J D Davis Ministries

08/14/2026

Friday Book Post: Worship in an Age of Anxiety by J Michael Jordan. This is another series of books I am reading in preparation for a sermon series on anxiety. This book heavily focused on a structure of evangelical worship that the author believes promotes anxiety. However, while he argues that emotionally manipulative, things are structured in a typical evangelical worship service, he argues for creating emotionally different worship services that cater to people struggling with anxiety.
In the end, I found the book lacking in terms of worship. The focus of worship is not the worshipers, but the God we come to worship. Building worship services that cater to a certain group of people and their needs, makes the focus on the individual and not God.
Certainly, we do not want to create emotionally manipulative worship services, and we do not want to ignore people struggling with anxiety. But the answer for anxiety does not lie and better crafted worship services. The answer for anxiety lies in the transformative power of the Holy Spirit to renew our minds, encourage our hearts, and make us bold and courageous.
It is not a bad book, but I do not agree with this premise.

08/12/2026

07/26/2026

A new book that I have been working on for about a year.

A guide to discover a pattern of prayer that will lead you to develop a deeper and more consistent prayer life. You will learn how to meditate on scripture and apply it to your life.

07/17/2026

Friday Book Post: Anxious For Nothing by John MacArthur.
This book is similar to the one I posted last week and yet very different. MacArthur deals more with scripture exegesis and biblical examples. There is a guide for small group discussion at the end of this book, thus the information he is presenting is meant to be processed and applied to our lives. Max Lucado had scriptures at the end of his book with a heavy emphasis on the book of psalms. He was more interested in how it impacted us as individuals, MacArthur is more interested in how it grows disciples and builds the church. Both are good books, but with very different perspectives.

07/10/2026

Friday Book Post: Anxious for Nothing by Max Lucado.
I am preparing for a sermon series this fall of addressing this very statement by Paul, “ is it possible to be anxious for nothing?”
I read two books with this title. This week I’m presenting Max Lucado’s book and in the future I will present John MacArthur’s book. While similar, they are very different.
Lucado’s book is in the pattern of his previous books. It is full of personal stories and insights woven together with scripture and practical applications. It is warm and comforting, while being encouraging and uplifting.