If you want to grow in your understanding and practice of worship, one of the most helpful things you can do is learn from Christians who have studied worship, written about worship and reflected deeply on this subject over many years.
The books below are biblical, practical and deeply encouraging. Each one approaches worship from a slightly different angle – but all of them will help you move from worship as “singing songs on a Sunday” to worship as a way of life.
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The Air I Breathe – Louie Giglio
If you only read one book on worship, read this one.
The Air I Breathe is a very accessible and engaging book that helps you see worship as more than just singing songs on a Sunday morning, but rather as a way of life.
Giglio explains that everyone worships something – even if they don’t realise it. The question is not WHETHER we worship, but WHAT we worship.
I love his definition of worship, which is:
“Worship is our response to what we value most.”
Giglio shows how easily we can fall into worshipping the wrong things, like relationships, status, possessions, work, pleasure and money. And how do we know what we worship? Giglio tells us to follow the trail of our time, money and energy.
He explains how, whatever we worship we become. For example, if we worship money, we’ll become greedy, if we worship possessions, we’ll become materialistic, and if we worship ourselves we’ll become selfish.
He also covers how to avoid “wasting” our worship on the wrong things and how to refocus our worship back on God. He explains how worship should be our whole-life response to God’s greatness and glory.
He then goes on to explain what that “whole-life response” actually looks like in practice, both in terms of verbal praise AND our actions.
The Air I Breathe is very readable, full of illustrations and examples and very easy to apply in day-to-day life, but it’s also deeply challenging – in the best possible way!
Key quotes:
“You cannot help but worship something. It’s what you were made to do.”
“We are all worshippers, created to bring pleasure and glory to the God who made us.”
Best for:
- Christians who want to understand worship in its fullest sense
- Anyone who wants to know what worship as a lifestyle means in practice
- Readers who enjoy clear, practical, Bible-based teaching
BUY IT HERE >>> The Air I Breathe
Facedown – Matt Redman
If you’ve ever wanted to understand worship from someone who has spent a lifetime leading it, this is the book.
Redman writes with real honesty and humility about what worship truly looks like. He draws on his own experience as a worship leader, but always brings it back to Scripture and the truth about who God really is and why he’s worthy of our total devotion.
The key theme in this book is that worship is ultimately about “bowing down” to God – not just physically, but spiritually.
Redman reminds us that, whenever we get a glimpse of Heaven in the Bible, there’s an awful lot of facedown worship going on. And these glimpses give us clues to what our worship here on Earth should look like.
And yet, all too often our worship in church is what Redman calls “goldfish bowl worship” – we’ve somehow lost sight of the awe and majesty of God and inadvertently created a “tame and domesticated” version of God – no wonder our worship lacks oomph!
Redman encourages us to rediscover the mystery and wonder of God, and shows how rediscovering this will transform our worship.
He’s also very keen to point out that worship is all about God, and most definitely not about us! He gently challenges us to move from saying “please give me more” to “it’s time I gave you more”, and reminds us that, as it says in Romans 12:1, worship is synonymous with sacrifice. True worship looks like a life of love and service, and true worship is costly.
This book is very readable and full of helpful illustrations, but it will also deeply challenge you about your view of God and what true worship actually looks like. And it will almost certainly leave you with a renewed desire to be “awestruck” by God.
Key quotes:
“To worship facedown is the ultimate outward sign of inner reverence.”
“The most meaningful and powerful worship always comes at a price – the whole of our lives placed on his altar.”
Best for:
- Christians who love worship music but want deeper understanding of worship
- Readers who want to be challenged about their view of God and the true cost of worship
- Anyone who wants to be “awestruck” by God
BUY IT HERE >>> Facedown
Why Worship? – Tim Hughes, Nick Drake et al.
This is a really helpful and very practical exploration of worship from multiple voices, including Nick Drake, Tim Hughes, Graham Kendrick and Lou Fellingham.
Why Worship? is split into 4 parts. Part 1 is all about WHO we worship and WHY we worship. Part 2 covers HOW and WHERE to worship. Part 3 looks at WHAT HAPPENS when we worship. And part 4 focuses on the future – both worship in HEAVEN, but also asks what God is saying about worship TODAY.
As with all the other books in this list, this book very much challenges the common misconception that “worship” is synonymous with “singing songs in church” and reminds us that it’s actually all about living our whole lives as worship.
The whole book seeks to answer the question, “How can I worship better?” and by that it means “How can I honour, love and serve God better with the whole of my life?”
It brings together insights from worship leaders, church leaders and theologians, helping us see worship not just from a theological perspective, but as something lived and experienced in everyday life.
There are so many gems in this book – too many to share in this review, but here’s just a flavour…
I loved Tim Hughes’ reframing of worship, not as a “task” but a “gift” – something that should be our greatest joy in life, and indeed I loved his whole chapter on “Why Worship?”
I also really appreciated Graham Kendrick’s whole chapter on worshipping on our own – an often neglected aspect of worship. So many great insights in this chapter! Especially the bit about how “songs are not the worship” but simply the “vehicles” for worship. And also the whole section about finding your “prayer cupboard”.
And I absolutely loved Lou Fellingham’s chapter on worshipping together, which also touches on why it is so important that we as Christians meet together regularly, and how singing together actively builds community.
This book also includes really helpful section introductions by Nick Drake, suggestions for further reading at the end of each chapter, and a short section at the back with further resources for worship leaders and church leaders.
Key quotes:
“If there is a ‘key’ to life, a secret that unlocks the door to living the best life possible, it’s the key of worship. Right worship, of the right thing, leads to the right life.”
“Unless we take charge of our inner lives and keep our focus on God, turning our hearts and minds towards him through worship, prayer, reading our Bibles and waiting in silence to listen to God’s voice, we will be no more than disciples of the secularized culture around us.”
Best for:
- Christians who want a practical, modern perspective on worship
- Those involved in church worship or music ministry
- Anyone wanting to understand worship in its fullest sense
BUY IT HERE >>> Why Worship?
True Worship – Vaughan Roberts
If you want a clear, biblical understanding of what worship actually is, this is the book for you.
Roberts helps us see that worship is far bigger than music or church services. He carefully walks through Scripture to show that worship is ultimately about living a life that is 100% for God.
Roberts looks in detail at some of the most important Scriptures on worship, covering what Jesus actually meant by “worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth”, what it truly means to “offer your bodies as a living sacrifice”, the relationship between Christian meetings and worship, and the place of music in worship.
He also gives us a really helpful “worship checklist” – taken directly from Paul’s teachings in Romans 12 and 13, pointing out that these two chapters teach us what a “worship as a lifestyle” looks like in practice.
One of the strengths of this book is its clarity. It doesn’t overcomplicate things. Instead, it keeps bringing us back to the Bible and asking: what does God actually say worship is?
Key quotes:
“You cannot judge a church’s worship by what happens in the hour or so when they meet on Sunday. The real test is how the members behave during the rest of the week.”
“Worship involves an obedience to God’s will in all parts of life.”
Best for:
- Christians who want a clear, biblical understanding of worship
- Anyone who is confused about what worship really is
- Readers who want straight-talking, Scripture-based teaching
BUY IT HERE >>> True Worship
The Purpose Driven Life – Rick Warren
This is one of the most widely read Christian books of the last few decades – and for good reason.
At its heart, this book is about purpose. And worship is placed right at the centre of that purpose.
Warren shows that we were made to worship God and bring him pleasure, and that life only truly makes sense when we live our whole lives as worship to God. Worship, therefore, is not just something we do – it is the reason we exist.
The rest of this book goes on to look at what “whole-life worship” looks like in practice, covering fellowship, growing in Christlikeness, service and mission.
One of the key points Warren makes in The Purpose Driven Life is that worship is not for our benefit. One of my favourite lines in the whole book is:
“If you have ever said, ‘I didn’t get anything out of the worship today’, you worshipped for the wrong reason. Worship isn’t for you. It’s for God.”
He also draws a direct line between worship and surrender. And makes the point that true worship only happens when we give ourselves completely to God.
One of the best features of this book is that it is structured in short, daily readings, making it very accessible and easy to work through step-by-step. In fact, it’s day-by-day structure makes it a great option to use in daily quiet times. It also comes with weekly discussion questions, making it a great resource for homegroups.
Key quotes:
“Anything you do that brings pleasure to God is an act of worship.”
“We don’t worship to please ourselves. Our motive is to bring glory and pleasure to our creator.”
“Worship is not part of your life; it is your life.”
Best for:
- Christians who want a broad, big-picture understanding of worship
- Readers who enjoy reflective, daily-reading style books
- Anyone wanting to better understand the purpose of life
BUY IT HERE >>> The Purpose Driven Life
