Sometimes, you have to shot block a friend’s prayer because she’s asking God to bless an obviously bad dating relationship. Sometimes, you think, “I wish I had a t-shirt that said ‘I direct deposit my tithe’ so people wouldn’t judge me.” Sometimes, the stuff that comes with faith is funny. This is that stuff. Jonathan Acuff’s Stuff Christians Like is your field guide to all things Christian. In it you’ll learn the culinary magic of the crock-pot. Think you’ve got a Metro worship leader—Use Acuff’s checklist. Want to avoid a prayer handholding faux pas? Acuff has you covered. Like a satirical grenade, Acuff brings us the humor and honesty that galvanized more than a million online readers from more than 200 countries in a new portable version. Welcome to the funny side of faith.

    So with pen in hand, she embarked on a journey that forever changed her—and many others around the world. In these powerful pages are the words and Scriptures Jesus lovingly laid on her heart. Words of reassurance, comfort, and hope.  Words that have made her increasingly aware of His presence and allowed her to enjoy His peace. Jesus is calling out to you in the same way. Maybe you share the author’s need for a great sense of “God with you”. Or perhaps Jesus seems distant without you knowing why. Or maybe you have wandered farther from Him that you ever imagined you would. Here is a year’s worth of daily readings from Young’s journals to bring you closer to Christ and move your time with Him from monologue to a dialogue. Each day is written as if Jesus Himself were speaking to you. Because He is. Do you hear Him calling?

    We yearn for more, or less, or something that’s just different from what we have right now. Deep down, we know there must be satisfaction for our longing. We just don’t know where to find it.In Sandcastle Kings, Rich Wilkerson uses four powerful stories from the seventh chapter of Luke to explain why spiritual fulfillment cannot be found in ourselves, in other people, in material things, or even in religion. By studying the stories of the centurion’s faith, the resurrection of the widow’s son, Jesus’ message about John the Baptist, and the anointing by the woman with the alabaster jar, you will be able to face your doubts and insecurities and overcome your anxiety, discontentment, and depression. Wilkerson wants you to understand that the only answer for your spiritual bankruptcy is Jesus and that until you turn to him you will never experience the lasting peace and joy you so desperately crave.

    Josh McDowell's timeless examination of the true nature of Christ and his impact on our lives is one of the best-selling Christian books ever. Written by a former skeptic of Christianity, it is a hard-hitting book for those who doubt Jesus' deity and his purpose.

    It is intended to instruct the faithful, and satisfy their pious desires. There might, perhaps, have been some reason to fear, at the very outset, that the mere title of Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ, however it might attract many persons to read this book, might also deter many others. Arrested by the first words, they might be led to form an inaccurate idea of the devotion. To remove this difficulty, it has been thought well to explain in the beginning, what is understood by devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ. Experience has proved, that there is no one, who, after seeing in what it consists, does not agree, that it is reasonable, solid, and most useful, for our salvation, as well as for our perfection

    People are the best and worst thing about the human life.Jen Hatmaker knows this all too well, and so she reveals how to practice kindness, grace, truthfulness, vision, and love to ourselves and those around us. By doing this, For the Love leads our generation to reimagine Jesus' grace as a way of life, and it does it in a funny yet profound manner that Christian readers will love. Along the way, Hatmaker shows readers how to reclaim their prophetic voices and become Good News again to a hurting, polarized world.

    The Atheist knows that god did not make man. The opposite is true - man made god in the image and likeness of a man, in the form of a virile Greco-Roman male in his early prime. Man completed this effort over 2,300 years ago. With this creation came religion. We know that religion requires unconditional belief and complete submission, without thought. Any discipline based on belief in man’s written words - requires complete submission - without concern for facts; and a set of rules that knowingly and completely overlook self-determination - appears cult like, trivial, and not worthy of respect. Upon examining, the benefits of believing Atheists realize that any benefit or benefits derived from affiliation with religion are at their very best meaningless or insignificant. Atheists are aware of atrocities committed in the name of spiritual superiority. Atheists view these events as wasteful, shameful, and as always elusive of any perceived victory and devoid of any social redeeming qualities or values. Accepting this truth is imperative, as it is so easy to verify, too many lose contact with reality based on trivial religious beliefs and bizarre religious doctrine. Most of religion’s beliefs are products of the ninth thru fifteenth century - the Dark-Ages period of Western Europe. These products include very basic child-like stories intended for the most uneducated members of society including pseudo horror stories. The stories are about demons, evil spirits, devils, and the like. However, the target audience changed now religion is an exceedingly mainstream belief system and extremely profitable for its promoters. Religion’s impact on our society is shocking, almost mind boggling. The wild stories work even today. If you are a clever preacher, you can tell your followers you saw a man walk on water. Many will believe you. The answers to the so-called mysteries of faith never elude us as they are in any public library. Most are just too lazy, complacent, stupid, or fearful to conduct the required research to explore such topics. “He who knows nothing is closer to the truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods and errors” Thomas Jefferson April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826 Truth is not in demand in this society. We stand in abject fear of learning the truth. In being honest with ourselves, we must admit and accept that of our own volition we constructed a high tech do-it-yourself version of the European Dark-Ages in this so-called 21st century. We refer to this, as fundamentalism. After a thousand years of mental conditioning, we must admit the churches trained us too well. Now these habits are difficult to break, but changing a habit is not impossible. Always remember... “After your death, you will be what you were before your birth” Arthur Schopenhauer February 22 1788 – September 21 1860

    It will help you to develop strong habits of prayer, to prepare for and participate in public liturgy thoughtfully, and to nurture a mind and soul ready to work and give and pray for the spread of the kingdom. Saint Augustine's Prayer Book features "Holy Habits of Prayer," devotions to accompany Holy Eucharist, Stations of the Cross, and Stations of the Resurrection, and a wide range of litanies, collects, and prayers for all occasions. The newly revised edition includes the treasured liturgies and prayers of the original while offering some important updates in language and content. Revised and edited by well-regarded scholars David Cobb and Derek Olsen.

    Editorial Reviews Hixon, a disciple of both Ramakrishna's wife and his spiritual successor, provides contemporary commentary based on The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna and The Great Master . This retelling in clear contemporary English requires no background knowledge and makes accessible the ideas of a most remarkable Hindu saint who worshipped Kali, the Divine Mother, but also experienced union with Jesus, Muhammad, and Allah. Hixon claims his book ``is not a conventional biography but a workbook'' to provide Ramakrishna's guidance to the spiritually inclined reader of any religious tradition and to clarify the mystical path. Hixon is self-effacing: what shines through is Ramakrishna sanctity and wisdom, as well as the devotion of his disciples. Recommended for most libraries.

    A perfect way to live Lent to the full this year - Lent is a time to refocus our hearts and revive our love of the Lord and one another.A Companion for the Forty Days of Lent, featuring original meditations on the Gospel reading of each day by fifteen gifted authors.Each issue of the Lenten Companion is never the same as the last and contains these one-of-a-kind extras that you won’t find anywhere else:- Inspiring reflections from some of the most gifted Catholic writers for each day- Faith-filled essays- Prayers, poetry, and devotions- Meditations for the Way of the Cross- A treasury of spiritual insights

    Our lives are radically ordinary and unexciting. That means they're the kind of lives God gets excited about. While the world worships beauty and power and wealth, God hides his glory in the simple, the mundane, the foolish, working in unawesome people, things, and places. In our day of celebrity worship and online posturing, this is a refreshing, even transformative way of understanding God and our place in his creation. It urges us to treasure a life of simplicity, to love those whom the world passes by, to work for God's glory rather than our own. And it demonstrates that God has always been the Lord of the cross--a Savior who hides his grace in unattractive, inglorious places.Your God Is Too Glorious reminds readers that while a quiet life may look unimpressive to the world, it's the regular, everyday people that God tends to use to do his most important work.

    Each Small Miracles book is a collection of more than sixty heartwarming stories that recall remarkable coincidences that have changed people's ordinary lives.

    Scripture readings, prayers, psalms, hymnody, and writings from the Church Fathers provide everything needed for daily devotion, all in one place. Other selected resources are included to deepen meditation on God's Word. Lutheran leadership and laity appreciate the organized approach and accessibility of materials as well as the richer, more intentional life of prayer and meditation that comes from it. A bonus ribbon bookmark accompanies each book.

    Brown, is written in response to Strange Fire, written by Dr. John MacArthur. It is with good reason that pastors and leaders who differ with Dr. MacArthur on the issue of the Charismatic Movement do so with deference and respect, since his very substantial and beneficial contribution to the Church in this generation is undeniable. If we had more leaders like John MacArthur, the Church and the world would be in much better shape. But Pastor MacArthur’s criticisms of the Charismatic Movement are inaccurate, unhelpful, often harshly judgmental, sometimes without scriptural support, and frequently divisive in the negative sense of the word. When he damns millions of godly believers, demeans the real work of the Spirit, accuses true worshipers of blaspheming the Spirit, and calls for an all-out war against the Charismatic Movement, a strong corrective is needed, along with a positive statement of the truth of the matter. Authentic Fire is not meant to be a rebuttal of Strange Fire at every point. Instead, while interacting at times with material from the book and conference, and while correcting what the author believes to be serious errors and misstatements, the book is more of a positive response to Strange Fire. Authentic Fire will serve a lasting, worthwhile purpose even for those who will never read Strange Fire. Michael L. Brown holds a PhD from New York University in Near Eastern languages and literatures and is recognized as one of the leading Messianic Jewish scholars in the world today. He is the founder and president of FIRE School of Ministry, host of the nationally syndicated daily talk radio show The Line of Fire, and the author of more than twenty books. He is a contributor to The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion and other scholarly publications.

    Rainer drew an exceptional response when he posted a 500-word declaration about church membership to his daily blog. "I Am a Church Member" started a conversation about the attitudes and responsibilities of church members -- rather than the functional and theological issues -- that previous new member primers all but ignored.Thoughtfully expanded to book form, I Am a Church Member begins to remedy the outbreak of inactive or barely committed church members, addressing without apology what is expected of those who join a body of believers. When a person's attitude is consistently biblical and healthy, matters of giving, serving, and so forth will fall into place more naturally.Six intentional chapters with study questions guide this rising discussion:1. I Will Be a Unifying Church Member2. I Will Not Let the Church Be About My Preferences and Desires3. I Will Pray for My Church Leaders4. I Will Lead My Family to Be Healthy Church Members5. I Will Be a Functioning Member6. I Will Treasure Church Membership as a Gift