Family Ministry

Today, everybody seems to be trying desperately to pander to young people in the church, even as growing numbers flee from it. This is largely because the church today does not expect what it ought to from children or their parents, and this can be attributed, at least in part, to a flawed concept of youth ministry. This need not, and should not, be so.

For listeners who long for strong families that know how to truly enjoy life together, there is much to learn from the Amish. Values like community, forgiveness, simple living, obedience, and more can be your family legacy - without selling your car, changing your wardrobe, or moving out to farm country. In Amish Values for Your Family, bestselling author Suzanne Woods Fisher shows how you can adopt the wisdom of the Amish when it comes to family matters. In this inspiring and practical audio book listeners will find charming true stories interlaced with solid, biblical advice....

You've responded to God's call--surrendering yourself to His will--and now your life will never be the same. By becoming a follower of Jesus Christ, you've not only secured an eternal home in heaven, but you've also begun a one-on-one relationship with the Maker of the universe! When you received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you became part of His family, one filled with brothers and sisters in the faith--both within your local church as well as around the world.

If your relationship with God and your family are the most important in your life, you'll find joy and inspiration in Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul, an affirming collection of stories for those who realize the miracles that result when you open your heart to Christ.

A woman marries a man, not his ministry. But all too often her husband’s calling complicates their life together. What if ministry life isn’t what she bargained for? What happens when her children make mistakes? How does she deal with church gossip, or even slander? As a pastor’s wife of almost 50 years, Jani Ortlund addresses these questions, along with many others, as she offers encouragement and guidance to ministry wives. Jani reminds listeners that God works out his delightfully good purposes in and through their sacrifices.

A compassionate, humorous story of faith, betrayal, and coming of age on the sawdust trail. She was just three years old when her mother signed on as the organist of tent revivalist David Terrell, and before long, Donna Johnson was part of the hugely popular evangelical preacher’s inner circle. At seventeen, she left the ministry for good, with a trove of stranger-than-fiction memories.

Spilt Milk is a collection of brief, hilarious stories and meditations mixed with biblically based applications that encourage women in their spiritual journey. Written by a Gen-X mom, these stories remind busy mothers that God's grace is always there in the messes and marvels of life, love, and being a mom.

Based on research from more than 10,000 surveys from children and parents of divorce, Collateral Damage presents parents with an overview of the impact that divorce has on their children and offers ways to better serve their needs at this critical time.

Cutting. It’s become a buzzword lately, but very few books address it from the perspective of a youth worker or concerned friend. Marv Penner has lived in this world for the past few years, talking with teenagers online and meeting with them to understand what drives them and why they self-injure. In this timely and helpful book, youth workers, coaches, teachers, and others will get the information they need to begin to understand and help (or point to help) kids who cut.

In this poignant and vulnerable book, Leslie shows you how each hodgepodge piece of your life, no matter how haphazard, represents a part of what you do and who you are. While on the surface, none of these pieces may seem to make a terribly dramatic impact, Leslie will show you how they are your life and how when they are collected into a jar, a loving human heart, they become a treasure.

This book equips readers with proven principles to help them have life-changing discussions with kids about how Jesus changes lives, explain the plan of salvation, or lead a child in prayer to begin a relationship with Christ.

Love-Powered Parenting is written out of a love for parenting and a deep desire to encourage parents. Yes, there are experiences in parenting that can cause deep hurt. Yes, there are realities in parenting that certainly will cause you to feel inept. Yet at the core of it all there is a deep gratefulness for the gift that God gives in the opportunity to love a child. This audiobook is a biblical guide to parenting. And by "biblical guide" we mean that it is intended to take you on a journey through what the truth of God's word has to say about parenting.

Eating Disorders, depression, gender confusion - these sound like problems for other people, but the reality is your students are dealing with them every day. The issues that girls face are growing in complexity and number. Written with the end user in mind, this resource will be one that won't leave a youth worker's hands.

What does it take to be a great dad? The world is full of examples of men who weren’t there for their kids. But there are good and even great dads out there, who inspire their children and the men around them to reach for more. How do you become a dad like that - even if your own dad wasn’t such a good example? In The Dad Difference, Bryan Loritts explores the four gifts every kid needs from their dad: Relationship, integrity, teaching, and experiences. He walks you through what each of these mean and how to put them into practice.

Social media star and author CA Miljavac believes with all her heart that laughter is a gift, providing a sliver of distraction from life's struggles...relief when you need rescuing...hope in the midst of hardship. Though her life has been dotted with disaster, it's through laughter that she found the strength and courage to persevere...joy for the journey. And she'll help women of all ages discover the ways laughter can carry them through their very own painful situations.

Calm the H*ck Down is filled with stories from Melanie’s own life, as well as real-life research for learning how to lighten up about every aspect of parenting - from poopy diapers and germs to family vacations and adolescent angst. She also discusses the pressure to knock it all out of the Pinterest park, the challenge of instilling some kind of faith into your kids, and worrying about their future while still trying to live in the present.

Alongside offers practical application and biblical truths to highlight the complexities of relational youth ministry, address the needs real teenagers encounter in their daily lives, and engage their hearts rather than just their behavior. Hill explores what it looks like to not only share the love of Jesus with our teenage friends but to share our very lives with them, as well.

From the cradle to college, tell your daughters the truth about life before they believe the culture's lies. For mothers with girls newborn to 18, 5 Conversations You Must Have with Your Daughter is simply a must-have book. Youth culture commentator Vicki Courtney helps moms pinpoint and prepare the discussions that should be ongoing in their daughters' formative years.

Do you crave peace? Are stress and feelings of inadequacy your constant companions? Peaceful mom. It hardly seems that the words could go together. Yet the peace we crave can be ours in every season of raising children. Whether you have teenagers or toddlers, being a mom is a daunting and amazing responsibility. And it's a part of God's design for you. You are deeply loved by God. Draw from the well of a relationship with him, even if it's a new well - to sift through all that the world plops in your path. Learn to partner with him.

Maybe you entered marriage with some pretty high expectations - most couples do. Jonathan and Wynter Pitts did. Until the reality of married life spilled into their expectations. Jonathan and Wynter invite you on a journey to explore a different approach to your happily-ever-after marriage. Join them for an honest look at the lessons learned as they navigated the ups and downs of early marriage while raising four daughters.