I Forgive You: Finding Peace and Moving Forward When Life Really Hurts
Wendy Alsup (The Good Book Company)
Jesus’ command to practice persistent forgiveness—not just seven times, but 77!—ranks among the toughest in the Bible. For most of us, forgiving just once is hard enough. In I Forgive You, author and teacher Wendy Alsup blends personal stories with the Old Testament narrative of Joseph to hearten those fighting to extend or receive forgiveness. “I have experienced many kinds of conflicts and brokenness in my life,” she writes. “Some have seen resolution. Some haven’t, yet. Wherever you are in your own journey from brokenness to healing, this book is designed to encourage you to persevere in hope. God is for you.”
Apostolic Imagination: Recovering a Biblical Vision for the Church’s Mission Today
J. D. Payne (Baker Academic)
The world today is full of missionaries, missionary organizations, missionary conferences, and innumerable books and articles defining and analyzing mission work. Yet according to ministry professor J. D. Payne, a certain confusion reigns: We’re not sure which goals and tasks the term missions should encompass. Payne’s proposed solution, outlined in Apostolic Imagination, is a deliberate effort to reground our conception of missions in the biblical example of the first apostles. “While the Church has made missions a complicated matter,” he writes, “such was not the case in the first century. The movement of sending, preaching, teaching, planting, and training was unquestioned in the Scriptures.”
Literarily: How Understanding Bible Genres Transforms Bible Study
Kristie Anyabwile (Moody Publishers)
One of the great challenges in conducting a Bible study is getting everyone on the same page. What approach are we bringing to the passage at hand? What kinds of questions will guide us toward the right interpretation? In Literarily, writer and Bible study teacher Kristie Anyabwile offers a practical introduction to the various genres of biblical literature—law, history, wisdom, prophecy, and so on. “The Bible,” she writes, “is a feast! We need to know the intention behind the various courses and the ingredients that make up each ‘dish’ so we can enjoy a well-balanced, healthy meal each time we come to the text.”
