Book picks similar to
Growing Strong in God's Family by Ron Oertli


christianity
discipleship
christian
non-fiction

Uninvited: Living Loved When You Feel Less Than, Left Out, and Lonely


Lysa TerKeurst - 2016
    . . left out, lonely, and less than.In Uninvited, Lysa shares her own deeply personal experiences of rejection—from the perceived judgment of the perfectly toned woman one elliptical over to the incredibly painful childhood abandonment by her father. She leans in to honestly examine the roots of rejection, as well as rejection's ability to poison relationships from the inside out, including our relationship with God.With biblical depth, gut-honest vulnerability, and refreshing wit, Lysa will help you:• Stop feeling left out by believing that even when you are overlooked by others you are handpicked by God.• Change your tendency to either fall apart or control the actions of others by embracing God-honoring ways to process your hurt.• Know exactly what to pray for the next ten days to steady your soul and restore your confidence in the midst of rejection.• Overcome the two core fears that feed your insecurities by understanding the secret of belonging.Uninvited reminds us we are destined for a love that can never be diminished, tarnished, shaken, or taken—a love that does not reject or uninvite.

Jesus Is: Find a New Way to Be Human


Judah Smith - 2013
    How would you finish that sentence?The subject is there, and so is the verb, but what comes next? Your answer could shed light on the path to becoming who you were made to be. In these pages, Judah Smith fills out that sentence again and again, each time further revealing the character of Jesus. He writes as if to a friend, revealing the Jesus that somber paintings and hymns fail to capture. With passion, humor, and conviction, he shows that Jesus is life. Jesus is grace. Jesus is your friend. Jesus is a new and better way to be human.

It's Not about Me: Rescue from the Life We Thought Would Make Us Happy


Max Lucado - 2004
    Self-preservation. Self-centeredness ..."It's all about me."They all told us it was, didn't they? And we took them up on it. We thought self-celebration would make us happy ...But believing that has created chaos -- noisy homes, stress-filled businesses, cutthroat relationships. We've chased so many skinny rabbits, says Max Lucado, that we've missed the fat one: the God-centered life.If you want to shift into high gear with purpose, this is it: life makes sense when we accept our place! Our pleasures, our problems, our gifts and talents ... when they're all for the One who created us, we suddenly gain what we've been missing and find what we've been seeking.Let Max Lucado show you how to make the shift of a lifetime. How to bump your life off self-center. How to be changed and experience the meaning-charged life you were meant to have. Your discovery starts here.

What's So Spiritual About Your Gifts?


Henry T. Blackaby - 2004
    That pattern is this: God gives an assignment to a person; then the Holy Spirit is given to equip him or her for the assignment. The proof of the Spirit's presence is that the person is able to complete the assignment effectively through the supernatural enabling of the Holy Spirit. Truly understood and embraced, the Holy Spirit's gifts allow the Church to be Christ-centered, to maintain unity and oneness of heart, and to practice genuine, powerful love.WHAT EXACTLY HAVE YOU BEEN GIVEN? Surprises are in store when we explore biblically what spiritual gifts really are, how they fit with our natural strengths and talents, and how they match our calling and assignments from God. This book will help restore the Holy Spirit to the center of your understanding and practice of spiritual gifts, and set you free to serve God as never before.Story Behind the BookThe Old Testament is our "kindergarten" for understanding the pattern of the Holy Spirit’s gifting and work. That pattern is this: God gives an assignment to a person; then the Holy Spirit is given to equip him or her for the assignment. The proof of the Spirit’s presence is that the person is able to complete the assignment effectively through the supernatural enabling of the Holy Spirit. Truly understood and embraced, the Holy Spirit’s gifts allow the church to be Christ-centered, to maintain unity and oneness of heart, and to practice genuine, powerful love.

The Pursuit of Holiness


Jerry Bridges - 1978
    But holiness is something that is often missed in the Christian's daily life. According to author Jerry Bridges, that's because we're not exactly sure what our part in holiness is. In The Pursuit of Holiness, he helps us see clearly just what we should rely on God to do--and what we should accept responsibility for ourselves.

Living the Cross Centered Life: Keeping the Gospel the Main Thing


C.J. Mahaney - 2002
    J. Mahaney strip away the nonessentials and bring you back to the simplest, most fundamental reason for your faith: Jesus Christ. Chapters include "Breaking the Rules of Legalism," "The Cross Centered Day," and "Assurance and Joy." His Gift, Your Hope Do you desire more passion for Jesus Christ? Return to the very essence of your faith--the cross of Christ. Here, the deepest truths of Calvary will stir your passion for Him into an unquenchable fire.

Believing God


Beth Moore - 1995
    Is it really working? God’s intention all along has been for the believer’s life to work. From divine perspective toward terrestrial turf, God meant for his children to succeed. . .Are our Christian lives successful? Are they achieving and experiencing what Scripture said they would? In a recent sermon my son-in-law preached, Curt told us the only way we were going to impact the world and the next generation is to prove that our faith in Christ is real and that it works. For countless Christians I’m convinced it’s real. My concern is whether or not we have the fruit to suggest it works.”—Beth Moore; Believing God

The Me I Want to Be: Becoming God's Best Version of You


John Ortberg - 2009
    Join bestselling author and pastor John Ortberg as he guides you through the sometimes difficult but ultimately fulfilling journey towards a uniquely created spirituality. One designed just for you … one that will enable you to experience God more fully each day. Available in four unique colors, customers purchasing at retail will select the cover they prefer.

Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets Them Free


Nancy Leigh DeMoss - 2000
    And the lies Christian women believe are at the root of most of their struggles. "Many women live under a cloud of personal guilt and condemnation," says Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth. "Many are in bondage to their past. Others are gripped by fear of rejection and a longing for approval. Still others are emotional prisoners." In best selling Lies Women Believe, Nancy exposes those areas of deception most commonly believed by Christian women—lies about God, sin, priorities, marriage and family, emotions, and more. She then sheds light on how we can be delivered from bondage and set free to walk in God's grace, forgiveness, and abundant life. Nancy offers the most effective weapon to ounter and overcome Satan's deceptions: God's truth!

Hidden Christmas: The Surprising Truth Behind the Birth of Christ


Timothy J. Keller - 2016
    Every Christmas displays of Jesus resting in a manger populate lawns and churchyards, and songs about shepherds and angels fill the air. Yet despite the abundance of these Christian references in popular culture, how many of us have examined the hard edges of this biblical story? In his new book Timothy Keller takes readers on an illuminating journey into the surprising background of the Nativity. By understanding the message of hope and salvation within the Bible’s account of Jesus’s birth, readers will experience the redeeming power of God’s grace in a meaningful and deeper way.

The Message Remix (Bible in Contemporary Language)


Eugene H. Peterson - 1997
    Peterson. It features expanded introductions to each book of the Bible that explain the purpose of the book, who wrote it, and for whom it was written. The introductions help set the stage for the book and help you understand each book's unique message. A reading Bible in contemporary language, The Message//REMIX also has a unique verse-numbering system, charts and maps, and a topical guide for students. Trim size: 5 3/16 x 7 1/8

Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart: How to Know for Sure You Are Saved


J.D. Greear - 2013
    D. Greear. He struggled for many years to gain an assurance of salvation and eventually learned he was not alone. “Lack of assurance” is epidemic among evangelical Christians.In Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart, J. D. shows that faulty ways of presenting the gospel are a leading source of the confusion. Our presentations may not be heretical, but they are sometimes misleading. The idea of “asking Jesus into your heart” or “giving your life to Jesus” often gives false assurance to those who are not saved—and keeps those who genuinely are saved from fully embracing that reality.Greear unpacks the doctrine of assurance, showing that salvation is a posture we take to the promise of God in Christ, a posture that begins at a certain point and is maintained for the rest of our lives. He also answers the tough questions about assurance: What exactly is faith? What is repentance? Why are there so many warnings that seem to imply we can lose our salvation?Such issues are handled with respect to the theological rigors they require, but Greear never loses his pastoral sensitivity or a communication technique that makes this message teachable to a wide audience from teens to adults.

Rooted: Connect with God, The Church, Your Purpose


Mariners Church - 2016
    

When Sinners Say "I Do": Discovering the Power of the Gospel for Marriage


Dave Harvey - 2007
    Often it gets opened right there on the honeymoon, sometimes it waits for the week after. The Bible calls it sin and understanding its influence can make all the difference for a man and woman who are building a life together. When Sinners Say "I Do" is about encountering the life-transforming power of the gospel in the unpredictable journey of marriage.Dave's writing style embraces the reader as he speaks honestly, and sometimes humorously, about sin and the power of the gospel to overcome it. He opens the delightful truth of God s word and encourages the reader to see more clearly the glorious picture of what God does when sinners say "I do."

Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman's Soul


John Eldredge - 2004
    And every little girl holds in her heart her most precious dreams. She longs to be swept up into a romance, to play an irreplaceable role in a great adventure, to" be" the Beauty of the story. And yet―how many women do you know who ever find that life?Most women think they have to settle for a life of efficiency and duty, striving to be the women they "ought" to be but often feeling they have failed. Sadly, too many messages for Christian women add to the pressure. "Do these ten things, and you will be a godly woman." The effect has not been good on the feminine soul.The message of "Captivating" is this: Your heart matters more than anything else in all creation. The desires you had as a little girl and the longings you still feel are telling you of the life God created you to live. He offers to rescue your heart and release you to live as a fully alive and feminine woman. A woman who is truly captivating.