It is inspirational. It is practical. And it has the potential to revolutionize your life.” Mark Batterson—Lead Pastor, National Community ChurchA movement is rumbling through the body of Christ—a revolutionary army of people giving hope to a hurting world through practical, personal acts of service.In Servolution, Dino Rizzo shares the story of his relentless pursuit of ways to bless the lost, poor, and hurting people of his community in Jesus’ name. You’ll be amazed and inspired by the incredible ways God has used Healing Place Church to meet the needs of thousands of people. Each chapter includes practical suggestions and resources for use in any church. Be encouraged by the testimony of how God’s Spirit can use a simple passion to serve to revolutionize your approach to ministry. Wherever you are and whatever your gifts, you can play a vital role in this revolution through serving.

    What took place to operate such a personality change? Questioned, Wensbourgh told that an angel was the architect of this transformation, and when the psychiatrists and specialists studied the case, could not find any kind of imbalance in his mind. The case aroused the curiosity of many journalists, but it was the young Spanish writer Maria Vallejo-Nagera who had the opportunity to interview Wensbourgh.

    This classic book teaches the importance of respectful silence in prayer, seeking God in fidelity in love, patience in prayer, collecting yourself inwardly, and total abandonment of self to God. Shortly after Madame Guyon wrote this book, she was imprisoned for 7 years because her prayer styles unsettled the established church of the time. In her own words, Madame Guyon's goal was to "to induce the world to love God and to serve Him with comfort and success, in a simple and easy manner." Little did she know that after her death in 1717 her little treatise would be published and read all over the world. Today Madame Guyon's book reminds us that God wants us to take time with him and let His word penetrate into our heart, by praying and then silently listening and waiting on God to speak to our hearts.

    One part biography, one part prayer book, The Life and Prayers of Saint Michael the Archangel is an essential book for any Christian. Saint Michael is the Defender of the Faith and of our Church. As Christians we pray each day that he stands with us through this life and beyond. Saint Michael the Archangel is the most revered archangel within the Church throughout history and today but his pre-eminence transcends the history of the Christian Church.All books in The Life and Prayers series come complete with a Touch-or-Click Table of Contents, divided by each section.

    

    But for the new believer, these things can be difficult and confusing. To resolve this difficulty, I created The Story Bible. The idea was to remove from the text those things that are complicated and/or confusing for the new believer, or for anyone who is new to Bible reading. For example, the books of First and Second Chronicles contain some great stories. But they include so many numbers and lists that the narratives get lost in the shuffle. So in The Story Bible I simply removed the lists, while leaving the stories to be read and enjoyed. Another example is the book of Numbers, which also contains some fascinating stories. But the stories are interspersed with descriptions of sanctuary rituals and census data that can become boring or confusing to the new believer. So again, I simply removed the sanctuary ritual descriptions and the census data while leaving the stories in place to be enjoyed without frustration. What I have produced is a Bible that can be read by a new believer from cover to cover without getting stuck.After serving as a Christian pastor for many years, I not only recognize the problem of new believers getting stuck in genealogies, sanctuary rituals, etc., but I also recognize that what new believers need most is familiarity with Bible stories. The Bible narratives form the backbone for everything else in scripture. Prophecy, sanctuary rituals, pastoral letters, genealogies, and even census data find their place once the new believer becomes familiar with the stories.Keep in mind that I have not edited the narratives themselves. Every word of The Story Bible is from the text itself. I have only removed that which is not narrative, so that the narratives are no longer obscured and can more easily be enjoyed. Another way to put it is to say that The Story Bible is a compilation of all the stories of Scripture. Every portion of the Bible that is narrative was included. I did not edit, condense, or rewrite the narratives. I only compiled them.The translation I used for this project is the Bible in Basic English. It was translated by Professor Samuel Henry Hooke (1874-1968), an English scholar and Professor Emeritus of Old Testament Studies in the University of London. The BBE was printed in 1965 by Cambridge Press in England. Published without any copyright notice and distributed in America, this work fell immediately and irretrievably into the public domain in the United States. The BBE is easy to read, since it utilizes a 1000 word vocabulary. My hope is that new believers will be drawn in by the Bible stories and discover how relevant and practical the Bible is for us today.

    In an effort to help those who've been hurt by or turned off by negative religion, Martin Thielen explains that there is an alternative to abandoning religion: good religion. Thielen uses personal stories to illustrate the dangers of religion that is judgmental, anti-intellectual, and legalistic. While addressing the growth of the new atheism movement and the "Nones" (people that have no religious affiliation), this book argues that leaving religion is not practical, not helpful, and not necessary. Thielen provides counterparts to the characteristics of bad religion, explaining that good religion is grace-filled, promotes love and forgiveness, and is inclusive and hope-filled. Perfect for individual, group, or congregational study, a Leader's Guide and a Worship and Outreach Kit are also available to further the discussion and increase community involvement.