As If the Heart Mattered expounds on John Wesley's image of religion as a house by exploring three main parts: the porch of repentance, the door of faith, and holiness (the house itself). Useful study helps include references to John Wesley sermons and Charles Wesley hymns. But this approach to spiritual life transcends Methodism and provides essential biblical truth applicable to all Christians. Questions for reflection or discussion are p ...
In the fall of 1964, Trappist monk Thomas Merton prepared to host an unprecedented gathering of peace activists. «About all we have is a great need for roots,» he observed, «but to know this is already something.» His remark anticipated their agenda–a search for spiritual roots to nurture sound motives for «protest.» This event's originality lay in the varied religious commitments present. Convened in an era of well-kept faith boun ...
What is faith? In what ways might faith be a virtue, a component of a life well lived? How might faith be corrupted and become a vice? In Why Faith Is a Virtue, Philip D. Smith builds on the work of Alasdair MacIntyre and Robert Adams to argue that faith contributes to human excellence. To make the argument, Smith sorts through conflicting possible «faiths» and shows how some of them are not virtues at all. Nevertheless, he argues that f ...
Preaching has fallen on hard times with many questioning its relevance and even its validity as a New Testament practice. This symposium of specially commissioned essays draws together an international team of thirteen scholars and pastors to address the importance of textual preaching in the history and life of the early church, the historic church, and the contemporary church. Contributions include essays on Old Testament preaching, preaching ...
God doesn't call every Christian to go off to seminary, but there are certain matters of doctrine – that is, the church's teaching – that every Christian simply must know. Theology is important because what we believe affects how we live. Whether you're a relatively new believer in Jesus or a more mature Christian looking for a quick brush-up on the basics of faith, Christian Beliefs is for you. This accessible guide to twenty bas ...
Home is the place to heal, right? That's what Dillon Michaels is hoping at least as she leaves her disappointing career and nonstarter love life behind to help her grieving and aging grandfather on his small Oregon farm. The only problem? Her eccentric mother beat her there and has taken over Dillon's old room. After a few nights sleeping on a sagging sofa, Dillon is ready to give up, until she receives an unlikely gift-her grandfather ...
In 1945, Dietrich Bonhoeffer—a theologian and pastor—was executed by the Nazis for his resistance to their unspeakable crimes against humanity. He was only 39 years old when he died, but Bonhoeffer left behind volumes of work exploring theological and ethical themes that have now inspired multiple generations of scholars, students, pastors, and activists. This book highlights the ways Dietrich Bonhoeffer's work inform ...
Words are one of the most powerful forces in the universe, and they can be used for good or evil. When God created our world, He did so with words. He said Let there be… and it was so. While our words cannot bring into existence things that are not, they do have the power to build courage into a husband's life, instill confidence into a child's heart, fan into flames the dying embers of a friend's smoldering dreams, and draw the l ...
EMT Kaitlin North can't believe the shooting victim at an isolated Ozark cabin is the man who once saved her life. Now the only way she can keep undercover police officer Daniel Ryan alive is to help him elude the hitmen on his trail. With danger closing in, can Kaitlin and Ryan trust each other's instincts…and take a chance on love? ...
