English Church

Understanding the Bible isn't for the few, the gifted, the scholarly. The Bible is accessible. It's meant to be comprehended by everyone from armchair listeners to seminary students. A few essential insights into the Bible can clear up a lot of misconceptions and help you grasp the meaning of Scripture and its application to your 21st-century life. More than three quarters of a million people have turned to How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth to inform their understanding of the Bible.

At last, Mitford's rector and lifelong bachelor Father Tim has married his talented and vivacious neighbor Cynthia. Now, of course, they must face love's challenges: new sleeping arrangements for Father Tim's sofa-sized dog, Cynthia's urge to decorate the rectory Italian-villa-style, and the growing pains of the thrown-away boy who's become like a son to the rector.

Two thousand years ago, Jesus said, "Follow me." What if the 21st-century Church actually heeded that call? What would the world look like if the Church were truly on the move? Simply put, very different. But these ponderings beg one more critical question: What exactly should the Church be moving toward?

Real-Life Discipleship explains what should happen in the life of every Christian and in every small group so that the church becomes an army of believers dedicated to seeing the world saved. With the overriding goal to train disciples who know how to make more disciples, this book offers proven tools and strategies from Real Life Ministries, one of America’s fastest-growing churches. Discover what the Bible says about true and effective discipleship with these strategies and practices.

Congregations often seek to combat the crisis of decline by using innovation to produce new resources. But leading practical theologian Andrew Root shows that the church's crisis is not in the loss of resources; it's in the loss of life—and that life can only return when we remain open to God's encountering presence. This new book, related to Root's critically acclaimed Ministry in a Secular Age project, addresses the practical form the church must take in a secular age.

How Christ Came To Church is an enlivening spiritual autobiography that grew out of a beleaguered pastor's dream. This dream was the seminal event out of which blossomed a complete change in Gordon's approach to ministry and a vivid transformation in his parishioners.

Western civilization and the Christian church stand at a moment of great danger. Facing them both is a hurricane-force battle of ideas that will determine the future of Western civilization and the soul of the Christian church. The forces arrayed against the West and the church are destructive ideologies, policies, and worldviews deeply established among intellectual elites, the political class, and our schools. More menacingly, these forces have also invaded the Christian church.

Yakima Henry left his ranch in the White Mountains for supplies, and rode right into a bloody shootout between Saber Creek townsfolk and a gang of banditos who just robbed a stagecoach. But what really riles Yakima is the banditos making off with his prized stallion, Wolf, and a pretty saloon girl.

What if the solution for the decline of today's church isn't more money, people, programs, innovation, or busyness? What if the answer is to stop and wait on God? In When Church Stops Working, ministry leaders Andrew Root and Blair Bertrand show how actively watching and listening for God can bring life out of death for churches in crisis today. Using clear steps and practices, they invite church leaders to stop the endless cycle of doing more and rather to simply "be" in God's presence.

I could tell when my son started hiding things from me. He used to walk to school with a mischievous grin on his beautiful face. Now he avoids eye contact and keeps his head down. Since I discovered he’s being bullied by a classmate, I’ve spent every day worrying, my stomach churning with anxiety from the moment he leaves the house to the second he walks back through the door. Everyone keeps telling me I’m overreacting, but I won’t risk my child’s safety. My husband and I try to talk to the other boy’s parents, but it only makes things worse. Then our precious child is hurt. Enough is enough.

‘She couldn’t remember the last time they’d stared at each other with dewy eyes over the cornflakes, or when they’d last tumbled into bed and bonked like spring bunnies, but they loved each other. Didn’t they?’ Chrissie, Dee and Amber each feel a marriage proposal is overdue from their respective boyfriends. When the women are invited to a birthday soirée – complete with fortune teller – the girls know there is only one question they’ll be asking Madam Rosa: will their men be popping the question? But opting to see a clairvoyant is a bit like opening Pandora’s box. Some revelations are a joy, whereas others are most definitely not. Sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for…. Best-selling romance author Debbie Viggiano’s delightful, satirical take on life and relationships. This audiobook will particularly appeal to fans of Adele Parks and Mhairi Mcfarlane.

What are apostles and prophets? Why is there so much controversy, error, and abuse in the Church concerning these ministry callings? In Apostles and Prophets: Their Roles in the Past, Present, and Last-Days Church, Rick Renner defines these ministry offices biblically and historically, tracing their roles from the Early Church all the way to the present.

Nurse Gemma Tate is heartbroken when she hears that one of her young charges at the Foundling Hospital has been killed. She knows that police inspector Sebastian Bell will work tirelessly to uncover the truth, but obstructed by the curt matron, he’ll need her help navigating the cloistered world of the orphanage.

Nine out of 10 churches in America are either declining or growing slower than the communities in which they are located. Stated simply, 90 percent of American churches are losing ground in their communities. Change is not an option; it is an urgent need. We don't change our doctrines and biblical foundations, but we do change our methodologies and approaches for this rapidly changing culture.

The Necessity of Reforming the Church has been considered by many to be one of John Calvin's most important works. In this short letter, Calvin lays out his polemic for why the church must bring her beliefs and practices in line with scripture. Written to address the abuses and corruptions that occurred in the church during the Middle Ages, Calvin pastorally and forcefully addresses issues that carry into our present day.

A generation of young Christians are weary of the political legacy they've inherited and are hungry for a better approach. They're tired of seeing their faith tied to political battles they didn't start, and they're frustrated with leaders they thought they could trust. Kaitlyn Schiess grew up in this landscape and understands it from the inside. In The Liturgy of Politics, Schiess shows that the church's politics are shaped by its habits and practices, even when it's unaware of them.

Sixty-five million adults in the US have dropped out of active church attendance, and about 2.7 million more are leaving every year. Faith After Doubt is for the millions of people around the world who feel that their faith is falling apart. Using his own story and the stories of a diverse group of struggling believers, Brian D. McLaren, a former pastor and now an author, speaker, and activist, shows how old assumptions are being challenged in nearly every area of human life, not just theology and spirituality.

The Lost History of Christianity will change how we understand Christian and world history. Leading religion scholar Philip Jenkins reveals a vast Christian world to the east of the Roman Empire and how the earliest, most influential churches of the East---those that had the closest link to Jesus and the early church---died. In this paradigm-shifting book, Jenkins recovers a lost history, showing how the center of Christianity for centuries used to be the Middle East, Asia, and Africa, extending as far as China.

The lesson of love can never be taught simply by words.... Rather, it is taught by truly giving yourself and communicating the love and longing for Christ to those you serve.... This audiobook is essential and inspiring material for all who would devote their lives to the service of Christ and his church.

Once upon a time there was a version of our faith that was practically...irresistible. But that was then. Today we preach, teach, write, and communicate as if nothing has changed. As if “The Bible says it” still settles it. It’s time to hit pause on much of what we’re doing and consider the faith modeled by our first-century brothers and sisters who had no official Bible, no status, and humanly speaking, little chance of survival. What did they know that we don’t? What made their faith so compelling, so defensible, so irresistible? Buckle up...you’re about to find out.