Spirit Walk: The Extraordinary Power of Acts for Ordinary People


Steve Smith - 2018
    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.

Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will


Kevin DeYoung - 2009
    It's time to try something new: Give up. Pastor and author Kevin DeYoung counsels Christians to settle down, make choices, and do the hard work of seeing those choices through. Too often, he writes, God's people tinker around with churches, jobs, and relationships, worrying that they haven't found God's perfect will for their lives. Or—even worse—they do absolutely nothing, stuck in a frustrated state of paralyzed indecision, waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting for clear, direct, unmistakable direction. But God doesn't need to tell us what to do at each fork in the road. He's already revealed his plan for our lives: to love him with our whole hearts, to obey His Word, and after that, to do what we like. No need for hocus-pocus. No reason to be directionally challenged. Just do something.

Loving the Little Years: Motherhood in the Trenches


Rachel Jankovic - 2010
    I wrote it because it isn t. I know that this is a hard job, because I am right here in the middle of it. I know you need encouragement because I do too. "This is not a tender reminiscence from someone who had children so long ago that she only remembers the sweet parts. At the time of writing this, I have three children in diapers, and I can recognize the sound of hundreds of toothpicks being dumped out in the hall. "This is a small collection of thoughts on mothering young children for when you are motivated, for when you are discouraged, for the times when discipline seems fruitless, and for when you are just plain old tired. "The opportunities for growth abound here but you have to be willing. You have to open your heart to the tumble. As you deal with your children, deal with yourself always and first. This is what it looks like, and feels like, to walk as a mother with God."

What Happens When Women Pray


Evelyn Christenson - 1975
    Move into the dynamic that occurs when people pray--it just might change your life, your family, and your church.

Wild at Heart Revised and Updated: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul


John Eldredge - 2001
    Simply look at the dreams and desires written in the heart of every boy: To be a hero, to be a warrior, to live a life of adventure and risk. Sadly, most men abandon those dreams and desires-aided by a Christianity that feels like nothing more than pressure to be a "nice guy." It is no wonder that many men avoid church, and those who go are often passive and bored to death. In this provocative book, Eldredge gives women a look inside the true heart of a man and gives men permission to be what God designed them to be-dangerous, passionate, alive, and free!

The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction


Justin Whitmel Earley - 2019
    We yearn for the freedom and peace of the gospel, but remain addicted to our technology, shackled by our screens, and exhausted by our routines. But because our habits are the water we swim in, they are almost invisible to us. What can we do about it?The answer to our contemporary chaos is to practice a rule of life that aligns our habits to our beliefs. The Common Rule offers four daily and four weekly habits, designed to help us create new routines and transform frazzled days into lives of love for God and neighbor. Justin Earley provides concrete, doable practices, such as a daily hour of phoneless presence or a weekly conversation with a friend.These habits are “common” not only because they are ordinary, but also because they can be practiced in community. They have been lived out by people across all walks of life—businesspeople, professionals, parents, students, retirees—who have discovered new hope and purpose. As you embark on these life-giving practices, you will find the freedom and rest for your soul that comes from aligning belief in Jesus with the practices of Jesus.

The Imperfect Disciple: Grace for People Who Can't Get Their Act Together


Jared C. Wilson - 2017
    The Imperfect Disciple is for the rest of us--people who screw up, people who are weary, people who are wondering if it's safe to say what they're really thinking.For the believer who is tired of quasi-spiritual lifehacks being passed off as true, down-and-dirty discipleship, here is a discipleship book that isn't afraid to be honest about the mess we call real life. With incisive wit, warm humor, and moving stories, Jared Wilson shows readers how the gospel works in them and in their lives when- they can't get their act together- they think God is giving them the silent treatment- they think church would be better without all the people- they're not happy with the person in the mirror- and much moreWilson frees readers from the self-doubt and even the misplaced self-confidence they may feel as they walk with Jesus down the often difficult road of life. The result is a faith that weathers storms, lifts burdens, and goes forth to make more imperfect disciples.

Leaving Church: A Memoir of Faith


Barbara Brown Taylor - 2006
    I expected to love the children who hung on my legs after Sunday morning services until they grew up and had children of their own. I even expected to be buried wearing the same red vestments in which I was ordained.Today those vestments are hanging in the sacristy of an Anglican church in Kenya, my church pension is frozen, and I am as likely to spend Sunday mornings with friendly Quakers, Presbyterians, or Congregationalists as I am with the Episcopalians who remain my closest kin. Some-times I even keep the Sabbath with a cup of steaming Assam tea on my front porch, watching towhees vie for the highest perch in the poplar tree while God watches me. These days I earn my living teaching school, not leading worship, and while I still dream of opening a small restaurant in Clarkesville or volunteering at an eye clinic in Nepal, there is no guarantee that I will not run off with the circus before I am through. This is not the life I planned, or the life I recommend to others. But it is the life that has turned out to be mine, and the central revelation in it for me -- that the call to serve God is first and last the call to be fully human -- seems important enough to witness to on paper. This book is my attempt to do that.After nine years serving on the staff of a big urban church in Atlanta, Barbara Brown Taylor arrives in rural Clarkesville, Georgia (population 1,500), following her dream to become the pastor of her own small congregation. The adjustment from city life to country dweller is something of a shock -- Taylor is one of the only professional women in the community -- but small-town life offers many of its own unique joys. Taylor has five successful years that see significant growth in the church she serves, but ultimately she finds herself experiencing "compassion fatigue" and wonders what exactly God has called her to do. She realizes that in order to keep her faith she may have to leave.Taylor describes a rich spiritual journey in which God has given her more questions than answers. As she becomes part of the flock instead of the shepherd, she describes her poignant and sincere struggle to regain her footing in the world without her defining collar. Taylor's realization that this may in fact be God's surprising path for her leads her to a refreshing search to find Him in new places. Leaving Church will remind even the most skeptical among us that life is about both disappointment and hope -- and ultimately, renewal.

Now That Faith Has Come: A Study of Galatians


Beth Moore - 2021
    God used a physical ailment to direct him there, carrying the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The relationship Paul would build with the Galatian converts--and his determination for the truth of the gospel to be preserved among them--led to one of the most passionate letters in the New Testament. Paul would not sit quietly by and let those who'd been liberated by Christ's glorious gospel submit again to a yoke of slavery. He'd send a letter with the volume turned up, calling believers to stand firm in the truth, stay bold in love, and walk by the Spirit. He'd remind them what it looked like to live for God's approval rather than human approval. The eternal words God entrusted to Paul for the churches of Galatia are as needed today as they were when the ink was still wet on the ancient pages.Join Beth and Melissa Moore for a six-week deep dive into Paul's captivating letter to the Galatians. Come to know the letter's original recipients. Study its original context and embrace its timeless relevance. Discover--or perhaps rediscover--what makes the gospel of Jesus Christ revolutionary to those who choose to believe. Find out how everything has changed, now that faith has come.

Waiting on God: What to Do When God Does Nothing


Wayne Stiles - 2015
    We wait, without understanding why. We want to know God's plan so that we can trust it--but God so often hides his plan so that we will trust "him." What can we do in the meantime as we are waiting for an answer, a change, or a miracle? With deep compassion, Wayne Stiles helps readers understand why God makes them wait. Unpacking the Old Testament story of Joseph, Stiles shows readers how to find comfort and opportunity in the time between God's promises and his answers, revealing the perspective-altering truth that sometimes when we think we are waiting on God, he is actually waiting on us. Anyone who has felt a disconnect between God's promises and their reality, who doesn't know what God wants them to do next, or who struggles with the brokenness of their world will find in Wayne Stiles a wise and trustworthy guide to finding peace in the pauses.

Humility: True Greatness


C.J. Mahaney - 2005
    It’s the clash between our sense of stubborn self-sufficiency and God’s call to recognize that we’re really nothing without Him. It’s pride versus humility. And it’s a fight we can’t win without looking repeatedly to Christ and the cross. C. J. Mahaney raises a battle cry to daily, diligently, and deliberately weaken our greatest enemy (pride) and cultivate our greatest friend (humility). His examination clarifies misconceptions, revealing the truth about why God detests pride and turns His active attention to the humble. Because pride is never passive, defeating it demands an intentional attack. The blessing that follows is God’s abundant favor. “This is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit.” —Isaiah 66:2, ESV God clearly states that He is drawn to the humble. He’s also clear that He opposes the proud. These two, humility and pride, cannot coexist. Where one is fostered, the other is defeated. Which will you pursue?

Running on Empty: Contemplative Spirituality for Overachievers


Fil Anderson - 2004
    Fil Anderson had accomplished more for God than most of his contemporaries, but his worn-out body housed an empty soul. His frenetic pace of ministry had earned him just one thing: greater pressure to do even more. He had fallen for the soul-killing lie that doing more for God would give his life meaning. Then the godly admonition of a spiritual director set this burned-out believer on a life-saving spiritual path. This powerful story of a reawakened soul can be the story of every person who has pursued spiritual productivity over intimacy with God and come up empty. It’s the story of reclaiming your soul and finding a home in the center of God’s relentless love. It’s the journey from self-importance to God-importance. The solution is not greater achievements for the kingdom of God. It’s time to stop living for God and start living with God. In this candid and achingly authentic book, Fil Anderson shares the healing insights that restored his spiritual compass and guided him back to God … the God who specializes in filling empty souls. “To the harried and the unharried, I pray that this book will minister to your heart in the profound way that it has blessed mine.” —Brennan ManningFrom the Hardcover edition.

How God Makes Men: Ten Epic Stories. Ten Proven Principles. One Huge Promise for Your Life.


Patrick Morley - 2013
    In How God Makes Men,Patrick Morley reminds us that God still makes those kinds of guys.”—Dave Ramsey, New York Times best-selling authorand nationally syndicated radio show hostGod’s Way for You to Become God’s Man   Let’s face it—men today are under severe attack. The battle line against biblical manhood is clearly drawn and fiercely contested. More than ever, men who want to follow Christ are asking:  • Why is it so hard to live an authentic Christian life?• Who will show me how to thrive as a father, a husband, and on the job?• What should I do when I’m being tested to the breaking point?   Fortunately, the Bible preserves crucial details about the powerful lessons learned by men who have already faced and answered these questions. In How God Makes Men, renowned expert on men’s issues Patrick Morley takes you into Scripture for a first-hand encounter with:   • Ten epic stories of the Bible’s most talked-about men • Ten proven principles—based on their failures and successes—that show how God works in a man’s life, and how you can cooperate with Him in yours • The huge promise that you can become the man God created you to be   Don’t settle for less. Join Patrick on this epic adventure of becoming God’s man. You’ll discover how to prevail in tough times and release God’s power in every area of your life.

Evolving in Monkey Town: How a Girl Who Knew All the Answers Learned to Ask the Questions


Rachel Held Evans - 2010
    Using as an illustration her own spiritual journey from certainty to doubt to faith, Evans challenges you to disentangle your faith from false fundamentals and to trust in a God who is big enough to handle your tough questions.In a changing cultural environment where new ideas seem to threaten the safety and security of the faith, Faith Unraveled is a fearlessly honest story of survival.This book is also available, with this same ISBN entitled "Faith Unraveled: How a Girl Who Knew All the Answers Learned to Ask Questions"...with a published date of 2010 by Zondervan...it has the reddish cover, not this cover.

AHA: The God Moment That Changes Everything


Kyle Idleman - 2014
    According to pastor and bestselling author Kyle Idleman, we can experience this same kind of "aha!" in our spiritual lives. With everyday examples and trademark testimonies, Idleman draws on Scripture to reveal how three key elements can draw us closer to God and change our lives for good. Awakening to the reality of our true spiritual condition, we see ourselves and our need for a Savior with renewed honesty. This realization leads to action, obeying God's commands and following the example set by Christ. As we see in the transformation of the prodigal son, the result is a life-changing, destiny-altering collision—an AHA moment that leads us home to our loving Father.