Instead of a biblically guided fear of the Lord, we fear others. Of course, the “fear of man” goes by other names. When we are in our teens, it is called “peer pressure.” When we are older, it is called “people-pleasing.” Recently, it has been called “codependency.” With these labels in mind, we can spot the fear of man everywhere. Diagnosis is fairly straightforward. - Have you ever struggled with peer pressure? “Peer pressure” is simply a euphemism for the fear of man. - Are you over-committed? Do you find that it is hard to say no even when wisdom indicates that you should? Are you are a “people-pleaser,” another euphemism for the fear of man ? - Do you “need” something from your spouse? Do you “need” your spouse to listen to you? Respect you? Think carefully here. Certainly God is pleased when there is good communication and a mutual honor between spouses. But for many people, the desire for these things has roots in something that is far from God’s design for his image-bearers. Unless you understand the biblical parameters of marital commitment, your spouse will become the one you fear. Your spouse will control you. Your spouse will quietly take the place of God in your life. - Is self-esteem a critical concern for you? This, at least in the United States, is the most popular way that the fear of other people is expressed. If self-esteem is a recurring theme for you, chances are that your life revolves around what others think. You reverence or fear their opinions. You need them to buttress your sense of well-being and identity. You need them to fill you up. - Do you ever feel as if you might be exposed as an impostor? Many business executives and apparently successful people do. The sense of being exposed is an expression of the fear of man. It means that the opinions of other people — especially their possible opinion that you are a failure — are able to control you. - Are you always second-guessing decisions because of what other people might think? Are you afraid of making mistakes that will make you look bad in other people’s eyes? - Do you feel empty or meaningless? Do you experience “love hunger”? Here again, if you need others to fill you, you are controlled by them. - Do you get easily embarrassed? If so, people and their perceived opinions probably define you. Or, to use biblical language, you exalt the opinions of others to the point where you are ruled by them. THE problem is clear: People are too big in our lives and God is too small. The answer is straightforward: We must learn to know that our God is more loving and more powerful than we ever imagined. Yet this task is not easy. Even if we worked at the most spectacular of national parks, or the bush in our backyard started burning without being consumed, or Jesus appeared and wrestled a few rounds with us, we would not be guaranteed a persistent reverence of God. Too often our mountain-top experiences are quickly overtaken by the clamor of the world, and God once again is diminished in our minds. The goal is to establish a daily tradition of growing in the knowledge of God.

    In the Gospels there are few people who understand love for Jesus as well as Mary Magdalene, which is the reason she is a prophetess of eucharistic love.This work is an extended meditation on the life of Saint Mary Magdalene, known as the "Apostle to the Apostles" because the Risen Christ appeared to her first and then sent her to announce the Resurrection to the apostles. Based on the biblical texts traditionally associated with Mary Magdalene, this book helps readers to learn from her inspiring example and to enter more deeply into adoration of Jesus Christ truly present in the Blessed Sacrament.In telling the story of Mary Magdalene's profound conversion after the Lord had to expel seven demons from her soul, this book shows how she is a shining witness to the transforming power of an encounter with Jesus Christ. Mary Magdalene is the perfect model for those who have experienced the redeeming love of Christ and who seek to deepen their devotion to him and to the Eucharist.

    Miller’s down-to-earth approach and practical nature will help you see that your relationship with God can grow and your communication with Him can get better. Parents will find Miller’s family-life experiences especially helpful.

    Alternative cover for ISBN: 978-0060652944The Abolition of Man, Lewis uses his graceful prose, delightful humor, and keen understanding of the human mind to challenge our notions about how to best teach our children--and ourselves--not merely reading and writing, but also a sense of morality.

    Those treasures include the richness and relevance of Scripture, the reality of faith at work, and intimacy with God.

    Adopted for adult education courses, classrooms, and seminars, this classic book, written by one of the leading theologians of our era, presents major themes about Jesus in clear and accessible language.

    The church McKnight grew up in was a fellowship of sames and likes. Mostly white, same beliefs about everything, same tastes in music and worship and sermons and lifestyle.But the church God designed, says McKnight, is meant to be a fellowship of di­fference and di­fferents. A mixture of people from all across the map and spectrum: men and women, rich and poor, black and white, and everything in between.A Fellowship of Differents explores the church as God’s world-changing social experiment of bringing unlikes and differents to the table to share life with one another as a new kind of family, showing the world what love, justice, peace, reconciliation, and life together is designed by God to be.

    In the inner room, the silent space in which God unloads the burdens and false selves that govern our individuality and our daily lives, God acts as a divine therapist, healing us and forcing us to recognize how many barriers we put up between ourselves and an authentic relationship with God. The process whereby this happens is the foundation of centering prayer—a technique of prayer that Keating and other contemporary mystics have revived out of the ancient mystical traditions of the Desert Fathers and the medieval mystics.Abbot Keating explores in this book what it means to enter the inner room and the transformation that takes place there. It explains the guidelines of centering prayer and offers advice on how to develop the relationship more deeply.

    From His history as put forth by humankind in the early days of organized religion to how we view Him today, Sylvia reveals His true attributes in a logical and truthful manner to give us a better understanding of our Father in heaven. Using her uncanny psychic skills and her ability to communicate with the Other Side, Sylvia dispels many of the false and traditional beliefs about the Father God and helps us to embrace Him more deeply and fully.Sylvia helps us see Father God in a different way . . . one in which everyone can gain a deeper understanding and love for this often-maligned Entity. If anyone wants to commune more closely with their Creator and to share His unmitigated and unconditional love, this fascinating book is the answer . . .  for it not only shows us Sylvia’s tremendous insight and love for Him, but  also tells us how we can enjoy that same intimacy in our everyday lives. In her own indomitable style, Sylvia again shows us that she goes against many conventional beliefs in presenting a God that is truly all-loving, merciful, and forgiving . . . one Whom she has dedicated her life and work to in what she would say is . . .

    

    When he and his wife lost their adored little girl, his trust in God turned to bitter anger. As he and his wife struggled to save their marriage and his faith, they discovered that home is more than just rooms and a roof. Home is a place where people are sometimes wounded or betrayed. Home is also where God is strong in the broken places. Woodlief takes readers through his house, room by room, showing that home is: • Where we cry out to God as we seek him in the small things • Where the sacred and the mundane meet • The place that makes us better than we could ever be on our own • More than the place where we eat and sleep…it is where we learn grace Woodlief’s heart-touching stories leavened with humor will appeal to a wide audience, especially those trying to reconcile the idea of a loving God in a broken world.

    And yet it is this which can allow us to know the grace of God most powerfully. This study explores why Henri Nouwen is, perhaps, the modern writer who has done most to confront the question of woundedness. In doing so his work brings us face to face with Jesus the wounded healer and can release new depths of grace in the reader's life

    But sometimes those who are faced with helping the hurting could use a little more information about the problems that needy people bring to them. The Quick-Reference Guide to Biblical Counseling provides the answers. It is an A-Z guide for assisting people-helpers--pastors, professional counselors, youth workers, and everyday believers--to easily access a full array of information to aid them in (formal and informal) counseling situations. Issues addressed include addictions, forgiveness, sexual abuse, worry, and many more. Each of the 40 topics covered follows a helpful eight-part outline and identifies: 1) typical symptoms and patterns, 2) definitions and key thoughts, 3) questions to ask, 4) directions for the conversation, 5) action steps, 6) biblical insights, 7) prayer starters, and 8) recommended resources.About the seriesThe Quick-Reference Guides are A-Z guides that assist people-helpers--pastors, professional counselors, youth workers, and everyday believers--to easily access a full array of information to aid them in (formal and informal) counseling situations. Each of the forty topics covered follows a helpful eight-part outline and identifies: 1) typical symptoms and patterns, 2) definitions and key thoughts, 3) questions to ask, 4) directions for the conversation, 5) action steps, 6) biblical insights, 7) prayer starters, and 8) recommended resources.

    This year at Lent, orient your life toward Jesus Christ with this unique devotional taken from Holy Bible: Mosaic. Encounter Christ by reflecting on the words of Scripture and the art and writings of Christians across time and cultures. Includes full-color artwork; contemporary and historical writings; prayers, poems, and hymns from throughout church history. Full text of each weeks devotional Scripture readings is also included.

     In the bestselling The Lady, Her Lover, and Her Lord, Bishop T. D. Jakes examined a woman's most important relationships in life: with God, with her man, and with herself. In the smash hit He-Motions, he turned his gaze to the hearts and minds of the other sex, offering both insight and empowerment to men and the women who love them. Now, just in time for Mother's Day 2006, Bishop Jakes brings us a book that celebrates motherhood and promises to be his most intensely personal book yet. Mama Made the Difference comes straight from the heart of the Jakes family to yours. In his uplifting and powerful voice, Bishop Jakes shares personal stories about growing up in his mother's home, revealing the time-honored lessons and values she taught him. Woven into his personal vignettes are inspirational biblical stories about mothers, heartfelt advice for modern-day moms, and testimonials from other prominent African-American figures about the importance of motherhood. Driven by the Bible and stories straight from his own life and offering praise, inspiration, and instruction, T. D. Jakes has written a must-have for daughters and sons, brothers and sisters, parents and grandparents-and anyone else who has ever felt the mighty power of a mother's love.