Ministry in Hard Times


Book Description

In hard times, you can either panic, decline, or grow. Which do you choose to do? This is not a time to tweak your church budget. It is not a time to slash and burn it indiscriminately across the board. Nor is it the time to hunker down in the bunker and wait things out. Now is the time is exercise wisdom and to act strategically. In fact, it's a great time to be the church. People need us to live out our mission as radically as we can possibly imagine. This book will help you make wise decisions about how to weather the economic storm and emerge on the other side of it a much stronger congregation. It's a simple book with a simple message: you don't get to choose when you go through hard times, only how you respond to them.




Unexpected Blessings


Book Description

Unexpected Blessings helps special-needs families move past the pain and confusion of their circumstances and slowly, firmly face the future with hope. Speaking honestly about struggles that accompany a variety of disabilities, Sandra Peoples shows readers how to · let go of false beliefs that hold them back · work through the cycles of grief · focus on self-care and healthy routines · understand disability based on what the Bible says · rebuild a strong faith foundation · create support systems for themselves and others Filled with real-life stories and hard-earned wisdom, this book shines a light on the possibilities and blessings that come when parents see their new purpose in life--which was God's purpose for them all along.




Fight for Your Pastor


Book Description

Practical Ways to Support and Care for Your Pastor Do you pray for your pastors? Do you encourage them? Do you have realistic expectations for them? The office of pastor is simultaneously a rewarding and draining position. Pastors today have immense pressure on their shoulders and they need the support of their congregations. Peter Orr has written Fight for Your Pastor as an exhortation for church members to stand behind their pastors through the difficulties of ministry. Orr specifies ways in which congregations can be intentional in caring for church leaders, including prayer, encouragement, generosity, and forgiveness. Featuring stories from current pastors about their struggles, this book is perfect for thoughtful church members eager to understand the weight of their pastors' positions and support leaders in their important ministry. For Thoughtful Christians: Specifically those wanting to know more about their pastors and how to care for them Current: Features insight from pastors about their personal experiences in ministry Applicable: Gives practical examples of how to love and care for pastors, including specific prayers for church leaders and the best ways to encourage them




A Hunger for God


Book Description

There is an appetite for God. And it can be awakened. I invite you to turn from the dulling effects of food and the dangers of idolatry, and to say with some simple fast: "This much, O God, I want you." Our appetites dictate the direction of our lives - whether it be the cravings of our stomachs, the passionate desire for possessions or power, or the longings of our spirits for God. But for the Christian, the hunger for anything besides God can be an arch-enemy. While our hunger for God - and Him alone - is the only thing that will bring victory. Do you have that hunger for Him? As John Piper puts it: "If we don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because we have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Our soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great." If we are full of what the world offers, then perhaps a fast might express, or even increase, our soul's appetite for God. Between the dangers of self-denial and self-indulgence is this path of pleasant pain called fasting. It is the path John Piper invites you to travel in this book. For when God is the supreme hunger of your heart, He will be supreme in everything. And when you are most satisfied in Him, He will be most glorified in you.




Hope for Hard Times


Book Description

Open your eyes, and open your hands to find hope from God in hard times.




Letting God Meet Your Emotional Needs


Book Description

Women long to be loved, to be known, to be understood. But who can meet those needs at their deepest level? Only the One who created women--who knows them by name and who designed them--can bring fulfillment that truly satisfies. "Letting God Meet Your Emotional Needs" shows how God desires to help every woman: I need acceptance... God loves, forgives, and accepts I need security... God promises He will never leave I need to feel pretty... Christ sees me as new, spotless I need a companion... He is the perfect friend I need communication... He talks to me intimately through His Word Formerly "Heart Hunger."




Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus


Book Description

In Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, now expanded with bonus content, Nabeel Qureshi describes his dramatic journey from Islam to Christianity, complete with friendships, investigations, and supernatural dreams along the way. Providing an intimate window into a loving Muslim home, Qureshi shares how he developed a passion for Islam before discovering, almost against his will, evidence that Jesus rose from the dead and claimed to be God. Unable to deny the arguments but not wanting to deny his family, Qureshi struggled with an inner turmoil that will challenge Christians, Muslims, and all those who are interested in the world’s greatest religions. Engaging and thought-provoking, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus tells a powerful story of the clash between Islam and Christianity in one man’s heart?and of the peace he eventually found in Jesus. "I have seldom seen such genuine intellect combined with passion to match ... truly a 'must-read' book."—Ravi Zacharias




Surviving Ministry


Book Description

Being a pastor has its rewards and pleasures. But churches can be unsafe places. They are filled with broken, imperfect people. Many ministers of the gospel walk into a church naive about the potential hazards of their vocation. They are vulnerable to difficult people, unresolved conflict, incompatible visions, hidden agendas, mission drift, and sin--their own and that of others. Other pastors feel trapped in a ministry hurricane and don't know what to do. They feel like failures. They're thinking about leaving the ministry. They are looking for help and hope--not from an "expert" detached from the real world of ministry--but from someone who has suffered through church hurricanes and lived to share the story. Moreover, they need to know they are not alone. Surviving Ministry: How to Weather the Storms of Church Leadership includes the author's own story as well as true stories from other pastors who have been in the eye of the hurricane. Discouraged ministers looking for biblical, practical, gospel-centered advice for storm proofing their churches, homes, and hearts have found a friend. Surviving Ministry will equip them to stay resilient before, during, and after seasons of difficulty.




Changes that Heal


Book Description

Never before has an expert defined the steps toward self-fulfillment and satisfying relationships with such clear, insightful, and easy-to-follow guidelines. In Changes That Heal, Dr. Henry Cloud, a renowned clinical psychologist, combines his expertise, well-developed faith, and keen understanding of human nature in a four-step program of healing and growth. Dr. Cloud's down-to-earth plan shows you how to: bond with others to form truly intimate relationships, separate from others and develop a sense of self, understand the good and bad in yourself and others, and grow emotionally and spiritually toward adulthood. Filled with fascinating case studies and helpful, easy-to-adopt techniques, Changes That Heal offers sound advice that helps you get the most out of your life, heal the wounds of your past, and build lasting, loving relationships.




No God but One: Allah or Jesus? (with Bonus Content)


Book Description

BONUS: This eBook includes downloadable videos and a Q&A with Nabeel Qureshi that are not found in the print edition. Having shared his journey of faith in the New York Times bestselling Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi now examines Islam and Christianity in detail, exploring areas of crucial conflict and unpacking the relevant evidence. In this anticipated follow-up book, Nabeel reveals what he discovered in the decade following his conversion, providing a thorough and careful comparison of the evidence for Islam and Christianity--evidence that wrenched his heart and transformed his life. In Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi recounted his dramatic journey, describing his departure from Islam and his decision to follow Christ. In the years that followed, he realized that the world’s two largest religions are far more different than they initially appeared. No God but One: Allah or Jesus? addresses the most important questions at the interface of Islam and Christianity: How do the two religions differ? Are the differences significant? Can we be confident that either Christianity or Islam is true? And most important, is it worth sacrificing everything for the truth? Nabeel shares stories from his life and ministry, casts new light on current events, and explores pivotal incidents in the histories of both religions, providing a resource that is gripping and thought-provoking, respectful and challenging. Both Islam and Christianity teach that there is No God but One, but who deserves to be worshiped, Allah or Jesus? This eBook includes the full text of the book plus bonus content not found in the softcover! Bonuses include a Q&A with Nabeel Qureshi and downloadable videos that answer important questions about Islam and Christianity. Please note that some e-reader devices do not accommodate video play. You can still access the bonus videos by copying the web address provided into an internet browser on a device or computer that accommodates video content.