Family Ministry

For more than fifty years, Madeleine L'Engle has delighted and inspired readers/listeners with her warm, eloquent prose and inspirational poetry. She continues this tradition with Miracle on 10th Street, a collection of poignant writings and reflections that give listeners a glimpse of how the wonder of Christmas resonates in her personal life, which deeply involves her family and faith: "I think back to that Christmas when my husband and I did not know whether our little girl would live to grow up," she writes.

Our children are dying at an alarming rate because of gang violence. Bitter Fruit: The Street Ministry is the story of a 15-year-old girl named Carol who rose in ranks of the Gangster Disciple family organization to become a G-Queen. Destiny thrust Carol into a gangster lifestyle. Sexual abuse caused her to be placed in the foster care system. Carol slid down a slippery slope into the evil perils of gang violence. Although the novel is set in 1994, the lives of these characters reveal the same gangster mindset that young people maintain today.

Stepparenting with Grace offers a soothing salve and a holy nudge of daily encouragement for anyone navigating the unique dynamics of a blended family. These devotions provide companionship, encouragement, understanding, and biblical insights from a veteran stepmom. This trusted resource will help you gain strength, wisdom, and comfort as you navigate the rocky terrain of creating a blended family.

Renew your imagination for what family life can be. Many of us feel overwhelmed about the prospect of raising children in our high-performance, rapid-pace culture. Reflecting on difficulties from our own families of origin can increase our doubt and insecurity about being a good parent. Positive examples of family life can seem few and far between. Mark and Lisa Scandrette understand these challenges, and in Belonging and Becoming they cast a compelling vision of what the family can be.

As a soon to be mom, whether this is your first pregnancy or your fourth, these scriptures will bless you and give you peace. The scriptures in this audiobook are powerful and God-breathed. By praying and meditating on these scriptures you can build faith and strength for this pregnancy. These scriptures are centered around, peace, love, protection, and provision. Allow the promises in these scriptures to wash over you and your unborn child. They will help you to pray in the right way when certain circumstances arise. Life throws many challenges our way.

Imagine a generation of children who are empowered, confident, and victorious - children who know God for themselves, who live differently than the world, and who move in the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit. Bethel Church’s children’s minister, Amy Gagnon, has a passion to help children make authentic, supernatural connections with Jesus. In Raising Powerful Children, she elevates the standard for what it means to train kids up in the “way they should go” by empowering parents and teachers to establish a kingdom culture among children of all ages.

See your life and purpose in a whole new light as part of God's epic story - with this beautiful leather-look devotional. Through 365 daily Scripture readings arranged chronologically, plus bite-sized reflections and a daily takeaway, this unique devotional illuminates how God has been weaving his plan throughout history. Each day, you'll be blessed with a reminder of God's unrelenting love and pursuit of his people. The Story Devotional is also wonderful companion to The Story.

Every guy knows that the right mix of music can make or break your day and set whatever mood you want to create. Husband, father of four, podcast host extraordinaire, and certified mix-master Jerrad Lopes drops fourteen dynamic tracks, each one of them addressing a different question about how to love and lead your family well.

Enter the Ring takes a fresh, powerful, vulnerable approach to marriage by framing it as the fight that it is. The world uses different assaults and tactics to distract us, tempting us to walk away, in order to destroy our marriages. But there is hope: The constant forgiveness, grace, and intervention of God can preserve and protect us from not only the world but also ourselves. D. A. and Elicia Horton explore the tension of two people becoming one and how spouses often fight over which "one of us" they become.

If God Is in Control, Then Why...? deals with that difficult question about the nature of God that plagues the minds of most people. Whether you are a lifetime believer in Christ or you have just begun looking for answers, the question, "If God is in control, then why...?" has probably been one you have heard or asked many times in your life. Craig Hill has gifted insight into God's Word and an ability to teach through riveting real-life stories.

We love our kids, but do we love like God loves…without conditions, reservations, or reluctance? In this excerpt from his popular book How to Be Free from Bitterness, Jim Wilson identifies the troublesome consequences of insufficient parental love and points listeners to the glorious fruit of superabundant kindness, tolerance, and patience. With decades of pastoral wisdom, Wilson helps parents apply the eternal truths of Scripture to grow peace and joy in their homes.

You love God. You love your kids. So why don’t they love Him? God promises lovingkindness to a thousand generations for families who love and obey Him (Deut. 7:9). Why are children who grew up in Christian homes leaving the faith, and how do we get them to come back? No matter how old your children are, there is a solution.

Unexpected Blessings helps special-needs families move past the pain and confusion of their circumstances and slowly and firmly face the future with hope. Filled with real-life stories and hard-earned wisdom, this book shines a light on the possibilities and blessings that come when parents see their new purpose in life - which was God's purpose for them all along.

Almost any parent you asked would tell you that they want their children to be happy, successful adults. But many of us forget (or never knew to begin with) that lasting personal joy is not necessarily found the way the world says it is - through reaching a certain socioeconomic status, having a certain job, buying a certain house, or having a certain amount in one's bank account. In fact, says Kristen Welch, author of Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World, personal satisfaction comes not from grabbing onto things but from holding them with an open hand and, very often, giving them away.

In this 52-week devotional, Bruce Gordon challenges the idea that youth is the best part of life. He asserts that we make too little of our opportunities in later life - we were made for more than the golf course or the rocking chair! These practical devotionals, steeped in Scripture, will help you transition to a time of life that can be rich with purpose, significance, and hope as you serve God. You’ll be encouraged and empowered to build a life that matters now and for eternity. Discover for yourself that the best years, the most impactful years of your life, are still to come.

Christian men are uniquely called by God to fulfill two important roles: Lead their families and lead the church. How this is achieved is also unique: A delicate balance of being a bold leader and a humble servant, with love for God and others at the heart of it all. Written for Christian men in every culture and filled with biblical examples and reasoning, Russo offers twelve practical ways for Christian men to LOVE, LEAD, SERVE.

How did The Simpsons, one of the most popular television shows in history, go from being attacked by many religious leaders for its lack of family values to being called one of the most theologically relevant programs in prime time? Religion journalist Mark Pinsky explores the individual characters, interviews several of the show's writers and producers, and concludes with a theological discussion.

I’m surrounded by people at church...so why do I feel so alone? You show up at church every Sunday. You see people you know. You listen to a sermon together. And then you go home feeling just as isolated as you did before. What’s going on? We all know that a church is supposed to be a community. The trick is to actually make it one. Communities don’t happen by chance - certainly not in our Lone Ranger culture that values independence and individualism.

Standing in the midst of majesty and might, Jesus said that if we have faith as small as a mustard seed, we can look at the mountains in the distance, tell them to move, and they will (Matthew 17:20). But what happens when our faith is smaller than the smallest of all seeds? What happens when the mountains won't move? The purpose of this book is to equip and exhort Christians to survive the most difficult days of life so that the mountains that won't move will move before them.

Give not fear to your pain, nor let financial complexities prevent success. You may have health issues that may be challenging but be proud of who you are and keep your focus. You are unstoppable; this is your season and there is no reason to doubt.