For many people at midlife the pace of life is so frenetic and full that we do not take the time to aEUROoelet the land lie fallow.aEURO But it is especially at this juncture that many want to ask some hard questions of God and of ourselves. Leonora Tubbs Tisdale presents this devotional book of reflections to help people at midlife reflect and navigate through some of these questions. The fifty meditations in The Sun Still Rises take the reader on a journey through challenges that many people face at midlife, such as job loss, the quest for personal and vocational identity, illness (cancer), war, a parent's dementia, and the death of friends. It also traces the joys that come with rediscovering nature, relishing long-term friendships, and growing older. Each entry ends with a Scripture citation and questions for reflection.

"How do we preach in a way that affirms Christian theology while also honoring the insights of other faith traditions?" "How do we preach about and help create genuine Christian community in a social networking culture?" Questions Preachers Ask examines many questions that are on the minds of preachers today, questions that focus on how to preach the gospel in a culture where biblical knowledge cannot be presumed and where the Bible is often viewed as untrustworthy. Well-known preachers, scholars, and authors, including Barbara Brown Taylor, Gail O'Day, Anna Carter Florence, Richard Lischer, and Thomas Lynch, provide the answers. This book, compiled to honor writer, preacher, teacher, and scholar Thomas G. Long at the end of his teaching career, addresses practical questions such as "How do we proclaim the good news to young adults who are on the margins of church or have left it?" and "How do we preach to faith communities that are highly diverse?" Perfect for preachers at any stage of their ministry, these essays offer hope and guidance for handling the difficult task of preaching in today's congregations.

Every preacher, from the novice to the most experienced, needs fresh inspiration to build new skills and to inject creativity into their sermon preparation.

A Sermon Workbook addresses the essentials for effective preaching in our multi-tasking, multi-ethnic, sound-byte society. It offers theological clarity about why we preach, and what matters most. The esteemed teaching team of Tom Troeger and Nora Tisdale invite the reader into their Yale Divinity School classroom, guiding the reader to build skill upon skill, working through inventive and engaging exercises. The workbook format can be used in a linear fashion, beginning to end. Or readers can pick and choose the chapters to tailor-fit their own needs. In either case, this is a remarkable and flexible resource, instantly accessible and useful for anyone tasked with the proclamation of the Word.

Where have all the prophets gone? And why do preachers seem to shy away from prophetic witness? Astute preacher Leonora Tisdale considers these vexing questions while providing guidance and encouragement to pastors who want to recommit themselves to the task of prophetic witness. With a keen sensitivity to pastoral contexts, Tisdale's work is full of helpful suggestions and examples to help pastors structure and preach prophetic sermons, considered by many to be one of the most difficult tasks pastors are called to undertake.

Preachings most able practitioners gather in this book to explore and explain the idea that preaching is a practice that can be taught and learned. Arguing that preaching is a living practice with a long tradition, an identifiable shape, and a broad set of norms and desired outcomes, these noted scholars propose that teachers initiate students into the larger practice of preaching, in ways somewhat like other students are initiated into the practice of medicine or law. The book concludes with designs for a basic preaching course and addresses the question of how preaching courses fit into the larger patterns of seminary curricula.

The church is not exempt from cultural divisions, and battle lines are drawn today over issues related to culture and worship. This collection of articles by faculty members at Princeton explore the multicultural challenges facing the contemporary church about worship and include discussions of cultural perspectives, liturgical elements, youth and worship, and theological fidelity amidst differing cultural traditions.

Showing that good sermons are really local theology and folk art, Princeton's Leonora Tubbs Tisdaye tells how to analyze a congregation to fit a sermon to the audience. The book then gives practical help for preparing and delivering sermons that are meaningful and appropriate. Tisdale draws from contextual theology and congregational studies.