There’s something about personal stories of faith that captivate our attention. Maybe it’s because they remind us that heroes of faith can be found in any era and that maybe through Christ, we could even become a hero of faith in our own right- even if it’s in anonymity. Over here I talk about general books that will help you grow in your faith, but for right now, I’ll be discussing the personal Christian memoirs from some of today’s heroes of faith.

10 Christian Memoirs:

1.) Walking from East to West: God in the Shadows by Ravi Zacharias

This is the story of famous Evangelist/Apologist, Ravi Zacharias who tells his story from his catchall religious homeland of India. From a written perspective, the sensory details of the Indian cuisine and visuals from his original abode captivate the senses. And from a faith standpoint, the woven message throughout this book is that God truly is a purposeful God who has a story for our lives.

His daughter Naomi, also writes a compelling Christian memoir focused on rehabilitating the broken and specifically helping women in foreign lands who are trapped in the life of sex-trafficking. Like her father, her rich details and persuasive speech make the book a page-turner.

2.I’m No Angel: From Victoria’s Secret Model to Role Model by Kylie Bisutti

I’m No Angel: From Victoria’s Secret Model to Role Model tells the story of ex-Victoria Secret model, Kylie who felt the conviction of her faith placed her at odds with the model life she led since an adolescent. This is a moving story about the tension between faith and a culture that opposes that faith and how our convictions should change how we live in the world.

3. Victim of Grace by Robin Jones Gunn

You may recognize Robin Jones Gunn from her faith-based fiction work: The Christy Miller Series (I talk about this over here), Sisterchicks novels, and the Glenbrook Series, but in this work of hers, we get to take a peek at her personal life and how God’s hand is in our broken stories, even when it seems like He is silent.  She uses incidents in her own life to parallel into the lives of women of the Bible making the case that we are victims of grace and not victims of our circumstances.

4. Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity by Nabeel Qureshi

The voice from this story is from young Nabeel Qureshi who stubbornly defends his Muslim beliefs until he was continuously challenged with the claims of Christ and confronted with the truth. Throughout the book, we’re not only met with a compelling journey of faith but also interesting factoids about the Muslim belief system.

5. The Women of Duck Commander: Surprising Insights from the Women Behind the Beards About What Makes This Family Work

I’ve read most of the Duck Dynasty books but The Women of Duck Commander: Surprising Insights from the Women Behind the Beards About What Makes This Family Work favorites since it collects the stories from all of the ladies from the hit TV show, covering topics like falling in love with their husbands, growing up pre-fame, and food most of us would wince at if it was served to us (and yes, I’m talking about the peculiar dishes like frog legs and cooked squirrel parts). You can read more of my review here if you’re interested in the book.

6. The Magnolia Story from Chip and Joanna Gaines

Magnolia Story tells the behind-the-scenes story of the now famous Chip and Joanna Gaines from life pre-Fixer-Upper to how they almost didn’t make the cut for the show, and even to the true story of how they almost lived in a moldy houseboat. Yikes! I talk more about their story here.

7. Joni and Ken: An Untold Love Story by Joni Eareckson Tada and Ken Tada

Most of us know Joni as the exuberant woman who has been a quadriplegic since her teen years and through it all, she serves Christ in her ministry, Joni and Friends. But most of us don’t know about her love story to the man who has stood by her side through decades of physiological and emotional struggle. This is the story of Joni and Ken. Not just Joni the face we immediately recognize, but the story of two unlikely lovers who fell in love in an unconventional way and remained together through the bond of Christ. You can read more in my review of their story here. 

8. The Vow

Maybe most of you know their story from the film version played by Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams. But the precious moments of endurance through trial were sadly lacking in the movie depiction as was the true-life story of faith from Krickitt and Kim.

In case you don’t know their story, two months after marriage, Krickitt was in a major car accident which caused a severe head trauma that left her in a coma for weeks. When she awoke, she didn’t recognize her husband. But through their faith in Christ, although memories were never recovered, a new love was reborn.

9. Dancing Through Life: Steps of Courage and Conviction

Dancing Through Life details the specific life event Candace Cameron Bure` experienced while filming as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars. Since the book only covers this brief time period, DTL reads in a fast-paced manner so if you’re looking for a quick read for the plane or vacation read, this is a perfect fit for you.

One of the things I really loved about this book is that it documents a woman of faith in a very unlikely scenario. Most of us will never be met with a film crew and viewed by millions and most of us will never have to know what it’s like to live up to the scrutiny of living out our faith in such a high-profile manner. But Candace Cameron Bure` has been there, done that and has a tremendous amount of sage wisdom to give her readers on the subject. If you want to read more about Dancing Through Life, you can look here for my take on it.

10. Eight Twenty Eight: When Love Didn’t Give Up by Larissa & Ian Murphy

This is yet another captivating Christian memoir of endurance in marriage from the wife’s perspective, Larissa who patiently endures her husband (then boyfriend) Ian’s unexpected brain injury. There are parts of their story that are painfully heart-wrenching sprinkled with laughable moments and sweet moments that exemplify this couple’s love through Christ.

Hopefully, there was at least one Christian memoir you gravitated to on this list. Soon I’ll be compiling a list of faith-based biographies, helpful resource guides for your spiritual growth, a part two list of faith-based books for the Chronically Ill (part one is here) and a list of our favorite Bibles.