Personal Spiritual Growth

What you need to know to control the emotion of anger and find healing for damaged relationships. Anger is something everyone struggles with - whether it's our own emotion threatening to explode out of control or the anger of others that makes us feel intimidated and afraid. But when we understand where anger comes from, how it shows or doesn't show, then we can do something about it. Either it will control us or we will control it, because anger is a choice. In learning how to handle conflicts and anger, we are enabled to heal damaged relationships and help others as well.

If you've ever been given empty clichés during challenging times, you know how painful it can feel to be misunderstood by well-meaning people. Far too often, it seems the response we get to our hurt and disappointment is to suck it up or pray it away. But Scripture reveals a God who meets us where we are, not where we pretend to be.

Do work that matters. Productivity isn't just about getting more things done. It's about getting the right things done - the things that count, make a difference, and move the world forward. In our current era of massive overload, this is harder than ever before. So how do you get more of the right things done without confusing mere activity for actual productivity? When we take God's purposes into account, a revolutionary insight emerges. Surprisingly, we see that the way to be productive is to put others first.

The wedding is planned, but are you spiritually prepared for your wedding day? Trusted relationship author Gary Thomas coaches engaged couples on how to grow closer to the Lord in the days leading up to the wedding as a means of preparing them for all the days after the wedding. Providing encouraging entries that will help you deal with common issues such as what real intimacy means, how to celebrate your differences, and remembering to laugh together, Preparing Your Heart for Marriage will help you grow in your relationship as a couple as you become closer to God.

Everybody wants to be loved. We all need affirmation, acceptance, and approval. Let's face it: It feels good to be appreciated and admired. But when we depend on the approval of others to feel good about ourselves, it's impossible to have emotional stability or a healthy self-image. And when our value is based on how people see us rather than God's unconditional love for us, our desire for approval can become an addiction.

Self-criticism is often our default setting. But we can have a more gracious posture toward ourselves. We can practice disciplines of self-kindness. Editor and spiritual director Cindy Bunch calls us to self-care through greater compassion for ourselves. She helps us pay attention to the frustrations that bug us in order to identify negative thinking about ourselves or others. As we do so, we can discern what we need to let go. This allows us to lean into the things that bring us joy. Each chapter is filled with spiritual practices and creative exercises for reflection and celebration.

A deep connection with God is not only possible, but vital to a vibrant life. And this powerful, forty-day devotional will help you enjoy the deeper life with God that you long for. With Closer to God, written by Bible teacher Jeannie Cunnion, you will be equipped to remove the barriers to experiencing God in your daily life; enjoy the life-altering benefits of His tangible presence, or "withness"; and live Spirit-strong in a profoundly new way.

Hearing God Through Your Dreams is a practical and powerful guide to understanding the language that God speaks at night. Through revelatory teaching, supernatural stories, and a refreshing, down-to-earth approach, Mark Virkler and his daughter Charity will help you identify the priceless messages with which the Lord has infused your dreams.

Bestselling author of Confronting Injustice without Compromising Truth invites you live a more theologically robust and biblical life as you learn how art, cinema, music, philosophy, psychology, apologetics, church history, and most importantly Scripture, can deepen your understanding and enjoyment of God. Throughout the book, you'll find stories from brilliant living theologians and leaders, including Joni Eareckson-Tada, Michael Horton, John Perkins, Fred Sanders, each sharing how a particular divine attribute has impacted their personal lives.

Growing up in the green room of SNL, being born to a fire-eater and adopted by a SWAT cop, having internal organs explode, and adopting a deaf girl from China, Scarlet Hiltibidal has been given some strange life experiences - and lived in fear through most of them. But life changed for Scarlet when she learned to hold the gospel up to her fears and realized that though she can't fix herself or protect herself, Jesus walked into this broken, sad, scary place to rescue, love, and cast out her - and your - fear.

"God has a plan for our lives", but what does that mean in practical terms? How do we know God's will for important life decisions, like who to marry, what job to take, what church to join? How can we be free if God has a perfect plan for us? Does suffering mean we are off track? How exactly does God speak? Author Jerry Sittser explores these questions and offers a biblically based approach that is truly liberating.

The Shadow incorporates all our disowned, unhealed parts that are hidden deep within the unconscious. These parts of your being that form your Shadow stem from emotional pain and trauma, forming a tangled web of repressed emotional wounds.

Emergence provides the foundation to reengage with the ancient principle of the law of emergence. In this seven-stage framework, spiritual life coach Derek Rydall shows that we aren't lacking anything; everything we need to fulfill our full potential is already inside us. Backed by an ancient truth that has largely been lost, Rydall changes the conversation around how to achieve your potential by showing you how to activate the genius already in you and empower your purpose in life.

Author and pastor David Kim shares his experiences with loneliness as a Korean American immigrant and delivers compelling research about belonging that includes the revolutionary five anchors for developing meaningful relationships.

In Growing Up Social, Gary Chapman and Arlene Pellicane will empower you with the necessary tools to make positive changes starting today. Through stories, wit, and wisdom, you’ll discover how to take back your home from an overdependence on screens. Plus, you'll learn to teach the five A+ skills that every healthy child needs to master: affection, appreciation, anger management, apology, and attention.

Have you ever felt that your life - and budget - is spiraling out of control? Do you sometimes wish you could pull yourself together but wonder exactly how to manage all the scattered pieces of a chaotic life? Is it possible to find balance? In a word, yes. Ruth Soukup knows firsthand how stressful an unorganized life and budget can be. Through personal stories, biblical truth, and practical action plans, she will inspire you to make real and lasting changes to your personal goals, home, and finances.

For many people worry, anxiety, and fear are constant companions: fear of death, fear of danger, fear of disease. And too often these fears are crippling, keeping us from the lives God has called us to live. But it doesn't have to be that way, says Dr. David Jeremiah. As Christians we have been given all we need in order to face down even the most frightening, unexpected, and overwhelming obstacles in life.

This best-selling book has provided the foundation for a whole new way of thinking about relationships among today’s generation. Rather than chasing after temporary relationships, this book challenges listeners to give the “pen” to God and allow him to script their love story in his own perfect time and way.

For any mom who has ever felt inadequate, overwhelmed, or guilty in trying to balance it all, popular podcaster Sarah Bragg offers brilliant clarity and respite in this friendly manual for becoming your most authentic self, instead of just surviving motherhood. Nothing will make you grow up faster than trying to raise a kid. This is what popular podcast host and mom Sarah Bragg explores so beautifully as she encourages and equips moms who are discovering all the ways they still need to grow.

Rhythms of Renewal is your guide to daily rescue and a way forward into the peace your soul longs for. As a society, we are in the throes of a collective panic attack. Anxiety and loneliness are on the rise, with 77% of our population experiencing physical symptoms of stress on a regular basis. We feel pressure chasing careers, security, and keeping up. We worry about health, politics, and many other complexities we can't control. Eventually, we find our minds spinning, trying to cope or manage a low hum of anxiety, unlike ever before.