| Christian Living |
| Anger |
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Getting angry is easy. Daily irritations and frustrations poke at us. Feelings of disappointment, hurt, rejection, and embarrassment prod in us. And once the unwieldy cluster of emotions of anger are aroused, our thoughts and actions can feel out of control and impossible to manage. Dr. Gary Chapman, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The 5 Love Languages®, offers helpful - and sometimes surprising - insights into why you get angry and what you can do about it.
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| Hearing God |
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"God spoke to me."
"The Spirit spoke to my heart."
"God revealed this to me."
Being close to God means communicating with him—telling him what is on our hearts in prayer and hearing and understanding what he is saying to us. It is this second half of our conversation with God that is so important but that can also be so difficult. How do we hear his voice? How can we be sure that what we think we hear is not our own subconscious? What role does the Bible play? What if what God says to us is not clear?
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| How Now Shall We Live |
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Christianity is more than a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is also a worldview that not only answers life's basic questions—Where did we come from, and who are we? What has gone wrong with the world? What can we do to fix it? — but also shows us how we should live as a result of those answers. Colson and Pearcey expose false worldviews in this book, and equip us as believers to understand, live out, and present a Christian worldview in ways that not only transform our own lives, but also help to redeem our culture.
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| Humility |
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When Jesus 'made himself nothing ... taking the nature of a servant', He modeled for all believers true humility. Andrew Murray calls this 'our true nobility' and 'the distinguishing feature of discipleship'. With insightful, penetrating clarity, Murray calls all Christians to turn from pride, empty themselves, and study the character of Christ to be filled with His grace. This book is widely considered the best work on humility ever written.
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| Devotionals |
| Every Step an Arrival |
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This 90 day devotional is written by Eugene Petersen. This author is a very learned scholar with the uncanny ability to take biblical texts and stories and illustrate how they apply to the “dirt and soil” of our everyday lives. Each devotional is about 1-1/2 pages and will provide much to reflect on. This devotional will clearly showcase how God’s word speaks into our everyday lives.
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| The Logic of God |
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This is a weekly devotional written by the famed apologist and public speaker Ravi Zacharias. It contains 52 devotionals, perfect for a years worth of reflective study. Each devotional is about 1 - 3 pages and provides scripture along with application. Because Ravi is known for his philosophical knowledge and expertise in world religions, each devotional is bent toward a philosophical reflection. Anyone interested in apologetics, philosophy and world religions will enjoy this devotional.
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| My Utmost For His Highest |
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The beloved devotional My Utmost for His Highest has challenged, encouraged, and moved people to think more deeply about their relationship with the Lord. This book by Oswald Chambers has sold more than 13 million copies, and has helped to strengthen the faith of many for generations. You’ll find 365 thought-provoking meditations, that will challenge you to be the person that God intended you to be.
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| Praying with the Psalms |
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This is one book in a series of devotionals by Eugene Peterson which includes a daily reading from the Psalms, includes a very short reflection (about 25 words) and then provides a reflective prayer on that passage of the Psalm. This is a great resource for anyone who wishes to develop a prayer language and/or a prayer life that flows from reading scripture.
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More like this...
Praying with Paul
Praying with Jesus
Praying with the Prohpets
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| Listening to the Language of the Bible |
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This devotional is written by Lois Tverberg and contains 60 1 page reflections on various Hebrew words and how understanding them bring out so much meaning from the texts they occur in. Knowing Hebrew is irrelevant, as the author clearly explains away any potential difficulty and clearly illustrates how understanding the language of the Bible makes the text come alive. She also connects the Old Testament verses and word with their New Testament equivalents. This devotional, using the language and images of the Bible, will inform the reader and bring the text to life in new ways.
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| Devotionals: Digging Deeper |
| As Kingfishers Catch Fire |
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This is a collection of Peterson’s sermons. The topics span the entire bible, beginning with Moses and concluding with reflections on Paul's writings and the book of Proverbs. Eugene Peterson has a brilliant ability to take scripture and clearly relate it to our everyday lives, whether we are working in a factory, for a phone company, or gardening, he reveals how scripture applies to all areas of life. I highly recommend this book. Maybe read one sermon a week and reflect on it allowing the scripture to seep into the soil of your life.
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| The Crown and the Fire |
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This book includes thirteen sermons that will challenge the reader and cause pause and reflection on the meaning of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. N. T. Wright is the world’s leading New Testament theologian. This book is not scholarly however, it is written to lay people and will provide much thought to chew on.
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Knowing God
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J. I. Packer's Knowing God has become a classic of the Christian faith. Why? While it gives us information about God with clarity and grace, it does much more---it aids us in actually knowing him, in building our relationship with him, and helps draw us closer to him in love and worship.
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The Ways of God
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Have you ever wondered how God is at work in this world? How is God accomplishing His purposes and revealing His will to His people, ever molding them into the holy people He wants them to be? In this book, the ways of God are explored so that Christians might share a glimpse of understanding of things too great for the mind to hold. It discusses how the ways of God reflect His nature and glory, how they are different from the ways of man, and are constant and consistent with His word. The ways of God are to bring His children into holiness in order to enter into a relationship with them. Eternal and mysterious are the ways of God.
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| Technology and Faith |
| Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other |
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Sherry Turkle is Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology at MIT. She is the author of two previous books, both quite positive about the prospects of technology for life enhancement. In this book she expresses concerns illuminated by her research. The first half of the book deals with the potential use of robots as "friends" to care for senior and children. The second half deals with life online.
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| The Next Story: Life and Faith After the Digital Explosion |
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Many other books tell us what the digital world is doing to us. Challies does this, and also suggests some action steps.
He considers the convergence of technology, theology, and experience and asks:
- Am I becoming a tool of the very tools that are supposed to serve me?
- What is "the next story" that will direct the way we live?
- How can Christians live in this new reality with character, virtue, and wisdom?
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| Tools for Studying |
| Echoes of Exodus: Tracing the Themes of Redemption Through Scripture |
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This book is a wonderful example of how to think about a biblical theme and see it all throughout the Bible. This is not just any theme. The exodus is the key theme which runs through the entirety of the Bible and helps shape the entire narrative of scripture. This is an easy read. The chapters are about 3 to 5 pages and include study questions at the conclusion of each chapter. This would be ideal for personal study or for a small group.
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| The NIV Application Commentary |
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This set of commentaries breaks the contents of each biblical book down into three categories. The first is “original meaning,” where it explains the scripture and provides insight to its original meaning in the context in which it was written. The second section, entitled “Bridging Contexts,” then moves to explain how this scripture passage relates to the biblical story in general and begins to build bridges allowing the reader to see how the interpretation of the texts moves from the Bible’s history and time to the readers. The third section is called “Contemporary Significance” and provides an interpretation and application of the passage for the 21st century reader. My personal favourites are “Genesis” by John Walton, "Haggai, Zechariah”.by Mark Boda and “Ephesians” by Klyne Snodgrass
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Genesis
Haggai, Zechariah
Ephesians
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