How to Trust Our Own Hearts
Jennifer Camp Jennifer Camp

How to Trust Our Own Hearts

There are memories here on this wood floor and others through the years. While I know we can hear God anywhere, in all circumstances and places — for he is who he is — I feel an emotional and mental pulling inward when I physically get low. I draw inward, inside myself and become aware of my heart’s connection with God.

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Walter Brueggemann: Prophet of the Written Word
Rapt Editors Rapt Editors

Walter Brueggemann: Prophet of the Written Word

Few names resonate as profoundly in the realm of biblical scholarship as Walter Brueggemann. A towering figure in Old Testament studies, Brueggemann has spent decades challenging, inspiring, and reshaping how Christians engage with Scripture. But who is this man, and why should his work matter to people of faith today?

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Worship: Encountering the Person of God
Ron Highfield Ron Highfield

Worship: Encountering the Person of God

Perhaps all of us would agree that worship must be directed to God alone, for nothing else is worthy of worship. But this simple, obvious idea has far-reaching implications that we may not fully realize. To draw out these implications, we begin with an analysis of our present practice, followed by an attempt to refine the concept of worship and conclude with some suggestions for improving our worship.

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Marvin Olasky’s Books For August
Marvin Olasky Marvin Olasky

Marvin Olasky’s Books For August

One of the many things I learned from Tim Keller is that Jesus does not make a problem go away: He makes it not so important. For Christians who are dying, the anticipation of good things to come can overwhelm the bad thing that’s happening. Sometimes we pray for a physical healing and it miraculously happens, but we might also pray that hope exceeds hurt.

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The End We Know
Justin Camp Justin Camp

The End We Know

Life brings about chaos, and it's easy to get caught up in the overwhelm of it all. But there's a simple reassurance worth remembering: ‘You know this is all going to be okay, don’t you?’

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Encouragement: Heartening Others as a Ministry
Claudette Wilson Claudette Wilson

Encouragement: Heartening Others as a Ministry

I don’t remember deciding I would develop a ministry of encouragement, but I do remember well the beginning of my understanding of what it meant to be encouraged. It is a memory that goes back to a rocking chair my grandmother had in her kitchen on a farm in Tennessee, a rocker I still have in my own home. I remember sitting in her lap as she rocked me many times for several years until I was old enough that my feet dragged the floor.

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Maybe It's Not False Assurance
Jennifer Camp Jennifer Camp

Maybe It's Not False Assurance

The breeze is blowing, and I feel it against my skin. It doesn’t move through me but past me, around me. Then, the feeling of the air blowing my hair and the gentle push and pull on my limbs subsides. It’s leaving as quiet as it’s coming. Where does it go, and to where does it return? 

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The Lord of the Rings and Redemptive Art
Timothy Keller Timothy Keller

The Lord of the Rings and Redemptive Art

‘Lord of the Rings’ holds out a distant but profound hope of complete renewal and joy. You have to read very carefully, but mainly in the songs and poems, we learn about a future consummation in which “the world is mended” and about reunions at a distant day when “the lands that lie under the wave are lifted up again” and they “may meet in the Spring.”

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The Ground Beneath is Holy
Jennifer Camp Jennifer Camp

The Ground Beneath is Holy

The birds are too quiet for me to hear, with the nearby rush of traffic ... But I feel their song, the declaration of all creation: I am here; we are all here; all that is here belongs.

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Rainer Maria Rilke: A Spiritual Journey By Poetry
Rapt Editors Rapt Editors

Rainer Maria Rilke: A Spiritual Journey By Poetry

While not explicitly Christian in his writings, Rilke’s poetry and prose delve into the depths of human existence, touching on themes of spirituality, love, and our relationship with God. His work continues to offer readers a unique perspective on the human condition, encouraging them to explore their own faith and understanding of God in new and profound ways.

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Swallow Your Pride And Tell The Truth — About Everything
Paul Prather Paul Prather

Swallow Your Pride And Tell The Truth — About Everything

If you become honest, yeah, you’ll lose some friends. There are folks who don’t want to associate with the imperfect. Say a prayer of thanks when they leave. Those are friends you’re better off without. Their departure is the Lord’s blessing on you. The happy paradox is that as you become real, as scary as that can be, you meet a battalion of kindred souls. Other scarred and messy people — they are legion — will be drawn to you.

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The Most Beautiful Questions to Ask God
Jennifer Camp Jennifer Camp

The Most Beautiful Questions to Ask God

There were seasons when turning my attention to God had a rhythm that was regular but anything but predictable. When the kids were at school, and the house was quiet for a few hours, I would lay on the floor, my hands pressed to the wood, my knees on the carpet. I’d place my journal near me because I found that transcribing our conversations–words too kind and intensely loving to be my own–helped me hear them. It became an exercise in discernment. I was learning the sound of his voice in my heart; I was learning to trust that the words weren’t just thoughts of my own.  

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Faith Can Help Heal Our Polarized Country
L. Gregory Jones L. Gregory Jones

Faith Can Help Heal Our Polarized Country

We are living in an era plagued by political, religious and social unrest. The barrage of headlines continually erodes our confidence in our national leadership and unravels the ties that bind our local communities together. Despite the tools we have to increase mutual engagement, our society is profoundly disconnected, and instead of promoting understanding, the isolation and competition these technologies seem to promote have affected our mental health.

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The Daily Office: Morning and Evening Prayer
Julie Lane-Gay Julie Lane-Gay

The Daily Office: Morning and Evening Prayer

The Daily Office is an ancient practice that uses daily prayers to mark the times of the day. For Anglicans, this generally comes in the form of the two main offices of Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer. Together, these prayers offer a way to shape our days and remind us who we are — created, known, and loved by God, people whose work is prayer. They allow us to move closer to Scripture’s encouragement to “pray without ceasing.”

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In Quitting Church, We Give Up More Than We Think
Paul Prather Paul Prather

In Quitting Church, We Give Up More Than We Think

It is difficult — really, next to impossible — to practice Christianity effectively without becoming (and staying) an active member of a local church congregation. Private spirituality is vital, of course, and underpins the communal life of any religious group. Hats off to the desert fathers, those legendary hermits of yore. Still, faith is mainly a team sport.

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The Lost Art of Intentionality
Tod Worner Tod Worner

The Lost Art of Intentionality

Efficiency is portrayed as the consummate modern virtue. Get up early, go to bed late, multitask, double-book, manage your time and juggle more. We’re masters of efficiency, but we’ve lost our souls.

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Finding Love and Rest Though Unknowing
Karen Swallow Prior Karen Swallow Prior

Finding Love and Rest Though Unknowing

We live in a time of the 24-hour new cycle, social media, information excess and compassion fatigue — a time when sometimes unknowing is better than certain kinds of knowing.

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