Pastoral Helps
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Connections Year C Volume 3 Season After 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 C for the season after Pentecost.
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Roots And Routes
$31.99Add to cartRandy Litchfield’s fresh look at the perennial question of vocation combines theological reflection on the development of personal spiritual identity with a thoughtful look at the significant dimension of place – how the realities of our contexts call for particular responses to vocation in specific times and places. Roots and Routes helps pastors and leaders claim a rich vocational imagination for recognizing God’s ongoing call to partnership in the specific, concrete locales of ministry. The Carnegie Institute’s rich ethnographic studies of graduate education in the professions reveal that guiding experiences of risk are at the heart of professional development – combining call with experiences in the actual realities of professional life. Hence the emphasis on field education and internships. But how can we help pastors and leaders see calling as a life-long process of discernment and response? With ministerial burnout (and confusion) at an all-time high, connecting the dots between the ongoing call of God and the specific locales of ministry is an interpretive life-skill necessary for pastors, leaders, and disciples of Jesus Christ. Failed vocational imagination obstructs the effectiveness of individuals and the church as a whole in fulfilling their mission of partnership with God’s creating, redeeming, and sustaining work in the world. The primary audience for the book is seminary educators and students and pastors. It also has congregational leaders in mind.
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Bondage Breaker Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$11.99Add to cartBreak the Chains Holding You Captive
Harmful habits, negative thinking, and irrational feelings can all lead to sinful behavior and keep you in bondage. If you feel trapped by any of these strongholds in your life, know that you are not alone–you can break free.
This bestselling study guide has brought hope to over a million readers facing negative spiritual attacks with personal application and practical strategies. Ideal for individual or group study, this guide will help you…
r*ealize you have the right to be free
l*earn how to respond to the power of Satan
f*ight the temptation to do it your way
t*rade deception for grace
*actively affirm your identity in ChristThis life-changing resource will help you break through your spiritual battles, and find freedom in Christ.
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Sermones Actuales Sobre La Mue – (Spanish)
$14.99Add to cartUn libro de sermones para predicar de forma tematica, sobre la muerte y el luto en la Biblia. El proposito del libro es ayudar al predicador a tratar un tema delicado como es la muerte. Para los creyentes ha sido tema de ensayo. Desde el pulpito, el pastor nos recuerda que debemos estar preparados para ese dia, cuando la muerte sera una cita con la eternidad. Obra escrita con un lenguaje y estilo actual que nos ayuda a aprender, educarnos e inspirarnos con la Palabra de Dios.
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2 Steps Forward Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartThe women of Sensible Shoes encounter new adventures and roadblocks in their spiritual journeys in Two Steps Forward. With this study guide, you can explore your own next steps as you dive into the book’s spiritual formation themes along with Mara, Meg, Hannah, and Charissa. In this eight-week study guide you’ll find daily Scripture readings, reflection questions, and spiritual practices designed to help you be attentive to the invitations of the Holy Spirit. Each week concludes with discussion questions and suggested practices for reading groups to do together. Individually or with a group, you are invited to meet with God and find encouragement for the path ahead.
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Barefoot Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartThe journeys of Hannah, Meg, Charissa, and Mara take unexpected turns in Barefoot, the third book of the Sensible Shoes series. In this study guide author Sharon Garlough Brown has crafted a practical resource to help you process the characters’ stories and explore the novel’s spiritual formation themes more deeply. You’ll find twelve weeks of daily Scripture readings, reflection questions, and invitations to prayer, with weekly discussion questions and practices for groups to do together. Each week also features a list of spiritual disciplines used by the characters that you can incorporate into your own life with God. Individually or with a group, as you walk with the women of Sensible Shoes on holy ground, you’ll be invited to encounter God in significant new ways.
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Healing The Wounds Of Sexual Abuse
$20.00Add to cartThis accessibly written book illuminates the good news of healing and liberation the Bible offers survivors of sexual abuse. As an expert in pastoral ministry and a survivor of abuse herself, Elaine Heath handles this sensitive topic with compassion and grace. The book is illustrated with stories and insights from survivors, and each chapter ends with reflection questions and recommended activities. Previously published as We Were the Least of These, this repackaged edition includes a new contextualized introduction that explores how the book speaks into a vital cultural conversation (#MeToo).
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Practicing The Preaching Life
$31.99Add to cartPreaching is a way of life that can be beautiful and good; however, It can also be anxious, self-focused, and destructive. Preachers and teachers of preaching need a holistic view of preaching that not only paints the way to good preaching, but also to good living. They need a comprehensive practical theology of preaching that combines the ‘why’ and the ‘what’ with the ‘how’ and ‘whom’ of preaching. Practicing the Preaching Life unites Christian practices, contextual virtues, and the best of homiletical pedagogy to pave the way to a beautiful preaching life. Preaching is best learned as a formative Christian practice embedded within a web of other Christian practices that form a way of life from which great sermons emerge. Therefore, preaching requires not only a way of speaking well, but also a way of living well. This embedded nature of preaching requires the enrollment of Christian practices in the formation of the preacher and the pursuit of contextual virtues for preaching that avoid cultural relativism on the one hand and cultural imperialism on the other. These requirements lead to a new vision for the preaching classroom, the rhythms of the preaching life, and the definition of what it means to be a good preacher.
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Written To Be Heard
$34.99Add to cartRecovers the lost messages of Mark, Matthew, Luke-Acts, and John for people today
The words of the gospels were meant to be heard. While we can still appreciate the construction and grasp some understanding when we read, we miss much of the message because we’re working in the wrong medium. In Written to Be Heard Paul Borgman and Kelly James Clark offer the keys to recovering the radical, relevant messages of each gospel as they were first heard.
The shaping of the gospels for oral performances, which would have been obvious to ancient (mostly preliterate) listeners, is lost on even the best contemporary reader. With careful analysis of the gospel writers’ particular voices within their own ancient literary context, Borgman and Clark equip readers to read as if hearing, focusing on overlapping patterns of hearing cues that shape each text and embed theological perspective.
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Developing Female Leaders
$19.99Add to cartKadi Cole, world-class creative thinker and 30-year veteran in leadership and people development, offers a practical strategy to help church and organizational leaders intentionally craft work and volunteer cultures that facilitate the development of women leaders.
Christian leaders use only a small portion of their female volunteer potential for several reasons. Some don’t know how to intentionally and professionally develop and deploy women’s talents and abilities. Others don’t have the staff or resources. Then there are those who can’t get past unfortunate cultural traditions and organizational systems that commonly leave women with the choice to either limit their potential or go outside their church or volunteer organization for training and then invest their skills elsewhere. Developing Female Leaders by Kadi Cole is the book for leaders who face these challenges.
Using contemporary interviews with and about women in key church and organizational roles combined with more than 30 years of research on the development of professional women leaders, the author has created eight easy to implement “best practices” that help accelerate a woman’s organizational contribution. Thorough appendices and references make this book a one-of-kind publishing event.
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Extra Mile Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartWhat next steps is God calling you to take? Join the characters of An Extra Mile, the final book in the Sensible Shoes series, as they journey through the seasons of Lent and Easter. In this eight-week study guide you’ll dive deeper into key spiritual practices from the book, using daily Scripture readings and reflection questions designed to help you be attentive to the invitations of the Holy Spirit. Each week concludes with discussion questions and suggested practices for groups to do together. This guide offers the perfect tools for individuals and groups to explore and apply the spiritual formation themes of An Extra Mile along with Mara, Hannah, Charissa, and Becca.
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Assessment For Counseling In Christian Perspective
$50.00Add to cartAssessment in counseling?like its biblical counterpart, discernment?is an ongoing and dynamic routine to encourage movement in a productive direction toward what is truly best. In Assessment for Counseling in Christian Perspective, Stephen P. Greggo equips counselors to put assessment techniques into practical use, particularly with clients who are looking to grow in their identity with Jesus Christ. As a Christian perspective on assessment, this book is designed to supplement standard resources and help counselors navigate challenges at the intersection of psychotherapy and Christian ministry. Greggo charts a course for care that brings best practices of the profession together with practices of Christian discipleship. Key topics include:
Does a Christian worldview offer distinguishing parameters for assessment practice?
Can clinical proficiency in assessment bring glory to God?
How can the crucial psychometric construct of validity be translated into our Christian faith?
In what ways can the inclusion of objective procedures be transformed into a message of hospitality and affirmation?
How can counselors maximize the benefits of a therapeutic alliance to attend to immediate concerns and foster spiritual formation?
How can formal personality measures add depth and substance to the counseling experience?
How can assessment contribute to client retention, treatment completion, and aftercare planning?With Assessment for Counseling in Christian Perspective, clinical and pastoral counselors can bring the best of assessment into counseling that reflects the essence of the Christian faith.
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Foolish Church : Messy, Raw, Real, And Making Room
$42.00Add to cartMessy, raw, and real aren’t the words most of us use when we say what’s good about our churches. But what if they were? Author Lee Schott found out, serving a beautiful church inside the Iowa women’s prison. A lifelong church person, she discovered more church, and greater faithfulness, in this most unlikely setting, with room for people the church has often overlooked. She shares the lessons she has learned there, with the hope that church leaders outside of prison might be inspired, equipped, and encouraged to loosen the fetters that keep our churches so closed off. We’ll explore church characterized by honest relationship, protection of the vulnerable, radical welcome, and healthy boundaries. Practical application for the local church context and discussion questions for group study are included throughout.
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God Is : Meditations On The Mystery Of Life, The Purity Of Grace, The Bliss
$36.00Add to cartYour God is too small-way too small! What if God is not a human-like personal being but the God Beyond God of the Christian mystical traditions? What if God is the ultimate reality beyond all beings, including beyond all divine beings, indeed beyond all Being? It’s a mind-bending idea. Speaking of God as a human-like personal being is much easier but people who care about the deepest mystical understandings of God within our traditions need to make the effort to speak about the God Beyond God, despite the difficulties. This book makes the attempt to speak of the God Beyond God in the language of the sermon, using metaphor and potent imagery tuned to the existential intensities of human life. The God Beyond God is closer to us than our jugular veins, vividly present in every moment of our lives. These sermons are practical and moving, and they also resonate with the most rigorous theological understandings of ultimate reality. Their deconstruction of our convenient fantasies about a divine being make these sermons emotionally intense and perhaps not suitable for beginners in the journey of faith. But veteran believers can breathe deeply in the air of these meditations, relaxing into the bliss of engaging ultimate reality without delusions, without deflections, and without controlling the object of our worship.
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Foolish Church : Messy, Raw, Real, And Making Room
$22.00Add to cartMessy, raw, and real aren’t the words most of us use when we say what’s good about our churches. But what if they were? Author Lee Schott found out, serving a beautiful church inside the Iowa women’s prison. A lifelong church person, she discovered more church, and greater faithfulness, in this most unlikely setting, with room for people the church has often overlooked. She shares the lessons she has learned there, with the hope that church leaders outside of prison might be inspired, equipped, and encouraged to loosen the fetters that keep our churches so closed off. We’ll explore church characterized by honest relationship, protection of the vulnerable, radical welcome, and healthy boundaries. Practical application for the local church context and discussion questions for group study are included throughout.
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Preaching The New Testament Again
$39.00Add to cartThis book combines critical New Testament scholarship with homiletic concerns. Kim unravels complexities of the most prominent themes in the New Testament such as faith, freedom, and transformation, and brings them into dialogue with modern preaching contexts, ranging from personal identity to social justice to global issues. This book invites readers to reinterpret the most familiar themes that have not been thoroughly explored in scholarship and to make an informed choice about what to preach to whom in what context.
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Learning To Use My Bible Leader Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$14.99Add to cartLearning to Use My Bible provides opportunities for kids ages 7-9 to acquire and practice skills that will help them understand how to use the Bible, feel comfortable using the Bible, and build a foundation for studying the Bible.
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Learning To Use My Bible Student Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$7.99Add to cartLearning to Use My Bible provides opportunities for kids ages 7-9 to acquire and practice skills that will help them understand how to use the Bible, feel comfortable using the Bible, and build a foundation for studying the Bible.
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Millenial Narrative: Participant Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartA good education will land you a good job, “Be an entrepreneur/Start something in a garage or dorm room” and even “Jesus saves” are narratives that collapsed for the millennial generation (born 1982-2002). These narratives, amongst many similar social and religious ones, have lost their meaning and power as millennials question all authorities and struggle to flourish in a world come of age. With their needs for community and success, a strong spirituality, and believing that their gifts should be recognized and can make a difference, millennials increasingly find meaning and purpose outside the church. As they face economic uncertainty, reduced career prospects, unceasing change, as well as civic, global, and ecological uncertainties, however, a large number of millennials are overwhelmed with feelings of anxiety and depression. Caught between hope and fear, millennials leave the church with their values of personal transformation, purpose, community, spirituality, social transformation and ecological awareness. Ironically the church often holds the same values. Reaching the Millennial Generation is written for pastoral leaders who want to welcome millennials, both inside and outside their congregation. The book draws on the wisdom of the prophetic Book of Joel as a narrative worth living into. Drawing on Joel’s three chapters, Reaching the Millennial Generation empowers pastoral leaders to: – Facilitate the work of mourning Millennials are facing; – Envision a spiritual community that can welcome millennials; – Introduce a compassionate God that restores and indwells as the Spirit; – Reflect on God’s judgment through the lens of accountability; and, – Support and encourage millennials to be a blessing to others.
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Addiction And Pastoral Care
$28.99Add to cartA timely resource treating addiction holistically as both a spiritual and a pathological condition
Substance addictions present a unique set of challenges for pastoral care. In this book Sonia Waters weaves together personal stories, research, and theological reflection to offer helpful tools for ministers, counselors, chaplains, and anyone else called to care pastorally for those struggling with addiction.
Waters uses the story of the Gerasene demoniac in Mark’s Gospel to reframe addiction as a “soul-sickness” that arises from a legion of individual and social vulnerabilities. She includes pastoral reflections on oppression, the War on Drugs, trauma, guilt, discipleship, and identity. The final chapters focus on practical-care skills that address the challenges of recovery, especially ambivalence and resistance to change.
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God Is : Meditations On The Mystery Of Life, The Purity Of Grace, The Bliss
$16.00Add to cartYour God is too small-way too small! What if God is not a human-like personal being but the God Beyond God of the Christian mystical traditions? What if God is the ultimate reality beyond all beings, including beyond all divine beings, indeed beyond all Being? It’s a mind-bending idea. Speaking of God as a human-like personal being is much easier but people who care about the deepest mystical understandings of God within our traditions need to make the effort to speak about the God Beyond God, despite the difficulties. This book makes the attempt to speak of the God Beyond God in the language of the sermon, using metaphor and potent imagery tuned to the existential intensities of human life. The God Beyond God is closer to us than our jugular veins, vividly present in every moment of our lives. These sermons are practical and moving, and they also resonate with the most rigorous theological understandings of ultimate reality. Their deconstruction of our convenient fantasies about a divine being make these sermons emotionally intense and perhaps not suitable for beginners in the journey of faith. But veteran believers can breathe deeply in the air of these meditations, relaxing into the bliss of engaging ultimate reality without delusions, without deflections, and without controlling the object of our worship.
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Millenial Narrative : Sharing A Good Life With The Next Generation
$20.99Add to cartA good education will land you a good job, “Be an entrepreneur/Start something in a garage or dorm room” and even “Jesus saves” are narratives that collapsed for the millennial generation (born 1982-2002). These narratives, amongst many similar social and religious ones, have lost their meaning and power as millennials question all authorities and struggle to flourish in a world come of age. With their needs for community and success, a strong spirituality, and believing that their gifts should be recognized and can make a difference, millennials increasingly find meaning and purpose outside the church. As they face economic uncertainty, reduced career prospects, unceasing change, as well as civic, global, and ecological uncertainties, however, a large number of millennials are overwhelmed with feelings of anxiety and depression. Caught between hope and fear, millennials leave the church with their values of personal transformation, purpose, community, spirituality, social transformation and ecological awareness. Ironically the church often holds the same values. Reaching the Millennial Generation is written for pastoral leaders who want to welcome millennials, both inside and outside their congregation. The book draws on the wisdom of the prophetic Book of Joel as a narrative worth living into. Drawing on Joel’s three chapters, Reaching the Millennial Generation empowers pastoral leaders to: – Facilitate the work of mourning Millennials are facing; – Envision a spiritual community that can welcome millennials; – Introduce a compassionate God that restores and indwells as the Spirit; – Reflect on God’s judgment through the lens of accountability; and, – Support and encourage millennials to be a blessing to others.
In addition, pastoral leaders will receive a sermon outline and material for adult education. -
Family Systems And Congregational Life
$29.99Add to cartExperienced pastor and seminary teacher R. Robert Creech helps pastoral leaders increase their effectiveness by applying family systems theory to congregational life and ministry. Creech introduces readers to the basic concepts of Bowen’s Family Systems Theory, applies family theory to the work of ministry in church settings, and connects systems thinking to the everyday aspects of congregational ministry, such as preaching, pastoral care, leadership, spiritual formation, and interpreting biblical texts. Each chapter contains discussion questions, and there are five helpful appendixes with supplemental information about Bowen theory. Professors and students in clinical pastoral education, family ministry, pastoral care, and family systems theory classes; pastors in local church ministry; and Christian counselors and therapists will all value this work.
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Biblical EQ : Developing Your Emotional Intelligence Through God s Wisdom (DVD)
$14.99Add to cartServ Others LLC Title
Welcome to Biblical EQ.
EQ is short for “emotional quotient.” People with high EQ are emotionally intelligent and mature.
They are wise people. The Bible has a lot to say about EQ because it talks about wisdom.
While you cannot grow your IQ – your innate intelligence-you can grow your EQ, and the Bible urges us to do so by seeking wisdom.
In this study, we’ll learn what EQ is, what specific character traits we can cultivate in order to grow our EQ, and how EQ is connected to spiritual growth. Through video teaching and small-group discussion, we’ll come to understand and better manage our powerful God-given emotions. Let’s grow together in wisdom. -
Heart Of Mercy (DVD)
$14.99Add to cartServ Others LLC Title
GOD IS RICH IN MERCY!
Jesus wants us to live merciful lives even through seasons of conflict with others that can challenge us to not just know about mercy, but to practice it. As Christians, the greatest opportunity we have to prove our faith is when we are rejected or when we are hurting, whether emotionally or physically.
Mercy is more than feeling sympathy toward someone. Powered by love, mercy takes action in order to spare someone from harm, pain, and suffering.
As Christians, the greatest opportunity we have to prove our faith is when we are rejected or when we are hurting, whether emotionally or physically. This is why Jesus told the leaders of His day in Matthew 9 that He didn’t come to earth to witness their religious practices, but rather, He came to teach mercy and they should learn what it means. Wow! What a thought!
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Preaching The New Testament Again
$19.00Add to cartThis book combines critical New Testament scholarship with homiletic concerns. Kim unravels complexities of the most prominent themes in the New Testament such as faith, freedom, and transformation, and brings them into dialogue with modern preaching contexts, ranging from personal identity to social justice to global issues. This book invites readers to reinterpret the most familiar themes that have not been thoroughly explored in scholarship and to make an informed choice about what to preach to whom in what context.
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Finding Your Way Through The Bible CEB
$9.99Add to cartThis self-instruction book was written to help middle and older elementary children become familiar with their Bibles and learn how to use them at their own speed. Finding Your Way Through the Bible is intended to be used with the Children’s Common English Bible at home or in the classroom. Students completing this book will be able to: -Find any book in the Old or New Testaments using the Table of Contents -Find any chapter in any book and any verse in any chapter -Find parts of verses when the Bible reference uses the letters a, b, and c with a verse number -Tell the difference between books with similar names such as 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel and John and 1 John -Recognize the additional helps in a Bible and be able to use them
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Free Of Me Participants Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.00Add to cartOur me-centered culture affects every area of our lives–our friendships, our marriages, even our faith. The self-focused life robs our joy, shrinks our souls, and is the reason we never quite break free of insecurity.
Now churches and small groups can together heed the call to a bigger, Jesus-centered vision of life–one that restores our freedom and inspires us to live for more. Free of Me helps participants:
*identify the secret source of insecurity
*understand how self-focus sabotages seven areas of our lives
*learn four practical steps for focusing on God and others
*experience freedom from the burden of self-focusAnyone yearning for a purpose bigger than “project me” will cherish this paradigm-shifting message of true fulfillment.
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New Testament You Never Knew Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$12.99Add to cartThe New Testament You Never Knew Study Guide by N.T. Wright and Michael F. Bird is the definitive introduction to the New Testament.
In this 8-session video-based study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), leading New Testament scholars, N.T. Wright and Michael Bird, hope to take you on a tour of the New Testament Story, from Galilee to Golgotha, from Jerusalem to Rome. They will look at who Jesus is, the real meaning of his death and resurrection, the expansion of the church in the Greco-Roman world, examine the debates and setbacks that they had along the way, and show how Christians can live out the story of New Testament in their own lives today.
Sessions include:
*The Story of the New Testament
*The World of Jesus
*Life and Death of Jesus
*The Resurrection of Jesus
*The Apostle Paul
*The Early Christians
*The Mission of the Church
*How the NT Came to BeDesigned for use with The New Testament You Never Knew Video Study (sold separately).
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God Of Covenant Bible Study Book (Student/Study Guide)
$15.99Add to cartBeginning with Genesis 12, walk alongside the fathers of our faith-Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph-to discern Jesus in the stories of His people.
Over 10 sessions, discover how God orchestrates everything for His glory and the good of His people, and see how the God of creation and covenant is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Additional purchase or renting of the video teaching sessions is recommended for the best experience of this Bible study book.
Features:
*Leader helps to guide questions and discussions within small groups
*Personal study segments with homework to complete between 10 weeks of group sessions
*Interactive teaching videos, approximately 30-40 minutes per session, available for purchase or rent
*Verse-by-verse study for comprehension and applicationBenefits:
*Discover how every story in the Bible points to Christ.
*Learn to view the lives of biblical figures in the larger context of Scripture.
*Challenge your basic understanding of familiar stories.
*Gain knowledge of who God is as He has revealed Himself through Scripture. -
Holy Roar Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$14.99Add to cartIn this four-session video Bible study (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), Chris Tomlin and Darren Whitehead share a fresh perspective from the worship practices of the ancient world to show what it really means to praise God. They explain that in the Jewish culture, something extraordinary happened when God’s people gathered to worship him. It was more than just singing-it was a declaration, a proclamation, and a time for the people to fully embody praise to God for who he is and what he has done.
In the book of Psalms, the writers used seven distinct words that are translated into English as praise. However, as Chris and Darren point out in this study, each of these Hebrew words actually represents a different aspect of what it means to truly worship God:
*Yadah: to revere or worship with extended hands
*Halal: to boast, celebrate, and be clamorously foolish
*Zamar: to celebrate in song and in music
*Towdah: to give thanksgiving for things not yet received
*Barak: to kneel before God and bless him
*Tehillah: to sing a spontaneous song to God
*Shabach: to commend, glory, and triumphHoly Roar will provide insights and encouragement for group members to deepen their practice of praise and they learn about the deeper meanings of these words and put them into practice.
Sessions include:
1. The Shout of Praise
2. The Posture of Praise
3. The Music of Praise
4. The Expectation of Praise -
Neighborhood Church : Transforming Your Congregation Into A Powerhouse For
$22.00Add to cartHow can we embody the values of love, grace, and justice? As faith communities, how can our collective embodiment of these values shine even brighter? The answers to these questions must always unfold right here, right now, exactly where God has planted us. Neighborhood Churchacts as a resource to inspire churches to become a vibrant and engaging community partner with the families and neighborhoods living around them. The need for transformation is acute. Congregational decline continues across all mainline denominations. The abandonment of the church by the millennial generation is ubiquitous; no denomination is escaping it. This is, in part, a consequence of disconnection from our communities. Van Tatenhove and Mueller believe that, parish by parish, we can reverse this trend. They dare to have an audacious hope for local congregations not only as signs of God’s kingdom but as life-giving institutions that anchor their neighborhoods. Drawing on their combined sixty years of parish experience, wisdom from Asset-Based Community Development, and compelling case stories, Van Tatenhove and Mueller do more than just call us to incarnational ministry. They give practical, essential tools that lead to communal conversion, develop the DNA of listening, spur fruitful partnerships, promote integrated space, and sustain long-term visions. They believe these tools will spark true revival and unleash the power of incarnational ministry.
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Equipping Grandparents : Helping Your Church Reach And Disciple The Next Ge
$9.99Add to cartMany powerful voices are influencing our grandchildren, from those at home and in their schools to those in the world of entertainment and media. What can you as a grandparent do to speak wisdom and godliness into their lives?
Grandparenting gives you a biblical foundation for investing spiritually in your grandkids, walking you through the principles of influencing them for Christ–from sharing with unbelieving grandkids to discipling them into a mature faith. This book is perfect for individual use, small groups, or Sunday school classes. A Grandparenting DVD is available that features eight family ministry experts with over six hours of video content.
Two other resources are also available:
Biblical Grandparenting is a full-length leadership book that places grandparenting
ministry on a firm scriptural foundation. It is ideal for pastors and church leaders as
well as for use in the classroom at seminaries.Equipping Grandparents is a brief book to teach pastors how to begin a grandparenting ministry in their church.
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Preaching About Racism
$24.99Add to cartHelping pastors preach about racism to white congregations.
Of all the activities that come with being a minister, sermon preparation can loom largest – especially when racism is the subject. You’ve got to address racism with your white congregation from the pulpit. But, truthfully, you can’t wrap your head around how to preach about this topic thoughtfully and sensitively.
In Preaching about Racism, preaching professor and pastor Carolyn Helsel speaks directly to other white preachers about how to address racism from the pulpit. In her first book, Anxious to Talk about It: Helping White Christians Talk Faithfully about Racism, Helsel addressed the anxiety white Christians experience around conversations about race. In this follow-up, Helsel provides strategies and a theoretical framework for crafting biblical and theological sermons that incorporate insights from social sciences and psychology, gleaned from more than a decade of writing and teaching about racism.
Written for the busy pastor, several chapters are quick reads – helpful reminders as you prepare a thoughtful and sensitive sermon – while others dig deeper on the theory behind the crucial work of dismantling racism.
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Homiletics And Hermeneutics
$25.00Add to cartScott Gibson and Matthew Kim, both experienced preachers and teachers, have brought together four preaching experts–Bryan Chapell, Kenneth Langley, Abraham Kuruvilla, and Paul Scott Wilson–to present and defend their approach to homiletics. Reflecting current streams of thought in homiletics, the book offers a robust discussion of theological and hermeneutical approaches to preaching and encourages pastors and ministry students to learn about preaching from other theological traditions. It also includes discussion questions for direct application to one’s preaching.
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Simon Peter Large Print (Large Type)
$20.99Add to cartSimon Peter was an ordinary fisherman who heard an extraordinary call. He was not rich or educated, but he was familiar with hard work. He was quick-tempered and impetuous but possessed a passion that would change the world. He left everything to follow his teacher, yet struggled with doubt and fear. Join pastor and author Adam Hamilton in this six-week Lenten journey, and take an in-depth dive into the life, faith, and character of Simon Peter. Additional components for a six-week adult study include a comprehensive Leader Guide and a DVD featuring author and pastor Adam Hamilton filmed in Israel and Italy. Also available are resources for children and youth. Chapters Includes: The Call of Simon the Fisherman Walking with Jesus in the Storm Bedrock or Stumbling Block? “I Will Not Deny You” From Cowardice to Courage The Rest of the Story
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Biblical Grandparenting : Exploring Gods Design For Disciple Making And Pas
$17.00Add to cartMany powerful voices are influencing our grandchildren, from those at home and in their schools to those in the world of entertainment and media. What can you as a grandparent do to speak wisdom and godliness into their lives?
Grandparenting gives you a biblical foundation for investing spiritually in your grandkids, walking you through the principles of influencing them for Christ–from sharing with unbelieving grandkids to discipling them into a mature faith. This book is perfect for individual use, small groups, or Sunday school classes. A Grandparenting DVD is available that features eight family ministry experts with over six hours of video content.
Two other resources are also available:
Biblical Grandparenting is a full-length leadership book that places grandparenting
ministry on a firm scriptural foundation. It is ideal for pastors and church leaders as
well as for use in the classroom at seminaries.Equipping Grandparents is a brief book to teach pastors how to begin a grandparenting ministry in their church.
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Simon Peter : Flawed But Faithful Disciple
$19.99Add to cart1. The Call Of Simon The Fisherman
2. Walking With Jesus In The Storm
3. Bedrock Or Stumbling Block?
4. ” I Will Not Deny You”
5. From Cowardice To Courage
6. The Rest Of The StoryAdditional Info
He was not rich or educated, but was familiar with hard work. He was quick-tempered and impetuous, but possessed a passion that would change the world. He left everything to follow his teacher, yet struggled with doubt and fear. Join pastor and author Adam Hamilton in this six-week Lenten journey, and take an in-depth dive into the life, faith, and character of Simon Peter. Additional components for a six-week adult study include a comprehensive Leader Guide and a DVD featuring author and pastor Adam Hamilton teaching on site in Israel and Italy. Also available are resources for children and youth. Chapters Include: The Call of Simon the Fisherman Walking with Jesus in the Storm Bedrock or Stumbling Block? “I Will Not Deny You” From Cowardice to Courage The Rest of the Story -
Politics Of Ministry
$24.99Add to cartForeword By Steven Garber
Introduction
1. Three Ministry Stories
2. The Four Dynamics Of Politics
3. Power In Ministry Politics
4. The Branches And Roots Of Interests
5. Personality Interests
6. Organizational Interests
7. Societal Interests
8. Negotiation With Power For Interests
9. Negotiation In Cell Four
10. Ethical Issues In The Politics Of Ministry
11. Tom Moves Into A Political Swamp
Postscript: How People Learn The Politics Of Ministry
Acknowledgments
Appendix 1: Emotions Checklist
Appendix 2: Constructing And Exploring A Family Diagram
NotesAdditional Info
We all need help navigating the politics of ministry.Politics is often considered a dirty word. It brings to mind lies and manipulation, accusations and scandals. But at its most basic level, politics is simply the everyday activity of getting things done with other people: understanding their interests, recognizing the power dynamics at play, and learning how to negotiate relationships and institutions to achieve a common goal.These realities are as true in ministry settings as anywhere else. In The Politics of Ministry, Bob Burns, Tasha Chapman, and Donald Guthrie combine their long ministry experience with sociological research on the topic. Filled with real-life stories taken from a variety of ministry settings, this book sets out wise principles and practices that help us see more clearly the political dynamics at play in our churches and parachurch ministries.
All ministry is political. As servants of Christ’s kingdom, we are called to navigate the politics of ministry with grace, wisdom, and charity. This book shows us how the gospel of Jesus changes the way we work with those around us toward our common goal.
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Connections Year C 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.
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Grandparenting : Strengthening Your Family And Passing On Your Faith
$18.00Add to cartMany powerful voices are influencing our grandchildren, from those at home and in their schools to those in the world of entertainment and media. What can you as a grandparent do to speak wisdom and godliness into their lives? Grandparenting gives you a biblical foundation for investing spiritually in your grandkids, walking you through the principles of influencing them for Christ–from sharing with unbelieving grandkids to discipling them into a mature faith. This book is perfect for individual use, small groups, or Sunday school classes. A Grandparenting DVD is available that features eight family ministry experts with over six hours of video content.
Two other resources are also available:
Biblical Grandparenting is a full-length leadership book that places grandparenting ministry on a firm scriptural foundation. It is ideal for pastors and church leaders as well as for use in the classroom at seminaries.Equipping Grandparents is a brief book to teach pastors how to begin a grandparenting ministry in their church.
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Your Church At Its Best
$14.99Add to cartBroken into four parts, Your Church at Its Best examines sixteen crucial components of a healthy church, along with best practices for keeping a ministry running smoothly. This comprehensive and practical resource helps leaders see that we are not victims of the past, of location, or of present conditions.
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Storyline The Parables Of Jesus The Leaders Guide (Teacher’s Guide)
$30.00Add to cartA Soulwithaview Media Limited Title
Dotted throughout the complex storyline of Jesus lies a wealth of simple stories. Tales of lost sheep, praying widows and self-important Pharisees. To comprehend their meaning, you will require open eyes, listening ears and a heart ready to understand.
Storyline is a six-session teaching series, set out in the form of a menu with starters, main courses (divided into three spice levels) and a range of sides and desserts to explore. Due to the flexibility of the material, Storyline works as a whole church programme, content for a retreat, within small groups or as a youth series.
The session outlines are as follows:
Lub Dub – the condition of the heart
Jesus looked out at the expansive crowd gathered before Him. Why had they come to listen?
Each heart came with a different need, question, and willingness to listen. We will never know the backstory of the crowd that gathered there that day, or the impact the words of Jesus would have on their heart. Some would never think of Jesus again, others would dedicate their lives to Him. The only difference was the condition of their heart.
Blot – the power of grace and forgiveness
Holding on tightly to the jar of perfume, she made her way across the room to Jesus. She must have known what they thought of her. As her tears mingled with the expensive scent and she dried the feet of Jesus with her hair, she must have sensed the looks of disgust from Simon the Pharisee. He had barely offered Jesus a drink let alone washed His feet.
As she washed away the dirt from Jesus’ feet, her faith and His forgiveness blotted out every stain.
Kerching – the cost of discipleship
Surrounded by blueprints, bank statements and spreadsheets the entrepreneur scanned the plans for the biggest building project he had ever undertaken. Every possible calculation had been made and every financial option explored. Despite the meticulous planning this was going to take every single penny he had, but he knew it would be worth it.
A life of discipleship costs us everything but it leads to a lifelong investment in a building project that is beyond anything we could dream or imagine.
Tic Toc – the way we invest our time and talents.
The bags of silver had been handed out, the time had passed and now the three servants stood before their master. After a long and tiring trip, he was keen to see the return on his investment. God’s love for us is not dependent on the things w
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Case For Christmas Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$14.99Add to cartIn his bestselling book The Case for Christ, Lee Strobel retraced his spiritual journey from atheism to faith by showing how the evidence he obtained from experts in the field of history, archaeology, and ancient manuscripts led him to the verdict that Jesus truly was the Son of God. Now, in this four-week study for Christmas (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), Lee investigates the story surrounding the birth of Jesus-and how we can know that it is true.
In each session, he will explore the following aspects of the Christmas story:
*What the Gospel accounts actually say, what other stories about Jesus’ birth emerged in the first through third centuries, and how we can know the biblical accounts are accurate
*The Bible’s claim that Jesus was born of a virgin and whether that idea-and other aspects of the Christmas story-developed from the pagan religions of the day
*Some aspects of the Christmas story that don’t seem to match with the historical or archaeological record, such as the census, the existence of Nazareth, and the slaughter of the innocents
*The great mystery of the incarnation-how Jesus could be both fully God and fully human at the same time-and how we can know he is truly the promised MessiahThe Case for Christmas invites participants to examine the evidence for themselves and consider why Christmas matters in the first place. It will point them to the inescapable conclusion that Jesus truly was who he said he was: the divine Son of God.
Designed for use with The Case for Christmas Video Study/The Case for Easter Video Study (sold separately).
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Pastoral Ministry In The Real World
$24.99Add to cartPastoral Ministry in the Real World not only explores the character of a worthy minister, but also his three primary functions: loving, teaching, and leading God’s people. The book applies the timeless biblical instructions for pastors to the ever-changing realities of today’s ministry environment.
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Making A Scene In The Pulpit
$30.00Add to cartHow can preachers ensure that their sermons continue to engage listeners in a world defined by visual media and the short, segmented delivery of information? Alyce McKenzie harnesses the element of drama and the human fascination with scenes to offer ministers a modern means of sermon development and delivery.
McKenzie’s core strategy is to invite listeners into scenes-whether from Scripture or contemporary life-and, once they are there, to point them toward the larger story of God’s relationship with humankind. Creating such scenes unifies the whole process of preaching, she says, from the preacher’s daily life observations to interpretation of scenes from Scripture, to sermon shaping, sequencing, and delivery. The process culminates in a specific understanding of the purpose of the sermon: to send listeners out into the scenes they’ll play in their lives for the next week, equipped to act out their parts in ways that are kinder, more just, and more courageous than last week.
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Living In The Gaze Of God
$35.00Add to cart“Living in the Gaze of God” offers an accessible exploration of the theme of ministerial accountability through the lens of one reflective tool – that of formal supervision of ministerial practice. Bold and far-reaching, the book addresses the key presenting issues around a need for a change of culture in the church as regards accountability for ministerial practice. It outlines a theological and practical model of 1-to-1 supervision, arguing that such an approach enables the development of greater attentiveness to God, the self and others and thus enhances accountability.
Laying aside the need to offer a ‘how-to’ approach, Helen Cameron instead brings us a rigorous and dynamic consideration of the interface between supervision, accountability and ministerial practice, and offers a theological underpinning for the issues.
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New Elders Handbook
$15.00Add to cartPastors and church leaders are in need of mature, godly elders to ensure church health, but the training of elders is often entirely missing or badly neglected. What if there were a process to proactively call and train elders? The New Elder’s Handbook is designed to equip elders with the knowledge, character, and skills the office calls for. It takes church leaders through the development of a vision for ministry, recruitment of elders to carry out that vision, and specific, biblical training, providing a way to be intentional about developing elders.
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Ingenuity : Preaching As An Outsider
$31.99Add to cartIngenuity introduces a theology and practice of preaching within the simultaneous existence of being Black and woman. This approach opens up new avenues to understand sermon development and design for every student and practitioner of the proclaimed word. Preaching is a creative expression forged at the intersections of tradition, life experience, and theological conviction. Every preacher negotiates these converging entities in an attempt to make way for sacred speech. Likewise, every pursuit of this process is textured by the particulars of culture and personhood. Ingenuity equips readers to navigate this complex task. This approach is helpful for black women who are learning to preach or are serving as preachers, because there is a vast gap in the literature available for them. Preaching is resourced and taught from a primarily white/male perspective. Black women are left to pioneer their own way, to ‘figure it out’ with very little help from the established academic sources. This book – finally – fills that gap. Ingenuity is also helpful for students and preachers who are not black women, because it enlarges their understanding, their language, their sense of shared experience. The best preachers are not just good at mimicking their (predominately white/male) teachers; they understand their own voices, and the voices of others. They stretch and grow, and this enables them to preach more effectively.
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Case For Easter Study Guide (Student/Study Guide)
$10.99Add to cartIn his bestselling book The Case for Christ, Lee Strobel retraced his spiritual journey from atheism to faith by showing how the evidence he obtained from experts in the field of history, archaeology, and ancient manuscripts led him to the verdict that Jesus truly was the Son of God. Now, in this four-week study for Easter (DVD/digital downloads sold separately), Lee investigates the story surrounding the resurrection of Jesus-and how we can know that it is true.
In each session, he will explore the following aspects of the Easter story:
*What the Gospel accounts actually say about Jesus’ death and resurrection, how we can reconcile the discrepancies between the accounts, and how we can know the biblical accounts are accurate
*How we can use a technique known as “five minimal facts”-facts on which even skeptical scholars agree are true-and medical evidence to build a strong case for Jesus’ resurrection
*What the evidence in the Gospels reveals about the Jesus’ tomb being empty, why the Gospel writers are credible when they make this claim, and what this evidence leads us to conclude
*Who the Bible states witnessed Jesus being alive after the crucifixion, how early creeds emerged that stated Jesus was alive, and how it’s clear the early church carried on this teachingThe Case for Easter invites participants to examine the evidence for themselves and consider whether the story of Jesus’ resurrection makes sense. It will point them to the inescapable conclusion that led Lee from atheism to Christianity: Jesus was the Son of God who conquered the grave.
Designed for use with The Case for Christmas Video Study/The Case for Easter Video Study (sold separately). This DVD is a set of two videos to accompany The Case for Christmas Study Guide and The Case for Easter Study Guide (each guide sold separately).