How can we live a little more hopefully each day? Fear, terrorism, corruption, fake news... it can be easy to become discouraged by the culture around us. Now more than ever, society needs hope in order to survive and flourish. This book takes us beyond comfort zones and easy answers, and towards a deeper understanding and practice of hope. It offers reflections, stories and practical ways for individuals and groups to find hope in their lives through discovering more about God in their midst. Focusing on God's intervention in biblical history, God's presence in contemporary contexts and God's promised hope for the future, Joanne Cox-Darling encourages us to live more confidently, noticing more of the Spirit in our daily lives, and with more compassion and - ultimately - hope in God. 'Joanne Cox-Darling has a gift for storytelling, which she uses with great ability to do the difficult weave between the Bible and the world we inhabit. She does not flinch before the shabby hope-destroying culture all around. But she also does not blink before the audacity of the Bible. Readers will be glad when they pause to participate in her buoyant gifts.' Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary

What does it mean to be equipped for ministry? The contributors to this provocative volume maintain that unless churches radically rethink their answers to this question they will fail to adequately train the next generation of leaders to serve God's purposes. Too often bright-eyed young 'candidates' are thrown torrents of paperwork, examinations, courses, interviews, assessments, and 40- year plans before being deemed fit to minister. Many feel a call to serve God but can't commit to the required hoop-jumping which is, in some instances, outdated and unbiblical. The Call and the Commission draws together pastors, scholars, theological educators, and youth workers in seeking to answer the question of how we can better train the next generation of church leadership. The church today needs young leaders more than ever before. But rather than trying to make them fit the models of a previous age, the church needs to listen to the call given to each individual. Only by doing so can we fulfil our collective commission.