Showing titles in Discipleship

Why are so many Christian leaders burning out, losing faith, and abusing power? Rather than relying on our self-sufficiency and toughing our way through the tension, Mandy Smith invites us to confess it. As a pastor who also equips and encourages other pastors, Mandy feels the pain. Instead of offering more strategies to fix our problems, she reminds us of the call that first captured our imagination, directing our passions back to God and God’s people.

The human imagination is the key battleground in the conflict between the kingdom of God and the consumer culture. Drawing from the vivid imaginations of Impressionist painters, particularly Vincent van Gogh, each chapter of The Divine Commodity uses personal narrative, biblical exposition, and cultural observation to show how consumerism has shaped our faith, and then challenges the listener to use their sanctified imagination to envision an alternative way of expressing the Christian life.

God wants to put a face on giving – and the face he has in mind is not yours, but his. What if you could take something out of your pocket today that would make God wonderfully personal and absolutely real to someone who, only minutes earlier, had been secretly calling out to God for help, for an answer, for any shred of evidence that He cares? Discover the incredible resource that’s small enough to fit in your wallet or purse, yet big enough to change someone’s life – starting with yours.

THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP We need one another. Yet we don’t always know how to develop relationships that help us grow in the Christian life. What does the call to discipleship mean today in our busy, self-absorbed world? How would we manage the time required to mentor properly? Do we understand the debt of grace we owe to the lost? Drawing on 2 Timothy 2:2 and Matthew 28, Charles Morris answers these timeless questions on discipleship. The Cost of Discipleship is compelling and demands a sacrifice few are willing to pay. Biblical discipleship brings a new type of leadership inspired by ...

Pastor and speaker Shane Pruitt guides listeners in identifying the Christian cliches we've all heard that are actually unbiblical lies. He then counters with the truths about God as presented in the Bible - truths that bring encouragement and freedom for our lives. God won't give you more than you can handle. Really? Pastor and speaker Shane Pruitt shines a light on this and other Christian cliches that upon further inspection are actually unbiblical lies that keep far too many believers stuck in spiritual immaturity.

"What must I do to gain eternal life?” The rich man who asked this of Jesus was told to sell all he had and give to the poor. But, more importantly, he was told, “Come, follow me!” Franciscan Casey Cole challenges us to let go of something more difficult than material wealth: expectations, anxiety, comfort, wounds, enemies, power - and our very selves. Speaking from both personal and pastoral experience, he outlines the stumbling blocks that turn us away from following Jesus as true disciples. The response to “What must I do?” is simple but not easy: Let go. Now.

In Chasing Sacred, Bible teacher Mikella Van Dyke breaks down the misconceptions and reservations so many of us have about what it means to study the Bible. As you chase the sacred narrative woven through the pages of Scripture, let Mikella guide you to a deeper understanding of God’s Word and the who at the end of the journey: a Savior full of wisdom, depth, truth, and love.

As followers of Christ, we long to grow in godliness, but we often find ourselves stuck. Sin runs deep, we continue to fail, and we are easily tempted to give up. It doesn’t have to be that way.

The Heart of the Artist will give you a better understanding of yourself and your unique place in the body of Christ. You'll find wisdom and encouragement that can help you survive the challenges and reap the rich joys of a ministry in the creative arts. Each chapter includes provocative questions for group discussion and personal action steps for individual application. Somewhere between pride and self-abasement lies true humility - just one aspect of the balanced character God wants to instill in you as a creative person involved in ministry.

This book is the result of a deep research and revelation of Dr. Ana Mendez Ferrell in the field of deliverance. This “best seller” is an essential work that every person must listen to in order to enter into the fullness of God’s destiny in one’s life. This is a book of answers and solutions to the many things that are bothering you, and you don’t know how to solve. As you get free from iniquity, you will break the spiritual heritage that prevents you from walking in the Glory of God.

Wild and Free is in equal parts an anthem and an invitation to find freedom from the cultural captivity that holds us back, and freedom to step into the wild and holy call of God in our lives. With fresh biblical insight tracing all the way back to Eve and a treasury of practical application, Jess and Hayley reveal how women today can walk in the true liberty we already have in Jesus.

Friendship: it's one of the simplest of human relationships in comparison to marriage or family relationships, yet it's one of the least understood and practiced. This is the core of biblical friendship, and what sets it apart from what the world is offering: it all flows from Jesus Christ. Friendship finds its origin, purpose, and power in Jesus. Our human friendships then must be shaped by this life-changing truth. Biblical friendship is deep, honest, pure, transparent, and liberating. Dig into this book, and learn how your friendships can embody this amazing and wonderful reality.

We need companions on our spiritual journey. The modern world has taught us to value autonomy and individualism. Our churches often see spirituality as personal and private. But we cannot go long in our Christian pilgrimage before realizing that isolation leads to spiritual barrenness. We soon discover that our souls long for accompaniment, intimacy, and spiritual friendship. As a result, many Christians today are rediscovering the ancient practice of spiritual direction.

Best-selling author Jerry Brides ( The Pursuit of Holiness, The Discipline of Grace, The Bookends of the Christian Life, and many other books) asks perhaps the most fundamental question of existence: "Who am I?" He then turns to scripture to unpack for the Christian eight clear, interlocking, illuminating answers.

Pastor, it’s time to turn down the noise and focus on what matters. Today’s pastoral world is packed with books, conferences, and seminars teaching you different techniques for being an all-star pastor, growing your church quickly, and changing the world. But the key to true success is much harder and much simpler. Pastors are called to be faithful, to have exemplary character, and to love Jesus. Without faithfulness, their ministry ends up harming others rather than helping them. Churches need pastors with sound doctrine and a sound life.

If you'd like to embark on a lifelong quest for godliness, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life will help you on your way. Based on the rich heritage left us by the early church fathers, the Puritan writers, and Jesus Christ Himself, this book takes you through a carefully selected array of disciplines including Scripture reading, prayer, worship, Scripture meditation, evangelism, serving, stewardship, Scripture application, fasting, silence and solitude, journaling, and learning.

God Wants to Unleash Us into Fruitful Disciple-making Beyond Our Wildest Dreams. What if passionate Jesus followers began to multiply rapidly until thousands of lives and families were transformed? What if, instead of hard work with little fruit, God began to do “exceeding abundantly beyond all you could ask or imagine?” Imagine those you’ve invested in sharing Jesus freely, making their own disciples, and then training them until they too can disciples others.

In Hearing God, author Benjamin Dixon explores what it means to hear the voice of God in our everyday lives through our devotion to God's Word and our connection to the Holy Spirit. With Biblical clarity and practical insight, this book tackles a topic that is often misunderstood and confusing in the midst of a generation that truly wants to know if God is still speaking today.Hearing God will challenge you to study God's word, deepen your prayer life and obey the voice of the Holy Spirit in order to bring about personal transformation and kingdom effectiveness.

We all know it’s hard out there. Sometimes it feels like the world is ripping apart at the seams. And yet the Bible promises we were created to be overcomers, conquering the greatest obstacles in our lives. In Overcomer, beloved teacher Dr. David Jeremiah offers his insights on one of the most quoted but least understood passages of the Bible: the apostle Paul’s admonition to the Ephesians to take up the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18).

It is time says Jim Wallis, to call out genuine faith—specifically the “Christian” in White Christian Nationalism—inviting all who can be persuaded to reject and help dismantle a false gospel that propagates white supremacy and autocracy. We need–to raise up the faith of all of us, and help those who are oblivious, stuck, and captive to the ideology and idolatry of White Christian Nationalism that is leading us to such great danger. Wallis turns our attention to six iconic texts at the heart of what genuine biblical faith means and what Jesus, in the gospels, has called us to do.