Have you suffered through a bad experience with church? Have you encountered one—or several—insensitive Christians? Please, says Don Everts, don't let that stop you from finding out more about the most compelling, audacious, wild-eyed, radical, revolutionary person that ever lived—Jesus! In this discussion guide, Everts and Douglas Scott offer ten sessions of candid inquiries into who Jesus was, what he was like and whether or not it matters. Drawing on excerpts from his book Jesus with Dirty Feet as a jumping-off point, they also use each session to explore the big differences between institutional Christianity as you know it and the reality of following Jesus.

Jesus with Dirty Feet Discussion Guide: 10 Sessions for the Curious and Skeptical

Everts, Don

Scott, Douglas

Religion & Spirituality

IVP Connect

One of the best ways to experience the love of Christ is through a small Christian community. As a small group grows in caring for one another, its members also grow outward in their commitment to others. When they direct others to Christ, they are themselves encouraged in faith, and the life of the group becomes richer. This book includes chapters on 
<ul>
<li>praying for lost friends together</li> <li>inviting seekers into your group</li> <li>getting involved in the ministries of your church</li> <li>reaching out to your neighborhood</li> <li>going on a short-term mission trip</li> </ul> Whether your group is just getting started or you have been together for a while, there are ideas here for you. The time to begin is now.

Small Group Outreach: Turning Groups Inside Out

Arnold, Jeffrey

Many of us have tried various spiritual activities--church services, meditation nurturing our souls through listening to spiritual teachers or reading books by those who seem to be ahead of us. And yet we feel empty. We have questions like 
<ul>
<li>What is spirituality?</li>
<li>Do all religious leaders basically say the same things?</li>
<li>How do I find what works for me?</li>
<li>What is so unique about Jesus?</li>
<li>Why is it so hard to stay spiritually focused?</li>
<li>How can I pray?</li>
</ul> Rick Richardson leads you to explore all these questions, offering help in this study guide for developing the spiritual side of life in a way that will last.

Spirituality: What Does It Mean to Be Spiritual?

Richardson, Rick

Some days, demands come screaming in from every corner--whether it's an unhappy child, a big exam, an uncooperative employee or a bill we don't know how to pay. How do we hold steady amid all the forces that threaten to knock us over? These studies help us discover how God is holding our lives together. Many threads weave through the fabric of a woman's life--relating to family, spouse and friends, connecting with God, finding satisfying work, and making time for personal growth and leisure. Patient and skillful fingers are required to pull together the threads of many colors into a pleasing tapestry. And the eyes must be trained to picture what God has in mind. At the heart of it all is character, and that is what this series is about.

A Woman of Balance (Women of Character Bible Study Series)

Ryan, Juanita

Sometimes when you see a place for the first time your whole perspective on it changes. That is just as true for our understanding the Bible as it is in other aspects of our lives today. This guide helps you picture the places referred to in the Bible and to work through a time line of important events. As you fill out your mental image of these important places and times, your understanding will grow.

Times & Places : Picturing the Events of the Bible (Willow Creek Bible 101 Series)

Redding, Michael

Just as a carpenter needs the right tools to do accurate work, you need certain tools to do fruitful Bible study. This guide will help you learn how to use concordances, dictionaries and other resources. You will practice key study methods--word study, character study and so on--that will reveal the truths of God's Word. With these tools and methods at hand you will handle God's Word with confidence and anticipation.

Study Methods : Experiencing the Power of God's Word (Willow Creek Bible 101 Series)

Dice, Kathy

You read the Bible to understand. But how do you know that you are really getting the intended meaning? This Bible 101 study guide by Judson Poling outlines essential principles for finding the meaning of God's Word through inductive study. You'll learn to look at context and culture, and then to apply God's truth to your own life. You'll understand what the Bible says to you, here and now.

Interpretation : Discovering the Bible for Yourself (Willow Creek Bible 101 Series) (Bible 101 Ser.: Where Truth Meets Life)

Poling, Judson

From cover to cover, key themes can be traced through the stories and teachings of Scripture. Creation, sin, salvation, sanctification and community--these are the themes that make up the essentials of our faith. As we understand the place of these doctrines in Scripture, we will better understand God's good news for our lives and his church today.

Great Themes: Understanding the Bible's Core Doctrines (Willow Creek Bible 101 Series)

Do you want to know God better? Augustine of Hippo did too. Looking inside his heart, he discovered an inward yearning for God that he was able to describe in his writings. "Our hearts are restless," he wrote, "because you have made us for yourself and our hearts find no peace until they rest in you." For centuries those who have experienced spiritual passion to be filled with God have discovered in Augustine a friend, companion and guide. As you work through Carolyn Nystrom's Christian Classics Bible Study based on Augustine's thought and teaching, you'll have the opportunity to grapple with Scripture, reflect on your own heart's yearning and pursue the peace that comes from God alone.

Augustine: Confessing Christ (Christian Classics Bible Studies)

Eyre, Stephen D.

He was loved. He was hated. But he was never ignored. John Calvin was accused of being harsh, petty and cold. Yet his writings reflect a deep passion for God. His letters show loving concern for his friends. And it's hard to overestimate his influence on Protestant Christianity. Do you believe that salvation comes by faith alone, based on Scripture alone, through the grace of Jesus Christ alone? Then you hold to Calvin's essential teachings. John Calvin's theology put God first. He believed that nothing happens without the "hidden will" of God. This was the basis of his hope. As you work through Carolyn Nystrom's Christian Classics Bible Study based on Calvin's thought and teaching, you'll have the opportunity to grapple with Scripture and discover the shape of Calvin's unshakable hope in God for yourself.

John Calvin: Sovereign Hope

Nystrom, Carolyn

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