Though they both were lovingly enfolded into a Levite family that guards the Ark, Eliora can't stop feeling like she doesn't belong.Meanwhile, a faction of discontent Hebrews finds Kiryat-Yearim to be an unfit resting place and believes that the sacred vessel should be in the hands of the priests who mean to restore the Holy of Holies in a new location. Under the guise of gathering Hebrews to worship together for the festivals, Levite musician Ronen has been sent by his uncle to find where the Ark has been hidden and steal it back. But Ronen never expected that the Philistine girl he rescued years ago would now be part of the very family he's tasked to deceive.Ronen's attempts to charm Eliora into revealing the location of the Ark lead them in unexpected directions, as they must battle betrayal and fear to help establish Israel's leadership for a better future.

    He uses it to hold you back and prevent progress in your relationships, career, and more.In Do It Afraid, Joyce Meyer explains that fear is everywhere and affects everyone. It rules many people, but it doesn't have to rule you any longer. She will teach you how to:Understand fear and recognize how it works in your life.Confront those fears that are holding you back.Change your mindset for lasting freedom from some of the most common fears people face.Remember, courage isn't the absence of fear; it is learning how to move forward in the presence of fear. Courageous people do what they believe in their hearts they should do, no matter how they feel or what doubts fill their minds. When you take ownership of your problems and open your heart to God, He will help bring light into darkness so that you can be free.

    For her and many others, the fear she faces is not a faith issue. It's a physical one that affects over 40 million adults in the US.As Becky examines the relationship between the promise of peace in Scripture and the reality of life, motherhood, and anxiety, she brings both a practical and spiritual approach to the discussion of anxiety and how it impacts your mind, body, and spirit.Peace meets moms in the forest of fear where they have felt isolated and alone and walks them toward hope, reminding them that there are millions of other women who walk the same dark, uncertain trails they do and there isn't something wrong with their faith because they can't shake the fear. Peace is a lifeline for the Christian mom desperate for solid advice based on sound doctrine and presented in a way that makes her feel understood and far less alone on her journey toward healing.

    Michael Morales examines the key elements of three major redemption movements in Scripture: the exodus out of Egypt, the second exodus foretold by the prophets, and the new exodus accomplished by Jesus Christ. We discover how the blood of a Passover lamb helps us grasp the significance of Jesus' death on the cross, how the Lord's defeat of Pharaoh foreshadowed Jesus' victory over Satan, how Israel's exodus out of Egypt unfolds the meaning of the resurrection, and much more.The second volume in the ESBT series, Exodus Old and New reveals how Old Testament stories of salvation provide insight into the accomplishments of Jesus and the unity of God's purposes across history.Essential Studies in Biblical Theology (ESBT), edited by Benjamin L. Gladd, explore the central or essential themes of the Bible's grand storyline. Taking cues from Genesis 1-3, authors trace the presence of these themes throughout the entire sweep of redemption history. Written for students, church leaders, and laypeople, the ESBT offers an introduction to biblical theology.

    Whether it’s a good transition like a job promotion or a bad disruption like a devastating health diagnosis, it’s stressful. Gina Brenna Butz shares her personal stories of struggling with change and encourages you to trust God. She writes with compassion as she urges you to rely on God’s goodness, lean on Him for strength, rejoice that He is constant, and ultimately to find satisfaction in Him rather than in circumstances. Scripture helps you see change from the viewpoint of your heavenly Father. You can rest knowing He works all things together for the good of His children, even in seasons of stress-inducing change.

    And so it is profoundly important to understand how to approach and experience these occasions with grace, endurance, and joy.In On Marriage, Timothy and Kathy Keller bring forty-five years of personal experience with marriage, as well as a deep understanding of God's resources in the Bible for those who want to find them. With wisdom, empathy, and compassion, the Kellers teach us to understand how to begin and nourish your marriage well.The perfect gift for anyone thinking about relationships and the institution of marriage, On Marriage is a short, powerful book that gives us the tools to understand the meaning of marriage within God's vision of life.

    We might be there due to a job loss or the death of a loved one. Maybe disability, divorce, or financial insecurity has stranded us. Patrick and Ruth Schwenk found themselves feeling battered after five miscarriages and then surrounded by the waves with Patrick’s cancer diagnosis at age forty-three. They were alone. Drifting. And that’s when their transformation began.In this compassionate and powerful book, the Schwenks weave together lessons from their own experience with insightful Bible teaching to remind us that one of the greatest ways God transforms us is through trials. As they unpack why Jesus called the disciples into the middle of a lake when dry ground was so safe and comfortable, they help us understand why the depth of our hurt enables us to experience deep hope;learn to conquer fear to experience the freedom God has for us; anddiscover how God uses chaos, and not just the classroom, to shape and work through us.Today—in your confusion about God’s intentions, your disappointment over lost dreams, your disillusionment about prayer—God is offering hope. Because Jesus is still Lord over the water. And while he is not moved by the waves, he is moved by you. And this flood might just be a path to abundance. “A powerful reminder that our current reality is not our final reality, and God is Lord over all chaos and suffering!”—Candace Cameron Bure, actress and New York Times bestselling author

    Working through the book of Job, Sarah Walton (author of "Hope when it Hurts") and her husband Jeff reflect on their own experiences in a marriage that has faced chronic illness, the after-effects of abuse, a child with neurological challenges, and financial difficulties–and show how to cling to Christ and each other.This is not a "how to" guide on having the best marriage, but, rather, a walk alongside you and your spouse, sharing the realities of suffering and the effects it can have on a marriage. It is an encouragement to lift your eyes above your trials, off your spouse, and onto our all-sufficient Savior.

    They induce thinking about how the Christian should honor the governing officials that God has given us while we take seriously the task of pressing and educating them to see that they are finally responsible to God and his law. This book might not warm the heart, but it will press the mind to engage in some real heart work, attaining a life characterized by truth-informed courage.

    The subject of numerous books, conferences, and sermons every year, it’s promoted as essential for a vibrant relationship with Christ, and a measure of the maturity of your faith. What is it? Hearing God speak personally, outside of Scripture.But is God trying to speak to you through signs, impressions, and subtle promptings? Is He whispering to you in a still, small voice, hoping to grab your attention? Does Scripture promise that every Christian will receive personal, private revelations from the Lord?In God Doesn’t Whisper, Pastor Jim Osman examines the assumptions, practices, and proof texts of those who promote a theology of hearing the voice of God. Dig into the texts often cited in defense of trying to hear God speak outside of His written Word. Scripture is clear: God doesn’t whisper.

    In today's Western world, plenty of shiny false gods still hold power--idols of prosperity, nationalism, and self-interest. Christians desperately need to name and expose these idols. We must retrieve the biblical emphasis on idolatry and apply it anew in our journey of following Jesus. In "Here Are Your Gods," Old Testament scholar Christopher J. H. Wright combines a biblical study of idolatry with practical discipleship. He calls readers to consider connections between Old Testament patterns and today's culture, especially recurring temptations to trust in political power. Now as much as ever, we need a biblically informed understanding of the many ways humans make gods for themselves, the danger of idols, and how God calls us to join him in the battle against idolatry as part of his ongoing mission to be known and worshiped by all peoples.

    

    At twenty-seven, he became a professor of Old Testament Exegesis and Semitic Languages at Dallas Theological Seminary. He started and pastored an influential church in Ft. Worth, Texas. He taught his church and his students that God no longer gave the "miraculous gifts of the Spirit" or spoke outside the pages of Scripture.After teaching seminary for ten years, a bestselling author shocked Deere when he told him that he not only believed God was regularly healing people today, but that he had seen undeniable miracles in answer to his prayers. For the next four months, Deere studied every healing story in the New Testament. This time he came to those stories with the open mind of a scholar, completely at home in the original languages of the Bible, not as a gullible student swallowing the prejudices of his teachers. At the end of those four months, Deere was convinced, against his will, that God was still healing and speaking just as he had done in the New Testament.Deere and his wife Leesa began to pray for people in their church and witnessed dramatic, documented healings.In Why I Am Still Surprised by the Power of the Spirit, Deere demonstrates that the Scriptures teach that God is healing and speaking today just as he did 2000 years ago. He tells documented stories of modern miracles. He explains the nature of spiritual gifts, defines each spiritual gift, offers sound advice on discovering and using the gifts in church today. He shows how all of this part of God's way of deepening our friendship with him.A modern classic, Surprised by the Power of the Spirit was published twenty-five years ago, and in that book Deere claimed that he would live long enough to see the majority of conservative evangelicals come to believe in all the gifts of the Spirit. That has come true. The theological landscape has changed dramatically. Nearly completely rewritten, this new edition still offers that proof but has about seventy percent new material on the practical matters of experiencing and using spiritual gifts. For example, anyone who prays regularly for the sick will encounter demonic power. Demons pop up all over the Synoptic Gospels. There are two new chapters on ministering to the demonized. There is much confusion on what it means to be filled with the Spirit today. Deere takes three chapters to examine every use of "filled with the Spirit" and "full of the Spirit" in the New Testament to show why and how God still fills his servants with the Holy Spirit. There are many new stories of God's power, even walking on water and multiplying food. Deere also introduces the newest literature defending and explaining the gifts of the Spirit. All this and more continues the book's legacy for a new time.

    One or two probably stand out for us as the epitome of how Christmas is supposed to sound. It’s not officially Christmas until we hear them. As those familiar songs fill your home again this season, listen closely. They are telling a story, the story of Jesus—who He is and why He came. Rediscover your favorite Christmas hymns this Advent season with Born a Child and Yet a King, a new Advent devotional from Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth. Spend thirty-one days tracing the gospel through your favorite carols and discover anew the awe of this season. Each day’s reading will help guide your prayers, thoughts, and priorities so you may enjoy a deeper intimacy with Jesus Christ in the days leading up to and immediately following Christmas.

    Few introductions have integrated the Old Testament into their discussions, and fewer still are those that rely on the grand narrative of the Old Testament. But the New Testament was not written within a vacuum. Rather, it stands in continuity with the Old Testament. Israel's story is the church's story. In The Story Retold, G. K. Beale and Benjamin L. Gladd explore each New Testament book in light of the broad history of redemption, emphasizing the biblical-theological themes of each New Testament book. Their distinctive approach will encourage readers to read the New Testament in light of the Old, not as a new story but as a story retold.

    Morgan—No Greater Gift— History professor Grace Ryan returns home expecting to turn her Grandmother’s journals and recollections of WWII into memoirs. Hospitalized, Gramma Annie hints at a decades-old crime, whispers the word treason, then slips away forever. Though God’s voice seems silent, He sends someone to stand in the gap for her. Erik Petersson, unjustly accused of infidelity, suffered through an unwanted divorce and the loss of his children’s love. A physicist, he helps Grace dig through her late grandfather’s scientific papers. Erik and Grace are catapulted into a quagmire of truth and lies that could tear her family apart.Miralee Ferrell—The Other Daughter— The girl standing at the door took a deep breath, pulling her suitcase a little closer. “My mama’s dead. He’s my daddy.” Susanne Carson knows she can trust her husband, David—until she discovers an unkempt young girl on their doorstep, claiming to be David’s daughter. Their marriage isn’t perfect—David’s decision to embrace Christianity strained their relationship. Susanne may not agree with his beliefs, but she trusts him. As David confronts his past, Susanne must face her own moment of truth as her marriage is taken to the breaking point and the life of one young girl is left in her hands.Melanie Campbell—One Woman Falling—*Selah Award Finalist*After an unexpected police visit, Cassie Peterson realizes her daughter’s survival depends on Cassie’s courage to leave her abusive marriage. What she doesn’t plan on is the vengeful custody fight with her husband, Derrick.While walking through the treacherous world of divorce, Cassie’s new friend, Missy, encourages her to pursue her love of waterfalls. Meanwhile, Brian, an attorney at the firm where Cassie works, provides unexpected legal help.As Derrick’s threatening behavior escalates, Cassie questions her choices. Can she keep her daughter safe? Who can she trust? Who will be standing with her when everything comes crashing down?Miralee Ferrell—Outlaw Angel— Angel Ramirez is on the run from an outlaw disguised as a boy—can she learn to live like a lady?After taking a job on a Wyoming ranch owned by a bachelor and his widowed sister, Angel reveals her true identity and must fight to prove her worth as a ranch hand while discovering her role as woman.Hiring a woman doesn’t sit well with Travis Morgan, and the dark-haired beauty is causing a ruckus among his cowboys. When Angel decides she’ll never please her boss, an unexpected surprise arrives from across the ocean. Will Angel leave with the person who’s come so far to claim her?Janalyn Voigt—Cheyenne Sunrise—Bry Brennan, a young Irish widow, travels West to start a new life. She doesn’t want another husband to break her spirit.Nick Laramie, the wagon train’s half-Cheyenne trail guide, has no intention of dragging a woman into his troubles. The perilous journey throws the two together, leaving Bry no choice but to trust Nick with her life. Can she also trust him with her heart?Based on actual historical events, Cheyenne Sunrise explores faith, love, and courage in the wild west.Patricia Lee—Love Calls Her Home— Lissa Frye returns home from the Navy eager to start over.But the man she loves, Marine Kurt McKintrick is a broken man, grieving the loss of his best friend to an enemy trap in Afghanistan. Fears of another loss, Kurt distances himself from Lissa.Eleven-year-old Jayden Clarke’s life is turned upside down when the rancher he trusts and respects is found dead. As outside authorities, Lissa and Kurt find themselves embroiled in the investigation. Can helping a hurting boy draw them back together?

    His message remains a call to those who long to live in God’s realm of glory each day. The Vision offers 365 daily devotions and prayers to usher you into his presence. With Scripture from The Passion Translation®, this devotional will bring you face to face with the King of love and mercy every day of the year. Encounter the fiery, living breath of the Word and experience a revelation to awaken your heart. It was because of our rebellious deeds that he was pierced and because of our sins that he was crushed. He endured the punishment hat made us completely whole, and in his wounding we found our healing. Isaiah 53:5

    His deeds and words speak with beauty and mystery, both comforting and confounding us. Who is this man? Over the course of his career, singer-songwriter Michael Card has explored the depths of Scripture by bringing together biblical study and the power of the imagination. Now he sheds light on the life of Jesus through lyrical reflections on the four Gospels. These forty meditations lead us to a place where Jesus becomes real and we can hear him with both hearts and minds. Listen again to the life of the Nazarene. And discover anew the music of Christ in your soul.

    Drawing from the best of different Protestant traditions, Dynamics of Spiritual Life lays out a comprehensive approach to the renewal of the church. In the first half of the book, Lovelace surveys awakening movements since the Reformation, particularly emphasizing Jonathan Edwards's theology of renewal. He then goes deeper into specific elements of such movements and their significance for both doctrinal reformation and spiritual renewal. Lovelace examines such practical issues as renewal of the local congregation, ways revivals go wrong, prospects for closing the "sanctification gap," the historical role of evangelical movements in promoting both unity and division, and Christian approaches to the arts. With scholarly and pastoral insight, he offers a powerful vision of renewal that can unify various models across traditions, combining individual and corporate spirituality, social activism, and evangelism. For over forty years, this well-loved book has helped Christians understand the spiritual movement they are a part of and guided leaders in planting and pastoring churches. This expanded edition features a new foreword.

    

    

    But if that was the case, how did this woman, Rahab, become one of the ancestors of Jesus Christ? Wouldn’t the Father ensure a pure lineage for His Son? In this historical fiction, author Diana Wallis Taylor offers a beautiful story of intrigue that explains how Rahab came to be the mother of Boaz, grandmother of Obed, and great-grandmother of Jesse, the father of King David. In Rahab, Woman of Jericho, readers discover a Rahab who is a descendent of the tribe of Ephraim, one of the ten lost tribes of Israel. Her clan left Egypt and settled in Canaan before the Hebrews were enslaved. Although they did not wander in the desert with Moses for forty years, nor did they hear the laws that the Lord gave to His people, they still worshipped the one true God. Rahab marries Radames, a young Egyptian officer, who is to become the new governor of Jericho. They live in the Egyptian embassy set in the city wall. When the Israelites approach Canaan with their army, pharaoh sends word that he is withdrawing his troops. Radames fabricates a story to tell Jericho’s king, but Hammurabi doesn’t believe it…and he has his eye on the beautiful Rahab. What will happen to Rahab after the lecherous king poisons her husband? How can she save her family from the invading Israelites? God parted the waters of the Jordan River for them—will He likewise provide miracles and blessings to her Ephraimite clan if they can rejoin their people?

    Today, women make up more than half the church, and do much of the mission, ministry, and discipleship in the life of the church. But women have often been held back from ministry roles. Graham Joseph Hill outlines the biblical vision for women in ministry and leadership. He offers a biblical and passionate call for women to be released to teach, to lead, to preach, to serve, to pastor, and to minister in every area of the church. The Bible paints a radical vision of women, empowered and emboldened for full ministry participation in Christ's church. The biblical vision for women and for their role as teachers, witnesses, disciplers, and leaders transforms not only personal lives, but also the church and the world. This book offers a biblical case for women teaching and leading in the church. Hill then explores practical ways that we can empower and release more female leaders in the church, and ways that we can amplify the voices and honor the gifts of women in the way Jesus intended. Together women and men can revitalize the church and renew the world.

    Was the apostle reacting against the Jews' good works done to earn salvation, or the Mosaic law's practices that identified the Jewish people? Matthew J. Thomas examines how Paul's second-century readers understood these points in conflict, how their readings relate to "old" and "new" perspectives, and what their collective witness suggests about the apostle's own meaning. Surprisingly, these early witnesses align closely with the "new" perspective, though their reasoning often differs from both modern viewpoints. They suggest that Paul opposes these works neither due to moralism, nor primarily for experiential or social reasons, but because the promised new law and covenant, which are transformative and universal in scope, have come in Christ.

    And all Christians agree that justice is important. We often disagree, however, about what justice means, both in Scripture and for us today. Many turn to Old Testament laws, the prophets, and the life of Jesus to find biblical guidance on justice, but few think of searching the letters of Paul. Readers frequently miss a key source, a writing in which justice is actually the central concern: the book of Romans. In Resurrecting Justice, theologian Douglas Harink invites readers to rediscover Romans as a treatise on justice. He traces Paul's thinking on this theme through a sequential reading of the book, finding in each passage facets of the gospel's primary claim--that God accomplishes justice in the death and resurrection of Jesus Messiah. By rendering forms of the Greek word dikaiosynē as just or justice, Harink emphasizes the inseparability of personal, social, and political uprightness that was clear to Paul but is obscured in modern translations' use of the words righteous and righteousness instead. Throughout this book, Harink includes personal reflection questions and contemporary implications, helping readers connect Paul's teaching to issues in their world such as church life, politics, power, criminal justice, and violence. Romans demands nothing less than a fundamental rethinking of all things in the light of the gospel. And in Romans the life, death, resurrection, and exaltation of Jesus makes all the difference in how we think about justice. Resurrecting Justice makes clear that the good news of a justice that can come only from God is crucial not only for individual lives but for all peoples and nations of the world.

    We know that we need to spend time with God, but how often does our reading the Bible become checking an item off a to-do list? Behold is an invitation to just sit with God. Spend time with him. Enjoy his presence. For 40 days, let's sit with him, enjoy him, and choose to be in awe of him.

    To truly see the dynamics of this love, we must take a close look at Jesus's relationships while he was here on earth. How he loved then is how he loves now, and how he loves now is how we as believers are to love. No Greater Love is a study of Jesus's interactions with people throughout the book of John, including Nicodemus, the woman at the well, and even the Pharisees. What did this love look like in action, especially with those who are hard to love? As it turns out, he didn't love people because they deserved it; he loved them because he is love.With the great tragedies in our culture today there is a need for this "Jesus love" that's available to all believers. May this book help you better know his love for you--which, in the end, will lead you to becoming more like him.

    In this collaboration between Alabaster Co. and IVP, the full text of the Gospel of John is presented alongside beautiful full-color photographs and fourteen guided meditations by Bible teacher, author, and spiritual director Jan Johnson. Carefully designed as a practical, study-focused version of Alabaster's other bible books, the Alabaster Guided Meditations invite readers into deeper reflection by incorporating the church's ancient lectio divina and visio divina traditions. Though the intersection of New Living Translation Bible passages, photography, thoughtfully designed layouts, and meditations, readers are invited to experience the Gospel of John anew.

    And when he said everything—he meant everything. We can all agree that this is easier said than done. Disappointments and discontent may cause you to slip into dissatisfaction, and grumbling becomes a state of mind—gratitude seems impossible to find. However, what if this is the precise reason you lack the joy of a God-filled life? Instead of a reaction to when things are going well, what if gratitude is actually necessary to knowing the hope of our gracious God?This is exactly what Pastor Dustin Crowe identifies in The Grumbler’s Guide to Giving Thanks. Dustin examines the biblical foundations of thankfulness and traces how it can reshape every-day Christian living. When we express gratitude in all things, we not only praise our Creator, we also get to know Him better. With The Grumbler’s Guide, you’ll learn how to practice thanksgiving in both simple and extraordinary ways, even when you’re tempted to dwell on the negative. You’ll find your outlook on life realigned to see the hand of God in everything, strengthening your trust in Him. And in doing so, you’ll find greater, more joy-filled reasons to continue expressing thanks to our good and generous God.