Spiritual/Religion

[Publisher Note: eBook does not include CD ROM] Reform always happens on the edge--never from the center. Mike Slaughter offers a wake-up call to congregations about a digital media reformation under way on a global scale. Because this is a life-and-death matter for the local church--which is blinded by a literal emphasis on printed words instead of joyful experience--Slaughter slices through apathy and resistance toward reaching post-literate unchurched people with the gospel. A ministry on the... more info>>

I am well aware that what is written in this book is not everybody's cup of tea. This doesn't worry me. My first concern is to tell my children who their Dad is. This means telling them the facts of life, my life, in the way I see it and live it--life with its ups and downs--since 1966 especially, seen and understood for what it is under the light of the Gospel. Is it a failure? It is not up to me, nor anybody else, to judge. God is the ultimate Judge. I am not writing for money, or glory, or to... more info>>

"Dr. Botox" to the bored rich women of Chicago, plastic surgeon Max Jordan was shocked by his son Joshua's decision to focus his medical talent on Haitian orphans. Embittered by Joshua's sudden death, Max searched for resolution in the place his son called home. The selflessness of Joshua's coworkers stunned Max. He was particularly taken with American volunteer Valerie Austin, whose dream of a tropical honeymoon had been crushed, replaced by a stint working in the impoverished orphanage. But Va... more info>>

OWEN FIDDLER wants to tell you his story! (Everybody sing along to the tune of the Beatle's "Nowhere Man.") Has a selfish point of view, why he's such a fool no clue, isn't he a bit like me and you? Owen, man, please listen. You don't know what you're missing. Owen, man, your world is at your command! Meet Owen Fiddler--just an average kind of guy who takes no responsibility for anything, and everything going wrong in his life is someone else's fault. He's no role model for you or your kids, but... more info>>

This book will walk parents through the important aspects of a parenting plan, offering practical tips and strategies aimed at keeping their family anchored to important family values and beliefs that will redirect them when the tug of popular culture pulls them off course.

Ordained ministry, says Willimon, is a gift of God to the church--but that doesn't mean that it is easy. Always a difficult vocation, changes in society and the church in recent years have made the ordained life all the more complex and challenging. Is the pastor primarily a preacher, a professional caregiver, an administrator? Given the call of all Christians to be ministers to the world, what is the distinctive ministry of the ordained? When does one's ministry take on the character of prophet... more info>>

One of the great sources of discouragement for those in ordained ministry is the perception that they are alone. The challenges and difficulties they face seem all the larger for their frequent lack of mentors and friends with whom to discuss them, and from whom to learn. Yet, according to William H. Willimon, a "cloud of witnesses" surrounds those in ordained ministry, forebears from whom they could learn if they had the opportunity to listen. The challenges and joys of ministry are not new; th... more info>>

'Thoughts to lift your spirit'--'cause you to question yourself'--'to reassure you of purpose in life and your place in it'. These are all descriptions of this challenging collection of thoughts, individually and collectively. Written for the general public, "Pause A Minute" (previously known as "Thoughts to Ponder") are stimulated by everyday, ordinary happenings, which give rise to deeper contemplation. Originally presented as Radio Spots on Australian Regional Radio, and subsequently publishe... more info>>

In his joyful letter to the Philippians, Paul provides valuable instructions for godly living and maturing in Christ. In this Back to the Bible Study Guide, seasoned Bible teacher Woodrow Kroll walks readers through Paul's powerful epistle. The ten lessons are designed for personal, family, and small group study.

In this Preaching the Word commentary on Philippians, R. Kent Hughes gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at this joyous letter of thanksgiving and encouragement in the midst of a fallen world.

Twenty years and several pounds ago.... I was Bernice Strum, hairstylist to the stars. Until I fell for--and got pregnant by--Alex Scott, a handsome actor with a career on the rise. But I gave my baby up for adoption and moved across the country to settle in Prichett, Wisconsin. I made friends, started a faith journey, and then one day I got a call from my now-adult daughter that turned my world upside down... and brought Alex back into my life. Now he's here (living in my dream house!) and he w... more info>>

Poor Pio. Sometimes his parents didn't have enough money to buy him shoes. But, that didn't bother Pio. He liked to wear his older brother's hand-me-downs with their scars. Pio did wish he could grow big and strong like others his age. His frail health made him wonder if he would live to see his next birthday. But he did live--for eighty-one years. And for the last fifty of them he bore Christ's five wounds called the Stigmata. In 1999, Pope John Paul 11 beatified Padre [Father] Pio. Beatificati... more info>>

A guide to how the church can faithfully understand and employ new technologies to communicate the gospel to the generations formed by electronic culture. When it comes to communicating the gospel through new media and technologies, churches are often faced with one of two bad options. Either they can reject these new vehicles for sharing the faith as "not the way we've always done it"; or they can uncritically embrace them, failing to see that when not understood properly these media can obscur... more info>>

This practical resource defines biblical hospitality and illustrates how all believers can practice hospitality from a biblical perspective.

Prayer Coach frankly discusses the obstacles to prayer and then offers practical suggestions and basic principles on how to strengthen this spiritual discipline. These methods will encourage you to approach the throne of God with passion, fervency, and confidence.

Inspirational Poetry. Some of life's toughest situations don't come with a standard guidebook and no one has all the answers. When Jean's children and husband present her with everyday challenges in life she turns to God in prayer, searching for inner strength, help and answers. Faced with another of her husband's military moves Jean, once again, turned to God in prayer. The answer came in the form of a challenge to praise God everyday. She has met this challenge and has continued for the past f... more info>>

A collection of prayers and reflections that offers you a true path for your spiritual journey and communication with God, especially in times of personal stress. This special volume follows the ACTS approach to prayer--Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication--but adds a unique contemplative element as well: your relationship with God.

Pastors and worship leaders know that one encounters God through the reading of Scripture in worship. They sometimes have difficulty, however, in integrating the day's readings from the lectionary with the other elements of worship. While worshippers usually meet the biblical text face to face in the sermon, David Hostetter believes that it would be better if they were attuned to hear the Word throughout the whole of worship. This book will help pastors and other leaders weave the... more info>>

Pastors and worship leaders know that one encounters God through the reading of Scripture in worship. They sometimes have difficulty, however, in integrating the day's readings from the lectionary with the other elements of worship. While worshippers usually meet the biblical text face to face in the sermon, David Hostetter believes that it would be better if they were attuned to hear the Word throughout the whole of worship.This book will help pastors and other leaders weave the t... more info>>

Pastors and worship leaders know that one encounters God through the reading of Scripture in worship. They sometimes encounter difficulty, however, in integrating the day's readings from the lectionary with the other elements of worship. While worshippers usually meet the biblical text face to face in the sermon, David Hostetter believes that it would be better if they attune to hear the Word throughout the whole of worship. This book will help pastors and other leaders weave the t... more info>>

The shelves at the big bookstore chains are lined with cracker-barrel wisdom manuals, such as Don't Sweat the Small Stuff and Life's Little Instruction Book. Schools display brightly colored, slogan-filled posters to help them teach "the six pillars of character" Many are going to their local New Age emporium to purchase energy-harmonizing crystals and to sign up for past life regression seminars. Alyce McKenzie reminds us that this is a new flurry of an old activity: the search for wisdom, for ... more info>>

Careful biblical interpretation; insights into contemporary life; polished delivery; humorous anecdotes; these are the building blocks of preaching that genuinely reach people. Right? Wrong, says Ellsworth Kalas. We have all encountered preachers who seem to know all the fine points of exegesis and inflection, yet whose sermons leave us surprisingly unmoved, aware that we were in the presence of good speaking, but not great preaching. The difference, Kalas reminds us, lies in that hard-to-descri... more info>>

Prominent authors call pastors to pursue gospel-saturated, preaching-centered ministries.

Shows preachers how to better understand the needs of seekers by examining the questions and answers about the Christian faith with which they struggle. The results provide insights into the minds and hearts of skeptics and seekers that preachers rarely have the opportunity to gain. In sometimes startling ways, the author reveals how some aspects of the gospel message appeal easily and directly to skeptics and seekers, while others can often be a stumbling block.

Proverbs for My Children has become a classic book in Christian Family development. It has not only been used by individual families and parents in raising their children in an enriching family environment, but it has been used by homeschools as a text in Christian Family Life and by Sunday School Classes and Bible Study groups. This international bestseller was penned as a labor of love from a father to his six children. And yet, every word between these covers is lovingly placed as markers and... more info>>