Engaging Generation Z

Posted on January 11, 2021 by Carl Simmons

Youth ministry for the next generation . . . .

Engaging Generation Z

Tim Mc Knight. Engaging Generation Z: Raising the Bar for Youth Ministry. 192p., $17.99, Kregel Ministry.

To disciple the youth in our student ministries today, we have to understand the unique characteristics of Generation Z, and apply lessons learned from recent decades of youth ministry. In this thoroughly revised second edition of Raising the Bar: Student Ministry for a New Generation, pastor and professor Timothy McKnight brings a wealth of new insights, resources, and guidance for reaching today’s adolescents.

Following an overview of the beliefs, attitudes, and practices of Generation Z, McKnight provides youth pastors and volunteers with a complete plan for discipling adolescents through the local church. This includes practical advice on topics such as:

  • Engaging parents in youth ministry
  • Holistically guiding students in their beliefs, behavior, and affections
  • Equipping adult leaders who can serve as role models
  • Working with pastors, staff, and church leaders
  • Helping parents develop rites of passage for their children as they move into adulthood
  • Raising expectations for adolescents to encourage them to grow toward maturity

Based on years of personal experience and practice, Engaging Generation Z provides everything youth ministers need to equip, grow, and encourage today’s generation of young people to follow Christ, and to take their student ministry to the next level.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Not by Ignorance

Posted on January 4, 2021 by Carl Simmons

This book on the cessationist view (on spiritual gifts) may not change your mind, but unlike most books on the topic it won’t shut you down either. . . .

Front Cover

Frank W. R. Benoit. Not by Ignorance: An Explanation of Cessationism. 264p., $15.99, Deep River Books.

Most books out there come from a non-cessationist position and few from the cessationist position. Many of the cessationist ones are written at a very technical level only within the reach of scholars or seminary-trained persons, or they are focused on stirring up the debate instead of clarifying it. For that reason, this is not a study just for academicians, theologians, or scholars; those studies are already out there. This book serves to clearly help the average believer to understand the cessationist position.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

A Tale Divine in Rhythm and Rhyme: The Bible in Verse—Book One, Genesis

Posted on December 21, 2020 by Carl Simmons

A poetic account of Genesis for children . . .

A Tale Divine in Rhythm and Rhyme: The Bible in Verse-Book One, Genesis - By: Josh Wondra Illustrated By: Rob Polivka

Josh Wondra. A Tale Divine in Rhythm and Rhyme: The Bible in Verse—Book One, Genesis. 120p., $19.99, Deep River Books.

A Tale Divine in Rhythm and Rhyme—The Bible in Verse functions as both a wonderful read-aloud text to be read to children and a biblically accurate reader for children to read themselves.

Vividly illustrated and meticulously crafted in a poetic style, while appealing to young readers, this is the Bible as it has never been rendered before. This first volume covers the entire book of Genesis, from Adam and Eve and the fall of mankind to the eve of Israel’s dramatic Exodus from Egypt.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

1 and 2 Thessalonians on F.I.R.E.

Posted on December 7, 2020 by Carl Simmons

For those needing an easy-to-follow inductive study on 1 and 2 Thessalonians. . . .

Dr. Ken J. Burge, Sr. 1 and 2 Thessalonians on F.I.R.E. $15.99, Deep River Books.

Rather than telling you what the book of Thessalonians teaches, this edition of the New Testament book on F.I.R.E. imparts the skills to discover its life-changing messages for yourself. Students of the Bible will journey through Thessalonians one paragraph at a time, applying the four F.I.R.E. principles:

Familiarity. Learn to ask probing questions and become intimately acquainted with each passage.

Interpretation. Determine the intended meaning of the text.

Relationship. Consider the paragraph within its context of the book and beyond, to the whole of Scripture.

Employment. Consider how God can employ you to do His will through your new understanding of the text.

Through this creative approach to inductive Bible study, readers will gain lifelong skills to grow in maturity as a disciple of Jesus, applying the Living Word in powerful new ways.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

40 Questions About Biblical Theology

Posted on November 30, 2020 by Carl Simmons

Because what we know about God dictates what we do about God. . . .

40 Questions About Biblical Theology

Jason S. DeRouchie, Oren R. Martin, and Andrew David Naselli. 40 Questions About Biblical Theology. 400p., $27.99, Kregel Academic.

To understand what the entire Bible teaches about any given subject, we must practice biblical theology. By surveying the whole canon of Scripture, we can best discern what God has revealed about any particular issue. But doing so requires answering a number of important questions:

  • What type of biblical theology will we choose?
  • What overall story does the Bible tell?
  • How should we understand the relationship between the Old and New Testaments?
  • How does our topic fit within salvation history?
  • How do we apply the truths we discover?

40 Questions About Biblical Theology provides resources to answer these key questions in order to guide readers in their own study and practice of biblical theology. Other vital topics the authors address include how to understand typology, key themes in biblical theology, and how Christians should relate to Old Testament promises.

Ideal for courses on biblical theology, for pastors, and for anyone who teaches or interprets Scripture, 40 Questions on Biblical Theology will deepen your understanding and application of the whole counsel of God.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Faith Not Fear

Posted on November 23, 2020 by Carl Simmons

Walking through the difficult times . . .

Christine Keller. Faith Not Fear: When It’s God’s Plan You Win. 170p., $15.99, Deep River Books.

Throughout her motherhood journey, Christine Keller experienced numerous tragedies that could have understandably triggered an abandoning of her faith. But that is not what happened. Quite the opposite in fact. Working through the tragedies fueled her faith and propelled her toward a deeply personal relationship with Jesus. Christine was reminded time and again that when God is in control there is no need to fear but all the reasons for faith.

FAITH Not Fear is a tale of overcoming great fear and learning to walk in abiding faith and peace. Christine reveals the horrors of her plunges into the dark pits of terror, rage, and desperation, but she also describes mountaintops marked by joyful singing and dancing. The struggle is real but so is the hope. This is not a book about blind faith or quick fixes—it is a book about God’s faithfulness.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Avoiding a Parental Freakout

Posted on November 16, 2020 by Carl Simmons

Ready to send your kids off to college? Be prepared, with advice from a professor at the other end. . . .

Michael J. Bozack. Avoiding a Parental Freakout: Straight Talk from College Professor to Christian Parent. $16.99, Deep River Books.

Students across America have learned that the transition from high school to college is one of the toughest assignments they have ever received. And, for a Christian student, achieving success in a secular university is even harder. Did you know that . . .

  • Only ~ 32% of high school seniors graduate with the skills they need for college.
  • Only ~ 20% of entering college students have the basic quantitative skills necessary to compare ticket prices or calculate the cost of food.
  • By the end of their freshman year ~ 30% of college students drop out.
  • The four-year graduation rate for students attending public colleges and universities is currently 33%. The six-year rate is 58%.
  • More than 85% of college students feel overwhelmed and 51% report that “things are hopeless.”

Christian students are not immune to the bad statistics. They should be our best college students, but many are falling prey to the same forces that derail secular students. What is a parent to do?

Help is here! In this book, we give Christian parents the straight scoop on how to prepare your kids for college. Far more Christian students end up at secular colleges and universities than Christian colleges, but there are few resources to help parents. We show you what to do, what to avoid, what critical information you need, and which battles to fight. We offer tons of talking points to share with your kids. And best, we save you sleep, frustration, money, heartaches, pints of Baskin-Robbins double chocolate, and hours of watching the Hallmark Channel to chill out.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Kerux: Zephaniah-Malachi

Posted on November 9, 2020 by Carl Simmons

For all you Minor Prophets fans in the audience. . . .

Zephaniah-Malachi

Gary V. Smith and Timothy D. Sprankle. Zephaniah-Malachi: A Commentary for Biblical Preaching and Teaching. Kerux Commentaries. 384p., $32. 99, Kregel Academic.

Kerux Commentaries enable pastors and teachers to understand and effectively present the main message in a biblical text.

Each volume uniquely combines the insights of an experienced Bible exegete (trained in interpretation) and a homiletician (trained in preaching). These two authors work together to explain the essential message for the original listeners or readers, unpack its timeless truth, and then provide a contemporary restatement and communication insights for the key biblical concept. Every book is a resource designed and written with the real needs of the pastor and teacher always in sight, providing many ways to creatively express the principal thought in a biblical passage.

Based on the Big Idea preaching model, Kerux enhances the reader’s ability to deliver a message that is biblical, cohesive, and dynamic.

Zephaniah-Malachi unfolds the messages of the final four minor prophets, including the key themes of repentance, the temple, the day of the Lord, and a coming kingdom in which Messiah will reign and bring cleansing and restoration. Smith and Sprankle aid the preacher in bringing these books to life for modern congregations and helping contemporary followers of Christ apply their timeless principles.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Rx for Grief

Posted on November 2, 2020 by Carl Simmons

A counselor talks about her own repeated experiences with grief—and what comes after. . . .

Jane Amelia Smith. Rx for Grief: Hope through God’s Truth. $15.99, Deep River Books.

Jane Amelia Smith’s third published book gives us a look at who she is and how she responded to the deaths of the four people dearest to her.

While she is no stranger to death on a professional level, Jane experienced an all-consuming grief following the deaths of her own dear loved ones. In response, Jane began a search for truth. Eventually, she turned to reading the Holy Bible, as well as books pertaining to quantum physics and NDEs (near-death experiences). This reading confirmed her long-standing belief that theology and science affirm one another. She emerged from her search with a new appreciation for God’s awesome wonder, as evidenced through every aspect of His creation, from the earthly home He prepared for us to the microscopic particles we are made from as identified through quantum physics. God has a plan for both our living and our dying. Her research became an adventure of a lifetime—an adventure she would like to share with all other terminally mortal beings.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Abandoned?

Posted on October 26, 2020 by Carl Simmons

Need a light read that goes into some heavy places? Read on. . . .

Ruth Billings. Abandoned? $14.99, Deep River Books.

Sue had delayed going through her mom’s stuff after her death. Just going into her mom’s room made her depressed. She wasn’t surprised to find that her mom had kept her dad’s letters, but it was many months after her mom’s death that she found them.

Sue found more than just her dad’s letters tucked away in the bundle of papers, though, and the other note she found didn’t make any sense to her at all. She determined that it must have confused her mom also. Otherwise, surely, her mom would have told her about it years ago.

Sue had never known her dad, Joe de Cou, because he had been declared Missing in Action just after she was born. But subsequent odd events suggested he might not have died. Decades later, she was determined to find out—to go on a quest for her own peace of mind. She just wanted to know for sure what had happened to him. . . .

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment