Christians are now often seen as the bad guys, losing both respect and influence.In our post-Christian culture, how do we offer the gospel to those around us who view it as not only wrong but possibly dangerous? And how do we ensure that the secular worldview does not entice us away with its constant barrage, online and elsewhere, of messages about self-determinism?Author Stephen McAlpine offers an analysis of how our culture ended up this way and explains key points of tension between biblical Christianity and secular culture. He encourages Christians not to be ashamed of the gospel as it is more liberating, fulfilling and joyful than anything the world has to offer. He also offers strategies for coping in this world, with its opposing values, and for reaching out to others wisely with the truth.

    In fact, you can see Nancy Wilson's thirty years of experience most clearly in how she reacts to the difficult stuff -- the stuff that can make you (especially if you're married to a pastor) feel inadequate and under-qualified.True Companion offers friendly, practical, and above all Christ-centered wisdom on how to help your husband in his vocation, how to deal with the "congregation at home" (kids), how much (or how little) a pastor's wife needs to be involved in the church, what sins tend to spring up in a pastor's home, how to deal with adversity from enemies (or from friends), and a host of other issues.

    However, neither extreme is true to God's good purpose for emotions. Written by two experienced counselors, this book sets forth a holistic view of emotions rooted in the Bible, offering a practical approach to engaging with both positive and negative emotions in a God-honoring way. Readers will be encouraged to see their emotions as an opportunity to explore themselves, their values, and their affections, and to move toward deeper worship of God.

    It comes with the territory. One generation to the next, imperfect men chip away at God's original design for daddies, leaving a flawed pattern for their sons to follow. Overwhelmed by their failures, it's easy for fathers to feel they have blown it for good and can't redeem themselves.Within these pages, Tim Bayly offers a frank and hope-filled path to overcoming the inherent failures of imperfect fathers--and to reclaiming manhood and dignity for the man called Daddy. Drawing from decades of his own journey as an imperfect son, father, and pastor, Bayly makes it clear there are no quick fixes. The road to recovery is paved with blood, sweat, and tears, but our Savior walked this path before us.Daddy Tried makes no apologies for being a book for men. Its subject is the male-only club of fatherhood. It takes the only perfect Father as our guide. Bayly stares the sins of fathers past, present, and future squarely in the face and clears a path to overcoming them--a path that begins with faith in our heavenly Father who tells us He knows our weaknesses.

    Have his ear. Belong to his body.Three seemingly unremarkable principles shape and strengthen the Christian life: listening to God's voice, speaking to him in prayer, and joining together with his people as the church. Though often viewed as normal and routine, the everyday "habits of grace" we cultivate give us access to these God-designed channels through which his love and power flow--including the greatest joy of all: knowing and enjoying Jesus.A study guide for individual and group study is also available.

    Brian and Cara Croft identify the unique challenges that pastors face as husbands and fathers.  They also discuss the difficulties and joys of being a pastor’s wife and offer practical advice on raising children in a ministry family.  In addition to addressing the challenges of marriage and raising children, they also highlight the joys of serving together as a family and the unique opportunities pastors have to train their children and lead their families.  With discussion questions for use by couples and pastoral reading groups, this book is ideal for pastors and their spouses, pastoral ministry students and their wives, as well as elders, deacons, and others who wish to remain faithful to the care of their families while diligently fulfilling their calling in ministry. The Pastor’s Family equips pastors with time-tested wisdom to address the tension of family and congregational dynamics while persevering in their calling.

    . . but you're quickly finding out that you never stop being a parent! Jim Newheiser and Elyse Fitzpatrick ground you in the guidance of God's Word, reminding you that your relationship with your adult children can only be as deep and meaningful as your relationship with him.

    As an experienced counselor of children and families and an adoptive and foster mom applying the CCEF model of biblical change, Julie Lowe uses Scripture and biblical wisdom to teach parents how to know their children and specifically love them with the love of Christ. Every family is unique, which is why Child Proof explores the need for parents to cultivate personal and intimate care for their children as modeled in God’s individual, personal, and fatherly care to his children. This parenting book lays a foundation of parenting by faith and progresses by teaching parents how they can know their own children well and parent accordingly. By discussing particular issues parents might have in family life, Lowe demonstrates how parenting formulas aren’t the answer, and parenting with biblical wisdom is best for a proactive rather than reactive approach to parenting. Through Lowe’s personal and professional experience, parents as well as those helping parents—pastors, counselors and counseling students, youth workers, and churches—will discover gospel-centered application rather than formulas for the ideal family, equipping parents to be experts at knowing their own children so they can know Scripture and live it out personally in their homes.

    Martyn Lloyd-Jones, each originally delivered at Westminster Chapel in London, carefully and compassionately analyzes an undeniable feature of modern society from which Christians have not escaped -- spiritual depression."Christian people," writes Lloyd-Jones, "too often seem to be perpetually in the doldrums and too often give this appearance of unhappiness and of lack of freedom and absence of joy. There is no question at all but that this is the main reason why large numbers of people have ceased to be interested in Christianity."Believing the Christian joy was one of the most potent factors in the spread of Christianity in the early centuries, Lloyd-Jones not only lays bare the causes that have robbed many Christians of spiritual vitality but also points the way to the cure that is found through the mind and spirit of Christ.

    The things your child does and says flow from the heart. Luke 6:45 puts it this way: "...out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." Written for parents with children of any age, this insightful book provides perspectives and procedures for shepherding your child's heart into the paths of life.

    What does it look like to help others become more like Christ?In this concise guide, pastor Mark Dever outlines the who, what, where, when, why, and how of discipling--helping others follow Jesus.Following the pattern found in Scripture, this book explains how disciple-making relationships should function in the context of the local church, teaching us how to cultivate a culture of discipling as a normal part of our everyday lives.Part of the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series.

    Seven out of 10 kids will walk away from church after they turn 18. About five will return when they have families of their own, but two will never return. Clearly something isn’t connecting with our kids. As kids ministry leaders, we need to take a hard look at what we are missing in our kids ministries and provide kids the one thing that will satisfy them and keep them connected to the church—the gospel.Gospel-Centered Kids Ministry also addresses communicating with and encouraging gospel-centered leaders and parents as part of your ministry.

    And not enough broken people know that."No stranger himself to brokenness, Gordon MacDonald draws from personal experience and discusses the likely sources of pain, the humiliation, and the long- and short-range consequences of a broken personal world. And he offers encouraging answers to the questions everyone asks when their worlds fall apart: Is there a way back?

    But one of the worst is when an innocent gets violated. Why does God allow such things to happen? What Joy Tan-Chi Mendoza went through when she was 15 has been a very public and strong statement of pain, healing, and grace. She has now put her story into a book that she hopes will show people that there is hope, healing, and wholeness for those who have experienced abuse and this kind of pain. What Satan meant for harm, God meant for good.

    Depression is not new though, indeed the "Prince of Preachers" C.H. Spurgeon struggled with depression and talked openly about it. Here Zack Eswine draws from Spurgeon's experiences to encourage us. What Spurgeon found in his darkness can serve as a light in our own darkness. This is not a self-help guide, but rather "a handwritten note of one who wishes you well."