Download or read book Imaginative Prayer for Youth Ministry written by Jeannie Oestreicher and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2009-08-30 with total page 177 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How often have you struggled to help your students really grasp God’s love? How often have you been frustrated by their Sunday school answers when you try to draw them into the depths of God’s story? You’re not alone. Many students (and even youth workers brave enough to admit it) are experiencing emptiness, lack of passion, and a growing inability to hear from God.But there is hope. Just use your imagination...God created our imaginations. Why not harness them to encounter our creative God in brand new ways? Try it right now: Picture yourself in a boat with Jesus as the seas grow rough, as the water crashes over the bow. Notice what’s going on...notice your emotions at this critical moment. What is your sense of Jesus’ presence in the midst of the storm?The latter is just one example of the many guided exercises within the pages of Imaginative Prayer for Youth Ministry. You’ll find tools that can help you use imaginative prayer as a means of experiencing the God who is continually reaching out to us. Invite your students to open their imaginations (and their five senses) to God’s spirit and allow God to move and speak directly to them through the 50 imaginative prayer exercises inside. They come complete with instructions, environment suggestions, and optional debrief questions—there’s even a topical/Scripture reference index so you can find just the right exercises to suit your needs. If you want to introduce your students to the God who loves them (in a way that allows them to truly experience that love), imaginative prayer is an effective means to do so—you and your students will never be the same.
Download or read book Presence Centered Youth Ministry written by Mike King and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2006-08-29 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Publisher's description: Presence-Centered Youth Ministry shows how classic disciplines, symbols and practices that have sustained the church over the centuries can shape the worldviews, virtues and habits of young people today. Come explore the deeper terrain of an ancient faith; your students are sure to follow.
Download or read book 7 Ways to Pray written by Amy Boucher Pye and published by SPCK. This book was released on 2021-09-14 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For Christians, prayer is the main way we communicate with God - but what can we do when we struggle with the question of how to pray or feel our prayer lives are lacking? Seven Ways to Pray explores how by looking to ancient prayer practices of Christianity, we can find fresh ways to relate to God today. Discovering these tried and tested tools will not only strengthen our relationship with him but will bring us joy, contentment, growth and transformation. With warmth and encouragement, Amy Boucher Pye takes us through seven ways to pray to God: praying with the Bible, receiving and extending forgiveness, practicing God's presence, listening prayer, the prayer of lament, praying with the gospels imaginatively and the prayer of examen. Guiding us through their history, she shows us how easily we can make these prayer practices part of our lives and use them to grow closer to God. Along with prayer exercises to help us engage directly with God, there are questions for individual reflection or small-group discussion, making Seven Ways to Pray perfect to use as a family, in churches or with friends. This is a book for anyone who has ever wondered how to pray or is looking for ways to revitalise their prayer lives. It will give you an understanding of some of the oldest prayer practices of Christianity, and equip you with the tools you need to renew and refresh your relationship with God. Come along, and discover Seven Ways to Pray.
Download or read book God Moments written by Andy Otto and published by Ave Maria Press. This book was released on 2017-04-07 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Where do you seek God? Are you waiting for him to appear in a monumental, life-altering event? In God Moments, Catholic blogger Andy Otto shows you how to discover the unexpected beauty of God’s presence in the story of ordinary things and in everyday routines like preparing breakfast or walking in the woods. Drawing on the Ignatian principles of awareness, prayer, and discernment, Otto will help you discover the transforming power of God’s presence in your life and better understand your place in the world. Andy Otto found God’s presence in surprising moments during his life—when, as a Jesuit scholastic, he taught children in Jamaica and also as he discerned the call to marriage with his wife. By combining elements of Ignatian spirituality with the lessons that came from his experiences, Otto identified three practices that helped him find God in all things: Awareness—Gain an understanding that God is present in the ordinary messiness of our lives such as battle with depression or sharing in the struggle of a friend. Prayer—Develop a prayer life using Ignatian practices such as asking for a morning grace and examining how your prayer was answered at the end of the day. That way you can focus on a personal relationship with God that finds everyday physical activities such as making a meal as an opportunity to talk to him. Discernment—The more you are aware of God’s presence and draw closer to him in prayer, the better you can learn how to plug into God’s narrative of the world in a way that enables you to participate in the divine story through the use of your gifts and talents. With God Moments as a guide, you’ll have a better understanding of how to seek personal wholeness in the reality of God’s presence in the ordinary and learn to accept his invitation to participate in his transformation of the world.
Download or read book 80 Creative Prayer Ideas written by Claire Daniel and published by . This book was released on 2014-06-20 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Prayer is a vital part of the Christian life but people often struggle with actually getting on and doing it. This book offers 80 imaginative and creative ideas for setting up 'prayer stations', practical ways of praying that involve the senses - touching, tasting, smelling, seeing, and hearing, rather than simply reflecting, as we bring our hopes, fears, dreams and doubts to God. Developed from material tried and tested with small groups, the ideas here provide activities ranging from bubble prayers to clay pot prayers (via just about everything else in between), and have been designed to be used with grown-ups - of all ages!
Download or read book Soul School written by Jeanne Stevens and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2009-08-01 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We all know that youth ministry can be hard. Sadly, many youth workers walk away from their jobs, their callings, and their passion because their interior worlds are falling apart. That’s why Soul School is essential for developing an effective and healthy you(th) ministry. Because while your ministry might look healthy to outsiders, only you know that something is lacking. It’s easy to get so busy caring for the external parts of your ministry that you forget the most important part—your soul. So spend some time going beneath the surface, to the core of who you are. Let author Jeanne Stevens help you discover the answers to the deep longings in your soul. Soul School will bring you nearer to God, into a deeper awareness of yourself, into transformational community, and on the road toward a healthier future.
Download or read book Contemplative Youth Ministry written by Mark Yaconelli and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2011-03-22 with total page 267 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Contemplative Youth Ministry is refreshing rain for dry youth workers and barren youth ministries. More than the same old youth ministry tips and tricks, it gives principles and practices to soak in God’s grace, love, and power. I wish I had read it 15 years ago.” - Kara Powell, Ph.D., executive director, Center for Youth Ministry and Family Ministry, Fuller Theological Seminary “Mark invites readers to be encountered by the presence of Jesus who is always near. This book is transparent about the challenges that churches and families face as they desire to be effective in youth ministry. The book is filled with the honest stories of different kinds of youth ministries representing the breadth of Christianity in the United States. I heartily endorse Contemplative Youth Ministry as a rich encounter with the souls of youth and adults whose lives have been transformed by our very present God.” - Bill Kees, director of youth ministries, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) “Mark Yaconelli not only reminds us of some of the long-forgotten pathways of faith, he shares with us how it actually looks when men and women who love God practice it with young people. I especially appreciate Mark’s optimism in his perspective of today’s kids, for his insights are grounded in God’s view of them.” - Chap Clark, Ph.D., associate professor of youth, family, and culture, Fuller Theological Seminary “Mark Yaconelli was experimenting with contemplative youth ministry practices before contemplative youth ministry practices became cool. This book has about it the unique air of authenticity. He shares with us in these pages his own journey as a youth worker who actually believes that God’s still small voice speaks louder than the roaring windstorm of our busy youth ministry calendars. It’s a book about creating for our students places of silence and opening up spaces for God to speak.” - Duffy Robbins, professor of youth ministry, Eastern University; author of Enjoy the Silence and This Way to Youth Ministry “Mark Yaconelli has emerged as one of youth ministry’s most provocative ‘voices in the wilderness,’ calling us back to our theological taproots: The contemplative practices that bind our lives to the life of Christ. If Mark’s research has taught us anything, it’s that these practices do not cause youth ministry to take fl ight into a spiritual never-never land; rather they anchor young people—and their churches—in the fertile soil of Christian tradition, in the nitty-gritty of daily life, and in the explosive transformation that awaits us when we wait upon God.” - Kenda Creasy Dean, parent, pastor, and professor of youth, Princeton Theological Seminary; author of Practicing Passion: Youth and the Quest for a Passionate Church
Download or read book 101 Ideas for Making Disciples in Your Youth Group written by Kent Julian and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2008-06-29 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Create a missional youth ministry where disciple-making happens naturally by exploring the idea of ACTS: Adoration, Community, Truth-and-Grace, and Serving-and-Sharing. Through ACTS, you'll see Jesus' style of ministry and how to apply it to yours. With 101 ideas that are easy to implement, your ministry can start looking the way you envisioned.
Download or read book Creative Ideas for Wild Church written by Juno Hollyhock and published by Canterbury Press. This book was released on 2016-09-06 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This innovative and imaginative resource offers learning and worship activities and whole service outlines to help churches engage with the outside world and increase connectedness with the communities where they are placed, whether rural or urban. Current trends encourage us to reconnect with nature – schools are building outdoor classrooms, 11,000 organizations belong to the Wild Network which encourages children to get outside, while Forest Church, the Eco-congregation and the rewilding spirituality movements reflect this trend in the church. Definitely not just for energetic outdoorsy types, it creatively blends the Christian year with the natural seasons – such as an all-age Advent outdoor adventure, creating an outdoor Easter garden, kite flying at Ascension, building life-size David and Goliath, going on a prayer pilgrimage, autumn leaves and tree ribbons for remembrance, and much more.
Download or read book Imagine You Walked with Jesus written by Jerry Windley-Daoust and published by Our Sunday Visitor. This book was released on 2021-12-14 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contemplative, or imaginative, prayer is a method of meditative prayer developed by Saint Ignatius of Loyola in which you imagine yourself as a character in a Bible story, experiencing the events described in the passage as if you were actually there. In Imagine You Walked with Jesus, you’ll be introduced to contemplative prayer through forty episodes from the Gospels. Each entry includes: A brief introduction to the Bible text, with vivid details to aid your imagination and place the text in a larger interpretative context An introductory prayer The full text of the Bible passage Journaling prompts As you prayerfully immerse yourself in the Bible passages in this book, you’ll be invited to draw on your imagination to rewrite the story from your own perspective: what you saw and heard, your feelings and emotions, and how you interacted with Jesus and the other people present in the story. Saint Ignatius taught that the imagination can be an instrument of prayer. By imagining how we would respond to a particular biblical episode, we can respond to God’s word in a deeper, more meaningful way — and perhaps hear what God has to say to us, too. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jerry Windley-Daoust is the author of more than a dozen books on Catholic social teaching, family spirituality, and Ignatian prayer. The cofounder of Gracewatch Media, which creates print and digital resources for Catholic families, he is especially grateful for the ten years he spent as a stay-at-home dad for his five children. Find him online at windhovering.com.
Download or read book Faith at Home written by Wendy Claire Barrie and published by Church Publishing, Inc.. This book was released on 2016-10-01 with total page 123 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Add depth and meaning your family's traditions with these basic Christian practices that nurture and enrich everyone’s faith at home. Home and parents are the key mechanisms by which religious faith and practice are transmitted inter-generationally. Recent studies indicate that the single most important factor in youth becoming committed and engaged in their religious faith as young adults is that the family talks about religion at home. However, for many parents in the United States, religious language is a foreign language. Faith at Home helps parents learn this "second language" and introduce it to their children in simple, meaningful, concrete ways. Parents often ask: How do we introduce prayer to our children if we do not necessarily believe prayer changes outcomes? How do we approach reading the Bible with our children when our own relationship with it is mixed or complicated? How do we talk about difficult things and where do we find God in the midst of them? How do we teach our children to make a difference in the world? How do we connect what happens at church to what happens at home? These questions and many more are addressed with talking points, practices, and resources provided for each subject.
Download or read book What Is Ignatian Spirituality written by David L. Fleming and published by Loyola Press. This book was released on 2011-09-29 with total page 131 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Its effects are often life changing. But what exactly is it, and why do so many people embrace it? The most influential spiritual movement of the modern age is Ignatian spirituality, an approach to the spiritual life based on the insights of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Ignatian spirituality teaches an active attentiveness to God joined with a prompt responsiveness to God, who is ever active in people’s lives. In What Is Ignatian Spirituality?,David L. Fleming, SJ, provides an authoritative yet highly accessible summary of the key elements of Ignatian spirituality, among which are contemplative prayer, discernment, and dynamic involvement in service and mission. In twenty concise chapters, Fr. Fleming explains how this centuries-old method of disciplined reflection on God’s work in the world can deepen our spiritual lives today and guide all the decisions we make. Also available in Spanish! ¿Qué es la espiritualidad ignaciana?
Download or read book Oremus Student Workbook written by Mark Toups and published by . This book was released on 2012-12-01 with total page 107 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Student Workbook is your essential guide to the Oremus study program. It contains all the written materials you need to complete the eight-part study, and is designed to be accompanied by the corresponding presentations from the Oremus DVD series. The workbook includes session outlines, discussion questions, daily readings, and a journal section to record your personal experiences in prayer.
Download or read book Living the Sacraments written by Joe Paprocki and published by Toolbox. This book was released on 2018 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Joe Paprocki demystifies the Catholic sacraments and presents them as a way of life to be experienced each day, rather than as standalone events.
Download or read book 7 Ways to Pray written by Amy Boucher Pye and published by NavPress. This book was released on 2021-09-07 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A hands-on and time-tested look at ways to pray that will strengthen your relationship with God and lead to transformation. 7 Ways to Pray explores ancient prayer practices to help you encounter God and avoid an over-intellectualization of your faith. Each chapter shares real-life examples, is rooted in the Bible, and includes prayer exercises for individuals or groups. This is a sourcebook for prayer, not a simple to-do list. Amy is a storyteller that brings these proven practices to life so you can make them immediately actionable. This is a great resource for your retreat, prayer group, or book club. Prayer is a gift from God; praying is a practice. We are always a simple word or single step away from a conversation with God. And yet taking that step or saying that word can sometimes feel confounding. This book draws from the deep well of Christian history to make praying a habit to enjoy in our crazy, bustling, wearying times. With seven ways of approaching prayer and practical examples of those ways to pray, you will find yourself regularly and repeatedly turning to God and finding him happy to hear from you.
Download or read book Clear written by Chris Folmsbee and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2010 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For teens whose faith seems a little blurry, Clear will help put it into focus. The interactive exercises in this book will help students develop a better understanding of God and his truths so they can be more like Jesus.
Download or read book Apologetics and the Christian Imagination written by Holly Ordway and published by Emmaus Road Publishing. This book was released on 2017 with total page 174 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Apologetics, the defense of the Faith, shows why our Christian faith is true—but it’s much more than that. Apologetics isn’t just the province of scholars and saints, but of ordinary men and women: parents, teachers, lay ministry leaders, pastors, and everyone who wants to develop a stronger faith, to understand why we believe what we believe, to know Our Lord better, and love him more fully. In Apologetics and the Christian Imagination: An Integrated Approach to Defending the Faith, Holly Ordway shows how an imaginative approach—in cooperation with rational arguments—is extremely valuable in helping people come to faith in Christ. Making a case for the role of imagination in apologetics, this book proposes ways to create meaning for Christian language in a culture that no longer understands words like ‘sin’ or ‘salvation,' suggests how to discern and address the manipulation of language, and shows how metaphor and narrative work in powerful ways to communicate the truth. It applies these concepts to specific, key apologetics issues, including suffering, doubt, and longing for meaning and beauty. Apologetics and the Christian Imagination shows how Christians can harness the power of the imagination to share the Faith in meaningful, effective ways.
