Bøger udgivet af Smyth & Helwys Publishing

The Church's Portraits of Jesus adds another voice to the ever-growing discussion about Jesus in recent media and scholarly conversations. While showing the unique portraits of Jesus offered by the four gospels-Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John-the book also establishes an approach to understanding the communities who shaped the portraits. As contemporary Christians explore their portraits of Jesus, Bridges provides excellent questions and guidance. This book is perfect for church, college and seminary classrooms that focus on the reading of the gospel narratives, theology, or interpretation approached. The Church's Portraits of Jesus is also an ideal book for Sunday School groups looking for study books or other small groups within the church.

Many of us absorbed the rules for being male or female from our families and the culture in which we grew to adulthood. We formed beliefs about a man's role and a woman's role based on what we observed and experienced; mostly, those beliefs had to do with what men and woman did rather than who they were. Our ideas about what constitutes "masculine" and "feminine," by now outdated and inadequate, have led to a precarious imbalance both in our inner lives and in our external lives of relating to men and women. The result? A gender war. In Joining Forces, Jeanie Miley explains that our deeply ingrained gender expectations have created an imbalance in our emotional and spiritual lives and have kept us from becoming our most authentic selves. Joining Forces will help readers discover the masculine and feminine characteristics that connect, unite, and restore us-traits that men and women alike can and do express. By joining our masculine and feminine strengths, we restore our own souls, our creative energies, and our own true, essential natures.

Waiting in the wings is an untapped power that can transform the craft of preaching. It isn't studied or taught because it has been mistaken as trivial or simply the means to get a laugh. What is this ignored superpower? The art of stand-up comedy. In Preaching Punchlines: The Ten Commandments of Comedy, Susan Sparks brings two decades of experience as a preacher and a professional stand-up to mine the strategies comedians have employed for years. Lessons include framing messages that people will listen to, remember, and share; finding your creative voice; building bridges and community; and bringing full authenticity in the pulpit. The art of stand-up comedy is not just about jokes; it's about developing intimacy, honesty, and trust-three dynamics that must be present before any sermon is truly heard.Praise for Preaching Punchlines: The Ten Commandments of Comedy: "With what I've learned, I just may show up preaching at a church near you." -Lewis Black, Comedian "...this lively, practical, and searching book...will make seasoned (i.e., jaded) preachers think again and look at what is demanded of them in what ought to be the joyful role of communicating the divine comedy of healing and transfiguration." -Rowan (not Atkinson, alas) Williams, Former Archbishop of Canterbury "A preacher with a motorcycle, cowboy boots, a wicked sense of humor, and a heart that warms you like a huge Southern-style breakfast. That's my pastor!" -Tamron Hall, Broadcast journalist and television host