Evrey church leader faces the issue of leading change. How do we respond? This booklet offers a framework of principles and values to help.

It happens all the time... People who start out well as Christians can end up light-years from the gospel of Jesus Christ, caught up in weird and not-so-wonderful cults, movements and traditions. They may still talk about Jesus, but their focus has shifted from the fundamental truths of who He is and what He has done to other things: rituals, rapturous experiences, morality, or an intense engagement with ideas and schools of thought. These other things become the focus of our Christianity. It seems that Jesus Christ and His saving death are no longer enough...

This kind of teaching was the reason Paul wrote his letter to the Colossian church. He recogniszed the fall-out of 'moving on' from the gospel we become unsure of God's forgiveness because it no longer depends solely on Jesus; we become proud of what we do; and ultimately, these new spiritualities completely fail to deliver the new life that they promise.

Undoubtedly, Christians today face the same danger. These six studies can help us resist the fine-sounding arguments enticing us to add to what Jesus has done. Only if we are convinced about the true identity of Christ, and certain that He alone is all we need to grow, will we mature into confident Christians.

The six studies in this Good Book Guide will help groups and individuals find the way to achieve true Christian growth into confidence and fruitfulness.

There is a church not too far from us that recently added a $25 million addition to their building. Our local newspaper ran a front-page story not too long ago about a study revealing that one in five people in our city lives in poverty. This is a book about those two numbers. It's a book about faith and fear, wealth and war, poverty, power, safety, terror, Bibles, bombs, and homeland insecurity, It's about empty empires and the truth that everybody's a priest, it's about oppression, occupation, and what happens when Christians support, animate and participate in the very things Jesus came to set people free from. It's about what it means to be a part of the church of Jesus in a world where some people fly planes into buildings while others pick up groceries in Hummers.

The best leaders not only lead well but also reflect on their leadership long enough and thoughtfully enough to articulate what philosophies cause them to do so. Whether serving in the marketplace or in ministry, as executives or rank-and-file employees, as salaried staff or volunteer servants, they can pinpoint the rationale for their actions and decisions with the ease of reciting their home address. In Axiom: The Language of Leadership, author Bill Hybels divulges the God-given convictions that have dictated his leadership strategy for more than three decades as Senior Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church. Oriented toward four key leadership categories—-vision and strategy ('Promote Shameless Profitability,' 'Take a Flyer'), teamwork and communication ('Obi-Wan Kenobi Isn't for Hire,' 'Disagree without Drawing Blood'), activity and assessment ('Develop a Mole System,' 'Sweat the Small Stuff'), and personal integrity ('Admit Mistakes, and Your Stock Goes Up,' 'Fight for Your Family')—-Axiom brokers accessible wisdom from one leader's journey, as well as emboldens you to nail down the reasons why you lead like you lead.

"There must be more to the Christian life than this—more than church each Sunday and waving to my neighbors and giving some clothes to Goodwill when I go through my closet each spring." These aren't bad things, of course. But they're safe and comfortable and easy. And there's a reason they're not satisfying your desire for something more significant and meaningful—we're created by God for adventure. International Justice Mission president Gary Haugen has found that engaging in the fight for justice is the most deeply satisfying way of life. This book shows how we too can be a part of God's great expedition.

We live in an age of uncertainty: about ourselves, about the truths of the Christian faith, and about the future.

At a time when the first-century church had been invaded by false teachers, the apostle John knew that Christians who are not sure of God s truth can wander away, never to return. He wrote to help his dear children , not only to know the real truth, but to be confident of it, and to rest upon it.

If then, why not today? We all urgently need to hear and obey God's loving message in this letter of John's. This Good Book Guide will help us continue in Christ, so that we will be confident and unashamed when he returns.

Do you feel like an ordinary Christian. Not especially gifted or knowledgeable. Does anyone really notice your faith? Does any of it matter? Time to take a look at the Thessalonians.

When this group of ordinary first-century pagans believed in Jesus Christ, they changed so dramatically that many others across the Roman world were imitating their faith, hope and love. The apostle Paul, thrilled to see their vibrant Christian lives, recorded his delight in this lovely warm letter, packed with advice and encouragement to keep going. This was a transformation that would change lives, cultures and destinies far beyond first century Macedonia.

Learn through this Good Book Guide how an unremarkable, pointless existence, can be transformed into lives marked by an unshakeable faith, overflowing love and sensational hope. It is this kind of life that ordinary Christians like you are called to. So that, in the our world of suffering, hostility and trials we will be blameless and holy when our Lord Jesus comes.

In this six-session small group Bible study, They Like Jesus But Not the Church, Dan Kimball explores and addresses the most common objections and misconceptions about Christianity. Ask someone today if he or she likes Jesus, and the answer is usually yes. But ask if that person likes the church, and chances are you will get a far less favorable response. Led by author Dan Kimball, this six-session small group Bible study will help you explore and respond truthfully, caringly, and engagingly to the most common objections and misunderstandings culture has about the church and Christianity. Through interviews with those who like Jesus but not the church and teaching by Dan Kimball, this small group Bible study will teach you how to respond to the common objections of the faith. Includes discussion questions and resource listings. This Participant Guide is designed for use together with the They Like Jesus But Not the Church DVD (sold separately) and includes discussion questions for individuals and groups. When used together, they provide you with a practical tool than can strengthen your faith. Sessions include: 1. The Danger of the Christian Bubble 2. Is the Church Negative, Judgmental, and Political? 3. Does the Church Restrict and Oppress Women? 4. Is the Church Homophobic? 5. Do Christians Arrogantly Think All Other Religions Are Wrong? 6. Are Christians Fundamentalists Who Take The Whole Bible Literally?

In this Bible study, the authors take us phrase by phrase through the Lord's prayer, helping us consider, among other things, the importance of seeing God as a father, submitting to God's will, dealing with temptation and the freedom that comes through forgiving and knowing we are forgiven. These words of Jesus, so seemingly simple, encompass every conceivable element in prayer and reduce them to a clearly understood pattern. The more we understand this model, and the more we pray in line with it, the more powerful and productive our prayer life will become. We must lay our praying alongside Jesus' pattern in order that our prayers might become more like His. It is one thing to recite a prayer; it is another thing to know how to pray.

'For far too long the word evangelism has been a dirty word in the life of the Church. We have talked mission, we have talked service and we have talked political action - but many church leaders have avoided the evangelistic task Jesus commissioned us all to undertake.' Hard-hitting - though never ungracious - Rob Frost chides the UK Church for neglecting the fundamental task of sharing the good news about Jesus. And he spells out culturally relevant ways and means that are both innovative and practical to reach the people of the twenty-first century with the ancient truths of the gospel. This revised and updated edition is presented as a tribute to the late Rob Frost - a man of vision, compassion and unflagging zeal for sharing Jesus.