n this world of sin, we all struggle with security, fear, acceptance, and joy. We are all subject to potential physical, situational or emotional harm from others. It's a competitive world. Peaceful and loving homes with godly parents who love each other are rare. The home has become a place for the greatest harm. Everyone has to survive somehow. Some have good jobs and money, some do not. Some get all the breaks in life, and some come up short. Some succeed and some fail. Some are accepted, and some are rejected. Do you view yourself as a victim? Do you see yourself as deserving special treatment because of your victim status? On the other hand, do you see yourself as victorious? What does it mean to be victorious? And how does one obtain victory, especially when he already sees himself as the victim of those who are stronger? Are you your greatest enemy? Are you a victim of your own view of yourself? Is a victim status a choice? Is victory a choice? Jesus said the truth would set us free. Learn to seek victorious freedom through Jesus Christ.

Why did Jesus leave his Father and come down from heaven to live among his creation, only to be rejected, tortured and killed by his creation? Many would say that he came so that we would be forgiven of our sins. Others would add that he came so we would go to heaven instead of hell. Clearly Jesus came to proclaim his kingdom among man. He came to establish his people as the true temple of God, the bride of Christ and the body of Christ. He came to transform his people into his own image. But, as essential as these may be, are any of these the main reason for his coming? There is one missing reason that encompasses all of the above: Jesus came to restore relationships. First, he came to restore our relationship with God, and then to restore our relationships with one another. The Bible addresses these relationships in every book from Genesis to Revelation. Sin is relational. Imagine a kingdom without sin. Every relationship would be restored. There would be no broken marriages or homes. There would be no crime, no poverty, no distrust, no anger, no hatred, no loneliness, no depression and no war. Love would be the order of rule. This study delves into the many aspects of relationships and how the Scriptures speak about each one. Our relationships heal and grow as we draw close to Christ and live as he instructed us to live. Learn from these pages what Jesus has done for you-what he has done for mankind that we may live in love, in righteous harmony, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit with one another.

Jesus commands us to make disciples of people from all nations, to baptize them and to teach them to obey all that he taught his disciples. This calling begins with our own children. God calls every Christian father to disciple his own children to spiritual maturity. Discipleship, as Jesus demonstrated, is a three step process of teaching, demonstrating and then sending them out to do what was taught. This cycle is repeated over and over until the student reaches maturity and becomes capable of discipling others himself. The growth, maturity and functionality of the Church depend upon making new disciples, and this growth must begin with our own children. The Bible clearly calls fathers to this task and clearly describes the necessary steps. Discipling our own children is not a transferable assignment. It is not the work of the pastor, the Sunday school teacher or the youth group leader. The workshop is our own family life home and the father/child relationship. Children emulate their fathers. Their spiritual maturity depends upon their father's spiritual maturity. No one else can do what only fathers have been called to do for their own children. This book should serve as a sufficient foundation to begin and to complete the calling to every Christian father to disciple his own children.

n this world of sin, we all struggle with security, fear, acceptance, and joy. We are all subject to potential physical, situational or emotional harm from others. It's a competitive world. Peaceful and loving homes with godly parents who love each other are rare. The home has become a place for the greatest harm. Everyone has to survive somehow. Some have good jobs and money, some do not. Some get all the breaks in life, and some come up short. Some succeed and some fail. Some are accepted, and some are rejected. Do you view yourself as a victim? Do you see yourself as deserving special treatment because of your victim status? On the other hand, do you see yourself as victorious? What does it mean to be victorious? And how does one obtain victory, especially when he already sees himself as the victim of those who are stronger? Are you your greatest enemy? Are you a victim of your own view of yourself? Is a victim status a choice? Is victory a choice? Jesus said the truth would set us free. Learn to seek victorious freedom through Jesus Christ.

One of the most beautiful parts of God's good creation is marriage and the sexual union between a husband and wife. The sexual union may have started out perfect and beautiful, but man and the devil have distorted and perverted this union to the point that the original design and purpose are almost completely lost. The Bible has much to say about the many distortions. It speaks clearly about adultery, sex outside of marriage, homosexuality, the sexual lust of our eyes and heart, rape, sexual abuse, prostitution, incest, bestiality, and sexual impurity of any kind. Sexual sins have been the root cause of divorce, addictions, lost personal identity, and wounded hearts and souls. Sex is used to market everything from clothing to beer. Distorted sex consumes movies and television programming. It is commonly degraded in "dirty" jokes and common swearing. Clothing is designed to allure a sexual arousal and temptation to immorality. Pornography has become a multibillion dollar industry. The abuse of sex has consumed our culture, and we are reaping the destructive outcomes as a consequence. Not only do we need to repent, we need to rediscover God's creation of the sexual union--his original, beautifully good design and intent. Marriage and the sexual union point ahead to our eternal marriage with Jesus. Begin to focus on an identity found in God for personal restoration and purity.

We all want life--true life Christians realize that true life, life that lasts for eternity, only comes from God. God, the source of all life, gives his life to us through Jesus Christ. But how does that work; what is the connection that he gives to us so that his life flows to and through us? Adam and Eve had this life-giving connection with God, and then they chose to seek life on their own. Death ensued, and we have struggled with disobedience and death ever since. What was man's relationship with God before sin? Why was eating of the forbidden tree so deadly? Jesus came to restore our life-giving relationship with God, which is one of obedience to God's way of living. How is this accomplished through Jesus? Is obedience bondage or freedom, dominance or liberation? Jesus said that if we loved him, we would obey his commands. As Christian's, do we have to be obedient? This book takes an in-depth biblical view of obedience. It explores and illustrates a relationship with God based on obedience to his will. Life apart from God is filled with endless options; how many options lead to true life? Jesus is pleased to give us his abundant life. This study reveals how his life is derived through obedience to God's commands. Obedience is life.

We do not normally view ourselves as infinitesimal. In fact, it is easy for us to see mankind as the center of importance. Our pride deceives us in our perspective of ourselves and the things that surround us. On one extreme we have atheists who deny the existence of God. And I would suppose that religious people would classify themselves at the other extreme since we believe in God as the creator of the universe. But do we see all of creation-all of life-from God's perspective? Or do we still tend to see mankind as the center of creation? Are we still more concerned about where and how God fits into our lives and purposes rather than how man fits into God's life and purposes? Even as Christians, we tend to highly favor man's perspective over God's perspective. This book is a biblical study looking at our existence from the standpoint of God's purposes. God does not exist for man Man was created by God and exists for God's purposes. This study focuses on God's purposes for creating man and how we can live for God and his will for us.

The Bible clearly describes marriage as a mystical bond between a man and woman, and that this bond is performed by God. It is God who created man and woman. It is God who created marriage. It is God who makes the two one. God loves our marriages and longs to be an invited partner. Many marriage problems occur when God is not invited into the marriage relationship. Establishing a working relationship with God in our individual lives and our marriage is the foundation and premise for the chapters of this book. Each lesson is designed for small group interaction where God can meet your needs as you share the deep connections in a small group of marriage partners.