While the extent of the church’s message has traditionally been, "If you’re not married, don’t do it," and "If you are married, don’t talk about it, " it’s time to see what God has to say sexual intimacy.With the Song of Solomon as a backdrop, bestselling author Sharon Jaynes will take you on a daring journey to discover how torecognize outside factors that cause hurt feelings and create healthy boundaries that protect your relationship;overcome feelings of guilt about your level of desire for physical intimacy by understanding God’s original intent;recognize the warning signs of growing indifference by taking steps to make marriage a priority;regain the passion of the early years by remembering and returning to what brought you together in the first place; andrecalibrate the direction your marriage is headed by starting with the end in mind.When we see God's design for spiritual and physical oneness, we'll have the foundation for a love that lasts a lifetime.

    That’s one way to describe Peter. Here’s another: poor, uneducated, quick-tempered, and full of doubts and fears. Doesn’t even sound like the same man. And that’s the point of Simon Peter, a new book and six-week adult Bible study by Adam Hamilton. Peter was just an ordinary guy who heard and followed God’s extraordinary call. Discover how you, too, have special gifts, talents, and abilities that God can use to make a difference today. In addition to the Leader Guide and DVD components for adult studies, corresponding youth and children’s resources, sold separately, can be used to create a churchwide study.Chapters Include: The Call of the Fisherman Walking with Jesus in the Storm Bedrock or Stumbling Block? “I Will Not Deny You” From Cowardice to Courage The Rest of the Story

    Through biblical teaching and lessons from her own life, Christine will challenge you to share the story of how God's love has transformed your life right where you are.Features: Leader helps to guide questions and discussions within small groupsPersonal study segments to complete between 7 weeks of group sessionsEnriching teaching videos, approximately 30 minutes per session, available for purchase or rentBenefits: Experience the unconditional love and call of Jesus.Discover your inherent value and kingdom mission.Gain confidence to share the living hope of Christ.Help people belong in a world where they feel unseen.

    World-renowned author and teacher, Jerry Savelle shares the secrets to obtaining and maintaining joy. It is in maintaining your joy that readers will find strength. No matter what Satan may try to steal, if he can't steal your joy, he can't win!

    He sees them with his naked eyes, as vividly and clearly as anything else. Everyplace he goes, every person he meets, every day that goes by, he sees in the spirit.After thirty years of seeing in the spirit, one thing has consistently been the most painful for him to see. It is not when he sees someone trapped in demonic oppression. It is not when he sees the gaping wounds of emotional trauma. It is when he sees the goodness of God go unclaimed by His people.In this book Healy takes readers on a journey of rediscovering the goodness of God. It fills the churches we visit every week. It moves across the sea from nation to nation. All we have to do is learn how to see it and receive it, and then we will watch every corner of the world be completely transformed by the power of His profound good. Other books by Blake Healy include: The Veil  978-1-62999-490-1

    Author Amanda Hudson provides a personal touch with cultural curiosities, profound questions about the nature and practice of faith, as she travels to five countries: Brazil, Wales, Tanzania, China, and Honduras.Part reflection, part entertaining travelogue, Coffee Tea, and Holy Water explores everything from each culture's offer of hospitality to life in a Masaai boma. "There are lessons to be learned from other countries that are not visible in our own culture," writes Hudson, "Questions that are not our questions. Struggles that are not our normal struggles. And yet, when we look around the throne one day at the nations assembled there, instead of marveling at the diversity, I think we will actually be fascinated by what we all had in common." This is a book about the places we meet, what we share, how we can learn to cross borders (geographical, cultural, personal), and learning that the steps to do so make all the difference.Honest, witty, and thought-provoking, these stories come from a young woman raised in the South, who found herself wondering what "normal" Christianity looked like in other countries.

    Simon & Schuster has a great book for every reader.

    Popular biblical scholar and author N. T. Wright provides his own Scripture translation and brief reflection, helping readers understand Advent in the wider context of Gods love.Wrights engaging and accessible writing and imagery help us see Advent both in relation to the Bibles message and in our own lives today. Each week discusses key themes for the season: thanksgiving, patience, humility, and joy. This book is suitable for both individual and group study and reflection.

    Organized under monthly themes, these prayers, sermons, meditations, letters, and notes offer readers a new glimpse at how Bonhoeffer understood the meaning of faith and discipleship. Featuring selections from classic works such as The Cost of Discipleship and Letters and Papers from Prison, this set of writings follows the church year, making it ideal for year-long devotional use by readers seeking to be challenged and enlightened by Bonhoeffer's call to find God at the center of their lives.

    In more modern terminology, it describes a posture of unshakeable resolve and determination. If there was ever a time for us to be adamant about love and truth it is now. God is Love. God is Truth. Both love and truth are timeless, transcending our current trends and opinions. Sometimes the most loving thing we will ever do is to speak the truth, but speaking truth begins with living it.Using the mediums of Scripture and story, author Lisa Bevere takes readers on a journey to the one place they can learn not only to abide in God's unshakeable truth and love, but become adamant--people who are unmovable, determined, and steadfast. Lisa unpacks the concept of the adamant for readers, linking together the grand story of Scripture and God's purpose in their lives. God's plan is revealed as we dwell in him, it is there that we are forged and shaped. As we abide in Christ our Cornerstone we are shaped into the image of the adamant.

    Too often people want to shape Him and His message to fit their personal needs or agendas. So how can we know the truth?Join Seamless author Angie Smith in this 8-session search for truth as she unfolds the story of our matchless Savior--His mission, miracles, and message. Through her signature wit and accessible style, Angie unpacks Scripture in a way that's easy to understand, regardless of how long you've been studying the Bible (a great option for new believers!). This study will deepen your understanding of Jesus through biblical, historical, and cultural insight and help you see Him less as an iconic figure and more as an intimate friend.Features: Leader helps to guide questions and discussions within small groupsPersonal study segments to complete between 8 weeks of group sessionsTeaching videos, approximately 10-15 minutes per session, available for purchase or rentBenefits: Enrich your understanding of Jesus in His historical and cultural contexts.Allow the truth about Jesus to confront your doubt.Get equipped to share the gospel of Jesus with others.

    Before we can greet the coming of the light, we need to engage with some themes that are challenging and occasionally fearful. Like the magi who travelled a long distance to search out and adore the infant Jesus, and who took some wrong turnings on the way, we too have a journey to undertake, before we find that we have.

    Understand the anticipation and waiting the Old Testament world endured, the joy and new life signaled by the coming of Christ, and the way Advent points to the glory of God still to come. (5 sessions)Features: Beautiful, full-color designed pages to ready participants for the Christmas seasonPersonal study segments to complete between 5 weeks of group sessionsWeekly activities for adults, teens, and kidsTips to guide discussion within small groupsBenefits: Fuel your worship of Christ with a deeper understanding of Advent.Grasp God's character and His work on behalf of His people, in the past and present, as a catalyst to a more intimate relationship with Him.Learn how to practically extend joy, hope, peace, and love to others during the holiday season.

    In a given year, 17% of Americans will feel the effects of a panic attack. Anxiety-related issues are the number one mental health problem among women and are second only to alcohol and drug abuse among men. Between 1997 and 2004, Americans more than doubled their spending on anti-anxiety medications from $900 million to $2.1 billion.We are tense. Why? Change is one reason. Sociologists speculate the world has changed more in the last thirty years than it has in the last three hundred! Every day seems to bring new change and threats. We also face personal challenges—job loss, cancer, divorce, addiction, bankruptcy. Add to personal challenges those of a global nature imported into our lives every few seconds thanks to smart phones, TVs, and computer screens. In our parents' day, the nightly news caught them up on world events. Now it is a matter of minutes.Anxiety just comes with life. However, as God's Word reveals, it doesn’t have to dominate life. In this five-session video-based Bible study (DVD/digital video sold separately), bestselling author Max Lucado looks at seven admonitions from the apostle Paul in Philippians 4:4–8 that lead to one wonderful promise: "The peace of God which surpasses all understanding." As he unpacks each verse, he shows how God is ready to give comfort to help us face the calamities in life, view bad news through the lens of sovereignty, discern the lies of Satan, and tell ourselves the truth. We can be anxious for nothing, and discover true peace from God that surpasses all human understanding.Sessions include: Rejoice in the Lord Always Let Your Gentleness Be Known to All In Everything by Prayer… with Thanksgiving The Peace of God… Will Guard Your Hearts Meditate on These Things Designed for use with the Anxious for Nothing Video Study (sold separately).

    One will learn communion's origin deepen his relationship with God and be challenged in discipleship.