While Christians are hungry to know God's will, we often don't know how to go about learning what that might be. With his gentle, pastoral style, Steve Harper encourages you to pray and read scripture in ways that lead to knowing and doing God's will. He employs the metaphor of walking in the light to frame a method of prayer and practice, using scripture and tradition to inform the steps of this ongoing walk with God called discernment. Questions for reflection and discussion are provided at...

Life is full of interruptions. You have a flat tire on the way to work. Your phone buzzes, signaling yet another text or e-mail. Or a major interruption blindsides you—the death of a loved one, a job loss, a family member in crisis, or a shattering diagnosis. Where is God in all these situations? Interruptions: A 40-Day Journey with Jesus provides a chance for you to set aside your stress for a bit and refocus on God. Jacob Armstrong looks at the life of Jesus and gives insights on how you m...

"Grief is such a messy thing," Roberta Bondi writes in the introduction. "It fills us with many ideas and images, memories and fantasies, celebration and bitter regret all at once — all superimposed upon one another. No wonder it wears us out." In this book of poetry and reflections on her mother's death, Bondi acknowledges her grief in the presence of God over the span of a few months. She expresses many conflicting feelings: love, pain, anger, guilt, emptiness, confusion, exhaustion, relief...

iKids—the generation emerging in the midst of the digital revolution. A generation defined by a vast and rapidly changing technological landscape, the iKids generation will never know a world without touch screens, social media, and the internet. iKids: Parenting in the Digital Age takes a close look at the culture of this generation and raises critical questions about the effects of technology on children's brains, physical health, educational experiences, relationships, and faith formation.

Jan Johnson offers an innovative Advent small-group study built around a careful contextual reading of scripture combined with the imaginative reading approach introduced by St. Ignatius. The title Taste and See hints at how readers are invited to experience the stories of the season with their senses. Drawing on that experience of scripture, participants then consider how these stories speak to their own lives.

Safe Sanctuaries in a Virtual World, the latest addition to the Safe Sanctuaries series, addresses the challenges of ministry that have arisen in the face of rapidly changing technology, sometimes referred to as the digital age. Technology now pervades our lives on almost every level; it is nearly inescapable and, as Melton and Foster point out, easily accessible and increasingly user-friendly and intuitive, streamlining the way we work and interact with one another and the world around us. S...

This Advent book invites readers to commit to the practice of daily prayer. The collection of meditations from The Upper Room daily devotional guide is arranged to coordinate with the themes of the four candles on an Advent wreath: Hope, Love, Joy, and Peace. Meditations are included for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and the Sunday after Christmas. A complete Leader's Guide for small groups and instructions for making an Advent wreath are included.

Life Together in the United Methodist Connection is an advanced course in Lay Servant Ministries that gives participants an overview of the structure and organization of The United Methodist Church. The course is arranged in five two-hour sessions with short devotionals at the beginning of each session intended to ground class instruction and discussion in scripture. Life Together in the United Methodist Connection is required for Lay Servants who wish to become certified Lay Speakers and an ...

What beliefs set United Methodists apart from other denominations? How has Methodism changed since its beginning in the 18th century? Living Our United Methodist Beliefs is the Leader's Guide for a course that will help participants better understand United Methodist beliefs and history. It is ideal for a new members class or an adult confirmation class. Use the Leader's Guide with these companion components: Living Our Beliefs: The United Methodist Way by Kenneth L. Carder A Brief Histor...

Convinced that the way we have prepared and trained Sunday school leaders is not achieving the results most churches desire, Carol Krau offers new insight in Keeping in Touch: Christian Formation and Teaching. This book, committed to the vital role that teaching plays in forming Christian disciples, describes the following five critical processes that are important to every teacher and small-group leader: Keeping in touch with God Keeping in touch with God's people Keeping in touch with you...