Download or read book An Unexplainable Life written by Erica Wiggenhorn and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2016-06-16 with total page 285 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What can God do with fifty days? In only fifty days Peter was radically transformed. He went from being a man in the shadows denying even knowing Jesus, to a man boldly proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus in the middle of the temple courts. How did the change occur? And more importantly, can such a change occur within us—today, in the here and now? For fifty days, I invite you to dwell in the first twelve chapters of Acts. Here we meet Peter face-to-face and encounter the source of his power. We become challenged to grab hold of that power ourselves, believing that God wants to do something in and through us that is unexplainable apart from Him. Let’s give God fifty days and see what He might do. The purpose of this study isn’t simply to reiterate a message. (You can find many studies on Acts.) Our purpose is to reignite a movement of the power of the Holy Spirit in each of us individually and in our churches collectively. Are you ready? — Erica Wiggenhorn Participants will enjoy: A verse-by-verse study spread over ten weeks (5 lessons/week) Many biblical, theological, and historical insights Text-based discussion questions that truly provoke thought

Download or read book The Unexplainable Church written by Erica Wiggenhorn and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2017-06-06 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Finally, a Bible study that goes deep... Frustrated with the watered-down, “light” Bible studies that are all too common, Erica Wiggenhorn wanted to write a study that went deep. She wanted to take readers verse-by-verse through a whole book of the Bible, offering theological and historical comments in each lesson while remaining practical and relational. The Unexplainable Church is the result, and it offers readers two great takeaways. It will teach them by example how to study the Bible deeply, and it will challenge them toward critical life-change: submitting their will to the mission of Jesus, who gives life its fullest meaning. The message of The Unexplainable Church is that the early church didn’t grow because Peter and Paul were so amazing, but because average people were transformed by God and brought together in His work. This 10-week inductive study of Acts 13–28 will sweep readers into the great drama of the Kingdom, inspiring them to live together in the power of the Spirit and accomplish what could never be done alone. PLUS! Check out The Unexplainable Church DVD for even more great teaching from Erica Wiggenhorn. It's the perfect resource for your small group.

Download or read book Unexplainable Jesus written by Erica Wiggenhorn and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2019-06-04 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When’s the last time you were captivated by Jesus? Crowds clamored, women wept in awe, disciples dared to do the impossible—all because of Jesus. Somewhere in the overly familiar we’ve lost our fascination. Whether you’re worn thin, filled with questions, or desperate for more of God, come encounter Unexplainable Jesus. Experience the culture and customs of His day and follow Him into a life unimaginable. This study features: in-depth study of Luke (40 lessons over 8 weeks) historical and cultural insights soul-searching questions access to extensive online resources Step into the streets of Jerusalem and encounter the Jewish Rabbi who turned the world upside down. After rediscovering Jesus on the pages of the book of Luke—or maybe discovering Him for the very first time—you’ll see there is no other plan, goal, ambition, or Person worth following but Jesus. Plus, check out the Unexplainable Jesus DVD, which contains hours of all-new video teaching content from Erica Wiggenhorn.

Download or read book Letting God Be Enough written by Erica Wiggenhorn and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2021-09-07 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Everyone thinks you’ve got it together. But inside, you’re asking, “Am I enough?” No matter how good we look to others, the nagging voice of self-doubt is hard to shake. We ask questions like: If people really knew me would they still accept me? Will I be rejected when I can’t perform? Can I pull this off? What if I end up alone? Am I missing out on what life should be because I can’t shake this fear? If you find yourself having thoughts like these, Erica Wiggenhorn wants to lead you to freedom. Drawing from the story of Moses—the greatest self-doubter in the Bible—Erica shows how self-doubt is tied closely to self-reliance. It’s only when you cast yourself on God that you find the true source of strength. Are you enough? The answer is no . . . but your God certainly is. Step out in His power instead of your own and watch your confidence blossom because you’re in the hands of I AM.

Download or read book Whole Life Transformation written by Keith Meyer and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2010-06-03 with total page 223 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pastor and professor Keith Meyer writes in a fresh, prophetic voice about his experience of learning spiritual formation through being mentored by Dallas Willard. Drawing from the riches of church history and the experience of contemporary ministry, Meyer then describes how his own life transformation changed how he approached ministry and church leadership.

Download or read book The Unexplainable Church written by Erica Wiggenhorn and published by . This book was released on 2018-04-03 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: God is calling, will you answer? God wants to astonish the world with his grace. And when we study the book of Acts, we see that He does it by transforming ordinary people to do extraordinary things in Jesus' name. Are you ready to be used by Him? This DVD accompanies The Unexplainable Church Bible Study and answers questions like: Why do we miss our divine invitation? Where is God in our difficulty? Do I have a personal calling and how do I discover it? How does grace impact our daily lives? Plus! With this DVD you get: 35 minutes a week of brand new content with expanded instruction from Erica Wiggenhorn leader training that will equip you to lead a small group with confidence and minimal preparation A promo video you can share on social media or your church's website to help build interest for your bible study Dig deeper. Lead better. "When we are captivated by the wonder of grace, it becomes a catalyst to share the work of grace." -Erica Wiggenhorn

Download or read book Contagious Generosity written by Chris Willard and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2012-07-03 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The general practices related to church funding aren’t producing the same results they have in the past. There is a general acceptance that something has changed but little talk or interest is coming from traditional church leader training sources such as denominational entities and seminaries. Pastors are largely left to their own devices to “figure this out.” They need a lifeline. While some churches are experiencing exponential growth, some churches - despite their best efforts - have been unsuccessful at moving beyond survival mode. Coupled with increased competition from other nonprofits and a decline in the commitment to give to the church first, churches risk losing the funding they need. A growing number of leaders are beginning to discover there is another way and are struggling to understand what makes one church generous and another not. There is a need in the market to offer a simple, working definition of “generosity” and reveal the “secrets” some church leaders seem to have simply stumbled upon which are resulting in unexplainable ministry growth and unprecedented church funding even in the midst of tough economic times. The content of this material was developed and refined by Jim Sheppard and Chris Willard through years of ministry leadership in the local church, consulting with church leaders across a broad spectrum of church settings, and through participation in and leadership of the Generous Church Leadership Community facilitated by Leadership Network. Of particular benefit will be the collection of observations and best practices gleaned during the Generous Church Leadership Community that originated within real-life church leadership situations and scenarios by highlighting specific challenges, methods, and successes.

Download or read book Captive Congregation written by James E. Larue and published by . This book was released on 2015-06-27 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Church of Bible Understanding (COBU) had a presence in many cities in the United States during the late seventies and eighties. It was well known in New York City for its Christian Brothers Carpet Cleaning business, which was such a regular part of the fabric of city life that it was parodied (as Sunshine Carpet Cleaners) on an episode of Seinfeld. Its 39.95 Carpet Cleaning Special flyers were slipped under many doors and left in many apartment lobbies. Unlike other religious organizations whose zealous devotees stood on corners selling flowers, the COBU brothers and sisters gave live demos of the cleansing power of their carpet cleaning machines on city street corners. The carpet cleaning business raised money to start orphanages in Haiti. COBU still has a presence in the New York City and several other cities. It left the carpet business for its more successful architectural antique business called Olde Good Things. COBU was recently in the news when Haitian authorities threatened to close the orphanages down because of the poor conditions there. News stories contrasted the high earnings of these stores with the run down condition of the orphanages. This book describes how James LaRue, a young seeker of truth, was approached in a mall by a cult member and how he joined the group and stayed in it for fourteen years. It is not as much a history of The Church of Bible Understanding as it is a story from the viewpoint of the average member of a cult. Though James's descriptions of daily cult life, the reader has a front row view of the kind of manipulation, lies, harassment and abuse practiced by the cult's leadership and particularly by Stewart Traill, COBU's self-appointed pastor who had "the only true method of Bible interpretation," a man who portrayed himself as a right Christian example and the restorer of Christianity to its original purity (which he said had been lost since the time of the Apostles), who, behind closed doors, kept a harem of young women while denying marriage to his followers under the pretext that they were not faithful enough to God to be able to get married. He was a man who preached poverty, chastity and obedience to his followers, while amassing a private fortune, having many female devotees and being accountable to no one. Stewart Traill began his career preaching about being born again and the second coming of Christ, but over the years, his teachings increasingly centered on death, hell and damnation. The man who once told his followers to go out into the highways and byways to compel people to come to God's kingdom was now slamming the gates of heaven in their faces and telling them they were not worthy of entering and that instead, the fires of hell awaited them. Many people left the organization because of this treatment, but what this meant for those who remained was that there was a smaller and more dedicated group of those who believed in this way and who were willing to put up with this treatment. This meant an ever-tightening net of social pressure among members to conform to cult life. Fanaticism and a militant way of life replaced church members' original zeal to proclaim the gospel. It was a live-in situation where church members monitored one another and reported to "Brother Stewart," as he was called. The treadmill of work in the church's businesses and sleep deprivation caused by meetings that lasted until the early hours of the morning made sure members were too tired to think rationally, and combined with a highly loaded language and sloganizing that stifled thought, it created an undertow that swept members off the normal moorings of life and along with the current of cult life. The story documents James's entry into the cult as a true believer, his experiences there and finally, his effort to come to terms with this way of life, to understand the processes he was being subjected to and controlled by and finally, how he was able to break free from its influence.

Download or read book The Red Church written by Scott Nicholson and published by Haunted Computer Books. This book was released on 2010-01-05 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Like Stephen King, he knows how to summon serious scares." - Bentley Little, The Haunting Stoker Award finalist THE RED CHURCH For 13-year-old Ronnie Day, life is full of problems: Mom and Dad have separated, his brother Tim is a constant pest, Melanie Ward either loves him or hates him, and Jesus Christ won't stay in his heart. Plus he has to walk past the red church every day, where the Bell Monster hides with its wings and claws and livers for eyes. But the biggest problem is that Archer McFall is the new preacher at the church, and Mom wants Ronnie to attend midnight services with her. Sheriff Frank Littlefield hates the red church for a different reason. His little brother died in a freak accident at the church twenty years ago, and now Frank is starting to see his brother's ghost. And the ghost keeps demanding, "Free me." People are dying in Whispering Pines, and the murders coincide with McFall's return. The Days, the Littlefields, and the McFalls are descendants of the original families that settled the rural Appalachian community. Those old families share a secret of betrayal and guilt, and McFall wants his congregation to prove its faith. Because he believes he is the Second Son of God, and that the cleansing of sin must be done in blood. "Sacrifice is the currency of God," McFall preaches, and unless Frank and Ronnie stop him, everybody pays. --------------------------- "Scott Nicholson understands that the best horror novels achieve primal fear through a combination of sustained atmosphere, richly drawn characters, and believable if uncanny evils that draw unholy power from everyday lives." --Christopher Ransom, author of The Birthing House "Keep both hands on your pants, because Nicholson is about to scare them off."--J.A. Konrath, Origin "Scott Nicholson is the kind of writer who always surprises and always entertains."--Jonathan Maberry, Patient Zero "Scott Nicholson writes with a mixture of H.P. Lovecraft, Manly Wade Wellman, and Clive Barker." - Kevin J. Anderson Keywords: Stephen King, Joe Hill, horror fiction, paranormal, suspense, mystery, supernatural thriller, ghost story, haunted house story, scary google books, spooky ebooks, Dean Koontz, James Herbert, John Saul, Edgar Allan Poe, Blake Crouch, J.A. Konrath, Jonathan Maberry, Peter Straub, Brian Keene, ghosts, Stoker Award finalist, Adam Nevill, Sarah Pinborough, Paul Tremblay

Download or read book They Never Told Me this in Church written by Greg S. Deuble and published by Restoration Fellowship. This book was released on 2006 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is a consensus among many New Testament scholars that much of what the historical Jesus and his apostles taught has been submerged by an influx of post-biblical tradition. Subtle foreign influences, mostly from pagan Greek philosophy, which neither Jesus nor his first-century followers would recognize or endorse, have obscured the original Gospel as Jesus preached it. Most churchgoers accept without question, unbiblical traditions which they have never seriously investigated.In They Never Told Me This in Church! Greg Deuble invites the reader to a careful re-examination of ?the faith once delivered? in the light of the Hebrew heritage which formed the framework of all that Jesus taught in regard to himself and his Gospel mission. From the Foreword: ?This does not mean at all that Greg has given up faith in holy Scripture. Far from it. There is nothing trendy or gimmicky in his approach. Rather, he has learned to read the Bible from its own Hebrew perspective, and shedding a large quantity of traditional baggage has made the Bible all the more brilliant and telling. Because he is an honest student of truth, Greg has been rewarded...with unusual insight. He has a knack of getting to the heart of the issues. He has brought in a wealth of modern scholarly support for his argument, and the quotations gleaned from his wide reading are impressive. He adds a pleasing dose of Aussie humour to his writing while he invites us to re-examine all the major issues of biblical theology. The personal warmth of the author and his pastoral touch are evident in all he writes.?They Never Told Me This in Church! will inspire and challenge all who claim devotion to Jesus, and many who are searching for the meaning of his role in history. They will be enabled to read the Bible with new eyes! The confused state of divided Christendom in our time demands just such an honest and radical investigation.

Download or read book Messy Grace written by Caleb Kaltenbach and published by WaterBrook. This book was released on 2015-10-20 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sometimes, grace gets messy. Caleb Kaltenbach was raised by LGBT parents, marched in gay pride parades as a youngster, and experienced firsthand the hatred and bitterness of some Christians toward his family. But then Caleb surprised everyone, including himself, by becoming a Christian…and a pastor. Very few issues in Christianity are as divisive as the acceptance of the LGBT community in the church. As a pastor and as a person with beloved family members living a gay lifestyle, Caleb had to face this issue with courage and grace. Messy Grace shows us that Jesus’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself” doesn’t have an exception clause for a gay “neighbor”—or for that matter, any other “neighbor” we might find it hard to relate to. Jesus was able to love these people and yet still hold on to his beliefs. So can you. Even when it’s messy. “Messy Grace is an important contribution to the conversation about sexual identity for churches and leaders. Caleb's story is surprising and unique, and he weaves it together compellingly. He states his views clearly, leaves room for disagreement, and champions love no matter where you are in this conversation.” —Jud Wilhite, Sr. Pastor, Central Christian Church

Download or read book Ephesians written by Klyne Snodgrass and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2008 with total page 98 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A series of Bible study guides following the format and content of the NIV Application Commentaries Series. Each study looks at the original meaning, bridging contexts, and contemporary significance of the text, and offers small group participants a better understanding and relevant application of the biblical material to their daily lives.

Download or read book A Churchless Faith written by Alan Jamieson and published by Society for Promoting Christian. This book was released on 2002 with total page 179 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This text is based on research with those who have left churches but are nethertheless pursuing a journey of faith. Most of the church leavers interviewed for this text had been in their churches for over 15 years; most had held key leadership positions, and 40 per cent had been in full time theological study of church work. The text outlines how churches can help leavers and suggests a conversion between post-church groups and churches.

Download or read book The Belonging Project Women s Bible Study Guide with Leader Helps written by Amberly Neese and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2020-05-05 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discover true community. Has the pursuit of the “perfect life” left you feeling depleted, disappointed, dissatisfied, and disconnected? Are you tired of being lonely and left out at work, home, church, and online? Are you hungry for true community, deeper connection with God, and friendships that are greater than just “likes” on social media? Are you ready for real connections with those around you? In this four-week Bible study, Amberly Neese provides biblical and practical help for cultivating meaningful relationships that glorify God through an exploration of four “one another” sayings in the New Testament: Love one another Serve one another Build up and strengthen one another Forgive one another In her trademark style, Amberly combines Bible study with delightful humor to create a refreshing and engaging experience that will encourage and equip women to pursue deeper relationships and true belonging. Other components for the Bible study, available separately, include a DVD. Bible Study Features: A shorter, four-week study is ideal for in-between or busy times. Accessible and friendly format. DVD features the amazing Amberly Neese, who masterfully combines solid Bible teaching and delightfully funny humor (in four 20-minute segments). Inspires and encourages women to pursue deeper relationships and true belonging for a more fulfilled, purposeful life. Helps women grow in their capacity to love, serve, and forgive. Study guide with leader helps includes group session guides, discussion questions, prayers, video viewer guides, and more.

Download or read book Jesus s Broken Church written by Peter DeHaan and published by Peter DeHaan Publishing Inc. This book was released on 2020-12-13 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do you have a nagging feeling that something's missing from your church experience? You're not alone. And it's time to discover a better way. Church-reform advocate and Bible scholar Peter DeHaan, PhD is a strong proponent of meaningful Christian community. In Jesus's Broken Church he uses Scripture to guide us into right practices and away from the off-track customs that most every church adheres to. The problem is that today's church follows an Old Testament model. We go to a building where we have professional clergy serve as our liaison between us and God. Then we pay for the whole thing with our tithes and offerings—just like Moses instructed. But Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament. Through him we are the church, we are living stones. We don't need to go to a building. As the church, we take it with us wherever we go. And we don't need paid clergy either. Each of us serves as priests to one another. Or at least we should. In Jesus's Broken Church, you'll discover: - How Jesus moves us from an Old Testament understanding to New Testament enlightenment - The early church's approach to their meetings, which we neglect to follow today - Essential New Testament practices that are more important than song and sermon - Biblical ideas to inform the activities of our spiritual communities - Seven religious concepts that require reformation If you happen to like how your church functions, then don't buy this book. It will only make you mad. But if you sometimes leave your Sunday service feeling let down, that something is lacking and there must be more, then this book can guide you into a new direction. Get your copy of Jesus's Broken Church today to discover what's missing and how to fix it.

Download or read book When the Church was a Family written by Joseph H. Hellerman and published by B&H Publishing Group. This book was released on 2009 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A study of the early Christian church in the Mediterranean region and its emphasis on collective good over individual desire clarifies much about what is wrong with the American church today.

Download or read book God Is Able written by Priscilla Shirer and published by B&H Publishing Group. This book was released on 2013 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: New York Times best-selling author Shirer (The Resolution for Women) brings her most popular speaking topic to print, working from Ephesians 3:20-21 to show how God is our solid rock in life's most trying times.