The initiative of some church members led to amazing results.
by Kenneth L. Bemis
As a pastor, I know the feelings of frustration and helplessness that surround the counselor who attempts to assist the chemical-dependent person toward sobriety. Counseling the alcoholic is a time-consuming and often discouraging project.
I groped about for a solution to my dilemma as a busy pastor with an increasing number of alcoholics and their families to counsel. I attended seminars and read ...
Small groups are helping Christians bring faith to bear in the for-profit world.
by Brad A. Greenberg
Mike Valleskey was struggling to understand how his job at Sears fit into his new life of faith. Valleskey hadn't been asked to perform unethically or kept at work so late he lost touch with his family. But he couldn't see how a disciple of Jesus Christ could work 9 to 5 inside an office with such a large mission field outside.
"I contemplated going back to Bible school," Valleskey tells Christianity ...
Setting up task groups is a great way to develop a growing number of faithful volunteers in almost any area of ministry. A task group is distinct in that it isn't just a traditional fellowship-building group or a team of people simply fulfilling a task. By definition, task groups attempt to accomplish both fellowship and ministry at the same time.
The principle mission of a task group is to set aside ...
This 13-session course was designed to help you think about art and literature from a Christian perspective.
This 13-session course was designed to help you think about art and literature from a Christian perspective, and how they do, or do not, illustrate biblical principles. In this quarterly pack, we look at how art and literature can reveal truth. These handouts can be used for personal study, but can also be used in a Sunday school class or small group to consider how God reveals himself through film, ...
Discuss important issues facing Christians in the workplace.
The following 4-session course will help you and your group think about important issues facing Christians in the workplace. Being a Christian in the secular world can be a struggle, especially at work. How do you immerse yourself in the culture, but not be negatively affected by it?
Week One
Silicon Valley's Surprising TestimonyHigh-tech Christian executives are bringing biblical values back into the ...
The three studies included in the course are created to help Christians respond to questions raised by the controversial book and movie.
When people engage you with spiritual questions raised by the top-selling book and the upcoming blockbuster, you can use this three-session course as your armor. Equip yourself and your group with the knowledge to answer important questions raised like how Christians should respond to pop culture that contradicts biblical teaching, the difference between biblical fact and Dan Brown's fiction, and ...
Discuss important and much-debated laws that are of specific interest to Christians.
The following 4-session course will help you and your group think about important and hotly debated laws that are of specific interest to Christians. The course will initiate questions like: What does the "separation of church and state" mean to you? What's our church's policy about sending missionaries to closed countries? Should jails and prisons focus more on reforming criminals, while punishing ...
This course will help you discuss questions regarding faith and the arts.
The following 5-session course will help you and your group think about questions regarding faith and the arts such as: Can reading literature, any type, lead you to Christ? What's the best approach to television? Why do we need poetry?
Week One
How Literature Leads Us to God When the road to faith is paved with great literature.
Week Two
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Week Three
The Television DilemmaWith hundreds of channels screaming ...
This 9-week course will help you and your group think about the ways in which you reach the surrounding community.
The following 9-session course will help you and your group think about the ways in which you reach the surrounding community. The course presents questions like: How is the church called to be different from the local social club? How can we reach the unbeliever as a whole person, not just his mind? In what ways do technology and entertainment shape the cultural climate? How can we best serve the ...
John Stott challenges us in this four-session course to reach out to others.
John Stott challenges us in this four-session course to reach out to others. Stott's best-known work, Basic Christianity, has sold 2 million copies and has been translated into more than 60 languages. Other titles include The Cross of Christ, Understanding the Bible, The Incomparable Christ, eight volumes in The Bible Speaks Today series of New Testament expositions, and most recently, Why I Am a ...