The Missing Church

The Missing Church PDF Author: Robert H. Baldwin
Publisher: Tate Publishing
ISBN: 1606961454
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 392

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Book Description
Are you working harder at church these days but enjoying it less? Are you wondering why, amid so much Christian church activity, American life seems to be angrier and more fragmented and stressful? Why isn't the Body of Christ more powerful in shaping culture? Galen Blom and Bob Baldwin take a fresh approach to these questions in The Missing Church: The Power of Being the Body of Christ in the Family, Neighborhood and Workplace, and the answer is profoundly simple: the church has little influence on our society because it is missing from the people groups that actually exercise dominion in our culture—our families, our local neighborhoods, our places of work, and our schools. But how can the church be present in the family and in a suburban neighborhood? And isn't it illegal for Christians to be the church at work or at school? Blom and Baldwin trace God's plan for human society from Genesis through the New Testament. His Word has much to say about what Christians are to be together as Christ's Body within these strategic people groups. The good news is God's call is not something additional we have to add to our already busy lives. It is simply a call to live in community that adds wholeness and meaning to every part of life. Let The Missing Church help you see church in a new way.

The Missing Church

The Missing Church PDF Author: Robert H. Baldwin
Publisher: Tate Publishing
ISBN: 1606961454
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 392

Get Book

Book Description
Are you working harder at church these days but enjoying it less? Are you wondering why, amid so much Christian church activity, American life seems to be angrier and more fragmented and stressful? Why isn't the Body of Christ more powerful in shaping culture? Galen Blom and Bob Baldwin take a fresh approach to these questions in The Missing Church: The Power of Being the Body of Christ in the Family, Neighborhood and Workplace, and the answer is profoundly simple: the church has little influence on our society because it is missing from the people groups that actually exercise dominion in our culture—our families, our local neighborhoods, our places of work, and our schools. But how can the church be present in the family and in a suburban neighborhood? And isn't it illegal for Christians to be the church at work or at school? Blom and Baldwin trace God's plan for human society from Genesis through the New Testament. His Word has much to say about what Christians are to be together as Christ's Body within these strategic people groups. The good news is God's call is not something additional we have to add to our already busy lives. It is simply a call to live in community that adds wholeness and meaning to every part of life. Let The Missing Church help you see church in a new way.

Tribal Church

Tribal Church PDF Author: Carol Howard Merritt
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1566996856
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 179

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Book Description
Carol Howard Merritt, a pastor in her mid-thirties, suggests a different way for churches to be able to approach young adults on their own terms. Outlining the financial, social, and familial situations that affect many young adults today, she describes how churches can provide a safe, supportive place for young adults to nurture relationships and foster spiritual growth. There are few places left in society that allow for real intergenerational connections to be made, yet these connections are vital for any church that seeks to reflect the fullness of the body of Christ. Carol Howard Merritt, a pastor in her mid-thirties, suggests a different way for churches to be able to approach young adults on their own terms. Outlining the financial, social, and familial situations that affect many young adults today, she describes how churches can provide a safe, supportive place for young adults to nurture relationships and foster spiritual growth. There are few places left in society that allow for real intergenerational connections to be made, yet these connections are vital for any church that seeks to reflect the fullness of the body of Christ. Using the metaphor of a tribe to describe the close bonds that form when people of all ages decide to walk together on their spiritual journeys, Merritt casts a vision of the church that embraces the gifts of all members while reaching out to those who might otherwise feel unwelcome or unneeded. Mainline churches have much to offer young adults, as well as much to learn from them. By breaking down artificial age barriers and building up intentional relationships, congregations can provide a space for all people to connect with God, each other, and the world.

The Church That Will Miss the Rapture

The Church That Will Miss the Rapture PDF Author: Colene Ledford
Publisher: Charisma Media
ISBN: 1591858119
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 127

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Book Description
Many Christians are baffled by the prophetic books of the Bible. They want to understand God's Word, but are confused by the language and symbols used to convey the message of the End Times. Author Colene Ledford has answered the call to bring clarity to God's hidden Word. Using extensive biblical references, Ledford guides the reader to a thorough understanding of Bible prophecy. Readers will discover answers to questions such as... *Who will be saved? *Who will not be saved? *What is the unpardonable sin? *Will all of the church be raptured? * Where are the angels that fell with Lucifer? *Will the church be victorious? Now every Christian will be able to grasp the fullness of God's prophetic Word. Furthermore, believers will be equipped to witness to the unsaved about God's redemptive plan for their lives. God's desire is for everyone to enjoy a relationship with Him. Understanding the End Times will help Christians share that good news with passion and power. God's prophetic Word was given so that believers could discern the times and take appropriate action. Now is the time to step into your God-given authority and fulfill your purpose on this earth. Do not be caught by surprise in The Church That Will Miss The Rapture! About the Author: Author Colene Ledford is a Bible prophet and a retired entrepreneur. She is married to Walter Ledford and has three children, thirteen grandchildren, and twenty-one great-grandchildren. Having lived in Georgia for several years, where she helped organize a church, Ledford now resides in Orlando, Florida, where she attends New Vision Community Church.

At Your Best

At Your Best PDF Author: Carey Nieuwhof
Publisher: WaterBrook
ISBN: 0735291365
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
“A perceptive and practical book about why our calendars so rarely reflect our priorities and what we can do to regain control.”—ADAM GRANT “Carey’s book will help you reorganize your life. And then you can share a copy with someone you care about.”—SETH GODIN You deserve to stop living at an unsustainable pace. An influential podcaster and thought leader shows you how. Overwhelmed. Overcommitted. Overworked. That’s the false script an inordinate number of people adopt to be successful. Does this sound familiar: ● Slammed is normal. ● Distractions are everywhere. ● Life gets reduced to going through the motions. Tired of living that way? At Your Best gives you the strategies you need to win at work and at home by living in a way today that will help you thrive tomorrow. Influential podcast host and thought leader Carey Nieuwhof understands the challenges of constant pressure. After a season of burnout almost took him out, he discovered how to get time, energy, and priorities working in his favor. This approach freed up more than one thousand productive hours a year for him and can do the same for you. At Your Best will help you ● replace chronic exhaustion with deep productivity ● break the pattern of overpromising and never accomplishing enough ● clarify what matters most by restructuring your day ● master the art of saying no, without losing friends or influence ● discover why vacations and sabbaticals don’t really solve your problems ● develop a personalized plan to recapture each day so you can break free from the trap of endless to-dos Start thriving at work and at home as you discover how to be at your best.

That Was The Church That Was

That Was The Church That Was PDF Author: Andrew Brown
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472921658
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
The Church of England still seemed an essential part of Englishness, and even of the British state, when Mrs Thatcher was elected in 1979. The decades which followed saw a seismic shift in the foundations of the C of E, leading to the loss of more than half its members and much of its influence. In England today 'religion' has become a toxic brand, and Anglicanism something done by other people. How did this happen? Is there any way back? This 'relentlessly honest' and surprisingly entertaining book tells the dramatic and contentious story of the disappearance of the Church of England from the centre of public life. The authors – religious correspondent Andrew Brown and academic Linda Woodhead – watched this closely, one from the inside and one from the outside. That Was the Church, That Was shows what happened and explains why.

Real Church

Real Church PDF Author: Larry Crabb
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
ISBN: 141857628X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
"Church as I know it usually leaves deep parts of me dormant, unawakened, and untouched. I don't much like going. So, what now?" What's happening to the Church? Why are so many people who for decades have been faithful, steady churchgoers (and others who want to start going to church but can't seem to find one that meets their needs) losing interest in even attending church, let alone getting involved? What is fundamentally wrong with the "types" of churches (Seeker, Bible, Emergent, Liberal, Evangelical) that dot the religious landscape? Larry Crabb believes it is time to rethink the entire foundation and focus of what we know today as church -- everything we're doing and are wanting to see happen. In his most honest and vulnerable book to date, the author reveals his own struggles in this area and then offers a compelling vision of why God designed us to live in community with Him and others, and what the church he wants to be a part of looks like.

Missing Mary

Missing Mary PDF Author: Charlene Spretnak
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN: 9781403963987
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description
What ever happened to the Virgin Mary in the modern Catholic Church? For the past forty years her presence has been radically minimized. In a groundbreaking work, Charlene Spretnak cuts across the battle lines delineated by the left and the right within the Church to champion the recovery of the full spiritual presence of Mary. Spretnak, a liberal Catholic, sheds new light on the dethroning of the Queen of Heaven at Vatican II, and she traces the rise of a grassroots resurgence of Marian spirituality in recent years. She offers fresh reflections on the meaning of Mary, situating the Marian renewal in the larger context of contemporary efforts to correct the barrenness and sterility of modernity. Spretnak also notes that much of the cosmological symbolism traditionally associated with Mary as the Queen of Heaven and the maternal matrix is simpatico with recent discoveries in scientific cosmology about the profoundly relational nature of the Creation. Moreover, Spretnak asserts that a deep loss ensues for women in particular when Mary's female embodiment of grace and mystical presence is denied and replaced with a strictly text-bound version of her as a Nazarene housewife. Complete with a striking insert of contemporary Marian art, Missing Mary is a deeply insightful reflection on Mary in the modern age.

Beyond Church

Beyond Church PDF Author: Steve Simms
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781518744563
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
Have you ever wanted something more from your faith? More than religion? More than church? One lost and forgotten biblical word, "ekklesia," holds the key to a more vibrant and life-changing Christianity. --Modern English language Bibles quote Jesus as saying, "I will build My church." However, the earliest Bibles have Jesus saying, "I will build my ekklesia." For hundreds of years, this Bible word-switch has misdirected the way the body of Christ meets for worship. --So what does ekklesia mean? Ekklesia was the name of the city council in ancient Greek city-states. It was a democratic, interactive, participatory body of equal citizens sharing their concerns and needs with one another. --In the Western world, traditional church is in decline. Religious categories now include millions who are "Dones" (done with church) and "Nones" (have no church affiliation). --Perhaps it is time for more than church. Steve Simms invites you to go "beyond church" and experience ekklesia, HEAVEN's CITY COUNCIL, not as a theological concept, but as a practical and living reality.

The Lost History of Christianity

The Lost History of Christianity PDF Author: John Philip Jenkins
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061472808
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 342

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Book Description
In this groundbreaking book, renowned religion scholar Philip Jenkins offers a lost history, revealing that, for centuries, Christianity's center was actually in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa, with significant communities extending as far as China. The Lost History of Christianity unveils a vast and forgotten network of the world's largest and most influential Christian churches that existed to the east of the Roman Empire. These churches and their leaders ruled the Middle East for centuries and became the chief administrators and academics in the new Muslim empire. The author recounts the shocking history of how these churches—those that had the closest link to Jesus and the early church—died. Jenkins takes a stand against current scholars who assert that variant, alternative Christianities disappeared in the fourth and fifth centuries on the heels of a newly formed hierarchy under Constantine, intent on crushing unorthodox views. In reality, Jenkins says, the largest churches in the world were the “heretics” who lost the orthodoxy battles. These so-called heretics were in fact the most influential Christian groups throughout Asia, and their influence lasted an additional one thousand years beyond their supposed demise. Jenkins offers a new lens through which to view our world today, including the current conflicts in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. Without this lost history, we lack an important element for understanding our collective religious past. By understanding the forgotten catastrophe that befell Christianity, we can appreciate the surprising new births that are occurring in our own time, once again making Christianity a true world religion.

Called to Be Church

Called to Be Church PDF Author: Anthony B. Robinson
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
ISBN: 9780802860651
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
Biblical scholar Robert Wall and pastoral leader Anthony Robinson here join forces to bring the Acts of the Apostles forward to our time as a resource for congregational renewal and transformation.Featuring both careful exegetical study and exciting contemporary exposition, the fifteen chapters of Called to Be Church each first interpret the text of Acts as Scripture and then engage Acts for today's church. The book dives into many of the most vexing issues faced by the church then and now -- such issues as conflict resolution, pluralism and multiculturalism, sexuality, money, church and state, the role of the Holy Spirit, and more.Enhanced by study questions at the end of each chapter, Called to Be Church will lend itself especially well to small-group study within congregations. Pastors, lay readers, students, and ordinary believers alike will find the book helpful and inspiring.