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WaterBrook Multnomah's Documents
Average Joe; God's Extraordinary Calling to Ordinary Men
“What is happening to my life?” Have you ever honestly asked yourself that question? As young boys, we dreamed of being pilots, firefighters, doctors, and cowboys. Now we’re older, with a wonderful wife and kids, as well as a mortgage, a minivan, and a fulfilling but not-so-glamorous job. What happened? All the dreams that once inspired us have evaporated into traffic jams, computer screens, bills, and deadlines. Why is life so ordinary? If you think your life is nothing special, take a look at it through God’s eyes. The revealing truth is that God chooses “ordinary,” faithful men to do His most important work—regular guys like Peter the fisherman, David the shepherd, Stephen the waiter, Gideon the farmer, Paul the tentmaker, and even Jesus the carpenter. In this engaging book, Troy Meeder blends stories about biblical characters and contemporary men to show that an “average-Joe” life, an “ordinary” existence, shapes a man’s integrity, moral stability, resolve, and strength. The world desperately needs an army of “average Joes.” Like you. “Troy Meeder’s heart-felt accounts from both his own personal experience and those of friends and family touch a raw nerve in your soul…. Average Joe reminds us that living a life focused on faith, family, and friends is what makes a man exceptional.”—Rick Wiggers, average Joe and account manager Includes a study guide for use by men’s groups.
Category:(not categorized)Reads:34Uploaded:05 / 22 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionMy 30 Days Under the Overpass; Not Your Ordinary Devotional
Live Life Loud! You passed that same ol’ bum on the street this morning. You sat next to some smelly girl on the subway last night. You ordered a burger from a worn-out cashier over your lunch hour. What do you think about these people? What does God think about them? My 30 Days Under the Overpass is not a devotional you will read in your quiet time, then carry on with your day. It’s something you’ll actually do—all day, every day—because these thirty days will rock you. Intense reflection on God’s thoughts and feelings toward the poor, broken, and downtrodden will change you…and you will begin to change the world. Not on your next mission trip. Not at church next Sunday. But right here, right now. Ask It. How do you treat others—those you like, know, don’t know, don’t like? Those who fall into your comfort zone, and those who shove you outside of it? Read It. Mike Yankoski and his buddy, Sam, chose to become homeless to discover their answer. Think It. Would you go sleep under a bridge in the rain? Would you panhandle for your next meal? Would you help those who do? Believe It. “I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me,” said Jesus (Matthew 25:45). Live It. This is not your average devotional. You’ll read it, but you’ll also do it. Get ready for a life change that will change lives. “Mike takes Christ at His word, and challenges you to summon the courage to live the real Christian faith.” Dean R. Hirsch, President, World Vision International Story Behind the Book“Is God enough to sustain me? Is He trustworthy? Is He worth staking my life on? What happens if I die? Will I even survive? Such questions rang loudly in my mind as Sam and I decided to lay down everything in a full embrace of the homeless life. Some experiences were uncomfortable, some shocking, some disturbing, some hilarious, and still others frustrating. But five months of life on the streets has left us, our faith, and our lives forever changed. We’ve been back from the streets for two years, and now this devotional makes it possible for people to make real-life changes. It contains stories and reflections not included in Under the Overpass .” —Mike Yankoski
Category:(not categorized)Reads:33Uploaded:05 / 22 / 2012ShareAdd to collectioniMarriage Study Guide
Until Expectations May You Part Giddy with excitement and burning with love’s fire, engaged couples are filled with desires and expectations! Wonder and eager anticipation propel them forward. Then comes the marriage and if they take the wrong approach, those unrealized expectations and unmet wants can turn a life-giving covenant relationship into a dead-end contractual agreement. Suddenly your marriage has no love, joy, or peace. In this marriage-makeover DVD and study guide from Northpoint Resources, Andy Stanley ’s three key teachings help you transform your expectations and examine the “I’s” of marriage: “Keeping My ‘I’ On You,” “Putting Your ‘I’ Out,” and “It Takes Three.” Broken into six DVD sessions with discussion questions, this is one lesson your marriage won’t survive without. Until Expectations Do Us Part Standing at the altar we all had a picture of what our marriage would look like. The problem is this picture of marriage ends up as expectations that we unload on our spouse. The weight of these expectations will rob your marriage of love and joy. As a spouse you never feel like you measure up and you never feel like you are good enough. So what are you to do with your expectations? You can’t deny them because most expectations started out as God-given desires. In this six-session companion study guide to the DVD, Andy Stanley explains that you must instead learn to transform your expectations and look to God if you are to experience marriage as it was designed.This study guide is complete with a leader’s guide and six lessons including conversation-starting exercises, discussion questions and application steps. Story Behind the BookAndy Stanley is the senior pastor of three North Point Ministries campuses, with a cumulative congregation of more than twenty thousand. As couples voiced their various marital struggles to him, the common root problem became undeniably clear. The “me” syndrome, or the “I” effect, was tearing apart husbands and wives who were once head-over-heels in love. To help couples step back from their immediate circumstances and realize the bigger picture, he preached a series called “iMarriage.” This DVD and study guide will empower couples everywhere to transform their marriages into the one God intends for them.
Category:(not categorized)Reads:38Uploaded:05 / 22 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionThe Indwelling Life of Christ; All of Him in All of Me
“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” —Colossians 1:27 Why do we keep failing even in our best efforts to live the Christian life? Because no one other than Jesus Christ can live it, for the simple reason that He is the Christian life! And only He can live it in our lives as well. Major W. Ian Thomas takes a refreshing look at the pure thrill of living victoriously as you embrace the living Savior’s presence within you. The more you become genuinely and relentlessly available to Christ, the more He can take over so that your Christian walk becomes vibrant and effective! This inspiring devotional, along with the application questions at the end of each reading, will help you focus consistently on Jesus Himself so you can serve and enjoy Him at an entirely new level and dimension. You can try to steer clear of sin. Avoid temptation. Refuse to steal, lie, or use drugs and alcohol. You can indeed try to be sinless. But that is still you. And you are still trying. Jesus Christ was not holy because He focused His efforts on avoiding sin. Instead, “He refused to allow there to be any possible explanation for the quality of His life but the Father, as God, dwelling in Him, as Man,” writes Major W. Ian Thomas. So whom do you want dwelling in you? More of you? Or all of Christ? Story Behind the BookMajor W. Ian Thomas was twelve years old when he accepted the Lord with a simple prayer. But by nineteen, “I had been reduced to spiritual exhaustion,” he says, “with no hope or reason for going on.” It was then that he discovered the life-transforming secret of the indwelling life of the living Lord Jesus Christ. God gave him a message through Galatians 2:20, where he learned to say, “Lord Jesus, I can’t—You never said I could—but You can, and always said You would. That is all I need to know.” Major Thomas came to understand it was Christ Himself living through him who would do His work. This is the message he has been passionately proclaiming all his life.
Category:(not categorized)Reads:20Uploaded:05 / 22 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionShattered Dreams; God's Unexpected Path to Joy
If God loves me, why does life hurt so much?“A new way to live is available to us,” writes widely respected author and counselor Larry Crabb, “a way that leads to a joy-filled encounter with Christ, to a life-arousing community with others, and to a powerful transformation of our interior worlds that makes us more like Jesus.”You’ll see how God moves you from shattered dreams to better dreams to the highest dream– and the joy that comes from dreaming it.This is a book that will...draw you to your closest Friend,help you discover your deepest spiritual desires,point you to your greatest hope,help you face your deepest pain,and invite you to your highest joy.Join Larry Crabb on a life-changing adventure of encountering God in the midst of life’s most difficult times. And learn to live beyond your Shattered Dreams.
Category:(not categorized)Reads:19Uploaded:05 / 21 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionDeadly Ties; A Novel
HER ENEMY WILL STOP AT NOTHING FOR CONTROL…SHE WILL RISK EVERYTHING FOR FREEDOM. A horrific crime shatters Lisa Harper’s idyllic childhood. Her father is dead and her desperate mother, Annie, quickly marries Dutch Hauk, an abusive monster who soon reveals his hatred for Lisa. To protect her, Annie defies her ruthless husband and forfeits custody to a trusted friend. Enraged, Dutch vows to keep Annie and Lisa apart—and he does. Years later, though keenly aware of Dutch’s evil intent, Lisa and her mother seize a chance to be a family, safe in a home where love dwells. But they fail to fathom how far Dutch will go to keep his vow. Determined to control his women, Dutch proves resourceful. His associates in crime are feared at the highest levels across the globe—and for Lisa they plan a fate worse than death. Yet she too has formidable connections, including former Special Operations Officer Mark Taylor. Burdened by his own traumatic past, Mark has loved Lisa from afar. Now, for Lisa and her mother to survive, Mark must risk his life—and even more difficult for him, he must trust God. All as one question haunts them: Can Mark and Lisa untangle these deadly ties before it’s too late? “Vicki Hinze has…talent for transforming the unlikely into something beautiful.”—PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY
Category:(not categorized)Reads:24Uploaded:05 / 19 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionOne-Liner Wisdom for Today's Girls
What Do You Call Cheese that Isn’t Yours? One-liners. The jokes are known for little more than eliciting a groan or two from you. But since Jeffery Dean came up with this handy booklet for teens, one-liners have become a handy tool. These quotes, questions, and statements will cut to the chase and spark the, “Hmmm…I never thought of that before!” section of your gray matter. Some are funny, some are convicting. Each is thought-provoking. Bring a little simplicity back to your complicated life. Don’t expect the world’s problems to be solved or all of your personal troubles to immediately go away. But do look for plenty of food for thought about what really matters. By the way, the cheese that doesn’t belong to you? It’s nacho cheese. (A cheesier one-liner than anything you’ll find in this book.) “Jeffrey Dean has a way of zeroing in on today’s youth culture. He knows teens and how to communicate the love of Jesus to them in a way that captures their attention and convicts their hearts.” -Josh McDowell
Category:(not categorized)Reads:51Uploaded:05 / 19 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionOne-Liner Wisdom for Today's Guys
What Do You Call Cheese that Isn’t Yours? One-liners. The jokes are known for little more than eliciting a groan or two from you. But since Jeffery Dean came up with this handy booklet for teens, one-liners have become a handy tool. These quotes, questions, and statements will cut to the chase and spark the, “Hmmm…I never thought of that before!” section of your gray matter. Some are funny, some are convicting. Each is thought-provoking. Bring a little simplicity back to your complicated life. Don’t expect the world’s problems to be solved or all of your personal troubles to immediately go away. But do look for plenty of food for thought about what really matters. By the way, the cheese that doesn’t belong to you? It’s nacho cheese. (A cheesier one-liner than anything you’ll find in this book.) Think. Do you live life looking back or looking forward? But not too hard. God has your name tattooed on His heart. Tattoos are permanent. Funny and deep. Surprising and smart. One-liners to put you on top of your day. “Jeffrey Dean has a way of zeroing in on today’s youth culture. He knows teens and how to communicate the love of Jesus to them in a way that captures their attention and convicts their hearts.” -Josh McDowell
Category:(not categorized)Reads:41Uploaded:05 / 19 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionFor Parents Only; Getting Inside the Head of Your Kid
For every bewildered parent, there’s a kid longing to be understood.What parent hasn’t occasionally looked at their beloved but bewildering offspring and wondered, What in the world is he thinking? or Why is my sweet little girl acting like that? In this remarkable book, Shaunti Feldhahn and Lisa Rice take you inside the mind of teens and preteens through the same innovative approach that seized national attention in the best-selling books For Women Only, For Men Only, and For Young Women Only. They explore the results of a nationwide survey and personal interviews with more than 1,000 real-life teens and tweens to tackle those things parents often don’t “get” about their kids. You’ll hear first-hand about the longings that drive your kids’ seemingly illogical decisions, the truth behind those exasperating “attitude problems,” and what your children would tell you if they could trust you to truly listen.
Category:(not categorized)Reads:28Uploaded:05 / 19 / 2012ShareAdd to collectionBridge Called Hope; Stories of Triumph from the Ranch of Rescued Dreams
Cross Over Troubled Waters Hope is like the stars—always there, yet shining brightest in the blackest of nights. It is like the dawn, always rising anew. Hope is for everyone, and that includes you. This collection of more than twenty true stories from a ranch of rescued dreams unveils the heart of true strength and the character of genuine courage. Experience for yourself the kind of love and hope that change a person from the inside out. Because sometimes, just believing in someone is enough for them to start believing in themselves. It’s the galvanizing truth that no matter how deep your pain…God’s love exceeds it still. Sometimes, just believing in someone is enough for them to start believing in themselves… Without raising his eyes to look at me, in a voice barely clearing the horizon of a whisper, he said, “I know you don’t love me… You just say that ’cuz you’re an adult and it’s kinda like your job. But I know you don’t really love me.” Suffering and blessing balance on the same high wire, each giving stability and depth to the other. The one that we feel the most…is ultimately the one that we give the most. It was her eyes that gave her away. The conflict of her mortal illness versus her will raged behind them. Her body shouted, “I’m sick and it’s getting harder and harder to do the things I love!” while her indomitable will shouted back, “Yeah, but I’m just a little kid, and little kids should get to ride horses!” What a relief it is when we begin to understand that it is within our hardships that truth is elevated from our hearts to our heads. “During the darkest days I’d ever known, I was introduced to the unconditional love of a little horse and a merciful God, and my life has never been the same,” says author Kim Meeder. And her book proves that hope is not only for us to keep…but to give. “Stirring, encouraging, and inspirational, Bridge Called Hope reminds us that hope is heaven sent for everyone, and that we, too, can make a positive difference in others’ lives." -Eric Close, Actor “Kim Meeder vibrantly shares—and lives—an amazing story of hope and restoration. A triumph of recovery for wounded hearts!” -Louie Giglio, Director, Passion Conferences, and bestselling author Story Behind the Book“I was moved to write Hope Rising and Bridge Called Hope because, when I needed it the most, someone shared hope with me and it saved my life. During the darkest days I’d ever known, I was introduced to the unconditional love of a little horse and a merciful God, and my life has never been the same. Everything in our life is about choices. We cannot control our circumstances, but we can control how we choose to feel about them. The pain that we feel in this life is certain. What is equally certain is how we choose to feel about the pain. It can destroy us—or it can define us. The choice is uniquely ours.” —Kim Meeder
Category:(not categorized)Reads:17Uploaded:05 / 18 / 2012ShareAdd to collection
