Church Ministry

Throughout much of the 19th century, both secular and Catholic leaders assumed that the Church and the modern world were locked in a battle to the death. The triumph of modernity would not only finish the Church as a consequential player in world history; it would also lead to the death of religious conviction. But today, the Catholic Church is far more vital and consequential than it was 150 years ago.

In recent years the American media have portrayed the evangelical movement as a conservative force in society equating it with fundamentalism. Many people equate evangelical Christianity with conservatism in religion, politics, theology and social attitudes. But is this the whole story of evangelicalism? Roger Olson's new book sets forth evidence that the link between evangelicalism and conservatism has not always been as strong as it is today in the popular mind.

What do we do when life lurches out of balance? How can we reconnect to one another and to what's sustaining, when evil and catastrophe seem inescapable? These questions lie at the heart of Stitches, Anne Lamott's follow-up to her New York Times best-selling work, Help, Thanks, Wow. In this audiobook, she explores how we find meaning and peace in these loud and frantic times, where we start again after personal and public devastation, how we recapture wholeness after loss and how we locate our true identities in this frazzled age.

Compiled with the intent to improve the preaching standards in churches at the time and to increase pastoral understanding of Christianity, Homilies is a comprehensive overview of Christian theology, the history and impact of the Reformation, and daily applications of faith and doctrine. The sermons included here dive into the issues and questions of salvation, Christian living, justification by faith, the weight of sin, and many more impactful themes and ideals.

The prophets of old were not easy to listen to because they did not flatter. They did not cajole. They spoke hard words that often chafed and unsettled their listeners. Like the Old Testament prophets, and more recent prophetic voices like Frederick Douglass, Dr. Eric Mason calls the evangelical church to a much-needed reckoning.

We live in a world that has become secularized, marked by ideology and partisanship. In such a world, how are we supposed to know what is right and wrong? As Christians, how are we supposed to approach the social issues of our day? With conflicting voices surrounding us, how can we hear and know the voice of Jesus Christ and receive His teachings? As Christians, we seek to live the way of the Lord Jesus, but that’s easier said than done. Sanctify Them in Truth by Fr. Jeffrey Kirby, STD is an approachable, easy-to-listen guide on eight of our most pressing social issues.

Pastor and author Bruce Miller provides practical biblical advice and theological background for difficult ministry decisions regarding complicated and often divisive issues about sexuality.

Long before the New Testament was a document, it was a sacrament. Jesus called the Eucharist by the name Christians subsequently gave to the latter books of the Holy Bible. It was the "New Covenant," the "New Testament," in his blood. Christians later extended the phrase to cover the books produced by the apostles and their companions; but they did so because these were the books that could be read at Mass.

As an outspoken, conservative Christian leader, Pastor John Hagee heats up the debate about the intersection of American politics, Iran’s evil intent, Israel’s heritage, the Mayan Prophecy for 2012, and the end of the world. Carefully documented facts and powerful biblical teaching are the basis for the provocative claims and predictions outlined in this riveting book.

This book presents the doctrine of the pre-tribulational rapture of the church. Many prophecies are explored with biblical passages and terms explained from the scripture itself. Evidence is presented that proves the first century church believed the end times would begin with the return of Israel to her ancient homeland. More than 50 prophecies have been fulfilled since Israel became a state; several more are yet to be fulfilled.

Ever since evangelical Christians rose to national prominence, mainstream America has tracked their every move with a nervous eye. But in spite of this vigilance, our understanding hasn't gone beyond the caricatures. Who are evangelicals, really? What are they like in private, and what do they want? Is it possible that beneath the differences in culture and language, church and party, we might share with them some common purpose?

In A Work of Heart, best-selling author and missional expert Reggie McNeal helps leaders reflect on the ways in which God is shaping them by letting us see God at work in the lives of four quintessential biblical leaders: Moses, David, Jesus, and Paul. McNeal identifies the formative influences upon these leaders, which he sees as God's ways of working in their lives: the same influences at work today forming leaders for ministry in our times. He explores the shaping influence of culture, call, community, conflict, and the commonplace.

More people live in cities now than at any other time in human history, presenting a historic opportunity for Christians to influence the majority of the world. Unfortunately, most Christian literature about the city focuses solely on its problems (crime, homelessness, etc.), rather than providing a comprehensive analysis of the city that informs, instructs, and inspires. Using sociological research and data, urban pastors Justin Buzzard and Stephen Um lay out the vision and rationale for church planting, cultural engagement, and missionary impulses in our world’s cities as they provide a solid foundation for motivation.

Spirit and Sacrament by pastor and author Andrew Wilson is an impassioned call to join together two traditions that are frequently and unnecessarily kept separate. It is an invitation to pursue the best of both worlds in worship, the Eucharistic and the charismatic, with the grace of God at the center. Wilson envisions church services in which healing testimonies, creeds, exuberant praise, and ancient liturgy coexist, and in doing so, deepen our worship and increase our joy.

What would happen if we intentionally chose to live a life of nobility? If we thought of our fellow man before ourselves? In a world littered with lawsuits, hate mail, and demands for punishment, when did we stop caring for our neighbor? When did we set aside the cause and effect of our decisions? With humor-filled personal tales and in-depth research, Carrie Lloyd will unfold the meaning behind the characteristics of nobility - self-sacrifice, humility, courage, self-conquest, integrity, honesty - all required for nurturing noble virtues.

Kent Dobson climbed Mount Sinai in search of the God who had eluded him. Instead he got bitten by a camel. Dobson was climbing the ladder of Christianity, too: a worship leader, teacher, and ultimately senior pastor of one of the largest and most prominent churches in America. But he was growing disillusioned with the faith, at least inside the shell of organized religion.

Think about an incredibly joyful event in your life. Do you remember how you couldn’t wait to talk about it? You were willing and eager to have a conversation about it with anyone who would listen! Why doesn’t our excitement for Jesus overflow from our lives in a similar and natural way? In this book, Thom Rainer explores what makes so many Christians hesitant to talk about the greatest news the world has ever heard. There are real obstacles, challenges, and fears, but God is bigger and stronger than these hurdles.

Pope Francis, the first Jesuit pope and the first from the Americas, offers a challenge to his Church. Can he bring about significant change? Should he? Garry Wills argues that changes have been the evidence of life in the Catholic Church. It has often changed, sometimes with bad consequences, more often with good - good enough to make it perdure. In this brilliant and incisive study, he gives seven examples of deep and serious changes that have taken place within the last century.

After the release of their groundbreaking book, A Church Called Tov, which recorded the stories of abuse and toxic church cultures at some of the most prominent churches in the United States, New Testament scholar and blogger for Christianity Today Scot McKnight and Laura Barringer heard from a flood of people who had experienced similar instances of abuse. In Pivot, Scot and Laura help churches to implement practices, establish priorities, and cultivate the Kingdom Gospel-centered qualities that form goodness cultures.

What would your church look like in the future if it were to maximize the dormant gifts of the women God has brought there? In Developing Female Leaders, Kadi Cole, 20-year veteran in leadership and people development, offers a practical strategy to help church and organizational leaders craft cultures that facilitate the development of women as volunteer and staff leaders.