Hollywood has become our culture s dominant storyteller. So turn Hollywood to your own purposes. With Videos That Teach you can use clips from 75 of the best recent movies on video--already collected an organized by topic and Bible reference, complete with start and stop times--to illustrate your lessons and launch provocative discussion among your students. Discussions that get kids talking about themselves and life, about God and the Bible. Browse the book to find the movie clip you like, or use one of the Quick Clip Locators (by topic or Bible reference) to quickly find the perfect reinforcement for your lesson. Or build your entire lesson from a clip--with each clip are summaries of the movie and the clip, start and stop times, Bible references, and discussion-starting questions. And given the breadth of movies in Videos That Teach, you re almost guaranteed to find what you want for a topic to teach or a discussion to lead--Forrest Gump, The Spitfire Grill, Michael, City Slickers, Romeo and Juliet (1996), Grand Canyon, Mrs. Doubtfire, Naked Gun, Fried Green Tomatoes, Mr. Holland s Opus. And lots more. Whether you re a youth worker, Bible study or small-group leader, or Sunday school teacher, with Videos That Teach you ll get your students thinking biblically instead of merely absorbing passively."

Fill the Gap! contains 120 easy-to-play Bible-based games with little or no preparation needed - perfect for picking straight off the shelf! The ideas are designed to help local churches fill up those awkward gaps of time in Sunday schools, midweek clubs, holiday clubs, after school clubs and children's camps. The games are divided equally across the Old Testament and the New Testament and offer a fun-filled way to reinforce a teaching point or help children unfamiliar with Bible stories. There are two games for each story, one aimed at 4-7s and the other at 7-11s, but many of the games can be modified slightly to make them appropriate for older or younger children to take part. Most of the games are suitable for both smaller and larger groups of children and many can be easily adapted to fit different Bible stories, allowing favourite games to be used again with a different emphasis.

In 1643 when the Long Parliament of England called the Westminster Assembly to produce the Westminster Confession, it also asked for a directory of "catechising." The Assembly asked Herbert Palmer to produce a draft of the Larger Catechism. Robert Baillie and other Scottish delegates found the work disappointing. In December 1643 a committee was formed to write the Catechism. In January 1647 the Assembly gave up writing one catechism and split it into two. The Westminster Shorter Catechism was to be "easier to read and concise for beginners" and the Larger Catechism was to be "more exact and comprehensive." The Catechism was completed by the Westminster Assembly in 1647. It was then adopted by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1648 and by the Presbyterian Synod of New York and Philadelphia in 1788.

In 1643 when the Long Parliament of England called the Westminster Assembly to produce the Westminster Confession, it also asked for a directory of "catechising." The Assembly asked Herbert Palmer to produce a draft of the Larger Catechism. Robert Baillie and other Scottish delegates found the work disappointing. In December 1643 a committee was formed to write the Catechism. In January 1647 the Assembly gave up writing one catechism and split it into two. The Westminster Shorter Catechism was to be "easier to read and concise for beginners" and the Larger Catechism was to be "more exact and comprehensive." The Catechism was completed by the Westminster Assembly in 1647. It was then adopted by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1648 and by the Presbyterian Synod of New York and Philadelphia in 1788.

Everyone loves a good story. Storytellers who excel at their craft have the ability to draw readers or listeners into the worlds they create, using characters and situations to entertain and enlighten us. Jesus, the Master Storyteller, often spoke using parables -- short stories that conveyed a spiritual truth. By drawing his listeners into his story, he unlocked their minds and hearts to hear the truth he was trying to relate to them.
This compilation of stories for the entire church year taken from" "StoryShare follows in that same tradition." "StoryShare"," a part of SermonSuite.com, is written by various authors brought together to meditate on scriptures in the Revised Common Lectionary for Cycle C and create stories that flesh out these passages, allowing readers to see these words in a new way. These stories can be whimsical and light-hearted or poignant and reflective, even tragic. But they all strive to bring us to a deeper understanding of the scriptures and the God who inspired them. Some of the stories are even based on actual events experienced by the authors, events that influenced their perspective on Christianity.
Useful as sermon illustrations, stand alone sermons, teaching aides, personal devotions, or even just for entertaining reading, "Stories for Teaching and Preaching "will draw you into new worlds with vibrant and engaging images, deepening your relationship with God in the process.

With dramatic artwork and colorful detail, "The Story of Jesus" tells the story of Jesus in a fresh, biblical way--from the angelic appearance to Zechariah through Joseph and Mary's escape to Egypt. Available in packs of 25, "The Story of Jesus" is ideal for church programs, community outreach, family devotions, and as an outreach tool for children or adults.

Explore a new way of pastoral care that enables caregivers to develop relationships and provide meaningful pastoral care to the children and youth they encounter! The Pastoral Care of Children focuses on the need for pastoral caregivers, clergy and chaplains to develop relationships with youths and gives you suggestions to overcome the anxiety associated with caring for an acutely ill child through unique, playful, and child-centered approaches. Many pastoral caregivers have high anxiety when children are ill or hurt, are unsure how to have a substantive conversation with a nine-year old, or their fears of what could be said keep them from hearing what children have to say. The effective approaches in The Pastoral Care of Children are illustrated to assist you with serving the spiritual needs of children. You will explore actual pastoral care experiences that will help you gain confidence in handling situations such as a teenager's desire to be baptized out of fear of death when neither he nor his parents believe in Christ. Intelligent and heartfelt, this valuable book gives you a complete theological exploration of ministering to children who may ask you "Why me?", "Why do people have to die?" and "What happens to children if they die before they are baptized?" The Pastoral Care of Children helps you answer these questions with meaningful responses that are genuine and grounded with yourself, and reflect the parents'beliefs. Some of the help you will discover in The Pastoral Care of Children includes: understanding the similarities and differences of caring for children in comparison to adults, such as different vocabularies but similar emotions, and realizing that children are very perceptive using play as a tool, for example referring to a puppet's experience in reference to the child to eliminate the child's self-consciousness and help him or her open up confronting pastoral issues in acute care settings, such as fear, guilty feelings, and anger, from parents, family and the child helping children recover from mental health issues such as depression, eating disorders, and identity and self-esteem issues by using cognitive therapy conducting prayer and rituals with children such as baptism, naming ceremonies, anointings, and funerals to assist the child and family through this spiritual rite of passage Complete with child and family focused approaches for dealing with the questions surrounding death, The Pastoral Care of Children also provides you with several cited scriptures, and a list of questions you may be asked by a child who is facing death. You will learn from actual circumstances pastoral caregivers have encountered and discover how to approach topics, and answer questions on God and death. The Pastoral Care of Children, an extremely resourceful book that will assist you in overcoming anxiety and help you deliver thoughtful and uplifting pastoral care to children and youth.

Adventure is extensively used as a teaching tool throughout the Bible. In God of Adventure Bruce Dunning proposes 19 principles from the Bible that outline the validity, core concepts and teaching approaches of Christian adventure learning. "Finally A book has been written for adventure learning leaders that is grounded in Scripture. This well-researched and highly readable text will be a valuable resource for Christian educators desiring a stronger theological basis for their practice." -Ken Kalisch, Author of "The Role of the Instructor in the Outward Bound Educational Process," Associate Professor of Outdoor Education, Montreat College, Montreat, North Carolina "Adventure learning has long been with us but seldom understood or valued as the powerful tool for learning and personal transformation as this book so clearly shows it to be. Bruce Dunning has crafted a solid biblical treatise for adventure learning with great applications to ministry and personal life. It is valuable reading for any youth worker or Christian educator who is willing to go beyond the normative approaches to the teaching-learning paradigm in helping young people become all that God first created them to be." -John H. Wilkinson, Executive Director of Toronto YFC, Toronto, Ontario "I would buy this for the Appendix alone." -Stephen J. Cyphers, Outdoor Leadership Program, Colorado Christian University BRUCE DUNNING has been involved in Christian camping every year of his life and has worked full-time at Medeba Adventure Learning Centre since 1980. Medeba is located in West Guilford, Ontario, Canada and specializes in Christian adventure learning. Its mission is to use adventure and community to challenge young people to continually say "yes" to God. Bruce also has extensive experience within the world-wide Christian camping movement. www.GodofAdventure.com

Catechesis for Infant Baptism will help parishes design a catechetical process for the formation of a ministry team to share "our common treasure" of faith with parents preparing for their infant's baptism. This book is for pastors, pastoral staff, liturgists, DREs, and all those who prepare catechists to engage in this ministry. Ellen Marie Collins employs primary symbols, the Lectionary and prayer texts for infant baptism to offer a process for deepening the catechists' understanding of the Rite of Infant Baptism and to help them as they share their faith as a baptismal ministry team.

"Beginning With Christ," designed for new believers, provides a format for telling others about salvation and the Christian life. Topics include assurance of salvation, answered prayer, victory over sin, forgiveness, and guidance. Includes Scripture memory cards.

There is nothing so perfect in the world as to be quite above objection and criticism. The very sun which gives us light and warmth is not free from spots, yet notwithstanding these defects it does not desist from its regular duty. It behooves us in like manner to carry on to the best of our ability what has been entrusted to us, and strive constantly to make our lives fruitful. When the truths set forth in this book were revealed to me by the Master they deeply affected my life, and some of them have been used by me in my sermons and addresses in Europe, America, Africa, Australia, and Asia. At the request of many friends I have now gathered them together in this little book, and though it is possible that there are defects in setting them forth, I am sure that those who read them with prayer and an unprejudiced mind will benefit from them as I have.

The Bible, American Standard Version, minus verse references from Isaiah to Malachi. Only the text and chapter references remain while a preface, foreword, index, study notes, concordance, and maps typically found in modern bibles is not included. An indent signifies the start of a new paragraph and a period, question mark, or exclamation mark, the end - besides this the original American Standard Version has been preserved. The Bible, American Standard Version, Verseless Edition is for those seeking a more fluid and comprehensive reading experience and a clean and refined arrangement of the biblical text.

The Classic Guide for Educators of Any Denomination

What mission calls us to teach? How do societal issues-social oppression, poverty, politics-affect what we teach, how we teach it, and how people learn? Who are our students? What and when are they ready to learn? Once we understand these foundations, how can we facilitate an educational experience that has the power to shape and transform people and communities in life-giving ways of faith?

In this classic text, Thomas Groome asks and answers these central questions, providing a comprehensive integration of the history, theory, and practice of modern religious education for a new generation of educators. His self-reflective approach-shared praxis-will inspire school teachers, students of religious education, pastors, parents, and religious educators in local churches who want to understand themselves, their mission, and their surroundings-to inform, form, and transform their students' lives.

"Anyone tugged by the calling at the heart of education or religious life can only cheer for the republication of this classic book."-Robert Kegan, Harvard Graduate School of Education

"Whether returning Christian Religious Education or reading it for the first time, readers will discover freshness leaping from the page; you will soon know why this formative book of the past is a beacon for the future-informative, inspiring, and wise!"-Mary Elizabeth Moore, professor of theology and Christian education, Claremont School of Theology

In his book The Ten Commandments Arthur W. Pink looks into the origin of the The Commandments, their purpose for the Jewish people and their significance for Christians. "There are two things which are indispensable to the Christian's life: first, a clear knowledge of duty, and second, a conscientious practice of duty corresponding to his knowledge. As we can have no well-grounded hope of eternal salvation without obedience, so we can have no sure rule of obedience without knowledge. Although there may be knowledge without practice, yet there cannot possibly be practice of God's will without knowledge. And therefore that we might be informed what we ought to do and what to avoid, it has pleased the Ruler and Judge of all the earth to prescribe for us laws for the regulating of our actions." Arthur Walkington Pink was an English Christian evangelist and Biblical scholar known for his staunchly Calvinist and Puritan-like teachings. Though born to Christian parents, prior to conversion he migrated into a Theosophical society (an occult gnostic group popular in England during that time), and quickly rose in prominence within their ranks. His conversion came from his father's patient admonitions from Scripture. It was the verse, Proverbs 14:12, 'there is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death, ' which particularly struck his heart and compelled him to renounce Theosophy and follow Jesus.

Exploring Scriptural Sources is an innovative, ecumenical textbook enabling students to explore key aspects of the early Christianity using primary texts. The interactive aspect of the case study methodology (problem-based learning) is engaging even for bored college students and enables persons with no background in textual criticism to learn it rudiments effortlessly. This textbook is a natural choice for introductory New Testament courses. The author has prepared a teacher's manual and interactive software versions of his Case Studies that can be accessed at www.didache.info.

Planning for Christian Education Formation was written to help congregational leaders, clergy, staff, and laypersons, plan and organize a Christian education ministry from the approach of Christian formation in a community of faith context. This book provides a model for organizing the Christian education leadership committee or team of the church, demonstrates how to use the church year as a framework for planning the Christian education ministry of the church, and gives a model for assessing the effectiveness of the educational ministry of the church and a process to help congregations move toward the Christian Education Formation approach.

Adapting C.S. Lewis's classic allegory, this book is a gathering of 33 instructional letters written between demons. With wit, insight and a fearless honesty, this book shows how alcohol addiction ravages human lives and relationships.

A pioneering study at the intersection ofA religion and media, "Small Screen, Big Picture" treats televisionA as a virtual meeting place where Americans across racial, ethnic, economic and religious lines find instructive and inspirational narratives. An interdisciplinary "tour de force," this book describes how television converts social concerns, cultural conundrums and metaphysical questions into stories that explore and even shape who we are and would like to be--the building blocks of religious speculation.

This revised edition addresses ways in which historical developments have shaped--and continue to shape--the organization of the church. Incorporating the actions of The United Methodist General Conference, 2004, the book discusses continuing reforms of the church's plan for baptism and church membership, as well as the emergence of deacon's orders and other changes to ordained ministry procedures. The text is now cross-referenced to the 2004 Book of Discipline, including the revised order of disciplinary chapters and paragraph numbering. Denominational statistics are updated, along with references to recent works on The United Methodist Church and American religious life.