Pastoral Helps
Showing 2851–2900 of 3958 resultsSorted by latest
-
12 Dynamic Shifts For Transforming Your Church
$18.99Add to cartThat today’s mainline churches are in crisis is apparent; a solution is less obvious. In this constructive new book E. Stanley Ott points a way ahead, describing twelve shifts in philosophy and practice that can help congregations build need-responsive, disciple-growing churches full of life and vigor.
Arguing that the weakness of the church today is a loss of personal spirituality and congregational vitality, Ott challenges local churches to discover how to adjust the style of their ministries to attract new people while encouraging current members. Ott examines the characteristics of “traditional” churches, extols the features of new, “transformational” churches, and lays out proposals to help established congregations make the transition.
Well balanced by an honest assessment of the church’s present and a positive vision for its future, this book is must reading for pastors, church leaders, and members of every congregation.
-
Servants Manual : Christian Leadership For Tomorrow
$16.00Add to cartChristians and their institutions are stuck, says Michael Foss, stuck in the thinking and dilemmas of the past. This short volume is a plea for Christians to rethink their point and purpose in light of larger cultural changes and a crisis in leadership. Foss detects a crisis in leadership in declining rates of church participation, stagnant levels of students preparing for ministry, and burnout among clergy. To energize a new generation of leaders able to transcend yesterday’s thinking, Foss encourages a new style of ecclesial thinking. He first traces the larger cultural shifts that affect the church’s position in the world and styles of leadership. He then diagnoses church thinking as largely reproductive of past successes and ineffective in this new context. Advancing to productive thinking empowers Christians to leave behind the most important and frustrating dichotomies or polarities in today’s church: evangelism vs. social justice, control vs. freedom, growth vs. discipleship. Foss’s model of moving from issues into conversation and then into compassion is a blueprint for new leadership “equipped to think productively for the sake of the reign of our God in the world.” This book is aimed in part at bringing the key ideas and energy of Foss’s earlier book, Power Surge, to a wider audience of concerned Christians, potential leaders for the next generation.
-
Preaching Workbook Series 1 Year 1
$31.95Add to cartProviding a fresh, timely reflection every week can be a daunting task. So when time or inspiration is flagging and you need the jump-start of creative ideas, the “Preaching Workbook” from CSS is just what the doctor ordered! Prominent pastor, former seminary president, and prolific author Jerry Schmalenberger draws upon the experiences of a lifetime in the ministry to help readers effectively share God’s word with crisply written insights. This outstanding set of practical aids explores many homiletical approaches and is sure to help preachers prepare more vital, incisive sermons.
Each chapter includes:
– a listing of and commentary on selected scripture texts
– a theme for the day’s service
– suggestions on preaching possibilities
– an outline of possible sermon moves
– additional illustrations to help flesh out the message -
Age Of The Reformation
$55.99Add to cartHughes Oliphant Old’s survey of preaching throughout the history of the Christian church has been heralded as a monumental achievement. This fourth volume of Old’s history brings the story of preaching up through the Protestant Reformation to the end of the seventeenth century.
This is the pivotal volume in Old’s project because it covers not only what the Reformers preached but also their reform of preaching itself. Luther made a clear break with the preaching traditions of the Middle Ages, while figures like Bucer and Calvin developed a strong expository approach to preaching. Old traces the main events and people involved in the development of distinctly Protestant forms of preaching, giving due attention to how and in what sense preaching was itself an act of worship.
-
Spiritual Leaders Guide To Self Care
$32.00Add to cartThe Spiritual Leader’s Guide to Self-Care is an ideal companion for clergy, lay leaders, and others who would like guidance about how to make changes in their personal life and ministry but do not want to read a text-heavy book about self-care. The guide addresses seven themes:
Creating a Life Vision
Caring for Yourself at Work
Nurturing Your Relationships
Caring for Your Spirit and Body
Caring for Your Finances
Caring for Your Intellect
Sustaining a Life Vision
Readers may work through one of the 52 sections each week or adopt a more leisurely pace. The guide includes journalwriting suggestions, personal reflection questions and activities, guidance for sharing the discovery process with another person, an activity for the coming week, and suggested further resources, such as novels, videos, and Web sites. Foreword by Roy M. Oswald, Alban Institute Senior Consultant. -
Difficult But Indispensable Church
$19.00Add to cartWhy is it so difficult to be church today? Of course, Christian community is marked by ennobling worship, mutual care, and joyful celebration. But just as often it is marred by staid routine, insularity, and disagreement over leadership, budgets, ethical stances, or even the shape of congregational prayer itself. Alienation, blame, and power struggles ensue. Is church worth it? In this volume of fresh thinking about life in Christian community, twenty-one theologians from Wartburg Seminary strongly attest to Christ-centered community, offering new views of church as the indispensable site of radical Christian commitment and an essential healer for a hurting world. Reflective churchgoers will find here a virtual theological guide to church renewal. In part 1 the authors show how church can model an alternative vision of community, helping people achieve well-being and health, even as their differences are affirmed. Part 2 gets to the heart of Christian practice through creative discussions of belief, fellowship, encounters with Scripture, preaching, and moral deliberation. Part 3 finds the church in motion in new ways of understanding discipleship and mission near and far. Part 4 shows how a Christ-inspired openness can reveal new perspectives on tough issues of public policy, race and class, and ordination of gays and lesbians. Modeling what they espouse, the authors find unanimity in affirming the strengths of diversity, the unsuspected key to church renewal. Contributors include: James L. Bailey, Karen L. Bloomquist, Norma Cook Everist, Roger W. Fjeld, Ann L. Fritschel, Paul Hill, Peter L. Kjeseth, L. Shannon Jung, Duane H. Larson, Elizabeth A. Leeper, David J. Lull, Craig L. Nessan, James R. Nieman, Daniel L. Olson, Winston Persaud, Duane A. Priebe, Ralph W. Quere, David A. Ramse, Gwen B. Sayler, Thomas H. Schattauer, and H. S. Wilson.
-
Too Deep For Words
$32.00Add to cartExploring fundamental ways in which verbal expression in worship relates to aesthetic expression, Clayton Schmit provides a vitally important book for all homiletics students and scholars. Worship isn’t just a sequence of “holy” words. Schmit reflects theologically on the relationship between verbal and aesthetic expression and the aesthetic responsibility of those who preach, pray, and lead in public worship.
-
Preaching John
$25.00Add to cartThe Gospel of John and 1 John exhibit a peculiar Christian language and thought that need to be understood and employed in the preaching ministry. The preacher’s task involves penetrating the thick and often confusing language of the Gospel and comprehending its frequently paradoxical theology. The preacher can find new and powerful resources for preaching in Johannine language and thought, as well as its use of narrative and discourse. These discoveries facilitate preaching John in ways that are consistent with recent trends in homiletic theory. The method of this book is to combine the practical (how to preach John) with proposals for understanding the Gospel and 1 John. The author offers a variety of sermon ideas and designs throughout each chapter based on numerous passages selected from the Revised Common Lectionary.
-
John Wesley On Christian Beliefs
$35.99Add to cartThis is the first volume of The Standard Sermons of John Wesley, transcribed into today’s English. The volumes in this series accurately transcribe Wesley’s eighteenth-century language into a form suitable for today’s readers. Volume 1, 1-20 contains the first twenty sermons, in which Wesley deals with theology. Appropriate for individual and small-group study.
-
If It Could Happen Here
$17.99Add to cartIn this informative book, Jeff Patton describes six “levers” for transforming a small-membership church: prayer, discerning a clear vision, indigenous worship, growth groups, membership that means something, and lay pastoring. Filled with solid insights on how the principles Patton has developed can be applied in different contexts, this book will offer hope to all leaders of small-membership congregations who know that there is more to life in Jesus and want to experience it.
-
Preaching Is Believing
$28.00Add to cartThis practical handbook will help preachers equip congregations to grasp core Christian convictions so that the community can believe, live, and witness with integrity. Allen encourages preachers from the broad spectrum of theological families to bring their perspectives more boldly to the surface of the sermon. This volume does not so much advocate a special kind of preaching as it commends more conscientious and critical attention to systematic theology throughout the preparation and preaching of all sermons.
-
Spiritual Maturity : Preserving Congregational Health And Balance
$19.00Add to cartLike all human bodies, the body of Christ that we call “church” needs to attend to its health or it may become ill. Renowned pastor, preacher, and teacher Frank Thomas believes that many congregations exhibit a number of dysfunctional habits in conducting business that lead to rifts, divides, and even congregational splits. Often they are caused by leadership styles that are ineffective and controling. Thomas examines how poor congregational leadership is often the result of personality conflicts among leaders and how many key leaders–both clergy and lay–participate in keeping unhealthy methods alive. Thomas’s book will help lay and clergy leaders improve the health of their congreagation by taking a close look at the styles of church leadership, methods of information flow, and levels of participation that exist within the body. Thomas offers a holistic solution based on a model of spiritual maturity for creating and preserving a healthy comgregation.
-
Pastors Guide To Effective Ministry
$14.99Add to cart12 Chapters
Additional Info
Systematic theology. . . Philosophy of religion. . . Old Testament exegesis. Just about every seminary-trained pastor is educated in these areas. But how about nurturing the congregation? Don’t forget administration of the church and pastoral counseling. And on a more personal note, they must keep their family life in shape, care for their own physical and emotional health, manage their finances, and maintain a pure life and witness.Larry Burkett, Dallas Willard, William Willimon, and Dale Galloway, along with other well-known church leaders, provide solid advice for the personal and professional development of pastors. This book will be a desktop companion for pastors who are in the trenches and facing the day-to-day challenges of ministry.
-
New Tools For A New Century
$24.99Add to cartIs your church bewildered by the new technologies? Newell tours the most important options, keeping in mind the financial constraints of small- to medium-sized churches. Sane, careful explanations of how to set up a congregational website, use PowerPoint presentation software, and plenty more.
-
Ideas For 52 Great Childrens Sermons And Other Good Stuff
$12.95Add to cartChildren are the future of the church — and pastors are always on the lookout for creative ideas for “children’s time.” Because abstract concepts are so difficult for children (and many adults) to grasp, it’s very important to use simple, concrete methods of illustrating biblical truth. This resource offers a year’s worth of ideas you can expand upon for great messages. Each nugget makes the scriptures understandable to children of all ages — while having some fun in the process. The material also can be used in the home or for story time in Sunday school or day care settings.
-
Nurturing Faith In Families
$25.99Add to cartA family crisis is occuring in church-going families. Often church leaders are perplexed about the best way for their congregation to care for their families within their midst and in the community. This book offers 425 creative ideas that pastors, teachers, and other leaders can use to help families grow spiritually and feel more connected to the church.
-
Now Bring Your Joy To This Wedding
$14.95Add to cartOne of the important, if often overlooked, tasks of the parish pastor is effective premarital counseling. Since many couples are overwhelmed by the arrangements for their wedding, it can often be difficult to lead them into a realistic and faithful dialogue that prepares them for the long-term implications of the marriage covenant. Developed by an experienced pastoral counselor/marriage therapist along with a parish pastor, Now Bring Your Joy To This Wedding is an excellent premarital resource with a practical, accessible approach to preparing couples for the joys and challenges of marriage. Its field-tested material is structured around four key areas of married life: intimacy, power, security, and freedom/responsibility. The text is addressed to couples in a friendly, conversational tone, and questions, exercises, cartoons, and guidelines stimulate active participation. Each chapter has prayer exercises that reveal God’s grace-filled ways. Two workbooks (one each for the bride and groom) for writing down and sharing responses are also included. Whether the setting is a weekend retreat for a number of couples, individual counseling sessions with a pastor, or even use by a couple themselves, Now Bring Your Joy To This Wedding is sure to help couples grow in all phases of their relationship.
-
Grace (Student/Study Guide)
$9.99Add to cartHave you ever felt that you wanted to get closer to God but didn’t derserve even to try? This book explores God’s love for us and how it isn’t something we earn, but something that is; how that love leads us into relationship with God and with others; and how our hearts and lives are changed as we use the gifts God has given us to build community, growing toward perfect love.
-
3 Months With Matthew (Student/Study Guide)
$14.99Add to cartAvailable in English for the first time, Three Months with Matthew is popular author Juso Gonzalez’s study of the Gospel of Matthew. Eminently readable, the study uses the see-judge-act method to bring readers closer to the text and to inform and challenge the daily life of the Christian. These thirteen studies can be used for Sunday school, evening Bible study, home study meetings, retreats, or personal Bible study. It can easily be used as a daily Bible study, as each lesson is divided into seven parts.
-
Fling Open The Doors
$26.99Add to cartThe temptation to focus only on their own internal problems and issues is powerful for congregations. Without realizing it, even churches that have a long tradition of outreach and social involvement become centered on issues of institutional survival and preservation. Worst of all are congregations that adopt a “fortress mentality,” addressing the larger community rarely, and only in the “language of Zion” when they do. In this book, Paul Nixon paints a picture of what community-based ministry is all about. Drawing on his experiences within a congregation that has seen twenty-five years of increased worship attendance, he lays out practical steps that churches can take to plant themselves firmly within the lives of the communities they serve. Written with an infectious sense of hope, this book will become a critical tool for church leaders seeking to transform their congregations into outward-looking.
-
Vanishing Ministry In The 21st Century (Revised)
$18.99Add to cart1. The Mess Of Reality
2. The Devilish Diversion
3. The Company Of The Committed
4. The Road Back
17 PagesAdditional Info
Tom Brokaw labeled them the “Greatest Generation,” and for decades the vision and commitment of the World War II generation have changed the world. Christian ministries have flourished, and the gospel has circled the globe because of the lifelong service of the faithful believers in that generation. But times – and generations have changed. Today’s inheritors of the Great Commission are not signing up for vocations in Christian service at anywhere near the rate of their immediate predecessors. Given this alarming trend – coupled with aggressive evangelization by other world religions – what’s the future of the worldwide movement of the gospel message? In this updated and revised edition, Dr. Kroll provides a careful overview and able assessment of the condition of Christian ministries. He offers a penetrating look at the current state of vocational Christian ministry and the changes we’re making – and not making – around the world. He gives praise for progress made during the last decade and issues a renewed call for ongoing change. -
Congregations In Transition
$26.00Add to cartThis hands-on guide helps congregations meet the reality and challenges of today’s constantly changing urban and suburban church communities. Congregations in Transition, written in an easy-to-follow workbook format, is designed to help communities of faith focus on the changing needs of their members and explore the opportunities and options open to them.
-
New Testament Exegesis (Revised)
$32.00Add to cartA favorite among pastors and seminary students for 20 years, Fee’s trusted handbook offers a clear, step-by-step process for interpreting the Greek text—even if you only know English. Newly revised, his indispensable manual provides seasoned guidance for accurate reading and practical help for sermon preparation. Includes an extensive annotated bibliography explaining the best resources
-
Gifts Of Lent
$12.95Add to cartThis book was written for busy pastors and lay leaders who want to provide their congregations with a biblical, informative, and motivational monologue series for the Lenten season. Each monologue features a Bible character who gave something to Jesus during Holy Week, and one who had nothing to give. A children’s sermon accompanies each monologue.
-
Why Didnt Noah Swat Both Mosquitos
$13.95Add to cartGod made a few perfect heads, the rest he covered with hair.
Subject: BaldnessA certain church was taking a missionary offering. As the plate was passed to one dour-/aced man, he growled, “I don’t believe in missions.” The usher replied, “Well, then take some out, brother, this offering is for the heathen.”
Subject: OfferingA congregation in Florida installed a sound system on a trial basis. One reaction: “If I had wanted to hear, I would have moved up front.”
Subject: HearingAcross one-half century of Hoover Rupert’s ministry, humor has been a part of his preaching portfolio. This collection includes nearly 300 stories collected by the author that could be used by any preacher.
The stories are listed alphabetically by subject or theme. Themes range from religious to secular. A selection of topics includes: accidents, babies, Bible, complaints, church, Devil, ecumenical, faith, heaven, Jesus, music, offering, prayer, theology, viewpoint, words and others.
-
Guide For Godparents
$7.95Add to cartA Guide For Godparents is an aid for pastors who deal with ministering to a parade in our constantly moving parish populations. Often godparents arrive from out of town or state. The parents themselves move more often today than ever before in our society.
With this book you will cover the theological basics of baptism and the spiritual life in a way that is simple and friendly without being simplistic or condescending.
The spiritual basis of the book is suited to the busy couples that the church sees coming for their spiritual nurture and the baptism of their children. The content of this book will not scare off these couples — parents and godparents — returning to their church.
-
Gods Game Plan
$12.95Add to cartGod’s Game Plan will add color, warmth, humor, and imagination to any preacher’s message. Its anecdotes can be used by anyone who seeks to interpret more effectively the Good News in our day.
The book includes over 75 sports anecdotes that relate to all age groups. Themes used cover the entire range of athletics from team to individual competition.
Subjects are grouped in nine categories including:
Training
Risking
Losing
Winning
and Witnessing.Author Richard A. Hasler chooses anecdotes Jimmy Carter, John Wooden, Frank Laubach, Martin Marty, and many others. The book includes an extensive scripture index.
-
Holy Communion Is
$12.95Add to cartWhat can the busy pastor say that has not already been said before, when the congregation gathers to share the Sacrament of the Altar? What new meanings and insights about this special Meal ought to be imparted before the breaking of the bread and passing of the cup?
R. E. Lybrand, also a busy pastor, has created this useful resource to help you give your congregation thirteen thoughtful snapshots of this always-fresh and sometimes-too-familiar sacrament.
Holy Communion is:
Real Presence
Refreshment
Reconciliation
Reunion
Running No MoreThere are messages enough in this brief resource for each month in the year. A special concluding message is designed for use on First Communion Sunday.
-
Penguin Principles : A Survival Manual For Clergy Seeking Maturity In Minis
$12.95Add to cartQuestion: Why is a parish pastor like a penguin?
Answer:
Penguins have a way of looking dignified and ridiculous simultaneously.
Penguins are sensitive to heat.
Penguins have treacherous enemies.
Penguins are relatively defenseless.
Penguins have a homing instinct.
No matter what happens to penguins, they keep their heads high. (from the Authors’ Preface)While the surgeon-general has yet to rule publicly on this matter, the evidence suggests that reading this book could be injurious to the professional health and the personality of those pastors who are without fault; who have never had a parishioner or a denominational official or a seminary professor lay a guilt trip on them; and who find it painful to laugh at themselves.
Lyle E. Schaller
Yokefellow Institute
(from the Foreword)I believe this book will be a balm to veterans in the pastoral office and will help new clergy avoid many of the pitfalls that lie hidden in the path …
Paul A. Weber
President, Ohio District, LCMS -
Shadows To Sunrise
$19.95Add to cartAre you looking for fresh, vibrant material for Holy Week worship? Do you want your congregation to experience the unforgettable drama of Jesus’ suffering, so that they more fully appreciate the celebration and joy of Easter? If so, then you’ll want this anthology that provides several innovative choices for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter sunrise worship. Copying privileges are included for all six segments.
Beyond The Shadows combines communion with gradually extinguished candlelight to create a moving Maundy Thursday tenebrae experience. As each part of the Passion story unfolds, more candles are snuffed out, and the service concludes in total darkness. By reminding us that the Light of the World came to us, yet was engulfed in total darkness as his life slipped away, Beyond The Shadows focuses worshipers’ attention on the coming resurrection, and how that brightness contrasts with the darkness of the crucifixion.
When The Son’s Light Failed is a poignant Good Friday dramatization that imagines the presence at the crucifixion of many women whose lives were profoundly affected by Jesus. The women all share their stories with each other as they witness our Lord’s ultimate sacrifice. It’s a moving portrayal which reminds us that Jesus’ ministry touched the lives of everyone.
The tenebrae service Choices At The Cross explores some of the choices faced by those involved in the events of Christ’s Passion — ones of far greater magnitude than what we often face on a daily basis. Choices At The Cross emphasizes that the most important decision we ultimately face is our response to the question posed by Pilate: “What shall I do, then, with Jesus, who is called Christ?”
Based on John’s account of Christ’s passion, Good Friday Readings, Meditations, And Prayers is a series of seven brief contemplations and prayers that can form the basis for a remarkably effective Good Friday service or be used for personal devotional reading during Lent. Filled with vivid imagery, the meditations make the scriptures come alive while relating them to contemporary life.
Good Friday: I Was There is a stark, gripping Good Friday worship experience which confronts us with the powers of darkness and destruction which were responsible for Christ’s crucifixion. Brief monologues from seven shadowy personae (Doubt, Sorrow, Fear, Shame, Agony, Hate, and Death) dramatically recall how our Lord suffered as he took the sins of humanity upon himself.
Designed as a co
-
At The Cross With Jesus
$12.95Add to cartBy combining a compelling sermon series with an insightful group of monologues, At The Cross With Jesus offers flexible, effective resources that will keep the cross central in your congregation’s minds and hearts during Lent. Practical for use in any church, large or small, the material in At The Cross With Jesus is perfect for midweek worship or Holy Week services, and could also be used for a Bible study.
The five moving messages in The Symbols Of The Cross examine Jesus’ final days by focusing on powerful images from the Passion story. Each homily relates these events to our everyday lives by exploring a specific symbol and the human characteristic it exemplifies. There are also directions for creating a searing memory of these symbols by placing visual representations of each image on a wooden cross.
Symbols included are:
* The Palms (a symbol of our fickleness)
* The Money Bag (a symbol of our greed)
* The Towel (a symbol of servanthood)
* The Crown of Thorns (a symbol of mockery)
* The Nails of the Cross (a symbol of suffering)In Five Who Knew Jesus, five persons who were intimately acquainted with Jesus describe their personal relationships with him. Through hearing the perspective of those who played critical roles in Jesus’ life, we are encouraged to look more closely at our own relationships with Christ during the introspective season of Lent. The monologues may be performed in readers’ theater format, but are even more effective if memorized. Few props are required, and costumes are a nice touch but not essential.
Characters represented are:
* John — a hot-tempered man who becomes the disciple of love
* Mary, the mother of Jesus — a woman who suffers a mother’s pain while humbly accepting God’s will
* Peter — an arrogant man who becomes a humble disciple
* Judas — the disciple who failed because he thought he knew best
* Mary Magdalene — a woman of the world who strives to love herself as Jesus loved her -
Life Injections 2
$17.95Add to cartLife Injections II shows how the scriptures can provide help, comfort, and insight into life’s problems. Father Richard Zajac’s heartfelt and thought-provoking messages draw inspiration from many sources, including his extensive hospital experience. Whether you’re interested in striking sermon illustrations, wisdom for coping with difficult circumstances, or just bedside reading with a message of hope and peace, Life Injections II is just what the doctor ordered!
-
Let Me Tell You
$12.95Add to cartEven though the sermon is perhaps the central element of Protestant worship, preachers sometimes have difficulty capturing the imagination of their audiences and communicating the spiritual resources that worshipers need. But the messages in David Rogne’s latest book, Let Me Tell You…, provide the living connection that worshipers are hungering for. Rogne makes a further presentation of an autobiographical homiletic style described in his previous CSS release, Telling It Like It Was. Readers will see how the preacher can assume the identity of featured characters, stressing aspects of their spiritual pilgrimages which are relevant for today’s faithful living. Following an introductory chapter in which Rogne briefly touches on issues raised by the characters represented, he presents twelve monologues highlighting the experiences of both biblical and more recent personalities. You’ll meet such fascinating personages as Abraham, Jeremiah, Thomas, Paul, Father Damien, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. The monologues depict individuals who persevered through difficulty and emerged with their faith intact.
-
Come In And Worship
$12.95Add to cartCome In And Worship offers a complete worship resource for your Holy Week needs, including a festival celebration for Palm Sunday, a Holy Communion service for Maundy Thursday, and a tenebrae service for Good Friday. Each features lengthy scriptural readings supplemented with stirring messages that place worshipers in the emotional turmoil of the passion events. The Palm Sunday ceremony includes a charming children’s story, “The Donkey’s Tale.”
Anyone who has to plan or lead worship will find these services to be a wonderful way of bringing Holy Week to life for congregations. Use them in combination with Bankhead’s other Lenten titles for a complete interrelated seasonal program.
-
Shepherd And His Sheep
$12.95Add to cartOne of the most striking representations of Jesus in the scriptures is that of a shepherd. Based on John 10’s statement that He is the Good Shepherd, this series of eight lessons teaches youngsters of Jesus’ unfailing love and care (even to the point of death on the cross). Like all of her previous collections, each children’s message is accompanied by a two-sided activity page — one side that’s a coloring page for younger children, and the other with numerous puzzles and activities to reinforce the lesson’s theme for older children. Bland has a well-earned reputation for biblical faithfulness, creativity, and practicality. Busy pastors and teachers have found her ready-to-use materials just what they need for their children’s time — we know you’ll love her latest release!
-
Lenten Discipline
$12.95Add to cartAn acclaimed Luther scholar revisits the wisdom of Martin Luther’s Small Catechism in this complete Lenten program. Based on the six sections of the catechism, A Lenten Discipline provides instructive homily/meditations and worship services for each week in Lent, including Maundy Thursday. An initial chapter examining the Word of God as Law and Gospel sets the tone for the series and can be used as the basis of an Ash Wednesday sermon. Subsequent weeks explore the basic teachings of the faith on the Ten Commandments, the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, Baptism, Confession, and Holy Communion.
Though perfectly suited for congregational use during Lent, this series has a multitude of other applications. In addition to catechism or confirmation instruction, it’s also excellent for a sermon series, as a theological resource, or for classrooms, workshops, and retreats. But whatever the setting, these informative homily/lectures and worship experiences will give users new insight into Luther’s genius.
-
Lessons We Can Learn From The Animals
$11.95Add to cartChildren learn that Jesus is their Lord and develop Christian character through attention-getting pictures and rhyming words in this book of children’s sermons and activity pages from the prolific pen of Julia Bland. Like all of her other popular CSS titles, these messages come with two-sided activity pages. Busy pastors and teachers will appreciate the coloring pages for younger children and the numerous activities reinforcing the lesson for older children.
-
Telling It Like It Was
$12.95Add to cartEven though the sermon is the centerpiece of Protestant worship, preachers sometimes fail to capture the imagination of their audiences and communicate the spiritual resources that worshipers need. But David Rogne’s messages in Telling It Like It Was provide the living connection that worshipers are hungering for. Rogne introduces readers to an autobiographical homiletic style in which the preacher assumes the identity of a featured character. He shares his method of preparation, describes how to overcome obstacles, and then presents twelve monologues highlighting the experiences of both Biblical and more recent personalities. Each presentation is prefaced by a few paragraphs detailing considerations related to that particular individual. Some of the characters you will meet are Pharaoh, Solomon, Herod, John the Baptist, Pontius Pilate, St. Francis of Assisi, and Albert Schweitzer.
This book will be invaluable for preachers and seminarians who are interested in expanding their repertoire of sermon styles, as well as for anyone who wants a concise biographical portrait of the people who have shaped our faith.
-
Life On The Edge Of Faith
$12.95Add to cartFive characters bear witness to a world-changing event that forces them right to the edge of faith in this series of midweek worship services for Lent, which also includes services for Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday. Each service contains a brief sermon, and the five midweek services also feature monologues from the perspective of someone who was present at our Lord’s Passion (a sleeping disciple, the high priest, a maid, a soldier, and a city resident). The bewilderment experienced by these characters will help worshipers find a voice for the confusion that we all feel from time to time.
Life On The Edge Of Faith is a complete package of thematically-related worship resources for the busy pastor looking for midweek programming. The monologues can be read by parishioners, and it’s a great opportunity to have your young people participate in worship activities.
-
Gods Top 10 List
$12.95Add to cartGod’s Top Ten List approaches the Ten Commandments not as a list of do’s and don’ts, but rather as a path toward personal peace and social renewal. In messages liberally sprinkled with gripping illustrations, Robert Kopp explores the timeless truth of the commandments, and notes that they are God’s recipe for achieving a happy and satisfying life.
-
Returning Home
$12.95Add to cartGod’s never-ending pursuit of all prodigals, whether they’re far from home or nearby, is the theme of this complete package of preaching and worship resources. The timeless story of the Prodigal Son is examined through first-person portrayals of its characters: the prodigal, the elder son, the father, the mother, and a servant. The five monologues are perfect for use in midweek services — and with companion sermons for Ash Wednesday and Good Friday plus seven orders of worship, Returning Home provides everything busy pastors need for a total Lenten program. The material is also excellent for a sermon series, small group discussion, or personal devotional reading.
-
Conversations With The Savior
$12.95Add to cartNine dialogues built around the “I AM” sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of John offer a fresh perspective while meeting the demands of extra services during the Lenten season. Through their interaction with Jesus, various characters gain insight into who Jesus Christ is and turn to him in faith. Each dialogue can be performed by two readers, and may be staged as elaborately or as simply as desired. Accompanying each conversation is a children’s message that uses easily obtained objects to reinforce the day’s featured “I AM” statement.
The conversations explore the following statements:
I AM the Bread of Life
I AM the Gate
I AM the Good Shepherd
I AM the Resurrection and the Life
I AM the Way and the Truth and the Life
I AM the True Vine
I AM He
I AM the Light of the World -
Miracles Of Jesus And Their Flip Side Cycles A B And C
$12.95Add to cartThe miracles of Jesus are some of the most striking passages in the New Testament — they bring the power of God “up close and personal” by dramatically rearranging human situations and teaching us great spiritual truths. But how can we translate the sometimes arcane historical content of the miracle stories in a way that will be meaningful to contemporary sensibilities?
Jerry Schmalenberger has come up with an original solution in these 13 well-crafted sermons on miracle stories contained in the Revised Common Lectionary. Using the analogy of old 45 rpm records which were usually released with a “hit” side and a “flip” side, Schmalenberger shares a structure for presenting the miracles in narrative form. He initially focuses on the traditional approach to each miracle (the “A” or “hit” side), and then offers a fresh look at the “other side of the story” (the “B” or “flip” side). Schmalenberger’s punch, contemporary language, and narrative style produce hard-hitting and inspirational messages that offer a unique twist in the interpretation of these fascinating stories.
-
Come As You Are
$12.95Add to cartCommunion is an inexhaustible mystery — a gift of God’s grace. Yet because it is familiar we sometimes take it for granted. Though theologians may disagree about exactly what happens in and through the sacrament, we all agree that something happens — at the Lord’s Supper we are changed. Gondola explores the wonder of communion in these captivating and well-illustrated sermons.
-
Affirming The Ash Heap
$12.95Add to cartThese seven sermons will penetrate the hearts and souls of every listener…because each one of us has been touched by the tragic side of life. Like Job, everyone sitting in a church pew has at one time or another screamed for a reason why, or even wondered (like Jesus), “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”. Including sermons for five Sundays in Lent, along with Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday, Kirby’s meditations will help worshippers understand the process of coming to grips with these difficult questions
-
And The Sea Lay Down
$11.95Add to cartHere are all the pastoral resources you need for a complete and integrated Lenten season of preaching and worship — Ash Wednesday through Easter, including Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.
Included for each Sunday or worship service are:
* Call to worship
* Suggested processional hymn
* Children’s message
* Prayers
* Scripture passages
* Sermon
* Suggested hymn
* Pastoral prayer
* Affirmation of faith
* Suggested closing hymnWard’s first book for CSS, Asking For Wonder: Resources For Creative Worship And Preaching, has become a favorite resource for thousands of busy pastors.
