Pastoral Helps
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Educating Congregations : The Future Of Christian Education
$22.99Add to cartA leading Christian educator offers a practical guide for revisioning a church’s educational program. After identifying the weaknesses in current education programs, Charles Foster offers an alternative vision that is more cooperative, more attentive to the whole of the congregation’s life, and that helps people critically correlate the Bible and Christian tradition to their own experience.
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Reclaiming The Bible
$30.00Add to cartIn this series of messages based on scripture, the author demonstrates the vital applications of the Bible for our own times. He illuminates the great words of faith for contemporary use–words like love, grace, and reconciliation. He interprets characters from the Bible, sheding modern light on the events of Jesus’ life. He also addresses social issues such as sexuality and violence, showing that the message of God’s grace is relevant for our time.
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I Come Away Stronger A Print On Demand Title
$39.99Add to cartMillions of Americans are joining small groups. Among the religious, prayer fellowships, accountability groups, house churches, Bible-study groups, and covenant groups are being touted as the wave of the future. But are small groups delivering what they promise? Are members really finding the support, encouragement, and deepening spirituality they seek? Or are the answers ambiguous?
I Come Away Stronger, the complement to Robert Wuthnow’s Sharing the Journey, presents fourteen case studies of small groups – from a women’s Bible study, to a peace fellowship, to a group for senior citizens. What small groups are like nationally and how their members understand spirituality can be gauged from the results of a national survey presented in the appendix.
This survey is given life and flesh in the extended portraits of each of the groups. These portraits are powerful and highly personal because they tell the stories, both collective and personal, of each group, revealing agreement and dissension, closeness and alienation, growth and stagnation. The result is an intimate inside look at the dynamics of small groups.
In a concluding chapter, Wuthnow places the small group movement in the changing context of American religion and society, showing why is has emerged and where it is headed, raising crucial questions that religious leaders and group members need to ponder as the movement continues to grow.
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Guide To Retreat For All Gods Shepherds
$23.99Add to cartA Guide To Retreat is designed to assist you in a time of reflection, prayer, and renewal. The resources included are intended to help you turn more fully towards God, to drink more deeply of God, and to prepare you for faithful ministry.
The author examines facing the desert times in our lives, explores personal identity and its meaning in ministry, and much more. A book for conducting one’s own ministerial/spiritual retreat, facing such concerns as “When All I Hear is Silence,” “The Tension Between Doing and Being,” and “Who Really Calls and Sends?”
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Marriage Manual A Print On Demand Title
$23.99Add to cartThis book is divided into two parts: Part 1: Arranging the Wedding: Present day concerns and celebrations Ministry before and after the ceremony Making the service more personal Conducting the service Music and the wedding Guidelines for weddings and receptions This edition contains the newest liturgies available from a variety of denominations. Part 2: Model Services A Classical Service A Baptist Service An Episcopal Service A Lutheran Service A Presbyterian Service A United Methodist Service The Blessing of a Civil Marriage
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Funeral Manual
$25.99Add to cart1. The Christian Funeral Service
2. Planning The Service
3. Conducting The Service
4. Music And Other Resources
5. The Funeral Sermon
6. Developing A Church Policy On Funerals
7. A United Methodist Service
8. An Episcopal Service
9. A Presbyterian Service
10. A Unite DChurch Of Christ Service
11. A Baptist Service
12. A Lutheran Service
13. Service For The Burial Of A Child
14. A Free ServiceAdditional Info
This book seeks to furnish working pastors with a selection of funeral services and to guide them in planning and conducting the funeral service. The book also offers help in developing a funeral policy in a local church and resources for educating a congregation in death, dying, and the Christian funeral service. -
Hospital Visitation Manual
$24.99Add to cartThis book is written primarily to enable the working pastor to become more effective in giving spiritual care both at home and in the hospital. The first four chapters of this manual will help you get acquainted with the hospital community and learn steps in visiting the sick. It also explains the pastor’s role with the sick and the patient’s relationship to the illness. Part two of this manual offers guidelines on pastoral care for specific types of patients; Aids patient, Burn patient, Cancer patient, Coronary patient, etc. The last part deals with services, prayers, poems, hymns, and selected Scripture passages.
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Finneys Systematic Theology (Expanded)
$45.00Add to cartTrue to Scripture, true to reason, and true to life.
Discover why these writings have been the impetus for revivals around the world.
Students of revival agree that Charles Grandison Finney spearheaded one of America’s greatest revivals and influenced the course of history. Church rolls swelled in the wake of Finney’s revivals. He is often directly or indirectly credited with the conversions of around 500,000 people.
Finney’s theological convictions were born in the fires of revival and shaped by a keen lawyer’s mind committed to the full authority of the Bible. He gave his life to promote: “The return to and practice of Biblical Christianity in the power of the Holy Spirit for the sake of God’s kingdom and glory.” The distinctive truths that Finney preached brought such a deep conviction of sin that today’s church does well when it studies his position on the moral government of God, the nature of man, the atonement, sovereignty, attributes of love, unity of moral action and regeneration.
This expanded volume represents the complete 1878 edition, two lectures of truth from the earlier 1847 and 1851 editions, a comprehensive introduction from L.G. Parkhurst, Jr., plus appendixes, a glossary, and a scripture index.
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Giving Birth
$40.00Add to cartThe birth of a child is important in the lives of women, families, and communities. But as a metaphor for pastoral practice, it is a sadly underdeveloped theme in theology and ministry. The author offers a remedy for this lack with this unique work, urging the incorporation into worship of Scripture with allusions to birthing–which would enliven the church’s theology.
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Days Are Surely Coming Cycle C
$12.95Add to cartIn Bethlehem the rules are different. We get by giving. We win by losing. We live by dying. These are principles set forth by a God who comes to us, not under Herod’s golden crown, but Jesus’ thorny crown, not with legions of soldiers, but legions of angels, not in great Jerusalem, but in tiny Bethlehem. Let us begin our journey there. From the Advent 3 sermon
Robert A. Hausman writes that once again in Advent, we tell Israel’s story of hope against hope. We believe the promise of a shoot coming forth from a dead stump, of a king who executes justice.
“In faith we are ready to be called by the name, ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’ We remember not only the promise, but also the fulfillment,” says the author.
The 17 sermons in this book are based on the First Lesson texts primarily from Isaiah and Jeremiah. The sermons follow the Revised Common Lectionary.
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Out Of The Cults And Into The Church
$20.99Add to cart10 Chapters
222 PagesAdditional Info
There are plenty of books that tell you what a particular cult believes. “Out Of The Cults And Into The Church” shows you the turmoil and adjustments that former cult members experience as they grow in Christian faith and come to terms with bilical truth. Drawing upon the composite experiences of former cult members from Mormonism, the Unification Church, Hare Krishnas, and her own experience, Janis Hutchinson provides a one-of-a-kind counseling tool for pastors, counselors, and friends seeking to understand and help both former cult members and active cult members who are “investigating” evangelical Christianity. “Out Of The Cults And Into The Church” answers the difficult questions faced by all who have left cults and those who counsel them. -
Hot Illustrations For Youth Talks
$22.99Add to cartYour search for lively, effective illustrations to spice up your youth talks is over. Hot Illustrations for Youth Talks is here! Veteran youth worker and nationally-known speaker Wayne Rice has carefully selected and crafted 100 of the best stories, parables and anecdotes available anywhere.
Rice has assembled this collection of illustrations from his personal files and from the files of some of youth ministry’s best speakers, including:
Tony Campolo, Ray Johnston, Les Christie, Rick Bundschuh, Chap Clark, Ken Kageler, Dewey Bertolini, Mike Yaconellie and many more.These illustrations cover the spectrum-some will make you laugh, some will make you cry, and all of them will make you think. What they all have in common is that they work with teenagers. They’re just the thing to give your youth talks that extra spark you’re looking for.
You’ll love what Hot Illustrations for Youth Talks will do for your youth talks. And your kids will love you for it!
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Creative Bible Lessons From The Life Of Christ
$22.99Add to cartDo you want to teach solid Biblical truth to your kids without their eyes glazing over as soon as you say “open your Bibles”? Now you can, with Creative Bible Lessons on the Life of Christ. Veteran youth worker and Bible teacher Doug Fields has crafted 12 lively, ready-to-use lessons that actually make it fun to dig into Scripture. Fields utilizes creative learning techniques to spark your kids’ interest and keep them actively involved in each lesson, including: – Learning games . . . – Hilarious handouts – Art projects anyone can do . . . Challenging simulations – Thought-provoking worksheets . . . – Skits and roleplays These techniques are built into clear, easy-to-use lessons that keep your kids active as they absorb the Biblical truth of each lesson. Fields also provides you with a brief teaching outline in each lesson that you can present to bring the message home. Best of all, these lessons are so complete, they require very little preparation time. You’ll be able to build quality, creative Bible teaching into your busy schedule — with Creative Bible Lessons on the Life of Christ
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Everyday Anytime Guide To Christian Leadership
$12.00Add to cartThe Everyday, Anytime Guide to Christian Leadership is a book for you regardless of when or where you find yoursef leading. It provides a wonderful oppurtunity to learn about the real character of leadership from someone who models what he teaches.
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Islam : An Introduction For Christians
$19.99Add to cartWhat do Muslims believe? How do Muslims pray and worship? What are the similarities and differences between Christianity and Islam? These and many other questions are answered in this informative introduction to Islam. Christians of all denominations will find reliable and up to date information on Islam and its relationship to Christianity. The first part of the book surveys the faith and life of Islam, exploring the subjects of the Qur’an, Muhammad, beliefs about God, justice and the law, women and family, death and eternal life. Part 2 tells about Islam in North America, both its early history and the current situatuion. Part 3 describes various groups and movements within Islam. Part 4 looks at Islam and Christianity, their encounters in history, the Bible and the Qur’an, and how Jesus is regarded by Muslims. Part 5 presents a Christian evaluation of Islam.
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Teaching For Spiritual Growth
$24.99Add to cartTeaching for Spiritual Growth deals with two important questions: 1) What does it mean to be spiritually mature ? and 2) What can the church do to help people grow spiritually? These questions are explored from the perspectives of theology, developmental psychology, and educational learning theory. The book integrates the three perspectives into a unified view of the teaching-learning process based on a biblical view of persons: 1. Theology: the divine side of spiritual growth. What does the nature of God tell us about teaching spiritual maturity? 2. Psychology: how God has designed people to grow. How does human development affect the process of achieving spiritual maturity? 3. Education: the learning process that produces spiritual growth. What is the process people go through to achieve spiritual maturity? The goal is to help readers develop a philosophy of Christian education that will be applicable to a variety of ministry contexts.
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Using Scripture In Pastoral Counseling
$20.99Add to cartDrawing on narrative biblical criticism and the psychology of narrative, the book suggests a model for pastoral counseling using Scripture to explore and release human possiblities. Detailed case studies are presented to depict the way the Bible can be used with counselees. Particular attention is given to pastoral counseling with individuals, marital couples, and families who bring to pastoral counseling a history of employing Scripture to bring order and meaning to their lives. Often, however, the biblical story seems to be secondary in their lives, and a more dominant and unhealthy story is primary. The method of using Scripture suggested in this book illuminates how the Bible story challenges and transforms unhealthy dominant stories that people bring to counseling.
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Community Of Joy
$22.99Add to cartIf congregations are to reach new generations of people, they must explore new styles of worship. Timothy Wright stikes a balance between liturgical worhip and worship that seeks to meet the needs of the unchurched and those who have a “hi-tech”, baby-boomer mentality. Written by a pastor in a vital and growing congregation, A COMMUNITY OF JOY suggests practical, innovative, and nontraditional forms of worship, enabling churches to minister more effectively.
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African American Church Growth
$20.99Add to cartAfrican American Church Growth offers 12 principles for prophetic ministry. Stewart contends that it is precisely the prophetic consciousness which appeals to many blacks of the post-civil rights era, and that emphasis on the prophetic will help bring the black church out of the disillusionment of a “post-civil rights malaise.”
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Social Context Of Pastoral Care
$40.00Add to cartBecause their work focuses primarily on the fields of theology and psychology, pastoral caregivers have often neglected to take into account the social forces that affect both the careseeker and the caregiver. Furniss introduces sociology as a third discipline to draw upon in their work. Biographical notes about key figures in sociology and a glossary are included.
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Old Wine In New Skins 1
$16.95Add to cart“Worship must be directly connected to our daily lives,” writes George A. Nye. “It must address our fears, our hopes, even our indifferences.”
Old Wine In New Skins provides pastors many resources to make the connection. These include 66 calls to worship, 13 preparations for pastoral prayers and 52 reflections.
Calls to worship categories include:
With praise and celebration
Using traditional hymns and praise hymns
Relating to a story
With a commitment theme
Involving personal preparation
By seasonA preparation for pastoral prayer section helps pastors broaden a congregation’s understanding of how to approach God in prayer. Thirteen “preparations” are provided, including one for Advent-Christmas.
Fifty-two short reflections cover eight major themes for countless pastoral uses. These are easily adopted for mini-devotions, sermon illustrations, and newsletter meditations.
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Living The Easter Faith
$12.95Add to cartLiving The Easter Faith is a series of Easter season sermons based on themes from Jesus’ parables. The parables demonstrate in a concrete and specific way the very heart and mind of the God revealed in Jesus.
“The Resurrection Age invites a new way of thinking and living in God’s world,” writes Donald William Dotterer. “Being Christian means that we adopt an alternative lifestyle. The parables of Jesus provide us with direction and insight for living the Easter faith.”
Sermons cover Easter Sunday through Easter 7. Texts are from Matthew, Luke and John. Sermon titles include “The Return Of The Lost,” “Counting The Cost,” and “Surprised By Grace.”
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Matthew 1 KJV Teacher (Teacher’s Guide)
$17.99Add to cartEach volume of The Teacher’s Outline & Study Bible gives you meticulous detail of every passage and outlines the Bible verse by verse. Each subject contains commentary, illustrations, application suggestions, and questions for reflection, discussion, and personal journaling. There is also an extremely helpful alphabetical index which contains all the subjects included in the text. Includes the KJV text of Scripture.
This volume covers Matthew, chapters 1 through 7. Two plans are outlined for teaching these chapters as a 13 or 26 session curriculum. -
Sharing Faith With Children
$24.95Add to cartWhat kind language and images should we use to communicate faith to children? How can we translate theological abstractions into concrete realities that make sense to children? This book provides insight into the stages of children’s mental and spiritual development in order to enable us to share faith with them in appropriate ways. Juengst gives special attention to the meaning of worship and how children participate in it, the role and purpose of the children’s sermon, the psychological and theological development processes of young children, the use of language and symbolism with children, and the use of appropriate methodologies that help in efforts to share faith with children through sermon.
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Brief Pastoral Counseling
$26.00Add to cartMost pastoral counselors assume that truly effective counseling requires months or even years. Research suggests otherwise. Studies have provided two startling findings. First, most persons come in for four or fewer counseling sessions, whatever the counseling method employed. Second, the majority of any counseling’s effectiveness occurs in the opening few sessions. Howard W. Stone is professor of pastoral counseling, Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth.
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Becoming Married
$33.00Add to cartThis series examines major changes that occur in the life cycle of a family: leaving home, becoming married, raising children, recommitting to a relationship–or committing to a new one–and living alone. Books address the major tasks of the family; rituals that enable effective transitions as those tasks change; beliefs and values from the Christian tradition that shape and are shaped by those family tasks; and pastoral opportunities in response to family life-cycle generations.
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Spurgeons Sermons On The Cross Of Christ
$17.99Add to cart1. The Crown Of Thorns
2. Christ Made A Curse For Us
3. Christ Made A Sin
4. Christ Lifted Up
5. Christ Crucified
6. Christ Crucified
7. Christ Set Forth As A Propitiation
8. The Bitterness Of The Cross
9. Up From The Country And Pressed Into Service
10. Unparalleled Suffering
11. Christ’s Connection With Sinners
12. Christopathy
13. Cries From The Cross P. 155Additional Info
In this volume Kregel Publications has brought together a new collection of Spurgeon’s sermons on the Cross and its meaning, signifigance, and power in the life of the believer. These sermons represent Spurgeon at his best-expounding the Word of God with passion and evangelistic appeal. Pastors will find ample “seed thoughts” to help in their own sermon preparation, and Christian readers will appreciate the biblical insight and practical application of Spurgeon’s sermons. -
Shared Wisdom : A Guide To Case Study Reflection In Ministry
$22.99Add to cartUsing case study analysis, the authors evaluate events in ministry. They outline the case process – preparing, presenting, and discussing a case – and discuss the implications of the process. Each chapter offers a biblical image which connects the case process with the dynamic Christian tradition. Readers will learn techniques in writing case studies and how to use imagination and analogy to stimulate theological reflection.
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Dancing With Dinosaurs
$17.99Add to cart1. Bursting Wineskins And Munching Sheep
2. Caught In A Crack Of History
3. The Fringe People
4. Leading The Sheep Back To Pasture
5. The Demise Of The Program-Based Church
6. A Reformation In Worship
7. What Ever Happened To The Sunday Church?
8. Three Essential Ingredients Of Paradigm CommunitiesAdditional Info
Before long, many of our Christian congregations will be perceived as cuddly, sentimental creatures who are studied primarily as skeletons in the halls of a museum. The church is in danger of becoming a dinosaur, according to church consultant and provocative author, William Easum. We live in a secular or unchurched world, but the church continues to develop ministries as if the church were in charge of a churched society.If we continuously fail to prepare our message for an anti-Christian world, we will disappear like the dinosaurs. Easum argues that while the substance of the gospel will not be changed as we make this shift, we must change the way that we package and proclaim the substance of the gospel.
DANCING WITH DINOSAURS is for persons who are beginning to realize that much of their activity no longer works, and that what they have been taught about ministry no longer makes sense.
This book will help pastors and church leaders to
*plant culturally relevant congregations
*explore first-century Christian communities as the primary model for viable congregations in a hostile world.
*challenge complacent or arrogant assumptions of established church leaders. -
Unleashing The Scripture
$23.99Add to cartThis provocative critique of the uses and abuses of Scripture in the American church shows how liberal (historical-critical) and fundamentalist (literal) approaches to biblical scholarship have corrupted our use of the Bible. Hauerwas argues that the Bible can only be understood in the midst of a disciplined community of people, where the story is actually lived out by dedicated practitioners.
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Legal Issues And Religious Counseling
$29.95Add to cartThis much-needed book offers a current description of how religious counselors and clergy as well as their local and national religious organizations become legally vulnerable. It examines the three most litigated areas in clergy counseling: breaches of confidentiality, sexual misconduct, and the content and quality of counseling service. The authors provide clear and concise explanations of clauses in the U.S. Constitution pertaining to religion as well as up-to-date accounts of cases against clergy and their employers. The authors describe how counseling clergy can perform their own “legal audit,” and the book includes detailed listings of state-by-state statutes for referral.
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Preaching Through The Christian Year B
$59.95Add to cartPastors, here’s a new resource for you to use in writing and delivering your lectionary-based sermons. Craddock and company—the famous exegetical/expositional/theological/devotional team—discuss the topics that are pertinent to the average listener, summarizing vast amounts of research in a non-technical fashion. For each Sunday, there’s a Gospel reading along with readings from an epistle, Psalm, and the Old Testament. Final revisions to the Common Lectionary have also been incorporated.
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Read It In Greek A Print On Demand Title
$27.99Add to cartThe New Testament was originally written in Greek, and what better way to grasp the real meaning of Scripture than to read the original text. With this user-friendly, one-semester textbook, you’ll soon be reading the entire book of 1 John! An effective one-semester introduction to Greek and a very capable precursor to advanced studies in Greek.
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Integrative Family Therapy
$17.00Add to cartPastoral counselors, therapists – in – training, and clergy are usually introduced to one method of family assessment and treatment, which works better in some situations than in others. Integrative Family Therapy introduces the major schools of family therapy, proposes a tested model that integrates the various approaches, and illustrates how this model functions both for assessing and treating family problems.
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Inside The Mind Of Unchurched Harry And Mary
$22.99Add to cartInside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary isn’t a book of theory. It’s an action plan to help Christians relate the message of Christ to the people they work around, live with, and call their friends.
Using personal experiences, humor, compelling stories, biblical illustrations, and the latest research, Lee Strobel helps Christians understand unbelievers and what motivates them.
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Ministers Service Book For Pulpit And Parish
$29.99Add to cartPastor McNeil shares the forms, orders, prayers, and aids he’s relied on for more than 20 years, so you can depend on them now! Categories include public worship, the administration of sacraments, ministering to the sick, and more. Features practical suggestions for each category, and a lectionary for the Old and New Testaments. 249 pages, pocket-sized softcover from Eerdmans.
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56 Lectionary Stories For Preaching Cycle B
$14.95Add to cart“Emilio Lopez received a surprise phone call from his bishop one day. “Would you be interested in a call to a white congregation in a neighborhood that is becoming Hispanic? I think you’re just the kind of pastor they need in these days of transition.””
— from the Advent 1 story
Here are 56 short stories for use in preaching. Each is a contemporary adaptation of a biblical theme.
“56 Lectionary Stories for Preaching” offers one story for each Sunday in the church year plus stories for Christmas Eve/Day and Ash Wednesday.
The collection is based upon the Revised Common Lectionary, Cycle B. Authors represent clergy storytellers from five denominations from across the United States and Canada.
Most of the stories are based on gospel texts. Some stem from first or second lesson scriptures. The collection offers a well-rounded selection of themes. Stories often offer surprise endings that catch listeners’ attention. Stories in this collection strengthen believers’ faith. -
Lectionary Worship Aids Series 3 Cycle B
$16.95Add to cart“Hear the good news! The victory that defeats the world is our faith, for who is victor over evil, but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. Friends, believe the good news!”
— Declaration of God’s Forgiveness for Easter 2
“Lectionary Worship Aids,” Series III, Cycle B, follows in the CSS tradition of providing creative worship resources for congregations.
Series III is based on the Revised Common Lectionary and New Revised Standard Version.
Each Sunday offers:
– Listing of the four lectionary texts for the day
– Call to Worship
– Prayer of Confession
– Declaration of God’s Forgiveness
– Exhortation
– Prayer of the Day
– Prayer of Thanksgiving
– Prayer of Dedication
– Psalm (congregational reading) -
Welcome Speeches And More
$10.99Add to cartGeneral Welcome Speeches
Welcome For Church Anniversary
General Response Speeches
A Tribute
Pastor’s Anniversary Addresses
Usher Day Address
Installation Of Officers
Men’s Day Addresses
Women’s Day Address
Family Day Address
Sacrificial Love
Choir Day Address
The Five F’s Of Friendship
The Walk Of Faith
A Godly Woman
Nine Keys To God’s Resources
Stewardship
How To Know God
Two Blessings
A Plan Of Salvation
A Friend Loveth At All Times
God Will Provide
Redeeming Love
Borrowed
God’s Will For UsAdditional Info
WELCOME SPEECHES AND MORENow you have one resource that can help you plan for a variety of situations in your church. Author and bookseller Carole Cupples wrote this book in response to a need voiced by her own customers. A few of the occasions this book particularly addresses are welcoming guests to a program, honoring a pastor on an anniversary, and paying a memorial tribute. The speeches you find in this compilation reflect the ways we honor God in both celebration and meditation.
Not only do you find welcome speeches and responses, but also devotionals, tributes, installation services, skits, and poetry for special days in your church.
The author has been operating a Christian bookstore for sixteen years. During those years, many times customers have come in needing help with programs in their churches. As a result of her attempt and desire to meet those needs, she offers to you this book. Her prayer is that it will assist you in your ministry.
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Hidden Keys To A Loving Lasting Marriage
$19.99Add to cart28 Chapters
Additional Info
Fulfilling Marriages Don’t just happen.In fact, truly joyful marriages are a lot of work! In Hidden Keys of a Loving Lasting Marriage, best-selling author Gary Smalley shares the principles of strong marriages. He points out the common problems between husbands and wives. And he shows how to turn those troubles into teamwork.
Hidden Keys of a Loving, Lasting Marriage explores:
Two reasons why marriages fail
How to meet the needs of your spouse
How a husband’s lack of affection weakens a marriage
Crucial differences between men and women
How to motivate your spouse to listen to youThis book is a combination of Smalley’s earlier published works, If Only He Knew and For Better or For Best. The first half of the book discusses the husband’s part in building a successful relationship. The second half of the book shows how wives can nurture their marriages.
Good marriages don’t just happen. They take both husband and wife working together to understand, appreciate, and honor one another. This books shows couples how to do just that.
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PastorPower
$22.99Add to cartPower is a persistent topic of conversation in circles both sacred and secular. Yet, how are those who follow a crucified Christ, one “whose strength was made perfect in weakness,” to think about power?
Martha Ellen Stortz presents an important volume for all those who lead or would lead in the ministry of the church. She lays an ecumenical groundwork for understanding ministry and authority, then systematically examines the different dimensions of power inherent in both: power over — or coercive power; power within — or charismatic power; and power with — or coactive power. Through case studies and in-depth discussions, Stortz offers guidance for balancing these three dimensions of power in one’s own ministry, enabling readers to recognize their own gifts or liabilities and shape their leadership styles to reflect the image of Christ.
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Teaching The Bible To Adults And Youth (Revised)
$20.99Add to cartTeaching the Bible to Adults and Youth shows how to make the “transparent” – with God evident throughout. Dick Murray offers suggestions for teaching, provides different approaches and perspectives from which to teach and conduct activities for learning, and examines such Bible study series as Kerygma, Trinity, Bethel, and Disciple.
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How To Build An Exciting Singles Ministry
$19.99Add to cartSeventy million single adults make up the largest minority in the United States–almost 40% of the adult population. With these figures in mind, the need for single adult groups should go without saying. But the need for single adult ministry in our churches is often overlooked. Now, however, Don Davidson provides a thorough, practical guide to single adult ministry and how to establish an effective one in your church. Davidson outlines the necessary steps for creating a unique singles group for new college grads, career people, widowed or divorced persons.
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Taking The Word To Heart A Print On Demand Title
$35.99Add to cartChristians today are besieged by ideas about personhood – what it means to be a whole person, a happy person, a fulfilled person, a healthy person. In fact, Robert C. Roberts says, psychology has invaded the Christian church – and while modern psychologies offer insights and practices that can be helpfully adapted for Christian use, they sometimes contradict and can even displace true Christianity.
Roberts examines several psychologies that tend to function as alternative spiritualities – Rogerian therapy, rational emotive therapy, assertiveness training, contextual family therapy, the psychology of Carl Jung, and the psychology of Hienz Kohut – and offers a critical evaluation of each in light of the Christian view of the self.
But just what is the Christian interpretation of selfhood? It has a great deal to do with community, with our relationships to others and to God, explains Roberts. “Christians are people of God’s Word,” Roberts says, “called daily to take it to heart, and thus be formed, as persons, by the sound of his voice. This book is all about becoming persons who dwell, in a variety of ways, among other persons.”
With this idea of personhood in mind, Roberts explores a variety of relationships important to the Christian personality, then sets forth the parameters of a distinctively Christian psychology.
Based on impressive scholarship yet highly readable, Taking the Word to Heart is a thoughtful study that will be of interest to laypeople as well as pastors, Christian counselors, theologians, and students.
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Using New Testament Greek In Ministry
$21.00Add to cartOne of the most practical guides you’ll find for preaching sermons faithful to the biblical text. Black prepares you to transform exegesis into exposition by explaining how to use the Greek text and linguistic resources to study the New Testament. Moreover, he recommends a basic library of reference books to help you with the process.
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Turning Points
$23.00Add to cartMost people agree that great movements have leaders and that leaders have moments when commitments are made, when new attitudes are formed, when new directions are chosen, and when distant visions are transformed into realities. This inspirational book examines some of these important times–occasions when notable people, during moments of crisis and insight, found the grace and strength to change our world for the better, forever.
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Help Im A Volunteer Youth Worker
$10.99Add to cartWhether you’re an old hand at youth work or you’ve just signed on, Help! I’m a Volunteer Youth Worker! gives you the basics for successfully reaching teenagers. These fifty, bite-sized suggestions are easy to remember and put into practice. They include tips on: – How to build relationships with students – How to recruit and train other volunteers – How to get along with the pastor and youth director – How to model Christian love to your students — If you’re a professional youth worker looking for new ways to encourage and empower your volunteer youth workers, just hand them a copy of Help! I’m a Volunteer Youth Worker! And don’t forget to consult this book yourself — because you’re guaranteed to find great ideas for youth work that maybe even you hadn’t thought of.
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All Gods Children (Revised)
$19.99Add to cart1. God Does Not Create Accidents
2. Tremendous Possibilities
3. The Role Of The Pastor
4. The Role Of The Volunteer
5. Mental Retardation
6. Deafness
7. Physical Disabilities
8. Visual Impairments
9. Learning Disabilities
10. Getting Started128 Pages
Additional Info
Statistics show that only 5 percent of churches have an outreach to disabled persons and that 95 percent of the people who have disabilities are not active in any church. Why not? In many cases, churches are newly coming to awareness of the need for disability ministry but have no idea how to start or what’s involved. All God’s Children is a handbook for pastors, elders, ministry leaders, and laypeople who want to minister to people with disabilities. It is a book to equip churches for ministry to those who are mentally retarded, learning disabled, hearing impaired, visually impaired, or otherwise physically disabled. This edition is extensively revised, especially the chapters on hearing-impaired persons and on getting a disability ministry started. The resource lists have been expanded and brought up to date. -
Pastoral Care And The Means Of Grace
$20.00Add to cartIn Underwood’s resulting spirituality, the soul of pastoral care is prayer. The substance is Scripture, studied in both liturgical and personal settings. The evangelical principle is reconciliation. Baptism lays the foundation for pastoral care by providing the paradigm for all transformations. Eucharist constitutes the eschatological horizon for pastoral care as ministry in the human encounter of God’s presence. This book stands at the forefront of a broad movement among scholars and clergy in nonliturgical traditions that aim at retrieving explicitly religious resources, the means of grace. The result is a rare, truly ecumenical contribution to pastoral care, which deepens practice by providing a vision and a spirituality.
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Church Confident
$21.99Add to cartKeck shows how the church is suffering from malaise brought on by oversecularization in aspects of church life including worship, theology, ethos, and communication.
This penetrating clarion call to renewal cuts through the conventional ideological labels of “liberal” and “conservative.” Keck argues with passion that mainline churches today must neither pretend to be culturally triumphant nor whimper in fear. Rather, the church has grounds to be confident about its proper nature and mission.
Keck envisions a renewed church that has recovered a sense of what is basic to its nature and purpose–restoring the praise of God to the center of worship.
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Daring To Hope Cycle B
$12.95Add to cart“Faith, hope and love are the abiding attributes of the Christian life. Most of us proclaim faith and love consistently,” writes John P. Rossing. “But … we may be guilty of neglecting the third great gift God has given us. During the closing Sundays of the church year we have an opportunity to declare our hope boldly.”
The 10 sermons in this book are based on First Lesson texts primarily from Job and Ruth. The sermons follow the Revised Common Lectionary.
We experience the same doubts, the same nagging absences of God that Job did. But we have some advantages. We know that God came into the world to redeem suffering through the suffering of his Son His presence among us in word and sacrament probes that he is neither distant nor uncaring. (from the Proper 23 sermon)
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Spirits Tether Cycle B
$12.95Add to cart“One of the mysteries of life is how God’s spirit can take hold of us, and change us.” Writes Leonard H. Budd. “Think of this force in your life as the Spirit’s tether. In my mind, a tether is the image of the Counselor that Jesus promised. It is the experience of God’s spirit that has been part of my living: The Holy Spirit’s tether.”
The 14 sermons in this book are based on Gospel texts, primarily from Mark. Sermons follow the Revised Common, Lutheran, and Roman Catholic lectionaries.
Our confrontation with Jesus Christ opens to each of us the blessed opportunity of forgiveness, and in that unburdening, the opportunity for a new start in our relationship to God and to one another. (from the Proper 5 sermon)
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This Is The King
$7.95Add to cartPilate: Are you the king of the Jews?
Jesus: Do you say this on your own or did others tell you this about me?
Narrator: Pilate was startled to hear the authority and depth of the man’s voice.
— from “This Is the King! “dramatic reading
“This Is the King!” is a complete resource for congregations wanting a special Palm/Passion Sunday celebration.
Worshipers will find:
– An order of service with a blessing of the palms
– Scriptures for the day
– A children’s sermon
– Hymn selections
– A dramatic reading
– A service of communion
The children’s sermon title is “Churning Up the Waves.” The dramatic reading, “This Is the King!” is offered in place of a sermon. It uses a narrator, Pilate, and Jesus. -
Jesus The Servant King
$7.95Add to cartGood morning boys and girls. How would you like to use your imaginations and visit some of the places that Jesus visited during the last week of his life? If you look closely, you will see, with my help, the streets, the palaces, the gardens, the dining room, the church and even the place where Jesus died and was buried. (from the lesson “The Temple”)
Jesus, The Servant King offers six object lessons for Lent. Each lesson focuses on a place where Jesus visited during the critical final week of his life. Each lesson includes a drawing, which you may use to show children while telling your story.
The lesson themes are:
The temple
The upper room
The garden
Calvary
The streets of Jerusalem
The empty tomb -
Symbols Of Sacrifice Year 3
$7.95Add to cartThe sacrificial life of Christ is a major focus of Lent. Symbols Of Sacrifice provides the congregations with opportunities to create visual worship aids representing Christ’s life during worship.
Each weekly presentation builds a growing reminder of Christ’s sacrifice for the congregation.
This series offers a list of symbols and explanation of the symbols. These are provided for the Sundays of Lent and Easter Sunday.
Symbols are:
Sandals
A globe of the world
Money
A lantern
A grain of wheat
A cloak
A white robeThis is one book in a three-part series of Symbols Of Sacrifices. Other books in this series are Year 1 and Year 2.
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Time With Our Children
$13.00Add to cartWith simple props-glitter, blocks, candles, and cookies-Dianne Deming brings Scripture and theology into the world and understanding of children. She speaks their language-to them as equals, not at them or down to them-and God’s love for children and her love for them shine through with every word. She recognizes the dignity of children, their worth as unique individuals and to the church, and creates stories that respect how children view the world and their place in it. A TIME WITH OUR CHILDREN is a collection of stories designed for the pastor or teacher to help children share in the faith of the congregation-not as a separate part of the worship service but integrated into the seamless whole of the people of God worshiping together. Deming believes that the most important benefit children receive from their special time in worship is the underlying message that they are valued and loved by God and their church. Her gentle, charming stories do that with grace and aplomb. The stories are keyed to the New Revised Common Lectionary (NRCL) and indexed by topic for non-lectionary use.
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Revised Common Lectionary
$22.99Add to cartIt took six years of revision work to produce THE REVISED COMMON LECTIONARY, which includes the consultation on common texts. This historic and authoritative volume contains the complete three-year listing of the Revised Common Lectionary (A, B, C) to guide preaching and Scripture reading on the Lord’s Day. Two major indices provide access to the Scrip ture passages: 1) according to the Sundays of the liturgical year and 2) according to the books of the Bible. Also includ- ed are an introduction explaining the nature and uses of lectionaries and a briew history of the Consultation on Com mon Texts. Participants in the Consultation include repre sentatives of nineteen churches or church agencies in the United States and Canada from both Catholic and Protestant denominations.
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Biblical Counseling With African Americans
$26.99Add to cart18 Chapters
Additional Info
This book is a practical and biblical guide for all who engage in counseling African-Americans. Its purpose is to set forth the issues, principles, and interventions of counseling, especially in terms of marriage counseling and family therapy. Clarence Walker provides a framework for the book in the biblical story of the apostle Philip and the Ethiopian charioteer as recounted in the book of Acts. In Walker’s view this story involves the same issues that confront African-Americans today. Specifically, in Part 1 Walker sees seven challenges that Philip faces as a “Christian counselor”: – Ethnicity . . . – Socio-economics – Gender . . .- Environment – Sexuality . . . – Religion – Power — Part 2 builds on this foundation to develop ten biblical principles for an effective therapeutic process — all recognizable in the interaction between Philip and the Ethiopian. These include — – Directive engaging . . . – Explorative questioning – Affective joining . . . – Positive terminating – Active listening . . . – Cooperative involving — Part 3 explains biblical techniques for treatment. Five approaches are offered to use with couples, and three are presented for counseling individuals. -
Trouble At The Table
$23.99Add to cartHow can we resolve the crsis and revitalize the worship in our church? Too often we evaluate worship as a matter of taste without examinging the presuppositions that inform worship in a given congregation. Exploring and developing techniques for handling resistance to change, the authors help church leaders see that worship is a public event, which must be continually renewed and revitalized.
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Calvins Preaching
$41.00Add to cartThis rare and important study of John Calvin’s sermons gives a complete review of Calvin’s preaching activity, purpose, method, and style. Included are the theological considerations that moved Calvin to preach the way he did; his view of the preacher’s office, his duty, and the congregation’s active participation; a historical account and the preservation of his preaching; Calvin’s expository method and the way he applied scripture to the needs of the congregation; and the form of the sermons and the “familiar” style that was employed.
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Preaching The Topical Sermon
$25.00Add to cartThis book offers a practical model for developing sermons for occasions when the Bible offers little specific guidance for interpreting an issue, need, or situation. Ronald Allen describes why and how topical sermons should be used, discusses special occasions when they are appropriate, and outlines strategies for developing topical sermons, giving particular attention to controversial issues. The last chapter includes sample sermons by other preachers.
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Exegesis Del Nuevo Testamento – (Spanish)
$12.99Add to cartThis manual is an exhaustive study, a process in which reasons for undertakings will be examined. Methodically study an entire text of the Bible, to attempt to resolve the difficulties on a problematic passage, or to prepare a sermon or a Bible Study.
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Welcome Speeches And Responses For All Occasions
$10.99Add to cartSome General Words Of Welcome
A General Response
Welcome Speeches And Responses For Specific Days And Occasions
Pastor Anniversary/Appreciation
Choir Anniversary/Appreciation
Homecoming/Church Anniversary
Homecoming/Memorial Service
Children’s Day
Family Day
Mother’s Day Tribute To Motherhood
Father’s Day
Men’s Day
Women’s Day
Missions
Usher Board Anniversary/Appreciation
Graduate Recognition Day
Memorial Day
Martin Luther King, Jr., Day
Poetry, Prayers, And ScriptureAdditional Info
: A great guide for persons asked to deliver welcome speeches or to respond to those speeches. Sample speeches and responses are provided for a variety of occasions, with appropriate Scripture verses. Another section gives poetry, prayers, and recitations. For general use, this resource is especially helpful in African-American churches. -
Aids To The Psalms Cycle A
$16.95Add to cartThe Psalms are wonderful sources of encouragement, enlightenment, and strength. This series explores the Psalms for Cycle A of the Common Lectionary using New Revised Standard Version of the Bible texts.
Each meditation is in three parts. First is the Psalm itself. Second is the alternate image, offering readers new insights to stimulate their vision of the Psalms. Third is the reflection section, offering a short analysis and comment on the passage.
“Aids to the Psalms” is appropriate for liturgical aids, sermon starters, personal and group meditation, and Christian education.
Among the Psalms of Cycle A are:
– Christmas Eve — O sing to the Lord a new song.
– Good Friday — My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
– Thanksgiving — Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion.
– Ascension — Clap your hands, all you peoples.
This is part of a three-book set on exploring the message of the Psalms. -
Freedom For Ministry A Print On Demand Title (Revised)
$29.99Add to cartA compelling, insightful account of ministry arising out of the author’s wealth of personal experience. Neuhaus addresses the awkwardness (both necessary and liberating) of Christian ministry, discusses the minister as worship leader and as preacher, and deals with some of the more common moral dilemmas of ministry (with particular reference to ambition, sexuality, and money).
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Envisioning The New City
$65.00Add to cartThis book compiles essays by over thirty urban pastors, community organizers, seminary professors, and church leaders. Their essays seek to present creative opportunities for urban ministries to bring hope and renewal to their congregations and communities.
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Ministry Burnout
$24.00Add to cartTeacher, faithful pastor, financial wizard, caretaker of the sick, activist, personal counselor, and preacher: these are some of the roles a minister must fill. The demands of these roles can lead to numerous dilemmas and stresses and, if not adequately addressed, to burnout. John Sanford deals concretely with the circumstances that give rise to this spiritual exhaustion and identifies its underlying dynamics. He studies each problem in detail, provides approaches and practical suggestions for dealing with it, and reviews the psychology of the ministering person to show how an individual can mitigate such problems by being more realistic with himself or herself.
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Letters For Every Occasion
$22.99Add to cartThe perfect time-saving idea for pastors and their assistants who want to write sensitive, effective letters for every occasion. This collection includes letters of: THANKS, CONDOLENCE/SUPPORT/ENCOURAGEMENT, CONGRATULATIONS, MILESTONE BIRTHDAYS, ACCEPTING/REFUSING INVITATIONS, WELCOME, ATTENDANCE CONCERNS, MEDIA CONTACT, & SEASONAL GREETINGS
