Life is full and our minds are distracted.
It's hard to find time for deep reading and reflection that forms you in the way of Jesus.
And even if you do make time… What should you read? How can you stay focused? Where can you find others to read with?
We've been there.
That's why we created the Renovaré Book Club.
It's an intentional journey through four carefully selected books to help you create space in your mind and heart for God to work.
For decades, Renovaré has curated the best of Christian writing through the centuries to help people like you grow spiritually.
And when we say “grow spiritually,” we don't mean becoming an expert at meditating on a mountain. (Even though we're all for some Jesus-centered mountain meditation.)
We're talking about a deeper friendship with God and Holy Spirit-empowered change that shows up in how you interact with yourself, your family, even your enemies.
And while a good book doesn't guarantee spiritual growth, God often uses the right book at the right time to spark life—especially when you read and pray and discuss in community.
The Renovaré Book Club combines curated books, a guided path, and a reading community into a journey of renewal. We hope you'll join us.
The Book Club selection committee thoughtfully chooses four books each season—books with that rare combination of depth and accessibility.
You might ask, Why not just do books à la carte?
Well... remember when most music came on records and CDs?
Often you’d buy an album for one song and then discover a hidden gem—a “deep cut”—a track that wasn't “radio friendly” but gripped your heart.
By selecting a “playlist” of four books, you’re invited into the joy of discovery. You’ll encounter fresh perspectives from books you otherwise might not read—like Rich Villodas' new book The Narrow Path or De Caussade's classic, Abandonment to Divine Providence (also called The Sacrament of the Present Moment).
(It's remarkable how often Book Club members tell us that the book they were initially the least drawn to ended up being the one they loved the most.)
You might have spotted Celebration of Discipline in this season's selections. Richard Foster's modern classic gave birth to Renovaré and paved the way for the current spiritual formation movement.
More importantly, it gave countless Christians a practical path to spirital growth driven—not a path of performance, but of increasing dependence on and friendship with Jesus.
It's worth reading, re-reading, discussing, and especially living into.
Miriam "Mimi" Dixon's new book Worth Celebrating will help us do that through the unlikely backstory of Celebration of Discipline, its impact on her, on her congregation, and on modern Christianity.
Founded by Celebration of Discipline author Richard J. Foster, Renovaré is a Christian nonprofit that creates resources and kindles communities which help people become more like Jesus. Learn more about Renovaré.
Membership includes the reading schedule with email reminders, study guides, podcasts, essays, webinars, and a members-only discussion forum where you can interact with other members and the Renovaré team members leading the sessions. Membership also includes access to volunteer-led meet-up groups — virtual or in-person — in select areas.
The Renovaré Book Club begins September 23 with a prep week, then reading begins on September 30. You can join anytime—even after Book Club begins — and jump in with us. You’ll have access to all resources that have been released this season.
Once you join, you will have perpetual access to this season’s resources and access to the discussion forums through Summer 2025.
There are two membership options: one without any books, and one with ONLY the first book (U.S. Only). The value of the membership is in the guidance, podcast conversations, and the community.
Books may be borrowed from your local library, purchased at your local bookseller, or purchased using Amazon or CBD links on the Book Club purchase page.
Readers typically find it easier to use the recommended editions, as page numbers and other details can be edition-specific. The weekly reading assignments themselves do tend to match with chapter breaks.
Note: We are also aware that our readers are increasingly using ebook versions of the texts, and we will do our best to make the reading assignments make sense for the digital versions of our chosen editions as well.
We have been encouraged by the discussion small groups — online and in-person — led by our wonderful member-volunteers.
Renovaré publishes the list of meet-ups but does not have a direct role in hosting the groups. Here is the list of current groups. (Once you become a member, you’ll be able to see group coordinators’ contact info.)
That said, here are a few things to keep in mind:
New volunteers are always signing up to lead, so do continue to check the listings as we draw nearer to the start date.
We expect our Book Club members to treat one another as Jesus would, with the highest level of honor and respect. Any sort of abuse or harassment will not be tolerated — whether in-person or online.
It’s easy to become a discussion group coordinator. Most groups only meet once a month, and we’ll provide a simple guidebook with tips. Learn more on the Group Coordinator Signup Page.
Here is the list of current groups.
Note that you must be a member of the Book Club to contact local volunteer hosts about meet-up times and locations. You will receive a special link with host contact information in your welcome email once you join the Club.
Each year the Renovaré Book Club Selection Committee, which includes Carolyn Arends, Richard Foster, and other Renovaré team members, meets and chooses the titles for the Book Club. Dozens of new and classic books are considered and carefully narrowed down to four choices. This is an independent selection process — no publisher can pay to have its book included.
Each session has a facilitator (either the author or an expert on the book) who will help you grow as you read each title. They provide bonus articles and weekly podcasts about the book, but they do not engage on the discussion forums. You will have an opportunity to post a question for the facilitator that might be included in each session’s webinar, which is driven by members’ questions.
The Renovaré Book Club Liaison, David Kim, moderates and engages with members on the discussion board.
Finally, our regional virtual and in-person meet-up groups are coordinated by volunteer Book Club members.
All resources and discussion are through a special Book Club members website. Members will receive their login information via email starting September 16 (and, after Sept 16, within a couple of hours of joining).
The Renovaré Book Club can fit just about any schedule. We read each book over six weeks but include a prep week at the start and a wrap-up week at the end, so there is plenty of cushion. The reading “assignments” are not more than 50 pages per week.
At the beginning of each book, our members receive an Introduction and an outline of the proposed reading schedule. Every Monday, we send out an update that includes:
At the end of each book, there is a live Readers’ Questions webinar with the book’s facilitator. (The webinar is recorded for those who can’t make it.)
All of the resources, once posted, are available all season. Other than the webinar, there are no “live” online discussions (members can post at any time), and you may engage as much or as little as you would like online.
Members who participate in a virtual or in-person meet-up group led by a volunteer coordinator will gather once-a-month at a time and day determined by the volunteer.
We love group participation in all forms! If you’d like your group members to receive the Renovaré Book Club weekly emails and have access to the online discussion forum, each member will need to register for the Club separately.
If, however, you’d like to use the Renovaré Book Club materials to lead your own group offline, you can register yourself and purchase a group license. This will allow you to give your group access to printable resources and a sharable link to podcasts and webinars.
We offer two offline group licenses. You must first purchase a standard membership before purchasing a group license.
Interested in purchasing a group license? Email [email protected] with your name, location, church name (if using it in a church), and which license you want, and we’ll reply with next steps.
To clarify, these licenses don’t allow group members besides the leader to create an online Renovaré Book Club account. They allow the group leader to share Book Club resources with their group: schedule, podcasts, discussion prompts. We will provide a sharable link that consolidates all Book Club resources on one page (updated as they are released each week).
Yes. Thank you for wanting to give a membership to the Renovaré Book Club!
At this time, if you would like to give a gift membership to the Book Club, please use the regular “Join” link at renovare.org/bookclub and enter your recipient’s information (name and email) with your information for billing.
Due to the event-like nature of the Book Club, memberships are not returnable/refundable. Feel free to email us at [email protected] if you have any questions before you sign up. Thanks for your understanding and for your support of the work of Renovaré.
We’re here to help. Email [email protected].
