Showing results by narrator "Lyle Blaker" in All Categories

What will it take to accomplish Christ's mission in our lifetime? That's the question evangelicals have been asking for over a century, but our efforts to reach the unreached and finish the task have often sacrificed the important for the immediate. The greatest challenge in evangelical missions isn't a lack of urgency, but a lack of discernment. As we've prioritized movements that are simple and reproducible, the gospel and faithful churches are now threatened. In Mission Affirmed, Elliot Clark seeks to reshape our motivation by considering the example of Paul the missionary.

"I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock of Ages." These words, often attributed to 19th-century British preacher Charles Spurgeon, provide a unique perspective on suffering. What if God intends to work through our suffering rather than simply take it away? After living for more than a decade with a debilitating nerve condition in both arms, Dave Furman wants to expand our view of suffering by demonstrating that God, in his grace, always designs and uses trials for our good.

Created for the next generation of believers, the dynamic new Holy Spirit Essentials series introduces foundations of faith for living a Spirit-empowered life. Taken from the trusted teachings of leading Christian voices, these updated, concise, accessible overviews include real-world applications, related Scriptures, and prayers.

Despite growing secularization, our culture still pays a lot of attention to the devil. He shows up everywhere from movies to music and is blamed for all sorts of crimes, natural disasters, and the policies of politicians we don't like. Yet in the Bible, Satan is barely present, barely speaks, and is subject to God's authority. So how has he gotten so much airtime in the lives of Christians and the wider culture? Award-winning biographer Jared Brock sorts through the myths and misinformation about the devil, revealing a biblical adversary we need to know.

As both a pastor and a parent, Cameron S. Shaffer is alarmed by the mass exodus of young people from the church over the past couple decades. The rise of the Nones and exvangelicals is clear evidence that our current children's and youth ministry practices are ineffective and must change if we want to stem the tide of dechurching. Whatever we're doing now is not creating lifelong disciples.

In Letters to an American Christian, Bruce Riley Ashford, author of One Nation Under God, addresses overarching issues of the relationship of Christianity and politics, speaks to the way historic Christian belief informs specific hot-button political issues, and challenges listeners to take seriously both our heavenly and earthly citizenships. Written as a series of letters to "Christian" - a young college student who is a new believer - Letters to an American Christian will help every listener think about how Christianity informs what it means to be an American.

In today's highly charged social and political environment, we often don't know how to talk well with others - especially with people whose backgrounds differ from our own. C. Christopher Smith, coauthor of the critically acclaimed and influential Slow Church, addresses why conversation has become such a challenge in the 21st century and argues that it is perhaps the most-needed spiritual practice of our individualistic age.

God's Focus on the Fatherless is an excellent thematic study guide offering a fresh perspective to leaders of local churches who desire to be in tune with God's heart for the marginalized within our communities.

Our current culture seems to be increasingly divided on countless issues, including those affecting the church. But for centuries, theological disagreements, political differences, and issues relating to church leadership have made it challenging for Christians to foster unity and love for one another. In this book, author Tim Cooper explores this polarization through the lives of two oppositional figures in church history: John Owen and Richard Baxter.

This volume of six linked stories and the novella from which the book derives its title is set in Port William from 1908 to the Second World War. Here Wendell Berry introduces two of his more indelible and poignant characters, Ptolemy Proudfoot and his wife Miss Minnie, remarkable for the comic and affectionate range that—with the mastery of this consummate storyteller working at the height of his powers—here approaches the Shakespearean.

Suspenseful military space fleet adventure and hard science fiction come together in this series of future space colonization in the Alpha Centauri star system. With a successful test of his new ship behind him, Van Wert sets out to explore a secret base that reveals a spy ring operating in the fleets backyard, and sends the crew in an unexpected direction. Meanwhile, the hideous nature of the insurgency is revealed as the Malabar passengers and crew are pressed into forced labor on a remote planet, or find themselves the victims of a sordid entertainment for the cabal masters.

Flipping houses isn’t just a one-off strategy for cash—it’s a scalable investing framework with the potential for compounding success. With over 3,500 flips since 2005, James Dainard is one of the foremost experts on extracting value through flipping houses. In The Flipping Framework, this full-time real estate investor provides a comprehensive guide to efficiently flipping properties and maximizing profits.

Neither a protest against AI, nor a speculative work on how AI could replace humans, Algorithms of Armageddon provides a time-critical understanding of why AI is being implemented through state weaponization, the realities for the global power balance, and more importantly, U.S. national security.

Refreshingly honest and keenly insightful, pastor and talk show host Gregory Dickow shows how your mindset is the single most powerful force in shaping your emotions, your decisions-and your destiny. When you discover the power of God's healing love, then fear, anxiety, anger and shame will stop sabotaging your happiness-and your life.

Selling in today's economy has changed. So it's time to rethink how we generate sales to create a sustainable model that produces consistent results. This book addresses the shifts sales professionals and their organizations need to make in introducing modern sales strategies. It provides insights and proven strategies for business owners, sales executives, leaders, and professionals.

Suspenseful military space fleet adventure and hard science fiction come together in this series of future space colonization in the Alpha Centauri star system. Captain James Van Wert leads a team into the very heart of the insurgency in a desperate attempt to tip the scales in favor of the fleet, and comes face-to-face with the separatist leaders. Meanwhile, CPF leader Rusla Skjaldmaer makes a rash decision to bolster the strength of the insurgency for the looming confrontation with the fleet.

Gavin and Nax are smugglers struggling to find work on a backwater space station, so when Lila, a highborn lady, hires them for a short jaunt to the nearest wormhole, they don't ask many questions. But Lila is fleeing the galaxy's mightiest empire, carrying knowledge of lost technologies that could reshape the stars. Now, this unlikely trio must learn to work together as they race between star systems and unravel forgotten mysteries while staying one step ahead of the imperial fleets and a ruthless prince.

Just over half a century since Neil Armstrong first stepped foot on the lunar surface, a new space race to the Moon is well underway and rapidly gaining momentum. Laying out a vision for the next fifty years, Back to the Moon is astrophysicist Joseph Silk's persuasive and impassioned case for putting scientific discovery at the forefront of lunar exploration.

Mission Design by Aaron Abramson is a timely guide for ministry leaders navigating the challenges of a volatile and rapidly changing world. With technological growth, societal shifts, and economic instability reshaping the landscape, traditional five-year plans feel out of touch. Yet, even amidst uncertainty, opportunities for meaningful kingdom impact abound.

As John Freeman writes in California Rewritten, "Literature of so many kinds and so many genres from so many different types of people—at the highest level—has been coming out of California and from Californians for decades now." Freeman, one of the sharpest editors working today, has followed the evolution of California's literary life since his teenage years in Sacramento. In over fifty essays inspired by his hosting of Alta Journal's popular California Book Club, he offers an essential road map to California literature now.