Help Me Believe


Book Description

It's natural for you to have questions about Christianity. What does Jesus really have to offer in a world that is so complicated, where there's so much pain? What difference could he possibly make in your life? For years Cliffe Knechtle has been fielding questions about and objections to Christianity from thousands of people. They want to know what you want to know--what does Jesus have to do with the real world, with real life? In this book Knechtle provides the answers to some of the toughest questions you have, including Don't all religions teach the same thing? Why do Christians try to impose their morality on others? What is so valuable about life? What is God's answer to evil in the world? Why can't people seem to get along with each other? Why is forgiving others so difficult? Isn't God kind of old and boring? How do I know I can trust Jesus? I still have some doubts. Can you help me believe? Life isn't easy. And what Knechtle offers you in this book are not pat answers. Rather, they are direct responses to real people with real questions. If you have questions about Christianity, Help Me Believe will grapple with them squarely, honestly and helpfully.




How to Believe in God


Book Description

In How to Believe in God, Clark Strand, an accomplished master of both Eastern and Western mystical practices, takes on the most troublesome and provocative passages from Judeo-Christian scripture, transforming the Bible into a manual of spiritual liberation for the twenty-first-century seeker. Offering a revolutionary new model of approaching the Bible, he frees those sacred scriptures from superstition, dogma, and tribalism, and in the process recovers their universal teaching on salvation and belief. Drawing on his personal experiences, including his Bible Belt upbringing, his years as a Buddhist monk, and his life as a father and husband in a small rural community, Strand makes even the most subtle spiritual teaching heartfelt and accessible. How to Believe in God illuminates a clear path to reclaiming a God that leaves nothing out and leaves no one behind. His open, gentle, pioneering approach to faith allows everyone—from churchgoing Christians to those with no religious affiliation at all—to experience the Bible in new and exciting ways.




Give Me an Answer


Book Description

Cliffe Knechtle offers clear, reasoned and compassionate responses to the tough questions skeptics ask.




Unlearning God


Book Description

America's favorite Quaker storyteller explores the terrain of faith and doubt as shaped by family, church, and young love, finding his way to a less convenient but fully formed adult spirituality. Most of us grow up taking in whole belief systems with our mother's milk, only to discover later that what we received as being certain is actually nothing like it. And then we're faced with a choice--retreat to spiritual security and the community that comes with it, or strike out into the unknown. With his trademark humor and down-home wisdom, Philip Gulley serves as just the spiritual director a wayward pilgrim could warm to, inviting readers into his own sometimes rollicking, sometimes daunting journey of spiritual discovery. He writes about being raised by a Catholic mother and a Baptist father across the street from a family of Jehovah's Witnesses--all three camps convinced the others are doomed. To nearly everyone's consternation, Philip grows up to be a Quaker and a pastor. In Unlearning God, Gulley showcases his well-loved gift as a storyteller and his acute sensibilities as a public theologian in conversations that will charm, provoke, encourage, and inspire.




Why I Believe


Book Description

In this powerful declaration of what Christians believe and why, Kennedy explores the foundations of the Christian faith. For new believers and seasoned Christians alike, this book will strengthen their faith by answering that all consuming question, "Why?"




See Me, Believe Me


Book Description

In See Me, Believe Me, Rev. Dr. Yolanda Denson-Byers offers an honest and unflinching look at the challenges faced by leaders of color in the predominantly white ELCA. Her insights and concrete suggestions for action illustrate how seeing and believing leaders of color are essential steps in the journey of allyship.




When You Believe


Book Description

On the run from three ruthless killers, San Francisco poet Miranda Stead unwittingly enters into a strange and secret realm where she is drawn to Sariel Valasay, a magical telepath and healer who, after one night of undeniable passion, must make her forget his world and his people.




Make Me Believe


Book Description

Lara is a young, beautiful and well-succeeded woman who is about to experience the happiest day of her life. However, everything changes when the man of her life abandons her at the church's door. After many days of sadness and loneliness she gets her man back. Unfortunately, not for long. And one day, coming from nowhere, love strikes again. But nothing is easy in her life. She faces a choice and at the same she is haunted by the past. She doesn't believe in love anymore, does she? But in the end she discovers one thing worth to believe: love!




Why I Still Believe


Book Description

For anyone who feels caught in the tension between the beauty of God's story and the ugliness of human hypocrisy, Why I Still Believe offers a stirring story of hope. Why would anyone be a Christian when there is so much hypocrisy in the church? Mary Jo Sharp shares her journey as a skeptical believer who still holds to a beautiful faith despite wounding experiences in the Christian community. At a time when de-conversion stories have become all too common, this is an earnest response - the compelling conversion of an unlikely believer whose questions ultimately led her to irresistible hope. Sharp addresses her own struggle with the reality that God's people repeatedly give God's story a bad name and takes a careful look at how the current church often inadvertently produces atheists despite its life-giving message. For those who feel the ever-present tension between the beauty of salvation and the dark side of human nature, Why I Still Believe is a candid and approachable case for believing in God when you really want to walk away. With fresh and thoughtful insights, this spiritual narrative presents relevant answers to haunting questions like: Isn't there too much pain and suffering to believe? Is it okay to have doubt? What if Jesus' story is a copy of another story? Is there any evidence for Jesus' resurrection? Does atheism explain the human experience better than Christianity can? How can the truth of Christianity matter when the behaviors of Christians are reprehensible? At once logical and loving, Sharp reframes the gospel as it truly is: the good news of redemption. With firmly grounded truths, Why I Still Believe is an affirming reminder that the hypocrisy of Christians can never negate the transforming grace and truth of Christ.




After You Believe


Book Description

From the author of the acclaimed Simply Christian and Surprised by Hope comes a book that addresses the question that has plagued humans for centuries—what is our purpose? As Christians, what are we to do with that ambiguous time between baptism and the funeral? It's easy to become preoccupied with who gets into heaven; the real challenge is how we are going to live in the here and now. Wright dispels the common misconception that Christian living is nothing more than a checklist of dos and don'ts. Nor is it a prescription to "follow your heart" wherever it may lead. Instead, After You Believe reveals the Bible's call for a revolution—a transformation of character that takes us beyond our earthly pursuit of money, sex, and power into a virtuous state of living that allows us to reflect God and live more worshipful, fulfilling lives. We are all spiritual seekers, intuitively knowing there is more to life than we suspect. This is a book for anyone who is hoping there is something more while we're here on Earth. There is. We are being called to join the revolution, and Wright insightfully encourages readers to find new purpose and clarity by taking us on an eye-opening journey through key biblical passages that promise to radically alter the work of the church and the direction of our lives.