for you from the lives of these mighty warriors. God's Generals will help you learn to obey the Spirit's leading in every area of your life - and keep your ministry powerful and successful!"
God's Empowering Presence by Gordon Fee
Gordon Fee is among the most respected New Testament scholars and theologians of our time. He is considered a leading expert in pneumatology and textual criticism of the New Testament and is also the author of several books on biblical exegesis. Some of his works include the popular How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth and a major commentary on 1 Corinthians as well as numerous other commentaries on various books in the New Testament. Gordon Fee was also a member of the Committee on Bible Translation that translated the New International Version (NIV).
A helpful review of this book: "Fee's book is the most comprehensive treatment available of Paul's understanding of the Holy Spirit, a topic that has rarely received sufficient attention in studies of Pauline theology. Fee's method is exemplary: he first analyzes Paul's statements about the Spirit, in each individual letter, and then moves to a synthesis of Paul's general pneumatology. The result is a book that is deeply exegetical, doing justice both to the particularity of Paul's writings and to the fundamental unity of his vision for the Spirit's role in the life of the Christian community. Most importantly, Fee emphasizes insistently that the Holy Spirit must be experienced as a living presence within the church. That message is both faithful to Paul and urgent for the community of faith in our time."~ Richard B. Hays, professor of New Testament, Duke University Divinity School
Good Morning, Holy Spirit by Benny Hinn
This is a classic book that has impacted millions of lives, including several prominent Christian leaders in the 1990's and 2000's who were used as major catalysts in world-wide movements and revivals such the Argentinian Revival, Brownsville Revival, and Toronto. In this book, Benny Hinn gives an autobiographical account of how he discovered that the Holy Spirit is a person and how his life was transformed forever by this discovery. A truly inspiring book that is recommended for anyone who wants to develop their relationship with the Holy Spirit.
Description from the book: "One cold winter night in Toronto, the Holy Spirit entered Benny Hinn's life in such a dramatic way that he was changed forever. The same thing can happen to you. Join the millions of others who have read Good Morning Holy Spirit and discover if you are ready to meet the Holy Spirit intimately and personally, willing to listen to His voice, and prepared to know Him as a person. In this revised and expanded edition of Good Morning, Holy Spirit, Benny Hinn shares the insights and the truths that God has taught him through the years..."
Atlas: Year One by Sleeping At Last
Sleeping At Last is the moniker of singer-songwriter, producer and composer, Ryan O’Neal. It has been several years since I have come across music that I like so much, and I think it's safe to say that Atlas: Year One is one of my favourite albums of all time. I highly recommend it to anyone who is in search for some amazing music that is beautiful, creative, and is not quite like anything else I've heard before.
More Rain by Dan Smith
More Rain is the moniker of the artist and musician, Dan Smith. His songs are heartfelt and authentic, and I am so grateful that I discovered his podcast several years ago and I have been a fan ever since. Dan has a conviction that worship music should be free to use and share, so you can't buy his music, but you can download it for free from his podcast and website. To find his podcast, simply type in "More Rain" in the iTunes store search engine and it will show up under podcasts. I highly recommend his music and I hope that you will check it out.
Live from the Upper Room by Isla Vista Worship
When it comes to worship music, I am definitely partial to live albums. Nothing can replace the raw, in-the-moment sound that diminishes with overly-produced studio albums. Live from the Upper Room is one of those albums that really captures the beauty and passion of corporate worship. Most of the songs are simple, yet powerful, and the sound is heartfelt and genuine. This album is a rare gem and I highly recommend that you check it out.
Live at the Banks House by Will Reagan & United Pursuit
Speaking of amazing live albums, have you checked out Live from the Banks House? This stripped-down living room acoustic style set really captures the essence of United Pursuit's heart and music, and the album played a seminal role in inspiring many other musicians to release similar living room style worship albums in the years that followed. This is another classic album that I highly recommend.
1200 Feet Below Sea Level by Jason Upton
When it comes to spontaneous, prophetic, Spirit-led music, Jason Upton comes to many people's mind as one who is in a category of his own. Jason has released several albums over the years, and many of his live albums contain powerful moments of spontaneous prophetic music. Although I would recommend many of Jason's songs and albums, probably my favourite to date is 1200 Feet Below Sea Level.
Here is a description from the album: "Recorded live in various venues across America in 2007 and 2008, 1200 Feet Below Sea Level finds Jason expressing the heart of God for His people through song, instrumental spontaneity and spoken word… Utilizing his songs as vehicles of artistic expression, Jason leads his band and those in the audience into a contemplative, and yet, explosive musical devotion of what it means to follow Jesus and what it means to believe that the “kingdom is at hand”. For those who have followed Jason’s music over the years, 1200 Feet Below Sea Level has an inviting familiarity to it, which is the launching pad for what seems to be a new, fresh and very needed intensity to focus our entire lives on Jesus as our Lord. Jason handpicked this collection of captured moments from various live events for the sole purpose of encouraging, empowering and engaging the body of Christ to come alive and to come into its eternal calling."
I should also mention that Jason Upton is an amazing preacher and I highly recommend you check out some of his live sets on Youtube.
Housefires II by Housefires
Every once in a while an album comes out that you instantly know is a classic, and Housefires II is one of those albums. It's live, raw, Spirit-led and powerful. Not only does it contain the original version of "Good Good Father" (which was made especially popular when it was subsequently recorded by Christ Tomlin), but it is one of those rare albums that you can listen to and enjoy from beginning to end and still not get sick of it even years later. If you've haven't had the chance to check out this album, I highly recommend it.
Fling Wide by Misty Edwards
A veteran at the International House of Prayer, Misty Edwards has been a part of IHOPKC since its inception in 1999. Misty has released several albums throughout the years, and Fling Wide continues to be my favourite to date (though the now classic album Relentless is a close second) . This album is great and is definitely worth a listen.
United We Stand by Hillsong United
For 20 years now, Hillsong United has been releasing music that continues to be heard in churches every week around the world. This band clearly does not need an introduction, but I wanted to give them a shout out for their album United We Stand, which continues to be my favourite that they have released to date (and incidentally, was the first worship CD I ever purchased). There are several classic songs from this album that continue to be played in churches all these years later. If you haven't heard this album yet, I definitely recommend checking it out.
For All You've Done by Hillsong
Speaking of Hillsong, my "Shout Out" list would not be complete if I didn't mention the album For All You've Done. It is a personal favourite of mine and is one of the albums that I listened to a lot when I first started listening to worship music. It has several amazing songs that I still love to this day. A little tidbit about this album: it was the first Christian Contemporary Music album to ever debut at NO. 1 on the Australian Charts the week of its release. That's legit.
Singalong by Phil Wickham
You may have noticed that not only am I more partial to live worship music over studio recordings, but that I am also more inclined to like acoustic sets. If you're the same, then you should definitely check out Singalong. Although Singalong II and III are also good, this first album in the "Singalong" series is my favourite. You should definitely give it a listen.
Love Came Down by Brian Johnson
Few movements have had such a widespread impact on worship music as Bethel Music in the last decade. Bethel continues to release excellent albums and their songs can be heard in countless churches each week around the world. Although I'd recommend many of their albums, you may not be surprised to hear that one of my favourites is Brian Johnson's live acoustic album Love Came Down.
Check out this album review by Bill Johnson: "Love Came Down is one of the most refreshing worship CDs I've ever listened to. It has an unusual tenderness towards the Lord that is hard to find in a recording of any kind. After being touched by its profound simplicity, I watched the DVD. I was ruined. Tears filled my eyes while I watched and worshipped. Its feel is private and personal, yet royal and pure. I am thankful that this kind of an event could be captured with such excellence for others to enjoy. This CD/DVD set is simply one of the most complete worship experiences available."
Bethel Church, Redding California
Bethel church started as a local church in the small city of Redding in Northern California and went on to become a global movement. Bill Johnson's profound messages through his teachings and books started getting people's attention and then the worship ministries Bethel Music and Jesus Culture spread like wild fire to the point where their music is heard in churches around the globe every week. We spent a few years at Bethel completing their school of ministry where literally thousands of passionate people come from all over the world attend. It was one of the most amazing seasons of our lives and we are so grateful for our time there (we ended up getting married at Bethel in 2012!) Whether it is their amazing teachings that you can hear through their books and podcast, the several world-impacting ministries that have come from Bethel church, or the amazing music that continues to shape the sound of contemporary worship music, we highly recommend that you check out Bethel church! There is no where else on earth quite like it.
Morningstar Ministries, Charlotte North Carolina
You may have noticed from our book recommendations and from our quotes page, that we appreciate Rick Joyner, who is the president and founder of Morningstar Ministries. Rick Joyner is one of my favourite authors and he has written around 50 books, including the Final Quest Series, The Path, and When God Walked the Earth. Rick also has a great teaching ministry and you can watch some of his shows for free at morningstartv.com or The Oak Initiative including Prophetic Perspectives on Current Events as well as his regular rants on Facebook Live. Trisha spent a season at Morningstar Ministries and we appreciate Rick Joyner's books and teachings, and highly recommend the Final Quest series if you haven't checked them out.
International House of Prayer, Kansas City Missouri
The international House of Prayer (IHOP) is a global ministry that is the hub of the prayer movement and has had 24/7 prayer and worship non-stop since 1999. Trisha started attending IHOP right after she got saved and spent many hours at IHOP as an intern for Fire In The Night. If you haven't check them out, you can watch or listen to IHOP's 24/7 worship for free on live stream (or check out their worship set archives at the same link). You can also check out any of Mike Bickle's countless teachings for free at his website. IHOP really emphasizes passion for God and that passion is contagious!
