But the greatest advantage is this: You will know that you are doing more than providing exciting activities -- you are changing lives for eternity.A New Strategy for Youth MinistryAndy Stanley and Stuart Hall, both respected and effective leaders in the Christian Community, have developed a ground-breaking, dynamic plan for youth ministry of the coming decades. The Seven Checkpoints for Youth Leaders and the companion The Seven Checkpoints Student Journal presents a plan for a student's entire career in a youth group.The challenges facing our youth grow every year. Quick fixes and short-term programs will not provide the life-strengthening results needed for the teens of today. This revolutionary approach promises and delivers what is needed in the world of youth ministries around the country today.So what are you waiting for? You have a life to build. Open up this book and get the seven.

    Told from the point of view of one young member of an extended family, Give Thanks to the Lord celebrates all the joys of the autumn holiday, from the arrival of distant relatives to a cozy house filled with noisy good cheer to apple cider and the delicious smells of roasting turkey and baking pies. And just when mouths are watering, the family sits down, holds hands, and says a prayer of thanks to God for 'food and fun and family, all the wonderful things we see.' Young readers will delight in each tender rhyme as they learn to appreciate their own many blessings in this full-color picture book for kids. KARMA WILSON Her first poem was published at the tender age of six. The poem was ironically titled, 'I Don't Wanna Write a Poem!' Growing up, she had no desire to write. But Providence had different plans, and now Karma writes poems for a living when she's not busy being a wife and raising threekids. In her spare hours Karma spends time in the wilderness, lifts weights, cooks, and kickboxes. And she loves writing. Karma lives in Fione, MT.AMY JUNE BATES has illustrated dozens of children's books. She lives in Ann Arbor, MI, with her husband and their son, Evan.

    BROWN BOARDS WITH GOLD GILTING.

    No one says "please" or "thank you." Instead, they kick and yell and punch and shove. Then one day everything changes, when Baby Brute happens upon "a little wandering lost good feeling in a field of daisies." When he brings it home in his pocket, nothing is ever the same for the Little Brute Family.

    In their own words, these men and women describe feeling the Lord's blessings as they have served in some of the most harsh and difficult circumstances imaginable. Their experiences range from leading armed combat and air rescue missions to saving lives in a makeshift hospital tent. Also included are stories of much-needed help and support received by families of those who are serving away from home. These life-changing stories, recorded in on-site personal interviews by bestselling author and artist Chad Hawkins, are reminders that the Lord does watch over and protect His children during troubling times. Featured black-and-white photographs throughout.

    Based on an old Indian folk tale, this is the story of a thief who accompanies a wealthy jewel merchant on a journey, hoping to steal his treasure. See what important lesson the thief learns from the merchant. Family Reading

    They find just the right food for every creature—except for the two chameleons. These picky eaters won’t eat anything! Noah is worried! What will tempt these two? It is not until the ark’s food supply is suddenly threatened, that Noah gets a surprising answer—and discovers that even the SMALLEST creatures have a BIG role to play in nature!

    Experience an energetic day in the city through the eyes and ears of a young boy in this interactive picture book that’s ideal for reading aloud.

    Chu loves to do ballet, as he loves to twist and twirl and stand up on tiptoe. He is a good, well-behaved unicorn with one bad habit, which is a tendency not to listen to his mother or his kindergarten teachers. They are forever telling the little unicorn not to talk to strangers that he does not know. The words just float over Chu’s little unicorn head though and because of this, he finds himself in a potentially dangerous situation with a strange unicorn. Luckily, his teacher sees what is happening and rescues Chu. The little unicorn learns a valuable life lesson and from that moment on ignores strangers. For ages 4-5 years. Stunningly illustrated throughout. Written in rhyme. Teaches a valuable life lesson. A fun rhyming bedtime story or everyday story for your little ones with a serious and clear message about not talking to strangers. The following verse is repeated in the story making it easy to understand. “Stay away from all those you don’t know. “If you don’t know the unicorn, then turn and go!” Download your copy of The Little Unicorn Chu b> by scrolling up and clicking "Buy Now With 1-Click" button.

    When the storms of life blow-as they most certainly will-are you going to stand strong, bend, or break? Popular author Erwin Raphael McManus suggests that you discover how to rise above the normal reaction and learn to stand against the wind.Through thought-provoking chapters, McManus takes readers on a journey of transformation through the landscape of their character-from where they start out "Running Free," through "Rising Out of the Ashes," developing "Divine Imagination," and finally, reaching the "Greatness of Servanthood."Readers, ages 18-35, will appreciate this international consultant's expertise on culture, change, leadership, and creativity.

    But when they get to kindergarten, they discover that the girls play with the girls, and the boys with the boys; suddenly Ivy and Fletch find themselves apart on the playground, on the Princess Team and the Pirate Team. It isn't until Fletch steps in to rescue Princess Ivy from pirate capture that they realize they miss playing together. Can they desegregate their playground?This lighthearted story of cooperation and open-mindedness will resonate with kids, parents, and teachers everywhere.

    Bartholomew shares his love of scaly, hairy, and hoppy pets by bringing one to school each morning, starting a wild week that charms his classmates but challenges his teacher.

    Great for sharing one-on-one or in a language arts classroom.” —School Library Journal “This tongue-in-cheek way of delivering the rules of creative writing is clever, and paired with Le Huche’s earnest, childlike illustrations, it seems to be aimed at giving helpful direction to aspiring young creators.” —Kirkus Reviews From E.B. White Read Aloud author Adam Lehrhaupt comes an inspiring new picture book that takes apart the pieces of a story—hero, heroine, setting, conflict—and asks the reader to put the story back together again. This is a good story…or is it?As a child takes her pencil and begins to draw pictures for a story, the narrator takes her and the reader through a rollicking sequence of events in this classic tale of bad guys and townsfolk and dungeons. With simplicity and flair, Adam tells a story and then a meta-story of the parts of the story at once! This Is a Good Story is a wonderful primer on the parts of a story and an imaginative way to encourage creative thinking, writing, and storytelling.

    Sex has become just sex. But while society has taken sex too far, the church hasn't taken it far enough.God wants couples to make love in marriage-with passion, with purpose, and with pleasure. Marriages aren't experiencing all the benefits that come from a healthy sex life. Couples are facing a barrage of influences that keep them from connecting with each other regularly-the kids, the career, the house, the errands, etc.SEXPERIMENT shows people that sex in marriage is more than just sex, and it's more than a chore. The Youngs believe it's time to get back to understanding the context of sex in marriage and that it's time for couples to break the barriers keeping them from a healthy sexual relationship. Couples ought to experience the benefits of having sex regularly, intentionally, and creatively. SEXPERIMENT will allow couples to discover that the intersection of God and sex can lead to a life punctuated by exclamation marks!

    . .So begins a sweet rhyming story in which a group of animals recounts the events surrounding Jesus' birth in the manger, and the parts some of their ancestors played in it. This is also a counting book.