Pastoral Helps
Showing 3301–3350 of 4114 results
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Be Still : Designing And Leading Contemplative Retreats
$23.00Add to cartMany people long for a deeper relationship with God, yearning for silence in a noisy world and a respite from busyness. Written for lay and ordained leaders who wish to bring the gift of space and silence to members who feel called to the contemplative journey, the book introduces the purpose of retreats, provides a theological and biblical understanding of the model, and offers guidance for designing and leading these gatherings. Sample retreats, a design for home retreats, and suggested resources are included.
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Following Jesus : More About Young Children And Worship
$30.00Add to cartIn this sequel to the best-selling “Young Children And Worship,” Sonja Stewart offers another valuable educational resource to help introduce three to eight-year-old children to the wonder of worship. She applies the method first presented in that book to the life and teachings of Jesus; her goal is to extend and deepen children’s understanding of Jesus and his teaching in preparation for Christian discipleship.
Stewart believes that children need a special environment where they can meet and worship God and where their faith can be nurtured in preparation for joining in the full life of the congregation. Her approach, which integrates religious education and worship, has been presented at numerous workshops and training sessions.
Stewart provides clear and specific instructions to teachers about how to create and use the children’s worship center, a unique environment where children are introduced to the meaning of worship through biblical stories and parables. She uses felt and wooden materials to enable children to experience the stories visually as well as to hear them. The stories then become incorporated into a fourfold order of worship that is both parallel to adult worship and age-appropriate for young children.
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Worship Centered Youth Ministry
$14.99Add to cartWorship. What images come to your mind as you see this word? Some envision believers singing praise songs and lifting their hands. Others see people bowed in fervent prayer or sitting quietly meditating on Scripture. While these images may represent expressions of worship, they do not convey a complete picture of the biblical concept of worship. What is authentic worship? As youth ministers in today’s culture, how close to the mark of true worship are we leading our teens? In this book, Jon Middendorf tackles these tough questions and more. Beyond the typical ideas of worship, Middendorf explores the biblical definition and challenges the reader to move to a deeper understanding. Through describing a typical youth ministry program and offering principles for a worship-centered lifestyle, he directs youth workers on a journey toward a worship-centered youth ministry–a journey that will lead both the workers and their teens into a deeper, richer walk with Christ.
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Parables Of Jesus Cycle C
$27.95Add to cartThe parable is the most well-known literary form presented in the Gospels. And since narrative or story sermons are such a prominent element in the contemporary pulpit, pastors are preaching on the parable texts more frequently than ever.
Richard Gribble thoroughly examines each of the parables appearing in Cycle C of the Revised Common Lectionary. Each analysis includes:
discussion of the theme
spiritual food for the journey
application of the parable to contemporary life
openings for preaching
points of challenge and questions to ponder
exegesis and explanation of the parable
context of the parableThese studies will be a classic resource for preaching…or useful for Bible study and inspiration.
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Learning While Leading
$23.00Add to cartAs the world changes, so do people’s expectations of their faith community and clergy. This book uses three case studies to speak to religious professionals about the challenges they face, to provide readers with specific, user-friendly techniques to become more aware of how they function, and to learn new ways to lead. Clergy will find real-life examples of how more effective leadership enhances the life of the community and promotes the deepening of members’ faith. Foreword by Chris Argyris
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Leading From The Inside Out
$27.00Add to cart1. Why Self-Leadership?
2. Articulating And Embracing Our Life’s Values
3. Connecting With Our Life’s Calling
4. Laying Out Our Life’s Goals
5. Measuring Our Life’s Motivation
6. Exercising Spiritual Self-Leadership: Personal Soul Care
7. Exercising Physical Self-Leadership: Personal Resource Management
8. Emotional Self-Leadership: Mastering Our Moods
9. Intellectual Self-Leadership: Personal Life-Long Learning256 Pages
Additional Info
Too many stories have been told of successful leaders who fail in their private lives and consequently neutralize their vocational achievements. Leadership expert Sam Rima believes the time has come for leaders to exercise the same skill and degree of leadership in their personal lives as they do in their organizations.Despite strong advances in organizational leadership, a key growth area is still lacking for many: self-leadership. Addressing this evident need, Rima offers practical implementation of essential leadership principles and discusses the emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual aspects of self-leadership.
Pastors, church leaders, and all Christians who serve in positions of leadership or authority will benefit from Rima’s insights. Leading from the Inside Out is also a useful tool for leadership classes, as well as church boards and denominational leaders who want to help those they oversee prevent personal failures. The book includes a study guide and a Self-Leadership Workshop at the end of each chapter.
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Very Large Church
$27.99Add to cartAmerican institutions such as schools and businesses have all become larger—what does this mean for our congregations? Schaller believes the organizational structure of the church must change, too, in order to minister effectively—and here’s where the transformation begins. Let this organizational expert help turn your body into a megachurch, while retaining Christian integrity!
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101 Great Games For Kids
$21.99Add to cartChildren learn best when they hear the rich stories from Scripture over and over again. Just sitting and listening, however, can become boring. This volume, a collection of 101 active games for Christian education programs suitable for chldren ages 3-12, will help dispel any boredom. This is a book that mainline professionals and lay leaders can turn to for a quick idea or when they are creating lesson plans. Each of the 101 games are presented in ways that adults can use immediately.
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10 Hits One Run Nine Errors Cycle C
$8.95Add to cartJohn Berger’s lively and invigorating messages tell us that the path to true happiness is through God. From the man who remembered to thank Jesus for being healed of leprosy to the persistent widow, from the penitent tax collector to the forgiven thief on the cross … all these characters and more were happier when they did things God’s way. Berger brings us face-to-face with the people in Gospel passages from the Revised Common Lectionary. Contrary to his whimsical title, readers will discover that Berger does far better than score one run in ten trips to the plate — his sermons consistently knock the ball out of the park!
Titles include:
Ten Hits, One Run, Nine Errors — Luke 17:11-19
Don’t Hang Up On God — Luke 18:1-8
God, The Ultimate Professional — Luke 20:27-38
Golden Rule Saints — Luke 6:20-31
For What God Has Given — John 6:25-35 -
Apologetic Preaching : Proclaiming Christ To A Postmodern World
$26.99Add to cartWhile dealing with apologetic issues about relativism and faith was once reserved for non-Christians, today even regular churchgoers have questions that need to be addressed. But not only do the have questions, they often seem to have a totally different mindset of skepticism and doubt that resists authoritative presentations of spiritual truth.
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Next Steps In Community Ministry
$29.00Add to cartDudley and a research team go back to 24 ministries still in existence five years after the Church and Community Project’s completion. They discovered:
how the myths and expectations of funding, lay/clergy leadership, and church/society partnerships were shattered by what is doable;
how the often Herculean efforts frustrated and tired participants, who were then uplifted and sustained by making a difference;
how faith was the foundation for action, and how, through action, the poor, the homeless, and others in need became real people and not statistics.
Perhaps most important is the discovery that community ministry takes shape in ways unique to local issues of theology, church size, social location, and cultural composition. -
Changing Life Patterns (Expanded)
$27.99Add to cart“This splendid text has served well as a dependable guide for defining spirituality, connecting it with developmental thought, and placing both in the congregational context. All who are concerned with the necessary spiritual disciplines and spiritual formation of persons who will be living and serving in the complex worlds of our new millennium will be guided, challenged, and graced by its profound insights.”
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Glory Of It All
$11.95Add to cartBring Jesus’ message and ministry to life with this set of inspiring and thought-provoking sermons. Donald Lacy offers a treasure trove of creative homiletic ideas and practical, scripture-based wisdom in these messages based on these Gospel texts. In The Glory of it All!, Lacy weaves together insightful illustrations with keen insight into contemporary life. These sermons passionately proclaim the Good News and powerfully remind us of God’s limitless love. Each riveting message is certain to enlighten the mind and warm the heart.This essential resource is useful for: * Fresh homiletical approaches to the lectionary texts * Inspiring preaching illustrations and sermon starters* Understanding scripture passages* Bible study and discussion groups* Personal devotions and inspirational reading
Some of the captivating sermons in this collection are:
The Hard Sell
Testing Time
No Intimidation
More Time
The Two Prodigals
Holy Extravagance
History Hangs In The Balance
A Frightening Friday -
Pastoral Care Emergencies
$26.00Add to cartDrawing from 40 years of pastoral experience, Switzer discusses the attitude and act of caregiving, covering hospital calls, the dying and bereaved, suicide, divorce, domestic violence, psychiatric disorders, and more. The crucial question of when and how to refer is also addressed. Highly practical, yet sensitive to theological issues. You’ll reach for this book often!
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Solitary Sorrow : Finding Healing And Wholeness After Abortion
$14.99Add to cartDespite the growing frequency of abortions, most women feel intensely isolated, guilty, and angry afterward. Co-authored by a family therapist and a physician, this book addresses the questions women have about Post-Abortion Syndrome and how to deal with feelings of loss, guilt, and anger. The Reissers have counseled hundreds of post-abortion women.
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Feed All My Sheep
$19.95Add to cart1. Guidebook
2. Church Words: A Curriculum
3. Music For Church WordsAdditional Info
All congregations should have this book, a lovingly and competently composed curriculum for teaching aults and older youth with disabilities about the church. Doris Clark offers much-needed, experienced guidance for setting up church classes geared to the requirements of adults with special needs. She also provides comprehensive advice about how to integrate adults with special needs into the church community.This book grew out of Clark’s search for an appropriate church school class for her son, who has Down syndrome. Clark, an experienced teacher, soon came to several realizations;
*There is a great need for classes for adults with developmental disabilities within the neighborhoods served by most churches.
*Regular adult classes do not provide religious education on a level conducive to learning for most adults with special needs.
*There was no literature available giving guidance to churches wanting to start this type of ministry.
*Many programs provide a class for the developmentally disabled but offer no inclusion into the church community.Clark ultimately develped Joy Class at First Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas, and wrote this step-by-step guide to help other churches set up similar classes. It includes everything from locating students and finding teachers to presenting a curriculum. Included are job descriptions for a coordinator, teachers, and Class Buddies, as well as a thiry-four-lesson curriculum, Church Words.
The curriculum is designed for ease of teaching for the Christian leader and maximum learning for the student. Church Words was developed to help students understand some of the terminology and theology of the church through Bible study, discussion, and hand-on activities. Participation in the programs of the church and interaction with church members is highlighted, with an emphasis on self-worth and building relationships.
Original music by Kinley Lange is included for use in the classes. The book also has an appendix of sample letters that can be used to solicit support.
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Mainline To The Future
$24.00Add to cartWhile others lament the declining attendance of mainline churches and blame it on a stodgy and out of date tradition, Jackson W. Carroll offers a more hopeful perspective. According to Carroll, the key to the future health and vitality of mainline churches can be found in that same tradition. In Mainline to the Future: Congregations for the 21st Century, Carroll states that tension between change and tradition has always been part of the Protestant heritage. He believes that when older practices are challenged by change, tradition can no longer be accepted at face value and must be adapted. In this spirit, Carroll calls mainline churches to “go forward, remembering.”
Neither change nor tradition supercedes the other. Both are gifts of divine grace that enable churches to live faithfully in the world. When churches no longer accept tradition as unchangeable, they are free to engage in dialogue with the secular culture and are able to retrieve and reinterpret selective aspects of their tradition in ways that are meaningful for today’s congregations. True to the Protestant tradition itself, the ability to adapt allows the authority of tradition to shift from being “out there” to being “in here.” Thus does the church reclaim its interpretive power to make the Gospel relevant to every time and place.
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Preaching The Gospel Of Luke
$36.00Add to cart1. Birth And Infancy Stories
2. Preparation For Public Ministry
3. Ministry In Galilee
4. Journey To Jerusalem
5. Ministry In Jerusalem
6. Tragedy And TriumphAdditional Info
Blending the latest in Lukan scholarship with the practical needs of the weekly preacher, renowned New Testament scholar Keith Nickle provides clear, interesting, and instructive comments on the thied Gospel. But Preaching the Gospel of Luke offers more than mere exposition. After each passage,three to five possibilities are proposed for how to preach every text creative and pertinent suggestions that can help preachers apply the words of the biblical narrative to the lives of today’s churchgoers. Proclaiming the royal rule of God is the theme of Luke, and this insightful commentary helps that message come alive in the preaching moment. -
Quotable Spurgeon : Topical Illustrations
$16.99Add to cartQuotable and Findable Charles Spurgeon!
Charles Spurgeon has been widely esteemed as the ultimate pulpiteer in the English language. His mastery of the Scriptures, theology, and pulpit oratory combined to make his London church one of the largest and most influential in nineteenth-century Britain.
Today Spurgeon lives on as the most widely published figure in English language. His books yield a treasure trove of apt citations, examples, object lessons, and witty illustrations of the truth. But finding the Spurgeon illumination for a passage has not been easy for modern speakers and readers. Where did Mr. Spurgeon illustrate Galatians 2:20 or Isaiah 55? The Quotable Spurgeon will locate hundreds of usable quotations from this sacred orator quickly and efficiently. Archaic language has been updated to make the Victorian voice clear to modern ears.
The Quotable Spurgeon has been arranged with keys to the Bible as well as to current topics. Using the helpful index of biblical passages, you will find Spurgeon’s sonorous eloquence a graceful addition to your other sources for speeches, sermons, and devotional reading.
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In Her Own Time
$29.00Add to cartA woman’s life is filled with possibilities and challenges at every age and stage. In this illuminating collection, leading women theologians explore themes, passages, and issues women face as they journey from pre-adolescence to the end of life. Their fresh analysis provides a much needed framework for the pastoral care of women.
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You Can Start A Bible Study (Student/Study Guide)
$9.99Add to cartHave you taken a good look at your neighborhood, church, office, or dorm, and wondered whether God wants you there for a specific purpose? Maybe you’ve been involved in Bible studies before. Now it’s your turn to reach out and get a Bible discussion group goint. “But where do I start, and how do I keep it goint?” you ask. Drawing on personal experiences and her own insight, Gladys Hunt shares how you can start and lead an inductive Bible study group. Whether you are a beginner who needs to know the basics or an experienced leader who wants fresh motivation and ideas, you’ll find what you need in this “how-to” book for Bible study leaders.
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Can Our Church Live
$26.00Add to cartNothing on earth lives forever-not even congregations. Alban Institute senior consultant Alice Mann explains how the natural life cycle of a congregation, as well as other internal and external factors, can produce a congregation that is in real trouble. She then offers hope for congregations that want to change. Practical options for congregations, leadership challenges for laity and clergy, and ways to work with denominations are detailed and engaging discussion questions provide a basis for congregational planning. Foreword by Anthony G. Pappas.
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Wedding Sermons And Marriage Ceremonies
$12.95Add to cartMarriage ceremonies don’t have to fall into a routine of just doing and saying the same old things. This creative resource provides pastors with several unique marriage liturgies, including ceremonies for a traditional wedding, a wedding of an older couple, a second marriage with children, a marriage combined with communion, and more. They’re guaranteed to put meaning into one of the most important days of a couple’s life.
This is a wonderful resource for those who want to be sensitive to the needs of couples from all backgrounds.
Tom Barnard, Vice President
Eastern Nazarene College
Quincy, MassachusettsThis collection also contains 14 five-minute wedding homilies which addresses a variety of situations. Blending images from scripture and the practical realities of modern life, these succinct messages reveal the connection between faith in God and the promises of marriage. Included are meditations for a marriage when both parties have been divorced; a widowed, mature couple; a wedding in an outdoor setting; a formal wedding; and the marriage of a couple with a baby…and more!
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Speaking Parables : A Homiletic Guide
$36.00Add to cart1. The Parables Of Jesus
2. The Mysterious Kingdom Of God
3. Preaching Parables
4. Parables In Mark
5. Parables In Matthew
6. Parables In Thomas
7. Parables From Q In Matthew And Luke
8. Parables In LukeAdditional Info
From beginning to end these pages ask preachers to broaden and revise their understandings of parables and to abandon the ways they have proclaimed the parables. The preacher and congregation together can expect to find a mysterious God that will not be domesticated and a vision of a changed world that will both indict and inspire. Buttrick had developed a way of helping a preacher move from parable scenario to sermon. -
Workshop Rotation
$22.00Add to cartChurches Everywhere are flocking to the workshop rotation model of church school, which has breathed new life into sunday school programs wherever it has been tried. This book is a basic manual for this creative approach written by the educators who originated it, that provides a step by step guide through the process of setting up and conduction the rotation model in any church. The basic idea is that the church school focuses for several weeks on a single biblical story. There are a number of lab style workshops computer, film, drama, art, etc. and students rotate each week from workshop to workshop. Astounding results have been reported in churches across the country: children have more fun while learning more and retaining more about the Bible; parents become more involved as workshop leaders; Sunday school membership and attendance increase dramatically; and entire congregations are reinvigorated.
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Unfinished Sentences : 450 Tantalizing Unfinished Sentences To Get Teenager
$19.99Add to cartIn the best-selling footsteps of Would You Rather . . . ?, What If . . . ?, and Have You Ever . . . ? comes Unfinished Sentences – another collection of sometimes lighthearted, sometimes poignant, and always provocative discussion starters guaranteed to get teenagers talking, thinking, debating. Get the discussion ball rolling with 450 incomplete sentences that can be used anytime, anywhere for breaking the ice, stimulating discussions, building community, getting kids to wrestle with spiritual issues — or use them just for fun! The convenient size makes Unfinished sentences easy to stick in your pocket or in the glove box — a resource you won’t want your library or your youth ministry team to be without!
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Boundaries In Marriage Workbook (Workbook)
$19.99Add to cart1. What’s A Boundary, Anyway?
2. Applying The Ten Laws Of Boundaries To Marriage
3. Setting Boundaries With Yourself
4. It Takes Two To Make One
5. What You Value Is What You’ll Have
6. Value One
7. Value Two
8. Value Three
9. Value Four
10. Value Five
11. Value Six
12. Three’s A Crowd
13. Six Kinds Of Conflict
14. Resolving Conflict With A Boundary-Loving Spouse
15. Resolving Conflict With A Boundary-Resistant Spouse
16. Avoiding The Misuse Of Boundaries In Marriage
208 PagesAdditional Info
1. What’s A Boundary, Anyway?
2. Applying The Ten Laws Of Boundaries To Marriage
3. Setting Boundaries With Yourself
4. It Takes Two To Make One
5. What You Value Is What You’ll Have
6. Value One
7. Value Two
8. Value Three
9. Value Four
10. Value Five
11. Value Six
12. Three’s A Crowd
13. Six Kinds Of Conflict
14. Resolving Conflict With A Boundary-Loving Spouse
15. Resolving Conflict With A Boundary-Resistant Spouse
16. Avoiding The Misuse Of Boundaries In Marriage
208 Pages -
Faithful Living Faithful Dying
$21.95Add to cartWhat do faithful living and faithful dying mean as we near life’s end? With all the technology and choices available to us today, making decisions about the end of life grows ever more difficult. As a result of all the theological and ethnical issues that have arisen around the dying process in recent years, the 72nd General Convention of the Episcopal Church created a task force to study and responds to the broad range of theological, ethical, pastoral and policy issues that are generated by the need to provide loving and fitting care at the end of life.
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Foundations For A Practical Theology Of Ministry
$25.99Add to cartThe pastoral ministry is in danger of losing its focus, say the authors of this perceptive and timely study. Specialization in preaching, counseling, evangelism, administration, and education has diffused the impact of practical theology. And because of competing ideas as to what now is central, the very image of ministry may be breaking down. Foundations for a Practical Theology of Ministry responds to the problem by introducing a specific method for doing practical theology which will be welcomed by concerned church leaders everywhere.
Presenting a realistic, workable answer to those who call for a revival of this vital discipline, Drs. James N. Poling and Donald E. Miller propose that the unifying image for ministry becomes the formation of the community of faith. After developing this as the most appropriate base for the practice of theology, they carefully outline their method and show how it will work by demonstrating its success in the actual experiences of typical congregations.
For Christian leaders who seek to renew the integrity of ministry and restore the character of pastoral leadership, this significant book will provide a solid foundation. And for individuals interested or involved in education for the future of the church, this important resource will prove invaluable.
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To Understand Each Other
$18.00Add to cart“Most couples enter into conjugal life with a high ideal for marriage,” states Paul Tournier. “How many of them can say, a dozen years later, that their home has become what they expected of it? All too few!”
This is the problem Dr. Tournier considers in To Understand Each Other. His concern is for marriages that have become the quiet failures.
“When we talk of marriage counseling we think immediately of the extreme cases, of threats to seek divorce, of couples in violent disputes who frequently come to blows,” he says. But there are many other couples whose marriages are no less failure. “They live side by side, without hurting one another, but poles apart, because of no real understanding of one another.” -
Life Worth Living Leaders Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$7.99Add to cartNew Heart
New Purpose
New Attitude
New Responsibilities
New Friendships
New Confidence
New Ambitions
New Resources
New GenerosityAdditional Info
Manual
A manual designed to assist leaders and helpers in running the A Life Worth Living course. Contains sample discussion questions for each session of the course. (See related A Life Worth Living DVD set, book and manual.) -
Isaiah 1 NIV Preachers Edition (Student/Study Guide)
$39.99Add to cartThe Preacher’s Outline and Sermon Bible(R) is much more than a commentary – it’s a comprehensive resource for expository and topical preaching.
Each volume organizes key points of Scripture passages in a systematic outline form, along with content synthesized from 200+ Bible commentaries, language sources, and reference works.
The Preacher’s Outline and Sermon Bible(R) includes inspirational sermon points, practical life applications and dozens of supporting scriptures in every section.
This volume includes Isaiah chapters 1-35 and corresponds with the New International Version (NIV). -
Why Do Christians Shoot Their Wounded
$20.99Add to cartPreface
PART I: HOW AND WHY WE SHOOT THE WOUNDED
1 Don’t Shoot! I’m Already Wounded!
2 Why We Wound
3 Can A Spirit-Filled Christian Have Emotional Problems?
PART 11: WHAT CAUSES EMOTIONAL ILLNESS?
4 Ws Not Necessarily “All In Your Mind”
5 It’s Not Necessarily “All In Your Mind,” Continued
6 How Childhood Experiences And Stress Cause
Emotional Illness
7 What About Personal Choice?
8 Putting It All Together
PART III: HOW SHALL THE WOUNDED BE MENDED?
9 The Church: Business, School Or Hospital?
10 How The Strong Can Help-Not Shoot-the Wounded
11 What The Wounded Can Do While The Bullets Are Flying
Appendix: Are Drugs Of The Devil Or Tools For Heating.?Additional Info
Thousands of Christians suffer real emotional pain-such as depression, anxiety, obsessiveness. Many other Christians, including prominent leaders, believe emotional problems are the result of sin or bad choices. These attitudes often only add to the suffering of those who hurt.
