Many pastors—just like the rest of the population--lack a basic understanding of financial and administrative matters. Most of us feel unprepared in matters of personal budgeting, health insurance, retirement savings and taxes. Finance and administration are often considered tedious, un-compelling, even ‘vile’ tasks. But pastors are required to offer leadership around these issues in a congregation. And so, since their pastors are poorly equipped in this area, many congregations struggle with budgeting, accounting, staff management, employee benefits, tax and basic legal matters. Author Nate Berneking, attorney and MDiv., manages the finance and administration of a large denominational organization, and offers his expert counsel and practical advice here. Vile Practices provides theological language to equip pastors and other leaders to translate these matters for themselves, so that they can effectively lead their congregations. The first part of the book explores several personal matters for pastors, from budgeting to taxes. The second part demonstrates how to lead congregations in their own financial and administrative matters.
God’s purpose in calling us to lives of faithful stewardship and generosity isn’t merely to sustain the church. Rather, the continued existence of the church is essential to sustain the powerful, transformative message of our faith. Lovett H. Weems Jr. and Ann A. Michel present the Bible’s redeeming and transforming message of generosity, stewardship, and abundance in this comprehensive guide to Christian financial responsibility. The book provides practical advice to pastors and church leaders tasked with funding ministry and inspiring others toward responsible stewardship and greater generosity. It addresses church fundraising, stewardship campaigns, budgets, financing capital needs, endowments, and innovative approaches to economic sustainability. The book integrates the theological and practical dimensions of finance to empower congregational leaders to think critically about stewardship from a Christian perspective, help them use their personal and congregational possessions in the light of faith.
Gain victory over the spiritual forces of the deep! What are water spirits? Everyday people are feeling the effects of unseen evil forces, and yet, they dont know whats attacking them, let alone how to have victory. While many spiritual warriors are familiar with principalities and powers like Jezebel and witchcraft, few have heard of marine demons. Also called water spirits, these powers wreak havoc in places near bodies of water. From Python, to Leviathan, to Triton to Rahab and beyond, spiritual warriors are feeling the effects of water spirits but often dont know how to combat these evil forces. Bestselling author Jennifer LeClaire provides a revolutionary guidebook on how to prophetically recognize these spirits and engage in victorious warfare against them. This book will identify each water spirit, equipping believers to overcome them. Be prepared to: Recognize the symptoms of the spirit of Python and learn to break free from its squeezing stronghold. Detect the twisted lies of a Leviathan spirit in your life and in contemporary culture. Overcome the spirit of Rahab that attempts to prevent you from crossing over into your new season. Unleash the power of Holy Spirit and partner with Him to change spiritual climates in your life and city. Discern the presence of these water spirits and become equipped with spiritual warfare strategies to defeat them!
Vile Bodies are bodies that have been vilified by Christian thought, often with catastrophic consequences. The bodies of women, Jews, Muslims, slaves, Blacks, LGBT people, children, wives have all been harmed by negative Christian teaching about bodies. This book sidesteps the endless controversies in the churches about sexuality and gender and goes deeper – unmasking instead the abusive theology that ensures these controversies and their harmful outcomes persist. Drawing extensively from scripture, and from two millennia of church history and theology, Vile Bodies slowly exposes how churches have preferred doctrine to compassion, orthodoxy to justice, and legalism to love, culminating in the global abuse crises in the churches that have largely destroyed their moral credibility.
What is spirituality? For some, it means nothing more than vague self-improvement pulled from the latest best-selling self-help book. For others, it refers to some generic religious practice. Shedding life-giving light on what often remains ill-defined and unclear, this book sets forth a vision of biblical spirituality—“a renewed sense of the momentousness of being alive in God’s world as God’s people are led by God’s Spirit through God’s Word unto godly, Christlike character.” With careful exegetical work and theological reflection, the contributors—pastors and scholars such as Christopher W. Morgan, Paul R. House, Nathan A. Finn, and Gregg R. Allison—address spirituality from the perspective of the Bible, exploring topics such as the Trinity, divine sovereignty and human responsibility, the “already” and “not yet,” and the church. This book also addresses practical questions about spirituality related to the workplace, disciplines of the body, and more.
Journey through God’s Word with a knowledgeable guide With content gleaned from the Halley’s Bible Handbook—the bestselling Bible handbook of all time—the NIV Halley’s Study Bible makes the Bible accessible to you through articles, study notes, charts, maps, and photos next to related Scripture. Henry Halley’s passion to spread biblical literacy began with a simple pamphlet and grew into the Halley’s Bible Handbook with over six million copies in print. Now, for the first time, his insights are conveniently placed within a study Bible in the world’s bestselling modern-English Bible translation, the New International Version. Halley’s own notes are paired with new photography of archaeological findings and biblical places. Also included are insightful verse-by-verse study notes from a proprietary note system. Features: Complete text of the accurate, readable, and clear New International Version (NIV) Over 750 articles, charts, and maps, gleaned from the bestselling Bible handbook of all time, Halley’s Bible Handbook Full color throughout with over 150 photos of ancient sites, Holy Land topography, and archaeological finds Over 6,000 study notes Concordance with over 10,000 Scripture references Words of Jesus in red
Hundreds of thousands of people each week have transformative encounters with God through Adult Bible Studies—Bible-based, Christ-focused Sunday school lessons and midweek Bible studies endorsed by the Curriculum Resources Committee of The United Methodist Church. The Kit includes a Teacher Book with additional biblical background, exposition, suggestions for guiding group discussion, and a copy of the quarterly Adult Bible Studies Concise Commentary, designed for readers who seek a solid biblical basis for each session of Adult Bible Studies. Additional information about Adult Bible Studies, Fall 2022 Theme: Freedom This fall, our Bible lessons follow the theme of “Freedom.” The lessons explore the concept of salvation and God’s gracious acts in redeeming us. They challenge we who have experienced God’s gracious salvation to work for freedom and justice on behalf of others. They acknowledge that as we do, we will encounter those whose beliefs and values are different from our own, so they encourage us to remain faithful to our beliefs while we act as neighbors to others. Unit 1 Rescue The concept of salvation is broad and inclusive of many divine actions by which we are rescued from the human predicament. The lessons in this unit focus on the freedom to which we are liberated. In the Roman world, the freer you were, the more power you exercised over others. Today, we think of freedom as the ability to do whatever we want without restrictions. In the Bible, freedom is about choosing to whom or what we devote ourselves without restriction. Paul described that choice as servitude to sin or becoming a slave to Christ. Scriptures: Exodus 1:1-2:10; Exodus 15:1-18; Exodus 17:1-16; Deuteronomy 30:15-20 Spiritual Practice: Living With Intentionality Unit 2 Justice In the commandments that God gave in the covenant at Sinai, God repeatedly called the Israelites to extend justice and share their blessings with widows, orphans, and strangers in their midst. This triad represented the most vulnerable people within ancient society. Widows, orphans, and strangers appear frequently throughout the Old and New Testament narratives in ways that illustrate this divine mandate. The measure of justice or righteousness found throughout Scripture is whether one cares for the “widow, the orphan, and the stranger.” The lessons in this unit invite us to ask ourselves, who are the most vulnerable in our society? Who in our community are excluded from the common good? Who has trouble providing for themselves or gaining access to the courts and public services? Scriptures: James 2:14-17, Exodus 22:21-27; 1 Kings 17:8-24, Luke 21:1-4; John 9:1-7, 35-38; Luke 18:1-8; Ezekiel 47:21-23 Spiritual Practice: Awareness Unit 3 Faithful Conversations We increasingly find ourselves living in communities and working with people from diverse backgrounds. While we may not agree with the beliefs of others, we seek peaceable and neighborly relationships. The lessons in this unit explore the models for neighborly conversations with people of various faith traditions. Scriptures: Acts 17:16-31; 2 Kings 5:1-19; Exodus 18:1, 13-27; Romans 14:13-19 Spiritual Practice: Listening Other Adult Bible Study components, sold separately, include: Student Book Each week’s Student Book lesson lists background Scripture, features key verses, provides reliable and relevant biblical explanation and application, and more in a readable font size that is accessible to everyone. DVD/Video Does your group enjoy watching videos to generate conversation around Bible studies? Video sessions directly correspond to the Adult Bible Studies quarter’s theme and content and feature a segment for each Bible lesson. Visit AdultBibleStudies.com and sign up for the weekly newsletter to automatically receive the FREE Current Events Supplement and other information about these resources and more!
A beloved and classic Bible companion, Halley's Bible Handbook makes the Bible's wisdom and message accessible to everyone. This full color, revised and updated 25th edition is both comprehensive and inviting, including a concise Bible commentary, important discoveries in archaeology, related historical data, church history, historical geography, and more. It is the culmination of Dr. Halley's mission: that every Christian be enabled and encouraged to consistently and devotedly read and understand their Bible. Ninety years after its initial publication, Halley's Bible Handbook remains a bestseller in its various editions, with millions of copies sold worldwide. This world-renowned Bible handbook has been consistently updated and revised to accurately provide even greater clarity, insight, and usefulness. Whether you’ve read the Bible many times or are just starting, you'll find insights that give you a firm grasp of God's Word and an appreciation for the cultural, religious, and geographic settings in which the story of the Bible unfolds. The Deluxe edition features: Full-color maps, photographs, illustrations, tables, and charts on almost every page. Practical Bible reading programs. Helpful tips for deeper Bible study. Updated archaeological information. Easy-to-understand sections on how we got the Bible and on church history. Improved indexes, including a color-coded edge index to easily find your place. A contemporary design.
This timely and accessible prayer guide is an abridged version of Operation World, the leading resource for people who want to impact the nations for Christ through prayer. Pray for the World includes challenges for prayer and specific on-the-ground reports of answers to prayer from Christian leaders around the world.
