Showing results for "Narrative" in Christian Living

Many of us have been taught to read Scripture as a collection of information that needs to be categorized, systematized, and analyzed verse by verse, concept by concept. But the Bible isn't a jigsaw puzzle, and it wasn't written in just Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. It was also written in the language of story. And as with every good story, we get to meet colorful characters, unravel mysteries, and see the world from a different point of view. It all makes more sense when understood from the perspective of storytelling.

The Bible is a narrative - the story of God's creation, humankind's fall, and God's plan of redemption. And it is filled with countless smaller stories that teach us about people, history, and the nature of God. It's no surprise that God would choose to reveal himself to us in story - after all, he hardwired us for story. Despite this, we so often attempt to share our faith with others not through story but through systems, arguments, and talking points - methods that appeal only to our mind and neglect our imagination and our emotions.

The God Story is a compelling and creative retelling of the biblical story from 24-7 Prayer, which will help you find personal meaning and purpose in light of God's overarching and awe-inspiring plans for humanity as laid out in Scripture. It is the story we're all waiting to hear. It is time to be enchanted afresh by the God Story and, in doing so, discover beloved identity and be inspired to make a difference in today's world.

How should Christians navigate an increasingly polarized post-Christian world? There is strong evidence of the cultural shift away from Christianity in the United States, which has already happened in other parts of the world. Compounding the shift is the division among Christians in how this is handled. The authors have observed four basic responses: (1) assimilation and acceptance of new cultural norms, (2) withdrawal from cultural engagement, (3) anger directed toward society (and toward other Christians who don't seethe issues as they do), and (4) seeking power to “take back society.”

Christians have lived in Palestine since the earliest days of the Jesus movement. The Palestinian church predates Islam. Yet Palestinian Christians find themselves marginalized and ostracized. In the heated tensions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the voices of Palestinian Christians are often unheard and ignored. This remarkable book provides an opportunity to hear the realities of life on the ground from a leading Palestinian pastor and theologian.

Carrying only basic camping equipment and a collection of the world's great spiritual writings, Belden C. Lane embarks on solitary spiritual treks through the Ozarks and across the American Southwest. For companions, he has only such teachers as Rumi, John of the Cross, Hildegard of Bingen, Dag Hammarskjöld, and Thomas Merton, and as he walks, he engages their writings with the natural wonders he encounters, demonstrating how being alone in the wild opens a rare view onto one's interior landscape, and how the saints' writings reveal the divine in nature.