Here is straight talk from a man who has sought authentic New Testament community for more than fifty years and who has discovered it in the most unlikely places.

    Foster children live in nearly every community, waiting in silent anonymity for someone to welcome them into their life.Sometimes all it takes is exposure to prompt change.Faith to Foster is a candid and vulnerable look into the life of ordinary foster parents TJ and Jenn Menn. It is a comprehensive journey chronicling their decision making process, how the children arrived, the birth parents' struggle to rehabilitate, help from friends and family, emotional goodbyes, and how faith in Jesus empowered them through it all. This is a story they wished they'd read before starting their foster parenting adventure.TJ and Jenn share of their experiences and feelings in a way that encourages readers to serve their neighbors. Faith to Foster reminds Christians how God can use them to make a difference in their community. He can strengthen our congregations to change lives and redeem innocent children from harmful situations.Indeed, Faith to Foster inspires believers to rely on the mighty power of our God as they seek to change their neighborhoods one child at a time.

    Anita Renfroe pulls no punches as she gives women an ultimatum: hilarity or insanity? Take a look at the sorts of things that could drive a person crazy if they just weren't so funny!

    Filled with more than 100 modern liturgies, this book guides you into an intentional conversation with God for your children and the world they live in. From everyday struggles like helping your child find friends or thrive in school to larger issues like praying for a brighter world rooted in peace and truth, these pleas and petitions act as a gentle guide, reminding us that while our words may fail, God never does.At the core of To Light Their Way is the deepest of prayers: that our children will experience the love of God so deeply that their lives will be an outpouring of love that lights up the world.

    Though we know the Bible says to walk in the Spirit, the majority of Christians are illiterate (and even nervous) about how to practically live in His power. The result is lives marred by continued brokenness and ministries plagued by fruitlessness. In contrast, believers from Acts understood the ancient path of the Spirit Walk. That extraordinary power was not just for them, but for us also.Gleaning insights from implementation in dozens of Acts-like movements around the world, Spirit Walk "lifts the hood and shows us the real secret behind apostolic, disciple-multiplying movements" (Neil Cole, author of Organic Church). Whether you need a movement of God in your personal life or in your ministry, this book takes you through the timeless principles of the Bible.The Spirit Walk path has helped thousands of ordinary people shift from a fundamental reliance upon methods and self-helps to the essential reliance upon the Spirit who empowers these. Spirit Walk reminds us of the ancient path and explains it in a practical discipline that you can remember daily.Discover how to start on the journey of being filled again and again by the Spirit. But more importantly, learn how to stay full of the Spirit as you abide in Christ throughout the day, and your life.

    In parenting eight kids over the last twenty-five years, Julie Lyles Carr and her husband experienced plenty of opportunity for learning, but it was when they began to understand it was about parenting each child according to their own unique needs and personality style that something wonderful happened. In Raising an Original, Carr helps to redefine the primary purpose of Christian parenting, this raising of the next generation. God has given each of our children specific gifts, abilities and capacities for specific purposes and He can equip parents to discover and support those powerful personality traits if they know where to look and how to respond. So many kids raised in Christian homes launch into their adult lives without any sense of knowing who they are called to be or what their mission on earth is. What if parents, teachers or mentors could help them discover the wondrous, unique threads woven within them that will enable them to see their part in the fabric of God’s universe? Readers of Raising an Original will be equipped to help their children:Understand their unique strengths and the challenges associated with themDiscover their God-given gifts and how to use them for His glorySucceed regardless of their circumstances Raising an Original will provide readers with tools for better communication with their children as well as tools for uniquely guiding and disciplining each unique child.  With a helpful and detailed Personality Trait Assessment Tool included as a major part of the book, readers will understand themselves, their parenting style, and their child better. They will also discover ways to improve their children’s communication within sibling groups and with parents themselves. Readers will find freedom in discovering that God hasn’t asked them to raise perfect children; He’s asked them to uniquely raise purposed children.

    If we’re honest, we’ve been overfunctioning for so long, we can’t even imagine another way. How else will things get done? How else will we survive?It doesn’t have to be this way.Aundi Kolber believes that we don’t have to white-knuckle our way through life. In her debut book, Try Softer, she’ll show us how God specifically designed our bodies and minds to work together to process our stories and work through obstacles. Through the latest psychology, practical clinical exercises, and her own personal story, Aundi equips and empowers us to connect us to our truest self and truly live. This is the “try softer” life.In Try Softer, you’ll learn how to: Know and set emotional and relational boundaries Make sense of the difficult experiences you’ve had Identify your attachment style—and how that affects your relationships today Move through emotions rather than get stuck by them Grow in self-compassion and talk back to your inner critic Trying softer is sacred work. And while it won’t be perfect or easy, it will be worth it. Because this is what we were made for: a living, breathing, moving, feeling, connected, beautifully incarnational life.

    As he shares God's answers, he shows readers how they too can take hold of the incredible power of prayer.

    Inviting others to faith requires leaning in to your own story, overcoming fear, and stepping out. But the good news is for everyone, always. And you can help keep it going.Using Scripture and story, Steve Carter casts a vision for non-threatening conversations that point people to Christ. Most significantly, Steve shows that only through risking it all will we discover what God is truly like.

    You've stumped us all."They didn't see it coming.They would never be the same.You'll find their story...AuthenticPowerfulHumorousMovingInsightfulRivetingYou may even find it intersecting with your own story.John and Joanna Stumbo have been married twenty-eight years--some great, some not so great. They have three grown children--all great. Joanna grew up in Ohio and Florida and a few other places; John in Minnesota and Montana. They have spent their adult lives figuring out what it means to be pastor and wife in churches from Pennsylvania to Oregon. John has a lifetime love for most anything outdoors and athletic. Joanna loves family and home. John never planned on spending seventy-seven days in the hospital. Joanna never had aspirations of being a caregiver. Neither of them ever planned on writing a book such as this. They are both the better for the journey they've been on, confusing though it be.

    But most don't know how to build intentional relationships with people from different backgrounds.Across the Street and Around the World offers an answer to those Christians wondering, Is it possible to engage with people of other cultures right now, in my everyday world—or even beyond?Step by step, it helps them see how to prepare their souls, reshape their worldviews, and redesign their patterns of life to become the sort of people who can represent Jesus across cultural lines and take part in God's plans for their neighborhoods, their cities, and the world.

    Kara E. Powell and youth expert Chap Clark--authors known for the integrity of their research and the intensity of their passion for young people--Sticky Faith is geared to spark a movement that empowers adults to develop robust and long-term faith in kids of all ages.Further engage your family and church with the Sticky Faith Guide for Your Family, Sticky Faith curriculum, and Sticky Faith youth worker edition. Sticky Faith is also available in Spanish, Cómo criar jóvenes de fe sólida.

    You want to see them take responsibility for their behavior, their values, their lives. But maybe you've discovered that simply telling them to "do the right thing" isn't enough. From toddler tantrums to teenage temptations, you've got to help them take ownership of their behavior, feelings, and attitudes. But how?Establish healthy boundaries. Boundaries are the bedrock of good relationships, maturity, safety, and growth for your children and for you.Boundaries With Kids will help you prepare your kids to assume the responsibility for their own lives. Drawing on principles from the Bible, the authors of the award winning best-seller Boundaries help you recognize the boundary issues underlying child behavior problems set boundaries and establish consequences with kids get out of the "nagging" trap stop controlling your child - and instead help your child to develop self-control apply ten laws of boundaries to parenting take six practical steps for implementing boundaries with your kids. Drs. Henry Cloud and John Townsend show you how to bring control to an out-of-control family life. How to set limits and still be a loving parent. How to define legitimate boundaries for your family. And above all, how to instill in your children the kind of godly character that is the foundation for healthy, productive adult living.

    When they are busy, they feel guilty for not playing with their kids or having a quiet time of prayer and Bible study. When they try to rest, they feel guilty because there's so much left to do. It's an endless cycle of overwork and exhaustion. Yet inside every woman's heart is a longing for true rest. It's there because God designed us that way--but it seems out of reach.Enough is enough. Our lives probably aren't going to get less busy, especially if we're in a demanding season of life, but we can do busy better. In this burden-lifting book, Glynnis Whitwer helps women examine their hearts and their schedules in order to seek a healthy and holy balance between--and enjoyment of--both work and rest. She shows readers how to prioritize their goals and their time, how to be present in the moment as Jesus was, and how to find the freedom of true soul rest. Most importantly, she shows women that their worth is found not in their accomplishments but in the love of the One who made them for work and for rest.