Jesus' parables and short sayings allow us to see His deepest thoughts and His view of our world. Discover the relevance of His stories as Harold Fickett puts them into today's terms and relates them to our every day lives. Fickett tackles issues such as why we encounter tragedy, why we need Jesus, and what it means to be God's friend. Readers will begin a fresh investigation of Jesus' teachings and understand Him better through "Conversations With Jesus." Fickett takes Jesus' teachings and re-writes them as contemporary stories. He then discusses the questions that arise from these stories and illustrates how readers can gain a better understanding of God.

Greatly respected church strategist Ken Hemphill believes the only process that will radically transform the mission and structure of today's community of believers is the Word of God applied by the Holy Spirit. Toward that goal, Eternal Impact presents to readers a biblical study of the New Testament Church, focusing on the founding principles of the church in Matthew 16 and the birth of the church in Acts 2. Also included are chapters on the eight key characteristics of kingdom-centered churches and discussions on leadership and giftedness among church members.

Shore uses sound theology, humorous insights, and Rme-tooS moments to suggest that Christians move beyond the Great Commission and start living the Great Commandment, because the only thing better than telling someone about God's love is to let them actually experience it.

This collection of practical ideas turns outreach from an intimidating mandate into something that's actually enjoyable. How? By offering more than 200 ways to connect with people--ways that real people living in real churches will find engaging, effective, and doable. # Readers will find. . . ideas for making a church visible in a community, # ideas for preparing your church to embrace outreach, # movie night recommendations and outlines, # evangelism ideas to reach kids, work friends, and personal friends, # quick service ideas for kids, youth, and mixed groups, # long-term service ideas, # mission ideas, # complete, seeker-sensitive Bible studies, and # some ideas so unique they don't fit in a category! In short, this is literally an encyclopedia of outreach strategies, options, and ideas. It's designed so any church (or church group) can find a way to reach out to others. . . and have fun doing it. ways to connect with people--ways that real people living in real churches will find engaging, effective, and doable. # Readers will find. . . ideas for making a church visible in a community, # ideas for preparing your church to embrace outreach, # movie night recommendations and outlines, # evangelism ideas to reach kids, work friends, and personal friends, # quick service ideas for kids, youth, and mixed groups, # long-term service ideas, # mission ideas, # complete, seeker-sensitive Bible studies, and # some ideas so unique they don't fit in a category! In short, this is literally an encyclopedia of outreach strategies, options, and ideas. It's designed so any church (or church group) can find a way to reach out to others. . . and have fun doing it.