Not A Fan

Pastor Kyle Idleman doesn’t just want to be a fan of Jesus, he wants to full heartedly commit to him and be a follower of Jesus. But how can you make the leap from fan to follower? In Not a Fan Idleman uses biblical examples to show how the people who met Jesus also had to decide if they were fans or followers, and what it meant for them to then become followers. Being a follower doesn’t mean that you go to church every week, that you slap a Jesus fish on the back of your car, and that you give to charity. That’s what a fan does. What a follower of Jesus does, Idleman observes, is die to themselves each and every moment of the day because “you can’t say yes to following Jesus unless you say no to living for yourself.” In this three part book Idleman helps you to discover whether you are a fan or a follower, how to recognize the invitation Jesus has given, and what following Jesus looks like in your daily life. With humor and real life examples to draw you closer to Jesus, Kyle Idleman compels each and every one of us to Not Be A Fan

If Jesus were to sit down with you right now and have a DTR (Define the Relationship) conversation, how would you respond?In Not a Fan Student Edition, bestselling author Kyle Idleman challenges you to go beyond fandom into a true follower relationship with Jesus. If someone asked, "Are you a fan of Jesus?", how would you answer? You attend every movie featuring a certain actor, you know the stats of your sports hero, and you can recite lyrics from your favorite songs. That’s a fan. But are you treating Jesus the same as the other people you admire? The truth is Jesus wants more than the church attendance, occasional prayer, and the ability to recite Scripture—the fan response. He's looking for people who are actually willing to sacrifice in order to follow him. In this student edition of Not a Fan, Kyle Idleman uses humor, personal stories, and biblical truth as he challenges you to look at what it means to call yourself a Christian and follow the radical call Jesus presents. So, will you be a fan, or a follower? Many of today's students know about Jesus—a teacher who traveled around the Jewish countryside giving sermons, healing diseases, and casting out demons, before finally dying on the cross to save humanity. Some may even believe Jesus died for their sins. But for many students, their relationship with Christ is similar to the feelings they have for their favorite band—they know the facts, know the greatest hits, and may have the gear that shows their loyalty. In short, they're fans of Jesus. But is that enough? Similar to the adult book, Not a Fan: Student Edition includes funny stories, personal reflections, and deep, biblical content, calling teenagers to live the way Jesus lived, love the way he loved, pray the way he prayed, and never give up living for the one who gave his all for them.

Presenting a new small group study from City on a Hill Productions. Twenty times in the New Testament, Jesus issued a compelling and challenging invitation to follow Him. Hes not interested in mere fans. He doesnt want enthusiastic admires. He wants Completely Committed Followers. Based on the engaging approach of Kyle Idleman, this one-of-a-kind small group study examines what it means to deny ones self and truly follow Jesus.

Revised & Updated Edition! God is love. Crazy, relentless, all-powerful love. Have you ever wondered if we're missing it? It's crazy, if you think about it. The God of the universe—the Creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and E-minor—loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss. Whether you've verbalized it yet or not, we all know something's wrong. Does something deep inside your heart long to break free from the status quo? Are you hungry for an authentic faith that addresses the problems of our world with tangible, even radical, solutions? God is calling you to a passionate love relationship with Himself. Because the answer to religious complacency isn't working harder at a list of do's and don'ts—it's falling in love with God. And once you encounter His love, as Francis describes it, you will never be the same. Because when you're wildly in love with someone, it changes everything. Learn more about Crazy Love at www.crazylovebook.com.

This is one of the wisest books I've read in years... —New York Times Book Review No writer I know of comes close to even trying to articulate the weird magic of poetry as Ruefle does. She acknowledges and celebrates in the odd mystery and mysticism of the act—the fact that poetry must both guard and reveal, hint at and pull back... Also, and maybe most crucially, Ruefle’s work is never once stuffy or overdone: she writes this stuff with a level of seriousness-as-play that’s vital and welcome, that doesn’t make writing poetry sound anything but wild, strange, life-enlargening fun. -The Kenyon Review Profound, unpredictable, charming, and outright funny...These informal talks have far more staying power and verve than most of their kind. Readers may come away dazzled, as well as amused... —Publishers Weekly This is a book not just for poets but for anyone interested in the human heart, the inner-life, the breath exhaling a completion of an idea that will make you feel changed in some way. This is a desert island book. —Matthew Dickman The accomplished poet is humorous and self-deprecating in this collection of illuminating essays on poetry, aesthetics and literature... —San Francisco Examiner Over the course of fifteen years, Mary Ruefle delivered a lecture every six months to a group of poetry graduate students. Collected here for the first time, these lectures include "Poetry and the Moon," "Someone Reading a Book Is a Sign of Order in the World," and "Lectures I Will Never Give." Intellectually virtuosic, instructive, and experiential, Madness, Rack, and Honey resists definition, demanding instead an utter—and utterly pleasurable—immersion. Finalist for the 2012 National Book Critics Circle Award. Mary Ruefle has published more than a dozen books of poetry, prose, and erasures. She lives in Vermont.

Most companies plod along doing things as everyone always has. So there are huge opportunities for people trying to break the mould, even in old-fashioned businesses like banking or insurance. Of course it happens all the time in the digital world, but it can happen anywhere - so long as you turn your customers into fans. When that happens your customers - who will sing your praises when your competitors' customers are grumbling all the time - become your greatest allies in marketing and sales. Then you can really go for growth. But to amaze and delight your customers and clients isn't easy, and requires constant work and innovation - this book, generously scattered with examples and case studies drawn from Vernon Hill's own experience shows how it is to be done.

Don’t try to do it all. Do more good. Better. I am no productivity guru. I am a writer, a church leader, a husband, and a father—a Christian with a lot of responsibilities and with new tasks coming at me all the time. I wrote this short, fast-paced, practical guide to productivity to share what I have learned about getting things done in today’s digital world. Whether you are a student or a professional, a work-from-home dad or a stay-at-home mom, it will help you learn to structure your life to do the most good to the glory of God. In Do More Better, you will learn: Common obstacles to productivityThe great purpose behind productivity3 essential tools for getting things doneThe power of daily and weekly routines And much more, including bonus material on taming your email and embracing the inevitable messiness of productivity. It really is possible to live a calm and orderly life, sure of your responsibilities and confident in your progress. You can do more better. And I would love to help you get there. –Tim Challies

We live in a visual culture. Today, people increasingly rely upon visuals to help them understand new and difficult concepts. The rise and stunning popularity of the Internet infographic has given us a new way in which to convey data, concepts and ideas. But the visual portrayal of truth is not a novel idea. Indeed, God himself used visuals to teach truth to his people. The tabernacle of the Old Testament was a visual representation of man's distance from God and God's condescension to his people. Each part of the tabernacle was meant to display something of man's treason against God and God's kind response. Likewise, the sacraments of the New Testament are visual representations of man's sin and God's response. Even the cross was both reality and a visual demonstration. As teachers and lovers of sound theology, Challies and Byers have a deep desire to convey the concepts and principles of systematic theology in a fresh, beautiful and informative way. In this book, they have made the deepest truths of the Bible accessible in a way that can be seen and understood by a visual generation.