An updated and revised version of a book that has impacted thousands of churches: Are you tired of how consumerism has stolen the soul of Christmas? This year, take a stand! Join the groundswell of Christ-followers who are choosing to make Christmas what it should be-a joyous celebration of Jesus' birth that enriches our hearts and the world around us, not a retail circus that depletes our pocketbooks and defeats our spirits. Advent Conspiracy shows you how to substitute consumption with compassion by practicing four simple but powerful, countercultural concepts: Worship Fully-because Christmas begins and ends with Jesus. Spend Less-and free your resources for things that truly matter. Give More-of your presence: your hands, your words, your time, your heart. Love All-the poor, the forgotten, the marginalized, and the sick in ways that make a difference. Find out how to have a Christmas worth remembering, not dreading. Christmas can still change the world when you, like Jesus, give what matters most-your presence. This updated and revised version, with some all-new content, will share stories of the impact this movement has made around the globe as well as giving individuals and churches even better, more practical help in planning the kind of Christmas that truly can change the world. New introduction, new chapter and changes throughout.

It's not every day that you get a visit from God. Burning bushes, ladders to heaven, chariots of fire and all that--we look for those stories in the Bible, and we look for them in our lives. When it comes to something as important as what we do with our lives, we think, maybe God owes us a big event. But, as Leroy Barber has learned through his work in inner cities and with young people, that's not usually how it works. More often God calls out to us from everyday misfortunes and all-too-common injustices, and he invites our response--not just a response in the moment, but a recognition that we have a role to play in seeing God's kingdom come, God's will done, on earth as it is in heaven. Through the surprisingly normal stories of the heroes of faith in the Bible, and through Barber's experiences with Mission Year and other ministries, in this book you'll learn what it means to change the world from your own little space in it.

Step into the story behind "the story." Discover the reasons behind and the vision for The Voice translation In-depth interviews with key participants explain the translators' motivations and visions for the project. Learn how the translators worked to bring a balance between scholarship, literary style, and forward thinking to meet the scripture needs for the church.

Features include:

• Discussion of how The Voice makes the Bible accessible to new believers
• Explanation of The Voice's unique style and features
• Examples illustrate how scholars worked through the Hebrew and Greek texts of the Bible
• Firsthand accounts of The Voice translation project