Download or read book Enduring a Crisis of Faith written by Rico Maranto and published by Cedar Fort Publishing & Media. This book was released on 2023-03-22 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A crisis of faith may feel like the death of our testimony. But what if it is not the death of our testimony, but a rebirth of it? After a lifetime of being a devoted Latter-day Saint, Rico Maranto unexpectedly suffered a severe and devastating crisis of faith that plunged him into what he now calls "the dark night of the soul." Overcome with doubt and uncertainty, he began to feel abandoned by God and all that He has taught. But through the years of his dark night, Rico transitioned from nearly losing his faith to rediscovering rebirth. Now Rico shares his story and explains how his crisis transformed him and entirely changed his perspective on faith. In this inspiring book, Rico reframes our perception of doubt and alleviates the shame and guilt that many feel when experiencing similar faith crises. With his loving understanding and knowledge gained as someone who has been through the storm and come out stronger than ever, you will discover the five stages of faith as a template for spiritual development. strategies and toolsets for enduring a crisis of faith. how to help others who are struggling with their own doubts. If you or a loved one are struggling with your faith, know that the dark night of the soul is not reason to despair; it is a divinely designed spiritual chrysalis intended to transform us into all the Lord needs us to become-the best version of ourselves.
Download or read book Dark Night of the Soul A Latter Day Saint s Guide to Enduring a Crisis of Faith A Latter Day Saint s Guide to Enduring a Crisis of Faith written by Rico Maranto and published by Cedar Fort. This book was released on 2023-04-11 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the Church today, many are experiencing a crisis of faith, the dark night of soul. One survey of Church leaders revealed that 97% had a friend or family member who experienced a crisis of faith. Elder Marlin K. Jensen was once asked about members of the Church "leaving in droves." He responded, "The fifteen men [of the First Presidency and Quorum of Twelve] really do know, and they really care. And they realize that maybe since Kirtland, we never have had a period of, I'll call it apostasy, like we're having right now." This book is for those who are experiencing a crisis of faith and those who support them. It explains the divinely designed purpose of a crisis of faith--that it is not the death of our testimony, but the birth of a more refined testimony. It explains that the dark night of the soul, the most severe crisis of faith, is a divinely designed spiritual chrysalis intended to transform us into all the Lord needs us to become and all that we will want to become--the best version of us. It reframes doubt and crisis of faith to alleviate the shame and guilt many feel when they believe or are told their doubts are the results of their own actions. The book equips the reader with the mindset, toolset, and skillset requisite to endure a crisis of faith and help others endure it. In this book, the reader explores these key points: - Doubt is not the absence of faith; it is evidence of it. - There are five stages of faith - We often experience a crisis of faith to help us transition to the next stage. - The dark night of the soul, the crisis of faith at stage three, is the most severe crisis of faith. - The dark night of the soul is divinely designed to transform and refine us.
Download or read book Reignite written by Jack Graham and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2021-03-30 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Even pastors struggle to keep going sometimes. When Dr. Jack Graham had a major surgery ten years ago, he knew it would take a physical toll, but to his surprise, he also found himself wiped out emotionally and spiritually. He wrestled with depression and a lack of spiritual energy, and he struggled to find joy and growth in his walk with Christ. Maybe you've been through a crisis of your own. Or maybe the busyness of life has overwhelmed you, or your faith has grown stale over the years and you've just been going through the motions. So how do you get back to being spiritually energized? In Reignite, Dr. Graham shares the powerful lessons he learned during his own dark night of the soul. He shares biblical insights on how to keep your relationship with God from growing cold, how to focus on what truly matters, and how to make the most of your years on earth, creating a legacy that advances the kingdom of God. For those who follow Jesus, God has promised a triumphant life and an eternity of joyous celebration. But we also need to embrace this joy and victory right here and right now. Let Reignite help you recapture what you've been missing.
Download or read book Faith Crisis written by Ron Dunn and published by B&H Publishing Group. This book was released on 2013-06 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Late pastor Ron Dunn's acclaimed book clarifies the differences between true and counterfeit faith, showing faith's rewards to be more about experiencing God's presence than in earthly blessings.
Download or read book Not by Sight written by Jon Bloom and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2013-04-30 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Trusting Jesus is hard. It requires following the unseen into an unknown, and believing Jesus's words over and against the threats we see or the fears we feel. Through the imaginative retelling of 35 Bible stories, Not by Sight gives us glimpses of what it means to walk by faith and counsel for how to trust God's promises more than our perceptions and to find rest in the faithfulness of God.
Download or read book Unquenchable written by Carol Kent and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2014-02-11 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Where is your faith today—first sparks of faith, bright blue flames, radiating heat, raging bonfire, red-hot coals, cooling embers, cold grey ashes? Is your love for God burning so brightly that you are consumed by its passion? Are those who surround you drawn to its radiance and warmed by its heat? Are sparks flying from you, spreading a wildfire faith that ignites passion in others? Or has your passion cooled, your light dimmed, or your fire been quenched? Throughout history God has chosen fire to represent his awesome power, his judgment and wrath, his protection, and his Shekinah glory: the flaming sword guarding Eden, the burning bush, the pillar of fire, the fiery furnace, the chariot of fire, the burning coal, the flame upon the altar, the lake of fire, and the flaming eyes of the Son of Man upon the throne—these are only a few of the images he has seared into our minds that we might know him more fully. God is the source of that first flicker that sparked your faith and one day you will stand in his holy presence, look into the flaming eyes of Jesus, and see his burning love for you face to face. But between that first flicker and that heavenly meeting, there is life to be lived on this earth. The challenge we all face is that life can dim our fire or even quench it, whether by the soggy mist of the mundane, or the quenching downpour of crisis. Carol Kent has discovered that God’s Word is filled with the secrets of nurturing his fire in our lives, sometimes painfully so, other times even undetected, refining, purifying, cauterizing, healing, and ultimately reshaping us into the image of his Son. Author and speaker Carol Kent will take you into God’s word, and into your own story, to reveal the true power of the fire God has placed in you, to fan the flames of your faith, stir your passion, and embolden you to spark wildfires that will spread to forever change the landscape of this world beyond your wildest imagination. God’s fire is in your life. Fan the flames. Burn brightly. Start a wildfire!
Download or read book Things Not Seen written by Jon Bloom and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2015-07-15 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: True faith is hard. More than mere sentimentalism, faith often calls for a deep and resilient trust in God—especially when the going gets tough and the road is dark. In Things Not Seen, author Jon Bloom encourages readers with 35 imaginative retellings of stories from the Bible that illustrate the importance of living by faith. A follow-up to the author's previous book, Not by Sight: A Fresh Look at Old Stories of Walking by Faith, this inspiring volume explores the lives of Abraham, Moses, Saul, John the Baptist, and more—helping readers remember God's promises, rely on his grace, and follow his leading regardless of the circumstances. The book includes a foreword by popular author and blogger Ann Voskamp.
Download or read book Faith in the Crisis written by REV Dr Adrian Smith and published by WestBow Press. This book was released on 2023-12-21 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Faith in the Crisis" by Rev. Dr. Adrian R. Smith artfully navigates the tumult of global calamities, grounding its roots firmly in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic. An emblem of spiritual resilience, this work brilliantly unfolds the essence of unwavering faith in divine providence amidst life's uncertainties. It is not merely a book but a companionship that guides believers through the shadows of adversity into the light of hope and trust in God's enduring love and grace. Rev. Smith orchestrates a symphony of biblical narratives, intertwined with contemporary struggles, cultivating a garden where faith blossoms amidst the crisis. He encourages believers to adorn the masks of hope, social distance themselves from despair, and lockdown fear, illuminating paths towards spiritual triumph and divine trust. "Faith in the Crisis" is more than a spiritual guide; it is a beacon of hope, resonating with wisdom, encouraging believers to emerge resiliently from the abyss of life's tribulations, fortified with an enriched and unwavering faith.
Download or read book Sword of the Spirit Shield of Faith written by Andrew Preston and published by Anchor. This book was released on 2012-02-28 with total page 779 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A richly detailed, profoundly engrossing story of how religion has influenced American foreign relations, told through the stories of the men and women—from presidents to preachers—who have plotted the country’s course in the world. Ever since John Winthrop argued that the Puritans’ new home would be “a city upon a hill,” Americans’ role in the world has been shaped by their belief that God has something special in mind for them. But this is a story that historians have mostly ignored. Now, in the first authoritative work on the subject, Andrew Preston explores the major strains of religious fervor—liberal and conservative, pacifist and militant, internationalist and isolationist—that framed American thinking on international issues from the earliest colonial wars to the twenty-first century. He arrives at some startling conclusions, among them: Abraham Lincoln’s use of religion in the Civil War became the model for subsequent wars of humanitarian intervention; nineteenth-century Protestant missionaries made up the first NGO to advance a global human rights agenda; religious liberty was the centerpiece of Franklin Roosevelt’s strategy to bring the United States into World War II. From George Washington to George W. Bush, from the Puritans to the present, from the colonial wars to the Cold War, religion has been one of America’s most powerful sources of ideas about the wider world. When, just days after 9/11, George W. Bush described America as “a prayerful nation, a nation that prays to an almighty God for protection and for peace,” or when Barack Obama spoke of balancing the “just war and the imperatives of a just peace” in his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, they were echoing four hundred years of religious rhetoric. Preston traces this echo back to its source. Sword of the Spirit, Shield of Faith is an unprecedented achievement: no one has yet attempted such a bold synthesis of American history. It is also a remarkable work of balance and fair-mindedness about one of the most fraught subjects in America.
Download or read book The Wisdom Pyramid written by Brett McCracken and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2021-01-15 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We're facing an information overload. With the quick tap of a finger we can access an endless stream of addictive information—sports scores, breaking news, political opinions, streaming TV, the latest Instagram posts, and much more. Accessing information has never been easier—but acquiring wisdom is increasingly difficult. In an effort to help us consume a more balanced, healthy diet of information, Brett McCracken has created the "Wisdom Pyramid." Inspired by the food pyramid model, the Wisdom Pyramid challenges us to increase our intake of enduring, trustworthy sources (like the Bible) while moderating our consumption of less reliable sources (like the Internet and social media). At a time when so much of our daily media diet is toxic and making us spiritually sick, The Wisdom Pyramid suggests that we become healthy and wise when we reorient our lives around God—the foundation of truth and the eternal source of wisdom.
Download or read book The Gift of Disillusionment written by Peter Greer and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2022-04-12 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hope for Leaders Facing Burnout and Discouragement Around the world, discouragement erodes the vitality of organizations. Visionaries often succumb to cynicism. Zealous advocates give up. Leaders coast as their passion for the cause grows cold. Grounded in research, this book is an invitation for followers of Jesus to sustain hope in long-term service. It's about moving past the false hope of idealism and the faint hope of disillusionment to discover true Christian hope. You will gain encouragement through the study of the book of Jeremiah woven throughout as the authors explore how the Lord prophetically met and sustained Jeremiah during his lifetime of faithfulness despite literally nothing going as he'd hoped. Glean further inspiration by reading the stories of Christian leaders from around the globe: Zimbabwe, Haiti, Guatemala, Poland, Palestine, the Philippines, India, Zambia, and Lebanon. For this is a moment when we need the global Church's perspective and influence. Don't give up and don't check out. These are confounding and perilous days, yet God's sustaining presence can bring joy, hope, and encouragement even amid heartache and disappointment.
Download or read book Grace Revealed written by Fred Sievert and published by BroadStreet Publishing Group LLC. This book was released on 2018-01-01 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Trust in the Unmerited Gift of God’s Grace You can’t escape the inevitable crises that will face you throughout your lifetime. Whether it’s health problems, emotional issues, career challenges, gut-wrenching losses, or other failures, these experiences can destroy your morale and lead you into despair. Some crises may be a result of your own choices, while others may be completely out of your control. Whatever the source, there is a lasting solution that comes to you free of charge from above: God’s amazing grace. In Grace Revealed, you will:Experience real-life stories of others who discover they are not alone and that relief is within their grasp.See how devastating afflictions can be overcome through faith in Jesus and His love, mercy, and grace.Learn how God’s grace transforms lives and leads you into enduring and rewarding Christian service.Be inspired to encourage others who are suffering but cannot seek help on their own. Read these undeniable, modern-day examples of God’s loving grace and its transformative power, and discover that God is always present in your time of need.
Download or read book Faith That Lasts written by Cameron McAllister and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2021-01-26 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In their work as Christian apologists, father and son Stuart and Cameron McAllister hear from Christian parents who worry about raising their children in the faith amid a seductive culture. Reflecting on their own very different experiences of coming to Christian faith, they share how our homes can be places of honest conversation, open-handed exploration, and lasting faith.
Download or read book Faith and Sword written by Alan G. Jamieson and published by Reaktion Books. This book was released on 2016-11-15 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With the recent surge in terrorist acts and military confrontations, as well as ever-strengthening fundamentalist ideologies, the Christian–Muslim divide is perhaps more visible than ever—but it is not new. Alan G. Jamieson explores here the long and bloody history of the Christian–Muslim conflict, revealing in his concise yet comprehensive study how deeply this ancient divide is interwoven with crucial events in world history. Faith and Sword opens with the tumultuous first centuries of the conflict, examining the religious precepts that framed clashes between Christians and Muslims and that ultimately fueled the legendary Crusades. Traversing the full breadth of the Arab lands and Christendom, Jamieson chronicles the turbulent saga from the Arab conquests of the seventh century to the rise of the powerful Ottoman Empire and its fall at the end of World War I. He then explores the complex dynamics that emerged later in the twentieth century, as Christendom was transformed into the secular West and Islamic nations overthrew European colonialism to establish governments straddling modernity and religiosity. From the 1979 Iranian revolution to the Lebanon hostage crisis to—in this new expanded edition—the recent wars in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan, Faith and Sword reveals the essence of this enduring struggle and its consequences.
Download or read book Enduring Justice written by Amy N. Wallace and published by Multnomah. This book was released on 2009 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A PAINFUL PAST Hanna Kessler’s childhood secret has remained buried for over two decades. But when the dark shadows of her past threaten to destroy those she loves, Hanna must face the summer that changed her life and the man who still haunts her memories. A RACIALLY-MOTIVATED KILLER As a Crimes Against Children FBI Agent, Michael Parker knows what it means to get knocked down. Difficult cases and broken relationships have plagued his entire year. But when the system fails and a white supremacist is set free, Michael’s drive for retribution eclipses all else. A LIFE-ALTERING CHOICE A racist’s well-planned assault forces Hanna and Michael to decide between executing vengeance and pursuing justice. The dividing line between the two is the choice to heal. But when the attack turns personal, is justice enough?
Download or read book Courage for the Crisis written by Arthur S. Maxwell and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2018-09-03 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: HOW TO FIND PEACE OF MIND AND FORTITUDE OF SPIRIT FOR THE DANGEROUS DAYS AHEAD “The world is moving into ever-deepening crisis....scarcely a month passes without a book being published by some philosopher, historian, or theologian, dissecting current trends and warning of the future.” More than half a century has passed since Arthur S. Maxwell first wrote these words in 1962. Is the world a safer place now than it was then? Honest observers are bound to say “No.” In fact, if anything, life today has become even more uncertain, even less stable, than it was fifty years ago. What do we need in times like these? Maxwell says it isn’t “a mere knowledge of the crisis, but courage to meet it.” And where can we get that courage? Maxwell says from God. From the Cross. From good habits—such as obedience, worship, and dedication. And from the great certainties—such as God’s victory over evil, Jesus’ second coming, and the reality of heaven.—Adventist Book Center
Download or read book Crisis Contemplation written by Barbara Holmes and published by . This book was released on 2021-07 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
