Personal Ministries

Children today live in an unpredictable, disruptive, and often violent world. Many of them live in two different homes with different sets of expectations. They face bullying at school and online. They hear news of school shootings, and racially or religiously motivated violence. They may have lost a friend or a loved one. As parents, the impulse to protect our children is strong, but that very protection can end up handicapping them for life. Rather than seek to save them from the hard things, parents must teach their kids how to cope with and rise above their problems.

Did you know that spiritual, emotional, physical and relational exhaustion lead to anger? And unresolved anger leads to sin. All couples deal with anger and how they respond (stuff it, spew it or study it), can make all the difference in their relationship and in their lives. In From Anger to Intimacy, Gary Smalley and Ted Cunningham explore this often maligned and God-given emotion that unless dealt with can strip us of everything we love.

No Better Mom for the Job is for any mom who has ever felt inadequate - who loves her kids fiercely but sometimes thinks another mom would do a better job in her shoes. Becky Keife knows the ups and downs of motherhood. And she has learned along the way and from other mamas that it doesn't work to try to do more or be better. Confidence comes from leaning on the One who made you a mother.

No matter what need brings a group of people together, from marriage enrichment to divorce recovery, from grief recovery to spiritual formation, members are part of a small group because they want to grow. This book by psychologists Henry Cloud and John Townsend provides small-group leaders with valuable guidance and information on how they can help their groups to grow spiritually, emotionally, and relationally.

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.

We have hundreds of "friends" through online social networking, but we often don't even know the full name of the person who lives right next door. This unique and inspiring book asks the question: What is the most loving thing I can do for the people who live on my street or in my apartment building? Through compelling true stories of lives impacted, the authors explain how to create genuine friendships with the people who live in closest proximity to us.

The Nature of Success is an inspirational audiobook of Mac Anderson's wisdom and insight on the keys to personal success. An inspirational quote will introduce each "success chapter" followed by two to three pages of insights, unforgettable real life stories, and Mac's favorite quotes on each topic. Anderson's insights take on new life as he brings a solid Christian perspective to The Nature of Success.

It's time to stop trying to be the perfect mom. You long to be the mom your kids need, but often you're convinced you come up short. The label "not enough" seems to be stamped across everything you do - and yet parenting is the one thing you want most to get right. What if the solution is simply to embrace the truth that you are not enough - but God is?

You already know that your husband, boyfriend, or son is wired differently from you, but do you know what that really means? It means, among other things, that he's been given the gift of a unique visual wiring - and the challenges that come with it. Through the compassion and candor in this audiobook, you can learn what men have long wished the women in their lives knew but didn't know how to explain - and see the difference this awareness makes.

In this audio Bible study—the first of the 40 Days Through the Book series—Max Lucado welcomes you and your group into the knowledge and freedom of grace with his exploration of Paul's letter to the Roman church. Throughout the audio study, you'll explore the book of Romans with Max to gain a deeper understanding of its context and content.

In Our Best Life Together, Joel and Victoria Osteen want to encourage you in your marriage and remind you that God brought you together to help each other succeed and to become all he created you to be. There's no better way to experience the fulfilling marriage God intends for you than to set aside a devotional time together each day and set your minds in the right direction for a positive, happy, faith-filled marriage.

It happens to every parent. One day, you have a sweet son or daughter who loves to snuggle on the couch and who puts a smile on your face just by walking into the room. The next day, it's as if someone left the door open and let in an alien with a smart mouth and an attitude that, frankly, you could do without. Entering middle school is like stepping onto a different planet - for parent and child alike. It's a planet where peer pressure, social media, and hormones can wreak havoc in your child's life.

Many people today find that their prayers don't work. And like a broken cell phone, DVD player, or TV remote, they throw prayer out as unnecessary clutter in their busy lives. Anne Graham Lotz has found that while prayer does work, sometimes the pray-ers don't. So she has turned to the prophet Daniel for help. The Daniel Prayer is born deep within your soul, erupts through your heart, and pours out on your lips, words created by and infused with the Spirit of God, quivering with spiritual electricity.

Adopting or fostering a child brings its own unique set of challenges only another parent facing the same uphill climb could possibly understand. From parenting children with traumatic pasts, to dealing with attachment issues, to raising a children with special needs, it can sometimes be a struggle just getting through the day. Mike Berry knows the loneliness and isolation you can easily feel in your particular parenting role - because he's been there.

When you look at a plate, cup, or fork, you realize each has been designed and created for a different purpose. What if you could look into the mind and heart of God and see just how you have been designed and created? If you truly knew you were a "plate, cup, or fork," you would be freed from trying to be someone you are not, and free to live your life with greater faithfulness, fruitfulness, and fulfillment...making God famous!

Are you sinking while you’re thinking? Excessive worry can consume a person from the inside out, resulting in sickness, insomnia, and paralyzing fear. It can damage relationships and even our witness for the gospel. But since problems are a part of life, how do we manage the worry that comes with them? Pastor Doug Batchelor’s winsome but practical Finding Peace in a World of Worry is packed with useful solutions not only to liberate those drowning in stress, but also to prevent stress from building up in the first place.

From a middle-school dropout and single teen mom turned educator, author, and pro-family advocate, comes a unique and candid memoir about a woman who was pregnant at 16 and willingly chose to have her baby. Parenthood Unplanned provides an in-depth perspective of both the raw and sobering truth - as well as the humor, joy, and adventure - of an unexpected pregnancy. Written through a Christian lens, Sarah shares practical, inspiring, and honest advice for young parents and their families facing the unexpected.

Dads, finally a guide to your tween daughter! This companion audiobook to the FaithGirlz novels, devotionals, and Bibles, focuses on four tween issues: Appearance, body and mood changes, girl politics, and authenticity. Let tween expert Nancy Rue, and her husband, Jim, guide you in helping your daughter live as a girl-child rather than a mini-teenager. In the midst of a world saturated with poisonous role models, it is possible to raise your daughter to be a respectful, confident, God-centered, young woman.

When a child comes out as LGBTQ+, Christian parents often find themselves navigating unfamiliar, unsettling terrain. Mark Yarhouse and Olya Zaporozhets, therapists and researchers with decades of experience, provide perspective, insight, and the chance to learn from others who've shared a similar journey. Using data from studies of Christian parents of LGBTQ+ children, they deliver research-based insights and faithful wisdom that is accessible for parents, their friends, and church leaders.

Most people are cautious about any advice they receive concerning their finances. But what if that advice were to come from the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity? In The Holy Spirit, Your Financial Advisor, Dr. Creflo Dollar investigates what the Bible has to say about the role of the Holy Spirit in the area of making and keeping money and discovers some surprising truths.