Family Ministry

Family is difficult because family - every family - is an echo of the gospel. Family can be the source of some of the most transcendent human joy, and family can leave us crumpled up on the side of the road. Family can make us who we are, and family can break our hearts. Why would this social arrangement have that much power, for good or for ill, over us?

If your son or daughter is suffering from anxiety, you probably have more questions than answers: What is causing the anxiety? Is this normal teenage angst or something more serious? What can I do to help? Jessica Thompson, the mother of three teens, has seen kids struggle with anxiousness. She wants you to understand the issues surrounding teenage anxiety and how our culture, the church, and perhaps even you may be contributing to the problem.

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.

God uses people to help others; can he use you? Can God use you to make a difference in the lives of your children? Do you know what to pray and how to pray? First, you must pray for them because intercession touches the heart of God.

In a world where men and women are constantly told they are not different, His Brain, Her Brain shows couples what they instinctively know - men and women are different, and these divinely designed differences, when understood, make a marriage stronger and happier.

For many, friends now play the role of family, but often our friendships don't turn out quite as we envisioned or hoped. Bible teacher Kelly Needham debunks our world's constricted, small view of friendship and casts a richer, more life-giving, biblical vision for friendship. In Friend-ish, Kelly Needham takes a close look at what scripture says about friendship. She reveals the distorted view most of us have of it and recasts a glorious vision for a Christian understanding.

As a pastor for both small and large churches, Jonathan Geraci has discovered that many believers' struggles come down to how they relate to money. In this audiobook, you will discover a Biblical holistic view on wealth that may surprise you. You will learn how modern financial advisors and the ancient words of scripture agree. These simple and engaging strategies will teach you Biblical habits for building wealth.

In The First Christmas, two of today's top Jesus scholars, Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan, join forces to show how history has biased our reading of the nativity story as it appears in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Borg and Crossan help us to see this well-known narrative afresh by answering the question, "What do these stories mean?" in the context of both the first century and the 21st century. They successfully show that the Christmas story, read in its original context, is far richer and more challenging than people imagine.

We all need more energy, the vitality that helps us stay motivated, focused and productive in life. We know we receive energy from good nutrition, along with working out, adequate sleep and maintaining positivity. But there is another major source for the energy we need: having the right kinds of relationships with others. Not the ones that drain us, but the ones that refuel us.

Kingdom Parenting provides answers to burning questions both teens and parents have in facing the unique challenges of being a parent or teen today. This book examines the changing times, changing family structure, and provides solutions to both parents and teens on how to effectively relate with each other though the current atmosphere of confusion.

If your emotional pain feels physical and your physical pain feels emotional, your marriage may be making you sick - literally. Join Dr. David Hawkins and his sons, an internist and a surgeon, as they explore the effects relational stress and trauma can have on our bodies.

Someone came between Lee and Leslie Strobel, threatening to shipwreck their marriage. No, it wasn't an old flame. It was Jesus Christ. Leslie's decision to become a follower of Jesus brought heated opposition from her skeptical husband. They began to experience conflict over a variety of issues, from finances to child-rearing. But over time, Leslie learned how to survive a spiritual mismatch. Today, they're both Christians - and they want you to know that there is hope if you're a Christian married to a nonbeliever.

Learn to navigate life's twists and turns to find God's best for your marriage with the help of Dr. Greg and Erin Smalley. They'll lead you and your spouse to discover true love as described by God in the Bible. With candor and grace, these beloved marriage experts share the secrets of a strong marriage that yield a lifetime of adventurous and cray-zee love.

A Mom's Guide to Lies Girls Believe, the companion to Lies Girls Believe, is your tool to come alongside your daughter in the fight against the lies the world is telling her. Based on in-depth research and focus groups led by Dannah Gresh, author of Secret Keeper Girl and Lies Young Women Believe (coauthored with Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth), Lies Girls Believe teaches your daughter the truth she will need to navigate the challenges she is facing. A Mom's Guide provides research, cultural trends, and case studies about the problems tween girls face.

As God allows us to understand the mystery and marvel of brain science, we have the exciting opportunity to reexamine our assumptions about human behavior. Perhaps nowhere does this impact our lives more profoundly than when we think about raising children - especially teenagers. Where parents often see a sweet boy or girl who has morphed into an incomprehensible bundle of hormones and angst, what we really ought to be seeing is an amazing young adult whose brain is under heavy construction.

In this book, which is based on new landmark research from the Fuller Youth Institute and combines in-depth interviews with data from 1,200 diverse teenagers, Kara Powell and Brad M. Griffin offer pastors, youth leaders, mentors, and parents practical and proven conversations and connections that help teenagers answer their three biggest questions and reach their full potential.

Wrapped around an extended parable about a child, lost from his real parents and found and raised by a couple completely at odds with his heritage (his real family are renowned acrobats), this book shows us that the Gospel Jesus shared maybe different from the one we have heard. Each of us is born separated from our true Father and suffers from the ingrained habits of our "false parents" and even when we come into God's family, we often find barriers stand in the way of us becoming who God intends us to be. Bob Hamp encourages us to look and think again about everything we thought we knew.

What do you do when your inner world is crumbling in the aftershock of this devastating betrayal? Listen to this book! From the seven steps for self-care and learning how to deal with the emotions that follow this unwelcome news to considering the “why” of his behavior and deciding on a plan of action, this book gives women a process to follow once they find themselves in “aftershock.” Based on biblical principles and sound advice, Aftershock is designed to help women heal, grow, and receive restoration for themselves, their husbands, and their marriages.

Authors of the award-winning Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts, Les and Leslie Parrott focus their groundbreaking, frontline expertise on helping couples face the unique challenges of remarriage with faith, perseverance, and hope. This comprehensive guide explores nine critical questions you need to ask before - and after - you remarry. This audiobook will help you and your partner cut through the conflicting advice and find clarity for your unique situation.

How do we, as orthodox parents, keep our children in the church throughout their lives? It all begins with involving them in the life of the church from birth onward - in the parish and also at home. Blueprints for the Little Church provides practical ideas and encouragement - without judgment - for incorporating the primary practices of orthodox spirituality into your family life at every stage of its growth and throughout the church year.