Showing results by publisher "Zondervan" in All Categories

While many churches talk about discerning calling and engaging in mission, very few are structured to make this their ministry focus. Underground Church is a new vision for the church rooted in its biblical mission to share the love of God and serve the poor. Sanders explores how to make structural changes, how to think about leadership, how to fund ministries, and how to truly engage people in God's mission. Filled with creative insights, he explains what it means to center the mission of the church around the callings of individuals to outward ministry.

Boundaries in Dating unfolds a wise, biblical path to developing self-control, freedom, and intimacy. Let Drs. Cloud and Townsend help you get to know yourself, solve problems, and enjoy the journey of dating and finding your life partner.

Do you have anyone in your life who can't seem to stick with a project, meet a deadline, or even clean up after themselves? All of us feel we deserve special treatment sometimes. Some people live with this entitled attitude. If you have a difficult relationship with an entitled person, or if you have discovered entitlement in yourself, understand this: It doesn't have to stay this way. There is a cure. It's called the Hard Way and it works. Dr. Townsend offers daily steps, such as risk-taking, to help you or those you love choose the Hard Way.

In our risk-avoidant culture, we place a high premium on safety. We insure our vacations. We check crash tests on cars. We extend the warranties on our appliances. But by insulating ourselves from the unknown--the natural risks of life--we miss the great adventure of living our lives to their fullest potential.

Does science discredit the Bible, God, religious faith? Absolutely not, says Dr. Michael Guillen, former Harvard physics instructor and Emmy-winning ABC News science editor. In Amazing Truths, he uses his entertaining, down-to-earth storytelling skills to reveal 10 astonishing truths affirmed by both ancient Scripture and modern science.

When you're going through a season of grief, it's hard to fathom that there will be a day when you won't be hurting. Throughout Scripture we are taught to humble ourselves and love one another because empathy is born from loving our neighbor. If you've ever experienced loss, you're able to help others turn their grief into grace and create hope and purpose from what feels devastating and heartbreaking.

Sometimes God reveals himself in ways that go unnoticed, such as everyday experiences, creation's beauty, Scriptures, life's joys, art, music, or even through tears. Windows of the Soul is a moving account of how author Ken Gire has met God in the most unusual, unexpected places. Gire describes his ability to perceive God's whisper, the only voice that fulfills a soul's longing for heaven, through the clamor of everyday life.

Your 40-day guide to experiencing more passionate, persistent, intimate communication with God. Do you pray as often and as bravely as you want to? Are you looking to strengthen your relationship with God and experience a deeper, more intentional prayer life? Mark Batterson, New York Times best-selling author of The Circle Maker, is here to teach you all about a new, life-changing way to pray. There's a way for all of us to experience a deeper, more passionate, persistent, and intimate prayer life.

Has the joy of the holiday season become painfully dissonant with the hard edges of life? Do you feel weary from the way Christmas has become a polished, predictable brand? You aren't alone. For too many of us, Christmas has lost its wonder. What if we stopped treating the Christmas story as something that happened a long time ago and started believing that it's a story that's still happening today?

If the church is going to use the Bible to decide whether divorce is legitimate in certain cases and whether divorced couples have the right to remarry with the approval and blessing of God’s people, then the Bible must be studied without prejudice toward a particular answer. The author examines the relevant passages in both the Old and New Testaments so that his listeners can consider the many issues and interpretations that arise in trying to establish a consistently biblical position.

Are you feeling stuck as you try to live out your purpose in life? In When Your Way Isn't Working, Kyle Idleman draws on Jesus's words from John 15 to remind us that it's connection, not production, that leads to a fruitful life—and relationship, not circumstances, that ultimately leads to joy.

Today’s follower of Jesus exists at a moment when our desires, longings, and wants are being weaponized against us by cultural, spiritual, and relational forces. “Follow your heart” and “You do you” have become our moment's mantras. The Gift of Thorns, by A. J. Swoboda, addresses the core human problem: What in the world do I do with my desire?

Drs. Henry Cloud and John Townsend explore what it takes to experience increasing strength and depth in a person’s spiritual walk, marriage and family life, friendships, personal development—in everything life is about. Unpacking the practical and passionate theology that forms the backbone of their speaking and writing, the authors shatter popular misconceptions about how God operates and how growth happens. Whether life is going well or whether a person is struggling in some area, the insights in this book are essential to progressing spiritually, relationally, and emotionally.

Today we are told to be true to ourselves, look within for answers, and follow our hearts. But when we put our own happiness first, we experience record-breaking levels of aimlessness, loneliness, depression, and anxiety. Self-centeredness always fails to deliver the fulfillment we're seeking.

Learn to see God's remarkable works in the everyday ordinary of your life. Your remarkable life is happening right here, right now. You may not be able to see it - your life may seem predictable and your work insignificant until you look at your life as Frederick Buechner does. Named "the father of today's spiritual memoir movement" by Christianity Today, Frederick Buechner reveals how to stop, look, and listen to your life. He reflects on how both art and faith teach us how to pay attention to the remarkableness right in front of us, to watch for the greatness in the ordinary.

As Jennifer learned, the secret to a life you love isn't necessarily jumping the track, quitting your job, or hustling to make your dream your full-time reality. Rather, it's about doing more of what makes you come alive in your actual life. Your Blue Flame is your upbeat playbook to rekindling your energy, sparking those meaningful "first loves" back to life again, and discovering the unique way each one of us can make the world a better, brighter place.

The Gospel costs nothing. You can't earn it or buy it. It can only be received as a free gift compliments of God's grace. It doesn't cost anything, but it demands everything. It demands that we go "all in," a term that simply means placing all that you have into God's hands. Pushing it all in. And that's where we get stuck - spiritual no man's land. We're afraid that if we go all in that we might miss out on what this life has to offer. It's not true. The only thing you'll miss out on is everything God has to offer.

Most pastors and leaders are godly, wonderful people that don't abuse their sheep. They shepherd their flocks gently and patiently. But we can't ignore the growing number who do not. We need gentle shepherds now more than ever, and in Bully Pulpit, seminary president and biblical scholar Michael J. Kruger offers a unique perspective for both church leaders and church members on the problem of spiritual abuse, how to spot it, and how to handle it in the church.

Crack the code on what motivates your man and how you can build a better marriage together! In this revised and updated edition of his classic best seller, Gary Smalley explains how women can use their natural, God-given qualities to build a better marriage. He helps women understand not only the way men think, but also how to move a man's heart. Gary Smalley offers an insider's perspective into the world of men, including practical help and application so wives can deepen their relationships with their husbands and build a lasting marriage.

Before you could tuck it under your arm, before you could bring it up on your phone–you did not read Scripture, you listened to it. For centuries, the only way to access God’s Word was to hear it read aloud in public gatherings. Today, we blessed to own personal printed copies of the Bible, but there is a surprising benefit to hearing the Scriptures read aloud as it was for so many generations.