This is a great book for the history impaired. If you think that you didn't get enough background information on the way that the Christian Church and western culture developed, then this book is ideal. Tuchman's amazing account of the growth of modern ideas is as readable as a novel. This book provides a thrilling and accurate ride through European history in the 1300's. Read this, and any notions you had that people were stodgy and life was boring back then will fly out the window. Tuchman paints an accurate picture, shows the development of the ideas that are bedrock in our society, and tells a story that is witty, touching, and adventurous by turns. This is the book that will make you love history. This is the writer whose sharp and witty pen shows why it is so important for us to understand our own past.

A remarkable man who confonted the weaknesses in the church in his own lifetime, Charles Sheldon was a minister who disguised himself as an unemployed printer and walked the streets of Topeka Kansas with the poor and dispossessed. His journey into real life sorrows and poverty caused him to see how detached and indifferent Christians had become to the suffering of others. Rather than berate and accuse, Sheldon penned the classic In His Steps which he read from the pulpit to his congregation. This amazing book, which prompts the Christian to greater faith and greater love, rather than greater guilt, has inspired millions of believers to draw closer to Christ in their daily walk and in the choices that they make. Though now over 100 years old, this story still has the power to show that the Christian life is based on faith in Christ, following our Saviour one step at a time, in His steps, to fulfill the work of Christ on earth.

Read the classic devotional that has comforted Christians for decades. The book reviwer writes: "For tens of thousands of Christians over the last century, Charles Haddon Spurgeon's Morning and Evening has been a daily devotional guide through life's ups and downs. New generations can once again enjoy Spurgeon's beautiful prose and elegant command of the English language in this completely revised edition. Morning and Evening offers readers the best of Spurgeon's insight and wise counsel on themes that are as relevant to our day as they were in his day. In this updated version, Spurgeon's work is returned to its former brilliance while retaining the beautiful language of the original King James Version." This version includes a new topical index to help readers discover Spurgeon's thoughts on various topics important to Christian life. It also includes an index of texts to help readers find what Spurgeon had to say about a particular Bible verse. Spurgeon has penned meditations, expressed simply but eloquently, that continue to draw readers to faith and obedience.

I read this nearly fifteen years ago when a person who had suffered church abuse recommended it to me. She regarded this as a life-changing book, and her responses has been echoed over and over again by others. Some readers do not agree with every conclusion that Edwards draws about authority, but a majority of readers supports the effectiveness of this book in clearing away the false premises and myths of manipulation that deceptive preachers use to maintain control over church members. One reviewer writes, "Gene Edwards has a gift for cutting through difficult topics on a unique slant. He brings a new level of understanding to old problems, stories, and issues. There were times when reading this book that I had to stop, lay it down, and catch my breath as new revelation washed over me. A strong recommendation for the thoughtful believer who is willing to go to the next level of faith."

The most practical, biblical book on Christian growth available! Changed Into His Image [listed below] and Created for His Glory, by Jim Berg, comprise a pair of books that is HANDS DOWN the most practical work on biblical Christian growth available. Changed Into His Image covers the biblical teaching of sanctification (Christian growth), the frustrations of an idle Christian life, and how a Christian can overcome his old sinful nature through spending time with God. The second book, Created for His Glory is just as phenomenal, and takes the Christian the next step in understanding Christianity as the Creator designed it to be. Both are MUST OWN works for any Christian desiring to grow spiritually according to God's Word. I will sing it's praises 'til my dying day--it's worth its weight in gold. Buy 1 for you and 2 to give away!

More than a few people have recommended this book as a tool to grow in Christ. And I have read this book and been amazed at Jim Berg's clear understanding of the Scripture and gifted ability to express that in a way that causes the believer to think and change.
Changed Into His Image is Bible-based and yet it is clear and relevant to life situations. For all those who wish to become like Christ, who want to experience more than rote Christianity, who wish be something for God, this book is a must.
What makes this book good is that it is systematic, well organized and personal. He has riveting, dead-on illustrations that bring the Scriptures to life.
I would whole-heartedly reccommend this book to anyone who wishes to advance in God's kingdom. It is the most thoroughly, Bible-based book on Christian growth I have ever come in contact with. It is great not only for personal study, but for group lessons and youth sessions.
Make a small investment, buy this book and watch it change your life.

Based on Christ's Sermon on the Mount, Cairns' exposition of Scripture blessed my life and comforted my fears about not finding acceptance with God, even though I was trusting Christ as my Saviour. Therefore, I was delighted when Pastor Cairns made the decision to publish this series in book form. Throned in Highest Bliss shows that we Christians are given the blessings of God in Christ. Through the Beatitudes, Pastor Cairns opens up the truths of the power and blessing we Christians have by virtue of Christ's work on our behalf. I highly recommend this book, especially for Christians who have not been taught sufficiently on the incredible riches that we enjoy in Christ.

Dr. Talbert uniquely presents substantive orthodox theology in a warmly devotional manner that meets human needs with God's words. He writes based on an unswerving commitment to the grammatical-historical meaning of the text and makes direct applications that are unarguable because they are so solidly based on Scripture.

This is the type of book that one can read repeatedly with deeper benefit each time. God becomes so much bigger in our sight when we meditate on his preserving and governing providence: "God continuously preserves and maintains the existence of every part of His creation, from the smallest to the greatest, according to His sovereign pleasure. God graciously guides and governs all events, including the free acts of men and their external circumstances, and directs all things to their appointed ends for His glory" (34).

Watchman Nee has been inspiring Christians all over the world for many decades. His Asian worldview informs his Christianity in such a way that he brings a completely different understanding that is refreshing to Western readers able to follow what he writes.

In "Sit, Walk, Stand," Nee tackles the book of Ephesians discussing the Christian's placement in Christ. First, he notes how a Christian must start his journey with Christ by sitting--resting alongside the Savior who has done all the work. And because Christ has done all the work, the Christian is given the peace of knowing there is nothing he or she can add. Walking comes from being seated as the Christian merely lives out the Christian life by claiming his place seated alongside Christ. Our ministry comes via the finished work. And lastly, in standing, the Christian holds the territory Christ has taken from Satan by calling on the name of Jesus and living out Christ's triumph.

As with all Nee works, the outright simplicity and wisdom of his writing cuts to the soul and spirit. For those who struggle in their Christian journey, the author's words come as a joyful balm since he shows how we can stop trying to do it all by ourselves and let Christ rule.

With so much packed into such a short book, this is a fantastic resource for anyone who wants to find peace in Christ while living out a more vital existence. A must read and truly worthy of five stars.

The reader is soon asking, are these souls saved? Or are they damned? Using this innovative approach, Lewis depict man's love of his own righteousness and his inexhaustible ability to justify himself at the very gates of paradise. This book puts the thinking of sinful man on display as Lewis' characters encounter the possibility of a second chance. Though the premise from which he works (a bus ride that offers a second chance) is theologically impossible, Lewis writes a compelling indictment of man's self righteousness. The Great Divorce that he describes is not a marital divorce in the typical sense, but rather the great divorce between heaven and hell, between sinner and saint, between justification by grace and self justification. Insightful and delightful, this book is a quick read that will stay with you for the rest of your life.

Once again using a brilliant and innovative format to depict human weakness and the human ability to justify just about anything, Lewis leads the reader through an insightful exploration of the sinner's mind. Startling in its view of the damned minds of devils, the book also shows how creatures so much more powerful than we are also incredibly limited by their station, unable to comprehend the love and mercy of God and so always taken unawares by it. At times horrifying and sobering, Screwtape Letters is also funny, and it imparts to believers a better comprehension of their own hearts as well as the heart of God that extends forgiveness and salvation to man through Jesus Christ.

(1) Luther powerfully and movingly expounds Paul's epistle to the Galatians. His interpretations are solidly founded in the text and his words bear a strength and urgency that is sorely lacking in modern commentaries. Luther cuts to the very heart of the epistle--the doctrine of justification--in the way that only he can. This is not a reference commentary, but a work filled with much of the same force and passion that characterized the epistle itself. The grace of God and the love of Jesus Christ shine forth from every page. I believe this is Luther's best work and would recommend it most highly to anyone who thirsts for more of God.

(2) When faced with the ineptitude of my walk with the Lord Jesus I must turn to Luther's Commentary on Galatians! It nearly always brings me to tears of joy as Luther expounds on the love of the Lord Jesus for me a sinner. If Christians of today would make this book a constant book of study, second of course to their Bible we as a church would be able to say along with the apostle Peter,"silver and gold we have none,but such as I have give thee..." Its time for revival in America. Luther's Commentary on Galatians was good enough for the Wesley's amd Bunyan as one other reviewer stated. May I say its good enough for us today. Let's reclaim the power of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and learn the old truth of being justified by faith alone through His grace alone.

After she comes to Christ, she is sent away to a boarding scool by her abusive father. At the school, Tracey is initiated with a brutal hazing from a ring of school bullies known as the "Deep Six." But as she continues to resist them, she is befriended by the school's star basketball player, Liz Lukas, who warns Tracey not to preach religion at her. Liz teaches Tracey to play basketball, and Tracey---still strugglng to understand why God has done these things to her---finds herself a rising star on the basketball team.
Peopled with real and believable characters, VALKYRIES presents no cliches and no easy answers. The characters are complex and realistic, and the issues of faith and grace that Tracey confronts speak to all Christians about their own doubts and struggles. In Volume One, Valkyries: Some Through the Fire, the story sets up the most pressing questions that all Christians must address about why God brings tragedy and suffering into their lives. At the same time, the book provides a fast-paced, lively story that rings with both sorrow and hilarity.

Though beset by her own failings and often doubting the goodness of God, Tracey continues to rise as a star basketball player. With the addition of new friends to the team, Tracey finds a nitch for herself. But the struggle of her faith continues as she encounters the divorce of her parents and the death of a friend. Now under the guidance of a Christian Evangelical woman who is a graduate of the school, Tracey bgins to find the answers for which she has searched. As she begins to understand the Grace of God, her own life changes. The pace of the book picks up even greater speed as the team prepares for the championships. Established characters leave the story and new characters enter. As it continues with both stark drama and vivid comedy, the narrative of Valkyries: All Through the Blood pulls the reader into a true account of Grace at work in us. Told in a transparent, honest and direct style that mirrors the hard driving action of a basketball game, this book depicts the real victory of God's Grace in justifying and sanctifying sinners.