In 1997, Alistair Begg was the guest speaker in my college classroom. He thrilled his young-adult audience with the story of how he won the heart of his girlfriend, who became his wife, by writing letters.
After some correspondence, he traveled from Scotland to the US for a visit. Her friends–he described them as athletic young men–offered to take Alistair waterskiing to show him a good time.
Alistair regaled us with the most hilarious and self-deprecating description of his first experience on skis by comparing himself to the Americans who had ample waterskiing experience. He closed his story by saying, “But all those American water skiers fell to the Scotsman’s pen.” He won her heart, not with water tricks, but with tender words.
If you’ve heard Alistair Begg preach, you know that besides being a solid minister of the gospel of Jesus, he is a masterful wordsmith, captivating storyteller, and a somewhat self-deprecating humorist.
In addition to all that, he is extremely well-read. So when one student from our class asked him what books he’d recommend, his answer surprised us.
He said, “People are your books.”
I’ve never forgotten it. Begg wasn’t denigrating reading. He was elevating the people God loves.
We learn how God works in the world by reading our Bibles. But we watch his work as we listen to, or read about, God’s faithfulness in the real-life muck and mud of an individual’s life.
I’ve read several Christian memoirs this year that I can highly recommend. In each one, God’s mind-blowing faithfulness and guidance are on display in full color.
I’ll add one caveat. In most books I love, there seems to be an element of major tragedy. Maybe that’s true of all great stories, but I’m offering you fair warning that these are not varnished Christian tales. Each story demonstrates what we learn at Christmas: God came down to the dirtiest and most uncomfortable places to invite people to himself.

As always, I’d love to hear your book recommendations. What are your favorite memoirs?
{NOTE: Each of the links below is an affiliate link, which means that if you buy the book through my link to Amazon, they will pay me a few cents for recommending it but you will not be charged any extra.}
Becoming Elizabeth Elliot, by Ellen Vaughn
When I was introduced to Elizabeth Elliot’s books in college, I found her writing and personality to be so austere that I felt she lived on a different planet. She struck me as unsympathetic, stoic, and staunchly loyal to the conservative Christian norms of her day.
And while that might have been partially true, her journals reveal she was wonderfully human. She struggled to contain passionate emotions of love as well as anger. Despite her seemingly impenetrable exterior, her feelings could be hurt. She prayed prayers that seemed “unanswered,” and yet she was undoubtedly in love with and committed to Jesus Christ. She was far ahead of her time in many ways, and her intellectual fortitude and clear thinking weren’t fully appreciated or utilized in her day.
Vaughn’s stellar writing paints an honest portrait of a woman’s long, continuous, faithful, and often confounding walk with Christ. I highly, highly recommend it. I listened to the audiobook first and then bought the hardcover because I loved it so much.
Where the Light Fell, by Philip Yancey
Philip Yancey has long been a favorite of mine. He asks questions many Christians are afraid to explore. Yancey’s honest investigation always proves that Christ is faithful and gracious, even when his people are not.
Where the Light Fell is the raw and gritty story of Yancey’s upbringing in a fundamentalist, racist family, church, and community. He does not polish his own character or the circumstances that shaped him. Instead, we get to see the events that built the writer who would ask hard questions and find them answered by God’s grace to us in Christ. His life’s story shows us that “mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:13).
Yancey has written, “I rejected the church for a time because I found so little grace there. I returned because I found grace nowhere else” (What’s so Amazing About Grace, preface).
I’m grateful for all of Yancey’s careful research, truth-telling, and stellar writing.
The Cross and the Switchblade, by David Wilkerson

I’d heard of this title many times throughout the years, but I had no idea what it was about. When I discovered it was co-written with the same authors who helped Corrie Ten Book write The Hiding Place (another favorite memoir!), I snatched it up.
I was not disappointed. Tragedy catapulted David Wilkerson into action, and his reliance on God’s clear direction was at once refreshing and shocking.
From the back cover: “David Wilkerson was just a young preacher in the Pennsylvania hills when he was stunned by a new calling from God: go to New York City to speak to seven young gang members on trial for murder.
But something much greater was to come. Once in New York, David was inspired to stay for a lifetime of helping troubled teenagers get free of drugs and crime. With the word of God in his ears, he founded an inner-city ministry still known as the Teen Challenge to change their paths and alter thousands of lives forever.”
While Wilkerson taught the “filling of the Holy Spirit” differently than I’ve been taught, the evidence of God’s leading and effective work in Wilkerson’s life and ministry is undeniable.
If you’ve read or end up reading any of these, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Favorite Christian Memoirs from Past Years
Murder, Motherhood, and Miraculous Grace: A True Story, by Deborah Moerke (A story of foster care and supernatural forgiveness)
Where I End, by Katherine Elizabeth Clark (A story of God’s faithfulness through life-altering injury.)
The Peace Child, by Don Richardson (A story about bringing the gospel to people with no prior knowledge of Christ through the analogies in their drastic cultural traditions.)
What should I add to my to-be-read list in 2022? Please email or comment to let me know!
I’m reading “Becoming Elisabeth Elliot” now. She has been a mentor of mine for many years. Another favorite is Corrie Ten Boom. I vibe missionary stories although I never wanted to be a missionary (I refused to sing the old song “wherever he leads I’ll go” as a kid at camp, in the late 1950’s-early 1960’s)
Thank you for these emails -I loved the Wisemen tale at Christmas.
I look forward to reading the other two books you mentioned in this email! Jan
Corrie Ten Boom’s “the Hiding Place” is one of my favorites, too! Thanks for reading, Jan. You encourage me!
Thank you so much, Shauna, for these suggestions! I read Philip Yancey’s memoir … what a story. I have to check into Becoming Elisabeth Elliot! As always, reading here is such a blessing 🤗
Thanks for reading, Heidi. YOU are a blessing!!
An older one, but my favorite. The Five Silent Years of Corrie Ten Boom. by Pamela Rosewell Moore. Pam was Corrie’s companion in her elder years. Describes Corrie’s last years of speaking and her years of disabling strokes. Great lessons. When I read it in my younger years it encouraged me not to be afraid to get older. Jesus is able to use us in whatever age we are in.
I’ve heard of that one, but I’ve never read it. I’ll definitely add it to my list!!