God The Father And The Best Day Ever

With beautiful illustrations and memorable rhyme, this book tells the sweeping story of God's love for us since the beginning of time. Your child will learn how Jesus' life, death, and resurrection opened heaven, so we can spend eternity with God.

A Gospel-Rich, Reproducible Model for Making Disciples as Jesus Intended Biblical discipleship emphasizes encouragement, repentance, and spiritual growth—essential parts of the Christian life. However, well-meaning believers often struggle to follow Jesus, unaware their views are too legalistic, licentious, or individualistic. How can churches and Christians develop a healthy, successful path to disciple-making? In this second edition of Gospel-Centered Discipleship, Jonathan Dodson presents an effective, Spirit-led model for sanctification. Reminding readers that real discipleship is imperfect yet transformational, Dodson encourages Christians to engage more authentically with others as they grow in faith. Drawing from his own failures and successes while following Jesus, Dodson defines discipleship, describes the heart of a disciple, and gives practical guidance for mentor and peer-based discipleship as Jesus intended. Revised and Expanded: Includes three new chapters and new illustrations Applicable: Shows how discipleship can be practical and gospel-centered Theological: Addresses the Holy Spirit's involvement in discipleship Foreword by Matt Chandler: Author of The Explicit Gospel

“FABULOUS.” —B.A. Paris, New York Times bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors and The Breakdown THE PERFECT MARRIAGE IS THE PERFECT ILLUSION. Paul Strom has the perfect life: a glittering career as an advertising executive, a beautiful wife, two healthy boys and a big house in a wealthy suburb. And he’s the perfect husband: breadwinner, protector, provider. That’s why he’s planned a romantic weekend for his wife, Mia, at their lake house, just the two of them. And he’s promised today will be the best day ever. But as Paul and Mia drive out of the city and toward the countryside, a spike of tension begins to wedge itself between them and doubts start to arise. How much do they trust each other? And how perfect is their marriage, or any marriage, really? Forcing us to ask ourselves just how well we know those who are closest to us, Best Day Ever crackles with dark energy, spinning ever tighter toward its shocking conclusion. In the vein of The Couple Next Door, Kaira Rouda weaves a gripping, tautly suspenseful tale of deception and betrayal dark enough to destroy a marriage…or a life. Praise for Best Day Ever “Highly entertaining and truly surprising!” —Kate Moretti, New York Times bestselling author of The Vanishing Year “Best Day Ever is a creepy, spine-tingling and utterly addictive tale of domestic suspense.” —Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke, bestselling authors of The Good Widow

Volume I of the thirty-eight volume translation of Ṭabarī's great History begins with the creation of the world and ends with the time of Noah and the Flood. It not only brings a vast amount of speculation about the early history of mankind into sharp Muslim focus, but it also synchronizes ancient Iranian ideas about the prehistory of mankind with those inspired by the Qur'an and the Bible. The volume is thus an excellent guide to the cosmological views of many of Ṭabarī's contemporaries. The translator, Franz Rosenthal, one of the world's foremost scholars of Arabic, has also written an extensive introduction to the volume that presents all the facts known about Ṭabarī's personal and professional life. Professor Rosenthal's meticulous and original scholarship has yielded a valuable bibliography and chronology of Ṭabarī's writings, both those preserved in manuscript and those alluded to by other authors. The introduction and first volume of the translation of the History form a ground-breaking contribution to Islamic historiography in English and will prove to be an invaluable source of information for those who are interested in Middle Eastern history but are unable to read the basic works in Arabic.

Scripture reveals a God who meets us where we are, not where we pretend to be. No More Faking Fine is your invitation to get honest with God through the life-giving language of lament. If you've ever been given empty clichés during challenging times, you know how painful it is to be misunderstood by well-meaning people. When life hurts, we often feel pressure--from others and ourselves--to keep it together, suck it up, or pray it away. But Scripture reveals a God who lovingly invites us to give honest voice to our emotions when life hits hard. For most of her life, Esther Fleece Allen believed she could bypass the painful emotions of her broken past by shutting them down altogether. She was known as an achiever and an overcomer on the fast track to success. But in silencing her pain, she robbed herself of the opportunity to be healed. Maybe you've done the same. Esther's journey into healing began when she discovered that God has given us a real-world way to deal with raw emotions and an alternative to the coping mechanisms that end up causing more pain. It's called lament--the gut-level, honest prayer that God never ignores, never silences, and never wastes. No More Faking Fine is your permission to lament, taking you on a journey down the unexpected pathway to true intimacy with God. Drawing from careful biblical study and hard-won insight, Esther reveals how to use God's own language to come closer to him as he leads us through our pain to the light on the other side, teaching you that: We are robbing ourselves of a divine mystery and a divine intimacy when we pretend to have it all together God does not expect us to be perfect; instead, he meets us where we are There is hope beyond your heartache, disappointment, and grief Like Esther, you'll soon find that when one person stops faking fine, it gives everyone else permission to do the same.

I first tried writing these little blurbs weekly some years ago when I became a pastor. My office manager suggested I try to fill "this much" space in the church bulletin. I started with the obvious, and wrote a sentence or two about the morning's sermon topic: "Today we look at the way God led Joshua, and see that He still leads us through our personal struggles today." That was deadly dull. I couldn't take it. My own mind drifted off into the nether regions. Slowly, unplanned, I began to find diversions. I followed my own wandering thoughts. I strolled along ethereal shores, looking for pretty shells or interesting wave-worn rocks. Over three hundred of these musings have been the result. Some are ridiculous, and probably none is sublime, but they reflect my mental meanderings. If you choose to come along, I'm grateful for the company. Most of the topics may seem to appear with no rhyme or reason. That is because it is so. They were first dashed off as fillers. Then I began to find the writing a brief respite in the week, an outlet for my own interests. I have always tried to observe and learn wherever I could, from cereal boxes to the internet, so the myriad magazines, emails, media pulp, personal encounters, and random meetings that were woven into the pastorate-as well as countless experiences from previous careers-all provided grist for the mill. The aim of all writing-and the aim of life itself, it seems to me-is to tell the truth. It may be in the form of fiction or fact, but the goal doesn't change. Writing a poem or repairing a motorcycle or remodeling a room or preaching a sermon-I see them as all the same. Work, recreation, ministry, serving, laughing, call them what you will, if done honestly, all become worship. For each moment, for each task, we are to be true to ourselves and to others. I have tried to be so here. In this little collection you will find-again like life itself-that the sacred moments must exist side by side with the trivial, the holy with the profane. Also, I have not bothered to group by topic or date of creation. An anecdote about Christmas may follow one about paper clips. I figure it's easier to tell you that than to do the tedious work of careful collating. Please try to make the best of it.

Introducing God Hearts Me, a brand-new prayer book featuring 365 readings that will encourage your heart with regular reminders of God’s love. Each prayer touches on relevant life topics—such as, Faith, Friendship, Beauty, Belonging, and more. . . Engaging and thought-provoking prayers and easy-to-understand scripture selections—all in one fun, creative package—will inspire you to grow up God's way.

Many people today are thirsty for God and feel a desire for an intense, personal prayer life that is deep and ongoing. But they encounter obstacles that prevent them from following the path seriously, and especially from persevering on it. Time for God was written with these desires and difficulties in mind. In Time for God, author Jacques Philippe mainly concentrates on mental prayer: prayer that consists of facing God in solitude and silence for a time in order to enter into intimate, loving communion with him. Practicing this kind of prayer regularly is considered by all spiritual masters to be an indispensable path that gives access to genuine Christian life—a path to knowing and loving God that empowers us to respond to his call to holiness addressed to each individual. Philippe draws on years of experience as a spiritual guide to illuminate the fundamental principles of mental prayer and describes some common mistakes and misconceptions that can lead it astray. With simplicity and clarity he explains the foundational principles for a healthy prayer life and gives advice for overcoming the various obstacles that arise when one sets off on the path of interior prayer.