Why is it difficult to be content when you have so much?

On the surface, it seems unnecessary to instruct someone to be content in times of prosperity. However, times of prosperity and abundance provide some of the strongest temptations to pull our hearts away from God. Jeremiah Burroughs was keenly aware that the riches of this world compete for our affections and challenge our contentment in Christ. Originally prepared as an appendix to The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment , this book provides an important conclusion to Burroughs's sermon series on Philippians 4:11-12: I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.

2. What Learning to Be Full Means
3. The Difficulty of Learning to Be Full
4. The Necessity of Learning to Be Full
5. The Excellency of Learning to Be Full
6. The Mystery of Learning to Be Full
7. Lessons for Learning to Be Full
8. Increasing the Guilt of Sins of Abundance
9. Applications for Improving Prosperous Conditions
10. Concluding Words on Contentment
Series Description

Interest in the Puritans continues to grow, but many people find reading these giants of the faith a bit unnerving. This series seeks to overcome that barrier by presenting Puritan books that are convenient in size and unintimidating in length. Each book is carefully edited with modern readers in mind, smoothing out difficult language of a bygone era while retaining the meaning of the original authors. Books for the series are thoughtfully selected to provide some of the best counsel on important subjects that people continue to wrestle with today.

Many churchgoers assume that worship is inherently boring, something we need to make exciting. But as Jonathan Landry Cruse shows, churchgoing only seems monotonous and mundane because our eyes are blinded to the supernatural wonder that is taking place all around us.

In this book, Cruse helps us perceive the significance of worship and guides us through the spiritual actions of a worship service. Once you recognize how God is doing something to us and for us and through us in each element of the service, Lord's Day worship will become the highlight of your week

While he would have preferred the simple, quiet life of the monastery--teaching, reading, thinking, and writing about God--Anselm of Canterbury spent much of his life dealing with powerful kings, consulting with popes, and serving reluctantly as archbishop of Canterbury. Through Anselm's story, Simonetta Carr teaches what life was like in medieval Western Europe. Young readers will learn of the tempestuous relationship between church and state during this era and the significance of Anselm's writings about why God became man and the relationship between faith and reason.

Table of Contents:

1. A Boy with a Dream
2. From Student to Teacher
3. The Will of a King
4. First Trip to Rome
5. New King, Old Troubles
6. Last Peaceful Years

Time Line

Did You Know?

Series Description

The Christian Biographies for Young Readers introduces children to important people in the Christian tradition. Parents and school teachers alike will welcome the excellent educational value it provides for students, while the quality of the publication and the artwork make each volume a keepsake for generations to come. Furthermore, the books in the series go beyond the simple story of someone's life by teaching young readers the historical and theological relevance of each character.

This book contains guidance on two important areas of family life. First, it explains how we should prepare our families for public worship. Second, it addresses the subject of prayer meetings, their importance and the scriptural warrant for them. Dr. Beeke's approach involves a sketch of the past uses of such practices and a detailed exposition, in such a way, that the reader can apply it to everyday living. This book will help a family focus the Sabbath wherein it can truly be a delight to the soul.

In Deuteronomy 17, Moses is leaving final instructions concerning the future of Israel. As a prophet of God, Moses foretells of when Israel will place a king over the nation (v. 14). In verse 18, the king is commanded to not simply acquire a copy of the law (the entire book of Deuteronomy) from the scroll publishing house, but to hand write his own copy of the law. Thirty-four hundred years later, educators are discovering that students that physically write out their notes by hand have a much greater retention rate than simply hearing or visually reading the information. Apparently, God knew this to be true of the kings of Israel also. From such understanding came the conception of this series of books.

Each book is organized so that you can write out your very own copy of Scripture. You will be writing the Bible text only on the right-hand page of the book. This should make for easier writing and allows ample space on the left page to write your own notes and comments. From time to time a question or word will be lightly printed on the left page; these questions are to aid in further study but should not interfere with your own notes and comments.

A complex and fascinating character, Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, is best remembered as the Father of Orthodoxy, upholding the doctrine of the Trinity against the Arian heresy. In the newest addition to the Christian Biographies for Young Readers series, author Simonetta Carr introduces children to the life and times of this important church father who tirelessly defended the Nicene Creed, which many of us today recite as a confession of our faith. Born during the Great Persecution, forced five times to leave his church and city, and constantly threatened by those who tried to ruin his reputation, Athanasius provides an example of godly faithfulness. Beautiful illustrations and a winsome, simply written narrative will bring the Nicene Creed to life for children of all ages, prompting relevant discussions on the divinity of Christ and the importance of creeds and confessions.

Table of Contents:

1. Young Athanasius

2. Called to Lead in Difficult Times

3. Twice in Exile

4. Hiding in Deserts

5. Years of Peace

Time Line

Did You Know?

The Nicene Creed

Series Description

The Christian Biographies for Young Readers introduces children to important people in the Christian tradition. Parents and school teachers alike will welcome the excellent educational value it provides for students, while the quality of the publication and the artwork make each volume a keepsake for generations to come. Furthermore, the books in the series go beyond the simple story of someone's life by teaching young readers the historical and theological relevance of each character.

THIS BOOK IS COMPRISED OF FAMILY WORSHIP THOUGHTS EXTRACTED FROM THE REFORMATION HERITAGE STUDY BIBLE.

Leading and nurturing your family as you seek to glorify God and encourage spiritual growth in your home is both God's command and your privilege. One of the best and most effective ways to do this is through intentional, worshipful, daily family devotions where the truths of God's life-changing Word are openly discussed chapter by chapter.

Hand in hand with your Bible, this Family Worship Bible Guide presents rich devotional thoughts on all 1,189 chapters in the Bible, including searching questions to promote conversation, to help you with this responsibility. Use this resource every day alongside Scripture to read each chapter's major takeaways aloud and then discuss them with your family. With the Holy Spirit's blessing, this book will transform you and your family

Too often, Christians wait for some extraordinary move of the Spirit to correct all their spiritual ills.

Although such a revival is possible, it is not the way God ordinarily grows His church.

In The Essential Means of Grace , Paul Washer considers the three prominent gifts God provided for growth in godliness: the Scriptures, prayer, and participation in the life and ministry of the local church. Our desire for the extraordinary should never lead us to neglect the ordinary. Rather, let us devote ourselves to these ordinary means of grace in dependence upon the Spirit for an extraordinary conformity and usefulness to Christ.

A queen, an educator, a missionary, a pastor's wife. Some of them single, some married, some widowed, some mothers. All of them, like women today, knew the joys and heartaches of life. But the bond that drew this generation of women together--and connects them to women today--was their heart for God and devotion to Christ. In this years' worth of devotions, you will find spiritual insights from godly women of the past who, like us, struggled with sin, loneliness, and disappointments yet rejoiced in God's love, mercy, grace, and providential blessings. Join them in the various seasons of their hearts and find timeless encouragement and wisdom from one generation of women to another.

Authors include Ruth Bryan, Anne Dutton, Isabella Graham, Elizabeth Julia Hasell, Frances Ridley Havergal, Sarah Hawkes, Susan Huntington, Harriet Newell, Katherine Parr, Susannah Spurgeon, Anne Steele, and Mary Winslow.

The Puritans believed that godly marriages were foundational for the future life of families, churches, and nations. Therefore, they wrote prolifically on the subject of marriage, seeking to bring biblical reformation to this subject in a comprehensive way. Martin Luther, John Calvin, and other previous Reformers had begun this task, but the Puritans took it much further, writing a number of detailed treatises on how to live as godly spouses.

Out of the wealth of material available to us from the seventeenth century, Joel R. Beeke and James A. La Belle have gathered together insights from the past and summarized them in a contemporary form in order to encourage modern day coupled to glorify God in marriage.

The world needs real men. Christian men. But real manhood doesn't just happen. Are you ready for basic training?

Alun Ebenezer calls men to stop being passive and pursue godly character. In thirty chapters, he provides practical steps for pursuing godly manhood. Take action to become the man of God you must be--the man who our churches, schools, universities, workplaces, families, communities, and countries need you to be.

Live as if you thought that Christ might come at any time.--J. C. Ryle

J. C. Ryle knew that there was only one way to prepare for Christ's return: to know Him as Our Great Redeemer. This compilation of 365 powerful readings from Ryle's preaching and writing is rich with the grace, truth, and conviction that defined Jesus's ministry. Spend this year meditating on the glory of Christ with one of the great evangelical leaders of the nineteenth century in this new devotional.

Many Christians mistakenly believe that true Christians don't get depressed, and this misconception heaps additional pain and guilt onto Christians who are suffering from mental and emotional distress.

Author David P. Murray comes to the defense of depressed Christians, asserting that Christians do get depressed He explains why and how Christians should study depression, what depression is, and the approaches caregivers, pastors, and churches can take to help those who are suffering from it.

With clarity and wise biblical insight, Dr. Murray offers help and hope to those suffering from depression, the family members and friends who care for them, and pastors ministering to these wounded members of their flock.

How will you triumph when your heart is left trembling?

To some degree, everyone experiences fear. It impacts the decisions we make and leaves us feeling helpless. John Flavel begins this book by examining various fears and discussing general ways God governs it in this world. He then turns to sinful fear in particular, explaining its causes and disastrous effects. His longest chapter discusses rules for dealing with sinful fear, showing how a proper fear of God is the ultimate remedy for all other fears. This practical book will help you avoid making excuses for sinful fear and encourage you to trust in Christ's commitment to settle His people's feeble and trembling hearts.

Interest in the Puritans continues to grow, but many people find reading these giants of the faith a bit unnerving. This series seeks to overcome that barrier by presenting Puritan books that are convenient in size and unintimidating in length. Each book is carefully edited with modern readers in mind, smoothing out difficult language of a bygone era while retaining the meaning of the original authors. Books for the series are thoughtfully selected to provide some of the best counsel on important subjects that people continue to wrestle with today.

Simonetta Carr's newest children's biography introduces us to a father of the Chinese evangelical church, Pastor Wang Mingdao. Mingdao is remembered for standing firm for the true gospel, even though it cost him his earthly freedom. Even after a moment of weakness during persecution, Mingdao found restoration in Christ and kept the faith through twenty-three years of imprisonment. His courage and strength provide a modern example of how Christians can trust the Lord and remain faithful in times of hardship and persecution. This title is part of the Christian Biographies for Young Readers series.

In The American Puritans , Dustin Benge and Nate Pickowicz tell the story of the first hundred years of Reformed Protestantism in New England through the lives of nine key figures: William Bradford, John Winthrop, John Cotton, Thomas Hooker, Thomas Shepard, Anne Bradstreet, John Eliot, Samuel Willard, and Cotton Mather.

Here is sympathetic yet informed history, a book that corrects many myths and half-truths told about the American Puritans while inspiring a current generation of Christians to let their light shine before men.

The office of deacon is God's gift to His church, but today it is often undervalued, misunderstood, and perceived to be of little importance. In The Deacon , the author considers the Old Testament background for this calling, the deacon in New Testament times and in church history, and the current function of the office. You will rediscover the high and privileged calling of deacons and come to a better understanding of what God requires of them.