Simply put, we have more needs than we have leaders to meet those needs. So, how do we train better leaders faster? The truth is, very few churches really have a well-thought-out leadership development plan. Growth requires continually adding healthy new leaders, who carry the church culture forward and embody its core values. Everyone knows it, but how do we achieve it?In Empowering Leadership author and leadership consultant Michael Fletcher says leaders like this can't simply be bought, nor can they be hired from someone else's leadership assembly line. Developing leaders at every level, to create an environment that attracts potential leaders, and to build better leaders faster, an organization needs more than a pipeline. It needs a culture that develops leaders organically.Finding the right kind of leaders to guide your church on a path of continual growth comes out of keeping the right focus, and that focus is not just on the leaders. In fact, as Fletcher says, It isn't about the leader. It never was about the leader. It will never be about the leader. It will always and only be about Jesus and his people. It's about the people. True leadership development includes the often messy, but necessary, interaction of life upon life. So hiring pastors and key staff roles from within the church is the very best policy--people who breathe the culture of the church and who have helped create the culture you want to maintain.If your church or organization needs a good leadership development structure, then you're holding the right book. Empowering Leadership details Michael's greatest insights on how to build better leaders faster by creating a leadership development culture in your church or organization--naturally, organically, continually. Empower your church or organization through great leadership. This book will show you how!

    Housewives and corporate executives. Young professionals and those who are retired. No matter their professions or responsibilities, women of all ages and all walks of life often struggle with an all-consuming issue-self-image. We as Americans are continually obsessed with the grass-is-greener, anything-else-is-better-than-what -we-have philosophy. And that is never truer for women than when it comes to our bodies and our self-images. The media and the world around us tell us that we should be perfect in every way. But this kind of scrutiny and obsession with perfection leaves women feeling unloved, unattractive, frustrated, and even depressed.In The Real Me, contemporary Christian singer and songwriter Natalie Grant is on a mission to especially help young women deal with this struggle and to find acceptance in how God created them. And this struggle is something that Natalie understands fully-she gives the reader an inside look at her own struggle with image issues that led her on the path to bulimia. In acknowledging her pain and sharing her struggle, she offers practical help and hope to women of all ages.

    What does this look like for us today? How can we be the kind of church member who makes a real difference?This engaging book by Tony Merida explores what church is, why being part of it is exciting, and why it's worthy of our love and commitment. He sets out eight privileges and responsibilities of a church member: to belong, to welcome, to gather, to care, to serve, to honor, to witness and to send.As we see how wonderful it is to belong to God's family and be a part of his amazing witness to both the earthly and the heavenly realms, we'll grow in our love for and commitment to our local church.This is a great book for every churchgoer to read, whether they're new or have been attending for some time but need re-energizing with God's vision for the local church.With discussion guides at the end of each chapter and video introductions, Love Your Church is also a great resource for small groups.

    Little do they know that the unsuspecting, yet odd-looking turtle, is a fiend in disguise. The town bully, Victor Lockett, kidnaps the reptile and finds out he’s made a terrible, terrible mistake! The turtle is now on the loose and the killings begin. Elmer Jacks, the pet shop proprietor, finally reveals the true identity of the turtle to the two boys. He says there is an old scroll that was lost which holds the answer to the cursed tortoise and can revert it back to human form. Charlie’s pretty neighbor, Sunni Russell, joins them on their hunt for the beast. With her help, they search the Internet for the answer to the reversal of the curse. But will they find it? And most importantly, if they find the turtle, will the special words on the scroll even work?

    It is boring, stagnant, and usually lacking in beauty. What if all you were able to see every day was this lifeless ground? If all we could see was the earth below our feet, we would miss the beauty of the world God created. We would be less than God designed us to be.This book is about seventeen women who chose to raise their eyes heavenward toward God by living lives of hope, boldness, generosity, and great faith. These are women of the bible whose faith will radically challenge you, encourage you, and move you to understand your faith in a new and beautiful way.This scriptural devotion for young women will inspire you to raise your head and look into the eyes of Jesus, the God who loves you. This is more than a book - it is a challenge to make a choice. We can spend our lives downcast, or we can lift our eyes up to choose beauty - to choose Jesus - and to choose the sky.

    Bestselling author and popular speaker Mary Ellen Edmunds presents her usual mix of humorous anecdotes and thoughtful insights in this positive, upbeat approach to one of life's most common (and perplexing) dilemmas.

    Some church music is dull. But here’s the thing: If Jesus had been boring, the disciples wouldn’t have followed him and the Pharisees wouldn’t have killed him. So if you’re bored, don’t waste another minute. If your church service feels like a failed pep rally that never leads to the actual game, then it’s time for you to follow Jesus onto the field where the opposition is real and the stakes are extraordinary. It will get messy. It won’t always be comfortable. But you’ll make a difference. And you’ll discover that nobody’s bored out there. Nobody.

    Written especially for young people between the ages of ten and fifteen, this book will help open doors of communication between parents and children, facilitating their discussion of: Conception, prenatal development, and birth Physical growth and maturation Love, marriage, and sex The law of chastity Growing Up offers the right information at the right time to help young people make the right choices.

    Raised by a Jewish mother and abandoned by his professional poker-playing father, Antonucci found Jesus at age twenty after studying the New Testament. When he finally went to church, he was disappointed to discover a "boring, stale religion." Through provocative storytelling and raw honesty, Antonucci unearths the life Jesus lived and wants us to experience, challenging us to move past spiritual boredom into a faith that's exciting, beautiful, and powerful. Recommended for all Christians thirsty for a fresh perspective on Christianity.

    In her compelling style, Sheri dew outlines five ways - scriptures, the gift of the Holy Ghost, priesthood ordinances, temple covenants, and the atonement of Jesus Christ - in which God makes His power available to us. "When we have the power of God with us, nothing is impossible," she states. God Wants a Powerful People explains how we can seek access to the powers of heaven to help us live up to who we really are.Talk on one compact disc Approx. running time: 60 min, About the Author Sheri Dew is the bestselling author of several books including the biographies of LDS Church Presidents Gordon B. Hinckley and Ezra Taft Benson and No Doubt About It. She served as second counselor in the general presidency of the Relief Society of the LDS Church from 1997 - 2002, and in March 2003 the White House appointed her as a member of the U.S. Delegation to the Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations.

    He shares practical ways for church leaders to move beyond the building walls and take the kingdom to those who need it most. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Scott argues that every believer, not just the leaders, can fill their city, workplace, and family with the beauty and power of Christ.   When believers become scattered servants, the Holy Spirit will equip them to advance the kingdom and change lives through their hearts and hands.

    Power. Prestige. Pastor Hilton Wilds has it all, but will temptation take it all away from him? Everyone at Endless Love Baptist Church adores Pastor Wilds, including women he has no business cavorting with, but the good pastor has one potentially fatal flaw – he loves women and never misses an opportunity to let lust lead him astray. Vonda Wilds was born to be the First Lady. Her strict upbringing set the stage for a life lived according to the virtues the Bible teaches, so marrying a pastor seemed like the ideal situation. But even the strongest and devout women can be fooled by the men they love. Pastor Wilds proclivity for women who aren’t his wife are about to cost him the life he and his devoted wife built together and shatter their tight-knit congregation. Both have serious decisions to make. Will they continue to pretend all is well or will they face the issues head on or will the temptation be too much for Pastor Wilds? Will his lust override his duty to the church and his marriage vows?

    Jack Parker has been content to go through middle school in a SPED small group class for the last two years and stay off the radar of the bullies in his school. While life at Hickory Hills Middle School has been safe for Jack, it has also gotten a bit dull with only four classmates (all boys) to spend the school day with. All of that changes in Jack's eighth grade year when girls and trouble show up in his small group class. Fast paced and funny, SPED tells the story of Jack and his classmates as he handles bullies at school and challenges at home and learns that growing up means taking chances - not only for himself but for those he cares about.

    They pray for prosperity but never receive it. Why? Because they don’t know how to use a godly imagination correctly. They don’t see themselves healed. They don’t see themselves prosperous. They don’t see themselves victorious. In The Power of Imagination, Andrew Wommack will unlock the power of your imagination and explain how you can put it to work giving you hope for the future. Without it, you’ll never fulfill God’s plan for your life. Circumstances will divert you and hardship will steal from you. But with it, you won’t be able to lose for winning! Never underestimate the power of your imagination!

    Discover a breathless fairy-tale romance with swoon-worthy characters set in a glittering celebrity world. Fans of reality TV will devour this pulse-pounding, sexy Hollywood drama. Follow the lives and loves of those who work at Captive Films: Riley Johnson — Captive Films’ CEO and millionaire playboy is hot, privileged, and seriously single. He’s got it all—a brand new jet, exotic cars, a luxury penthouse, and a different aspiring actress (or two) in his bed every night. His life is perfect until the only girl he ever loved walks back into it, causing him to wonder if he truly has it all. Keatyn Douglas — Hollywood’s sweetheart and owner of Captive Films leads a chaotic, glamorous life. But running a successful film studio, writing scripts, and her own acting career leave little time for the things she dreams of, like marrying the man she loves and having babies. When drama starts at work, she may decide to give it all up for life out of the fast lane. Dawson Johnson — The dark and dreamy marketing consultant joins Captive to escape his past. For the last two years, his sole focus has been on caring for his adorable daughters after tragedy struck their lives. He comes to Captive looking for a fresh start and, if all goes well, he might find a lot more than that in Hollywood. Knox Daniels — Considered the sexiest man alive by a certain magazine, the sentiment is echoed by the actor’s adoring fans. While romance abounds in the roles he plays, he’s convinced he’ll never find his own happily ever after—until he meets a woman who just might change that. Shelby Benson — The beautiful cocktail waitress and wanna-be actress struggles to make ends meet. A chance encounter with Riley Johnson is her lucky break and the golden ticket to everything she’s ever dreamed of—fame, power, money, sex, and love. Written soap-opera style with multiple points of view, you can expect lots of drama, sex, and tabloid-worthy events.