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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Aspects of religions (non-Christian) > Religious life & practice
A unique and validating look at the tension you feel between
disillusionment and a desire for truth, Searching for Enough helps
you see your doubt not as an emotion to fear but as an invitation
to be followed. Do you ever find yourself thinking, "I'm not
enough, and I'm never going to be. And I know I'm not supposed to
say this, but God's not enough for me either." Whether or not we
attend church, deep down we wonder if the biblical story of faith
is really enough for the complexity of the world in which we live.
We fill our lives with other things, hoping that maybe the next
experience or accomplishment will complete us. Yet with every goal
we reach, we still feel discouraged and anxious. In Searching for
Enough, Pastor Tyler Staton draws on ancient and modern insights to
introduce us, as if for the first time, to Jesus' disciple Thomas:
history's most notorious skeptic. Like Thomas, we are caught
between two unsatisfying stories: We want to believe in God but
can't reconcile his presence with our circumstances and internal
struggles. But what if there's a better story than shame? What if
there's redemption so complete that there's nothing left to hide?
What if there is a God who can heal your resentments, fears, and
loneliness in such a profound way that you feel whole? From a place
of spiritual companionship and deep authenticity, Tyler shows us
that it is not an empty tomb that will change our lives, but the
presence of the living God. Whether you are a distant skeptic, an
involved doubter, or a busy but bored Christian, Searching for
Enough invites you to find enough in a God who offers the only
promises that never disappoint.
Moving away from focusing on wisdom as a literary genre, this book
delves into the lived, embodied and formative dimensions of wisdom
as they are delineated in Jewish sources from the Persian,
Hellenistic and early Roman eras. Considering a diverse body of
texts beyond later canonical boundaries, the book demonstrates that
wisdom features not as an abstract quality, but as something to be
performed and exercised at both the individual and community level.
The analysis specifically concentrates on notions of a 'wise'
person, including the rise of the sage as an exemplary figure. It
also looks at how ancestral figures and contemporary teachers are
imagined to manifest and practice wisdom, and considers communal
portraits of a wise and virtuous life. In so doing, the author
demonstrates that the previous focus on wisdom as a category of
literature has overshadowed significant questions related to
wisdom, behaviour and social life. Jewish wisdom is also
contextualized in relation to its wider ancient Mediterranean
milieu, making the book valuable for biblical scholars,
classicists, scholars of religion and the ancient Near East and
theologians.
With characteristic eloquence and insight, Buechner presents a three-part series of reflections that probe, through the course of one day, the innermost mysteries of life. Blending an artist's eye for natureal beauty, the true meaning of human encounters, and the significance of occurances (momentous or seemly trival), with a wealth of personal, literacy, biblical, and spiritual insights, he offers a matchless opportunity for readers to discover the hidden wisdom that can be gleaned through a heightened experience of daily life.
Writers of church and mission history have devoted very few pages
to George Liele's ministry and most mentions ignore the global
nature of his pioneer work, international influence, intelligence,
and legacy. He launched a mission movement that reached from
Georgia to Jamaica and from Jamaica to Sierra Leone and Nova
Scotia-all before the pioneer work of William Carey, Adoniram
Judson, Richard Allen, and Lott Cary. Beginning as a slave
preacher, Liele learned the Baptist story and theology-a message he
preached in South Carolina, Georgia, and Jamaica. In providing a
comprehensive introduction to Liele's life and work, this book
draws readers into identifying with Liele and those who lived
through a difficult historic period and who in the process
developed a theology that guided them through the challenges of
being a Christian leader in a slave society. The Christian movement
has always been greater than any individual or local church
community has imagined it to be. In Liele's time, key leaders among
the "white" church enabled a gifted person like Liele, despite his
slavery, to develop his faith and leadership among blacks and
whites, in spite of the perils of slavery. Liele was an organiser,
mentor, church and school founder, an abolitionist, and a master
negotiator. His roles have been documented by other scholars, but
largely as footnotes or a tiny part of their analysis. Approaching
the many parts of Liele's life and legacy globally, theologically,
and historically, this book is the byproduct of a collaboration of
scholars and historians who share the belief that George Liele is
truly an unsung hero and one whose leadership and journey needs to
be recognized at this particular time in history. Those reading
these perspectives on Liele will find new truths about Christian
ministry and missions.
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