LITMIR.BIZ

The church today is in many places «on the nose.» For many people, it stinks. It has passed its «use-by» date and should be relegated to the dustbins of history, and the sooner, the better. Nevertheless, the contributors to this volume believe that the church, in spite of its somewhat checkered history and its many present failures, remains an integral part of God's redemptive purposes being worked out in the world, and that God's call to the church is now what it has always been: to be the faithful people of God, bearing joy-filled witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ in word, worship, and work, in its corporate life, and in the lives of each of its members. Each chapter in this book explores an aspect of what it means to be the church, both with respect to its own life, and with an eye to its presence and mission in the world.

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This book explores a modern path for the ancient hunger to grow closer to God. By engaging powerful stories of God's deep connections with people across the country you can grow your own faith and deepen the vitality of your congregation. In these pages you will discover the seven different ways God connects with people through a juxtaposition of God's powerful work in the world today and the biblical text. While many of us have encounters with God, read to discover which faith practices you can focus on to make the greatest impact in your faith life overall.

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Rabbi Jesus interpreted the teachings of Torah to his followers. The Prophet Mohammad received a divine revelation centuries later that returned his people to the faith of Abraham. The holy texts of all three Abrahamic faiths, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, teach compassion, generosity, and nonviolence. While culture and politics often speak one understanding of «wisdom,» each of these faith traditions asks very different and difficult behavior of their followers, i.e., loving enemies, showing compassion for all, and giving away wealth to serve the poor; in other words, grace-filled living which the world sees as «foolish.» Worldly Wisdom and Foolish Grace reflects on ten of the hardest words spoken in Abraham's tent, places «foolish grace» up against «worldly wisdom,» and asks us to choose which road to take.

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Mentoring Minutes: Weekly messages to encourage anyone working with youth aims to encourage and equip people working with youth with the knowledge, strategies, ideas, and recent youth research to build meaningful and developmental relationships with these young people. There are five daily messages for fifty-two weeks of the year which cover topics like: understanding the world of youth, self-image, the impact of technology on youth, resiliency, goal setting, effective communication, values, how to resolve conflicts using a positive mindset, the role of family and other networks in the lives of youth, and the power of mentoring. True stories of mentoring experiences of the author and others are included, along with short daily tips to promote the spirit of mentoring, and weekly quotes to inspire the reader. The hundreds of strategies and tips are arranged into general themes focused on the development of the whole person. This user-friendly book will be an encouragement to schools, youth workers, mentors, parents, grandparents, employers of young people, indeed, anyone who wishes to see young people fulfill their potential.

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David Wilson didn't know where to turn when his wife, Chris, was in the depths of clinical depression, brought on by chronic fatigue syndrome and anorexia. In despair he entered an empty church and said a simple prayer: «I have no power to affect anything in my life, but you have the power. If you help me, I will serve you.» From then on, their lives began to change. A prayer group contacted them and through the power of prayer, Chris's condition began to improve. At the same time she found herself developing remarkable gifts of prophecy. The author embarked on a theology course, enabling him to look at what had happened to him and to Chris with a new perspective. Is there, he wondered, a link between depression and spiritual awareness? The author looks at the lives of Elijah and other Old Testament prophets and notes how signs of depression coincided with spiritual insights. This fascinating and thought-provoking book is the story of a couple's spiritual journey, as well as a profound meditation on the connection between depression and prophecy.

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What do we do when a formerly vibrant back-to-the-Bible movement drifts into a toxic swamp rimmed with attack dogs? Charles Redfern faces that grim question squarely. He discovers that American evangelical Christianity, which surged in the mid-twentieth century and offered a more genteel, intellectually vigorous alternative to caustic fundamentalism, fell into the hands of intimidators and backbiters. It was a short journey from there to the movement's partisan sell-out and the abandonment of time-honored creeds. Redfern describes his own story, in which he came into the faith at the movement's height in the 1970s, then views evangelicalism's decay across its spectrum. He doesn't spare conflict-adverse moderates in the process. But he also discovers hope: A winsome remnant survives, and its wooing the back-to-the-Bible people back to the Bible, bearing the fruits of the Holy Spirit as they do so.

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What is the secret to happiness? King Solomon was one of the greatest superachievers of all time and fabulously wealthy. He also had a reputation as the wisest man in the world. But at the end of his life he was so unhappy that he felt moved to cry out «all is vanity» and wish he had never been born. In Ecclesiastes, Solomon brilliantly diagnoses the causes of our continuing unhappiness and boils down the secret of peace and contentment to a few essential ingredients. The Great Reduction explains why his prescription for peace is just as relevant today as the day it was written. It also uses his diagnosis to shed light on a happiness that goes far beyond anything Solomon could have imagined.

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Why do many First People in Australia find themselves continually under siege? Why do many interventions fail to produce what was hoped for? Why is it that, when there have been many positive developments, at some deep level, nothing seems to have changed? Will the «Uluru Statement from the Heart» ensure the future security of the First Peoples in Australia?
By developing strands from Christian theology, Liberating the Will of Australia answers these questions in a way that gets to the heart of the problem. It is shown that the way that the First Peoples were treated by the first European in-comers became an indelible part of what Australia currently is. This explains why harm is often done even when good is intended, and why some problems are too complex to solve. But that does not mean that we need to be stuck in the past: through deep repentance by the «Subsequent Peoples,» much more than an apology, we can take hold of the work of God to bring new things out of what is broken. Ultimately, this is profoundly hopeful.
Although focusing on Australia, the theological tools developed can be applied in other colonial and post-colonial contexts.

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What Happened on the Cross offers a new and biblical understanding of how salvation was accomplished upon the cross, showing that the Penal Substitution view, common since the 1500s, does not have a biblical basis, and also showing that the Christus Victor understanding is inadequate. The book is founded upon the understanding that Jesus Christ is the Second Adam, and that is the foundation of how we are to understand how salvation was accomplished. Both the shedding of blood and death were essential in the accomplishment of salvation, and What Happened on the Cross shows why these were essential. Using over 740 Scripture verses to make its argument, the book gives a comprehensive picture from Genesis to Revelation of the many aspects involved in the accomplishment of salvation–above all showing clearly that the cross had nothing to do with «punishment for sins»–our sins were never punished upon the cross, rather, our sins were forgiven. Understanding how salvation was accomplished upon the cross, and that it was about forgiveness, not punishment, both exalts God and his greatness, demonstrates his perfect love and justice, as well as liberates our hearts towards him.

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