In order to discover the truth of the Gospels the Orthodox priest Father Spyridon guides the reader through reflections on how to rediscover that ancient path to Christ. Together with quotations from the Church Fathers he highlights how far from the teachings of Christ and the Apostles so much of what passes for Christianity has become. Dealing with issues such as the saints, the family, sex, theosis, repentance, wealth and others, he demonstrates that the faith of the Early Church is alive in our world and to be found in Orthodoxy. A challenging read, The Ancient Path pulls no punches in its call for Christians to return to the authentic path of faith and encourages us all to see the dangers of modern ife. Please note - the page numbers in the contents page refer to the paperback version.

    You'll treasure their insight, still fresh and vital. And you'll discover what it means to offer God your very best for His greatest purpose--to truly offer Him your utmost for His highest. This edition includes Chambers's text, updated by editor James Reimann, along with helpful subject and scripture indexes.

    We cage them or clip their wings to keep them where we want them. Scot McKnight contends that many, conservatives and liberals alike, attempt the same thing with the Bible. We all try to tame it. McKnight’s The Blue Parakeet has emerged at the perfect time to cool the flames of a world on fire with contention and controversy. It calls Christians to a way to read the Bible that leads beyond old debates and denominational battles. It calls Christians to stop taming the Bible and to let it speak anew for a new generation.In his books The Jesus Creed and Embracing Grace, Scot McKnight established himself as one of America’s finest Christian thinkers, an author to be reckoned with. In The Blue Parakeet, McKnight again touches the hearts and minds of today’s Christians, this time challenging them to rethink how to read the Bible, not just to puzzle it together into some systematic theology but to see it as a Story that we’re summoned to enter and to carry forward in our day. In his own inimitable style, McKnight sets traditional and liberal Christianity on its ear, leaving readers equipped, encouraged, and emboldened to be the people of faith they long to be.

    In this book Pastor Chuck teaches the call to the ministry, church government, the rapture of the church and the priority of studying the Word of God.

    That's the conviction of Tim Chester as he seeks to help everyday Christians connect the truth about God with our Monday-morning struggles. This interactive book, laid out in workbook fashion, is for newer Christians struggling with sin and for more mature Christians who have plateaued in their faith as they seek to find victory over sin in their lives.With a conviction that sanctification is God's work and the journey to holiness is joyful, Chester guides readers through a change project-beginning with the selection of one area of life they would like to modify. Each chapter includes a question (e.g., Why would you like to change? What truths do you need to turn to?) to guide readers as they deal with a specific sin or struggle, truths from God's word, and a reflection guide to help readers through their change project.

    Soccer practice. Dirty dishes.Motherhood is tough, and it often feels like the to-do list just gets longer and longer every day--making it hard to experience true joy in God, our children, and the gospel.In this encouraging book for frazzled moms, Gloria Furman helps us reorient our vision of motherhood around what the Bible teaches. Showing how to pursue a vibrant relationship with God--even when discouragement sets in and the laundry still needs to be washed--this book will help you treasure Christ more deeply no matter how busy you are.

    

    Even as she struggled, Norris recognized her familiar battle with acedia. She had discovered the word in an early Church text when she was in her thirties. Having endured times of deep soul-weariness since she was a teenager, she immediately recognized that this passage described her affliction: sinking into a state of being unable to care. Fascinated by this “noonday demon,” so familiar to those in the early and medieval Church, Norris read intensively and knew she must restore this forgotten but utterly relevant and important concept to the modern world’s vernacular. Like Norris’s The Cloister Walk, Acedia & me is part memoir and part meditation. As in her Amazing Grace, here Norris explicates and demystifies a spiritual concept, exploring acedia through the geography of her life as a writer; her marriage and the challenges of commitment in the midst of grave illness; and her keen interest in the monastic tradition. Unlike her earlier books, this one features a poignant narrative throughout of Norris’s and her husband’s bouts with acedia and its clinical cousin, depression. Moreover, her analysis of acedia reveals its burden not just on individuals but on whole societies— and that the “restless boredom, frantic escapism, commitment phobia, and enervating despair that we struggle with today are the ancient demon of acedia in modern dress.”

    Yet it is highly personal too an anchorbetween the daily and the divine, the mundane and the marvelous.Says author Robert Benson, At some point, high-minded discussion about our life ofprayer has to work its way into the dailyness of our lives. At some point, we have to movefrom talking about prayer to saying our prayers so that the marvelous that is possible has achance to appear."In Constant Prayer" is your gateway to deeper communion with God. Expect somethingnew to unfold before you and within you while heeding this ancient call.The Ancient PracticesThere is a hunger in every human heart for connection, primitive and raw, to God.To satisfy it, many are beginning to explore traditional spiritual disciplines used forcenturies . . . everything from fixed-hour prayer to fasting to sincere observance of theSabbath. Compelling and readable, the Ancient Practices series is for every spiritualsojourner, for every Christian seeker who wants more."

    This popular introduction to praying the rosary draws readers closer to Jesus and Mary by placing the mysteries-including the new mysteries of light-in the context of Scripture. The book addresses commonly asked questions about Mary and the rosary and provides the biblical background for all twenty mysteries. It also includes a scriptural rosary that offers ten Bible texts suitable for meditation on each mystery. An appendix offers the complete text of Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Letter, Rosarium Virginis Mariae. A Servant Book.

    Adoration is the simple practice Sara discovered for starting where you are, and letting the grit of your day greet the beauty of God's presence.Adoration is for the woman who feels frenzied and fearful in the middle minutes of her day. It is a simple practice for 7:37 a.m. when the children are waking and the dryer is already humming but also for the 12:17 p.m. lunch break and for 5:53 p.m. while stuck in traffic.Adoration is the place where we put how we feel in front of God's Word, and watch what happens to our insides. It's what you were made for. Join Sara in this soul-stirring journey through thirty attributes of God which you can walk through at your own pace. Learn how the simple habit of adoration--in the middle minutes of your day--can help you see God with fresh eyes, and talk to Him right there. Experience a new way of engaging with God in your everyday. Adore will show you how.

      Todd Wagner invites readers to experience the adventure, goodness, and fullness of life that God has intended for humankind from the beginning of time and especially today through His provision through His people. Weekly meetings of mostly bored adults who regularly attend services have nothing to do with God’s vision for His people. Wagner paints the picture of a perfect Father’s intention to bring His people into an adventurous life full of authentic relationships, powerful transformation, and seemingly impossible significance and meaning.

    They sensed that Jesus was "for" them--not against them. When broken, sinful people feel repelled by Christians, we must assess whether our hearts reveal the heart of God or reflect the heart of the Pharisees. Through this engaging study of Jesus's encounters with imperfect people, combined with real-life stories of ordinary people having Christlike impact, readers will learn how to show unshockable love toward those around them.

    Guenther also discusses basic matters of Christian practice, such as making a confession, intercession, going on retreat, simplifying our lives, using a journal to pray, finding a spiritual director, and praying through times of desolation when God does not seem to be listening.

    Fil Anderson had accomplished more for God than most of his contemporaries, but his worn-out body housed an empty soul. His frenetic pace of ministry had earned him just one thing: greater pressure to do even more. He had fallen for the soul-killing lie that doing more for God would give his life meaning. Then the godly admonition of a spiritual director set this burned-out believer on a life-saving spiritual path. This powerful story of a reawakened soul can be the story of every person who has pursued spiritual productivity over intimacy with God and come up empty. It’s the story of reclaiming your soul and finding a home in the center of God’s relentless love. It’s the journey from self-importance to God-importance. The solution is not greater achievements for the kingdom of God. It’s time to stop living for God and start living with God. In this candid and achingly authentic book, Fil Anderson shares the healing insights that restored his spiritual compass and guided him back to God … the God who specializes in filling empty souls. “To the harried and the unharried, I pray that this book will minister to your heart in the profound way that it has blessed mine.” —Brennan ManningFrom the Hardcover edition.