Stress, disappointment, heartache, hurt–all are part of the human condition. But while pain is unavoidable, misery is optional! The freeing message of You Gotta Keep Dancin’ is that, no matter what your circumstances, you can choose to be joyful. Tim Hansel speaks as one who knows. For the past ten years he has lived with continual physical pain, the result of a climbing mishap in the Sierras. But You Gotta Keep Dancin’ is not just another story of a Christian who had an accident. It is a powerful account of God’s working in one man’s physical and emotional suffering, helping him discover the real meaning of joy. Tim doesn’t treat lightly the difficulties of anyone’s life. In his words, “this book is in no way meant to diminish the awfulness of pain, tragedy, and affliction. I don’t want to ‘celebrate pain,’ but more deeply understand the dignity of what can happen in it, through it, and because of it.” Tim Hansel is the founder of Summit Expedition, a wilderness survival school for individuals seeking deeper experiences with themselves, others, and God. In great demand as a speaker and seminar leader, Tim is also the author of the best-selling When I Relax I Feel Guilty and What Kids Need Most in a Dad. He makes his home in San Dimas, California, with his wife. You have changed my sadness into a joyful dance. Psalm 30:11

    It is time for us to come into the fullness of who we were created to be, so all of creation will come back to Father God's house. Father God never intended for us to live as orphans without a Father or without a home. As you read this Revised Edition of Healing the Orphan Spirit, receive a revelation of how to live from your identity as a child of Father God. The orphan spirit cannot be cast out; it can only be displaced by love, because perfect love casts out all fear.

    The starting place is generosity, he says, and there are seven gifts that are sure to improve the lives of both giver and receiver: encouragement, energy, enthusiasm, good humor, graciousness, gratitude, and patience. Anyone can give these gifts, but Hewitt shows that some people are particularly well placed to offer them: parents, spouses, family members, friends, teachers, coworkers, and fellow church members.Channeling his skills as a broadcaster, journalist, lawyer, and teacher, Hewitt weaves stories about these seven gifts and seven givers with inspiring and motivating observations to help readers become generous in the ways that matter most. "The Happiest Life is not simply a delight to read, and not merely a glimpse under the hood of a remarkable man. It’s a map to what Robert Frost once described as the road less traveled—the road that leads to a life of meaning and gratitude and joy.”—Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., Archbishop of Philadelphia"Reading this book is the next best thing to sitting down for a long conversation with my friend Hugh Hewitt.”—Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary“Wanna be a happier person? Know anyone else who does? What if this book could actually help with that? Cutting to the chase—it can. And it will."—Eric Metaxas, New York Times best-selling author of Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy and 7 Men: And the Secret of Their Greatness

    Many of us have gone through bad church experiences that have left us feeling like failures. Blaming ourselves, we asked for God's forgiveness, but felt distant from the church and sometimes from God too. Often, however, the fault is not ours but that of Christian leaders who abuse spiritually. How can we recognize the signs of spiritual abuse? What can we do to gain healing from the wounds we have experienced? With clarity and refreshing honesty, Ken Blue answers these questions and offers hope and healing to the victims of spiritual abuse. In addition he shows Christian leaders how to avoid abusive patterns and instead offer Christ's gospel of grace to every casualty of bad church experiences.

    Authors David Wheeler and Vernon Whaley cite Scripture to explain "The Mandate of Worship and the Great Commission" and then show how worship—in relation to the Great Commission—is formational, transformational, relational, missional, commissional, and reproducible. Each chapter includes five "life questions" for reader reflection while the book concludes with steps for practical application and ten principles for developing "lifestyle worship evangelism."

    She is of immense value to God. She is precious to Him. She is His daughter, an heir of the promise, a co-heir of the grace of life with you. Do you feel that? Does it make your chest knot up? Do you get a little bit afraid? Maybe a lot afraid? Good. Hold that pose.In recent decades, we have essentially reduced marriage to a permanent roommate situation with sexual benefits. But marriage is not about something as low-stakes as “who gets to control the remote.” Your husband or wife is no mere mortal, but an eternal soul who is going to grow closer to God or further from Him because they are married to you. Add children to the mix—even more eternal souls! That’s why the biblical picture of the family is something far more powerful, far more dangerous, far more glorious—far more like a nuclear reactor—than anything else in modern society.No Mere Mortals: Marriage for People Who Will Live Forever shows how husbands can lead their wives, and how wives can follow their husbands, and how both together, building on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ, can shape future generations and the world.

    After all, Jesus himself said that some people will do seemingly "Christian" things in his name but will not truly know him. Or maybe you know you are not a Christian and you wonder what it really means to be one.To be sure, however, there is clarity from God's perspective. He is not confused about who does and does not know him. And though our self-awareness is certainly limited, we have been given biblical criteria to help us evaluate whether we are indeed followers of Christ.Mike McKinley shows us the importance of examining our standing with God and helps us to fearlessly ask the hard questions, ultimately allowing us to see whether we are in the faith and what exactly that entails.

    In Jesus Without Borders, Gibbs steps outside of his very comfortable existence, to learn what it is like to be a Christian anywhere else in the world.Over the course of many months, Chad and his Alabama worldview spent time with believers from Beijing to Rio de Janeiro, worshiping with them and observing not only how their faith influences their daily lives but also how their daily lives influence their faith, in hopes of learning which parts of his faith have been compromised by the American Dream.Reflecting on conversations and experiences, Gibbs wrestles with a wide range of questions from his conservative Christian background, including politics and patriotism in the church and how living in Alabama has shaped his views on pacifism, alcohol, and Christ himself. An attempt to extract and examine the biases in the author s own faith, Jesus Without Borders will have readers questioning if they believe certain things because they are a Christian, or because they are an American, as they meet believers from around the world with differing views on a variety of subjects.Told with Gibbs trademark humor, Jesus Without Borders enlightens and entertains, introducing readers to believers around the world in hopes of eliminating prejudices and misconceptions, clearing away the parts of our culture that keep us from seeing a clearer picture of Christ, and living connected to the family of faith around the globe."

    But what about the rest of us? Other Christians, including introverted, reflective people, are left with feelings of guilt and fear and the desire to become more outgoing. The problem, says Mike Bechtle, is not their personality, but that they've been taught methods of evangelism that push them too far out of their comfort zone.In Evangelism for the Rest of Us, Bechtle shows readers how to share their faith in more comfortable ways by helping them discover and define their unique strengths within their personality type. With fresh, biblical insight, this much-needed resource renews a passion for sharing Christ with others, because telling the Good News does not have to be so intimidating.

    It's sad but true: The American church is shrinking...fast.  God-loving people are leaving in droves, and everything that attracted them in the past simply doesn't work anymore.  Is there anything the church can do to turn the tide?Why Nobody Wants to Go to Church Anymore reveals the truth about this steep decline, along with innovative ideas for changing the way people think about church.  Through startling statistics, compelling stories, and a surprising Jesus-based approach, you'll be stretched to redefine the way you do church.It all begins by embracing four simple acts of love: Radical hospitality Fearless conversation Genuine humility Divine anticipation  Far from theoretical musings, these practical acts show Jesus' love to people who crave it.  You'll see why they really work, how they're taking root in hundreds of communities around the country, and how you can help bring people back into a relationship with God.The time for changing the church is now.  And the one who can change it is you.

    Prayer is the determining factor for maximum spiritual impact. The more we pray the more God works. Of all the skills needed by the difference-making spiritual leader, none is more important than prayer.Tracing the lives of high-impact Christian leaders from Abraham to Billy Graham, Dave Earley reveals the central role that prayer played in their effectiveness. In doing so, he points out the eight practices Christian leaders can apply to become more effective in their prayer lives, and therefore, more spiritually influential as a leader.While prayer is not the only weapon in the Christian leader's arsenal, it is one of the most powerful and often under-utilized. This book will inspire, transform, stretch, enhance, strengthen, and renew the prayer lives of readers.Prayer: The Timeless Secret of High-Impact Leaders is filled with juicy quotes and anecdotes; it gives dozens of practical applications of the principles discussed.

    . . at last.Somewhere along the way, the Christianity you knew began to crumble. You began to suspect your faith was misplaced. Disillusionment set in. Churches hurt you. Their people failed you. Christian institutions were exposed as fake. And in it all, God was silent. Is He gone? Or is God really there, waiting for you to find Him instead of the counterfeits?If you’re walking this difficult spiritual path, Lina AbuJamra understands you. After experiencing the near deconstruction of her own faith, Lina had to rebuild something more solid when the faith she once knew let her down. With her diagnostic style that comes from her training as an ER doc, Lina helps you grapple with questions like:Where is God in my pain?Is this how Christians are supposed to act?Why did my story end up this way?Is this the normal Christian life?Why is it so hard for Christians to love?Let Fractured Faith help you find your way back to God. You just might discover that the real God has been waiting for you all along.

    But if we are all honest, it feels like trying to catch the wind.God has carved out a space in each of us that only He can fill. God is invisible, and yet He is the only thing we can chase that won’t leave us feeling more empty. Chase, a seven-session, video-based study by Jennie Allen, looks at David’s life as it weaves throughout the pages of Scripture to reveal that he was a man who spent his life chasing after God. Chase explores the events that defined David’s life and the Psalms that flowed out of those experiences. Through David’s example we’ll discover what God really wants from us. Whether you are running from God or working your tail off to please Him, David’s journey will challenge your view of God. This video download can be used for personal reflection or for group discussion with the accompanying participant's guide.

    Jay Dennis has unlocked the secret in The Jesus Habits. The author presents the disciplines that shaped Jesus’ life. They were his priority and the touchstone to the rhythm of his day. They have been practiced for centuries by mystics, monks, and saints, but they can often be overlooked and undervalued in our fast-paced, hurried-and-harried modern lives. These habits are for everyone—the busy executive to the stay-at-home mom. These Jesus habits form distinguishable patterns in the life of Jesus that can become a reality in the life of any Christian.

    In such an environment, how can even faith be immune to doubt? Can I really trust in the gospel? Does God really love me? Can I really be of any use to God? We are taught to doubt but commanded to believe. Somehow we think that admitting to doubt is tantamount to insulting God. But doubt is not a sign of spiritual weakness--rather it's an indication of spiritual growing pains. Alister McGrath, no stranger to a faith born of doubt, here offers good news to doubters: your faith can grow, and strengthen as it grows. It needs to take root in your experience of God, it needs to take in the nourishment of instruction in the words and ways of God, it needs to be stretched into greater obedience to the commands and calling of God--but it can grow beyond doubt into a thriving relationship.