Jim and Casper Go to Church

Jim and Casper Go to Church PDF Author: Jim Henderson
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
ISBN: 1414330901
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description
What does an atheist think about church? Jim Henderson decided that the best way to find out was to ask! So he recruited an atheist—Matt Casper—to visit twelve leading churches with him and give the “first impression” perspective of a non-believer. Week after week, this spiritual odd couple attended services at churches all over the country and documented their experiences at and reactions to each one. Along the way, they found the real value of their journey in the open and authentic friendship that developed as they talked, questioned, joked, and—most important—listened. Follow along with Jim and Casper on their visits, and eavesdrop as they discuss what they found. Their articulate, sometimes humorous, and always insightful dialogue offers Christians a new view of an environment where we’ve become overly comfortable: the church.

Jim and Casper Go to Church

Jim and Casper Go to Church PDF Author: Jim Henderson
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
ISBN: 1414330901
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 208

Get Book

Book Description
What does an atheist think about church? Jim Henderson decided that the best way to find out was to ask! So he recruited an atheist—Matt Casper—to visit twelve leading churches with him and give the “first impression” perspective of a non-believer. Week after week, this spiritual odd couple attended services at churches all over the country and documented their experiences at and reactions to each one. Along the way, they found the real value of their journey in the open and authentic friendship that developed as they talked, questioned, joked, and—most important—listened. Follow along with Jim and Casper on their visits, and eavesdrop as they discuss what they found. Their articulate, sometimes humorous, and always insightful dialogue offers Christians a new view of an environment where we’ve become overly comfortable: the church.

Sacrilege (Shapevine)

Sacrilege (Shapevine) PDF Author: Hugh Halter
Publisher: Baker Books
ISBN: 1441237461
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
It is safe to say most Christians do not live like Jesus did, have the same influence on people he had, or draw even the slightest curiosity from the on-looking world. Jesus's ability to woo people to him and win their hearts was directly related to how he challenged their assumptions about religion. He not only gave them a unique, personal way to follow him but also showed them how to participate with him in his mission. Sacrilege helps readers rethink what it really means to become like Jesus. It exposes the patterns of thinking that have held the church hostage for years and inspires readers to rethink the way they understand Scripture, family, spiritual formation, conversion, church, sin, and more.

Pure Scum

Pure Scum PDF Author: Mike Sares
Publisher: ReadHowYouWant.com
ISBN: 1458732142
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
An exhilarating faith life is a tricky business. But ask anyone who's sought after it--from the founders and members of Scum of the Earth Church in Denver to the apostle Paul, from whose letters the church took its name--and they'll tell you it's worth it.In Pure Scum Mike Sares, pastor of Scum of the Earth, takes us along a faith journey, telling the story of how a pretty normal, middle-aged guy met and became friends with Reese Roper and other members of the band, Five Iron Frenzy, and got hoodwinked by FIF and the Holy Spirit into pastoring of a vibrant church full of artists and skater punks.For anyone--pastor, church leader or plain old Christian--who wants to share the amazing grace of God with the ""left-out"" and ""the right-brained,"" Mike's story will show you what this kind of exhilaration looks like, and more importantly, what it costs. It's a tricky business, but it's worth every step and misstep.

Sundays in America

Sundays in America PDF Author: Suzanne Strempek Shea
Publisher: Beacon Press
ISBN: 9780807072240
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 334

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Book Description
A spirited, spiritual pilgrimage to different Christian churches for a year of Sundays-from storefronts to mega-churches, from Massachusetts to Maui When Pope John Paul II died, Suzanne Strempek Shea, who had turned away from the Catholic Church of her childhood, recognized in his mourners a faith-filled passion that she wanted to recapture. She set out on a yearlong to visit a different church every Sunday for a year-a journey that would take her through the broad spectrum of contemporary Christianity lived in this country, from her New England home to the West Coast, the Deep South, the Midwest, and even to Hawaii. Beginning with a rousing Baptist Easter service in Harlem, including a sing-along at the Cowboy Church in Colorado's Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame and a multimedia experience at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church, the largest church in the country, Shea approaches each congregation with the curiosity of a newcomer and with respect for each unique expression of faith. Sundays in America weaves the threads of Christianity in America into a vibrant tapestry, an essential guide for those seeking a new house for their worship, as well as a colorful road trip for the armchair explorer.

Saving Casper

Saving Casper PDF Author: Jim Henderson
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
ISBN: 1414388977
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
The authors of the popular Jim and Casper Go to Church are back! An unlikely friendship began when former pastor Jim Henderson brought atheist Matt Casper with him to visit a series of churches and give his honest feedback on the services. Since then, Casper has spent a lot of time deeply engaging with Jim and other Christians. And the burning question on everyone’s minds is whether Casper has been saved. In Saving Casper, Jim and Casper engage in a new conversation about that question. Most Christians have friends like Casper—people who’ve heard the gospel but still say no—so what happens next? Jim and Casper reveal the surprising answers to questions like: What can an atheist teach us about how to share God with those who don’t believe? What have well-meaning Christians said to Casper that has helped—or hurt—their cause? What, if anything, might bring Casper and other nonbelievers to faith . . . and why does Casper say he’s closer to God now than ever before? Saving Casper is a groundbreaking, game-changing look at evangelism and the “conversion conversation.”

I Once Was Lost

I Once Was Lost PDF Author: Don Everts
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830875662
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 136

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Book Description
How do people come to Jesus in today's postmodern culture? Not by a mechanical, linear process of cookie cutter conversions. Nor by a nebulous spiritual wandering that never culminates in decision and commitment. Over the last decade, Don Everts and Doug Schaupp have listened to the stories of two thousand postmodern people who have come to follow Jesus. While their stories are diverse and varied, certain common themes emerge. Postmodern evangelism is a mysterious and organic process that nevertheless goes through discernible phases, as people cross thresholds from distrust to trust, from complacency to curiosity and from meandering to seeking. Everts and Schaupp describe the factors that influence how people shift in their perspectives and become open to the Gospel. They provide practical tools to help people enter the kingdom, as well as guidelines for how new believers can live out their Christian faith.

Free Range Faith

Free Range Faith PDF Author: Glenn Hager
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780692628911
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 144

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Book Description
"Free Range Faith" is a companion memoir for people who have left the institutional church, but not the faith. Glenn Hager addresses the question, "Is there is a more real and meaningful way to try to follow Jesus and express your faith without having to deal with all of the baggage of the institutional church?" He honestly admits, "I was trying to figure out what's next. I did not want to re-enter the institution that we call the church, but I never ceased being amazed by Jesus. I decided that however I expressed my faith, it needed to be real, personal, and a part of everyday life." The author suggests a potential path forward for irreligious friends of Jesus. He examines each of the practices generally believed to be important for nurturing spiritual formation by looking at the conventional way they are expressed, then digging deeper to uncover the foundational principle for the practice, and lastly, considering a more open, meaningful, and honest means of expression. He also devotes several pages to what he calls "lessons that I haven't mastered." These "lessons" are things that every honest person of faith struggles with, like the tension between trusting God and personal responsibility, our hunger for certainty and things that seem to be unanswerable, and the inner battle between grace and guilt. It is an invaluable resource for honest seekers, people who have questions, but haven't been finding answers in the institutional church, and for those who are re-examining their faith and are looking for meaningful avenues of expression. This book is about breaking out of the cage and flying free by forging a personal faith rather than outsourcing it an institution.

Mere Churchianity

Mere Churchianity PDF Author: Michael Spencer
Publisher: WaterBrook
ISBN: 0307459179
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
Studies show that one in four young adults claim no formal religious affiliation, and church leaders have long known that this generation is largely missing on Sunday morning. Hundreds of thousands of "church leavers" have had a mentor and pastor, however, in Michael Spencer, known to blog readers as the Internet Monk.

Struggling with Evangelicalism

Struggling with Evangelicalism PDF Author: Dan Stringer
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830847677
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 154

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Book Description
When evangelicals make a mess, who cleans it up? Many today are discarding the evangelical label, even if they still hold to the historic tenets of evangelicalism. But evangelicalism is a space, not just a brand, and living in that space is complicated. As a lifelong evangelical who happens to be a biracial Asian/White millennial, Dan Stringer has felt both included and alienated by the evangelical community and has wrestled with whether to stay or go. He sits as an uneasy evangelical insider with ties to many of evangelicalism's historic organizations and institutions. Neither "everything's fine" nor "burn it all down," Stringer offers a thoughtful appreciation of evangelicalism's history, identity, and strengths, but also lament for its blind spots, toxic brokenness, and complicity with injustice. From this complicated space, we can move forward with informed vision rather than resignation and with hope for our future together.

Awakening the Buddha Within

Awakening the Buddha Within PDF Author: Lama Surya Das
Publisher: Harmony
ISBN: 0767901576
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 434

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Book Description
Lama Surya Das, the most highly trained American lama in the Tibetan tradition, presents the definitive book on Western Buddhism for the modern-day spiritual seeker. The radical and compelling message of Buddhism tells us that each of us has the wisdom, awareness, love, and power of the Buddha within; yet most of us are too often like sleeping Buddhas. In Awakening the Buddha Within, Surya Das shows how we can awaken to who we really are in order to lead a more compassionate, enlightened, and balanced life. It illuminates the guidelines and key principles embodied in the noble Eight-Fold Path and the traditional Three Enlightenment Trainings common to all schools of Buddhism: Wisdom Training: Developing clear vision, insight, and inner understanding—seeing reality and ourselves as we really are. Ethics Training: Cultivating virtue, self-discipline, and compassion in what we say and do. Meditation Training: Practicing mindfulness, concentration, and awareness of the present moment. With lively stories, meditations, and spiritual practices, Awakening the Buddha Within is an invaluable text for the novice and experienced student of Buddhism alike.