What's New at Cross Reference Library? On Fire for Christ

Unquenchable - What is your faith today? Is it an early spark, just beginning to flicker? A raging bonfire? Smoldering coals? Does your love for God burn so brightly that others are drawn to its radiance and warmed by its heat? Or has your passion cooled, your light dimmed, and your fire faded to cold, gray ashes? Throughout history, God has used the image of fire to represent his awesome power, and one day you will stand in God’s holy presence and see his burning love for you face-to-face. But until then, there is a life to be lived on earth, and the flame of your faith that once burned so brightly can falter in its storms. Whatever the condition of your faith, whether you burn with a feeble flicker or a growing passion, you can discover how to draw nearer to the heat of God’s eternal flame and fan the Spirit within you. Bestselling author Carol Kent takes you into God’s Word and into your own story, revealing the true power of the fire God has placed in you—a power that will stir your desire and embolden you to spark wildfires beyond your wildest imagination. 

The Twelfth Imam - Tensions are rising in the Middle East. Iran’s president vows to annihilate the United States and Israel. Israel’s prime minister says someone must hit Iran’s nuclear sites “before it’s too late.” The American president warns against a preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities and says negotiations are the key to finding peace. And amid it all, rumors are swirling throughout the region of a mysterious religious cleric claiming to be the Islamic messiah known as the Mahdi or the Twelfth Imam. Word of his miracles, healings, signs, and wonders is spreading like wildfire. CIA operative David Shirazi was born for this moment. He is recruited and sent into Tehran with one objective: use all means necessary to disrupt Iran’s nuclear weapons program, without leaving American fingerprints and without triggering an apocalyptic new war. But time is running out. 

Damascus Countdown - Israel successfully launches a first strike on Iran, taking out all of their nuclear sites and six of their nuclear warheads. American president William Jackson threatens to support a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning the Jewish State for unprovoked and unwarranted acts of aggression. And the Twelfth Imam prepares to order a genocidal retaliation. Meanwhile, CIA operative David Shirazi has infiltrated the Iranian regime and intercepted top secret intelligence indicating that two Iranian nuclear warheads survived the attack and have been moved to a secure and undisclosed location. In danger not only from the ongoing war between Israel and Iran but also from the increasingly hostile governments in multiple countries, Shirazi and his team are in a race against time to find the remaining nuclear warheads before the most cataclysmic event in the history of the Middle East comes to pass.

Intergenerational Ministry Part 4

You can listen to Ask The Pastor every weekday at 9:00am MST on 97.1FM Hope Radio KCMI! You can also listen and subscribe to Ask The Pastor in your favorite podcast feed. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music and most other podcast services.

This edition of Ask the Pastor features Pastors Kiley Callaway, John Mulholland and Jon Simpson.

Jon Simpson
So, we kind of ended the last session and we kind of want to pick up there again and continue this bonus session. So we ended with a reading in Psalms, was it 77 or 78?

John Mulholland
Part of Psalm 78.

Jon Simpson
About the responsibility really, that God has certainly built into the nation of Israel. But really, we could go back and say, He built this into the creation, the way in which He created us as human beings. The way we're produced, the way that we knit together. And where this knowledge and how this knowledge and all this, is supposed to be passed on, it really is in the family. And so why don't you read that again, John?

John Mulholland
Yeah, so Psalm 78: Failed Family Discipleship. There are 72 verses, I'm just gonna start at the beginning and just read through verse four, which is where we ended off. "All my people, listen to my instructions. Open your ears to hear what I'm saying, for I will speak to you in a parable. I will teach you hidden lessons from our past, we've heard and known stories our ancestors handed down to us. We will not hide these truths from our children. We will tell the next generation about the glory seeds of the Lord, about His power and His mighty wonders." So, there's a, I wanna say it's in 1 Corinthians 12, Paul talks about the reason, like, we have stories from the past. He says, "they're written as an example to us," and I think I'm getting the order wrong. Like, he talks about how they're written as an example, and they're written as a warning. I tell my people that, like, I basically have four sermons that I tell on repeat. This is one of those sermon stories; stories from the past to warn us and stories as an example. I think that's what the Psalmist is honing in on, like, "I will teach you hidden lessons from our past." So the things that happened, the historical things that happened to the Jewish people, were actual historic events. These are literal, these things happened, and they are parables, they're metaphors. They're teaching a deeper spiritual reality, and that is like, we don't want to just tell them, "Yeah, we were, you know, we came across the red sea and bladdy, blah, blah, blah." We wanna tell them what that means, right? And that's, you know, kind of our job as pastors, is not just to tell people what the Bible says, but what it means. And I just love verse four, "We will not hide these truths from our children." See that? That tells me that there's a tendency in our sinful nature to not---

Jon Simpson
Yeah, and like I said last time, there's even this message to parents, "you should not influence your children in the arena of what their faith is. What they're gonna believe in, they need to decide for themselves." And of course, we're getting into this in a lot of areas where children are being given the responsibility, whatever you wanna call it, to choose a lot about who they are. But this is a cultural value. I know people that, you know, my oldest daughter, she grew up, went to college and then after college she was working a job. She was around her peers and there would be, I don't know, conversations maybe about things happening in the world related to faith, related to politics or whatever. And I remember she said, "Dad, there's this girl in my office over at work, and she said, 'you know, growing up we never talked about religion or faith. We never talked about politics, in our home it never came up." To which my daughter said, "That's all we talked about in my home growing up." Like, I don't know how, you know, she just couldn't relate. But I know there's a lot of people, your faith is private, it causes conflict, so does politics. But these things are really important to our lives and how they work, and they're important if we're going to hand it off to the next generation. Then we have to talk about, and we have to be comfortable with it. But parents need to be empowered and encouraged. There's a way to do it that works, there's a way that doesn't. Like, how do you approach, you know, influencing your children without embodying them? How do you do a good job of impressing things on them, you know? And one of them is, you don't make a decision not to talk about these things.

John Mulholland
So you just used that word impress.

Jon Simpson
Yes.

John Mulholland
So the NLT does, (sorry I'll flip back to Deuteronomy, if I know my Bible), "Repeat them again and again," like that is in other translations and I think in the Hebrew it says, "Impress them on your children." And the concept of that is like, I have a clay tablet and what I'm gonna do is, I'm gonna impress, I'm gonna rub on that clay tablet with a sharp tool, with an implement, and I'm gonna impress that into the clay tablet so that it looks like what I want it to, and that's gonna require time. Like, I'm gonna impress that on them and like, that's our role, and I think that we just live out the Christian faith.

Kiley Calloway
Right. But if we go back to Deuteronomy, can't we read that and just find some, just practical things that parents can do day-to-day that are simple? Yes, I believe it does.

John Mulholland
"Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, all your soul, all your strengths. You must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I'm giving you today." So I am not a disciple of Jesus Christ. I don't mean, I go to church; I don't mean, but I go to small group. But I give, but I serve; if I am not a disciple of Jesus Christ I am not going to pass on the faith of Jesus Christ to my children. I'm not going to. It starts with, so the way, like I have all this written down.

Kiley Calloway
You have to be a disciple.

John Mulholland
Personal! This is a personal thing.

Kiley Calloway
Yes.

John Mulholland
Not just a Christian, a disciple. This starts with me. If I'm not a disciple of Jesus Christ, committed myself wholeheartedly, that doesn't mean perfectly (like those things we talked about off air), but I have to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Repeat them again and again to your children. Like, this is so practical. Talk about them when you're on the road or when you're at home, when you're going to bed and when you getting up.

Kiley Calloway
Home, road, and going to bed.

John Mulholland
So when I go to bed at night, I need to have some sort of religious interaction with my children. Pray with them.

Kiley Calloway
Awesome concept.

John Mulholland
It's amazing.

Kiley Calloway
Yes. So we still at our house, we swap each night. So like, one night I'll get my daughter and then the next night I'll get my son. We still put them to bed. Hopefully she doesn't watch this, because she's 15 years old.

John Mulholland
Right? I bet she hates that....No I'm kidding, she probably likes it.

Kiley Calloway
She loves it. And you know, she has a prayer that she prays religiously. She's memorized it, but it's hers, right? And then I pray for them. And now my wife takes it a step further, cause she loves to talk. But you know, she'll talk with them and all that, but we've been doing that since birth. And until they tell us, you know, we're too old for this, we'll probably still do it, but we do that religiously.

John Mulholland
So, but this ought to help us with what we ought to be encouraged to do for us and parents when you're at home. So here's the deal, if you're sitting at home and you're sitting in your living room and all of you are doing this (pretends to type on the phone).

Kiley Calloway
Get the Bible app.

John Mulholland
This is what you're discipling them into, is looking at their device. Like, what am I talking about with my kids when I'm at home? What are we talking about when we're on the road? Does everybody just retreat into their devices the second we get into our car? Or are we using that time to intentionally disciple? Like, you've got to decide that as parents. So that's like so personal, I have to be a disciple. I have a practical responsibility to my children and what if I don't have kids to the next generation? And then the last piece, "Tie them on your hands, wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorpost of your house and on your gates."

Kiley Calloway
Now, what does that mean?

John Mulholland
That's missional.

Kiley Calloway
What does that mean for us practically?

John Mulholland
That means I'm gonna get a Jesus fist bumper-sticker and put on my car! No, it means that I am gonna live out my faith in the marketplace. That means I'm going to like, this is like hands in scripture. When we read the word 'hands,' we're gonna take actions. We're gonna do Christian things: We're gonna love them, we're gonna serve them, we're gonna give generously. We're gonna, like, do Christian things. And then wear them on your forehead as reminders. It means our minds are gonna be oriented towards God. Write them on your doorpost of your house and, like, we are going to proclaim Jesus with our lives publicly. Not by holding up a sign, well it might be that, for some people it might be that. But we are gonna demonstrate that we have committed ourselves wholeheartedly to God's commands in the public square.

Kiley Calloway
Like, this is so easy---but so deep.

Jon Simpson
Well, it is pretty simple. And the breakdown, we just had a marriage retreat and we talked about, and every one of the things we talked about in all of this, there is, and people need to realize there's an attack against every piece in our world and our culture. And that is a spiritual attack. So we have an order that God created things with. The order is, as I taught in that is God: husband, wife, children. That's the order. So if you have a husband, the man in the home, is not connected to God in a way that he's following God, he's learning and growing spiritually. Then there's a breakdown in the rest of the structure in terms of this whole handoff. I mean, mom can be really serious about following Jesus and getting the family to church.

John Mulholland
And you know what? Thank God for that! How many families do we have in our churches where mom is the spiritual leader?

Jon Simpson
Yes! However that doesn't, there will be a breakdown there. So my challenge is that, "Yeah, men, you're called to be spiritual leaders and you've got to be moving in this arena of your faith and growing and engaged." And it makes a big difference when that happens. And so, I'm just saying there's a tax against so many things in all of this, you know, "oh, religion is for women and children, you know?" Whatever you want to do. And this gets handed off generationally because that's a belief, those are beliefs that are in our culture. And so, you know, just like in the nation of Israel when they moved into the land of Canaan, they had issues with the culture around them and constantly they were wooed away to follow the culture around them. And we have that same battle, it's probably the biggest battle we have. And just like in those days where it was, you know, demonic, satanic worship, that really they were being pulled away to. I mean, it's those kinds of things that we battle with today. But taking the responsibility and the church impressing this, you know, upon families and this is how it's supposed to work. Well, it's a challenge following Jesus and encouraging people to do it. I just encourage parents, like yeah, you know, it matters how you live your life. If you really grab onto this and follow Jesus, that is going to be the greatest influence, because your kids care about what you do more than what you say. How you live your life matters more than what you teach them. But use the church, back to our whole conversation, use the church as a reinforcement. It matters the church was created for you to help you grow as a family. So the church can provide ministries that are designed for your kids. It can help through a season of 'that's difficult' junior high and high school. Those are big pieces, you know, so coming to church matters, but you can't just put it all there. You've got to be working, your side of it as parents and understanding that God designed parents to do that. So thanks for joining us for this bonus episode. I hope that's been helpful and encouraging to you. We believe that God created you as parents to influence your children and to disciple them. We know that God has put this generational connection where grandparents play a significant role as well, and supporting and encouraging that. And so we just, our prayer for you is that you would continue to be empowered and that you'd live it out. You'd trust God's process, His plan, and that you would be following Jesus. We know if you are, then you're going to pass off your faith to the next generation. So thanks for joining us for this session and for the series. God bless you again.

Celebrating Father's Day at Cross Reference Library!

Dynamic Dads - You know what it takes to win in the workplace, but what about at home? Are you as determined to win at home as you are at work? Have you learned to balance the deadlines and demands of your job with the tremendous task of fathering? It’s a difficult balancing act—keeping your priorities right and being the best you can be in both worlds. With a little bit of knowledge, a strong commitment, and lots of prayer, you can be a Dynamic Dad, someone who wins at work and at home. In Dynamic Dads, Paul Pettit gives you everything you need to formulate your own strategy for pulling together a winning home team. Whatever else you accomplish on this planet, your role as a father deserves your very best. 

The Heart of a Father - Each brief story in this collection reveals the loving, wise, or comforting heart of an earthly father while pointing us to our heavenly Father, who is all-loving, all-wise, and all-comforting. As the stories tug at our heartstrings or make us smile, they reveal God and what He desires our relationship with Him to be. For “If you…know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!” (Matthew 7:11 NASB). For all dads who love their kids and all the grown-up kids who love their dads, these sixty stories will be read again and again, savored, and shared. They’ll bring a smile or tears—or both together—with accounts of a father’s provision for his family, his forgiveness, his hugs, and his companionship. These stories, written by many favorite authors, are perfect for devotional reading. 

Heart to Heart: Stories for Dads - There is no substitute for the love of a father, whether it’s the love of a biological father, a beloved teacher, a mentor, a pastor, or another father figure. Heart to Heart: Stories for Dads is an inspiring collection of classic short stories that will cause you to reflect about why the love of a father is so important—and so special. From the tale of the father who learns, almost too late, how to receive the love his little daughter offers him in a paper bag—to the heart-tugging story of the dad facing his first Christmas after a much-loved son is killed in action during World War II—these stories will grab your heart and touch your soul. Compiled by Joe L. Wheeler, long-time collector of great stories and books, this collection has been beautifully illustrated with classic engravings and woodcuts, each carefully chosen to add the perfect touch of remembrance.

What's New at Cross Reference Library? A New Jody Hedlund Novel!

The Heart of a Cowboy - Brilliant scientist Linnea Newberry is on the adventure of a lifetime, traveling the Sante Fe Trail with her grandfather, Dr. Powell, on a botanical expedition to Colorado Territory. She longs to be valued for her contributions and not seen as a helpless liability. But at every calamity she faces, her grandfather threatens to send her home. After watching his ma suffer and die in childbirth, Flynn McQuaid has sworn off women and marriage forever. Headed west to start a new life, he has his hands full not only taking care of his younger siblings but also delivering cattle to his older brother. He doesn’t need more complications. When Flynn rescues Linnea from drowning during a river crossing, Dr. Powell promptly hires Flynn—unbeknownst to Linnea—to act as her bodyguard for the rest of the trip. As Flynn fights against the many dangers of the trail, he soon finds himself in the greatest danger of all—falling for a woman he’s determined not to love.

Was Palm Sunday Actually Palm Monday? - Ask the Pastor

You can listen to Ask The Pastor every weekday at 9:00am MST on 97.1FM Hope Radio KCMI! You can also listen and subscribe to Ask The Pastor in your favorite podcast feed. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music and most other podcast services.

This edition of Ask the Pastor features Gary Schick.

Gary Schick
Alright, well today's question, "If Jesus was crucified in the year 33 A.D.," and then in parenthesis, "(figured from Luke 3, the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar would've been A.D. 29 or 30)," end of parenthesis. "Nissan 14, A.D. 33 would have been on Friday and lamb selection day, Nissan 10," Nissan, by the way, was the name of the month in that calendar, "would have been Monday. Does this mean that what we refer to as Palm Sunday was actually Palm Monday?" And then again, in parenthesis, the questioner writes, "John 12:1 says Jesus was in Bethany six days before the Passover. John 12:12 says it was the next day that He road into Jerusalem," end of parentheses. So the question is, "what we've always called Palm Sunday, was it perhaps Palm Monday?" So first of all, what I really appreciate about this question is that it's from somebody who obviously cares, loves God's word, loves digging into the minutiae of scripture, and wants to, you know, know that we get it right. And I appreciate that, because sometimes the things that we have traditionally ascribed to, 'this' or 'that,' aren't always right. I think I've, in a previous episode, perhaps referenced the fact that there's some question about exactly where Mount Sinai is. Is it where we've always placed it? Or is it maybe in Saudi Arabia? Which in biblical times was Midian, which is actually where the Bible places it. But that's a different question, maybe the question for next week, I'm not sure. But what day did Jesus ride into Jerusalem? What day was the triumphal entry? Why is it that we call it Palm Sunday? Was it Palm Sunday? Was it Palm Monday? Well, I have to admit, this is kind of one of those "back when I was in school," kind of reminds me of those math story problems. And those things would always make my head spin, and I really struggled with those. And truly, while I appreciate the listener's desire to get to the bottom of it, this is kind of a question that I really wish Ben was here for, cause it makes my head hurt. And I did what I think a lot of us would do, I just kind of jumped on the internet and as I kind of looked here and there, I got even more confused. And then I did what we should all do, I went back to the Bible. So listeners, when you're facing a question, whatever it is, absolutely great to reach out to us here on ask the pastor, great to reach out to your own pastor, great to see what you can find on the internet, but please, please, please begin with the Bible. You know, the reformers had it right when they determined that the best commentary on scripture, is scripture. And I really feel that the answer is right here in the Bible. First, I checked the four gospels. What can we learn about the day of triumphal entry? Matthew does not give any day indicators to what day that was, Mark does not indicate the specific day. Luke does not specify the day of the triumphal entry, but as our listener pointed out, we do get some clues from the gospel of John. John 12:1-2 says, "Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they gave a dinner for Him." And in verses 12 and 13 we read, "The next day," that is, the next day after this meal, which occurred six days before the Passover. "The next day, the large crowd that had come to the feast, heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of Palm trees and went out to meet him crying, 'Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the king of Israel." And so why is it called Palm Sunday? It's because they waved Palm branches as they heralded him as king, as he road into Jerusalem. So that's what the scripture says. Now, study notes and study Bibles are also helpful. And by the way, those same reformers who told us "the best commentary on scripture is scripture," were also the first to come up with a study Bible. The Geneva Bible was the first study Bible. It had notes in the margins, those notes are not scripture.

Gary Schick
They are not infallible, but they can be helpful. And I took a look at the study note from my ESV Study Bible on John 12:1, and it explains, "Six days before the Passover, most likely refers to Saturday, since the Passover began Friday evening at sundown." So John 12:1 tells us six days before the Passover, 'Jesus arrives at Bethany.' The study note reminds us, that's most likely Saturday, because it's six days before Passover, beginning on Friday evening at sundown. And so, verse 12 notes, "Jesus enters into Jerusalem on a donkey the next day, the day after Saturday." And so we come to Sunday, called Palm Sunday, once again because of the Palm branches. So this actually would've been a great question for coming up on Easter week, but it's still a good question for us. And what's the takeaway for us, again, looking to the Bible? I think our listener was also trying to kind of pin down what year it was and that's where we get into something that gets a little murkier. In terms of the years that we are in, we are now in A.D. 2022, theoretically, 2,022 years after the year of Jesus' birth. Back at the time that Jesus was born, they weren't dating the calendar based on when he was born, actually that doesn't come for hundreds of years later. First of all, there was a monk named Dionysius Exiguus, a monk in 525 A.D., his intent on working out when exactly Easter would occur in the coming years. Tried to figure back and dated year one as the year of Jesus birth. Later on, they dated 1 B.C. as the year before Christ's birth, and so you'll notice, there is no year zero in our calendar. It's either 1 A.D. or 1 B.C., and BC literally means "Before Christ." A.D. literally means, it's Latin, it means Anno Domini, and that means, "The year of His reign." Dionysius did a fairly good job, but going through the historical records, sifting through, you know, when Herod was king, when Caesar entered his throne, actually, we now know that Jesus was born somewhere between, what we are calling, between 4 & 6 B.C. Luke tells us that Jesus was about 30 years old when he began His ministry. And so, I appreciate our listener trying to figure out, you know, the exact time, day, year and even the month of Nissan, but it's a little murky exactly what year in our current calendar, all of this falls out in. So that's where it's not so helpful to try and figure some of those things out. What is helpful is to base our figuring on what the scripture does tell us. And it tells us, six days before the Passover, Passover beginning Friday evening, brings us to Saturday for the dinner and then the next day riding into Jerusalem on Sunday. Sometimes I think, friends, we tend to, in our desire for the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, even go on and just make questions harder than they need to be. I love the simplicity of scripture, the clarity of scripture, and by the way, where scripture isn't absolutely clear. It's okay for us not to be absolutely clear, because the things that need to be absolutely clear have been manifestly made clear in scripture. I love, since we're in the gospel of John, those verses toward the end of the gospel. Where it says, you know, many other things Jesus said and did and miracles He performed. In fact, so much so that if all of it were written down, the world couldn't contain the books. But these have been written that you may know that Jesus is the Son of God, and that by believing in His name we are saved. That's the key, the whole of scripture brings us to Jesus and salvation through faith in His name. I'm so glad we can trust the scripture, it's accurate, it is testified too on the outside. We know from outside sources that, "Yep, there was a man in Galilee named Jesus performing miracles and teaching and doing great things. Yep, He was crucified under Pontius Pilot." These are historical figures, they're not just myths made up. We can pinpoint the times that Jesus lived in, and He was definitely a man of His times and yet so much beyond them, because He was, and is, God in the flesh. And so, hope that's helpful to our listener. Hope it also gives some insight to all of you as listeners, in terms of sifting through the questions that you come up with. And then by all means, please do continue to reach out to us, and we will do our best, looking at the same Bible that you're looking at, to try and come to as much clarity as we can find in the scriptures. But just always know, where it gets fuzzy on the edges, that's okay. The Bible was written to bring us to Jesus, to faith in His name, and to grow us and to be more like Him in the process of our life. So keep your focus there, on your discipleship, your walk with the Lord as you first come to Him and then grow in Him. And let's make that our prayer today.

What's New at Cross Reference Library?

The Forgotten Life of Eva Gordon - Failing memory has forced Eva Gordon to move in with her granddaughter, Breezy. But Eva hates the bustle of Boston, not to mention having someone else in her business. All she wants to do is move back to her quiet, cozy Cape Cod home and be left alone. Then Breezy announces she’s getting married, and they’re moving to her husband’s rundown family farm, where he lives with an elderly uncle. They’ll be one big—but not necessarily happy—family. It’s all too much for Eva. Too much change, too much togetherness, too much of an overcrowded life she never wanted. But as her desire for privacy collides with her worsening memory, Eva may find herself in a pickle she can’t get out of. 

Breath as Prayer - Find hope amid anxiety through the spiritual practice of breath prayer in this beautifully illustrated and practical guide to connecting body, mind, and spirit during times of stress. Breath as Prayer will lead you through the practice and the proven health benefits of Christian breath prayer: intentional prayers centered around Scripture that focus our minds on Christ as we calm our bodies through breathing. 

Breath as Prayer offers: 

• More than 80 breath prayers focused on Scripture, along with brief meditations

• Gorgeous original full-color illustrations

• A quick-start how-to guide to refer to as needed

• Guidance on how to implement a breath prayer practice 

• The science behind breath work and prayer and why it works 

• An invitation to reflect on the effect of breath prayers on your body

God created our bodies, minds, and spirits to be intimately connected with one another. Purpose-filled breathing is one of the most effective, calming ways to integrate all aspects of who we are, especially during times of intense stress. Breath as Prayer invites you to the crossroads of Christian contemplative practice, Scripture, psychology, and science to deepen your faith, bring peace to your body, and discover a new reliance on Christ. Breathe deeply, lean into God’s Word, and discover why every breath can be an invitation to pray.

Why Do People End Their Prayers With Amen? - Ask the Pastor

You can listen to Ask The Pastor every weekday at 9:00am MST on 97.1FM Hope Radio KCMI! You can also listen and subscribe to Ask The Pastor in your favorite podcast feed. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music and most other podcast services.

This edition of Ask the Pastors features Gary Hashley, Tim Hebbert and Brad Kilthau.

Brad Kilthau
We've got a question before us that might seem very simplistic, but I think it's something that we obviously need to talk about. And the question is just simply this, "Why do people end their prayers with amen?" You would think that maybe we would just know this, but when you start thinking about it and understanding where some folks come from in the church, maybe we do need to talk about this a little bit. Because you know, everyone's familiar with the word, 'amen,' but are they familiar with what it means and why we really use it at the end of our prayers? Some thoughts that I put together on this question is: I believe that a lot of people just believe it's a mere ritual in the church. You know, that's the way the church has always finished the prayers. That's the way we're gonna finish them; with 'amen.' And then there are other people I believe, that think that it's kind of a majestic type of word. In other words, "if I use this word, 'amen,' then I can kind of get a little twist towards what I want out of this prayer." And so, let me just share a few thoughts before I turn it over to you Gary. But, you know, 'amen' is really a universally recognized word, but it's a whole lot more significant than just, "I'm signing off." I always think about the Looney Tunes, you know, "That's all folks!" You know? And I think for a lot of people, that's what 'amen' means, "That's all I'm done, I'm done with my prayer." But when you really study the word, 'amen,' you find that you can use the word 'amen' a lot in your prayer, through the prayer. And it's an effective way of really saying, "may it be in accordance with the will of God." In fact, to me, it's a marvelous reminder that any discussion on prayer must begin with the understanding that prayer is to bring us in conformity with God's will. It's not, we put 'amen' at the end so that we can ensure that God will give us our will, it's always to be the Lord's will when we pray. And when you look at the word, 'amen,' another thing that sometimes, I think we don't see and understand, is that 'amen' is a direct reference to Jesus Himself; the one who taught us how to pray. I think about the Lord's prayer, as it says in Matthew 6, "Jesus taught us to pray this way: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever." And then notice how Jesus ended that prayer and how He taught us how to pray, "Amen," okay? So what was Jesus saying? Jesus was saying, "This is really about me," because when you go to Revelation 3, you actually find that the title 'amen,' actually refers to Jesus Himself. It says, "Jesus is the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation," in Revelation 3:14. So, Jesus not only taught us to pray and to ask for the Lord's will by saying 'amen' at the end of our prayers, but He modeled it in His life. We're coming into the Easter celebration, good Friday and so forth, and we remember when Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane and He was praying passionately. And remember how He prayed in Matthew 26:39, He said, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet, not as I will, but as you will," Jesus finished His prayer with an 'amen.' "As your will is Lord," He was saying to His father, "as your will is." And when we look at this, you know, Jesus is our greatest example about using this 'amen,' referring to Him in our prayers, referring to the will of the Father with our prayers. But we also see, of course, when we look at some of the writers of the New Testament, His brother James. When he told the church to stop bragging about and boasting about what you're gonna get done in a day he said, "Maybe you oughta say this in prayer, 'if it is the Lord's will, then I will do this.' In other words, he started the prayer with an 'amen.' "Amen Lord, is this your will that I will get this accomplished in my day?" And then we think about his closest friend, John. In his earthly ministry, the apostle John actually said this, he said, "This is the confidence that we have when approaching God, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears." There's the 'amen' again. It's not a ritualistic thing, it's asking for the will of the father. And so Gary, I'm gonna turn it over to you. Is there some more thoughts we could have on this, word 'amen' in our prayers?

Gary Hashley
Well, you people out there in Radioland don't realize that Brad does a lot of the legwork for us to get ready for this. From the standpoint of, he takes the questions that we've been given or we come up with and then he kind of breaks it down and, "Okay, Tim's gonna start and he's gonna cover this part and then I'll step in and then Brad will close whatever." And he put something down for me that really got me thinking. I mean, I've been doing this pastor thing for 40 years now, and he said, "Gary continues with the link between amen and obedience." And, you know, I sat and I thought, 'what does he mean by the link between amen and obedience?' And the more I thought about it, the more, you know, we do Brad, we think about 'amen' like the end of a book. Where the author's done and says 'the end,' as if amen is God's version of the end. In fact, the very last word of our Bible, the very last word of the book of Revelation is the word 'amen.' And it's not saying, "Okay, we've reached the end." As you've said, he's saying, "So be it, this is the way it is, this is the truth." And so this thought of, a link between the word amen and obedience, I realize that saying 'amen' to God is acknowledging a few things. It's acknowledging: He's God and I'm not (I think that's part of it), You are God, and I'm not, He has the authority to declare what's right, and what's wrong, and I'm gonna submit and I'm going to carefully obey. And as I did some research, Brad got my mind going here, I never claim to know it all, and so I'm learning all the time, I found myself in Deuteronomy 27.

Gary Hashley
Where Moses and the elders of Israel are going to take the people and they are going to have, basically a service together in a sense. And the Levites are going to make some statements, and the people are to say "Amen," or "Okay, we're on board, we'll obey." For instance, it says, "cursed be the man who makes a carved or cast metal image. An abomination to the Lord, a thing made by the hands of craftsman and sets it up in secret, and all the people shall answer and say, 'Amen." In other words, "Okay, we'll do that. We won't make idols." The next one, "Cursed be anyone who dishonors his father or his mother, and all the people shall say, 'amen." I mean, doesn't God say, "Don't make graven images?" Okay, doesn't God say, "honor your father and mother?" The next one, "Cursed be anyone who moves his neighbor's landmark." In other words, "you don't cheat property lines." The people say, 'amen;' okay, we'll fall in line with that. Cursed be anyone who misleads a blind man on the road, and all the people shall say, 'amen;' okay, we'll obey that one. Cursed be anyone who perverts the justice, due to the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. And all the people say, 'amen,' okay we'll submit to that. Cursed be anyone who lies with his father's wife, because he's uncovered his father's nakedness, the people answer 'amen." And so you go down, "Cursed be anyone who strikes down his neighbor in secret, and the people say, 'amen." One pastor in a message said, "Moses speaks to the people, as he's about to take charge he says, 'you are about to become God's chosen people and make sure that you follow his commands.' And the people said, 'Amen, we'll follow His commands." So he says, "What's the conclusion? Amen is not just a word. Rather, it is a decision we make to follow God." So to say, 'amen' is saying, "Okay God, you're in charge, okay God, you make the rules, okay God, you deserve me to obey, okay God, I'm going to choose to follow your direction and guidance and leading in my life." So really there is a connection, Brad, I didn't think about it prior to now, but there is a connection to, 'amen' is saying, "God, your will not my will." But how many of us pray and we believe if we say, "In Jesus name," we get points towards what we want? And if we say, 'amen,' we get more points towards what we want as opposed to, God says, "make our request known," but in the end we say, "Amen, God, whatever you want, and I'm on board, I will submit to what you have for me to do." So, yeah, 'amen,' we can say it so mindlessly. In fact, we can say the whole Lord's prayer, we call it, mindlessly. But when we think about what we're saying, we're saying, "Okay God, you're God, I'm not God. You're in charge, I'm not. God, if you say so, that's the way it is." I remember when Gaither came out with the song, God said it, and I believe it, and that settles it for me. My mom, when she was alive, said, "No, God said it and that settles it. Whether I believe it or not." And so 'amen' is basically saying, "God, you are God. I submit." So Tim, the ball's in your court.

Tim Hebbert
You know, I'm sitting here listening to both of you guys, cause I'm going to the, almost the same exact places. We we're trying to approach this word from different angles, yet we come up with the same conclusion every time. Amen, one of the things, and both of you touched on it a little bit. I fear at times it's become one of those throwaway words in the Christian culture. And I hate to say this, but because lots of our folks, and I've been guilty of it in my past too, "Praying for you." Well, that sounds good, but that means I got to do what I'm saying that I was gonna do. But it becomes one of those automatic responses that we have, "Amen," and I'm guilty of this in a sermon, I'll make a point and I'll say, "amen?" and I'm trying to get agreement with people. Well, you know what, that's really not what that was for, "Oh amen! So be it." So, what does that mean to me in terms of, how do we link that word to praise and worship? I think the word 'amen' is a position of the heart, "So be it." And both of you brought up the Lord's prayer and I had in my notes to bring the Lord's prayer up, "Our father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name." So be it, "your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." So be it. Every one of those statements in that prayer that Jesus is taking the time to teach us how to pray, how to position the heart when we pray. How we approach coming into communion with our heavenly father, every time we make a statement with it, it should end with an 'amen' or with a, 'so be it,' because that's just my heart position Lord. As Gary, you said, "You're in charge, I'm nothing more than a follower. Whatever path you take me down, so be it, I'll follow that path. Whatever thing you've called me to do, so be it, I'm there to do that." But don't you think praise and worship begin with a heart of obedience? We can't really worship the Lord unless our heart is positioned in that place of obedience. That you are who you say you are, you are the all in all. And so when we use that word flippantly, or as a prayer, it's okay as a prayer and folks don't get me wrong. But what I'm saying today is, what's the position of your heart? Is your heart in a place where you always are saying to the Lord, "So be it. Whatever you want, that's what I want. Whatever your will is, that's what I crave in my life. It's not about me, it's always about you." I want to end with this passage from 1 Chronicles, and just to set it up, David is in the process that brought the ark in. And it's in a place of importance, and now it's time to celebrate and he begins to pray. What my Bible says, "The David's song of Praise," but he's basically worshiping God in a sense complete heart position of holiness. Wanting to get as close to the Lord as he can get. Starting with verse 30, this is chapter 16 of 1 Chronicles, in each one of these sentences I could say amen to, "Let all the earth tremble before him. The world stands firm and cannot be shaken." So be it, "let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice. Tell all the nations, 'the Lord reigns," amen. "Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise," so be it. "Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy," amen. "Let the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth," so be it Lord. "Give thanks to the Lord for he is good," that's a double 'amen.' Amen and Amen. "His faithful love endures forever. Cry out, 'Save us oh God of our salvation," amen. "Gather and rescue us from among the nations, so we can thank your holy name and rejoice and praise you," so be it. "Praise the Lord, the God of Israel who lives from everlasting to everlasting," amen. And the passage ends by all the people shouted, "Amen!" Praise the Lord. So where's your heart position today?

Honoring our Heroes at Cross Reference Library

Taking the High Ground - This book will make you even more proud to be an American! This powerful collection of stories captures the essence Americans’ response in the heat of adversity: a new patriotism and a groundswell of faith-searching, made even more relevant in the aftermath of the horrific terrorist attacks. Taking the High Ground, by Col. Jeff O’Leary, provides uplifting accounts of God’s intervention in the lives of military people, on and off the battlefield, from the American Revolution to Desert Storm. It pays tribute to men and women from all branches of the military—ordinary people who have served their nation and God with extraordinary honor, courage and faith. High Ground captures the faith that has made America a light to the nations. And these true stories are certain to shine hope and strength for all who read it, especially in times such as these. 

Grace Under Fire - The book of its kind, Grace Under Fire is an inspiring and spiritual collection of letters and emails by U.S. troops and their families from the American Revolution through the War on Terrorism. Andrew Carroll, editor of the best-selling War Letters, went through his massive archive of seventy-five thousand previously unpublished wartime correspondences to pick out some of the most intimate, dramatic, historic, and insightful letters and emails ever written about faith. The fifty best of these are featured in this incredible book, and they emphasize how extremely important a belief in God has been, and continues to be, in the lives of U.S. troops and their families. What is especially remarkable about Grace Under Fire is the sheer diversity of the collection, which includes several extraordinary letters by two brothers who fought on opposing sides of the Civil War; a harrowing account by a WWII soldier who survived being on a ship that was torpedoed; a surprising pen pal correspondence between a Marine who fought in Desert Storm and a woman who wrote to him simply to boost his morale—and then fell in love with him; and a profound and impassioned reply to the timeless question “Where is God in wartime?” by a doctor serving in Iraq.  

A Table in the Presence - As a chaplain to the Marines, Lieutenant Carey Cash heard the muttered prayers for courage from the thousand-plus men of the “Fightin’ Fifth,” the first ground force to cross Iraqi borders during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He also heard their tear-filled prayers when one of their most beloved leaders became the war’s first American casualty. But more than anything, he heard prayers for protection, whispered by each Marine as the battalion moved into the presence of enemies. On April 10, 2003, the last Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment marched into downtown Baghdad to seize Saddam Hussein’s presidential palace, only to find themselves ambushed by militants hiding in mosques, storefronts, and homes. Hundreds of troops were caught face to face with a blitz of rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), gunfire, and sure defeat. Yet their reports tell a different story: a rocket splicing its way through an armored vehicle packed with marines hits no one; a Marine finds a bullet’s entrance and exit holes in his helmet, yet he has no injury; a squad of Marines watch in amazement as their enemies prepare to fire from point-blank range, then pause and drop their weapons, running away in terror; RPG, fired from only a few yards away, inexplicably swerves and misses its intended target. When the smoke of the April 10th battle cleared, only one American had lost his life. Not one Marine could deny God’s protection, not only on this day but in the months that led up to this moment as well. From a spiritual revival in the desert of Northern Kuwait, to miraculous escapes from death, to baptizing a Marine in Saddam Hussein’s palace, Lieutenant Cash recounts the remarkable events of this powerful story of God’s faithfulness.

Thank you to all of the men and women who have fought for our country. Your courage and bravery has not gone unnoticed. Through these three books, the authors illustrate that courage for their readers, giving them a behind-the-scenes look into the wonderful faith that helped push many of our soldiers through. So come on down to Cross Reference Library and check out these profound books!

You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus…Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

—2 Timothy 2:1, 3

How Do We Discern The Will Of God? - Ask the Pastor

You can listen to Ask The Pastor every weekday at 9:00am MST on 97.1FM Hope Radio KCMI! You can also listen and subscribe to Ask The Pastor in your favorite podcast feed. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music and most other podcast services.

This edition of Ask the Pastor features Pastor Ben Poole

Ben Poole
So, last week I was asked, knowing there was just gonna be me today, and with everything going on in my life, (leaving the area, moving, and kind of uprooting our family) I was asked to talk about what it looks like and how we discern the will of God in our life. That's really a huge topic, but I think one that is so incredibly important for the Christians, especially in today's world. We have so much going on in the political realm and you have Christians on both sides of the aisle saying, "This is right and this is wrong," or "this is right and this is wrong." And we have the political climate, we have our kids in schools and the things they're learning, and I mean, there's so many things. And at the same time, we are trying to live our life according to God's word. Trying to do what's right, to live right, and there's so many things in society and culture that are pulling us in one direction or another. It's interesting, being pastors we, I guess I should just speak for myself, becoming a Christian really was kind of a natural thing for me. I struggled with it, but there was more natural, because I was raised in the church. My parents were in leadership, Sunday school teachers, my dad was an elder. I mean, all of these things, it was just sort of a natural thing for me. But for a lot of my friends who didn't grow up with that, it was kind of crazy. And then to become a pastor, really kind of in some ways begins to build a wall between my friends and even some family members who aren't Christians. And it's kind of a battle, and you look at it like, "Okay, if I'm supposed to be living my life out with God and sharing Him, why is there a wall being built between us? Why is it becoming more difficult to reach people?" And man, there's so many things that go into that. And I think I've shared this before, but nearly 30 years have gone by and I have one of my close friends I grew up with, is starting now making his walk towards Christ. And I don't take credit for it, I give that all to God and now God has worked that out. But I look back and all those questions I've asked, but I've stayed faithful to God, and that has been the thing that has really made change in other people's lives. And it might not make sense in the moment to do what God wants me to do, but God's down the road, He knows what's coming, we just need to be faithful. And so, I wanna talk about this a little bit today, but I really want to look at it beyond my thoughts. I want us to look first at the scriptures to see what God's word says to some degree on this topic, because so really the root questions: what is God's will for us? What is the underlying, you know, what's the meaning of life? Where do we find this? And it really comes down to, what we see in the Old Testament, and Jesus even talks about it when He's asked, "What is the greatest commandment? And Jesus says, 'Well, it's to love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And the second is like it: to love your neighbor as yourself.' These wrap up and complete all the law and the prophets." I mean, that is the foundation. Okay, listen to that. That is the ultimate will of God, is that we would love Him, and we would love people. If that is what we only hear today, just hear that: the will of God at its greatest foundational moment is to love God and to love people. If we do that, if we live that out in our lives, and our daily walk with Him, every single thing that's left will work itself out. Now it's not saying that we should be negligent of what God has called us to, but if that's where we need to start, that's the best place to start is: am I loving God? Am I loving people? There's some other passages I wanted to talk to you about as well. First one comes from 1 Corinthians 2, Paul's writing to a church that is struggling with their identity and the call that they've had. They're struggling with sin in the church and allowing sin to continue. And so God's imparting wisdom through Paul to this church, and I wanna read from 1 Corinthians 2, starting in verse six. "We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we declare God's wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began." And he continues on, but there's a really pertinent point that I want to really take to heart as a Christian in verse 15, "The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment for who has known the mind of the Lord, that He may instruct him?" And the end of verse 16, "but we have the mind of Christ." As Christians, we're not left alone to our own devices, thank God for that! Through God's holy spirit and the work in us, our minds are not even our own. We have been given the mind of Christ. I mean, think about that. Oftentimes we don't talk about the spiritual side of things in the Western world. It's what I can do with my senses, what I see, the feel, the touch, the smell, the hear, right?

Ben Poole
Things need to be tangible, but God is not just tangible, He's spirit, and He works in us and He has given us the mind of Christ. Another passage comes from Philippians 4, when Paul's writing to this church and it was a great encouraging letter. He's talking about, in verse 17, "So I tell you this and insist on it in the Lord that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do." Those were, essentially the unsaved, is how he was talking, "in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality. So as to indulge in every kind of impurity with a continual lust for more." And this is where it turns, "you, however, Christians, do not come to know Christ that way. Surely you heard of Him and were taught in Him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught with regard to your former way of life to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires. To be made new in the attitude of your minds, put on the new self created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." And so he's telling us, when we became Christians, that old me, the old Ben had to die, had to cease to exist, to put on the new self. I am not who I was, and that has to be true for us if we're going to follow the will of God. That we have to die to ourselves, Jesus even says in one of His gospels, "if you're gonna follow me, you need to take up your cross daily." Everyday, we have to choose to die to let God be the one who truly leads us in our life. Another one that Paul writes about is in Colossians 3, "Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and you've put on the new self, which is being renewed in the knowledge, in the image of its creator. Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised, or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. Therefore as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body, you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom. And as you sing Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God and whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God, the father through him." I live for passages like these, for these words in my life. So what does all this have to do with discerning the will of God? Well, it's actually really simple. If I had woken up today, and I had chosen to die to myself and follow God. To focus on these things, to rid my life of that old nature: the struggles, the sins, and to get rid of those out of my life and I can follow God. I believe that every choice I make in following Christ through my daily walk is going to be living out the will of God. A lot of that comes with freedom. We are not stuck in a loop of, this is just what we do now, but God has given us a great freedom to choose how we're going to serve Christ. And that can look in a lot of different ways. So for me, I have the heart of a pastor, I love being a pastor, but what is that gonna look like? Well, it's not going to be, in the near future it's not going to be serving in a church only. Or in that just being part of what I do, but it's investing in people who've entered into hospice care, who are reaching the end of their physical life. And I get to reach into that in a special way with the person who's about to die, but also their entire family that's there. And I get to share Christ and live out my life for Him, and some have talked about, "well, how did you know that's where you needed to go?" It was one of two times in my entire life where God opened up one door. I always ask when I'm coming up to a change in life or a move, "God, is this what you want me to do?" And oftentimes, pretty much every other time, except two times, there's always been multiple doors that I could walk through. And it was sort of frustrating, but when you realize it's kind of a gift from God, He's saying, "you can do this, this, or this, and I'm gonna bless either one or each one. No matter which one you choose, I'm gonna walk with you and I'm gonna bless you through this. You get to choose," and that's what I've done. A lot of times, it's through a lot of great counsel from people, Christian mentors that I have. Obviously through tons of prayer, talking about all of this with my spouse, my wife, even my kids and my parents. And just getting a lot of people involved, especially in the prayer side of things to let God lead. The one thing that I did, especially this time was, I asked God, "if this is not what you want me to do, if you do not want this to happen close that door. Because to be completely honest with you, I have no desire to leave the valley. I have no desire to live in Missouri because I hate humidity, it does not do well with me. But God opened up this one door, and so I chose to honor Him with the call He has put on my life, not just as a pastor, but as a Christian. to walk faithfully through that door. And I'll be honest, there are things that I feel like I need answers to, these questions that I have, and God has not given me the answers, not yet. But what I have seen through this is, every step of the way when something needed to be done or a certain time had to be met, every single thing has worked perfectly. I mean, God has just opened up this door, and so I say all this to kind of wrap it up to tell you, "Follow Christ, read His word, love God, love people, and God's gonna work out the rest in His perfect way and His perfect timing. And on the other side of it, when we answer to God and He says, "will you go?" Treat it like Isaiah did, "Here I am; send me." And then walk through that door. Don't look back, just go and I promise you will see God do some of the most amazing things. But follow Him, read His word, trust Him that He has your best interest in mind. That may not look right in the world's eyes, but trust Him and let Him do the leading and then just follow Him and walk through the door. This is such a huge topic, and I know that this can go into so many different directions. But that's just my encouragement for you is, you are not who you were. You have been bought with a price by the blood of Jesus, and He is not going to leave you hanging out to dry. He's going to lead you. We just have to be prepared to say, "Yes, I will go."

Celebrating the Graduating Classes of 2022!

Promises for Graduates - For every graduate, God offers direction, peace, and wisdom for the new road ahead. In this collection of inspirational verses taken from the New International Version Bible, over 1,500 Scriptures arranged into 130 topics such as guidance, prayer, and courage remind graduates of His promises. 

The Right to Lead - Renowned business writer and motivational speaker John C. Maxwell shares insight on what it takes to be a leader. The Right To Lead is a character study of outstanding men and women throughout history, focusing on the qualities that are consistent in the lives of these great leaders. An ideal follow-up to Success: One Day at a Time. Perfect for graduation, Father's Day, or as a year-round gift for business and church leaders.

Keeping God in the Small Stuff: Graduate’s Edition - Bruce and Stan's Keeping God in the Small Stuff has sold nearly 100,000 copies since its October 2000 release. The practical, accessible, and always biblical wisdom of Keeping God in the Small Stuff is ideal for young adults launching out into the world. Following in the footsteps of the God Is in the Small Stuff Graduate's Edition, this special graduate's edition features a handsome new binding, a presentation page, and a brand-new section just for the graduate.

It’s that time of year again! For those high school seniors to walk across that stage with confidence, knowing that they are about to take that next big step that’ll impact the rest of their lives. For some, there is no doubt in their minds what exactly they are going to do once they graduate. But for many, the pressure of choosing a future occupation feels easier said than done. They may feel discouraged or alone in their decision making. In these three books, graduates are reminded that these next big decisions are not too big for God. He has such great plans for that next step in all of our lives, graduating or not. So, even if you don’t reach that unspoken dream tomorrow, just remember that the Lord is cheering you on because He knows that you are getting closer to where you're supposed to be. 

There are far, far greater things ahead than you will ever leave behind.

—C.S. Lewis