Pastoral Helps
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Freedom Starts Today
$17.99Add to cartEvery church is filled with people who are struggling–often secretly–with addictions of all kinds. Porn, pills, food, money, alcohol, social media, body image, status, sex, anxiety–the list goes on and on. John Elmore is no stranger to addiction. Fifteen years ago, he put a loaded shotgun to his head and later had three doctors tell him he was going to die of alcoholism. More than 15 sober years later, he leads the world’s largest weekly recovery gathering, re:generation, where people journey toward healing in Christ.
In Freedom Starts Today, he makes a huge promise to the addicted: you can be free from your struggle, and much sooner than you may think. Through easily digestible readings grounded in Scripture and the practice of daily surrender, Elmore shows you how to break the cycle of addiction, make war against sin, and find your identity in who you are and not the shame of what you have done–one day at a time.
Leave behind struggles, addiction, and shame as you walk in the power of the Holy Spirit and in the love, mercy, and forgiveness of the God who is not only by your side but on your side.
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Radiant Church : Restoring The Credibility Of Our Witness
$20.99Add to cartSomething is not right. The witness of the church in North America is eroding.
Many Christians are alarmed by the decline in church attendance and seek a culprit. Too often, we point the finger away from the church, make culture the enemy, and build walls between us and others. But our antagonism and enemy-making are toxins that further eat away at our witness. Is there a better way? Tara Beth Leach could easily be one of those millennials giving up on the church. Instead, she is a pastor who loves the church and is paradoxically hopeful for its future. In an era where the church has lost much of its credibility, Leach casts a radiant vision for Christians to rediscover a robust, attractive witness. We need to name the toxic soil we’ve grown in, repent for past wrongs, and lean into a better way to become the church that Jesus proclaimed we would be. Leach casts down idolatrous false images of God to recover a winsome picture of a kingdom of abundance and goodness. We can be sustained by practices that will tune our hearts to God’s and form us into the radiant communities God intends for us and those around us.
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Lamenting Racism Participant Journal (Student/Study Guide)
$11.99Add to cartWe need to talk about race. The Bible’s prayers of lament show us the way.
Stories of racial injustice fill our news feeds. Yet for too long many of us in the church have been hesitant to speak up. We fear offending others, of using the wrong words, of not knowing what to say.
In Lamenting Racism, a team of leading pastors and theologians come together to lay the groundwork for important conversations about racism in your congregation. In six, thought-provoking video sessions, they name that God’s people of every race are called to confront racism in every way possible. Together this team invites each of us to consider and give voice to how we have been shaped and formed by race.
Calling on us to reclaim the lost art of biblical lament, they offer a powerful way to pour out the fear, shame, grief, and rage of racism in prayer. In the process, we will be transformed, reclaiming hope for a world shaped by God’s inclusive vision of love and blessing.
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New Testament Challenge Study Journal (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartThe New Testament Challenge is designed to help small-group members explore the books of the New Testament in a fresh and new way. In this Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), participants will learn how the story of God restoring his original creation-which was begun in the Old Testament-reached its crowning moment with the birth of Messiah into the world. Through Jesus’ birth, he answered the question once and for all of who God is and what he is like. Through Jesus’ teaching, he revealed the deepest meaning of the laws and institutions that God gave to the people of Israel. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, he introduced the life of the age to come into the present age. Group members will also discover how the followers of Jesus formed a new community and invited people from all over the world to join them, and how the Bible looks ahead to the day when Christ will return to renew all of creation and establish God’s justice and peace on the earth.
Sessions include:
1. Luke-Acts
2. Luke-Acts, 1-2 Thessalonians
3. 1-2 Corinthians, Galatians, Romans
4. Romans, Colossians, Ephesians, Philemon, Philippians, 1 Timothy, Titus, 2 Timothy
5. Matthew
6. Hebrews, James, Mark
7. 1-2 Peter, Jude, John
8. 1-3 John, Revelation -
Lamenting Racism Leaders Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$16.99Add to cartWe need to talk about race. The Bible’s prayers of lament show us the way.
Stories of racial injustice fill our news feeds. Yet for too long many of us in the church have been hesitant to speak up. We fear offending others, of using the wrong words, of not knowing what to say.
In Lamenting Racism, a team of leading pastors and theologians come together to lay the groundwork for important conversations about racism in your congregation. In six, thought-provoking video sessions, they name that God’s people of every race are called to confront racism in every way possible. Together this team invites each of us to consider and give voice to how we have been shaped and formed by race.
Calling on us to reclaim the lost art of biblical lament, they offer a powerful way to pour out the fear, shame, grief, and rage of racism in prayer. In the process, we will be transformed, reclaiming hope for a world shaped by God’s inclusive vision of love and blessing.
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Savior : What The Bible Says About The Cross
$16.99Add to cartExplore why Jesus died on the cross and how it brings us salvation
The cross is the central symbol of the Christian faith. But what exactly did Jesus do to save us from our sins? Why was the cross necessary, and what does it mean for us today?
In Savior: What the Bible Says About the Cross, Magrey deVega faithfully describes the need for reconciliation between humankind and a holy God through Jesus’ death on the cross. The Bible uses many images to understand the meaning of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and deVega guides us through these images to achieve a richer understanding of the Christian faith. By exploring the mystery of salvation through the cross, we can deepen our love for God and others and strengthen our commitment to follow Jesus
Components for this six-session study will include a book, leader guide, and a DVD with videos featuring deVega presenting each chapter’s main ideas and themes. The leader guide will include instructions for showing and discussing these videos as an option for the group leader.
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Relational Spirituality : A Psychological-Theological Paradigm For Transfor
$40.00Add to cartAs our society becomes more socially fragmented, many Christians feel disconnected and struggle to grow spiritually. Common models of spiritual transformation are proving inadequate to address “the sanctification gap.” In recent decades, however, a new paradigm of human and spiritual development has been emerging from multiple fields. It’s supported by a critical mass of evidence, all pointing to what psychologists Todd W. Hall and M. Elizabeth Lewis Hall call a relational revolution.
In Relational Spirituality, Hall and Hall present a definitive model of spiritual transformation based on a relational paradigm. At its heart is the truth that human beings are fundamentally relational-we develop, heal, and grow through relationships. While many sanctification models are fragmented, individualistic, and lack a clear process for change, the relational paradigm paints a coherent picture of both process and goal, supported by both ancient wisdom and cutting-edge research. Integrating insights from psychology and theology, this book lays out the basis for relational spiritual transformation and how it works practically in the context of relationships and community.
Relational Spirituality draws together themes such as trinitarian theology, historical and biblical perspectives on the imago Dei, relational knowledge, attachment patterns, and interpersonal neurobiology into a broad synthesis that will stimulate further dialogue across a variety of fields. Highlighting key characteristics of spiritual communities that foster transformation, Hall and Hall equip spiritual leaders and practitioners to more effectively facilitate spiritual growth for themselves and those they serve.
Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) Books explore how Christianity relates to mental health and behavioral sciences including psychology, counseling, social work, and marriage and family therapy in order to equip Christian clinicians to support the well-being of their clients.
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Comfort In The Ashes
$26.00Add to cartNavigating Trauma in the Church
It’s time for church leaders and believers to stop offering prettily packaged responses from a safe distance. It’s time for us to sit in the ashes with the hurting, our Sunday clothes covered in dirt and grime, our faces lined with tears. Trauma brings people to the ash heap, so that is where the church needs to go.
The church should serve as a refuge for people in pain. And yet, we often end up unintentionally causing more hurt to trauma survivors. Theological platitudes and positive thinking aren’t simply dismissive to those who suffer, but they inevitably retraumatize the wounded. Does the Bible have anything practical to offer for church leaders as they engage the pain in their congregations?
Biblical scholar Michelle Keener shows us that the book of Job provides embodied and practical answers for the church today. In this incredible tool for ministry leaders and trauma survivors alike, Keener offers:
*deep wisdom at the intersection of trauma theory and the book of Job for Christian communities
*reflection questions for ministry practitioners and those walking alongside those who have experienced trauma
*engagement with the idea of a shattered worldview and how to overcome the effects of that experience.
Comfort in the Ashes helps leaders navigate their own trauma and gives practical guidance for supporting others whose worlds are falling apart. God meets us in our ashes and our pain. It’s time for the church to do the same.
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Women In The Bible
$50.00Add to cartWhat was it like to be a woman in the biblical period? It depended, in part, on who you were: a queen, a judge, a primary wife, a secondary wife, a widow, a slave, or some other kind of ordinary woman. In Women in the Bible, Jaime Clark-Soles investigates how women are presented in Scripture, taking into account cultural views of both ancient societies as well as our own. While women today are exercising leadership in churches across a number of denominations and our scholarly knowledge related to women in the Bible has grown immensely, challenges remain. Most of Christendom still excludes women from religious leadership, and many Christians invoke the Bible to circumscribe women’s leadership in the public square and in the home as well. It is more urgent than ever, therefore, to investigate closely, honestly, and intrepidly what the Bible does and doesn’t say about women.
In a multipronged approach, Clark-Soles treats well-known biblical women from fresh perspectives, highlights women who have been ignored, and recovers those who have been erased from historical memory by particular moves made in the transmission and translations of the text. She explores symbolic feminized figures like Woman Wisdom and the Whore of Babylon and reclaims the uses of feminine imagery in the Bible that often go unnoticed. Chapters focus on themes of God’s relationship to gender, women and violence, women as creators, and women in the ministry of both Jesus and Paul. Clark-Soles aims to equip clergy and other leaders invested in the study of Scripture to consider women in the Bible from multiple angles and, as a result, help people of all genders to live God’s vision of better, more just lives as we navigate the challenges of our complex, globally connected world.
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Color Of Compromise Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$14.99Add to cartIn The Color of Compromise, Jemar Tisby takes readers back to the roots of sustained racism and injustice in the American church. Filled with powerful stories and examples of American Christianity’s racial past, Tisby’s historical narrative highlights the obvious ways people of faith have actively worked against racial justice, as well as the complicit silence of racial moderates. The Color of Compromise Study Guide, used together with The Color of Compromise Video Study, unpacks the content of the video study for an in-depth diagnosis of a racially divided American church, suggesting ways to foster a more equitable and inclusive environment among God’s people.
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Planting A Church Without Losing Your Soul
$25.99Add to cartWhat does it take to be a church planter or ministry entrepreneur? According to veteran church planter Tim Morey, you need more than just vocational capacities-you need spiritual competencies. Featuring real-life stories from leaders plus practices and discussion questions, this book is a practical guide to spiritual formation geared to the unique needs of church planters and teams.
What does it take to be a church planter or other ministry entrepreneur? Most leaders start out with passion, a sense of calling, and a focus on building ministry skills. Such things might get some results, but they are not enough to sustain a healthy ministry-or a healthy life. Beyond the vocational capacities every church planter needs, there’s a range of capabilities more difficult to measure but even more essential: what veteran church planter Tim Morey calls spiritual competencies. Morey provides here a practical guide to spiritual formation geared to the unique needs of church planters. He helps readers answer the questions, What are the spiritual capabilities that I as a church planter need to develop? How might I lean into the work Jesus is doing in these vital areas? Spiritual competencies have to do not just with behaviors but also with the motivations, agendas, and scripts that drive behaviors. Morey explores how church planters can become people who:
*invest in their own physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual health
*accept limits and share responsibilities
*can be trusted with power
*are able to stay resilient and grow through difficulties
*can minister without being noticed
*find a sustainable pace that helps them avoid burnoutThe health of a church or any ministry organization is directly linked to the health of its leaders. Church planters may be used to improvising, but when it comes to their spiritual lives, they can’t afford to just wing it. Featuring real-life stories from leaders, suggested practices, and discussion questions in each chapter, this book will equip individuals and teams (and those who coach them) to commit to an intentional plan for spiritual formation-for the good of their churches, their relationships, and their own lives as disciples of Jesus.
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Words Of Life Childrens Leader Guide
$18.99Add to cartNearly everyone has heard of the Ten Commandments, the list of “thou-shalt-nots” found in the Bible. Jesus saw these commandments not as onerous burdens, but as guideposts to help us experience a good and beautiful life.
In this book of Scripture and inspiration, bestselling author Adam Hamilton brings modern eyes to the most important set of ethics in history. He considers the commandments in their historical context, considering the meaning of each commandment in Hebrew, unpacking how Jesus reinterpreted them, and showing how every thou-shalt-not was intended to point to a life-giving “thou shalt.” He also explores how the latest research in science and psychology illuminates these commandments, rightly understood, as a way of ordering one’s life beautifully in the present day. In a culture marked by workaholism, materialism, and social media-driven envy, God has given us a time-tested path that leads to gratitude, confidence, and peace.
The Children’s Leader Guide contains session plans for younger and older children (grades K-2 and 3-6) including games, activities, craft ideas, and reproducible handouts.
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Words Of Life Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$14.99Add to cartNearly everyone has heard of the Ten Commandments, the list of “thou-shalt-nots” found in the Bible. Jesus saw these commandments not as onerous burdens, but as guideposts to help us experience a good and beautiful life.
In this book of Scripture and inspiration, bestselling author Adam Hamilton brings modern eyes to the most important set of ethics in history. He considers the commandments in their historical context, considering the meaning of each commandment in Hebrew, unpacking how Jesus reinterpreted them, and showing how every thou-shalt-not was intended to point to a life-giving “thou shalt.” He also explores how the latest research in science and psychology illuminates these commandments, rightly understood, as a way of ordering one’s life beautifully in the present day. In a culture marked by workaholism, materialism, and social media-driven envy, God has given us a time-tested path that leads to gratitude, confidence, and peace.
The Leader Guide contains everything needed to guide a group through the six-week study including session plans, activities, and discussion questions, as well as multiple format options.
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7 Words Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$14.99Add to cartExamine the last seven words of Christ on the cross this Lent.
While many of us naturally wish to avoid the reality of the cross, it’s from the cross that Jesus speaks and shows his deepest love for us. It’s from the cross that Jesus’ full humanity draws us closest to him. It’s from the cross, as Jesus breathes his last breath and speaks his last words, that his deep trust in the Father and his divine glory are revealed. Those who listen to Jesus’ last words from the cross will discover what he most wants them (the world) to hear and will experience an intimate and divine awe only available to those who are willing to draw near his cross.
In Seven Words, Susan Robb looks at the seven last words of Christ on the cross through a lens that finds life and hope in his final sayings, while exploring each from a biblical and historical perspective. The book brings a hopeful and contemplative take on the cross during the weeks of Lent.
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Better Decisions Fewer Regrets Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this six-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), Andy Stanley gives you five key questions to ask when you have a decision to make and you’re not sure what to do. We never know what or who hangs in the balance of the decisions we make. But what we do know is this: private decisions have public implications. Your private decisions probably won’t stay private, and personal decisions will impact some other persons.
These five simple questions will empower you to:
*Make better decisions with fewer regrets
*Pause when feeling tension over a decision
*Take the long view
*Look for the wise option
*Focus on the relational impact of decisionsDesigned for use with the Better Decisions, Fewer Regrets Video Study (sold separately).
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Introduction To Christian Philosophical Theology
$22.99Add to cartAn accessible introduction to Christian philosophical theology
Philosophical or analytic theology seeks to employ philosophical tools while studying topics in Christian theology and examining the logical consistency or intelligibility of some of the key doctrines of the Christian faith. In this accessible primer, An Introduction to Christian Philosophical Theology, authors Stephen T. Davis and Eric T. Yang first explain the scope, relevance, and value of philosophical theology and then applies its conceptual tools to examine each of the core Christian doctrines:
*Revelation and Scripture
*The Trinity
*The Incarnation
*Redemption and the atonement,
*Resurrection and life after deathThe final chapter briefly addresses some additional theological issues including petitionary prayer, eschatology, and original sin.
Designed for beginning students and non-specialists this guide provides the ideal entry point for not only understanding what philosophical theology is but also for how it can provide valuable insights for how we think about the core doctrines of the Christian faith.
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Insider Church : Ekklesia And The Insider Paradigm
$19.99Add to cartInsider Movements = Church-planting Movements?
?In the last few decades, the Church has witnessed a growing harvest of Muslim-background believers coming to Christ. However, a divide remains over whether the “insider” paradigm contributes to the flourishing and multiplication of healthy, biblical churches among Muslims.
S. T. Antonio advances this conversation beyond the old arguments through a fresh analysis of the insider paradigm by asking the question, What is church? Starting with the identity-shaping narrative of the people of God, Antonio digs deep into the nature of biblical ekklesia from multiple angles-local and universal, visible and invisible, the classical “marks” of the church, and missional identity. Combining a robust, biblical vision with a nuanced contextualization framework, and informed by firsthand ministry among Muslims, Antonio uncovers the roots and contours of the ecclesial vision of the insider paradigm. Insider Church provides an innovative diagnosis of a paradigm that has been surrounded by controversy, challenging it with constructive analysis for multiplying biblical churches among Muslims.
This integrative study draws together biblical, theological, and missiological scholarship in service of Christ’s mission. Insider Church helps guide mission practitioners, leaders, and students toward a wise assessment of insider movements and a vision for church multiplication that is both fruitful and faithful to the Lord of the harvest.
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Daily Feast Meditations From Feasting On The Word Year B
$44.00Add to cartFeasting on the Word has quickly become the most popular lectionary commentary series in use today. This is the first in a new series of daily devotionals that draws from the wealth of writing in the commentaries to present inspirational reflections, responses, and prayers for each day of the lectionary year.
Each day of the week contains Scripture passages for the coming Sunday from the Revised Common Lectionary, excerpts from the commentaries for reflection, a response, and a prayer. Additional material is provided for each Sunday.
These handsome volumes will be packaged in a soft leather-like cover with rounded corners, a stamped cover, and a sewn-in ribbon to help you keep your place.
Feasting on the Word is a twelve-volume lectionary commentary series that presents brief essays on each of four perspectives–exegetical, theological, pastoral, and homiletical–for each of the four Sunday readings. The series is edited by Barbara Brown Taylor and David L. Bartlett with a distinguished editorial board, and has been produced in partnership with Columbia Theological Seminary. For more information about the series and other related projects, visit FeastingontheWord.net.
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Saving Grace Clergy Workbook (Workbook)
$22.99Add to cartLearn to create a healthy relationship with your money and possessions
Saving Grace: A Guide to Financial Health is a program to help people of faith create healthy relationships with money and possessions. Participants will move through six sessions covering such topics as saving, earning, giving, spending, and debt, along with helpful strategies for achieving a sustainable financial life. Adapted from the best-selling Freed Up Financial Living from the Good Sense Movement, this study is based on Wesleyan values and provides text and tools to help participants address life concerns and reach personal financial goals.
A special clergy module addresses financial issues unique to pastors. This three-week study brings together faith and vocation while attending to the unique financial details of living as a pastor and being employed by the church. The clergy workbook contains worksheets and downloadable planners.
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Forward Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this six-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), bestselling author Dr. David Jeremiah reminds us that the Christian life is to be lived looking forward and with our eyes fixed on the race in front of us-not looking back over at our shoulder at the other runners or the past. In the Bible, the apostle said as much when he wrote, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14 (NKJV).
Dr. Jeremiah draws on this key verse to show that while it is good at times to look back, we need to make sure that we don’t go back and allow the past to dictate our future. We need to celebrate our good memories but also celebrate our bad memories with finality-thanking God for the lessons that He has taught us through the experience and committing to use those lesson to make positive changes in our lives. We then need to allow our past memories to cultivate our dreams-boldly stepping into the mission God has for us and allowing Him to continually transform us to be more like Christ.
Now is the time to step past our comfort and our failure. Now is the time to move forward in following God.
Designed for use with the Forward Video Study (sold separately).
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From Burned Out To Beloved
$18.99Add to cartAs a social worker, jail chaplain, and justice advocate, Bethany Dearborn Hiser pushed herself to the brink of burnout-only to discover that she needed the very soul care she was providing to others. Tackling the effects of secondary trauma and burnout, this is a trauma-informed soul care guide for Christians working in high-stress, helping professions.
As a social worker, jail chaplain, and justice advocate, Bethany Dearborn Hiser pushed herself to the brink of burnout-and then kept going. Stress, despair, and compassion fatigue overwhelmed her ability to function. She was called to serve the abused, addicted, and homeless people in her community. Yet she was emotionally and spiritually exhausted. Something needed to change. Searching for answers, Hiser learned that trauma affects everyone who is exposed to it-not only those experiencing firsthand violence, homelessness, and addiction, but also the social workers, therapists, pastors, relief workers, teachers, and community development workers who are trying to help. Psychologists call it “secondary trauma.” Hiser discovered that she needed the very soul care that she was providing to others. From Burned Out to Beloved is Hiser’s story of burnout, self-discovery, and spiritual renewal. But more than that, it’s a trauma-informed soul care guide for Christians working in high-stress, helping professions. There are many resources on secondary trauma and spiritual disciplines, but few bring these areas together. From Burned Out to Beloved equips readers to confess their limitations, embrace their identities as beloved children of God, and flourish in the ministries where God has called them.
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Bobbie Baker And Kingdom Core Values Volume 1
$59.99Add to cartA Full Interactive Children’s Curriculum Experience
Bobbie Baker is a klutzy, goofy, messy baker, with a beautiful heart, and his mission is to reflect Jesus to the children in your classroom! The Bobbie Baker and Kingdom Core Values curriculum offers a holistic solution for a supernatural children’s ministry that is grounded in core, biblical truth.
In this fourteen-week adventure, children ages 5-10 will encounter truths that Bobbie Baker shares from his recipe book – the Bible. Each week, kids will explore a Biblical principle with Bobbie, discovering practical values like joy, God’s presence, healing, and more. Along the way, they will discover the Holy Spirit, grow in spiritual gifts, and get to know Jesus on a deeper level.
Lessons include:
*God is Good
*Salvation Creates Joyful Identity
*Jesus Empowers Supernatural Ministry
*God is Still Speaking
*Free and Responsible
*Generous Like My Father
*and so much more!Each lesson contains fun and thought-provoking activities – skits with Bobbie Baker, weekly Bible memorization games, step-by-step prophetic activations, and pre-planned, small-to-large group games.
The concepts unpacked in each lesson are easy to understand and will empower children as they learn. This curriculum is your key to building a culture that emphasizes intimacy with Father God and supernatural ministry through fun and simple activities!Look for more adventures with Bobbie and his friends coming soon!
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God And Me Volume 1 Jesus And Me
$59.99Add to cartA Full Interactive Children’s Curriculum Experience
There is no Junior Holy Spirit!
Children’s ministry is meant to be an active, dynamic experience that extends far beyond “babysitting” on Sundays. God and Me: Volume 1 empowers the youngest of children (0-5 yrs) to begin to walk in their God-given identity and do the things Jesus did!
Take your children on an anointed journey through twelve weeks of age-appropriate, customizable lessons that will help them learn to:
*hear from God
*pray for healing and breakthrough
*worship God
*make powerful declarationsThis fun, interactive curriculum provides the perfect starting point for a holistic, supernatural children’s ministry, grounded in core biblical truth. Each lesson has been intentionally crafted to model biblical principles, including activities and tools that will give every child a deep foundation in Scripture and a strong connection to the heart of God.
So, what are you waiting for? Give the youngest children in your ministry an exciting start to the most important adventure of their lives – an adventure with God!
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Saving Grace Participant Workbook (Workbook)
$22.99Add to cartLearn to create a healthy relationship with your money and possessions
Saving Grace: A Guide to Financial Health is a program to help people of faith create healthy relationships with money and possessions. Participants will move through six sessions covering such topics as saving, earning, giving, spending, and debt, along with helpful strategies for achieving a sustainable financial life. Adapted from the best-selling Freed Up Financial Living from the Good Sense Movement, this study is based on Wesleyan values and provides text and tools to help participants address life concerns and reach personal financial goals.
Additional components for a six-week study include a DVD, Clergy Workbook, Leader Guide, and a 40-day devotional.
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Connection Year B Volume 2 Lent Through Pentecost
$55.00Add to cartDesigned to empower preachers as they lead their congregations to connect their lives to Scripture, Connections features a broad set of interpretive tools that provide commentary and worship aids on the Revised Common Lectionary. This nine-volume series offers creative commentary on each reading through the lens of its connections to the rest of Scripture and then seeing the reading through the lenses of culture, film, fiction, ethics, and other aspects of contemporary life. Commentaries on the Psalms make connections to other readings and to the congregation’s experience of worship.
Connections is published in partnership with Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary.
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Purpose Pattern And Character Of Worship
$40.99Add to cartWithin the broad range of Christianity we find diverse understandings of what makes for “good worship.” This book develops a typology of Christian worship to provide a method of assessing the decisions of congregations and leaders in forming and changing the orders of their worship.
Among contemporary western Protestants, we find at least six discrete characteristics of worship:
-the Revival,
-the Sunday School,
-the Aesthetic Revival,
-the Pentecostal/holiness movement,
-the Prayer Meeting,
-and the twentieth-century Catholic Liturgical Renewal.These patterns find contemporary expression as:
-Seeker Worship,
-Creative Worship,
-Traditional Worship,
-Praise Worship,
-House Church Worship,
-and Word and Table Worship.Absent an overall authority for the structure of worship (such as the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer), many Protestant congregations have developed a “conflation of patterns,” which often creates incoherent worship. This book helps leaders define the purpose, character, and pattern of their community’s worship.
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Wisdom From Babylon
$25.99Add to cartWhat does it mean to provide leadership for the church in an increasingly secular context? When religion is privatized and secularism reigns in the public square, Christians are often drawn toward either individualist escapism or constant cultural warfare. But might this context instead offer a fresh invitation for the church to adapt and thrive? Gordon Smith is passionate about the need for capable, mature leaders to navigate and respond to a changing society. In this book, he draws on his extensive experience as a university president, pastor, and international speaker to open a multidisciplinary conversation about the competencies and capacities essential for today’s leaders. After analyzing the phenomenon of secularization in the West and charting common Christian responses, Smith introduces four sources of wisdom to help guide us through this new terrain: the people and prophets of Judah during the Babylonian exile, the early church in its pagan environment, contemporary churches across the Global South, and Christian thinkers in post-Christian Europe. From these resources he identifies practices and strategies-from liturgy and catechesis to mission and hospitality-that can give shape to faithful, alternate communities in such a time as this. In cultures fraught with fear and division, Smith calls for leaders who can effect change from the margins, promote unity and maturity among Christians, and provide a non-anxious presence grounded in the presence of Christ. Educators, church leaders, and anyone seeking to understand the times will find this book to be an indispensable resource for cultivating distinctively Christian leadership.
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Bigger Table Expanded Edition With Study Guide (Expanded)
$22.00Add to cartThis new edition includes a small-group study guide complete with ideas for exploring A Bigger Table in a congregation-wide sermon series and program along with a new foreword by Jacqui Lewis and new afterword by the author to explore the challenges of living out the bigger table when voices of hate and exclusion seem stronger and louder than ever.
A Bigger Table invites readers to envision a church that is big enough for everyone, by holding up a mirror to the modern church and speaking clearly on issues at the heart of the Christian community: LGBT inclusion, gender equality, racial tensions, global concerns, and theological shifts. John Pavlovitz shares moving personal stories, his careful observations as a pastor, and his understanding of the ancient stories of Jesus to set the table for a new, positive, more loving conversation on these and other important matters of faith. Though there are many who would remove chairs and whittle down the guest list, we can build the bigger table Jesus imagined, practicing radical hospitality, total authenticity, messy diversity, and agenda-free community.
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Uncommon Church : Community Transformation For The Common Good
$20.99Add to cartHow can the people of God develop churches in ways that help and don’t hurt poor neighborhoods? In urban ministry, Christians too often treat the poor as goodwill projects instead of people. Because of this mindset, many remain unchurched. Healthy, local, urban churches are needed because they combine personal empowerment and community transformation. Every poor neighborhood needs uncommon churches that will seek the common good of their communities. Alvin Sanders engages hard truths about these neighborhoods and provides a model for how to do ministry in difficult conditions. The local, urban church is the key to community transformation, as it plays three crucial roles of empowering, partnering, and reaching. Pastors and church planters interested in Christian community development will find here practical insights into the power of the local church, which is often underrated. Churches can serve their communities and improve the quality of life of every facet of the neighborhood.
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Hopeful Neighborhood : What Happens When Christians Pursue The Common Good
$18.99Add to cartWhen Christians join together to pursue the common good of our neighborhoods, we bring hope to the world, credibility to the church, and glory to God. Filled with original research from the Barna Group and Lutheran Hour Ministries, this book from Don Everts offers constructive, practical ways that Christians and churches can bless our local communities.
Are you tired of hearing people dismiss the church as an irrelevant relic? (Do you secretly wonder if they are right?) Don Everts explores an exciting reality that is revealed in Scripture, shown throughout history, and confirmed in the latest research: when Christians pursue the common good of the neighborhood, the world stands up and notices. It turns out this is exactly what we’re called to do. When Christians make good things, we bring blessings and hope to our local community. With original research from the Barna Group and Lutheran Hour Ministries on how Christians relate to our neighborhoods, this book is filled with constructive, practical ways that Christians and churches bless those around us. As Christians join together for the common good, we bring hope to the world, credibility to the church, and glory to God.
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Honor Shame And The Gospel
$17.99Add to cartAn Honorific Gospel: Biblically Faithful & Culturally Relevant
Christians engaged in communicating the gospel navigate a challenging tension: faithfulness to God’s ancient, revealed Word-and relevance to the local, current social context. What if there was a lens or paradigm offering both? Understanding the Bible-particularly the gospel-through the ancient cultural “language” of honor-shame offers believers this double blessing.
In Honor, Shame, and the Gospel, over a dozen practitioners and scholars from diverse contexts and fields add to the ongoing conversation around the theological and missiological implications of an honorific gospel. Eight illuminating case studies explore ways to make disciples in a diversity of social contexts-for example, East Asian rural, Middle Eastern refugee, African tribal, and Western secular urban.
Honor, Shame, and the Gospel provides valuable resources to impact the ministry efforts of the church, locally and globally. Linked with its ancient honor-shame cultural roots, the gospel, paradoxically, is ever new-offering fresh wisdom to Christian leaders and optimism to the church for our quest to expand Christ’s kingdom and serve the worldwide mission of God.
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Serving The People Of Gods Presence
$33.00Add to cartLeading theologian Terry Cross articulates the doctrine of the church’s ministry from a Pentecostal perspective, demonstrating how Pentecostals can contribute to and learn from the church catholic. This companion volume to Cross’s previous book, The People of God’s Presence, proposes a radical revision of the structural framework of the local church within the often-overlooked corporate priesthood of all believers. Cross explores principles for leadership and ministry from the New Testament and the early church, helping all believers to do the work of ministry.
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Making Room : The Purpose And Practice Of Youth Ministry
$19.99Add to cartIn Making Room, Michael A. Kipp contends that the primary purpose of youth ministry is to integrate young people into the body and mission of Christ. A lifelong youth ministry practitioner and researcher, Kipp shares the narrative of his and others’ experiences in order to help the church embrace and understand youth ministry more fully in practice, not just in theory.
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Womens Lectionary : Preaching The Women Of The Bible Throughout The Year
$47.00Add to cartIn A Weary World, Escobar provides twenty-eight daily reflections paired with Scripture and prayer to tackle this difficult season. Weekly resources make this Advent devotional suitable for group study as well.
During the holidays, so many of us can suffer for all kinds of reasons. The magnitude of our weary world weighs on our hearts and minds. We wrestle with chronic pain, broken relationships, shattered dreams, fragile faith, and unexpected losses. Our grief and sorrow feel particularly acute when compared to the festivity and joy everyone else seems to be feeling. More and more churches are acknowledging this fact with “Blue Christmas” services (also called “Longest Night” services) and offering resources to give particular support and comfort to those struggling during the “most wonderful time of the year.”
Kathy Escobar has been leading Blue Christmas experiences at her church for nearly a decade and just experienced her bluest season of all following the sudden death of her son. In A Weary World, Escobar provides twenty-eight daily reflections paired with prayers and practices to honor our struggles during the holidays. Weekly resources make this Advent devotional suitable for group study as well.
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Connection Year B Volume 1 Advent Through Epiphany
$55.00Add to cartDesigned to empower preachers as they lead their congregations to connect their lives to Scripture, Connections features a broad set of interpretive tools that provide commentary and worship aids on the Revised Common Lectionary.
Designed to empower preachers as they lead their congregations to connect their lives to Scripture, Connections features a broad set of interpretive tools that provide commentary and worship aids on the Revised Common Lectionary. This nine-volume series offers creative commentary on each reading through the lens of its connections to the rest of Scripture and then seeing the reading through the lenses of culture, film, fiction, ethics, and other aspects of contemporary life. Commentaries on the Psalms make connections to other readings and to the congregation’s experience of worship.
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Sacred Pathways Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartAs believers in Christ, many of us today fall into the trap of thinking we have to approach God in a certain way. This one-size-fits-all mentality typically leaves us feeling frustrated and distant from God. But the truth is that not every person will engage with God in the same way. For this reason, it is important to discover the particular pathway that will best help them to experience God’s presence.
In this five-session video study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), bestselling author Gary Thomas uncovers nine of these spiritual “pathways” that people have used over the centuries to grow closer to God. He provides tools for participants to assess their key pathway (much as the Enneagram does for personality types) and encourages them to investigate the ways they most naturally express themselves in their relationship with God. Gary also points out the strengths and pitfalls of their primary pathway and helps them discover the key spiritual tendencies of their friends, family, and others around them.
Whatever temperament or blend of temperaments best describes our personality, we can rest assured that it is not by accident. It comes by the design of a Creator who knew what he was doing when he made us according to his own unique intentions. Sacred Pathways will reveal the true route we were made to travel.
Sessions include:
1. The Journey of the Soul (Introduction to the Pathways)
2. Pathways of Wonder (Naturalists, Sensates, Aesthetics)
3. Pathways of Contemplation (Contemplatives, Traditionalists, Intellectuals)
4. Pathways of Action (Activists, Caregivers, and Enthusiasts)
5. Tending the Garden of the Soul (How the Pathways Applies to Your Life)Designed for use with the Sacred Pathways Video Study (sold separately).
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Innovative Church : How Leaders And Their Congregations Can Adapt In An Eve
$27.99Add to cartThe church as we know it is calibrated for a world that no longer exists. It needs to recalibrate in order to address the questions that animate today’s congregants. Leading congregational researcher Scott Cormode explores the role of Christian practices in recalibrating the church for the twenty-first century, offering church leaders innovative ways to express the never-changing gospel to their ever-changing congregations. The book has been road-tested with over one hundred churches through the Fuller Youth Institute and includes five questions that guide Christian leaders who wish to innovate.
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Lose Control Womens Bible Study Participant Workbook (Student/Study Guide)
$17.99Add to cartLearn to live in total dependence on God through a study of 1 Samuel.
Have you ever thought you had life under control-until you didn’t? Perhaps thinking “God is in control” but living as if you are. It’s like walking around with a hot cup of coffee, afraid that with one wrong move it will spill and be a burning hot mess. Then you realize what little control you have and how dependent on God you truly are.
In Lose Control, Mary Shannon Hoffpauir takes you on a six-week journey through the Book of First Samuel, which is an epic story about a fight for control. Despite God’s warnings through the prophet Samuel, the nation of Israel was determined to take control by having their own king. As you dig into the saga of King Saul and David, who would become the next anointed king of Israel, you will discover that no plan or purpose of God can be thwarted by human beings. Even the worst of circumstances can be used by God to accomplish His purposes in your life.
In her no-nonsense, authentic teaching style that endears her to women of all ages, Mary Shannon encourages you to lose control so that you can find your soul through a trusting relationship with your faithful God.
Components for this six-week Bible study, each available separately, include a Participant Workbook, a Leader Guide, and a DVD with six 25-minute segments (with closed captioning).
*An in-depth six-week exploration of the entire Book of 1 Samuel.
*Study includes five days of homework for each week.
*Encourages women to exchange their desire for control for God’s gift of faith.
*Helps women gain a deeper love and grace for others.
*DVD features dynamic, engaging teaching in six 25-minute segments. -
Names Of God Womens Bible Study Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$15.99Add to cartKnow God better through a study of His names.
Today’s culture and others’ views, even those of other Christians, can present a distorted view of God. Some suggest God exudes qualities He does not possess such as being unloving or apathetic toward His creation. In a world where we find people creating God in their own image, studying God’s names can remind us that we are created in His. In fact, one of the best ways to know God’s true character and grow closer to Him is to study His names.
In The Names of God, Melissa Spoelstra leads women on an exploration of the many names of our triune God-from El and Elohim to Yahweh and its many combinations to names such as Abba, Jesus, and Holy Spirit…and many others.
As women study the names of God, their ideas about God will become more grounded in what His names tell them, and thus more personal, allowing a greater trust in Him to share the details of their lives. Whether having walked with God for many years or just starting out in a relationship with Him, by the end of this study women will not only know more about God but will know Him better-because through the discovery of God’s names, they will discover Him!
Components for this six-week Bible study, each available separately, include a Participant Workbook, a Leader Guide, DVD with six 25-minute segments (with closed captioning), and a boxed Leader Kit containing one of each component.
*A six-week study of the names of God.
*Inspires women to have a more personal and trusting relationship with God.
*DVD features dynamic, engaging teaching in six 25-minute segments.
*Strong, solid Bible study from popular Bible teacher and speaker Melissa Spoelstra. -
Conformed To His Image Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$24.99Add to cartA Hands-On Guide to Spiritual Growth.
What does a real relationship with God look like? What does the biblical vision of true spiritual life look like? How do we grow in spiritual maturity? How we answer these questions influence the health, potency, and witness of Christians in an increasingly complex and hostile world.
Intended for use alongside the Conformed to His Image textbook by Ken Boa, the Conformed to His Image Study Guide is a practical tool to help readers grapple with these important questions and guide them toward spiritual growth. Designed for use in college and seminary courses, church settings, or for independent learners, this study guide helps readers build their lives on a fully biblical perspective by carefully walking them through questions to help them explore and internalize the twelve facets of authentic Christian spirituality, which include:
*Relational Spirituality: Loving God Completely, Ourselves Correctly, and Other Compassionately
*Paradigm Spirituality: Cultivating an Eternal versus a Temporal Perspective
*Disciplined Spirituality: Engaging in the Historical Disciplines
*Exchanged Life Spirituality: Grasping Our True Identity in Christ
*Motivated Spirituality: A Set of Biblical Incentives
*Devotional Spirituality: Falling in Love with God
*Holistic Spirituality: Every Component of Life under the Lordship of Christ
*Process Spirituality: Process versus Product, Being versus Doing
*Spirit-Filled Spirituality: Walking in the Power of the Spirit
*Warfare Spirituality: The World, the Flesh, and the Devil
*Nurturing Spirituality: A Lifestyle of Evangelism and Discipleship
*Corporate Spirituality: Encouragement, Accountability, and WorshipThe Conformed to His Image Study Guide in an invaluable tool for anyone who desires to follow Christ more closely.
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You Are Never Alone Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this six-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), bestselling author Max Lucado looks at the miracles of Jesus as recorded in the Gospel of John. As John states, he recorded many of these signs for an express purpose: “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31). John chose the stories and events from Jesus’ life that he believed would give his readers strength, empower them, lift them up, and speak life into their situations.
By the time John penned the words of his Gospel, he was an old man . . . his hair silver and skin wrinkled. He was pastoring a collection of Christ followers in the distant city of Ephesus. But he still loved to tell the story-some six decades earlier and a thousand miles removed-of when Jesus first called him to lay down his net . . . and he obeyed. The others are gone now. Peter, Andrew, James. They’ve long since followed their calls and fulfilled their missions. Only John remains, and he knows that his days are coming to an end. It is with this purpose that he takes up his pen . . . to help his readers believe and have life.
John’s record of Jesus’ miracles reassure us that we are never stuck or without hope. We are never forgotten. All the forces of heaven have been marshalled to come to our aid. A rescue mission is underway! The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. A multitude of angels and the power of Scripture. The strength of prayer and the wisdom of saints. All this, and more, are continually working together to get us out and see us through. This is the message of the miracles . . . that with God you are never alone.
Designed for use the You Are Never Alone Video Study (sold separately).
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Renewed Womens Bible Study Participant Workbook With Leader Helps (Teacher’s Gui
$17.99Add to cartLessons from Naomi in the Book of Ruth.
Few things make us feel as helpless as living with a story we don’t like. Maybe one that involves the loss of a loved one, an unwanted transition, a difficult diagnosis, or a dream that fell through. At one time or another, we all deal with disappointments and feelings that life is unfair or that we are being punished.
In Renewed, a four-week study of the Book of Ruth, women glean wisdom from Naomi’s perspective, a woman who lived a story she didn’t choose or like. Forced to chart a new path as she mourned the loss of her husband and two sons, Naomi learned that the journey from bitterness to renewed hope and joy was rooted in God’s promise of redemption.
With insight from her own journey of living with a story that is not easy, Heather teaches women to flourish even as they live hard stories through a willingness to trust that God can transform them and trade their heartache for hope. They will learn to rely on God’s movement in the details of their story, even when it can’t be seen, gain confidence to act in the part of their stories that they can change, and watch expectantly for God to redeem the parts they can’t.
Components for this four-week Bible study, available separately, include a Participant Workbook with Leader Helps and a DVD with four 20 to 25-minute segments (with closed captioning).
*A four-week study of the Book of Ruth from Naomi’s perspective.
*This shorter study is ideal for in-between or busy times.
*Helps women find the courage to live with a story they don’t like and trust in God.
*Participant Workbook with Leader Helps includes group sessions guides, discussion questions, prayers, video viewer guides, and more.
*DVD features dynamic, engaging teaching in four 20 to 25-minute segments. -
1 Participant Book
$15.99Add to cartIn The One, by pastors Jim and Jen Cowart, readers will learn to respond to God’s great love for us by reaching out to the ones in our lives who are lost, not literally but spiritually-those who have not yet discovered the rich love God has for them. God sent his Son to earth on a rescue mission, “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10)-or as the parables in Luke 15 show us, to save “the one.” And Jesus has entrusted us, his disciples, to carry on this mission until his return.
The book and the corresponding study explore Luke 15 where Jesus tells stories about rejoicing when lost things are found-specifically, a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost child. This passage teaches us that we’re dearly loved and sought after by God, and that we are called to join in Jesus’ mission to seek and to save “the one” with intentionality, perseverance, and joy.
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Gospel Centered Family Counseling
$30.00Add to cartPastors and counselors regularly minister to people whose marriages or families are in crisis. Tempers run high and feelings are brought low when a marriage is hurting or a family is in disarray. Pastors and counselors need practical, biblical help in order to connect their theological training to the reality of modern messy relationships. These how-to training manuals provide relevant, user-friendly equipping for pastors, counselors, lay leaders, educators, and students, enabling them to competently and compassionately relate God’s Word to marriage and family life.
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16 Bible Studies For Your Small Group
$17.99Add to cartIf you’re like most small-group leaders, you often feel overwhelmed by the task of finding study material each and every week. Former small-group pastor Ryan Lokkesmoe is here to help.
This book has all you need for 16 small-group meetings exploring the concept of biblical community. Each study includes icebreaker questions, key Scripture passages, discussion questions about the text, and a guide for leading your prayer time.
This is the perfect tool for brand-new small-group leaders or seasoned veterans looking for a turnkey approach! Let these studies draw you and your group nearer to God and each other as they enhance your understanding of his Word.
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Life Questions Every Student Asks
$22.99Add to cartEvery student asks questions about life beyond the classroom:
*What does it mean to be in community?
*How can I discern my vocation?
*How should I understand marriage and sex?
*How should I relate to money and power?
*What happens if I doubt my faith?
*How should I approach interfaith dialogue?To help students navigate these questions about some of life’s most pressing and difficult issues, Gary M. Burge and David Lauber, coeditors of Theology Questions Everyone Asks, have gathered insights from Christian faculty who draw on their own experiences in conversation with students during office hours and over coffee. Sometimes, the deepest learning takes place outside the classroom.
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Incarnation Youth Study Book (Student/Study Guide)
$14.99Add to cartLearn the meaning behind the names of Christ and the difference He makes in our lives this Christmas.
His parents gave him the name Jesus. But the prophets, the shepherds, the wise men, and angels addressed him by other names. They called him Lord, Messiah, Savior, Emmanuel, Light of the World, and Word Made Flesh.
In Incarnation, best-selling author Adam Hamilton explores the meaning of these titles and what they tell us about the child whose birth we celebrate at Christmas. Join him and reflect upon the significance of the Christ-child for our lives and world today!
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Making Room Leader Guide
$15.99Add to cartLearn how to make room in your heart for God and neighbor this Christmas.
Often our Advent preparations have an inward focus as we prepare for the significance of God breaking into our world through the birth of the Christ child. But in a closer examination of the Advent story, we quickly learn that the focus of the coming of the newborn king is outward.
In this book and Advent study, Dr. Ed Robb explores the warmth of welcome at Christmas following interactions with Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, and the magi. Just as Jesus made room in God’s kingdom for a host of people that society wanted to leave on the margins, beginning with the appearance of the shepherds, we too should be asking ourselves who we can make room for this Christmas.
Perhaps it is to the people in your community, or the newly immigrated family in town that doesn’t speak your language. Or maybe it’s the next-door neighbor who just settled in from yet another corporate move? The story of Christ’s birth encourages us to widen our borders and increase our sense of community-and make room for others.
The Leader Guide contains everything needed to guide a group through the four-week study including session plans, activities, and discussion questions, as well as multiple format options.
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Managing Conflict Creatively 30th Anniversary Edition (Anniversary)
$16.99Add to cartWhat does the Bible say about conflict resolution?
??Nobody likes conflict, especially when both parties are “part of the same team.” Unresolved conflict can lead to missionary attrition, but healthy conflict-resolution can be a wonderful growth opportunity, leading to problem-solving and team-building.
In Managing Conflict Creatively, Dr. Palmer first introduces the dynamics of conflict and the common styles of conflict management. After providing a Biblical background, he then identifies types of conflict and how to develop conflict management skills, specifically in cross-cultural situations. Lose your fear of conflict as you walk through case studies, engage in discussion questions, and learn to:
– Identify the stages of conflict and steps of healthy problem solving
– Encourage healthy conflict resolution in its early stages
– Identify your personal conflict style and the characteristics of an effective moderator
– Overreact less amid conflict
– Consciously choose a conflict-resolution style tailored to each situation
– Disagree well and resolve conflicts and misunderstandings without harming your witness
– Manage conflict in positive ways that foster growth and collaborationThis manual is intended to serve as a teaching tool and a study guide for cross-cultural
conflict management courses in Bible colleges, mission organizations, and churches. Thirty years after its original publication, this practical, Bible-centered approach to the dynamics of conflict and conflict management in cross-cultural situations remains relevant, both abroad and in today’s hybrid cities. -
Names Of God Womens Bible Study Participant Workbook (Student/Study Guide)
$17.99Add to cartKnow God better through a study of His names.
Today’s culture and others’ views, even those of other Christians, can present a distorted view of God. Some suggest God exudes qualities He does not possess such as being unloving or apathetic toward His creation. In a world where we find people creating God in their own image, studying God’s names can remind us that we are created in His. In fact, one of the best ways to know God’s true character and grow closer to Him is to study His names.
In The Names of God, Melissa Spoelstra leads women on an exploration of the many names of our triune God-from El and Elohim to Yahweh and its many combinations to names such as Abba, Jesus, and Holy Spirit…and many others.
As women study the names of God, their ideas about God will become more grounded in what His names tell them, and thus more personal, allowing a greater trust in Him to share the details of their lives. Whether having walked with God for many years or just starting out in a relationship with Him, by the end of this study women will not only know more about God but will know Him better-because through the discovery of God’s names, they will discover Him!
Components for this six-week Bible study, each available separately, include a Participant Workbook, a Leader Guide, DVD with six 25-minute segments (with closed captioning), and a boxed Leader Kit containing one of each component.
*A six-week study of the names of God.
*Inspires women to have a more personal and trusting relationship with God.
*DVD features dynamic, engaging teaching in six 25-minute segments.
*Strong, solid Bible study from popular Bible teacher and speaker Melissa Spoelstra. -
Volunteers : How To Get Them, How To Keep Them
$6.99Add to cartI have written this book out of my experience working in small to medium sized churches. I address the great challenges of finding, training, and keeping volunteers. There are some simple techniques that I learned to have happy and engaged volunteers who do not get burned out.
I also spend time describing how you can run a successful children’s ministry with a minimum of people and yet not overburdening any of them. I talk about ways to combine functions so that you still cover all the age levels but in an efficient and effective manner.
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Recovering : From Brokenness And Addiction To Blessedness And Community
$25.00Add to cartThis book provides a theologically rich commentary on the challenge of addiction and the long road to recovery. Written by a minister with extensive experience working with people who struggle with addictions, this book helps pastors understand the roots and realities of our universal human struggle with addictions and attachments while showing that together we have great hope for freedom, wholeness, and recovery. Readers will learn how to create and foster a Beatitude Community, the kind of environment Jesus prescribed for his people, to help addicts and those who love them heal from brokenness. Foreword by Bob Ekblad.
About the Series
Pastors are called to help people navigate the profound mysteries of being human, from birth to death and everything in between. This series, edited by leading pastoral theologian Jason Byassee, provides pastors and pastors-in-training with rich theological reflection on the various seasons that make up a human life, helping them minister with greater wisdom and joy. -
Silence
$14.95Add to cartThis illustrated book for children captures the mindfulness, measured pace, and pauses that children experience in the Godly Play(R) circle or a supplement to any child’s bookshelf.
Silence is important for children; it is the stillness–both internal and external–that children need in today’s frenzied world. Godly Play founder Jerome Berryman offers children (and those who love them) a means to contemplate words and images, to develop a comfort level with silence that creates a foundation for wonder and the creative process. “Contemplative Silence” is a core component of Godly Play as found in all sacred story, parables, and liturgical action lessons presented to children. In each lesson, children encounter silence during entering, the lesson, wondering, art and material responses, the feast, and saying good-bye.
This companion to the Complete Guide to Godly Play volumes will find a home in all Godly Play rooms as well as other formation settings for children: homes, churches, Episcopal schools, and hospitals.
Age range: 3 – 8 years old
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Power Of Knowing God Interactive Workbook (Workbook)
$9.99Add to cartAre You Living the Life You Were Created For?
God has called you to know Him and experience Him. And He wants you to know Him beyond intellect, emotion, and action. He is your friend, but He is interested in so much more. He wants an intimate relationship with you.
In this companion to Dr. Tony Evans’ The Power of Knowing God DVD, he shares with you his strategies for creating an authentic connection with God. This comprehensive resource provides insightful stories and practical applications to help you pursue a true relationship with God. You’ll find this full of relevant Scripture passages, reflective questions that spark conversation, and activities for personal growth.
Use in a group or on your own as you make knowing God your life’s pursuit…and experience the fullness of living the life He created you for.
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28 Day Prayer Journey Study Guide With DVD (Student/Study Guide)
$44.99Add to cartWe know from Scripture that prayer is essential to an intimate and thriving relationship with God, but often we simply don’t know how or what to pray. Many of us feel inhibited with group prayer or praying out loud. Chrystal Evans Hurst knows both the freedom and literal blessing of establishing and growing your prayer life, and how difficult it can be when prayer itself feels a bit foreign.
In this video-based Bible study, Chrystal teaches us the basic tenets of prayer practice and establishes a realistic and doable pattern of prayer to be applied to our daily life for 28 days with lasting effect. She then dives deep into four postures of prayers that increase our communication and relationship with God. After you have prayed in one posture for an entire week, Chrystal will break down that posture and walk through the biblical references supporting it to draw the connections between your growing relationship with God and the practice of prayer.
This study includes daily prayer practices, space to journal about your prayers and what you are hearing from God, as well as challenges each week to keep yourself from distraction and give prayer the time it deserves.
Sessions include:
*Introduction to Types of Prayer and Practice
*Prayers of Thanksgiving
*Prayers of Repentance
*Prayers of Request
*Prayers of YieldingThis pack contains one study guide and one DVD.
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I Am Bible Study
$11.99Add to cartIn the Gospel of John, Jesus uses “I Am” statements that tell his listeners exactly who he is: the Bread of Life; the Light of the World; the Gate; the Good Shepherd; the Resurrection and the Life; the Way, the Truth, and the Life; and the True Vine. These claims infuriated the religious leaders and eventually led to Jesus’ crucifixion. This six-session study examines Jesus’ extraordinary claims and shows how Jesus provides, protects, guides, saves, and gives everything we need to grow in spiritual maturity.
*6-session flexible Bible study
*Optional reading plan for people with more time who want to go deeper
*Leader’s guide is contained within each study guide, so no extra book purchase is required
*Discussion questions for each session and lots of space for writingMost Bible studies on Jesus don’t include visuals. Imagine having one that does! Perfect for group and individual use, young adult study, homeschool, church library, to give to a friend, and more!
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Leading Small Groups That Thrive
$22.99Add to cartNearly every church is trying to help their congregants build relationships with others, grow as disciples, and/or engage in meaningful service through small groups. Many have argued that these small groups are the preferred vehicle for relationship building, disciple making, and membership assimilation in the local church, especially in large, multisite churches.
Leading Small Groups That Thrive shows small group leaders, step by step, how to plan for, launch, build, sustain, and multiply highly effective, transformational, healthy small group experiences where people grow spiritually together. Based on a large-scale research study of small group pastors, leaders, and members, Leading Small Groups That Thrive gives church leaders both what they want–practical, straightforward, actual small group member voices and experiences, and compelling guidance on how to build transformational groups complemented with real-life examples and data of successful small groups–and what they need–substantial, challenging insights and a data-driven model grounded in the latest research on church small groups.
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Take Back Your Life Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this five-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), pastor and author Levi Lusko reveals how every moment of every day, we must make the choice as to whether we will rely on ourselves to determine the reality of our situation or whether we will trust in God. In the Old Testament, we read how Gehazi, the servant of the prophet Elisha, faced this very dilemma. A bounty had been put on Elisha’s head, and an army was now surrounding them. Gehazi was frantic. “Oh no, my lord!” he cried. “What shall we do?” (2 Kings 6:15).
“Don’t be afraid,” Elisha calmly answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (verse 16). Gehazi must have wondered if his master had lost his mind. They had maybe five minutes before the soldiers reached them . . . yet here was Elisha practically singing the lyrics to “It’s a Small World” and pretending everything was going to be all right. But then the prophet prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see” (verse 17). And with this, Gehazi suddenly saw what his master was seeing: a glorious, greater, and far more powerful army of the Lord surrounding the enemy invaders.
When it comes to the trials and crises in our lives, we need to see the reality of our situation with the same “spiritual eyes” as Elisha possessed. What we perceive is not all that is there . . . there are unseen things, spiritual things, eternal things. As the apostle Paul put it, “So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:18 nlt). As we learn to perceive our world through the lens of faith, we gain the strength to do the impossible.
Take Back Your Life is a forty-day journey that will challenge you to see your situation with spiritual eyes, identify the roadblocks that get in the way of your faith in Christ, and ultimately take the first steps to become the difference-maker in the world that God created you to be!
Designed for use with the Take Back Your Life Video Study (sold separately).
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Emerging Gender Identities
$23.99Add to cartThis book offers a measured Christian response to the diverse gender identities that are being embraced by an increasing number of adolescents. Mark Yarhouse and Julia Sadusky offer an honest, scientifically informed, compassionate, and nuanced treatment for all readers who care about or work with gender-diverse youth: pastors, church leaders, parents, family members, youth workers, and counselors.
Yarhouse and Sadusky help readers distinguish between current mental health concerns, such as gender dysphoria, and the emerging gender identities that some young people turn to for a sense of identity and community. Based on the authors’ significant clinical and ministry experience, this book casts a vision for practically engaging and ministering to teens navigating diverse gender-identity concerns. It also equips readers to critically engage gender theory based on a Christian view of sex and gender.
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Lose Control Womens Bible Study Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$15.99Add to cartHave you ever thought you had life under control-until you didn’t? Perhaps thinking “God is in control” but living as if you are. It’s like walking around with a hot cup of coffee, afraid that with one wrong move it will spill and be a burning hot mess. Then you realize what little control you have and how dependent on God you truly are.
In Lose Control, Mary Shannon Hoffpauir takes you on a six-week journey through the Book of First Samuel, which is an epic story about a fight for control. Despite God’s warnings through the prophet Samuel, the nation of Israel was determined to take control by having their own king. As you dig into the saga of King Saul and David, who would become the next anointed king of Israel, you will discover that no plan or purpose of God can be thwarted by human beings. Even the worst of circumstances can be used by God to accomplish His purposes in your life.
In her no-nonsense, authentic teaching style that endears her to women of all ages, Mary Shannon encourages you to lose control so that you can find your soul through a trusting relationship with your faithful God.
Components for this six-week Bible study, each available separately, include a Participant Workbook, a Leader Guide, and a DVD with six 25-minute segments (with closed captioning).
*An in-depth six-week exploration of the entire Book of 1 Samuel.
*Study includes five days of homework for each week.
*Encourages women to exchange their desire for control for God’s gift of faith.
*Helps women gain a deeper love and grace for others.
*DVD features dynamic, engaging teaching in six 25-minute segments. -
Formational Power Of Worship
$13.99Add to cartWhy do we do what we do in worship? Why do we sing, read Scripture, and preach sermons?
The Formational Power of Worship contends that these questions and others like them are the very ones pastors, musicians, and other ministry leaders should be asking. For these leaders, meaningful worship can also be intentional worship, engaging both the heart and the mind so that people can be shaped into disciples of Christ. This book invites you to begin this journey of why by examining different elements of worship and exploring how they can better become formational moments in the life of the church.
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Dignity : Seven Strategies For Creating Authentic Community
$16.95Add to cartDIGNITY is a transformative set of ideas to help individuals and communities identify and address barriers to authenticity. The author was inspired by a question in the Episcopal Baptismal covenant: Will you strive to respect the dignity of every human being? DIGNITY is seven actionable tenets (diversity, identity, growth, nurture, integrity, transparency, and yield) with which we can identify our purpose, articulate our aspirations, and equip ourselves and others for both the opportunities and challenges of honoring this covenant. They are prompts to be reflective about who we are and what we value. This practical guide will help the spiritual community bridge the gap between where we are, and where we want to be. For we know that “You can develop a healthy and robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor.” (James 3:17)
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Proverbs Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$14.99Add to cartThe book of Proverbs is a practical book written for people like us–parents, children, friends, and coworkers. It’s a collection of biblical sayings and wisdom that will make our modern lives run a bit more smoothly. Inside you encounter the wise and the foolish, all on a journey to find the wisdom that comes from God alone.
Proverbs: Pathways to Wisdom explores the context, language, and interpretation of this wisdom literature genre. Each chapter covers the historical context and interpretations of well-known verses and prevalent themes throughout the book. From the figure of wisdom to the Woman of Valor in Proverbs 31, Hernandez explores these verses and reveals literary and historical details that bring more meaning to familiar passages.
The Leader Guide contains everything needed to guide a group through the four-week study including session plans, activities, and discussion questions, as well as multiple format options.
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Friendship : The Heart Of Being Human
$25.00Add to cartIn this vibrant theological reflection on the meaning of friendship, experienced pastor and leading Christian ethicist Victor Lee Austin argues that friendship is the medium through which God shares grace with his creatures. Mixing personal reflection and theological commentary, Austin provides a fresh reading of classical writers and biblical texts; shows how a robust theology of friendship addresses contemporary controversies in the areas of marriage, celibacy, and homosexuality; and draws on cultural examples of the desire for real friendship. Ultimately, Austin helps readers understand the strange yet real possibility of friendship with God.
About the Series
Pastors are called to help people navigate the profound mysteries of being human, from birth to death and everything in between. This series, edited by leading pastoral theologian Jason Byassee, provides pastors and pastors-in-training with rich theological reflection on the various seasons that make up a human life, helping them minister with greater wisdom and joy. -
Awakened Life For High School Students Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$15.99Add to cartThe Awakened Life for High School Students is an 8-week small-group guide that empowers teens to awaken to a more abundant life through practices that build resiliency, teach psychosocial skills, and foster emotional and spiritual well-being. It is designed to be led by those who provide spiritual and emotional care to students but who are not professional counselors or therapists.
The curriculum walks participants through 8 weeks of practices and reflections. Each weekly session lasts for about an hour and includes a mindfulness or spiritual practice to explore as a group. Many of these practices involve prayer and meditation techniques, coupled with discussion and journaling.
Through participation in The Awakened Life, high school students can wake up to abundant life; become aware of their worth and belonging; come alive to their senses, thoughts, and emotions; abide in the love and grace of God; and arise to live a life as connected, whole people.
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Awakened Life For High School Students Student Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$11.99Add to cartThe Awakened Life for High School Students is an 8-week small-group guide that empowers teens to awaken to a more abundant life through practices that build resiliency, teach psychosocial skills, and foster emotional and spiritual well-being. It is designed to be led by those who provide spiritual and emotional care to students but who are not professional counselors or therapists.
The curriculum walks participants through 8 weeks of practices and reflections. Each weekly session lasts for about an hour and includes a mindfulness or spiritual practice to explore as a group. Many of these practices involve prayer and meditation techniques, coupled with discussion and journaling.
Through participation in The Awakened Life, high school students can wake up to abundant life; become aware of their worth and belonging; come alive to their senses, thoughts, and emotions; abide in the love and grace of God; and arise to live a life as connected, whole people.
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Lectionary Reflections Cycle B
$24.95Add to cart“Imagine if before we fired off that comment, posted that pithy, clever post, or took out our frustration on whoever happened to be in front of us, we asked ourselves: Does this build up or tear down? Is this kind? Am I speaking the truth in love? How does this act or word imitate God and show the love of Jesus Christ?” (171) How can we, as disciples of Jesus Christ, best imitate his life on Earth? Jill Duffield uses Lectionary Reflections: Year B to explain, through a variety of different situations, no matter what time of year. Whether we are feeling untethered to Jesus during Thanksgiving, or unsure how to perceive his death on Good Friday, Duffield is prepared to help us live the example of Christ each and every day.
Lectionary Reflections, Cycle B is part of a three-part series, of which this is the second installment. After each biblical commentary, Duffield includes a set of questions, centered around readers thinking like disciples of Christ. However insignificant they may seem at first glance, take the time to thoroughly read each question while reflecting on her commentary, and discover her dedication to bring others closer to God, in mind and spirit. This book is intended for preachers and laypeople alike, or even new converts who may have questions as they explore the Bible. If a passage or story is seemingly unclear, Duffield has a detailed response on how to understand His word.
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2000 Year Old Preacher Cycle B
$15.95Add to cart“I am old and ready to die. To be truthful, I have been ready to die for years, but right now, I feel ready as I have never been before.”
This quote was taken from one of David Leininger’s sermons titled “Simeon: A Monologue,” in which he takes at one of the most well-known stories in the Bible, Jesus’ Visit to the Temple, and looks at it from a new perspective. Throughout The 2000 Year Old Preacher, he invites his audience to do the same, observing this holiday season from a new angle.
Consider the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her status as the favored one of God. In his sermon, “Mary’s Complaint,” Leininger references how the favored mother of Jesus does not complain during her complications as she carries the Son of God, but continues to praise His name and remain grateful for the privilege that she had been given.
Leininger uses a variety of topics to ask his congregation to view their lives from a new perspective, using sermons such as:
*Advent 3: Hark the Herald…What? (John 1:6-8, 19-28)
*Nativity of Our Lord: God Bless Santa! (Luke 2:1-20)
*Epiphany 5: Heroines of the Faith (Mark 1:29-39)So take a step back from viewing the forest and look at the trees, have a seat at the feet of God, and experience new worlds that Leininger paints with his words of wisdom throughout The 2000 Year Old Preacher.
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Gratitude On The Prairie Cycle B
$14.95Add to cart“But faith in Christ calls us out of solitary pursuits. Faith in Christ calls us to proclaim Christ where the hurt is the worst, where despair is the deepest, where hope has never been born. We can’t sit under our telescope or at our desk and respond fully to Christ. We have to feel the brokenness around us. We have to be touched, even wounded by it” (page 15). Thomas Willadsen challenges his readers to look at Christ’s sacrifice for us in a new way, to feel the brokenness and challenges that Jesus suffered for us. The challenge of being a Christian is that it is not always easy to spread the good news of God’s love for us.
However, Willadsen points out that this call to spread Christianity has its rewards, even if we do not realize them at first. “You may discover that you have interests and abilities you didn’t realize. You will make new friends and deepen existing friendships. You will learn–I insist on that! –and you will be given opportunities to respond to Christ’s call, to Christ’s sacrifice” (21). No matter the place you are in your life or your destination, Willadsen encourages us as Christians to love others, and to be as Christ for everyone we interact with. Though this might not be easy, Jesus’ ministry wasn’t simple either. Become like Christ through your actions. Love like Christ through your words. Suffer like Christ when people reject you. But overall, remember that you are loved by Christ.
Sermon titles include:
*”It’s Lonely at the Top” (Esther 7:1-6, 9-10, 9:20-22, Psalm 124, Mark 9:38-50, Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29)
*”Seeing with the Eyes of Faith” (Psalm 34: 1-8, 19-22, Jeremiah 31:7-9, Psalm 126, Mark 10:46-52)
*”Steadfast Change” (1 Samuel 1:4-20, 2:1-10, Hebrews 10:11-25, Mark 13:1-8)
Fourteen sermons based on the Gospel lessons from the Revised Common Lectionary (Cycle B) for the second half of the season after Pentecost are included in this single volume. The reader will find these messages inspiring, thought-provoking and comforting. The content of this book will be useful for sermon preparation, study groups and for personal devotions.
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Funeral Sermons That Proclaim And Celebrate
$12.95Add to cart“So today we gather to share our love and our stories with one another. We come to hear the voice of the Good Shepard reflected in the voice of family and friends. We cry together and we laugh together and we know that in both we are embraced in the arms of our loving God.”
Taken from one of George Reed’s many funeral sermons that make up Funeral Seermons that Proclaim and Celebrate, Reed teaches that the passing of a loved one should not be seen as the end of a life, but rather the beginning of a new chapter in which the deceased has been reborn with God in heaven. Throughout his book, he encourages his audience to remember their late relatives and friends through their memories, of all the good times spent together. He reminds us of how the deceased’s actions display God’s presence in the world. Their life, though beautiful like a rainbow, similarly cannot last forever, but the memories of that rainbow lives on in our memories long after its passing. “We will miss the physical presence of NAME but we know that the joy of this rainbow will continue in the presence of God for all eternity and that someday we will again enjoy the fullness of that blessing.”
No matter who your loved one is, or how you want them to be remembered, Reed has offered the guidelines on how to honor them perfectly, using sermons such as:
– “Comfort My People” (Isiah 40:1-8)
– “Many Rooms” (John 14:1-4, 18-19, 25-27)
– “God’s Fullness Within Us” (Ephesians 3:14-21)Throughout this time of grief and mourning, Reed encourages us to remember peaceful memories of our loved ones with whom we will be reunited in heaven.
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Reformed Pastor
$12.00Add to cartRichard Baxter was vicar of Kidderminster from 1647 to 1661. In an introduction to this reprint, Dr. J.I. Packer describes him as ‘the most outstanding pastor, evangelist and writer on practical and devotional themes that Puritanism produced’. His ministry transformed the people of Kidderminster from ‘an ignorant, rude and revelling people’ to a godly, worshipping community. These pages, first prepared for a Worcestershire association of ministers in 1656, deal with the means by which such changes are ever to be accomplished. In his fervent plea for the discharge of the spiritual obligations of the ministry, Baxter, in the words of his contemporary, Thomas Manton, ‘came nearer the apostolic writings than any man in the age’. A century later Philip Doddridge wrote, ‘The Reformed Pastor is a most extraordinary book…many good men are but shadows of what (by the blessing of God) they might be, if the maxims and measures laid down in that incomparable Treatise were strenuously pursued’.
Today, Baxter’s principles, drawn from Scripture, and reapplied in terms of modern circumstances, will provide both ministers and other Christians with challenge, direction and help.
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Dream Big Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartAt some point, we resign ourselves to living by the scripts and rhythms established by other people. Perhaps it’s a parent. Maybe it’s a pastor or a boss or a teacher. Maybe it’s a mortgage or wedding date or that next pay raise. Wherever the source, today there is an ocean full of people living on the life rafts of what they were expected to do. If we look at the mirror, we might see ourselves on that life raft as well.
In this five-session video study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), bestselling author Bob Goff dares to ask the questions: What would you do if opinion, reason, or probability were no objects? What do you deeply desire to do even if it scares you to the marrow of your bones? What were you meant to do even if no other person thinks you should? He shares stories from the Bible that show how God called certain individuals to follow him-regardless of their lack of “qualifications”-and how those people changed the world when they dared to follow God’s dreams for their lives. In the same way, God is calling us to step into the version of our lives that he intended for us before others told us it was impossible and once again dream big.
If anyone knows how to live life to the fullest, it is Bob Goff. He has already dazzled readers and audiences with his crazy, audacious, live-out-loud approach and stories told in Love Does and Everybody, Always. Yet as unique as Bob might seem, he had to make his own choice to dream big. In this study, he will take participants on this journey he has already traveled and help them to rediscover the dreams God has for them and turn them into reality. Dream Big will help group members understand that God has a plan for their lives and provide a step-by-step road map to breaking through the barriers that are holding them back.
Designed for use with the Dream Big Video Study (sold separately).
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Victory Over The Darkness Study Guide (Revised)
$16.99Add to cart“You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32 niv).
It’s Jesus’s promise to you–the promise that you will live triumphantly. But what keeps you from really walking in the joy of the Lord? The powers of darkness attack us daily. But, as Dr. Neil Anderson shows in Victory Over the Darkness, you can have the power to conquer them by knowing who you are in Christ. In this book, you will learn how to:
* realize the power of your identity in Christ
* find freedom from the burdens of your past
* stand against the spiritual forces of this world
* win the battle for your mind
* become the victorious person you want to be
* discover the truth about God’s view of youVictory Over the Darkness spells out practical ways to experience Christian growth based on Christ’s promise. Learn to apply the truths of Scripture as a base from which to renew your mind and become the person Christ empowers you to be.
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3 Mile Walk Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this five-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), pastor and author Banning Liebscher draws on the story of Jonathan and his armor-bearer (told in 1 Samuel 14) to show how their three-mile journey carries a profound metaphor for believers today. Although the men were embroiled in a seemingly losing battle with the Philistines, they had the courage to take the fight to their enemy and believe God would back them up. To do so, they had to traverse a treacherous three-mile canyon between the two army camps before they could step into the battle and see God bring about the victory that had seemed impossible.
Like the army of Israel, many believers in the church today are “camped out” and not engaging the call of God on their lives. However, God is awakening dreamers like Jonathan and his armor-bearer-men and women who are discontented with the idea of staying passive about the problems they see or disconnected from the desires stirring in their hearts. The courage of these dreamers reminds us that God calls us to be like Jesus-to overcome evil with good, do the impossible, and see His kingdom come in the earth. The question before us is whether we will open our hearts to dream with God, become possessed with the same divine discontentment, and engage in pursuing our call with a true “yes”-a “yes” that says, “I take full ownership of this calling, and I refuse to settle for anything less than fulfilling it.”
Once we decide to engage our calling, we have a journey ahead of us. The three miles of Jonathan’s journey to the enemy’s camp represent the three key areas of character transformation that are required to fulfill our calling: holiness, courage, and faith. In this study, Banning brings both fresh and timeless insight and practical instruction for growing in each of these areas.
Designed for use with The Three-Mile Walk Video Study (sold separately).
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Act Like Jesus Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this eight-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), pastor and author Randy Frazee explains there is a difference between simply believing something in our heads and allowing those beliefs to shape our actions and behaviors. It is not enough to think like Jesus . . . we must also act like Jesus. For this reason, once we understand what we believe, we need to yield to the direction of the Holy Spirit and allow him to lead us to those biblical practices that will bring about spiritual transformation in our lives. As we do this, the Holy Spirit will lead us to make these resolutions:
*I will worship God for who he is and for what he has done for me.
*I will pray to God to know him, find direction for my life, and to lay my requests before him.
*I will study the Bible to know God and his truth and find direction for my daily life.
*I will dedicate my life to God’s purposes.
*I will fellowship with Christians to accomplish God’s purposes in my life and in the world.
*I will seek to understand my spiritual gifts so I can use them to fulfill God’s purposes.
*I will give my resources to fulfill God’s purposes.
*I will share my faith with others to fulfill God’s purposes.Grounded in carefully selected scripture, Act Like Jesus is a churchwide discipleship program that will take you on a journey to become more like Jesus in your behaviors. This revised study, adapted from Part 2 of the Believe churchwide study, includes an updated video study and new content and questions adapted from the existing Believe Study Guide and Think, Act, Be Like Jesus by Randy Frazee.
SESSIONS:
1. Worship
2. Prayer
3. Bible Study
4. Total Surrender
5. Biblical Community
6. Spiritual Gifts
7. Giving My Resources
8. Sharing My FaithDesigned for use with the Act Like Jesus Video Study (sold separately).
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Be Like Jesus Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this eight-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), pastor and author Randy Frazee explains that our spiritual transformation involves not only thinking and acting like Jesus but also allowing those thoughts and behaviors to shape our attitudes. As we do this, we experience a new way of looking at the world and discover an inner strength that allows us to remain steadfast, secure, and solid in the face of any circumstance. We also discover a new desire to serve others . . . which, in turn, draws them to the love of Christ. We know we are becoming like Jesus when we possess these attributes:
*I have a deep love for God and for the other people in my life.
*I have inner contentment in spite of my circumstances and understand my purpose in life.
*I have freedom from anxiety because I am at peace with God, others, and myself.
*I have experienced the power, through Christ, to control my thoughts and behaviors.
*I have patience in the unavoidable pressures of life and am slow to anger.
*I have the desire to be kind and good in my relationships with others.
*I have established a good name with God and others based on my loyalty to those relationships.
*I have become thoughtful, considerate, and calm in my dealings with others.Grounded in carefully selected scripture, Be Like Jesus is a churchwide discipleship program that will take you on a journey to become more like Jesus in your behaviors. This revised study, adapted from Part 3 of the Believe churchwide study, includes an updated video study and new content and questions adapted from the existing Believe Study Guide and Think, Act, Be Like Jesus by Randy Frazee.
SESSIONS
*Love
*Joy
*Peace
*Self-Control
*Patience
*Kindness / Goodness
*Faithfulness
*GentlenessDesigned for use with the Be Like Jesus Video Study (sold separately).
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Think Like Jesus Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this eight-session video Bible study (DVD and digital downloads sold separately), pastor and author Randy Frazee explains that when Jesus saves us and ushers us into his kingdom, he begins a process of transformation within us that starts with our thoughts. As God begins to transform our minds, we begin to think like Jesus and believe like Jesus. For this reason, it is important for us to understand the eight key beliefs of the Christian faith that-when embraced in our hearts and minds-create true change in our lives, in the church, and in the world:
*I believe the God of the Bible is the one true God-Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
*I believe God is involved in and cares about my daily life.
*I believe we come into a right relationship with God, by his grace, through faith in Jesus.
*I believe the Bible is the Word of God and has the right to command my beliefs and actions.
*I believe I am significant because of my position as a child of God.
*I believe the church is God’s primary way to accomplish his purposes on earth today.
*I believe all people are loved by God and need Jesus Christ as their Savior.
*I believe that Jesus will return to judge all people and establish his eternal kingdom.Grounded in carefully selected scripture, Think Like Jesus is a churchwide discipleship program that will take you on a journey to become more like Jesus in your beliefs. This revised study, adapted from Part 1 of the Believe churchwide study, includes an updated video study and new content and questions adapted from the existing Believe Study Guide and Think, Act, Be Like Jesus by Randy Frazee.
SESSIONS
*God
*Personal God
*Salvation
*The Bible
*Identity in Christ
*Church
*Humanity
*EternityDesigned for use with the Think Like Jesus Video Study (sold separately).
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City : Urban Churches In The Wesleyan-Holiness Tradition
$15.99Add to cartJesus commissioned his followers to make disciples of all nations, and John Wesley claimed that all the world was his parish. The church belongs in every part of the world, whether urban, suburban, or rural–but it originated in the city. Cities drive economic, cultural, and social change. Cities are the refuge of the poor and marginalized. Cities are mission fields ready to be sown and harvested.Yet many churches have left the city to pursue other ministry opportunities. In his seminal work, The City, David Busic traces the Wesleyan-Holiness history of ministry to, in, and from the urban core, and calls church leaders to remember and honor ancient visions for ministry by returning our faith communities to the city.
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1 Small Step Participants Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$9.99Add to cartCan ordinary people make a lasting impression on the world around them? Matthew Barnett’s answer is an emphatic Yes! With inspiring stories and biblical takeaways, Barnett calls readers to set aside their fears and boldly embrace the life-changing adventure of being the heart, hands, and feet of Jesus to the broken people right outside their front doors.
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Becoming A King Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$18.99Add to cartGod’s original intention for humankind was to empower and entrust them with ruling over his creation (see Genesis 2:19-20). However, the story of most men is that being entrusted with power has led to them bringing harm to themselves and those under their care. When we look at the source of the problem, we find the issue is within our souls-we are in need of excavation and reconstruction. Jesus offers to meet us in the heart of our need and promises a way forward into fullness of life. Yet so often we are unsure about the way in. We see the invitation but have lost the map.
In Becoming a King, Morgan Snyder describes how as a young man serving alongside John Eldredge, he relentlessly engaged these deep questions of how to use power and grow as a leader. Over the course of two years, he sought counsel from the most respected men that he could find in the organization’s growing network of influence. As he distilled these men’s counsel, the outline of the path he was seeking emerged . . . an ancient path that generations of saints throughout human history have traveled before.
As Morgan explains, this is a map for the journey of inner transformation. It is an invitation into a radical reconstruction of much of what we have come to believe about God, ourselves, and the meaning of life. Traveling the path isn’t cheap, easy, or quick. Few find it. Even fewer choose to stay the course, fight the good fight, win the race, and keep the faith. But it is this heroic journey that leads to life-real life.
Since the publishing of Wild at Heart nearly two decades ago, there has been a slow and steady groundswell of masculine restoration. This study represents both the fruit of that work and the next steps to take men deeper into the more that is being offered . . . walking them through what it is to live deeply rooted and to be powerful God’s way.Designed for use with the Becoming a King Video Study (sold separately).
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Biblical Counseling : A Guide For The Church And Community
$21.95Add to cartBiblical Counseling presents a model for groups setting up a counseling practice based on Scripture. Clark presents the research that is the basis for this work as well as the experience gained through years of work in various venues. In addition to the step-by-step guides and templates of useful forms, there is a wealth of guidance in many aspects to be considered.
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Diary Of A Pastors Soul
$21.00Add to cartDiary of a Pastor’s Soul tells the story of a fictionalized pastor, embarking on his final year before retirement, who reflects on the experiences and relationships that have formed his vocation and shaped his soul over a lifetime of pastoral ministry.
Drawing on his own experiences, seasoned pastor Craig Barnes invites readers to embrace the life lessons of a pastor who has been formed by his failures and his fleeting moments of glory, but most of all by discovering the holy in the routine but often quirky duties of being a parish pastor.
Through 52 weekly thematic entries, Barnes presents spirituality in narrative form through a collection of interwoven stories about learning to love others with curiosity, amazement, vulnerability, and most of all gratitude for the grace found in flawed lives.
Barnes’s fictionalized diary approach creatively shows how the pastoral vocation forms mind, heart, and soul, helping pastors make sense of their own calling. With unvarnished honesty, this book eloquently illustrates a lifetime of ministry, revealing how “the Holy haunts the landscape of life.”
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Becoming Real : And Thriving In Ministry
$22.95Add to cartFollow the REAL rubric for success in starting new ministries If congregations were to look outside their doors, they may find that the people who need the good news don’t look like them and that the way to engage them is by having ministries that are REAL. REAL ministry is respectful relationships, excellence, authenticity, and love. This easy-to-understand perspective on relationships can be implemented in any setting with any group. To continue the mandate, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,” we have to have relationships with those whom God has put in our neighborhoods. Each chapter contains a study guide with Bible verses and reflection questions. The author also offers real anecdotes and examples of what to do–and what not to do–so that when using the REAL rubric with any group of people, you can emulate Jesus and bring the good news to them. Church leaders wanting to be more inclusive or trying to grow in their changing neighborhood will find this book a welcome resource.
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Heirs Together
$16.99Add to cartA church where everyone–adults, young people and children–has one vision and moves together. It almost sounds too good to be true. The vision which has inspired Daphne Kirk for over thirty years, and which she has actively sought to pass on to others, is of a church which includes all ages (children, young people and adults) in every aspect of its life. This is the vision of the intergenerational Church. Kirk writes with great energy and passion, presenting a radical picture of intergenerational cell life without glossing over the difficulties of initiating and sustaining that life.
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Pastoral Care : A Practical Guide
$29.99Add to cartAt the heart of the local church is the Christ-like care it manifests to its own members and those in the community. Increasingly, with fewer full-time ministers, this role is falling to the laity, often without formal training. This book will help ordained and lay members of the church to be more confident and better equipped in pastoral skills. Included are sections on understanding pastoral ministry, how to minister safely, developing appropriate skills for use in church and in the wider community and how to minister to oneself. A practical, hands-on book that all in pastoral ministry should read, and one that will help new pastors to survive and thrive in a long-term ministry in the church.
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Living Hope : A Practical Theology Of Hope For The Dying
$22.99Add to cartLiving Hope explores the meaning of Christian hope, its theology and psychology. It reflects on the sources of hope and wrestles with the concern for a hope that is not just a set of cliches, but which is engaging and realistic, suggesting practical ways of nurturing hope in those we care for. Russell Herbert argues that resurrection is central to Christian hope, drawing on the insights of psychology, nursing science and Jurgen Moltmann’s theology of hope. The book integrates theological reflection with a number of case studies and practical suggestions for clergy and pastoral carers.
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Intergenerational Cell Resources
$24.99Add to cartIntergenerational Cell Resources is intended to supplement Heirs Together. The four Ws of Welcome, Worship, Word and Witness are clearly explained and laid out, with guidelines and useful suggestions for the prayer night and the social outreach event which form an integral part of each meeting series. The meeting outlines in this book provide you with all the practical help you need to run your cell meeting, including photocopiable handouts and forms for delegating the various components.
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All Age Everything
$18.99Add to cartThere are many differing opinions on children and their ability to worship. Some churches aim for frequent, all-age services as their way of encouraging children to encounter God, while others rely on the groups that children are sent to during the service. Like all areas of ministry with children, all-age worship is not easy–there are barriers to face, mistakes to make and lessons to learn. This revised edition of All-Age Everything is full of ideas and suggestions to make all-age worship a true intergenerational worship experience. It looks at every part of an all-age service, from how to go about the initial planning, followed by tips for welcomes and beginnings, to endings and blessings. The ideas can be adapted to suit your own church setting, but, most of all, they make meeting God fun for the entire church family, however young or old.
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30 Days To Understanding The Bible Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$13.99Add to cartIn this six-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), bestselling author, pastor, and theologian Max Anders guides participants through the entire Bible, providing them with an understanding of all the major biblical characters, the major events, and the major points of geography they need to know to get a solid grasp of the story of the Old and New Testaments. By spending just 15 minutes a day in personal study for five days each session, participants will come to understand not only the facts and history of the Bible but also its teachings that have become such an important foundation of Western civilization.
Participants will learn about the Ten Great Subjects of the Bible (the Bible, God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, angels, man, sin, salvation, Church, and future things) and some of the more puzzling points of Scripture, such as why there are four Gospels, how to understand Jesus’ parables, the importance of miracles, the importance of the Resurrection, and much more.
The Bible is an enormous book covering much information and many subjects, and while it is not possible to learn everything about it in 30 days, they will gain a beginning knowledge-an overview-they can use to build a more complete understanding in the years ahead. In just fifteen minutes a day for thirty days, group members can gain a foundational grasp of the most important book ever written.
Designed for use with the 30 Days to Understanding the Bible Video Study (sold separately).
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Heavens Morning Breaks
$22.99Add to cartAt the heart of this book is the importance of balancing the Christian gospel with the hopes and wishes of a grieving family, even if these wishes do not entirely fit with the minister’s personal theology. Brooks examines the changes in funeral practice over the last 20 years before looking at issues such as cremation versus burial, life after death and difficult funeral services–where suicide or the death of a child may be a factor, or where mourners are few.
With a chapter on pastoral care for the bereaved as well as resource sections containing suggested orders of service, hymns, songs, prayers and readings, this is a helpful addition to literature on funerals for those involved in ministry.
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Embody : Five Keys To Leading With Integrity
$18.99Add to cartPastors and other leaders feel trapped in systems and institutions where actions and decisions often seem to have little to do with the scripture they read or the theology they profess. They are swept into leadership norms that resemble business models more than mission. They see in others and (sometimes) recognize in themselves the disconnect between their own theology and their leadership. They feel unable to fully integrate their beliefs with their behavior.
Many leaders–younger ones, especially–are frustrated and disillusioned by this disconnect. They see hypocrisy all around them, and in themselves. They see that our culture is at a critical juncture, which gives ministry a greater sense of urgency. But they want to do things differently, to be what they believe. They want to embody their Christian beliefs in every decision, every act of ministry leadership.
The functional authority of scripture must be evident in the way church leaders lead, both within the congregation and in the public square. The way we church leaders lead proves the bible does–or does not–matter. In Embody, Karoline Lewis shows how to frame leadership in the church and public square theologically, and from the perspective of incarnation. She shows how leadership can be a direct line between what you believe and what you do. She incorporates examples of Jesus’ leadership and the Paraclete in the Gospel of John, showing how leadership was achieved by walking beside.
Embody offers practical things for the reader to consider and do, instruction and guidance for how to make the ‘integration steps’ necessary in order to become an embodied leader, and exploration of core components of embodied leadership.
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Rediscipling The White Church
$20.99Add to cart“Many white Christians across America are waking up to the fact that something is seriously wrong–but often this is where we get stuck.”
Confronted by the deep-rooted racial injustice in our society, many white Christians instinctively scramble to add diversity to their churches and ministries. But is diversity really the answer to the widespread racial dysfunction we see in the church? In this simple but powerful book, Pastor David Swanson contends that discipleship, not diversity, lies at the heart of our white churches’ racial brokenness. Before white churches can pursue diversity, he argues, we must first take steps to address the faulty discipleship that has led to our segregation in the first place. Drawing on the work of philosopher James K. A. Smith and others, Swanson proposes that we rethink our churches’ habits, or liturgies, and imagine together holistic, communal discipleship practices that can reform us as members of Christ’s diverse body.
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Semi Final Musings
$26.99Add to cartThe target audience for this volume is ministry leaders, Pastors, elders and deacons, as well as those individuals who would like to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. The audience will be of necessity: men and women who are either in College or Seminary and/or in ministries working in churches.
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Recovering From Biblical Manhood And Womanhood
$18.99Add to cartWhile evangelicalism dukes it out about who can be church leaders, the rest of the 98% of us need to be well equipped to see where we fit in God’s household and why that matters. Recovering from Biblical Manhood and Womanhood is a resource to help church leaders improve the culture of their church and disciple men and women in their flock to read, understand, and apply Scripture to our lives in the church. Until both men and women grow in their understanding of their relationship to Scripture, there will continue to be tension between the sexes in the church. Church leaders need to be engaged in thoughtful critique of the biblical manhood and womanhood movement and the effects it has on their congregation.
Do men and women benefit equally from God’s word? Are they equally responsible in sharpening one another in the faith and passing it down to the next generation? While radical feminists claim that the Bible is a hopelessly patriarchal construction by powerful men that oppresses women, evangelical churches simply reinforce this teaching when we constantly separate men and women, customizing women’s resources and studies according to a culturally based understanding of roles. Do we need men’s Bibles and women’s Bibles, or can the one, holy Bible guide us all? Is the Bible, God’s word, so male-centered and authored that women need to create their own resources to relate to it? No! And in it, we also learn from women. Women play an active role as witnesses to the faith, passing it on to the new generations.
This book explores the feminine voice in Scripture as synergistic with the dominant male voice. Through the women, we often get the story behind the story–take Ruth for example, or the birth of Christ through the perspective of Mary and Elizabeth in Luke. Aimee fortifies churches in a biblical understanding of brotherhood and sisterhood in God’s household and the necessity of learning from one another in studying God’s word.
The troubling teaching under the rubric of “biblical manhood and womanhood” has thrived with the help of popular Biblicist interpretive methods. And Biblicist interpretive methods ironically flourish in our individualistic culture that works against the “traditional values” of family and community that the biblical manhood and womanhood movement is trying to uphold. This book helps to correct Biblicist trends in the church today, affirming that we do not read God’s word alone, we read it within our interpretive covenant com
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Beyond The Childrens Corner
$27.50Add to cartBeyond the Children’s Corner is a practical handbook to help churches become more welcoming to children and families in worship. It encourages PCCs and ministry teams to reflect on the spiritual needs of children, the pastoral needs of families, and how to remove barriers and manage change effectively.
Based on multiple training sessions and extensive casework, informed by research by the Church of England’s Life Events team and the Methodist Church, it explores:
? The changing needs of modern families;
? What tells you it’s time for change;
? ‘Quick wins’ to make the worship space more welcoming and spiritually imaginative;
? Engaging children in spiritually nourishing worship;
? Children and contemplative worship – what to do about noise;
? Building and sustaining relationships with families and children.Many books on All-Age Worship focus the service itself. Beyond the Children’s Corner explores how children and adults can be truly integrated as the church community, covering parents’ perspectives, the church building and the challenge of change as well as what happens in worship.
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Adept Church : Navigating Between A Rock And A Hard Place
$15.99Add to cartA theologically grounded, yet practical, user-friendly guide for church leaders seeking to save their churches. A methodical, logical approach for strategic development and decision-making. A clear process for showing congregations how to define their reality, and a map showing the way to move forward.
Offers a clear process to help congregations understand their situation by taking an honest “look in the mirror.”
Helps congregations build a realistic roadmap for moving forward.
Illustrates how the status quo (institutionalism) is rewarded and that seeking transformation goes against institutionalism.
Outlines what it means to be an adept church, a church that can navigate between a rock and a hard place because it makes decisions based upon where it needs to go and not where it is currently.
Provides practical, first step for congregations to move forward.
