Download or read book Fearing Bravely written by Catherine McNiel and published by NavPress. This book was released on 2022-02 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jesus commands us to love our neighbors. So why are so many Christians taught to fear their neighbors? The American church is known as a people who are afraid, who have been nurtured through fear into hatred, and who have moved from hatred to violence--or at least to neglect. This fear, too often lived out boldly in the name of Jesus, is a false religion. God instructs us to welcome strangers. We are not to withhold hospitality or help from anyone in need. So why do we fear strangers, especially those needing hospitality, afraid that their presence may threaten what we have? Jesus taught us to love our enemies. We are to pray for those who actively harm us. Instead, we create enemies in our minds, seeing anyone who thinks, believes, looks, or lives differently from us as dangerous, a threat to our way of living. The Christian community exists to declare and demonstrate God's love and to follow Jesus in practicing love over fear, even in unsafe times and places. It's time to reclaim our brave fear of God and risk transformative love for the sake of our neighbors, the strangers among us, and our enemies. We are people of the Kingdom. Fearing Bravely teaches us that we have nothing to fear. Instead, we can respond to our fear problem with a brave love that emerges from choosing to let our fear of God overcome our fear of everything else. Catherine McNiel writes with conviction, wisely guiding us to recognize our fear and, with God's help, not let it limit us to love courageously all who are among us.
Download or read book Love Your Enemies written by John Piper and published by CUP Archive. This book was released on 1979 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Love Your Enemies written by Arthur C. Brooks and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2019-03-12 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NATIONAL BESTSELLER To get ahead today, you have to be a jerk, right? Divisive politicians. Screaming heads on television. Angry campus activists. Twitter trolls. Today in America, there is an “outrage industrial complex” that prospers by setting American against American, creating a “culture of contempt”—the habit of seeing people who disagree with us not as merely incorrect, but as worthless and defective. Maybe, like more than nine out of ten Americans, you dislike it. But hey, either you play along, or you’ll be left behind, right? Wrong. In Love Your Enemies, social scientist and author of the #1 New York Times bestseller From Strength to Strength Arthur C. Brooks shows that abuse and outrage are not the right formula for lasting success. Brooks blends cutting-edge behavioral research, ancient wisdom, and a decade of experience leading one of America’s top policy think tanks in a work that offers a better way to lead based on bridging divides and mending relationships. Brooks’ prescriptions are unconventional. To bring America together, we shouldn’t try to agree more. There is no need for mushy moderation, because disagreement is the secret to excellence. Civility and tolerance shouldn’t be our goals, because they are hopelessly low standards. And our feelings toward our foes are irrelevant; what matters is how we choose to act. Love Your Enemies offers a clear strategy for victory for a new generation of leaders. It is a rallying cry for people hoping for a new era of American progress. Most of all, it is a roadmap to arrive at the happiness that comes when we choose to love one another, despite our differences.
Download or read book The Misunderstood God written by Darin Hufford and published by Windblown Media. This book was released on 2009-11-23 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Misunderstood God tells the truth about who the Creator is. This book analyzes what religion says about God's heart and personality and measures it up to what God calls Himself: Love. It simplifies a generation's tangled perceptions of God by taking a journey through the sixteen aspects of love described in one of the most well-known Bible passages in the world: 1 Corinthians 13, also known as "the love chapter." So many Christians have been bombarded with confusing teachings and doctrines that their understanding of God resembles a tightly tangled ball of Christmas tree lights. This book takes that twisted mess and replaces it with one soft, warm light of truth that anyone can embrace: God is love.
Download or read book Exclusion Embrace written by Miroslav Volf and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2010-03-01 with total page 453 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Life at the end of the twentieth century presents us with a disturbing reality. Otherness, the simple fact of being different in some way, has come to be defined as in and of itself evil. Miroslav Volf contends that if the healing word of the gospel is to be heard today, Christian theology must find ways of speaking that address the hatred of the other. Reaching back to the New Testament metaphor of salvation as reconciliation, Volf proposes the idea of embrace as a theological response to the problem of exclusion. Increasingly we see that exclusion has become the primary sin, skewing our perceptions of reality and causing us to react out of fear and anger to all those who are not within our (ever-narrowing) circle. In light of this, Christians must learn that salvation comes, not only as we are reconciled to God, and not only as we "learn to live with one another", but as we take the dangerous and costly step of opening ourselves to the other, of enfolding him or her in the same embrace with which we have been enfolded by God.
Download or read book Love Your Enemies written by Sharon Salzberg and published by Hay House, Inc. This book was released on 2023-08-01 with total page 217 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Coping with anger and pain is more challenging than ever in these times—and more necessary. Two acclaimed Buddhist teachers offer strategies and wisdom in a book that’s been called “possibly the most inspiring and liberating meditation on love ever written.” When people and circumstances upset us, how do we deal with them? Often, we feel victimized. We become hurt, angry, and defensive. We end up seeing others as enemies, and when things don’t go our way, we become enemies to ourselves. But what if we could move past this pain, anger, and defensiveness? Inspired by Buddhist philosophy, this book introduces us to the four kinds of enemies we encounter in life: the outer enemy, people, institutions, and situations that mean to harm us; the inner enemy, anger, hatred, fear, and other destructive emotions; the secret enemy, self-obsession that isolates us from others; and the super-secret enemy, deep-seated self-loathing that prevents us from finding inner freedom and true happiness. In this practical guide, we learn not only how to identify our enemies, but more important, how to transform our relationship to them. Love Your Enemies teaches us how to . . . · break free from the mode of “us” versus “them” thinking · develop compassion, patience, and love · accept what is beyond our control · embrace lovingkindness, right speech, and other core concepts First published in 2013, Love Your Enemies is, more than ever, required reading for navigating our world. Throughout, authors Sharon Salzberg and Robert Thurman draw from ancient spiritual wisdom and modern psychology to help you find peace within yourself and with the world. * Includes new prefaces from both authors *
Download or read book Strange Gods written by Elizabeth Scalia and published by Ave Maria Press. This book was released on 2013-05-06 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Renowned in the blogosphere as The Anchoress and as Catholic Portal editor of the popular Patheos.com, Elizabeth Scalia offers a powerful critique of the “gods” we worship today, reminding readers that life’s deepest desires can be satisfied only in Christ. Strange Gods, Scalia's debut book, is packed full of the iconoclastic vim and vigor that has won her a large, faithful Internet following. She presents readers with a surprising look at the ways in which modern people still commit the sin of idolatry in their everyday lives. While literal golden calves no longer dot the landscape, Scalia describes how legitimate loves become obsessively twisted into idols. She unmasks idolatry in a number of everyday experiences—friendships that become needy or possessive, commitments political and religious that grow so intense they lead to hatred of others, to name a few—and points to the incarnation of Christ and authentic worship of him as a way out of idolatry and into peace, happiness, and love.
Download or read book Little Sins Mean a Lot written by Elizabeth Scalia and published by Our Sunday Visitor. This book was released on 2016-04-05 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Most of us at one time have said, or thought, something like: “So I procrastinate, it’s not like it’s hurting anyone!” “Enough about you, back to me.” “I deserve this, so I’m treating myself!” “If I can’t have it, she shouldn’t either.” “I’ll get around to it... or not.” “It’s not really gossip if it’s all true, right?” (And the granddaddy of them all) “But that doesn’t make me a bad person!” Are these really sins, you ask? After all, they’re not murder, theft, or violence. Don’t they just mean we’re human? Writer, speaker, and blogger Elizabeth Scalia takes a look at thirteen of these “little sins” that, if left unexamined and unconfessed, can have a serious impact on our spiritual lives and relationship with Christ. Through her honest (and sometimes funny) examination of these same sins in her own life, as well as Church teaching on each one, she helps us ask ourselves the tough questions, and the tools to kick these bad habits before they kick us.
Download or read book Neighborliness written by David Docusen and published by Thomas Nelson. This book was released on 2022-03-15 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do you want to love your neighbor as yourself but don’t know where to start? This practical, accessible guide to bridging the dividing lines of politics, race, and economics, both individually and as the church, will help you amplify Jesus in your community and build God’s kingdom. When asked what the greatest commandment is, Jesus gave a two-part answer: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” and also “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love God. Love others. Jesus’ simple command to love your neighbor can feel overwhelming when your neighbor looks, lives, and votes differently than you do. Racial and economic tensions across the country have resulted in deep dividing lines that seem really intimidating to cross. Docusen breaks down these lines in approachable chapters, including topics like these: how to actively seek out people you can benefit and encourage, what it means to find a diverse and supportive community that fulfills needs, examples of real-life experiences, including highlights and missteps of Docusen’s ongoing journey, and how churches can teach on difficult topics with grace and truth. Neighborliness is a practical guide to bridging those dividing lines and learning to recognize and amplify the beauty of God in our communities. Backed by David’s speaking and training through the Neighborliness Center, this book will help individuals and churches reach out to their neighbors, love them through Christ, and build God’s kingdom.
Download or read book Everyday Theology Bible Study Book written by Mary Wiley and published by Lifeway Church Resources. This book was released on 2020-02-03 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Theology is the study of God, what He has done, is doing, and will do in the world. And it's not just for those with formal education or those who work at your church. It's for you in your everyday moments, questions, and decisions. It's for the big and little, the exciting and mundane. Our theology is the basis of our faith and touches every part of our existence. In this 8-session study, explore the essential doctrines of Scripture, God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, humanity, salvation, the church, and the end times to know God more deeply through these foundational truths. Features: Leader helps to guide questions and discussions within small groups Personal study segments to complete between 8 weeks of group sessions Daily foundational Bible verses for memorization Additional resources to support and reinforce weekly study Benefits: Worship with a greater understanding of who God is and His work in the world. Increase your ability to discern between truth and false teaching. Examine foundational truths to better understand what you believe and deepen your relationship with God.
Download or read book Enemies in Love written by Alexis Clark and published by The New Press. This book was released on 2018-05-15 with total page 173 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A “New & Noteworthy” selection of The New York Times Book Review “Alexis Clark illuminates a whole corner of unknown World War II history.” —Walter Isaacson, New York Times bestselling author of Leonardo da Vinci “[A]n irresistible human story. . . . Clark's voice is engaging, and her tale universal.” —Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power and American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House A true and deeply moving narrative of forbidden love during World War II and a shocking, hidden history of race on the home front This is a love story like no other: Elinor Powell was an African American nurse in the U.S. military during World War II; Frederick Albert was a soldier in Hitler's army, captured by the Allies and shipped to a prisoner-of-war camp in the Arizona desert. Like most other black nurses, Elinor pulled a second-class assignment, in a dusty, sun-baked—and segregated—Western town. The army figured that the risk of fraternization between black nurses and white German POWs was almost nil. Brought together by unlikely circumstances in a racist world, Elinor and Frederick should have been bitter enemies; but instead, at the height of World War II, they fell in love. Their dramatic story was unearthed by journalist Alexis Clark, who through years of interviews and historical research has pieced together an astounding narrative of race and true love in the cauldron of war. Based on a New York Times story by Clark that drew national attention, Enemies in Love paints a tableau of dreams deferred and of love struggling to survive, twenty-five years before the Supreme Court's Loving decision legalizing mixed-race marriage—revealing the surprising possibilities for human connection during one of history's most violent conflicts.
Download or read book In This House of Brede written by Rumer Godden and published by Open Road Media. This book was released on 2016-12-13 with total page 380 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Following World War II, a British widow joins a Benedictine monastery in this poignant New York Times bestseller from the author of Black Narcissus. For most of her adult life, Philippa Talbot has been a successful British professional. Now in her forties, the World War II–widow has made a startling decision: She’s giving up her civil service career and elite social standing to join a convent as a postulant Roman Catholic nun. In Sussex in the south of England, Philippa begins her new life inside Brede Abbey, a venerable, 130-year-old Benedictine monastery. Taking her place among a diverse group of extraordinary women, young and old, she is welcomed into the surprisingly rich and complex world of the devout, whom faith, fate, and circumstance have led there. From their personal stories, both uplifting and heartbreaking, Philippa draws great strength in the weeks, months, and years that follow, as the confidence, conflicts, and poignant humanity of her fellow sisters serve to validate her love and sacred purpose. But a time of great upheaval in the hierarchy of the Catholic Church approaches as the winds of change blow at gale force. And for the financially troubled Brede and the acolytes within, it will take no less than a miracle to weather the storm. Author Rumer Godden spent three years living in close proximity to Stanbrook Abbey in Worcestershire communing with the Benedictine nuns in preparation for the writing of this beloved bestseller. The result is an honest and unforgettable novel of love, sacrifice, and devotion, a major literary achievement from the acclaimed author of Black Narcissus and The River. This ebook features an illustrated biography of the author including rare images from the Rumer Godden Literary Estate.
Download or read book Love Thine Enemy written by George MacDonald and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2015-11-08 with total page 24 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: George MacDonald (10 December 1824 - 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet, and Christian minister. He was a pioneering figure in the field of fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow writer Lewis Carroll. His writings have been cited as a major literary influence by many notable authors including W. H. Auden, C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Walter de la Mare, E. Nesbit and Madeleine L'Engle. C. S. Lewis wrote that he regarded MacDonald as his "master" "Picking up a copy of Phantastes one day at a train-station bookstall, I began to read. A few hours later," said Lewis, "I knew that I had crossed a great frontier." G. K. Chesterton cited The Princess and the Goblin as a book that had "made a difference to my whole existence." Elizabeth Yates wrote of Sir Gibbie, "It moved me the way books did when, as a child, the great gates of literature began to open and first encounters with noble thoughts and utterances were unspeakably thrilling." Even Mark Twain, who initially disliked MacDonald, became friends with him, and there is some evidence that Twain was influenced by MacDonald. Christian author Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) wrote in Christian Disciplines, vol. 1, (pub. 1934) that "it is a striking indication of the trend and shallowness of the modern reading public that George MacDonald's books have been so neglected." In addition to his fairy tales, MacDonald wrote several works on Christian apologetics including several that defended his view of Christian Universalism. George MacDonald's best-known works are Phantastes, The Princess and the Goblin, At the Back of the North Wind, and Lilith, all fantasy novels, and fairy tales such as "The Light Princess," "The Golden Key," and "The Wise Woman." "I write, not for children," he wrote, "but for the child-like, whether they be of five, or fifty, or seventy-five." MacDonald also published some volumes of sermons, the pulpit not having proved an unreservedly successful venue. MacDonald also served as a mentor to Lewis Carroll (the pen-name of Rev. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson); it was MacDonald's advice, and the enthusiastic reception of Alice by MacDonald's many sons and daughters, that convinced Carroll to submit Alice for publication. Carroll, one of the finest Victorian photographers, also created photographic portraits of several of the MacDonald children. MacDonald was also friends with John Ruskin and served as a go-between in Ruskin's long courtship with Rose La Touche. MacDonald was acquainted with most of the literary luminaries of the day; a surviving group photograph shows him with Tennyson, Dickens, Wilkie Collins, Trollope, Ruskin, Lewes, and Thackeray. While in America he was a friend of Longfellow and Walt Whitman.
Download or read book Don t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table written by Louie Giglio and published by Thomas Nelson. This book was released on 2021-05-11 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Louie Giglio helps you find encouragement, hope, and strength in the midst of any valley as you reject the enemy voices of fear, rage, lust, insecurity, anxiety, despair, temptation, or defeat. Scripture is clear: the Enemy is a liar who will stop at nothing to tempt you into poor decisions and self-defeating mindsets, making you feel afraid, angry, anxious, or defeated. It is all too easy for Satan to weasel his way into a seat at the table intended for only you and your King. But you can fight back. Don't Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table outlines the ways to overcome those lies so you can find peace and security in any challenging circumstance or situation. With the same bold, exciting approach to Scripture as employed in Goliath Must Fall and his other previous works, pastor Louie Giglio examines Psalm 23 in fresh ways, highlighting verse 5: "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies." You can find freedom from insecurity, temptation, and defeat--if you allow Jesus, the Shepherd, to lead the battle for your mind and heart. This spiritual warfare book for those who are leery of spiritual warfare books will resonate with Louie's core Passion tribe as well as with Christians of all ages who want to live a triumphant life in God.
Download or read book A Knock at Midnight written by Martin Luther King, Jr Jr. and published by Warner Books (NY). This book was released on 2014-08-20 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Includes eleven sermons of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., with "eleven important introductions by renowned ministers and theologians of our time; Reverend Billy Graham, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Bishop T. D. Jakes, among others."
Download or read book The Secret of Loving Everyone Even Our Enemies written by Dr. Hurley R. Shortt and published by Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.. This book was released on 2022-06-03 with total page 23 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It seems our world is full of "hate" nowadays! Even law enforcement has developed a category of law called hate crime! The antidote for hate is love, agape love. There are two parts of each person's life: who they are and what they do. When these two things are clumped together, it is difficult to love some people because of what they do. So we have a tendency to withdraw our love in order to express our disapproval of what they do or have done. This is a mistake! In this book, a secret is presented that will enable us to love everyone, regardless of what they do or have done. What is the secret? It is possible to mentally separate who people are from what they do. This process enables us to love the person without approving of what they do.
Download or read book Hard Sayings of Jesus written by F. F. Bruce and published by IVP Academic. This book was released on 1983-08-14 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Like his original hearers many people today find Jesus' sayings hard. Some sayings are hard because they are difficult to understand, others because the demands they make on us are only too clear. F. F. Bruce examines seventy of the hard sayings of Jesus to clear away the cultural and historical difficulties which keep us from grappling with the real challenge of Jesus' message. Evident in each chapter is Bruce's keen evangelical scholarship and pastoral insight.
