""'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my """house. Test me in this, ' says the Lord Almighty, 'and see if I will not"" """throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that""" """"you will not have room enough for it.'""""" -- Malachi 3:1 0
In these uncertain economic times, does it really make sense to tithe?
Douglas LeBlanc thinks the answer is clear enough in Malachi 3:10, where God goes so far as to tell us, "Test me in this." The people profiled in this book have done exactly that--and the effect on their lives has been dramatic.
In these intimate journalistic portraits, LeBlanc shows us true tithing in action. From members of the clergy, to best-selling authors, to social activists both conservative and liberal, these are the lives of real people who tithe in joy and plenty, in the face of poverty and natural disaster, in community and missionally, and as a spiritual practice commanded by God. They come from different backgrounds and live in varying degrees of financial comfort; but they all tithe--and wouldn't have it any other way. Through their eyes, we come to understand this ancient practice as God's call to a life of generosity, compassion, and joy.
"""""THE ANCIENT PRACTICES"""""
There is a hunger in every human heart for connection, primitive and raw, to God. To satisfy it, many are beginning to explore traditional spiritual disciplines used for centuries. . .everything from fixed-hour prayer to fasting to sincere observance of the Sabbath. Compelling and readable, the """"""Ancient Practices"""""" series is for every spiritual sojourner, for every Christian seeker who wants more.

With his usual consummate clarity of thought and style, Michael Ramsey sets out to establish what the Spirit meant in the experience and the language of the early Christians. 'There are none from whom we can learn more about a theme so intimately linked with the coming of Jesus Christ.'

This book will give you a clear understanding of the real Jesus. Many people’s Christianity is not really about Jesus; it’s something they inherited culturally. You will learn that your relationship with Jesus is deeper than your last attendance in church. You will put Him in the center of everything you do.

Which Jesus do you follow? What does He believe? Or perhaps just as important, What do you believe about Him? In The Real Jesus, the debut book from pastor and beloved worship leader Jonathan Stockstill, you will have an encounter with the real-life Son of God—the One who loves you more than you could ever imagine.

After reading The Real Jesus, you will:

• Understand the difference between the mistaken, miscast, misinterpreted Jesus of our culture and the blood-and-bones Jesus of the Bible
• Discover a Jesus you may never have truly known—even if you have been following Him for years or decades
• Enter into a more raw, real, and relevant relationship with the One who loves you and calls you by name

This book will equip you to see Jesus as He really is and truly understand what it means to be His disciple.

Beloved author and Bible teacher Michele Cushatt offers ten practices to strengthen your confidence in God's daily presence and power and build a faith strong enough to endure even the toughest seasons. Life can be hard. Although there are moments of beauty and goodness, more often than not, life is marked by fear, struggle, disappointment, and loss. And we don't know what to do with it. We've tried to find hope and security in various people and places--but each has proved unworthy of our trust. We need more. Something--or Someone--who won't fail us when our world falls apart. In this book, beloved author and Bible teacher Michele Cushatt presents a better way. By exploring powerful personal, historical, and biblical stories of people of extraordinary faith, she curates and shares ten practices to help you deepen your confidence and certainty in the God who can be trusted with your worry, questions, confusion, and grief. As a woman who has been through immeasurable suffering, she writes with both deep compassion and practical insight as she guides you to: Practice lament and process grief without guilt or shame Understand what keeps you from trusting God and how to navigate doubt with truth Learn simple ways to foster shalom and gratitude on a daily basis Develop a fresh, eternal perspective that delivers both peace for today and hope for tomorrow Savor daily "faith-builder" practices to strengthen your confidence in God's love and purposes for you, no matter what happens There is hope in your hardship and a God who is both with you and for you. These ten practices point the way to the only One you can truly trust, and ultimately, to a faith in him that will not fail.

Theologians and leaders from many Churches and from the major world religions, including the last four popes, have acknowledged as unique in Christian history the spiritual gifts poured forth through Chiara Lubich. Her spirituality of unity has the ultimate goal of contributing to the unity for which Jesus prayed to his Father: May they all be one (Jn 17:21). This volume gathers her essential writings and for the first time presents them in a systematic fashion. It is a summa of the charism of unity, which will lead readers to ponder, understand and experience a spirituality particularly suited to the era in which we live. The history of the Church has seen many radicalisms of love ... that of Francis of Assisi, of Ignatius of Loyola. There is also Chiaras radicalism ... which seeks to make this love victorious in every circumstance. Pope John Paul II

In Silent Compassion, Richard Rohr explores practices for finding God in the depths of silence and shows us that the divine silence is more than the absence of noise. Silence has a life of its own, and in this short but powerful little book we are invited into its living presence to experience the wholeness of being and peace it brings. Drawing on centuries-old practices, in Silent Compassion Richard Rohr explores different aspects of Christian contemplation, showing how silence can absorb the challenges of life and connect us with the great chain of being - as well as building unity among different religions that all use the practices of silence. Packed full of thought-provoking wisdom, this is a book for anyone seeking to deepen their relationship with God and looking for spiritual fulfilment. It is perfect for morning or evening reflection, to help revitalise and refresh the way you look at prayer. Silent Compassion will inspire you and show that the peace of contemplation is not something just for monks, mystics, and those divorced from the worries of the world, but rather for all people who can quiet their own mind to listen in the silence.

As you proceed on your path to personal growth and want to gain insight into what prevents you from being the husband, wife, parent, or creative person you were born to be, benefit from this inspiring and easy-to-use workbook by T.D. Jakes, author of the "New York Times "bestseller "Let It Go: Forgive So You Can Be Forgiven. "
More than a companion piece to "Let It Go, "this is a guide through an "exhilarating journey that will enable you to finally reach the potential you know is inside you and take you to a level of personal success you may have only dreamed of until now," says Bishop Jakes. This workbook outlines the fundamentals of forgiveness and provides the spiritual and psychological tools to acknowledge and process feelings that may have held you back from fulfilling your greatest potential.
With this workbook learn how to:
- Sever the chains with which your past has held you captive, and launch yourself into a brighter future than you may have imagined.
- Break the powerful-but-invisible negative bonds that connect you in damaging ways to people who have hurt or offended you.
- Be set free to dream again and to pursue the vision you have for your life.
- Move beyond depression and bitterness and experience the freedom of forgiveness.

Daily Guideposts, America's bestselling annual devotional, will help you walk faithfully with God, call upon His name, and draw nearer to His heart. Daily Guideposts 2022 invites you to grow in your faith all year long. Daily Guideposts 2022 centers on Psalm 145:18: "The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth" (NIV) and is filled with brand-new devotions from forty-eight writers. Each writer shares how, amidst the brokenness of this world, they experienced God's ongoing redemption and miraculous love, as they called upon Him daily and found Him so very near. In just five minutes a day, Daily Guideposts will help you find the spiritual richness in your own life. Each day that you pick up your copy of Daily Guideposts 2022, you'll enjoy: A timely, inspirational verse from scripture A true first-person story told in an informal, conversational style, which shares the ways God speaks to us in the ordinary events of our lives A thoughtful prayer designed to help you apply the message to your daily life Additional Bible references that relate to each day's reading and provide the opportunity for you to dive deeper Enjoy heartfelt stories and perspectives from some of your favorite writers, including Debbie Macomber, Edward Grinnan, Patricia Lorenz, Julia Attaway, Karen Valentin, Sabra Ciancanelli, Mark Collins, and Rick Hamlin. Wherever you find yourself in your faith walk, Daily Guideposts 2022 will prepare you to embark on a journey of drawing closer to God's goodness, mercy, and love--one day at a time.

While praying for his community on the Island of Iona, the Celtic monk St. Columba described his experience as a thin place- a location where heaven and earth seemed only thinly separated.In the same way, God's kingdom is being realized here on earth with stories of restoration and redemption. Our God moved into the neighborhood, seeking to invite us into his story of reconciliation, and commission us to missionally engage our neighborhoods with the good news of the kingdom.Joining the concepts of monasticism and mission, author Jon Huckins will walk you through six postures of missional formation: listening, submerging, inviting, contending, imagining, and entrusting. As you begin to employ these postures, become apprentices of Jesus who are committed to living in and experiencing the thin places.Through Thin Places, create a fertile soil to commune with God, live in deep community with others, and extend the good news of the kingdom in your local contexts.

Este es un libro profundo y a la vez sencillo, que debe leerse con detenimiento y oracion. En una epoca en que los cimientos de la autoridad corren peligro de desmoronarse en la iglesia, en el hogar, en la sociedad y en otros aspectos de la vida en general, el autor nos ofrece consejos y ensenanzas que podran ser norte y guia en nuestra vida. 'Que vuestra autoridad no exceda vuestro ministerio', nos aconseja Watchman Nee en una de sus paginas."

Sacred Pathways reveals nine distinct spiritual temperaments--and their strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies--to help you improve your spiritual life and deepen your personal walk with God. It's time to strip away the frustration of a one-size-fits-all spirituality and discover a path of worship that frees you to be you. Experienced spiritual directors, pastors, and church leaders recognize that all of us engage with God differently, and it's about time we do too. In this updated and expanded edition of Sacred Pathways, Gary Thomas details nine spiritual temperaments and--like the Enneagram and other tools do with personality--encourages you to investigate the ways you most naturally express yourself in your relationship with God. He encourages you to dig into the traits, strengths, and pitfalls in your devotional approach so you can eliminate the barriers that keep you locked into rigid methods of worship and praise. Plus, as you begin to identify and understand your own temperament, you'll soon learn about the temperaments that aren't necessarily "you" but that may help you understand the spiritual tendencies of friends, family, and others around you. Whatever temperament or blend of temperaments best describes you, rest assured it's not by accident. It's by the design of a Creator who knew what he was doing when he made you according to his own unique intentions. If your spiritual walk is not what you'd like it to be, you can change that, starting here. Sacred Pathways will show you the route you were made to travel, marked by growth and filled with the riches of a close walk with God. A Sacred Pathways video Bible study is also available for group or individual use, sold separately.

Everyone has gifts and talents, but do you know what

gift is the foundation of your God-given purpose

in life?

In Know Your Ministry: Spiritual Gifts for Every

Believer, renowned Bible teacher Marilyn Hickey presents

an enlightening overview of the seven foundational gifts

of the Holy Spirit from Romans 12 and shows you how to

discover your specific foundational gift.

Through Marilyn's personal and ministry examples,

biblical illustrations, and practical application, you will

discover the one gift that you identify with most closely

and through which you will obtain the most success.

That gift whether it is prophecy, serving, teaching,

exhortation, giving, organization, or mercy is your

foundational gift.

Once you have identified your core gift, you will see how

it relates to your other abilities and how it flows throughout

all your spiritual activity in the body of Christ.

The perfect gift for adoptive parents in the style of the best-selling Meditations for the New Mother.

Using her family experiences, Vernell Klassen Miller weaves many threads into the fabric of these meditations on adoption. She includes theories about bonding to infants and older children, the stages in relinquishment and adoption, how "entitlement" happens, and the advantages of the adoption.