Vibrant : Developing A Deep And Abiding Joy For All Seasons (Audio CD)

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  Life In The Negative World

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  Learning how to live in today’s new social and cultural environment will require examination, trial and error, and adaptation over time. But there are ways to live with integrity and follow Christ today, even in a negative world.

  From a peak in church attendance in the mid-20th century, Christianity has been on a trajectory of decline in the United States. Once positive toward Christianity and Christian moral teachings, cultural shifts toward the mid-90s led many to adopt a more neutral tone toward the Christian faith, seeing it as one option among many in a pluralistic public square. Today, however, Christianity is viewed negatively, and being known as a Christian often means a lower social status in elite society. Christian morality is openly repudiated and viewed as a threat to the new moral order.

  In Life in the Negative World, author Aaron M. Renn looks at the lessons from Christian cultural engagement over the past 70 years and suggests specific strategies for churches, institutions, and individuals to live faithfully in the “negative” world–a culture opposed to Christian values and teachings. And since there is no one-size-fits-all solution, living as a follower of Christ in the new, negative world and being missionally engaged will require a diversity of strategies.

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  Gift Of Thorns

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  Today’s follower of Jesus exists at a moment in history when our desires, longings, and wants are being weaponized against us by cultural, spiritual, and relational forces. “Follow your heart” and “You do you” has become our moment’s mantras. The result, for too many, is feeling torn asunder by the raging desires within. What do we do with our desire? What about our unwanted desires? And how do we cultivate desires which bring life and freedom and lead to Christ? The Gift of Thorns, by A. J. Swoboda, addresses these questions and more.

  The path forward is anything but easy. It is assumed by too many in the Christian community that desire is in and of itself bad or dangerous and must be crucified for simply existing. Desire is demonic for some. But, for many others–particularly in the secular West–desire must be followed through and through. This side deifies desire. But these two options sidestep the joy in the great challenge of finding God in our desire. There exists an ancient and sacred way that is forged around the life, wisdom, and power of Jesus and his Spirit. In short, what makes a follower of Christ is not whether or not we have desires. Rather, it is what we do with the desires we have.

  Near the end of the story of humanity’s rebellion, the theme of “thorns” is introduced. As readers will discover, the thematic repetition of “thorns” pops up over and over throughout the Bible. What are the thorns for? They will be, in the words of God, “for you” (Gen. 3:18). The premise of this book is that a world where we do not get all that we want is, well, the greatest gift ever.

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  James : Tired Tested Torn And Full Of Faith

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  In this five-week study, we will walk verse by verse through the book of James to compare the teaching of James with the teaching Jesus did in the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew 5-7 and the instruction of Solomon that we find in Proverbs. Examining the themes of what an active, faith-filled life looks like from before Christ, during Jesus’ time on earth, and after Christ, we see how Scripture points us to honor God by not only hearing, but actively living a life of faith.

  As we dig into the Word of God, readers will be encouraged to reclaim their faith every step of the way. Micah will give action steps to take each day to move from the place of pain, challenge, or passive living to a faith-filled life. Readers will gain a fresh perspective of what it means to live full of faith when they feel tired, tested, and torn.

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  Biblical Critical Theory

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  It is not enough for Christians to explain the Bible to the culture in which we live. We must also explain the culture in which we live within the framework and categories of the Bible. If we are to meet this challenge, two things are necessary: we must develop a deep grasp of the shape of the biblical story and of how the Bible understands the world, humanity and God, and we must develop a penetrating and nuanced appreciation of the ideas and stories that shape our culture.

  Biblical Critical Theory: How the Bible’s Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture does just this, setting out a fresh vision for biblical cultural engagement in which faithfulness to Scripture and sensitivity to culture walk hand in hand. This book exposes and evaluates the often-hidden assumptions and concepts that shape our late-modern society, and examines them through the lens of the biblical story running from Genesis to Revelation. With the help of extensive diagrams and practical tools, Biblical Critical Theory shows the reader how the signature patterns of the Bible’s storyline can provide incisive, fresh, and nuanced ways of intervening into today’s debates on everything from science, the arts and politics to dignity, multiculturalism and equality, showing Christians the moves to make and the tools to use in analyzing and engaging with all sorts of cultural artefacts and events.

  This is a book for everyone who wants to bring together a white-hot commitment to unpopular scriptural truths with a positive, robust, constructive, and winsome vision for life and society. If Christians want to speak with a fresh, engaging, and dynamic voice in the marketplace of ideas today, we need to mine the unique treasures of the distinctive biblical storyline.

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