The Best VBS Workbook Ever!
The Best VBS Workbook Ever!

Author: Lisa Brown

Publisher: Church Publishing, Inc.

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 161

ISBN-13: 0819233013

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- Enables organizers to envision and implement a VBS program customized for the local church - Practical, comprehensive, from-the-ground-up approach to VBS Designing a Vacation Bible School program, as opposed to choosing one of the many off-the-shelf packages, is a labor of love. It considers the unique perspective of children and invests accordingly. It's a home-cooked meal compared to fast food. It sends a message to parents that a church values children enough to identify and meet their specific needs in their community at a particular moment in time. Well-designed VBS programs speak to children with respect, love, and patience, offering opportunity for authentic spiritual growth, not to mention an intentional theology that is reflective of the church. Finally, custom-designed VBS programs are a way to fully include children in the mission and ministry of the church rather than confine their unique gifts. This book provides Christian educators with the tools they need to assess the needs and resources in their congregation, and to craft a creative program in response to that assessment. The Best VBS Workbook Ever offers direction and suggestions on theme, structure, logistics, program, activities, staffing and promotion. Audience: Episcopal and other mainline churches looking for something more original and thoughtful than typical pre-packaged VBS programs, Directors of Christian Education, Directors of Children's Ministry, Camps and Retreat Centers, FORMA, Kanuga Christian Education conference, eFormation network

The Best VBS Workbook Ever!
The Best VBS Workbook Ever!

Author: Lisa Brown

Publisher: Church Publishing, Inc.

Published: 2017-01-01

Total Pages: 161

ISBN-13: 0819233021

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Designing a Vacation Bible School program, as opposed to choosing one of the many off-the-shelf packages, is a labor of love. It considers the unique perspective of children and invests accordingly. It's a home-cooked meal compared to fast food. It sends a message to parents that a church values children enough to identify and meet their specific needs in their community at a particular moment in time. Well-designed VBS programs speak to children with respect, love, and patience, offering opportunity for authentic spiritual growth, not to mention an intentional theology that is reflective of the church. Finally, custom-designed VBS programs are a way to fully include children in the mission and ministry of the church rather than confine their unique gifts. This book provides Christian educators with the tools they need to assess the needs and resources in their congregation, and to craft a creative program in response to that assessment. The Best VBS Workbook Ever offers direction and suggestions on theme, structure, logistics, program, activities, staffing and promotion.

Common Prayer for Children and Families
Common Prayer for Children and Families

Author: Timothy J. S. Seamans

Publisher: Church Publishing

Published: 2020-02-17

Total Pages: 137

ISBN-13: 1640652647

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• A prayer book for children at home, school, or church • Whimsical, simple illustrations and prayers drawn from Episcopal prayer resources Common Prayer for Children and Families is a collection of prayers and liturgies written for kids and the adults or communities who pray with them. Whimsically illustrated with pen and ink, this book contains prayers for morning, midday, and evening; prayers throughout the Church year; and prayers for all sorts of occasions. At the heart of this book is the belief that prayer shapes our lives and should be accessible and meaningful for children. The prayers in this book are called “common” for a variety of reasons; like the Book of Common Prayer, it seeks to provide a language, form, and theology that binds Episcopalians in shared prayer. In addition, prayers reflect themes with which children are commonly familiar, like home, school, and camps. Most of all, these prayers are held in common—always done within God’s holy community that includes family and friends, the living and the dead, saints and sinners, angels, archangels, and the company of heaven.

When the Bishop Comes to Visit
When the Bishop Comes to Visit

Author: Brook H. Packard

Publisher: Church Publishing, Inc.

Published: 2014-02-01

Total Pages: 125

ISBN-13: 0819229318

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A bishop comes to visit a congregation for many reasons—a parish celebration, baptism, confirmation, or a pastoral visit. With black and white illustrations, this interactive book for children and families describes the ministry of a bishop, including symbols and apparel, in preparation for the visit and worship. Confirmands will find this book particularly helpful as it walks them through the liturgy of Confirmation. During the actual Confirmation rite, children will have a guide to follow along during the service, making this book serve multiple purposes for young and old alike.

The Gospel Story
The Gospel Story

Author: Mary Wiley

Publisher: B&H Publishing Group

Published: 2015-06-01

Total Pages: 32

ISBN-13: 1433686643

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Make the Gospel story come alive! Give readers the big picture of God’s story with this innovative, interactive booklet that’s perfect for outreach. The 32-page book takes more than 30 carefully chosen stories from The Big Picture Interactive Bible Storybook and combines them to tell the Gospel story simply and clearly. The “Christ Connection” feature reveals how Jesus is a part of each Bible story, and the "God's Plan for Me" feature leads the reader to the plan of salvation which is included in the end of the book. What better way to experience the most exciting story ever told?

Center Church
Center Church

Author: Timothy Keller

Publisher: Zondervan

Published: 2012-09-04

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 0310494192

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Practical and Gospel-centered thoughts on how to have a fruitful ministry by one of America's leading and most beloved pastor. Many church leaders are struggling to adapt to a culture that values individuality above loyalty to a group or institution. There have been so many "church growth" and "effective ministry" books in the past few decades that it's hard to know where to start or which ones will provide useful and honest insight. Based on over twenty years of ministry in New York City, Timothy Keller takes a unique approach that measures a ministry's success neither by numbers nor purely by the faithfulness of its leaders, but on the biblical grounds of fruitfulness. Center Church outlines a balanced theological vision for ministry organized around three core commitments: Gospel-centered: The gospel of grace in Jesus Christ changes everything, from our hearts to our community to the world. It completely reshapes the content, tone, and strategy of all that we do. City-centered: With a positive approach toward our culture, we learn to affirm that cities are wonderful, strategic, and under-served places for gospel ministry. Movement-centered: Instead of building our own tribe, we seek the prosperity and peace of our community as we are led by the Holy Spirit. "Between a pastor's doctrinal beliefs and ministry practices should be a well-conceived vision for how to bring the gospel to bear on the particular cultural setting and historical moment. This is something more practical than just doctrine but much more theological than "how-to steps" for carrying out a ministry. Once this vision is in place, it leads church leaders to make good decisions on how to worship, disciple, evangelize, serve, and engage culture in their field of ministry—whether in a city, suburb, or small town." — Tim Keller, Core Church

Family Discipleship
Family Discipleship

Author: Matt Chandler

Publisher: Crossway

Published: 2020-08-28

Total Pages: 189

ISBN-13: 143356632X

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The most important disciple a parent will make is within their own home, and yet this is the most difficult disciple to make. Family Discipleship by Matt Chandler and Adam Griffin helps readers develop a sustainable rhythm of gospel-centered discipleship through a guided framework focusing on moments of discipleship in 3 key areas: time (intentional time gathering your family around gospel activities or conversations), moments (leveraging opportunities throughout the day), and milestones (celebrating significant life events). Each section provides parents with Scriptures to consider, questions to answer, structures to implement, and ideas to try out as they seek to see Christ formed in their children. Here is a book that begins with the end in mind, offering ideas and examples of what gospel-centered family discipleship looks like, helping parents design their own discipleship plan as they seek to raise children in the love and fear of the Lord.

Show Them Jesus
Show Them Jesus

Author: Jack Klumpenhower

Publisher: New Growth Press

Published: 2014-04-28

Total Pages: 231

ISBN-13: 1939946409

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In this transformative resource for youth workers, children's ministry teachers, parents, and VBS volunteers, Jack Klumpenhower teaches how to discover the gospel connections in every Bible story. Show Them Jesus is an instruction manual for teachers of kids and teens written by a lay Bible teacher with thirty years of experience. With a simple framework and real-life examples, Jack helps teachers identify and communicate the heart of the gospel to each child in each lesson. Show Them Jesus challenges the culture of low-stakes, low-expectations teaching and invites teachers to do nothing less than teach and treasure the good news of Jesus—in every lesson. Instead of leaving kids with lessons about changing their behavior, Show Them Jesus offers a new way by sweetly, masterfully, and powerfully showing kids how the gospel really applies to their lives and changes them for eternity. In sharing example after example from his years of experience, Jack provides readers with a more enriched view of Jesus and how to teach this gospel perspective in a classroom setting. This life-changing tool will complement and enrich existing lessons or teaching materials, and it's appropriate for teachers of children and teens in any setting. Millions of church kids are growing up and deciding to leave the church. If we are not primarily teaching our kids about God's love for us in Christ, we may miss our opportunity to capture their hearts. Don't miss your opportunity to show them Jesus.

Seek First the Kingdom - Bible Study Book
Seek First the Kingdom - Bible Study Book

Author: Christine Hoover

Publisher:

Published: 2021-04

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 9781087707785

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As Christians, we live busy and harried lives, most often because we are eager and earnest to join with God in His work in the world. In the confusion and sheer volume of opportunities and ideas vying for our attention, we must constantly return to the words of Jesus to find our focus and purpose, for the truths He spoke, when believed and applied, lead to our flourishing. Using parables and stories, Jesus spoke most often of the kingdom of God as what matters--the ways of the kingdom, the values of the kingdom, and the cultivation of the kingdom here on earth in light of its fulfillment in heaven. In other words, the kingdom of God defines who we are and what we do as Christians. Many Christians don't have a working knowledge of the kingdom and their true citizenship in a way that affects their daily lives and decisions. Seek First the Kingdom cuts through the clutter of life with the words of Jesus, urging readers to stop, think, take notice, and reorient themselves solidly around the kingdom. Features: 8 weeks of personal study to complete between 8 group sessions Leader guide to help guide group meetings Benefits: Explore the kingdom of God in-depth, learning what the kingdom of God is, and how we enter it. Embrace the life Jesus offers us within the kingdom and the way we find joy as His subjects. Understand how the ways, values, and cultivation of the kingdom of God define who we are. Learn to confront our allegiances to idols and false kings, re-ordering our worship. Identify our places in the kingdom of God and how we can join in the work that God is doing here and around the world.