Pastoral Helps
Showing 601–650 of 3971 resultsSorted by latest
-
Acres Of Diamonds Participants Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$9.99Add to cartAre you in a season of life where every search for direction, encouragement, or fulfillment seems to come up empty? You thought God had you in a place to thrive and grow, but you are ready to call it quits. There has to be something better.
You don’t need a new garden; you just need to learn how to dig! In Acres of Diamonds, pastor and New York Times bestselling author Jentezen Franklin helps you discover the unfathomable riches Jesus Christ has for you. Rather than chase after a better life, you can celebrate the untold spiritual provision to be found even in the midst of spiritual deprivation. Readers will learn to cherish where God has placed them as they uncover the hidden potential within their families, jobs, ministries, and communities . . . right where they are.
-
Study
$14.99Add to cart“While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come.” 1 Timothy 4:8
Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. Spiritual disciplines are activities and practices that guide you in your daily walk through life bringing you closer to Christ. They also help you to make a difference in our world. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens you to God’s transforming love and help you experience Holy Living.
This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.
This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.
Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Discernment, Neighboring, Simplicity, and Worship.
-
Multiplication Effect : Building A Leadership Pipeline That Solves Your Lea
$19.99Add to cartMost pastors say that the need to identify and develop leaders is critical to the health and growth of their church. Yet, most churches do not have an intentional plan for doing this. In this book, Mac Lake reveals a practical strategy for addressing this problem.
How do you develop leaders in a church setting–good leaders, qualified leaders, leaders who are committed, who possess the DNA of the church, and leaders who produce results? The majority of churches have tried everything, but is what they are doing working? Unfortunately, in most cases, no. The Multiplication Effect is a proven, tested program, designed using unique training modules to help identify potential leaders, equip and disciple them at every level of their leadership journey, and empower them to multiply themselves by developing other leaders. Churches who use this plan will become “cultures” of leader development built into the structure and mission statement of the church and thus solve their leadership shortage.
-
Simplicity : Spiritual Practices For Building A Life Of Faith
$14.99Add to cart“While physical training has some value, training in holy living is useful for everything. It has promise for this life now and the life to come.” 1 Timothy 4:8
Christians crave a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. Spiritual disciplines are activities and practices that guide you in your daily walk through life bringing you closer to Christ. They also help you to make a difference in our world. Practicing these spiritual disciplines opens you to God’s transforming love and help you experience Holy Living.
At its core, the spiritual practice of simplicity enables us to eliminate from our lives all the things–both material possessions and thoughts, habits, and attitudes–that distract us from God so that God has complete freedom to work in and through us. Simplicity brings freedom, balance, and perspective to our lives and enables us to align our priorities with the priorities of God. It reorients us and allows us to be open to the present moment. Developing the spiritual practice of simplicity is key to a healthy, vibrant relationship with God and others. This book helps us know how to begin and implement this practice.
This is one of series of eight books. Each book in this series introduces a spiritual practice, suggests way of living the practice daily, and provides opportunities to grow personally and in a faith community with others who engage with the practice. Each book consists of an introduction and four chapters and includes questions for personal reflection and group discussion.
Other disciplines studied: Celebration, Confession, Discernment, Neighboring, Study, and Worship.
-
Renewing Communication : Spirit-Shaped Approaches For Children Youth And Fa
$29.99Add to cartHow can we as Christian leaders make the most of our communication to help others become more like Christ? Colleen Derr draws on decades of experience in education and church ministry to offer a holistic strategy for transformational communication, showing that communication powered by the Spirit needn’t be limited to the pulpit or classroom, but can include everyday interactions and relationships.
-
Holy Moments : Activities For Teaching Children About Worship
$19.99Add to cartHoly Moments: Activities for Teaching Children About Worship is a library of activities created to help children fully understand how and why we worship together as a community of faith.
These simple activities cover each of the elements of a typical traditional or contemporary worship service, and are perfect for adding holy moments to your children’s church, worship service, Sunday school, or children’s event.
Parent letters and reproducibles are included to help the children and their families experience holy moments at home and connect them to what they have experienced at church.
-
Get Your Life Back Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartWe live in soul-scorching times. The 24-7 onslaught of contemporary life–with its never-ending feed of global tragedies, demands for our attention, and pressures of work, family, and friends–has left us feeling ragged, wrung-out, and emptied. But if we have no margin in our lives, how do we find room to change anything?
In this life-changing video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), John Eldredge distills a lifetime of wisdom into five practical and ready-to-implement practices for putting your life back together. These practices include: (1) the one-minute pause, (2) benevolent detachment, (3) practicing kindness, (4) getting outside, and (5) stepping back from technology. These practices, ready for the taking, will enable you to begin recovery, focus on what matters most, disengage from the tragedies of this broken world, and discover the restorative power of beauty.
You don’t need to abandon your life to get it back. You can restore it here and now. And you will never be the same.
Designed for use with Get Your Life Back Video Study (sold separately).
-
ReVisioning : How To Stay Sharp At Every Stage Of Your Church’s Life
$17.99Add to cartAn ARC Resources Title
Vision. It can be a very slippery thing. As leaders, we can have a crystal-clear sense of purpose and direction at some points, but they may seem like foreign objects from time to time. Sooner or later, it happens to all of us. In this book, Pastor Greg Surratt shares his story of asking himself hard questions… and finding the answers to be both surprising and inspiring. He addresses the crucial topics of limitations, culture, and legacy, but he also dives into harder issues of how to handle heartaches and what actually captures the hearts of the people we lead. Re-Visioning is designed to recharge our leadership batteries and equip us to inspire our teams with humility, boldness, and joy.
-
Serve Your City Participants Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$6.95Add to cartAn ARC Resources Title
This Participant’s Guide small group curriculum draws people to the heart of God, reveals their unique giftedness, and points them to practical opportunities to reach the people in their neighborhoods and communities.
-
Serve Your City
$17.99Add to cartAn ARC Resources Title
Through the pages of the Gospels, we see Jesus model a “show and tell” life and ministry to His followers- He “showed” them how to serve by healing the sick, feeding the hungry, and caring for the poor-and while He was demonstrating compassion, He taught them, “telling” them of God’s immense love. This is the way to show God’s heart of compassion for the people in our cities and towns, and this is the way to break down barriers so people will listen to the life-changing message of the gospel of grace. In this book, you’ll sense Dino’s heart, be inspired by his stories and learn from his experiences, as well as many ARC churches that are serving their cities with a Jesus-style no-strings-attached kind of love. This is at the core of who ARC is – a deep passion to see churches thrive as part of the cities they serve.
-
Forgiveness : A Practical And Pastoral Companion
$27.00Add to cartEvery day we hear stories of people caught up in conflict, violence, trauma and abuse, which can affect anyone in any walk of life. Each of us needs to offer forgiveness as well as receive it, but how?
Designed to accompany everyone on a personal or communal journey of forgiveness, this companion also offers an important resource for all engaged in listening, reconciliation and pastoral care, including clergy, counsellors and spiritual directors. It explores:
-Why forgiveness is important;
-What forgiveness is;
-Who can forgive;
-Offering forgiveness;
-Receiving forgiveness;
-How communities respond to tragedy;
-God’s forgiveness. -
Better Bible Study Book (Student/Study Guide)
$22.25Add to cartIn this verse-by-verse study of the Book of Hebrews, Jen Wilkin explores how God “provided something better for us” in the person of Jesus Christ (Heb. 11:40). Through stories of Old Testament heroes and practices, the author of Hebrews demonstrates how the new covenant is superior to the old and how Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of every promise. Explore familiar verses in context of the entire Bible, learning how to place your hope and faith in Christ alone.
(10 sessions)
-
Get Out Of Your Head Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$16.99Add to cartHave you ever wanted to be an entirely new version of you? Like a character re-do or makeover?
Have you ever felt like who you are now isn’t all that you were meant to be?
You’re on to something if you answered yes, and you’re going to be surprised if you aren’t so sure!
Sometimes we are content being good, and yet our insides are in complete disarray-but because no one knows it, we assume we are okay. This work we are going to do through our study of the book of Philippians might be the most important thing we’ve ever done. But we don’t do it merely as another self-improvement project.
The Bible knows nothing of a connected regenerate person, filled with the Spirit, whose goal is to just survive.
Our faith journey here on Earth is not meant to be summed up to a behavior modification. Our journey should be a radical departure from the world and how it thinks. Our journey should represent a supernatural intervention remaking us into whom God built us to be.
We want to be women who set our minds on Christ, better yet realizing we have already been given the mind of Christ and therefore, we are deeply and intrinsically motivated and moved by an entirely different source. Not only do we make Jesus happy, but we find our complete happiness in Him. These are truths that if we could only believe, would change everything. It is possible to waste our lives because we never learn to take our thoughts captive.
This six-session Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately) dives head first into Paul’s letter to the Philippians, imploring and encouraging them to become entirely new kinds of humans whose minds are set solely on Christ. Bestselling author and Bible teacher, Jennie Allen steps through the book of Philippians with purpose and intention, unpacking the simple, but difficult truth of allowing ourselves and our minds to be transformed in the name of Christ. Jennie confronts our current cultural struggles while relating valid and trusted answers in Scripture that inspire real change from the inside out.
Each session will include video teaching, group discussion, and personal study time of digging deeper, reflection, consideration, response, imagination, and Scripture memory.
Designed for use with the Get Out of Your Head Video Study (sold separately).
-
Last Pastor : Faithfully Steering A Closing Church
$32.00Add to cartGail Cafferata was heartbroken when the church she pastored voted to close its doors. It may have been the right decision, but it led to a million questions in her mind about her call, leadership, and future. She began to think that other pastors who close churches perhaps go through this same experience. This led her to obtain a grant from the Louisville Institute to conduct a sociological study of over 130 pastors in five historically established denominations (Episcopal, Lutheran, United Methodist, Presbyterian, and United Church of Christ) who were called to serve churches that closed. This book tells the results of that study, which consisted of many interviews, and the hard-won lessons learned by these courageous pastors.
-
What Is Jesus Doing
$40.99Add to cartHow do we understand Jesus’ present activity in a challenging, post-Christian context? Leading thinkers in pastoral theology, homiletics, liturgical theology, and missiology consider how to recognize the divine presence and join in what God is already doing in all areas of church ministry. With deep theological reflection, personal stories, and practical suggestions, this is a compelling interdisciplinary conversation.
-
Loving Your Community
$20.00Add to cartAre you and your church making a difference in your community? Are you meeting needs in a positive, proactive, and loving way? Too often when churches are presented with a need outside their walls, they operate on the principle of “Say no unless you have to say yes.”
Don’t want that to be your church’s legacy in your community? Drawing on more than 30 years of service to the community surrounding Faith Church in Indiana, pastor Stephen Viars shows you how to develop a dynamic, giving relationship with your community, one in which your natural response to needs is “Yes! How can we help?”
No matter the size, location, demographics, or issues in your community, the approach found in this practical book will help you improve people’s lives, draw them into productive conversation about the hope you have in Christ, and glorify God.
-
Collected Sermons Of Walter Brueggemann Volume 3
$44.00Add to cartThis collection features sixty sermons by Walter Brueggemann, preached mostly in the last five years. For his final public appearances, he preached at various churches and the Festival of Homiletics, including his last address there in 2018. Most of these are based on lectionary texts, with numerous sermons on Advent-Christmas and Lent-Easter texts. Preachers will find inspiration in the handful of sermons covering special occasions or themes, including confirmation, evangelism, and funerals.
-
Leaders Journey : Accepting The Call To Personal And Congregational Transfo
$27.99Add to cartThis book helps pastors and church leaders understand the role their personal transformation as Jesus’s disciples plays in effective congregational leadership. It shifts the focus of leadership from techniques and charisma to spiritual transformation and developing emotional maturity so leaders can effectively lead congregations to embrace change. End-of-chapter discussion questions are included. The first edition sold more than 20,000 copies and has been regularly used as a textbook over the past fifteen years. The second edition has been revised throughout and includes a greater emphasis on Bowen Family Systems Theory.
-
Collected Sermons Of David Bartlett
$46.00Add to cartThis collection of fifty-two sermons shows beloved New Testament scholar David Bartlett at his best. Bartlett, who died in 2017, spent his career teaching and mentoring preachers at The University of Chicago Divinity School, Yale Divinity School, Union Presbyterian Seminary, and Columbia Theological Seminary, as well as serving as a pastor in American Baptist churches. Thus, he has generations of friends and former students who knew him for his quick wit, passion for justice, and deep knowledge of the Bible.
Those traits show through in these sermons. As Nora Tisdale says in the foreword: “All of the sermons in this volume give witness to David’s passion for preaching that is solidly grounded in the biblical text. Most of them actually begin, as Karl Barth urged preachers to begin, with the biblical text. If they don’t begin there, they always get there fairly quickly. And David’s interpretations of texts often surprise the reader with their freshness and clarity.”
In addition to individual sermons, several multiweek sermon series, including a series on Who Is Jesus? and Great Words of the Faith, are included.
-
Pastor As Public Theologian
$22.00Add to cartMany pastors today see themselves primarily as counselors, leaders, and motivators. Yet this often comes at the expense of the fundamental reality of the pastorate as a theological office. The most important role is to be a theologian mediating God to the people. The church needs pastors who can contextualize biblical wisdom in Christian living to help their congregations think theologically about all aspects of their lives, such as work, end-of-life decisions, political involvement, and entertainment choices.
Drawing on the Bible, key figures from church history, and Christian theology, this book offers a clarion call for pastors to serve as public theologians in their congregations and communities. It is designed to be engaging reading for busy pastors and includes pastoral reflections on the theological task from twelve working pastors, including Kevin DeYoung and Cornelius Plantinga.
-
Little Book For New Preachers
$14.99Add to cartOne of the central tasks of pastoral ministry is preaching the Word of God. Yet those who are called to ministry may feel unprepared, unable, or unwilling to step into this role. In this brief introduction to homiletics, seasoned preacher Matthew Kim provides proven insight and guidance about the importance and history of preaching, the characteristics of faithful preaching, and the personal habits of a faithful preacher.
-
Know What Youre FOR Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartWhat do you want to be know FOR? This is a great question for any leader of an organization to ask, whether it is a church, a business, or a nonprofit. After all, when an organization is able to close the gap between what they are known for and what they want to be known for, it results in unprecedented growth.
However, as Jeff Henderson reveals in the Know What You’re FOR small-group study (DVD/video downloads sold separately), this is also a great question for believers in Christ to ask themselves. All too often today, people in the world know more about what those in the church are AGAINST than what they are FOR. Instead of perceiving believers as being people of grace, love, and acceptance, they see them as angry, pessimistic, and intolerant. Certainly, as believers in Christ, we are called to state the truth about the condition of the world and its problem with sin . . . but the Bible is clear we are also to love others, extend grace, and get along as much as possible.
Back in the days of the early church, the believers also struggled with how to “draw the line” when it came to accepting the sinner but not the sin. The Christians even held a council in Jerusalem to discuss the issue and whether Gentiles were required to following Jewish practices to follow Jesus. It was the ruling of James, the brother of Christ and leader of the church, “that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God” (Acts 15:19). The early church decided to be FOR bringing people into the family of God instead of putting up unnecessary barriers that would keep them out.
Today, we are called to do the same . . . in our work lives, our relationships, our community, and our world. In this hypercritical and cynical world, we are called to be a group for who and what we’re FOR. It’s a powerful strategy for business . . . but more importantly, it is a revolutionary way to live.
Designed for use with Know What You’re FOR Video Study (sold separately).
-
Jesus Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartIn this six-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), bestselling author Max Lucado explores the life and character of Jesus, helping participants become more familiar with the man at the center of the greatest story ever told. As Max explains in this study, for thirty-three years Jesus felt everything that we have ever felt: weakness, weariness, rejections. He got colds. His feelings got hurt. His feet grew tired. His head ached.
To think of Jesus in such terms almost seems irreverent. It is much easier to keep the humanity out of the incarnation. Clean up the manure from around the manger. Wipe the sweat out of his eyes. Pretend he never snored or hit his thumb with a hammer. There is something about keeping Jesus divine that keeps him distant, packaged, and predictable.
But we have to remember that by Jesus becoming human, God made it possible for us to see him and hear his voice. If we want to know what matters to God, all we need to do is look in the Bible to see what matters to Jesus. If we want to know what God is doing in our world, we need only ponder the words of Jesus. By learning more about the person Jesus was and is, we come to understand more clearly the people we were created to be.
Jesus will inspire group members to spend time at the foot of the cross and search the heart of the one who would rather die for them than live without them.
Designed for use with the Jesus Video Study (sold separately).
-
Grace Of Les Miserables Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$14.99Add to cartVictor Hugo’s Les Miserables is a truly epic story. Whether you’ve tackled the 1,400-page 19thcentury novel, witnessed the Broadway musical (and memorized its soundtrack), or seen the several screen adaptations of it, you already know the power of its story.
In the six-week Lenten study The Grace of Les Miserables, author and pastor Matt Rawle dives into six ideals found in the story–grace, justice, poverty, revolution, love, and hope–each represented by a character in Hugo’s story. As these imperfect and relatable characters interact, we can see how these ideals work together (perhaps even in spite of each other) out in the world.
In keeping with his previous works, Matt Rawle brings us to the intersection of Church and Pop Culture by drawing parallels between the iconic story and musical and our Christian calling, inspiring us to both understand our faith and live it out in the world.
The Leader Guide contains everything needed to guide a group through the six-week study including session plans, activities, and discussion questions, as well as multiple format options.
-
Grace Of Les Miserables
$16.99Add to cartVictor Hugo’s Les Miserables is a truly epic story. Whether you’ve tackled the 1,400-page 19thcentury novel, witnessed the Broadway musical (and memorized its soundtrack), or seen the several screen adaptations of it, you already know the power of its story.
In the six-week Lenten study The Grace of Les Miserables, author and pastor Matt Rawle dives into six ideals found in the story–grace, justice, poverty, revolution, love, and hope–each represented by a character in Hugo’s story. As these imperfect and relatable characters interact, we can see how these ideals work together (perhaps even in spite of each other) out in the world.
In keeping with his previous works, Matt Rawle brings us to the intersection of Church and Pop Culture by drawing parallels between the iconic story and musical and our Christian calling, inspiring us to both understand our faith and live it out in the world.
A DVD, Leader Guide, youth resources, and Worship Resource Flash Drive are also available for a six-week study.
-
Will Willimons Lectionary Sermon Resource Year A Part 2
$26.99Add to cartWill Willimon is widely acclaimed as one of the top ten preachers in the world. For each Sunday of the Christian year, Will provides just what you need to begin the journey toward a sermon. This guide will stoke, fund, and fuel your imagination while leaving plenty of room to insert your own illustrations, make connections within your congregational context, and speak the Word in your distinctive voice. Guidance from Will Willimon is like sitting down with a trusted clergy friend and asking, “What will you preach next Sunday?” Year A Part 2 is part of a six-volume set that includes years A, B, and C (2 volumes per year) in the Revised Common Lectionary. Part 1 includes the Pentecost through the end of the church year, Christ the King/Reign of Christ Sunday.
Each week of sermon resources includes:
1.Readings
2.Theme title
3.Introduction to the Readings
4.Encountering the Text
5.Proclaiming the Text
6.Relating the Text -
Grace For The Children
$20.99Add to cartThe church’s response to child and adolescent mental health disorders has too often been characterized by fear and misinformation rather than grace or wisdom. Psychologist Matthew Stanford educates Christians about a range of common mental health disorders–from both scientific and biblical perspectives–so that the church may offer young people hope, a holistic view of human nature, accessible care, and supportive community.
-
How To Lead In A World Of Distraction Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartIn this six-session video study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), pastor Clay Scroggins builds on the principles he established in his bestselling How to Lead When You’re Not in Charge and shows participants how to take the next step in their leadership growth by developing emotional awareness. As Clay notes, we are all surrounded by “white noise”–a soul-masking tool that keeps us from hearing the voices in our lives that we really need to hear. Our busy lives, the numbing nature of entertainment, and the urgency of ministry all work together to create a toxic cocktail of emotional distraction. And while many leaders have learned to tune out this “white noise,” in the process they have become “deaf” to the inner issues to which they need to attend.
Emotional healing begins with emotional awareness–our ability to identify and understand our feelings. Developing such emotional awareness comes from engaging in spiritual practices such as fasting, meditation, Sabbath keeping, prayer, and hospitality. As Clay states, such practices today are often viewed as “countercultural,” but they are solidly biblical and instrumental for helping us identify our emotions.
Through the practices described in this guide, leaders will unmask unpleasant emotions–robbing them of their stronghold–and learn how to pay close attention to the desires within. The result is that business, church, and ministry leaders will be empowered to replace the chaos in their increasingly busy lives with an emotional competence that leads to a calmer, less stressed, and more fulfilling life than ever before.
Designed for use with How to Lead in a World of Distraction Video Study (sold separately).
-
Cry Of The Blind
$10.99Add to cartA Gods Life Publishing Title
Today there is a cry rising to God from the Blind Bartimaecus’s all cross our nation. The church as a whole is deafened to their cry. The love of money has caused many leaders to be more focused on having things rather than carrying the great commission of obeying Christ by evangelizing the lost. The Cry Of The Blind will encourage the church to refocus to the hearing the cry of the blind, initiate a plan of action to rescue them and thus fulfill the Great Commission.
-
Big Gospel In Small Places
$22.99Add to cartChristian ministries increasingly prioritize urban areas–big cities and suburbs are considered more strategic, more influential, and more desirable places to live and work. As a ministry strategy, focusing on big places makes sense. But the gospel of Jesus is often unstrategic. Filled with helpful stories and practical advice, pastor Stephen Witmer lays out an integrated theological vision for small-place ministry today.
-
Connections Year A Volume 2 Lent Through Pentecost
$55.00Add to cartDesigned to empower preachers as they lead their congregations to connect their lives to Scripture, Connections features a broad set of interpretive tools that provide commentary and worship aids on the Revised Common Lectionary.
For each worship day within the three-year lectionary cycle, the commentaries in Connections link the individual lection reading with Scripture as a whole as well as to the larger world. In addition, Connections places each Psalm reading in conversation with the other lections for the day to highlight the themes of the liturgical season. Finally, sidebars offer additional connections to Scripture for each Sunday or worship day.
This nine-volume series is a practical, constructive, and valuable resource for preachers who seek to help congregations connect more closely with Scripture.
This volume covers Year A for Lent through Pentecost.
-
Teach Us To Pray Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$11.95Add to cartJesus did not teach His disciples how to preach, teach, or grow a church, but He did teach them to pray. In this 13 lesson study guide, Ray Petty shares passionate wisdom that will inspire you to participate with God to boldly advance the kingdom of heaven on the earth. Perfect for individual or group study, each lesson culminates with practical exercises for reflection and activation. Through this life-changing book, you will: learn to pray the Word; practice the very presence of God; be transformed from the inside out; make a difference.
-
Think And Eat Yourself Smart Workbook (Workbook)
$9.99Add to cartScience is beginning to understand that our thinking has a deep and complicated relationship with our eating. Our thoughts before, during, and after eating profoundly impact our food choices, our digestive health, our brain health, and more. Yet most of us give very little thought to our food beyond taste and basic nutritional content.
In this curriculum, Dr. Caroline Leaf helps participants avoid fads and focus on their unique nutritional needs and thought patterns in order to positively impact their own health through right thinking. Anyone who is tired of traditional diet plans that don’t work, who struggles with emotional eating, or who simply isn’t satisfied with their level of health will find in this program the key to discovering how they can begin developing a healthier body, brain, and spirit. Perfect for small groups who want something a little different.
-
Healing Together : A Guide To Supporting Sexual Abuse Survivors
$12.99Add to cartSex is such an intimate topic historically wrapped in shame and when someone shares they were sexually abused, we may not know how to respond.
With recent #MeToo and #ChurchToo movements, we are learning just how many men, women, boys, and girls have suffered sexual abuse at the hands of a trusted person, often family members or leaders in the church. Sexual abuse is rampant in modern society and now–sometimes many years later–sexual abuse survivors are sharing their stories.
Anne Marie Miller is a survivor of childhood clergy sexual abuse and has shared her journey toward healing with audiences all over the world. After speaking with thousands of survivors and their loved ones, she saw the need for a fundamental and practical guide for helping supporters of sexual abuse survivors understand the basics of abuse, trauma, healing, and hope. Drawing from her own experience as a survivor and evidence-based research, Anne addresses these questions and more in Healing Together.
*What is sexual abuse?
*How can I help survivors?
*Who are predators and how do they groom victims?
*How does trauma affect survivors?
*What happens when someone doesn’t remember the details of their abuse?
*How does abuse wound the physical, emotional, and spiritual health of people who have been abused?
*When and how should authorities be contacted?
*How do you talk to your children about sexual abuse?
*What are the warning signs of abuse?
*Is healing possible?Whether you are a spouse, a family member, a friend, or a church leader looking for easy-to-navigate resources to understand and support sexual abuse survivors, you’ll find answers and hope in these pages.
-
Sent To Flourish
$40.99Add to cartHow can church planters and their congregations flourish for the long haul? Written by a diverse team of scholar-practitioners and filled with real-world insights, stories, and questions for reflection and discussion, this guide gives church planters and their teams the tools to be theologically reflective, spiritually grounded, and missionally agile.
-
Beyond The Tyranny Of The Text
$25.99Add to cartPreachers and students of preaching need help communicating hope! They want their sermons to communicate the promises of scripture, so that people can envision a new world in which their lives will be transformed. Preachers want to experience a new sense of freedom in their preaching, and to extend liberation based on their reading and interpretation of the scripture.
James Henry Harris introduces interpretation theory and continental philosophy as a resource for preachers to resist and overcome interpretive oppression, and lays out a new theory of scriptural interpretation. He analyzes philosopher Paul Ricoeur’s hermeneutics as a helpful guide for modern preachers, and incorporates in his analysis of the lived experience of the Black church. Harris highlights the preaching of several 19th and 20th century Black women, including Jarena Lee, Maria Stewart, and Mary Evans.
Beyond the Tyranny of the Text develops a five-part method for preaching that stretches from preparation to proclamation, and demonstrates how this method for interpretational creativity emerges from fidelity to the text. Harris demonstrates his method with sermonic exegesis of the Book of Jonah. With this new process of reading, rereading, un-reading, writing, and un-writing the text, the author offers wisdom and tools for reflection and illumination.
At its core, Beyond the Tyranny of the Text challenges the field of homiletics and all preachers to un-write like Jesus Christ: to get in front of the text, to understand preparation and preaching as a creative and transformative enterprise.
-
Tending Soul Mind And Body
$28.99Add to cartThroughout his ministry, Jesus consistently demonstrated his concern and love for the whole person: soul, mind, and body.
That concern is carried forward today by pastors and church leaders, who are called to care for people in the midst of individual circumstances as well as seismic cultural shifts. How might that calling be informed by recent developments in psychology? How should the church attend to matters of mental health? How might psychology and counseling aid us in our spiritual formation? Based on the 2018 Center for Pastor Theologians conference, this volume brings together reflections by pastors, theologians, and psychologists who explore the relationships among three fields of study–theological anthropology, spiritual formation, and modern psychology. The result is a vibrant whole-person theology that can aid the church today in its centuries-old call to care for the soul, mind, and body.
-
Lectionary Reflections Cycle A
$29.95Add to cartWith Lectionary Reflections, Cycle A, readers will delight in the process of preparing to preach from the lectionary. While it is academically informed and theologically sound, this volume is notable in how it engenders a sense of playful, holy curiosity.
Readers will get insightful commentary, ideas for a variety of ways to preach and teach the texts, and weekly questions and suggestions to get conversations going.
Duffield’s wit and palpable love for the Body of Christ will invigorate any pastor’s sermon writing process. If you’re preaching or teaching from the lectionary, this will be a go-to resource week after week.
Jill Duffield holds an M.Div. degree from Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, Virginia and a D.Min. degree from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Austin, Texas. She has pastored congregations in North Carolina and South Carolina. Jill won the James Solheim Award for Editorial Courage and the Award of Merit in Bible Reference for “Looking Into the Lectionary.” She is the current editor and publisher of The Presbyterian Outlook and is married to Grant. They are the parents of three children.
-
Everything You Need Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartMany Christians today feel unprepared and uncertain when it comes to living each day as followers of Christ. We often know what we are supposed to do, and even why we are supposed to do it. Yet when we lack confidence in ourselves and our spiritual development, we fail to live boldly as difference makers in our world.
As one of the world’s leading Bible teachers, Dr. David Jeremiah wants readers to know that this lack of confidence is both unnecessary and unhelpful. In fact, the Bible makes it clear that–in the same way skilled hikers pack all the necessary supplies before a journey–God Himself equips all believers with everything they need to walk and work with confidence as members of His kingdom.
Everything You Need continues Dr. Jeremiah’s focus on helping the church strive for spiritual victory through Christ. Using his signature depth, wisdom, and compassion, Dr. Jeremiah explores 2 Peter 1:5-10 to highlight seven critical tools God provides each of His people: virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. When we use the equipment God provides, we can live confidently in the knowledge that we will never stumble.
-
Womens Ministry With Purpose
$14.99Add to cartWhat Does God Expect from Women’s Ministry?
While women’s ministry can easily get caught up in Bible study themes and Pinterest-worthy decor, God’s heart calls for a ministry that is rooted in him. In order to understand what women’s ministry should look like today, Gena explores Scripture to establish what this ministry was meant to be and how women are called minister to other women.
Every church needs a team of women who serve in God’s name. Women’s Ministry with Purpose will show you how to rediscover the true purpose of your women’s ministry and gain support from your church’s leadership. More importantly, it will breathe new life into leaders and volunteers, giving you practical advice for organizing, training, and supporting the women around you.
-
Almost Christmas : A Wesleyan Advent Experience
$17.99Add to cartIn 1741, John Wesley preached his famous sermon titled “The Almost Christian” in which he encouraged people to follow Christ wholeheartedly. We should not be satisfied with being almost Christian but rather strive towards being altogether a Christian.
In Almost Christmas: A Wesleyan Advent Experience, author and pastor Magrey deVega leads a group of authors to explore how we can make the same commitment to Christ during Advent, connecting our Wesleyan heritage with the traditional Advent themes of Love, Hope, Joy, and Peace.
In this book, perfect for Advent, deVega and the other authors break down the barriers that prevent us from experiencing an “altogether” love, hope, joy, and peace in Christ in our lives and in the world around us. They demonstrate the promises God offers to us that makes those longings a reality, inviting us to claim those promises for ourselves this Advent and celebrate an altogether Christmas.
Chapters include:
*Altogether Love
*Altogether Hope
*Altogether Joy
*Altogether PeaceAdditional components for a four-week study include a DVD featuring Magrey deVega and the other writers and a comprehensive Leader Guide, as well as nativity hymns by Charles Wesley, litanies for lighting the Advent wreath, and prayers that can be incorporated into both worship and small group settings. A daily devotional and a youth study book are also available.
-
God Is With Us
$10.99Add to cartGod Is With Us, originally published in 2016, invites you to explore your longing for God’s presence through a study of the lectionary Bible readings for Advent and Christmas. The hope of Advent is the fulfillment of that longing; we await the coming of Jesus as Immanuel, God With Us. Each week’s Scriptures call us to praise God as we actively await the coming of Christ and prepare our hearts and lives for his arrival. Through the readings, we hear the invitation to claim and celebrate the new hope we have in Jesus Christ.
The season of Advent offers opportunities to prepare for God’s coming in human form in the infant Jesus and for the fulfillment of God’s kingdom with the second coming of Christ. Hope is the focus of Advent worship, study, and prayer. We will discover the light that began in the manger, which continues as we look forward with hope to Christ’s return.
God Is With Us is based on the Revised Common Lectionary Scriptures for church year A, the first of a three-year cycle of Bible readings. The study includes commentary and reflection on readings from the Old Testament, the Gospels, and the Epistles. It offers the opportunity to explore these Bible readings in a five-session study. It will help participants understand, appreciate, and engage in meaningful and joyous celebrations of Advent and Christmas and to live each day in God’s hope through Jesus Christ.
-
Light Of The World (Large Type)
$18.99Add to cartIn Light of the World: A Beginner’s Guide to Advent, author, professor, and biblical scholar Amy-Jill Levine explores the biblical texts surrounding the story of the birth of Jesus. Join her as she traces the Christmas narrative through the stories of Zechariah and Elizabeth, Mary, the journey to Bethlehem, and the visit from the Magi. These stories open conversations around connections of the Gospel stories to the Old Testament, the role of women in first-century Jewish culture, the importance of Mary’s visitation and the revolutionary implications of Mary’s Magnificat, the census and the stable, and the star of Bethlehem and the flight to Egypt.
The book provides a rich and challenging learning experience for small groups and individual readers alike. As part of a larger four-week study that is perfect for Advent, it includes a DVD and a comprehensive leader guide.
-
God Is With Us (Large Type)
$11.99Add to cartGod Is With Us, originally published in 2016, invites you to explore your longing for God’s presence through a study of the lectionary Bible readings for Advent and Christmas. The hope of Advent is the fulfillment of that longing; we await the coming of Jesus as Immanuel, God With Us. Each week’s Scriptures call us to praise God as we actively await the coming of Christ and prepare our hearts and lives for his arrival. Through the readings, we hear the invitation to claim and celebrate the new hope we have in Jesus Christ.
The season of Advent offers opportunities to prepare for God’s coming in human form in the infant Jesus and for the fulfillment of God’s kingdom with the second coming of Christ. Hope is the focus of Advent worship, study, and prayer. We will discover the light that began in the manger, which continues as we look forward with hope to Christ’s return.
God Is With Us is based on the Revised Common Lectionary Scriptures for church year A, the first of a three-year cycle of Bible readings. The study includes commentary and reflection on readings from the Old Testament, the Gospels, and the Epistles. It offers the opportunity to explore these Bible readings in a five-session study. It will help participants understand, appreciate, and engage in meaningful and joyous celebrations of Advent and Christmas and to live each day in God’s hope through Jesus Christ.
-
Fierce Womens Bible Study Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$15.99Add to cartThe word fierce is trendy. It is used to describe women who are extreme athletes, high-level executives, or supermodels. Women at the top of their game. But what about the rest of us? Can we be fierce? Absolutely! In fact, women like us have been changing the world for thousands of years-many who received little fanfare yet lived fiercely anyway. In this six-week study we will look at lesser-known female characters in the Bible and the ways they changed the world by living into God’s calling, including:
*The midwives of Egypt (Shiphrah and Puah), who made hard decisions in the face of evil
*Deborah, who was an unlikely and powerful leader
*Naaman’s slave girl, who bravely points others to God’s healing power
*The Woman at the Well, who boldly repented and shared her faith
*Lois and Eunice, who parented with intentionality and effectiveness
*Dorcas, who showed kindness to those in need.As we explore their lives, we will discover how we too can live into our callings, honor the Lord, and even change the world through our courage, faithfulness, and obedience.
