Author: Scott Hanberry Publisher: ISBN: Category : Languages : en Pages : 190
Book Description
Previously published as Christmas Presence: An Advent Devotional by Ray Cummings and Scott Hanberry. Advent is a season of expectant waiting and preparation for both the celebration of the Nativity of Christ at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. It traditionally encompasses the four Sundays leading up to Christmas and is centered around the four themes of hope, peace, love, and joy. This devotional is a little longer; it is a 41-day journey. The number 40 shows up often in the Bible, commonly in contexts dealing with judgment or testing. Forty-one often represents victory or an end to the trial or testing. The 41 series guides you past judgment to the deliverance, past the testing to the testimony. These forty-one days of Advent readings will help you and your family prepare your hearts for the celebration of Christ''s Nativity and the anticipation of His Return! For Christians all around the world, Advent is a season of waiting. Individually and collectively we wait for the day to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Advent is clearly tied to the coming of Christ, but what if we began to see more than just a celebration of Christmas, "The First Advent"... What if we anchored our hope in a future glance? Yes, we look forward to Christmas as a reminder of Christ''s first coming in the manger in Bethlehem, but few Christians invest mental energy in anticipation of His second coming in the clouds as the judge of the world. The word advent itself means "arrival" or "an appearing or coming into place." And so this season of Advent should be a time when we also wait with great anticipation for the ultimate arrival: Jesus'' Second Coming! His arrival at Bethlehem changed everything and His promise of return secures our hope. In this time of waiting the experience might be different from household to household and believer to believer. For some, Advent is an experience of joy, peace, and love while others desperately long for the same. Some will experience a time of family gatherings, festive meals, renewing friendships, and the reunion of relationships, while others experience empty baskets and empty chairs, separation, brokenness, and loneliness. Isolation and separation have marked the past year. Pandemic quarantine has brought about a nagging sense of loneliness and disconnection. However, isolation and loneliness are not modern-day problems. They are as old as human relationships and they are by-products of a much deeper issue than a pandemic...they are rooted in sin. When Adam and Eve rebelled against God, their first inclination was to hide. Simply put, sin separates. But separation was never God''s intent. The story of Scripture begins and ends with the presence of God. God''s desire and His design is to dwell with His people. In the book of Genesis, Eden is the first couple''s home but, more importantly, it is God''s sanctuary--the garden temple where the Creator and his image-bearers relate (Gen 3:8). However, their disobedience cut them off from God, Who is the very source of life. Death entered. And so, people felt the ache of separation. They felt a longing to be in His Presence. They experienced a sense of exile. And that''s where Jesus steps into history and therein lies the hope of His Arrival! His Presence equals hope! This sentiment was captured in the Christmas Carol, O'' Holy Night... Long lay the world in sin and error, pining, ''Til He appeared and the soul felt it''s worth A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn''! Emmanuel, also called the Christ, changed the world. At that moment when God became flesh, humanity watched prophecies unfold as hope was born. Jesus, our Emmanuel, provided hope that sin and death wouldn''t always win and mankind wouldn''t always feel so painfully alone. Join other believers in a 41-day journey of anticipation of God''s presence!
Author: Debra Wallace-Padgett Publisher: ISBN: 9781950899333 Category : Languages : en Pages :
Book Description
Written by United Methodist Bishop Debra Wallace-Padgett, God Broke Through at Christmas is a resource to assist both individuals and small groups in spiritual preparation for Christmas. Each chapter starts with a meditation and study session guide, followed by daily devotionals for the week. Each chapter includes a study session guide designed for small groups, classes, or personal reflection.God Breaks Through at Christmas focuses on four different aspects of life transformed by Jesus Christ's birth, ministry, and resurrection:? Silence ? Nights of the soul ? Seemingly impossible situations? Chaos The book concludes with a Christmas Eve mediation, reminding us of the most remarkable breakthrough of all, as God breaks through our hopelessness with hope. As readers reflect upon the meditations, daily devotionals, and session guides in this book, they will experience God breaking into their lives in fresh ways. God Broke Through at Christmas is sure to be a blessing to you during this season of preparation and expectation of God breaking through at Christmas.
Author: Chris Tiegreen Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. ISBN: 1414365918 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 762
Book Description
This year, experience a closer relationship with God than ever before. All of us long for God’s presence, and we sense it—occasionally. But there are times when it seems like something’s missing . . . deep encounters with him, certainty that we have heard his voice, and a palpable experience of his presence every day. Like no other writer can, Chris Tiegreen draws us deeper into real intimacy with our intensely relational God. This deluxe LeatherLike edition of The One Year Experiencing God’s Presence Devotional will cultivate your sense of God’s presence in your life, help you learn to recognize his voice, and deepen your trust that he is “always ready to help” (Psalm 46:1, NLT) in every situation.
Author: Lydia Brownback Publisher: Crossway ISBN: 1433553961 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 169
Book Description
Young or old, single or married, male or female—at some point in life, we're all confronted with loneliness. We try to fill the void or change our circumstances so we no longer feel the pain. But what if our pangs of loneliness are meant to point us to something greater? Looking at various aspects of loneliness, Lydia Brownback reminds us of God's power to redeem our loneliness and use it in our lives to draw us to himself. Ultimately, she helps us see that even when we feel misunderstood, forsaken, or abandoned, we're never really alone. God is always with us, and only he can meet all of our needs in Christ Jesus.
Author: David Bowden Publisher: Thomas Nelson ISBN: 0718077687 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 273
Book Description
Why does God feel so far away? Why is my worship so empty? Has God left me? David Bowden knows these questions firsthand, having wrestled for years with God’s apparent absence and studying what the Bible says about it. In this new book, Bowden tackles the subject head-on, finding the key to understanding it in the Bible’s depiction of a God who is infinitely far from us, free to move where he wants, but who chooses to come near in the person of Jesus. A resource of encouragement for those who struggle with feeling God’s absence and a wake-up call to those who take God’s presence for granted, When God Isn’t There will forever change your understanding of why God sometimes seems to vanish and how he can be found again. Praise for the work of David Bowden “Awesome and inspiring.”—Blake Mycoskie, Founder and Chief Shoe Giver at TOMS Shoes “David brings a fresh, engaging and highly impactful approach to Scripture. His passion for the Word is both contagious and inspirational.” —Roy Peterson, President of American Bible Society
Author: Chris Maxwell Publisher: Higherlife Development Service ISBN: 9781935245391 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
This year, why not go through the ups and downs of the holidays season with Jesus right by your side. Find faith in the buzz of overcrowded malls or as you visit a friend in the hospital. Hear Him in the rhythm of the holiday music dancing through the air-the music of people chattering, telephones ringing, children playing, sirens blaring, horns honking...the music of the life you live. Return home to the warmth and festivities, and allow the savory twists of poetry in this book to unwrap the presence of the One who gave His life for you so that you could spend eternity with Him. The One who is called-Emmanuel (God with us).
Author: Mary-Rose Verret Publisher: Saint Benedict Press ISBN: 1618907247 Category : Family & Relationships Languages : en Pages : 169
Book Description
Extraordinary marriages don't just happen. They flow from grace-filled, faithful, and fruitful covenants of love. Every marriage, and even preparation for marriage, has its ups and downs. In a world and culture that seems to isolate and criticize, authors Ryan and Mary-Rose Verret proclaim: you are not alone! In these pages the Verrets offer the married and soon-to-be married a program for profound and transformative discipleship. Witness to Love gives married couples the tools and encouragement to share the grace, struggles, joys, and blessings of their marriage with young couples in desperate need of mentors. In Witness to Love, the Verrets issue a challenge to us all. Share your lives, share your heart, share your love. Make disciples!
Author: Sarah Young Publisher: HarperChristian Resources ISBN: 0718035933 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 145
Book Description
After many years of writing in her prayer journal, missionary Sarah Young decided to be more attentive to the Savior’s voice and listen for what He was saying to her. The result was Jesus Calling, a collection of personal reflections based on Jesus’ own words of hope, guidance, and peace found in the Scriptures. Through these messages, countless people have been encouraged to experience a deeper relationship with the Lord as they also learn to listen for His voice in the pages of the Bible. In Experiencing God’s Presence, the first study in the Jesus Calling Bible Study Series, you will be encouraged to lay down your cares and just spend time each day with your heavenly Father. As you follow the Lord’s instruction to “be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10), you will encounter His peace, be filled with His strength, gain a new perspective on your situation, and experience the full life that only He can provide. Each of the Jesus Calling Bible Studies include devotional readings from Jesus Calling, selected passages of Scripture for reflection, Bible Study questions, and additional questions and activities to help you apply and live out the material. This study can be used for personal reflection and Bible study or in a small-group setting.
Author: Amy Orr Ewing Publisher: The Good Book Company ISBN: 1784985503 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 134
Book Description
Suffering and evil affect us all, both at a general level, as we look at a world filled with injustice, natural disasters and poverty, and at a personal level, as we experience grief, pain and unfairness. And how we think about and process the reality of pain is at the heart of why many people reject God. Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing is no stranger to pain and gives a heartfelt yet academically rigorous examination of how different belief systems deal with the problem of pain. She explains the unique answer that is found in Christ and how he can give us hope in the reality of suffering. This empathetic, easy-to-read and powerful evangelistic book is good for both unbelievers and believers alike. It will help those hoping to answer one of life’s biggest questions as well as those who are either suffering personally or comforting others.
Author: J.D. Greear Publisher: Zondervan ISBN: 0310337852 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 226
Book Description
Encounter the dynamic presence of God as you learn from pastor and author J. D. Greear how to more fully experience the Holy Spirit within you. Jesus gave his disciples the audacious promise that the Spirit he would send to live inside them would be even better than if he himself remained beside them. Yet how many of us consider our connection to the Holy Spirit so strong that we would call his presence in us better than Jesus himself walking by our side? J. D. Greear was the pastor of a rapidly growing church who still felt like he didn't know how to relate to God personally. Though he knew a lot about God, he wasn't as sure about how to walk with God. Furthermore, he felt overwhelmed by the size of the mission Jesus had left for his church. In a world of so much need, what difference could he possibly make? Learning how God dwells in us and empowers us in the Holy Spirit redefined his life and ministry. Ministry became less about working for God and more about letting God work through him. Drudgery was replaced by delight; helplessness was replaced by empowerment. In Jesus, Continued... Greear explores--in clear and practical language--questions such as: What does it mean to have a relationship with the Holy Spirit? How can we tell when the Spirit is speaking to us? What do you do when God feels absent? If you are longing to know God in a vibrant way, Jesus, Continued... has good news for you: That's exactly what God wants for you too. His Spirit stands ready to guide you, empower you, and use you.
Author: Scott Hanberry
Author: Debra Wallace-Padgett
Author: Chris Tiegreen
Author: Lydia Brownback
Author: David Bowden
Author: Chris Maxwell
Author: Mary-Rose Verret
Author: Sarah Young
Author: Amy Orr Ewing
Author: J.D. Greear