Mission Ministry

> The Glass Castle meets Ball Four as Mets knuckleballer R. A. Dickey weaves searing honesty and baseball insight in this memoir about his unlikely journey to the big leagues. An English Lit major at the University of Tennessee, Dickey is as articulate and thoughtful as any professional athlete in any sport - and proves it page after page, as he provides fresh and honest insight into baseball and a career unlike any other.

Leaving Western culture and their German home far behind, Amiira Ann and her husband, Chris, responded to the prompting of God to move to one of the most thoroughly Muslim cultures on earth, Yemen. The 9/11 attacks in the United States created the dangerous backdrop for reaching out to their Yemeni hosts with the love of Christ. With a commitment to work in relief and development, they would find, despite the threat of death, that their hearts would be forever knit together with this people so different from themselves.

The Cup of Our Life is available to anyone seeking a more intimate and disciplined life of prayer. Author Joyce Rupp illustrates how the ordinary cups used each day can become sacred vessels that connect listeners with life and bring them into closer union with the divine. She explores how the cup is a rich symbol of life, with its emptiness and fullness, its brokenness and flaws, and its many blessings.

People are leaving the church J. D. Greear pastors. Big givers. Key volunteers. Some of his best leaders and friends. And that's exactly how he wants it to be. When Jesus gave his disciples the Great Commission, he revealed that the key for reaching the world with the Gospel is found in sending, not gathering. Though many churches focus time and energy on attracting people and counting numbers, the real mission of the church isn't how many people you can gather.

In Listen Well, Lead Better, Steve and Becky Harling share 10 practices that will help you be a more effective listener and leader. Learn how to ask better questions, make people feel heard and valued, and create an open and positive culture. Strong listeners also enjoy greater credibility, navigate conflicts better, and foster more engaged teams. Above all, the lessons here will help you hear from God more clearly and gain his wisdom on all matters in life. Becoming a better listener will transform how you lead and relate to everyone.

In the study of warfare, great men have concluded that there are some overriding principles which, if followed, will always tend toward success in battle, and if neglected or ignored, will tend toward defeat or even destruction. These principles have been entitled the "principles of war". But, not all warfare is waged on a battlefield: every Christian is called to be a soldier. Our fight is against Satan, our objective is the acknowledgment and fulfillment of God's commands, and our ammunition is the power of the Holy Spirit.

Bob Roberts Jr. shows how present-day disciples of Jesus can find in their daily work the resources they need to transform the world for Christ. Roberts explains how ordinary Christians can embrace a kingdom perspective and watch their global connections become opportunities for fulfilling Jesus' Great Commission.

With His gentle hand He wounded my neck And caused all my senses to be suspended. Part poetic masterpiece, part mystic treatise, The Dark Night of the Soul by 16th century Carmelite monk, St. John of the Cross, addresses the feeling of being forgotten by the Presence of the Almighty that every Christian, desirous of walking more closely with God must pass through in order to learn to walk by faith and not by sight.

You’ve said “yes” to God’s call to go, and now you will pack up your things and step into the unknown of a new location, people, and culture. The following years will likely include great joy, frustration, homesickness, difficulty, and excitement. In this book, ten women who have served on the mission field share what they wish they had known before they began. This book is a handbook for entering the mission field.

Ron Hall and Denver Moore, unlikely friends and even unlikelier coauthors, share the hard-to-stop story of how a remarkable woman’s love brought them together. Now, the pair details new reflections and stories of hope and healing, covering topics such as faith, friendship, community outreach, and more.

In our shrinking, pluralistic world, the belief that Jesus is the only way of salvation is increasingly called arrogant and even hateful. In the face of this criticism, many shrink back from affirming the global necessity of knowing and believing in Jesus. In Jesus: the Only Way to God, John Piper offers a timely plea for the evangelical church to consider what is at stake in surrendering the unique, universal place of Jesus in salvation.

Many young African Americans are disinterested in Christianity and others are leaving the church in search of what these false religious ideas appear to offer, a spirituality more indigenous to their history and ethnicity. Edited by Dr. Eric Mason and featuring a top-notch lineup of contributors, Urban Apologetics is the first book focused entirely on cults, religious groups, and ethnocentric ideologies prevalent in the black community.

While many churches talk about discerning calling and engaging in mission, very few are structured to make this their ministry focus. Underground Church is a new vision for the church rooted in its biblical mission to share the love of God and serve the poor. Sanders explores how to make structural changes, how to think about leadership, how to fund ministries, and how to truly engage people in God's mission. Filled with creative insights, he explains what it means to center the mission of the church around the callings of individuals to outward ministry.

It's not your imagination: civilized human society is collapsing. Communities no longer work toward a common good; children are no longer our first priority; businesses no longer value hard work; arts and skills have been lost; and gender is decided by the individual, not biology. We cannot reverse national and global trends, says professor Anthony Esolen, but we can build communities that live up to humanity's promise and responsibility.

His street name was Daylight. But he was a nightmare. On the streets of New York, darkness and violence reigned. Dimas "Daylight" Salaberrios began selling drugs when he was 11 years old, and by 16 he had served his first stint at the notorious Rikers Island prison. Dimas saw only one way to survive: by reigning over the streets. He would be the richest, most powerful ruler in the hood...or die trying. Street God is the true story of one man's dangerous journey through the underworld.

Liz Forkin Bohannon wants you to rethink everything you've been told about finding your passion and following your dreams. Why? Hate to break it to you, but you're likely never going to "find your passion". Because your passion and purpose are something you build-actively - day by day. In her signature tell-it-like-it-is fashion, Liz shares 14 actionable principles that will teach you how to do just that. With total transparency, Liz shares hilarious and heartbreaking stories of her journey of screw-ups and successes.

With Raise Them Up you will learn effective strategies to lift your children up in prayer. You will discover the joy of interceding for your children as you pray specific scripture prayers. Through inspirational stories and thoughtful guidance, you'll be motivated to pray bold prayers to help your children in every situation, experience the impact of powerful prayers to fulfill God's purposes, trust God more when you speak His Word over your children, and live out your purpose as you seek God's will for your family.

Toxic Charity provides proven new models for charitable groups who want to help - not sabotage - those whom they desire to serve. Lupton, the founder of FCS Urban Ministries (Focused Community Strategies) in Atlanta, the voice of the Urban Perspectives newsletter, and the author of Compassion, Justice and the Christian Life, has been at the forefront of urban ministry activism for 40 years. His groundbreaking Toxic Charity shows us how to start serving needy and impoverished members of our communities in a way that will lead to lasting, real-world change.

One of the largest Church Planting Movements in the world, the Bhojpuri movement began in the 1990s and continues to spread gospel light into the region of North India that has been called "the graveyard of missions." Drawing upon dozens of personal stories of transformation from within the movement, Victor John (with collaborator Dave Coles), guides us through insights and lessons learned along the way. Today, the Bhojpuri work is breaking through into neighboring people groups and marginalized social sectors, transcending language, ethnicity, religion, and caste.

Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary isn’t a book of theory. It’s an action plan to help you relate the message of Christ to the people you work around, live with, and call your friends. Using personal experiences, humor, compelling stories, biblical illustrations, and the latest research, Lee Strobel helps you to understand non-Christians and what motivates them.