Books on leadership in various aspects of life and work abound. But are the principles upon which these books are grounded biblical? Do they describe the best way for Christians to lead, knowing that they function as ambassadors for Christ as they facilitate meetings, lead people, and manage projects?
"On Being a Leader for God" covers numerous topics that are relevant to Christian leadership in this and every era, including obedience, faithfulness, character, maturity, ability, God's authority, seizing opportunities, biblical images of successful leadership, listening, the difference between a boss and a leader, change management, organizational leadership, and vision. Pastors, deacons, church leaders, and laypeople will find this book both engaging and transformative.

Don't Waste Your Pain

None of us escapes the heartache and disappointments of life. To live is to hurt, and we all have the wounds to prove it. Regardless of how we've been hurt, we all face a common question: What should we do with our pain? Should we stoically ignore it? Should we just "get over it"? Should we optimistically hope that everything will work out in the end?

If we fail to respond appropriately to the wounds that life and relationships inflict, our pain will be wasted; it will numb us or destroy us. But suffering doesn't have to mangle our hearts and rob us of joy. It can, instead, lead us to life--if we know the path to healing.

Healing is not the resolution of our past; it is the use of our past to draw us into deeper relationship with God and his purposes for our lives. If you're ready to shape a future characterized by love, service, and joy, now is the time to step out onto The Healing Path.

The KJV Paragraph-style Large Print Thinline Bible features the timeless beauty of the trustworthy King James Version Bible. While the traditional design of the King James text starts each verse on its own line, this edition improves the reading experience and comprehension by keeping the writers' thoughts together in paragraph format. And with Thomas Nelson's exclusive KJV Comfort Print (R), you'll enjoy typography designed to be exceptionally easy-to-read and honoring the legacy of the King James Version. In 1611 the King James Bible was published and authorized by the monarch of England and Scotland. Today, more than 400 years since its initial publication, the KJV is considered one of the most influential and beautiful works of the English language and continues to be the favorite translation for millions of Christians worldwide. Features include: Clear and readable 10-point KJV Comfort Print Line-matched double column text Bible book introductions Words of Christ in red Over 22,000 translator notes Over 43,000 cross-referenced passages Concordance One-year Bible Reading Plan The Parables of Jesus Christ chart The Miracles of Jesus Christ chart 8 pages of full-color maps 2 satin ribbons

An easy-to-learn, easy-to-use tool for in-depth Bible study Beloved and acclaimed for more than five generations, the Thompson (R) Chain-Reference (R) Bible is unparalleled in its ability to enrich personal devotions, topical study, and sermon preparation. This unique reference Bible enables you to search the breadth of Scripture's teachings on thousands of topics and allows you to follow those topics throughout the entire Bible. With over 100,000 references, covering over 8,000 topics, the chain-reference system is an ideal tool for comprehensive topical study. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible also offers a library of additional study resources that allows readers to interpret the Bible using related scripture passages rather than consulting a commentary. The KJV Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, Handy Size is printed in the KJV Comfort Print (R) typeface for easy reading. Expertly designed specifically to be used for the King James Version (KJV) text, Comfort Print offers an easier reading experience that complements the translation. This Bible also features a fresh, two-color design that preserves the original look of the chain-reference system, while making each page cleaner and easier to read. Features: Complete text of the King James Version (KJV) Easy-to-understand chain-reference system with over 100,000 references Alphabetical and numerical indexes highlight study materials for over 8,000 topics, each with its own topic number, for exhaustive topical study An extensive study resource section includes biographical sketches, illustrated studies of the Bible, a concordance, Bible harmonies, and many other helpful study tools Fresh, two-color page design 66 book introductions 16-page full-color map section with map index Line-matched text for enhanced readability Words of Jesus in red Presentation page for gift-giving Personal size for easy carrying Gilded page edges Two double-sided satin ribbon markers, each 3/8-inch wide European bonded leather cover lies flat when open Thumb indexed to make finding the books of the Bible easier Exclusive KJV Comfort Print typeface Print size: 8

The NASB Preacher's Bible is the ideal combination of readability and elegance. The easy-to-read print, thick, opaque paper, and double-column layout bring the words into clear focus. The elegant cover and three satin ribbon markers complete the package making it a top choice for any preacher. Pairing the NASB Preacher's Bible with the NASB Pew and Worship Bible unlocks its true design ingenuity. While each Bible retains its distinct font and page layout, they were skillfully crafted so that the pages of these two different Bibles begin and end with the same word. That means you no longer have to preach from a pew Bible to be on the same page as your congregation. Universally recognized as the gold standard among word-for-word translations, the beloved New American Standard Bible, 1995 Edition, is now easier to read with Zondervan's exclusive NASB Comfort Print (R) typeface. Features: The full text of the New American Standard Bible, 1995 Edition Matches page-for-page with the NASB Pew and Worship Bible Soft, durable lay-flat covers Thick, opaque 36 gsm paper Double-column, verse-by-verse format Three satin ribbon markers Exclusive Zondervan NASB Comfort Print typeface 10-point print size

As many as one in four girls and one in six boys experience sexual abuse during childhood, and it's estimated that half of the incidents are never reported. This means that countless millions in our societies, both children and adults, carry this complex and often hidden pain. What does the path to healing look like for survivors? And how can ministry leaders, pastors, and counsellors best help them as they walk this difficult road? Drawing on both his own and his wife's experience as survivors of childhood sexual abuse, minister and lecturer Tim Hein offers his expertise, practical guidance, and empathy-both for ministry leaders and for survivors themselves. How can we best respond when a survivor shares their secret with us? Where can survivors turn for encouragement when the road to recovery seems so long and lonely? Hein presents clinical data and resources alongside pastoral wisdom and care, addressing both psychological and spiritual aspects of sexual abuse. Both for those who have suffered sexual abuse and those in a position to help them, this book is a rich resource. Filled with sober truths and the hope of Christ, it calls survivors to take courage and walk unafraid down the road of healing.

Many programs for outreach, discipleship, and spiritual disciplines are available at any bookstore and on countless websites. We assume that we already know the nature of the Great Commission and the appropriate methods of carrying it out. But Michael Horton contends that it too often becomes our mission instead of God's. At a time when churches are zealously engaged in writing up mission statements and strategic plans, he argues that we must ask ourselves anew whether we are ambassadors, following the script we've been given, or building our own kingdoms with our own blueprint. Pastors, church leaders, and readers of Horton's "Christless Christianity" and "The Gospel-Driven Life "will value this frank and hopeful exploration of the Great Commission as a call to understanding and good practice. Now available in trade paper.

Preaching 2022 Book of the Year Haddon Robinson's widely used and influential text, Biblical Preaching, has influenced generations of students and preachers. In The Big Idea Companion for Preaching and Teaching, trusted leading evangelical homileticians, teachers of preaching, and experienced pastors demonstrate that Robinson's "big idea" approach to expository preaching still works in today's diverse cultures and fast-paced world. This accessible resource offers an insider's view on figuring out the big idea of each book of the Bible, helping preachers and teachers check their interpretation of particular biblical books and passages. The contributors offer tips on how to divide each book of the Bible into preaching and teaching passages, guidance on difficult passages and verses, cultural perspectives for faithful application, and suggested resources for interpreting, preaching, and teaching. Pastors, teachers, Bible study leaders, small groups, and college and seminary students and professors will find a wealth of valuable information in this resource.

This volume contributes to an emerging field that could be referred to as "plural spiritual care and chaplaincy". It's innovative approach brings together contributions from a broad range of contexts and religious traditions and includes empirical work and conceptual explorations. It helps to fill the gap between practices and developments related to plural spiritual care and chaplaincy in the scholarly discourse.

In Sticky Church, author and pastor Larry Osborne makes the case that closing the back door of your church is even more important than opening the front door wider. He offers a time-tested strategy for doing so: sermon-based small groups that dig deeper into the weekend message and tightly velcro members to the ministry. It s a strategy that enabled Osborne s congregation to grow from a handful of people to one of the larger churches in the nation---without any marketing or special programming. Sticky Church tells the inspiring story of North Coast Church s phenomenal growth and offers practical tips for launching your own sermon-based small group ministry. Topics include: Why stickiness is so important Why most of our discipleship models don t work very well Why small groups always make a church more honest and transparent What makes groups grow deeper and sticker over time Sticky Church is an ideal book for church leaders who want to start or retool their small group ministry---and velcro their congregation to the Bible and each other"

"A great deal of confusion exists today as to what pastors are to be," Lawrence writes. "Are they chaplains, CEO's, preachers, managers, or counselors? Paul gave us the answer long ago: They are to be equippers, disciple-makers." Just as the great artist Michelangelo took a chipped and flawed piece of marble and transformed it into a masterful sculpture of David, so does a pastor with his flock. "This is pastoring," writes Lawrence, "serving as sculptors of souls."

In spite of their physical invisibility, emotional wounds are a very damaging form of abuse. Whether caused by words, actions, or even indifference, emotional abuse is common--yet often overlooked.
In this helpful guide, Dr. Gregory L. Jantz reveals how those who have been abused by a spouse, parent, employer, or minister can overcome the past and rebuild their self-image. This revised and updated edition of "Healing the Scars of Emotional Abuse" includes
- strategies for dealing with the verbal abuser
- self-check quizzes with each chapter
- keys to rebuilding relationships
- letters from survivors of emotional abuse
- new information on dealing with spiritual abuse
- and a biblical plan for healing.

As society becomes more culturally diverse and globally connected, churches and seminaries are rapidly changing. And as the church changes, preaching must change too. Crossover Preaching proposes a way forward through conversation with the "dean of the nation's black preachers," Gardner C. Taylor, senior pastor emeritus of Concord Baptist Church in Brooklyn, New York. In this richly interdisciplinary study, Jared E. Alcantara argues that an analysis of Taylor's preaching reveals an improvisational-intercultural approach that recovers his contemporary significance and equips US churches and seminary classrooms for the future. Alcantara argues that preachers and homileticians need to develop intercultural and improvisational proficiencies to reach an increasingly intercultural church. Crossover Preaching equips them with concrete practices designed to help them cultivate these competencies and thus communicate effectively in a changing world.

The Celebrate Recovery Participant's Guides are essential tools for the personal recovery journey. In the seven lessons in Guide 4: Growing in Christ While Helping Others, you will work through the final two principles on the road to recovery. More than just maintenance, these principles will help you prevent relapse and give you the necessary tools to help others in their recovery process. 7 Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination. Bible reading and prayer in order to know God and his will for my life and to gain the power to follow his will. 8 Yield myself to God to be used to bring this Good News to others, both by my example and by my words. "Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires" (Matthew 5:10). By working through the lessons and exercises found in each of the four Participant's Guides you will begin to experience the true peace and serenity you have been seeking, restore and develop stronger relationships with others and with God, and find freedom from life's hurts, hang-ups, and habits. All the scriptures have been updated to the new NIV 2011 version.

Celebrate Recovery introduces The Journey Continues-four new participant's guides designed as a revolutionary, new second step study curriculum. This step study is taken after completing The Journey Begins (Participant Guides 1-4). In the six lessons in Guide 5: Moving Forward in God's Grace, you will experience Christ-centered and biblically based studies filled with brand new acrostics, deeper questions, and more helpful Bible verses. The content in Guide 5 will focus on a deeper study of the first 3 of 8 recovery principles: Realize I'm not God. I admit that I am powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing and that my life is unmanageable. "Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor" (Matthew 5:3). Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, and that He has the power to help me recover. "Happy are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted" (Matthew 5:4). Consciously choose to commit all my life and will to Christ's care and control. "Happy are the meek" (Matthew 5:5). By working through the lessons and exercises found in each of the four participant's guides of The Journey Continues you will find a deeper sense of true peace and serenity, continue to restore and develop stronger relationships with others and with God, and find deeper freedom from life's hurts, hang-ups, and habits.

This is a collection of 25 meditations for use in public worship. Covering a range of personal, pastoral and biblical themes, these meditations can be used as part of congregational worship, with smaller assemblies (such as a prayer group) or in a house group or youth fellowship. Notes accompanying each meditation suggest appropriate situations for its use.

Many preachers ignore preaching from the Old Testament because they feel it is outdated in light of the New Testament and difficult to expound. On the other hand, some preachers will preach from the Old Testament frequently but fail to handle it correctly, turning it into moralistic rules or symbolic lessons for our spiritual life. In How to Preach and Teach the Old Testament for All Its Worth, Christopher J. H. Wright proclaims that preachers must not ignore the Old Testament. It is the Word of God! The Old Testament lays the foundation for our faith and it was the Bible that Jesus read and used. Looking first at why we should preach from the Old Testament, the author moves on to show the reader how they can preach from it. Covering the History, Law, Prophets, Psalms, and Wisdom Literature, interspersed with practical checklists, exercises, and sermons, Wright provides an essential guide on how to handle the Old Testament responsibly. X

We become what we say. How do you grow your church in its health and mission? Sometimes our communities lack focus or vision. We lose sight of our ministry priorities, or our people don't have concrete reminders of why we do what we do. We need concise, memorable tools for cultivating culture, communicating ministry vision, and developing leaders. The language we use shapes our communities. Pastors J.R. Briggs and Bob Hyatt share seventy-five short and memorable mantras they use to cast vision, inspire ministry, and create a healthy church culture. These brief chapters provide a wealth of practical wisdom for leadership, discipleship, community, and witness, embodying best practices with vivid stories of on-the-ground ministry. These bite-sized ministry insights are ideal for church leaders to discuss with their teams and implement in their communities. They provide accessible handles for growing the health of your local church, for the sake of the kingdom.

There is a wide and growing gap in the Catholic Church in the United States between the clergy, who are mostly of European descent, and the large percentages of Catholics who identify as Latinos. While the US Church has made a concerted effort to build Hispanic ministries, many clergy and lay ministers are still ill-equipped to understand the cultural background of their parishioners, especially the large numbers who are foreign born. Because of this disconnect, the Church risks missing ""the Hispanic Moment"" in the US Church, in which the faith and traditions of these newest waves of US immigration could not just exist in parallel to English-language congregations, but enrich and enliven the faith of the whole community while passing on the faith to subsequent generations. Learning Spanish--while helpful--is not enough. There are intercultural competencies that can only be developed through practice, but it also helps already-busy clergy to have a concise guide. In addition to knowing the scholarly literature on cross-cultural preaching and Hispanic culture, Father Michael Kueber has twenty years of experience serving first generation Hispanic immigrants and their second generation children. In Preaching to Latinos, Kueber provides the readers with best practices for preaching to and leading their churches. As a member of an ecumenical community, he is able to speak to members of all Christian denominations.

Help! I'm Married to My Pastor is written for ministry wives who feel alone, afraid, and stressed to the limit, reminding them that God will work out his good purposes through even the hardest moments of ministry and marriage.