Praise is the only path to God--at least this is what many of us have been taught. But the notion that we have to be positive all the time, putting on a happy face through anger, frustration, and pain, hinders our ability not only to heal ourselves and society, but to have an authentic relationship with the Divine. We long to connect with God over the very real sorrow in our lives and in the world around us, but so many of us were never shown how. This lack of knowing how to lament--an ancient practice of expressing anger and pain to God--damages us personally and spiritually. Pastor Abby Norman is here to tell us that we can talk to God like that. In her fresh, tell-it-like-it-is voice, she unpacks the power of lament, providing us with the tools and the grace-filled permission to heal the problems we have been ignoring for too long. She shows us how to express our laments to God and to each other when things are definitely not okay. And through this process we will discover a richer connection with God--who has wanted nothing more than our whole selves from the start.

A New York Times Notable Book A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2012 A bold approach to understanding the American evangelical experience from an anthropological and psychological perspective by one of the country's most prominent anthropologists. Through a series of intimate, illuminating interviews with various members of the Vineyard, an evangelical church with hundreds of congregations across the country, Tanya Luhrmann leaps into the heart of evangelical faith. Combined with scientific research that studies the effect that intensely practiced prayer can have on the mind, When God Talks Back examines how normal, sensible people—from college students to accountants to housewives, all functioning perfectly well within our society—can attest to having the signs and wonders of the supernatural become as quotidian and as ordinary as laundry. Astute, sensitive, and extraordinarily measured in its approach to the interface between science and religion, Luhrmann's book is sure to generate as much conversation as it will praise.

Praise is the only path to God--at least this is what many of us have been taught. But the notion that we have to be positive all the time, putting on a happy face through anger, frustration, and pain, hinders our ability not only to heal ourselves and society, but to have an authentic relationship with the Divine. We long to connect with God over the very real sorrow in our lives and in the world around us, but so many of us were never shown how. This lack of knowing how to lament--an ancient practice of expressing anger and pain to God--damages us personally and spiritually. Pastor Abby Norman is here to tell us that we can talk to God like that. In her fresh, tell-it-like-it-is voice, she unpacks the power of lament, providing us with the tools and the grace-filled permission to heal the problems we have been ignoring for too long. She shows us how to express our laments to God and to each other when things are definitely not okay. And through this process we will discover a richer connection with God--who has wanted nothing more than our whole selves from the start.

Suppose you could ask God any question and get an answer. What would it be? Young people all over the world have been asking those questions. So Neale Donald Walsch, author of the internationally bestselling Conversations with God series had another conversation. Conversations with God for Teens is a simple, clear, straight-to-the-point dialogue that answers teens questions about God, money, sex, love, and more. Conversations with God for Teens reads like a rap session at a church youth group, where teenagers discuss everything they ever wanted to know about life but were too afraid to ask God. Walsch acts as the verbal conduit, showing teenagers how easy it is to converse with the divine. When Claudia, age 16, from Perth, Australia, asks, "Why can't I just have sex with everybody? What's the big deal?", the answer God offers her is: "Nothing you do will ever be okay with everybody. 'Everybody' is a large word. The real question is can you have sex and have it be okay with you?" There's no doubt that the casual question-and-answer format will help make God feel welcoming and accessible to teens. Conversations with God for Teens is the perfect gift purchase for parents, grandparents, and anyone else who wants to provide accessible spiritual content for the teen(s) in their lives.

What you believe about God sets the foundation of the person you will become. In God Has a Name, pastor and New York Times bestselling author John Mark Comer invites you to rethink many of the prevalent myths and misconceptions about God and weigh them against what God actually tells us about himself. After all, what you believe about God will ultimately shape the type of person you become. We all live at the mercy of our ideas, and nowhere is this more true than our ideas about God. The problem is many of our ideas about God are wrong. Not all wrong, but wrong enough to form our souls in detrimental and disheartening ways. God Has a Name is a simple yet profound guide to understanding God in a new light--focusing on what God says about himself in the Bible. This one shift has the potential to radically alter how you relate to God, not as a doctrine, but as a relational being who responds to you in an elastic, back-and-forth way. John Mark Comer takes you line by line through Exodus 34:6-8--Yahweh's self-revelation on Mount Sinai, one of the most quoted passages in the Bible. Along the way, Comer addresses some of the most profound questions he came across as he studied these noted lines in Exodus, including: Why do we feel this gap between us and God? Could it be that a lot of what we think about God is wrong? Not all wrong, but wrong enough to mess up how we relate to him? What if our "God" is really a projection of our own identity, ideas, and desires? What if the real God is different, but far better than we could ever imagine? No matter where you are in your spiritual journey, God Has a Name invites you to step into a fresh and biblically rooted vision of who God is that has the potential to alter your life with God and shape who you become.

He Speaks in the Silence is about Diane Comer’s search for the kind of intimacy with God every woman longs for. It is a story of trying to be a good girl, of following the rules, of longing for a satisfaction that eludes us. Disappointed with all Diane had been told was supposed to fulfill her, she begged God in desperation to give her more. And He did. But first He took her through a trial so debilitating it almost destroyed what little faith she had. He let her go deaf. Using vivid parallels between her deafness and every woman’s struggle to hear God, this book shows women not only how Diane, as a deaf woman, hears in everyday life, but also how she can learn to listen to God in the midst of her own loud life, finding intimacy with God and the deep soul satisfaction she longs for.

ARE YOU TALKING TO ME? How many times have you felt God trying to speak to you and yet you feel like you're hearing nothing? Who hasn't asked, "God, can't you talk louder? I just want to know what to do!" The reality is that all of God's sheep, in every denomination, already hear God's voice--every day! Steve Shultz uncovers the many Scriptures "hidden in plain sight," as he likes to say. These clear, yet often forgotten passages contain easy answers to the questions you've asked, or wish you could ask, about hearing God's voice. Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. ...everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort (1 Corinthians 14:1, 3 NIV). Learn how you can tune in to what God has to say personally to you! You don't even have to believe in prophecy. It's not the term "prophecy" that's the problem, but how it's defined. The wisdom in this book speaks on a "vulnerable" level through the author's exciting and dramatic real-life stories. The series of questions and answers by themselves made this book worth more than the cost.

Carlos Whittaker equips you with practical steps to destroying the roots of your deep-seated habits so you can get rid of what's holding you back and embrace true freedom in Christ. Are you tired of trying to live for Christ--only to fail time and time again with the same old behaviors? Do you pray for guidance, ask for deliverance, and vow to do better, yet fail to progress? As an author, speaker, podcaster, and communicator for our time, Carlos has lived much of his spiritual life in the spotlight. But, like any Christian, his faith story has had its ups and downs. He spent decades trying to figure out how to be a "better person." Time and time again, he strived for holiness, only to get caught in a cycle of destructive habits, behaviors, and thought patterns. But the buck stops here. Or, rather, the spider is killed here. Throughout Kill the Spider, Carlos walks you through the key aspects of killing the spiders in your own life, including: Confessing the lies you've believed Renouncing the lies that have held you back Rejecting every lie that Jesus has exposed to you Replacing these lies with Jesus's truth In Kill the Spider, Carlos shares everything from hilarious, self-deprecating stories to passion-filled wisdom to teach us that we can't just clear away the pesky cobwebs. Instead, we need to find the spider--the source of the issue--and take it out entirely. Carlos offers a breath of fresh air to any believer looking to finally step into the freedom in Christ. Take a seat, open up your book, and grab a shoe. We're going on a spider hunt.

Prayer seems like it should be so simple. Yet, when it comes to actually praying, so often it feels awkward and complicated. The truth is, prayer is simple. It's like talking. Talking with a good friend. Down-to-earth pastor Adam Weber offers an accessible, hopeful approach to one of life's greatest mysteries: talking with God. Now with a brand new bonus chapter and in paperback. This is a book on prayer for the person who longs to connect with God, but doesn't really know how. It's a book for the person who has a job, family, schedule, kids, deadlines, full inbox, and a million things to do and yet is curious about prayer and talking with God. What does it really look like to pray in the midst of all of life's craziness?

I've found the real God and learned a thing or two about His personality. And I've had the incredible opportunity of spending every day since then talking to Him. And guess what? He talks back to me.