“Captivating reading that builds the faith while it fills the mind with greatness.”—Sherwood Wirt, former editor, DECISION Magazine One of this century's greatest writers of fact, fiction, and fantasy explores, in utterly beautiful terms, questions of faith in the modern world: • On the experience of miracles • On silence and religious belief • On the assumed conflict between work and prayer • On the error of trying to lead “a good life” without Christ • On the necessity of dogma to religion • On the dangers of national repentance • On the commercialization of Christmas . . . and more “The searching mind and the poetic spirit of C.S. Lewis are readily evident in this collection of essays edited by his one-time secretary, Walter Hopper. Here the reader finds the tough-mind polemicist relishing the debate; here too the kindly teacher explaining a complex abstraction by means of clarifying analogies; here the public speaker addressing his varied audience with all the humility and grace of a man who knows how much more remains to be unknown.”—The New York Times Book Review

Do we have the wrong map for the Christian life? Life's inconveniences, disappointments, and trials can leave us confused, cynical, and eventually bitter. But the apostle Paul traces out the path of dying and rising with Jesus—what Paul Miller calls the “J-Curve”—as the normal Christian life. The J-Curve maps the ups and downs of daily life onto the story of Jesus. It grounds our journeys not in some abstract idea but in union with Christ and his work of love. Understanding our lives in light of the J-Curve roots our hope, centers our love, and tethers our faith to Christ.

One of the most comprehensive lectionary preaching resources available, the Lectionary Preaching Workbook is the one tool you will want to have close at hand to help you get the most out of every minute you spend preparing your Sunday sermon. This completely revised and updated volume provides you with a host of practical aids for effectively proclaiming God's Word. In addition to theological reflections on the three lessons for each Sunday, each chapter also explores a theme for the day (including a prayer and a suggested hymn) and outlines numerous preaching options. You'll also find a handy, easy-to-use Sermon Planner template to facilitate the process of building your sermon. Special features include: - an introduction to Matthew's gospel - overviews for each liturgical season that pinpoint preaching goals and possible sermon series -- and examine the season's customs, history, meaning, and message - a listing of applicable Revised Common, Roman Catholic, and Episcopal lectionary texts - commentary on each Sunday's Old Testament, New Testament, and Gospel lessons - theological reflections to help you explore the relationships among all the texts - a variety of preaching options, complete with suggested outlines - available in either paperback or 3-ring binder formats, with wide margins for convenient, easy use John R. Brokhoff, a celebrated preacher, teacher, and writer, is Professor Emeritus of Homiletics at Candler School of Theology, Emory University. He has also served as the pastor of Lutheran congregations in Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania, and is a recipient of the George Washington medal from the Freedom Foundation of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The original author of the ever-popular CSS Lectionary Preaching Workbook series, Brokhoff has written over 30 other works, including three-volume series on Preaching The Parables and Preaching The Miracles for Cycles A, B, and C, also from CSS Publishing Company.