And Then We Work for God

And Then We Work for God
Author: Kimberly Hart
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2013-07-17
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0804786682

Turkey's contemporary struggles with Islam are often interpreted as a conflict between religion and secularism played out most obviously in the split between rural and urban populations. The reality, of course, is more complicated than the assumptions. Exploring religious expression in two villages, this book considers rural spiritual practices and describes a living, evolving Sunni Islam, influenced and transformed by local and national sources of religious orthodoxy. Drawing on a decade of research, Kimberly Hart shows how religion is not an abstract set of principles, but a complex set of practices. Sunni Islam structures individual lives through rituals—birth, circumcision, marriage, military service, death—and the expression of these traditions varies between villages. Hart delves into the question of why some choose to keep alive the past, while others want to face a future unburdened by local cultural practices. Her answer speaks to global transformations in Islam, to the push and pull between those who maintain a link to the past, even when these practices challenge orthodoxy, and those who want a purified global religion.

God at Work

God at Work
Author: Gene Edward Veith Jr.
Publisher: Crossway
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2011-08-02
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 143351608X

When you understand it properly, the doctrine of vocation—"doing everything for God's glory"—is not a platitude or an outdated notion. This principle that we vaguely apply to our lives and our work is actually the key to Christian ethics, to influencing our culture for Christ, and to infusing our ordinary, everyday lives with the presence of God. For when we realize that the "mundane" activities that consume most of our time are "God's hiding places," our perspective changes. Culture expert Gene Veith unpacks the biblical, Reformation teaching about the doctrine of vocation, emphasizing not what we should specifically do with our time or what careers we are called to, but what God does in and through our callings—even within the home. In each task He has given us—in our workplaces and families, our churches and society—God Himself is at work. Veith guides you to discover God's purpose and calling in those seemingly ordinary areas by providing you with a spiritual framework for thinking about such issues and for acting upon them with a changed perspective.

When I Don't Desire God

When I Don't Desire God
Author: John Piper
Publisher: Crossway
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2004
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1581346522

Explaining how to become a Christian hedonist, a bestselling author offers guidance on how to find spiritual joy to readers who are unsure of where to seek it.

Eternity changes everything

Eternity changes everything
Author: Stephen Witmer
Publisher: The Good Book Company
Total Pages: 117
Release: 2014-02-03
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1909919160

Thrills Christians about their eternal future, and shows how that future changes their present. Our view of the future affects how we feel and act in the present. Stephen Witmer excites us about where the world is heading, gives certainty about where we as individuals are heading, and thrills us about how eternity really does change everything in our daily lives. If you are worried about your future... or if your future doesn't seem to make any difference to your now... or if you simply want to get more excited about where you will spend eternity... read this book!

Breaking Busy

Breaking Busy
Author: Alli Worthington
Publisher: Zondervan
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2016-01-26
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0310342244

Have you ever felt like a fraud or failure as you struggle to find balance in life? Do you find yourself juggling everything in mediocrity and feeling like you're succeeding at very little? In her no-nonsense style, Alli Worthington--popular podcaster and author of The Year of Living Happy--tackles the big questions about finding happiness and one's God-given purpose. Have you ever felt like a fraud or failure as you struggle to find balance in life? Do you find yourself juggling everything in mediocrity and feeling like you're succeeding at very little? In her no-nonsense way, Alli Worthington tackles the big questions about finding happiness and one's God-given purpose. Breaking Busy marries popular secular research with solid biblical principles, instilling confidence that you, too, can move from crazy busy to confident calm. With refreshing candor, uproarious true stories, and a Christian worldview, Alli delivers truths that dismantle common happiness myths. Then she empowers you to get unstuck, to let go of the good to make way for the great, to know yourself and your Creator, and ultimately to find peace and purpose in this world of crazy. You will: Learn how to stop chasing what leaves you empty and start doing what you were created to do. Identify the common lies you believe and how to strip their power from your life. Recognize how what you say no to determines what you can say yes to. With relatable anecdotes, Alli models real-life guidance on boundaries, relationships, and self-care, humbly examining her own mistakes and walking through how she learned from her missteps and found peace in a world of busyness. If you long to find real connection with both your loved ones and your Creator, Alli Worthington deftly balances intelligent humility and heartwarming humor to help you rediscover your path.

Teach Me To Feel

Teach Me To Feel
Author: Courtney Reissig
Publisher: The Good Book Company
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2020-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1784985139

Meditations on the Psalms helping women to express their feelings and grow in their faith. Many of us suppress our feelings because we’re worried they are ungodly. Others of us are so led by our emotions that we let them dominate everything, including our faith. In these honest, personal and uplifting meditations on 24 selected psalms, Courtney Reissig looks at emotions we all experience, ranging from shame, anxiety, and anger through to gratitude, hope, and joy. For each, she shows how the psalms give us permission to acknowledge how we feel before God, and how they can help us to use those feelings productively and faithfully. This inspiring book will give women a language to cry out to God in order to help them process their feelings, as well as help them to grow in their faith. Can be used as a daily devotion.

Rich Wounds

Rich Wounds
Author: David Mathis
Publisher: The Good Book Company
Total Pages: 170
Release: 2022-02-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1784986887

Profound reflections on the cross that help you to meditate on and marvel at the sacrificial love of Jesus. This book can be used as a devotional, especially during Lent and Easter. These profound reflections on the cross from David Mathis, author of The Christmas We Didn’t Expect, will help you to meditate on and marvel at Jesus’ life, sacrificial death, and spectacular resurrection-enabling you to treasure anew who Jesus is and what he has done. Many of us are so familiar with the Easter story that it becomes easy to miss subtle details and difficult to really enjoy its meaning. This book will help you to pause and marvel at Jesus, whose now-glorified wounds are a sign of his unfailing love and the decisive victory that he has won: “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5) This book can be used as a devotional. The chapters on Holy Week make it especially helpful during the Lent season and at Easter.

Don't Limit God

Don't Limit God
Author: Andrew Wommack
Publisher: Destiny Image Publishers
Total Pages: 109
Release: 2014-10-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1680313444

God has more for us than what we are experiencing. We have all limited God in our lives at some point in one way or another. Fear of success, fear of persecution and imaginations are all ways that we limit God. We often see ourselves in a certain way but we have to change that image if we want to experience the abundant life that God has for...

Redeeming Productivity

Redeeming Productivity
Author: Reagan Rose
Publisher: Moody Publishers
Total Pages: 134
Release: 2022-10-04
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0802474632

Feeling overwhelmed and unproductive? The answer isn’t to do more. What image forms in your mind when you think of productivity? An assembly line? Spreadsheets? Business suits or workplace uniforms? In the ancient world, productivity didn't conjure images like these. Instead, it referred to crop yield and fruit bearing. This agrarian imagery helps us understand productivity through a biblical lens. Jesus taught, By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit (John 15:8). Who doesn’t want to have a truly productive life—to bear much fruit? But how does this happen in the places we hold dear—the home, workplace, and in our communities? We often feel overworked and overrun, defeated and discouraged. The world says be productive so that you can get all you can out of this life. The Bible says be productive so you can gain more of the next life. In Redeeming Productivity, author Reagan Rose explores how God’s glory is the purpose for which He planted us. And he shows how productivity must be firmly rooted in the gospel. Only through our connection to Christ—the True Vine—are we empowered to produce good fruit. This book shows how we can maintain the vitality of that connection through simple, life-giving disciplines. Readers will discover manageable applications like giving God the first fruits of our days. Additionally, Reagan discusses how our perspective on suffering is transformed as we see trials as God’s pruning for greater productivity.