In Holy Clarity, Sarah Drummond explores the most basic reason leaders of religious organizations conduct evaluations: To find and create God-pleasing clarity regarding the organization's purpose and the impact of its activities. Leadership and evaluation are not separate disciplines, she argues. Effective leaders evaluate because they need to know what is happening in their organizations and how those activities are effecting change. Drummond first describes the way in which our postmodern culture makes clarity difficult to obtain. She then looks at holy clarity from a biblical and theological perspective and make the case that it is a spiritual discipline that can stand on its own theological merits. She presents four approaches to evaluation that can help a leader to guide a community toward greater clarity, both when evaluating or analyzing programs and when planning and starting programs. Finally, she considers the work of clarification as a faith practice, one that can make a pastor or layperson not just a better leader, but a better Christian who is more firmly grounded in God. Each chapter concludes with a fictional case study that provides a jumping-off point for discussion and helps bring her theory to life. Holy Clarity provides an accessible resource as an entry point for those who are eager to learn the best practices of this crucial discipline.

What happens when we praise God? What are the benefits of praising Him? Do you know what praise actually means? In Holy Roar, Chris Tomlin and Darren Whitehead share a fresh perspective from the worship practices of the ancient world. They take readers on a praise journey that answers questions and provides valuable insight. After reading Holy Roar, you will: Grow an understanding of praise with Darren's unique insights. Gain a deeper understanding of how to worship. Be inspired as Chris shares how those insights take shape in the stories behind some of your favorite worship songs, including "How Great Is Our God," "We Fall Down," and "Good Good Father." Holy Roar is for: Readers of all ages interested in growing their faith Pastors, worship leaders, and small group teachers leading believers In the ancient world, something extraordinary happened when God's people gathered to worship Him. It was more than just singing; it was a declaration, a proclamation, a time to fully embody praise to God for who He is and what He has done. In fact, in the Psalms, seven Hebrew words are translated into the English word praise, each of which represents a different aspect of what it means to truly praise God.

An engaging guide on how to bring clarity on both an individual and organizational level and improve workplace efficiency. Organizations are stressed. Innovation and global competition have become the source of relentless pressure and customers have never had higher expectations. Corporate efforts to improve everyday productivity and boost profits are producing diminishing returns. Yet a new frontier of enormous opportunity to improve results is hidden in plain sight. According to a Fortune 500 study, as much as 80% of working time is lost to tiresome meetings, unclear expectations, difficult decisions, and other wasteful delays. Overcoming the lack of clarity behind this waste - on both an individual and organizational basis - would reap huge rewards. In The Power of Clarity, Ann Latham exposes the unrecognized confusion and explains how to eliminate it. This fascinating guide to workplace productivity and effectiveness draws upon extensive research and case studies to demonstrate how you can get better results in far less time while also increasing confidence and commitment.

God never intended for prayer to be a spiritual chore on your daily to-do list. Connected! unpacks the purpose and nature of prayer as God intends it to be. Awaken to prayer as the key to wholeness and power, expressing and reflecting your intimate relationship with God. Learn to sidestep the barriers that intimidate your desire to pray. Become aware of an often overlooked blind spot that hinders your prayer life. Most of all let the journey of prayer begin anew as you discover the empowering experience of intercession and your personal arena of prayer ministry.

Activating the Holy Spirit is a book that will awaken you to the presence of the Lord in your life. this book will carry you through a ten-day transformation process that allows and opens the door for the spirit to be turned on and how to use the spirit to guide you even in the darkest moments of life. The book informs the reader of daily call-to-action steps to take allowing the reader to invite the Lord into your day and to walk with you through the storm. I hope that this book will uplift and enhance the faith and spirit within you. Faith makes us sure of what we hope for and gives us proof of what we cannot see. --Hebrews 11:1 CEV

How should the Word of God be interpreted and applied today? Does our modern culture affect how we read the Bible? Can certain passages be interpreted in different contexts and in different ways, all the while acknowledging that God speaks with a clear and consistent voice? These are the enduring challenges of hermeneutics. In this volume, no less than sixteen Reformed scholars from four different countries join together to tackle the hard questions that often arise when we busy ourselves with the weighty responsibility of interpreting Holy Scripture. As iron sharpens iron, so also these Reformed scholars challenge each other and their readers to ask not only how hermeneutics can be done, but ultimately, how it should be done so that God's Word of Truth may be handled correctly (2 Tim 2:15).

A wrenchingly honest, eloquent memoir “about true nourishment that comes not from [eating] but from engaging on a spiritual path."—Los Angeles Times In this brave and perceptive account of compulsion and the healing process, Bullitt-Jonas describes a childhood darkened by the repressive shadows of her alcoholic father and her emotionally reclusive mother, whose demands for excellence, poise, and self-control drove Bullitt-Jonas to develop an insatiable hunger. What began with pilfering extra slices of bread at her parents' dinner table turned into binges with cream pies and pancakes, sometimes gaining as much as eleven pounds in four days. When the family urged her father into treatment, the author recognized her own addiction and embarked on the path to recovery by discovering the spiritual hunger beneath her craving for food.

"But kneel down in your little room and pray to God with real humility and earnestness, that he through his dear Son may give you his Holy Spirit, who will enlighten you, lead you, and give you understanding." --Martin Luther Quite often, theology and spirituality are separated, pursued without reference to the other--a classic example of the disjunction between head and heart. But in Luther we find a profound theologian exhibiting a profound spirituality, one that still speaks to us today. Luther sets out three rules for doing proper theology: oratio, meditatio, tentatio--or prayer, meditation, and spiritual trial. These three rules, derived from David the psalmist, provide a way for readers to investigate more thoroughly what Luther says about the important practice of theology or life in the Spirit. But they also serve as a simple way for Christians to live a fuller spiritual life. The intention of this book is to help readers enter into the world of Luther--the Augustinian monk and Reformer who prays, meditates, and suffers spiritual trial within the community of faith that extends over the centuries. Ever the teacher and pastor himself, Gordon Isaac invites readers into the reality of living a "theology of the cross," which helps make sense of our present struggles in this world and shows us how we can live in the love of God as revealed through Jesus Christ.

The state of the conscience, faith, and the Spirit-filled life are related. Sin, disobedience, hardening of heart and impurity destroy the good conscience and produce a defiled conscience. When the conscience is defiled, faith cannot be born. Lack of repentance, and a hardened heart produce a seared and dead conscience to the point where, when God speaks, you no longer feel anything. This book by Professor Fomum is a description of the state of man's conscience. His burden is to get every believer to cooperate with God to have a clear conscience before God and before man. A strong and clear conscience speaks of the possibility of letting in the light of God, for the strong conscience is full of the Holy Spirit. From a detailed explanation of each state of conscience, Professor Fomum demonstrates that the Lord has done everything possible to make sure that every believer has a conscience that is functioning at the highest possible level. His prayer is that everyone should step into the health of God for their conscience and become whatever God wants them to become in their relationship with Him. May you read this book in order to accomplish all that He has asked you to do for His everlasting purposes.

Starting a church from scratch? Start here! Launch offers specific strategies for beginning a church with no members, no money, and no staff. Readers get clear, practical how-to strategies for quickly raising funds, creating a team, planning services, effective evangelism, and rapidly developing a growing membership. Specific advice is included for reaching that often difficult-to-target demographic, the 20- to 40-year-old. Now thoroughly revised and expanded to keep up with the ever-changing landscape of church planting.