Baker Books

I'm currently undertaking a major project for a Doctor of Ministry degree on implementing policy governance into the board structure of our church. This book by Malphurs (which he describes as "a seminal work")is the best work I have found on the subject and will be a manual for board governance in this decade, and perhaps the next. He has custom fit John Carver's policy governance model for non-profit organizations to the church, saving church leaders time and effort in the figuring out how to adapt Carver's model to their board form and function. The value-added feature of the book is that almost half is appendices that provide 'templates' for any church seeking to clarify their board-staff relationships, and empower both elders and pastors in their respective roles. The book is groundbreaking and offers a significant boost to any church wanting to get off the ground in organizing and mobilizing their leadership for effective ministry.

For the pastors of board-driven churches, this book is long overdue. There is a plethora of Christian leadership titles on the market, but they all are geared towards pastoral or individual roles. In this book, Malphurs focuses on the need for church board members to be well-trained as they lead congregations into the 21st century. With his rock-solid thought processes and meticulous attention to detail, the author presents a volume that is destined to be a God-send to many struggling churches. I've read many church health authors, and Malphurs is one of my favorites. I recommend this book highly.

This book describes a wonderful approach to the Sunday morning children's time in church. It's simply the best resource I know.

The author describes how we can meet children where they are and engage them so they become part of the story. This is not about object lessons. The book also includes a number of excellent stories that I have used with great success with groups of 3 kids or 30 kids.

More importantly, it inspired me to new creativity and effectiveness in my brief time with children each Sunday.

The basis of the sermons in this book is that people learn best by doing, rather than by being talked at. The sermons are intended for children, but some may be applicable to all ages. They might be considered more like activities than sermons. This book is not 'how to' or theoretical. It is practical, detailed activities for teaching the Bible to children by engaging them in activities through which they will feel what the biblical characters felt. While the book provides details for the conduct of the activities, you must be flexible when dealing with children because they will not always follow the 'plan' for the activity! This is an excellent resource for anyone teaching Christianity to children of any age.

Jesus said, "No man can be my disciple unless he denies himself, takes up his cross, and follows me." This book contains the testimonies of men and women behind "the iron curtain," who experienced for themselves the full demands of Christ's words. It is one thing to know about imprisonments and executions, and quite another to read personal accounts of saints who suffered severe persecution.

For most of us, numbers are little more than figures on a page. But personal accounts paint vivid pictures. Upon reading each one's experience, the reality of what they faced touches your heart. These dear folk "know the fellowship of Christ's sufferings," of which we know so little in America.

One could easily be blown away by the atrocities our fellow believers endured. But when you read their words, you realize that their circumstances could not extinguish the comfort and joy God gives. They were overwhelmed with the greatness of God, not the hatred of men. Even in prison, a rich table of blessing was set before them. They knew God loved them, and that He had everything under control.

As you learn about the faithful believers in Russia, you will learn about a faithful God. Let this book motivate you to be faithful to the end.

Georgi Vins gave all to minister the Gospel and ultimately found his place of ministry to be the Gulag. Under severe persecution he delivered the Gospel of Jesus to those that were able to receive it due to their stress and situations in prison. He did it with great zeal and determination,never doubting the Lord Jesus or his need to preach. Like Paul, it seems that Mr. Vins cried " woe to me if I do not preach the gospel of my Saviour".

Georgi Vins should inspire each of us to do all we can wherever we are. Taking time to lick wounds and feel self pity simply take away from our mission of preaching the Gospel to everyone everywhere. Enjoy this book and allow it to fuel your personal witness wherever you are in life.

I bought this for my son, and we've really enjoyed it! He's 2 1/2 now, and some of the activities are still a little too sophisticated for him, but it gives me a really good idea of the kinds of activities that are appropriate for me to be trying with him as I attempt to teach him about the bible. We've been keeping a bible-study journal to go along with each story/activity, and my husband thinks it's adorable! My husband also likes the illustrations a lot. I always try to go back and read the story out of my "grown-up" bible, so it's also worked as a guide for me to refresh my memory on the details surrounding many of the stories. My only complaints are that it leaves out some really good stories (Job, Ruth, etc.) and that some of the activities are still a little too advanced for my son, but otherwise I think it's great!

My son received this for Easter when he was two and he really loves it. He calls it his Bible and he likes to go to the index and choose a story to be read to him, even if he can't read the index. The pictures are cute!

LOVE THIS BOOK, ITS OUR SECOND ONE, MY DAUGHTER TOOK HERS TO SCHOOL TO "READ" AT FREE TIME WITH HER GIRL FRIENDS!! VERY EASY TO READ AND SHORT SECTIONS FOR A BED TIME "STORY" FOR MOMS OR DADS TO READ TO THEIR LITTLE GIRLS.

I purchased this for a gift and thumbed through it before giving it away. The new mom seemed very pleased with it. The pictures are nice and I liked the part where it asks mom or dad to share about their life. I read a few of the stories and they are simple but accurate. The book is decorated with pictures (flowers, hearts, lace, etc.) inside. The illustrations have borders and things around them for decorations.
The only suprise I got was the size of the book. I was expecting it to be a little bigger. I know the demensions are listed and I should have noticed them. I mention this so that you will pay attention to the demensions.

When we come home to visit the grandparents every year, we read the well worn book. My daughter is 8 and loves to read the story now too. It was one of my childhhood favorites. It really is a wonderful book for some one who is moving away or their best friend is moving way. It is too bad it is out of print!

My mom got me this book when we moved out of state; I was 9 years old and terribly missing friends and the comfort of structure. I last read it 30 yrs ago but this book stands out in my mind more than any book I've ever read as a child. A little girl makes a friend by sharing a pretty stone with her. They become "best friends" but then one of them finds out she has to move away. It doesn't try to hide or sugar coat the pain of separation, but at the end another little girl moves in to her old friend's house, and the magic of the stone works again as they get to know one another. I remember their names even - Ann, Jean and Beth... and I can still see their pretty faces so beautifully sketched. Children are resilient when it comes to friends coming and going, but nevertheless it's very stressful to go through. This book should still be in print because families are more transient today than ever. It really helped me a great deal. (I'm looking to buy it now because we are moving in 2 weeks and wanted to read it to my sons!)

I purchased this book for my 2-year-old for his birthday so he'd have his own copy. He loved the one we checked out from the library and wanted to read it so often that I was afraid he was going to wear it out (or tear the pages). (Tip: This is a paperback book, but I bought laminating paper and laminated every other page myself so now he can't tear the pages!) The pictures are very colorful, and the objects are broken down into everyday topics that he can relate to such as clothes (shoes, shirt, socks, etc.), things to eat (cookies, orange, corn, etc.), and colors (purple grapes, green frog, red strawberries, etc.) just to name a few. My son has learned to say several new words from us reading this book together. I often find him "reading" this book on his own. This is a "must have" book for any young toddler and definitely one of his favorites. Enjoy!

My daughter is 2 1/2 years old and this book has become one of her favorites. Aside from pointing to the pictures and naming the objects, we play some of the games suggested by the book. She enjoys looking for the animals or objects that I name for her or telling me what sounds the animals make. As she gets older, I think this book will be a nice companion for early writing and spelling exercises. With a little imagination, this book can be a highly versatile part of any child's library.

Every time I pick up this book it ministers to me in a very personal way. The holy spirit was most certainly at work putting this together. I received it as a gift and it hasn't stopped ministering to me. It really drives home the personal love the Father has for us.
Do yourself a favor...read and reread this book.

Margaret brings to the human language a love so divine. God's heart is fully disclosed and imparted to everyone. God bids us to come and receive freely from His love which never runs dry. This is the Best Love Letter I have read in twenty years of christian life. Margaret and Her book has forever changed the direction and flow of the Holy Spirit in my life. Your gift to us is eternal.

He is such a good writer. She is such a good writer. Were they born that way? Maybe. Could they have learned to write well? Definitely. And you can too. Pick up a copy of this book and learn fundamental writing lessons. I had complained to co-workers that I overuse "which." There's a section in this book about that problem. So buy it, and become a good writer. Soon everyone will say, "You're such a good writer."

When I was in college, I kept a copy of the Practical Stylist at my desk wheneven I wrote term papers. It became a ritual for me to reread the chapters on correcting bad sentences and writing good sentences. Between this book and his assemblage of modern essays, The Essayist, Baker gave me a sense of what good writing looked like and sounded like.

This is a great book with a lot of good insight into the day to day life of a drill sergeant.

Great insight to what goes on with a Drill Sergeant in the day to day operations while training young civilians to become soldiers. Reading this one can see how this Drill Sergeant (and others) think about the job, mission, and others around him. I recommend this book for all former Drill Sergeants, soon to be Drill Sergeants, and soon to be recruits.