Showing results for "Christian Ministry" in Death & Grief

Weaving together his personal story, pastoral ministry experience, and biblical insights, best-selling author Paul David Tripp helps us trust God in the midst of suffering. He identifies traps to avoid in our suffering and points us instead to comforts to embrace. This raw yet hope-filled book will help you cling to God's promises when trials come and move forward with the hope of the gospel.

While grief is a universal experience, there are no clear rules or roadmaps for getting to the other side. And yet God is on this journey with us, holding us up and leading us to restoration. Amy Kulbok is a professional trauma therapist and a Christian whose own life was upended by heartbreaking tragedy. Sharing both therapeutic insights and hard-won wisdom, In the Valley of the Shadow combines personal, biblical, and evidence-based perspectives to explore the complexities of grief, faith, and suffering.

Before May 31, 2008, September Vaudrey's life was beautiful. But on that day, with one phone call from the ER, her whole world - everything she knew and believed - was shaken to the core. Katie, her 19-year-old artist daughter, had been in a car accident and would not survive. How does a family live in the wake of devastating tragedy? When darkness colors every moment, is it possible to find light? Can God still be good, even after goodbye?

Lament is how we bring our sorrow to God - but it is a neglected dimension of the Christian life for many Christians today. We need to recover the practice of honest spiritual struggle that gives us permission to vocalize our pain and wrestle with our sorrow. Lament avoids trite answers and quick solutions, progressively moving us toward deeper worship and trust.

On May 13, 1995, God called Zig Ziglar's oldest daughter, Suzan, home after a prolonged illness. Journeying through his own grief, Ziglar realized many things about himself, his family, his priorities, and God. In this comforting book, he uses his experience to encourage listeners to deal with the reality of loss and learn to take up the threads of life again as they find consolation and inspiration in the giver of all peace.

Join Nancy Guthrie in discovering why emptiness has never been, and never will be, a problem to God. As Nancy pulls back the curtain on God’s work to fill up emptiness as revealed throughout the Bible, you’ll experience chapter after chapter of grace and hope that your emptiness can and will be filled. You’ll begin to see that God really does do His best work with empty - as he fills it with himself.

Underwood shares how the story of Lazarus brought renewed hope during his darkest moments of suffering and doubt in his personal battle with leukemia, bringing to life God's powerful answer to the question of pain and suffering: that Jesus loves and cares for us.

Life can change in an instant. “He died at the scene.” “It’s malignant.” “I want a divorce.” Certain words, whether whispered or shouted, once uttered, severs us from the life we once knew. Such words can send us into a spiritual free fall, descending into a world we never wanted to enter. Often times, words meant to comfort can feel empty. Hope seems out of our reach when loss, grief, and depression tries to smother our faith. Freefall reminds us the God we serve gave us the tools to survive our darkest hours.

For Christians, eternity with Jesus is an exciting promise that many long to see fulfilled. But many wonder what is so wonderful about heaven. In a 50-day devotional journey, Randy Alcorn reveals Biblical teachings on what life will be like in heaven. Throughout this journey, the listener will learn and meditate upon the promises, rewards and expectations, as found in scripture, that a believer in Christ will enjoy for all eternity.

The Practice of Pastoral Care has become a popular seminary textbook for courses in pastoral care and a manual for clinical pastoral education. In it, Doehring encourages counselors to view their ministry through a trifocal lens that incorporates premodern, modern, and postmodern approaches to religious and psychological knowledge. This new edition elaborates on and expands the author's previous work, adding an intercultural perspective that gives more attention to religious pluralism in the pastoral care setting.

Grief can be so debilitating that it blinds you to God's presence. Many who grieve struggle to face the sudden loss, much less embrace it and rest in it. In this remarkably honest book, Sharon Betters tells us the story of her teenage son's sudden death in a car accident. Excerpts from Sharon's journal express her raw grief, anger, and hunger to understand how God can be good and loving and still take away her youngest child. Sharon Betters draws listeners to a passage from Isaiah that carries God's promise to provide treasures for his people in the very midst of darkness and trouble.

When Sarah Berger’s nineteen-year-old son went to heaven in an inexplicable single-car accident, Sarah found herself plunged into soul-searing grief—the kind that can ruin marriages and destroy faith. But that is not her story. With an unrelenting grip on the Lord’s hand, Sarah clung to the promise that God is close to the brokenhearted. Now, for the many others who grieve losing loved ones to accidents, illnesses, and even suicide, Sarah points them to the God of all comfort. This book opens listeners’ hearts and minds to embrace God’s promises in the midst of grief.

Sometimes we make sacrifices to help us get ahead, to allow us more time with family, or because we believe in the cause. And then there are sacrifices in which we have no say, "Isaac experiences" as in Genesis 22, thrust upon us without warning or survival instructions.

This paradigm-shattering book will free you from the forces that would turn you into a victim. It will lead you step by step through a simple process that will free you from the pain of the past and protect you from the pain of the future.

Christians today are often not prepared to suffer well and have a short-sighted view of pain and trials. Ken Boa shows how God uses suffering to shape his children for eternity and to grow them in Christlike character. The book of 1 Peter tells us suffering is both a guarantee and comparatively brief; we shouldn't be surprised when it comes to us. The nature of our affliction is not as important as our response to it. God is at work through our hardships and wants to use them to prepare us for eternal life. Suffering can make us bitter or better. Rediscover living hope, present joy, and a glorious future.

Thomas More (1478-1535) opposed King Henry VIII's separation from the Catholic Church, and refused to acknowledge Henry as Supreme Head of the Church of England. While awaiting execution for refusing to betray his faith, More wrote this fictional dialogue set in 16th century Hungary. The dialogue takes place between a young man, Vincent, and his wise old uncle, Anthony. Vincent fears a Turkish invasion which could force him to either betray his faith or die a martyr.

If you've lost a spouse, child, family member, or friend, you've discovered that few people understand the deep hurt you feel. Through a Season of Grief is the first 365-day devotional designed to support and uplift you in the first, most difficult year of bereavement. These devotions offer biblical comfort and practical teaching that will enable you to take steps forward each day toward healing. You will better understand the grieving process and will receive needed encouragement along the way.

Life is fragile. But hope in Christ lasts forever. The Bible calls human life a vapor. A mist. A wisp of fog. A flower that springs up in the morning and fades away by mid-afternoon. We like to think we have years to pursue our goals, raise our families, and make a difference in the world. But we just don’t know. The fact is, our stay on earth is really very brief. And when a loved one unexpectedly steps out of this life into eternity, it shakes us to the core. We ask ourselves: Is heaven real?

Every person who lives long enough will eventually encounter circumstances that are difficult to explain theologically. From years of counselling experience, Dr. James Dobson offers assurance of God's constant care, even when human suffering is beyond our comprehension.

Dallas Willard spent his life making eternal living concrete for his friends. After his unexpected passing in 2013, the kaleidoscope of memories and the diversity of the lives he had touched could not be confined to one or even two memorial services but three. It is this wide breadth of impact that inspired friends, family, colleagues, students, and leaders of the church to gather their reflections on this celebrated yet humble theologian and philosopher.