A book on contemplation, Tears of an Innocent God invites the reader to explore the ways of the One who would have us perceive, listen, and love as Christ did, and still does: not by imitation, but through a gradual inner transformation.

Reflecting on the practice of disciple making in young adult, college, graduate, and local church contexts, Jonathan Dodson has discerned some common pitfalls. For many, discipleship is reduced to a form of religious performance before God. For others, it devolves into spiritual license and a loose adherence to spiritual facts. Both approaches distort biblical motivations for Christian obedience and are in need of reform. By explaining various motivations for discipleship, Dodson charts a biblically faithful, grace-driven alternative. Additionally, he provides a practical model for creating gospel-centered discipleship groups—small, reproducible, missional, gender-specific groups of believers that fight for faith together. This book blends both theology and practice to inspire and equip Christians to effectively fight sin, keep Jesus central, and make gospel-centered discipleship a way of life. Both new and growing Christians will learn to trust the gospel in community as they fight together for holiness as well as how to start gospel-centered community groups in any local church.

The gospel of Christ is the gospel of life, and the Christian's defining reality. Yet the shedding of innocent blood, primarily through abortion, has now marked an entire generation. Innocent Blood explores a series of questions so as to reveal vital connections between the gospel and the call to defend the unborn. These questions include: What does the Bible mean when it says that "life is in the blood"? What does the Bible say about blood-guilt? How is it that we are all stained by it and accountable for it even though few of us have taken a human life? What remedy does God provide for the guilt of shedding innocent blood? What are we to do when confronted with the shedding of innocent blood, and where does our courage to take action come from? What is the link between protecting the innocent and proclaiming good news to the guilty? Not a book on social issues per se, nor a book on missions, Innocent Blood integrates the two and calls us to courageously challenge the powers of death with the gospel of life.

For three decades, Monastic Practices has been a valued resource for English-speaking aspirants to monastic life. In this revised edition, updated and expanded, Charles Cummings, OCSO, explores the common practices of the monastic life in order to rediscover them as viable means of leading persons to a deeper encounter with God. How do monks and nuns occupy themselves throughout the day? Have they modernized their lifestyle or is it still cluttered with medieval customs? Could any of the monastic practices be of use to those outside the monastery? A certain wisdom is necessary to know how to use such practices and how to give oneself to them until they lead one to God. After long monastic experience, Cummings shows us how the ordinary things we do constitute our path to God. In the art of living life, he argues, we are always beginners, searching for God through our concrete circumstances and actions.

Here beloved poet Ann Weems offers a poignant rendering of her own personal psalms of lament. She draws from the rich heritage of Scripture to give voice to the grief and anguish she has felt. Her words will deeply move anyone who has mourned.

In the horror show of gods and monsters, Eden Ryel was the star. Conceived of her mother, a Merovingian--a direct descendant of Christ--and her father, the half-human son of a fallen angel, Eden's very existence had prompted The Great War. Prophesied to be the Keeper of the Balance, she struggles to realize her purpose. Levi, the overconfident and charming half-human son of Lucifer takes nothing seriously. Not even when he finally meets the young woman who is destined to end his existence. A common bond is formed under the pressures they face from both sides, but their respective religious texts predict opposite outcomes. Either way, they must choose: war, death, or love.

For Ijeoma, it's an ordinary afternoon. She's curled up in a comfy chair, reading a novel, and enjoying her time off from school. Then her mother storms into the room and asks a question that will change the teenage girl's life forever: "Are you a witch?" Dumbfounded by the ridiculous charge, Ijeoma further learns that her classmate, a beautiful young girl named Adaugo, is dead. But before she died, Adaugo confessed to being a witch, and claimed that Ijeoma was one, as well. Ijeoma vehemently denies this charge, but her mother does not believe her. Worse, neither does her beloved father. Their entire Nigerian village soon hears of the charge, and Ijeoma is judged accordingly. Helpless, vulnerable, naïve, and inexperienced, Ijeoma is abandoned by her loved ones and forced to face the indignities of those who want her punished. But in the midst of the ashes of her life, Ijeoma clings to her faith and determines to discover the truth behind the deceit. Intense and thought-provoking, A Cry of Innocence reveals the tragic consequences suffered by those falsely accused and serves as a stark reminder of society's responsibility to the truth.

The tenderness of God is not a theme that can be approached just to satisfy our intellectual curiosity, but is an unfathomable mystery that leads us deep into the heart of God. A deep thirst for tenderness means that many, both young and old, are prepared to do almost anything if only this thirst can be quenched. Many of us go far astray without knowing or even suspecting that the most extraordinary tenderness is that of God, and that indeed he is the source of all tenderness. This volume is the fruit of many years of prayer and thought. Throughout these meditations on lesser-known biblical texts, the reader will engage with the compassionate, merciful God, a God with all the tenderness of both mother and father. In this way, the reader will be opened up to new vistas onto the mystery of God's humble, delicate tenderness.

A collection of questioning, serious, reverent, and humorous letters which children have written to God.