Discover how prayer can completely transform your life and put you in the presence of God's throne of grace. Hebrews 4:16 says you can always "approach God's throne of grace with confidence," knowing that you will "receive mercy and find grace" to help you in your time of need. That promise is so immense it's difficult for us to understand. In this six-session video-based Bible study (DVD/digital video sold separately), Pastor Jim Cymbala explores how God promises in his Word to always hear you, answer you, and extend his mercy when you come to him. As you pray with faith, he will provide his perfect peace and "meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory" (Philippians 4:19). You will find that approaching God's throne of grace will change your life and circumstances like nothing else--and that when you and other believers call on his name, powerful things happen in the world! Featuring teachings by Jim Cymbala and interviews with ordinary people who received extraordinary answers to their prayers, this study includes video teaching notes, Bible exploration questions, and personal study and reflection materials for in-between group sessions. Sessions include: The Throne of Grace Receiving Mercy Perfect Peace from God Praying with Faith God Brings the Answer The Church that Prays Together Designed for use with the Life-Changing Prayer Video Study (sold separately).

Making your Tithing Count for your Growth in Christ Your Tithing to Grow in Christ is more than a book. It is your devotional guide designed to practically assist you in spiritually relating to God personally in your tithing. As you use this devotional guide, you will soon find yourself experiencing seven things. These seven things are as follows: Getting you closer to God Thinking about God Praying to God Reading about God Honoring God Giving to God Hearing from God Next to the Bible, the Tithing to Grow in Christ is what you and every local church member must have. It is the devotional guide book that you need in order to tithe by the principle of knowing and relating to God personally. That was the principle of tithing God established with Abraham when he was made to tithe to Melchizedek in Genesis chapter 14. Your spiritual growth in Christ in the areas of trusting, loving, and being holy to God is guaranteed with your use of the Tithing to Grow in Christ. It situates you into building a strong personal relationship with God and to nurture the integrity of the personal presence of God in your life. The integrity of the personal presence of God is what you need to be certain about the personal influence of God in your life. Having the certainty concerning the personal influence of God in your life puts you above, calms your anxieties, reduces your stress, and gives you the peace and boldness to face any challenging situation, as it was the case with David in going out to fight with Goliath. A Groundbreaking Devotional Guide for A Strong Personal Relationship with God

How can you move beyond youth group? You already know that youth ministry is about much more than Sunday night Bible study and lock-ins. It's about changing the lives of youth and empowering young heroes to change their world. In this book Efrem Smith provides you with a model for holistic ministry that addresses all the needs of youth--body, soul and spirit. Powerful stories from Smith's urban multiethnic context shape the content of Raising Up Young Heroes. He shows how the fashion, music and lifestyle of the hip-hop culture are permeating youth culture and how you can enter that culture to help your youth meet Jesus. The principles that are the foundation ofRaising Up Young Heroes are designed to serve the whole body of Christ. So whatever your own youth group context, you can benefit from the Smith's rich storehouse of experience and his huge heart for today's youth.

So begins the true story of a five month long "conversation" by e-mail between the young Kathy and the author, Doctor Wilson Asawu, after he returns home from the suburban community where she attended his church seminar. The sequence of e-mail between them shows how - one cautious, but trusting step after another -- she finally fulfills her desire to enter a personal relationship with God. When she has and after she makes her testimony to her sister and her mother, they do the same. Kathy's story exposes and addresses the "false start" syndrome: growing up in a comfortable Christian home, believing all the right things, but finally lacking the assurance in one's heart that one is a child of God. For any such children, Kathy's Good News could be their good news, too.

In the book, God and His Coexistent Relations to the Universe, the author is rejecting the universe that Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein have accepted for a long period. To replace this old universe, an improved universe appeared from the thoughts of Confucius, Anaxagoras, Plato, and Jesus, who taught the death of our sun in Ch. 24 of Matthew. Unfortunately, this teaching by Jesus was quieted for fifteen centuries by Irenaeus, until Copernicus stood up and said that earth is not the center of the universe. So, an improved universe was becoming very interesting to many scientists.. This improved universe of Copernicus would expand when Kepler found that our sun has a system of eight precise planets. Slowly, the improved universe would become very clear when Leibniz found the immortal human souls and when Galileo found the bodies are made by these immortal souls. In 1766, Ben Franklin went to Germany in order to learn the immortal souls of Leibniz. In the next ten years, Americans would separate America from England, which still accepts the old universe. After this separation, more discoveries would come to the USA from German and Chinese thoughts. For example, Riemann would tell the world that the relationships of bodies in the universe can be determined only by our senses and measurements. With Riemann s statement, the author concluded that God is always active. The author also found that God and the bodies in the universe come together with co-existent concepts. With these advances, the author rejects the old universe and says that the people of many nations will form a new religion under an active God."

Messages from the media and pressures from peers all seem to conspire against raising children with strong Christian values. As kids grow older the potential for things to go wrong just seems to multiply. How can parents nurture their families with confidence, without the fear that they are making some big mistake? Tim Stafford sets you free from worrying about the Joneses or anyone else. He shows you how to build core Christian values into your children in a way that fits who God made your family to be, unique and different from every other family. In this practical and freeing book, you'll find: Why your family doesn't have to be like other families How to build core values into your children that will last a lifetime How you can find the patterns that fit who you and your family are Ways to build family life that kids enjoy and that parents find satisfying Why there's more than one, good, right way to be a family How to build grace and freedom into your family life while still providing structure and security Release from the fear that you are parenting the wrong way Stafford identifies thirteen core biblical values and describes a wide variety of ways to build these into families. He explores the many options that are available for parents to help their children develop in truthfulness, contentment, hard work, joy, rest, forgiveness and putting God first. Some books suggest there is only one right way to parent, no matter who you are. InNever Mind the Joneses Stafford frees you to explore the ways God has provided that fit your family best.

Are you looking for fresh ideas to energize your small group? Here are hundreds of activities contributed by small group experts from across the United States. Tested in the field and drawn from the front lines of small group ministry, these creative ideas will help you evaluate the state of your group and enhance the five components of healthy group life. Community activities for the four stages of a group's life help you to get acquainted, go deeper with one another, process conflict, make memories and prepare for your group's ending. Whether charismatic, liturgical or somewhere in between, you'll find ideas for worship and prayer that stretch group members in these vital areas of spiritual growth. Your group will grow closer to one another as you draw near to God together. Ideas for study offer you some creative methods for Bible study and life application as well as ideas for learning through books, videos and other resources. A section on outreach helps your group to look beyond its borders and serve the needs of others. You'll find ideas for inviting others into your group and for working together in evangelism, social action and world mission. Edited by Cindy Bunch, this edition features new ideas gathered from The Small Group Network (www.SmallGroups.com) founded by Michael Mack and now directed by Dan Lentz. Whether you are a small group leader, a group coordinator or a pastor, you will return to this valuable resource again and again.

In this classic, Augustine of Hippo describes how to interpret and teach the Scriptures. Although written 1600 years ago, it considers the role literal and allegorical interpreation of scripture, and is particularly relevant today. A valuable, and readable resource for preachers and teachers.

Book Description Flash! Ping! Whiz! Pop! Boom! Bang! Such are the sights and sounds of modern youth ministry. We look for the bigger, the louder, the brighter, and we work long and hard to make our ministry the biggest, the loudest, the brightest. But look out and listen up: God has no desire to see young people caught up in sound and fury. Nor does he want to see youth workers burn out and fade away. All the momentum surrounding youth ministry signifies nothing once youth workers disengage, letting the momentum define their purpose. Mike Higgs, reflecting on over two decades of work with youth, thinks the greatest need among youth workers is a reminder of who we are. We need to set aside the distractions of an emphasis on performance and focus instead on following God in his work in us, our students and other youth workers. When a renewed vision and mission shapes our work with youth, our ministry will become less a cacophony of strategies and targets and more a symphony of purpose and practice.

Charles E. Curran offers the first comprehensive analysis and criticism of the development of modern Catholic social teaching from the perspective of theology, ethics, and church history. Curran studies the methodology and content of the documents of Catholic social teaching, generally understood as comprising twelve papal letters beginning with Leo XIII's 1891 encyclical "Rerum novarum," two documents from Vatican II, and two pastoral letters of the U.S. bishops.

He contends that the fundamental basis for this body of teaching comes from an anthropological perspective that recognizes both the inherent dignity and the social nature of the human person -- thus do the church's teachings on political and economic matters chart a middle course between the two extremes of individualism and collectivism. The documents themselves tend to downplay any discontinuities with previous documents, but Curran's systematic analysis reveals the significant historical developments that have occurred over the course of more than a century. Although greatly appreciative of the many strengths of this teaching, Curran also points out the weaknesses and continuing tensions in Catholic social teaching today.

Intended for scholars and students of Catholic social ethics, as well as those involved in Catholic social ministry, this volume will also appeal to non-Catholic readers interested in an understanding and evaluation of Catholic social teaching.