Religion Books

I consider the Prophet's dictionary an invaluable tool in my Bible study time. I use it to help prepare for sermons and writing lesson plans. I highly recommend it to every one that reads the Bible! I praise God for Dr. Paula Price, and for her obedience in creating a tool to help us uderstand the mind of God.

One of the most essential reference books that every Christian should have in their library. Whether you consider yourself as "gifted" in the prophetic or not, you need this book.

If you've ever had a dream or vision that you didn't understand OR you clearly knew that your dream/vision was from God and you had more questions than answers. This book will help you discover the meaning of the images you've been given.

This wasn't quite what I thought it would be. I had assumed that it would be a dictionary of every possible mental image and dream I had, and it is sorely lacking in that, but what it does give is a lot of well-researched things that are part of church life and Biblical life. Interesting book.

This book is indeed a must-have item as a study tool. I've found it to be very detailed and clearly written. I highly recommend this book to others.

From what I've read and for the purposes that I've had to use it for this book is relevant and very necessary to the spiritually inclined!!!

This book is a tremendous benefit to anyone meeting outside institutional Christianity as well as those who are interested in an alternative form of church. From my experience, the common ground that often holds Christians together who meet outside the traditional church is the understanding of what church IS NOT. I thought "Pagan Christianity" was a great book in explaining what church IS NOT. However, this book lays out the biblical and spiritual principles that show us what church IS. It shows the wonderful reality of the ekklesia of God, the reason for the church, and how it is central to God's eternal purpose. My hope is that every Christian who meets outside the traditional church structure would read this book, and every Christian who is interested in an alternative way of doing church would read it as well.

Frank takes us on a journey starting with the community within the Godhead and unveils the Passion of God concerning His purpose of having a church that visibly displays His nature and presence. Frank shows us the conventional way of meeting is not envisioned in scripture, nor can that way(the institutional church service etc) fully express God's eternal purpose. He unfolds another way, an organic way that is based out from scripture dealing with practical insights of how we meet, why we meet, to whom we meet all leading to express Christ's Headship (without rivalry) within a local gathering. This book is a natural flowing sequel to Pagan Christianity challenging the reader to pursue God's purpose and centering your life in that purpose within the community of Christ. The Lord will use this book to cut a path in your heart to find His heart. And in finding His may you become a pioneer forging the way for others hungry to know His dream. Be open as you read and put aside your stained glass eyes and you won't be disappointed!

This is an excellent follow-up to the PaganChristianity? book. PC showed the history of how the traditional church came to be.....and this book shows how the true New Testament church was *meant* to be. A great resource for understanding New Testament fellowship and eldership.

In November of 2004 the Holy Spirit led my husband and I to leave an "Apostolic/Prophetic" church and has since not led us back into the "institutional church". Even though I was born into a ministry family and grew up in the church, I always felt spiritually unfulfilled attending any denominational church, be it Baptist, CMA, Charismatic, Pentecostal, Assemblies of God, Word of Faith, etc. All seemed to lack the New Testament reality of a "Body" functioning the way the Apostle Paul and the scriptures taught. If you have felt the same way, Frank Viola's new book, "Reimagining Church", gets to the root of the problem and shows how the "Church" is a living, breathing organism made to be in a close family relationship with the Godhead (Father, Son & Holy Spirit) and then with others, and not made to serve a separate class of clergy who are in control, taking the place of Jesus Christ as head. Spiritual gifts were not meant to be put on stage by the anointed few, but are meant to flow out of every member of the body to edify and minister to each other. Frank exposes the spirit hidden in darkness in the institutional church system which seeks to strangle the life out of believers and take the place of Jesus Christ as sole head of His Body, preventing its members from ever "being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit". (Ephesians 2:22). Way back in Genesis we read where satan (or the serpent) wanted to take the place of God and caused man's fall, but God promised then that the seed of the woman would bruise satan's "head". The enemy is still subtly seeking to take the place of Christ as Head of His Church and Frank Viola explains how the institutional church is a fertile breeding ground for that to happen. After reading "Reimagining Church" you will have a clear understanding of how the biblical New Testament Body of Christ assembled in a family style relationship and will be confronted about not doing church as usual any longer. I recommend this book for every member in the Body of Christ, especially all those who see themselves as part of the "five-fold". You will be challenged! -- and you will never see the beauty of Christ's Body manifested sitting in a pew Sunday after Sunday.

Christians are leaving organized religion in droves. They are not leaving because they are falling away from Christ. They are leaving because they want more of Christ! But where are they going? Some end up in desperate isolation for years. Others end up returning to the church system they left. Still others search for a first century style organic expression of the church.

Because most Christians have never experienced organic church life, they have no point of reference from which to begin. So they end up reproducing the institutional church in a living room. They basically come full circle and end up back in the institutionalism but call it a "house church."

Frank Viola and George Barna wrote a book titled "Pagan Christianity" and it was published earlier this year. This work pointed out where and how many of our church practices came into being. This book is opening many people's eyes to the fact that most of what happens in the traditional church system is just not scriptural.

A new book written by Frank Viola was just released as a "sequel" to "Pagan Christianity." It is called "Reimagining Church". This book very skillfully addresses the problems that are exposed in "Pagan Christianity."

It answers the major question of: "Okay, so you have left the institutional church . . . now what?"

Frank is qualified to answer this question for two reasons. First, he is an excellent bible teacher and brings to light what God's answer is to the question. Second, Frank has been living in and planting organic churches for twenty years.

So perhaps you are considering leaving the institutional church. Or maybe you are one of those who have already left. Do you want some form of church that is squarely based on the tenets of scripture? Are you looking for freedom to function as a member of His Body? Are you looking for Christ Himself to be the center, life, and head of the church?

If you have answered "yes" to these questions, then "Reimagining Church" is definitely for you. And if you have not already read "Pagan Christianity," you will want to read that one as well.

An Excellent resource. Contains an huge amount of information. Good buy. Fast shipping.

Easy way to find information and transport yourself to the different Bible times. It explains and shows how objetcs looked like etc..

A wonderful book to own. Lots of great biblical information. Lots of colorful pictures, very organized book.

This is one of the most helpful resources to the Bible I have found. It is also very interesting in the explanation of other religions. It helps to understand God's Word more and when things happened. I just can't say enough good about it. Everyone who truly reads and studies the Bible should have this resource.

I already owned this great resource; I bought these for friends that were
going to lead their own bible study group. The information in this book
is wonderful as a reference for any study group.

This book brings a lot of insight and knowledge... It's like once you know who you are... you don't have to try to be something that you're not.

And once you know what your weaknesses are... you can utilize your strengths. This book helped me understand my unique gifting and brought clarity to a lot of things I needed Insight on. If you are drawn to this book I mean something goes off in your spirit when you come across this book. Get it read it, it will bless you!

Scripturally and Experientially accurate!

The book came to me several years ago when I desperately need validation of the prophetic gift.

I have shared copies of the book with several people to help them understand their prophetic calling, gift, and its operation.

I highly recommend it to anyone needing validation of their gift, or wanting to understand how Father God moves through His servants the prophets.

James Goll is a man after Gods own heart.

He shares the Truth that has been shown to him and backs these God given insights with Scripture.

This book is so well written.Prophecy as a whole seems so confusing, but the author really breaks it down. I have been told I have the prophetic gift, but have been scared of it since childhood,due to enemy attack. I think a lot of people who have been involved in the "new age" or "occult" type junk does have the gift, but have been misdirected by satan in the hopes they will misappropriate it. This book is very user friendly.

This book is Awesome! It really helped me to understand the difference between and Seer and Prophet and the various gifting they each have. It also provided scripture refrences to various Seers in the bible that were also prophets. This is a must have for the Prophet / Seer and those desiring to know there prophetic giftings and how to distinguish the call according to those gifts.

Lanesa Stubbs

Tales of the Kingdom by David and Karen Mains is a tremendous allegory of the reality of the kingdom of Light and the Kingdom of Darkness. Written a decade before the movies for Lord of The Rings, this triology is a great depiction for young and old believers in Christ to see and experience,from story telling, some of the secrets of the Bible details of these kingdoms. Highly recommend for families to use to read together as bed time stories. Buy all three books, you will be blessed.

This is the first in a series of three illustrated Christian picture books. My parents' copies (read by their 5 daughters many times over) are tattered and worn, so we went looking for a replacement. This one from Amazon does not have the original artwork; however Mainstay Ministries (David & Karen Mains' website) does carry the originals with the incredible artwork by Jack Stockman that made the books stand out in my childhood memory. Unfortunately, the third book has a different artist, which is a shame. Otherwise an incredible series.

If the attached URL goes out of date, try googling for it. http://mainstay.stores.yahoo.net/talesofthekingdom.html

This story is a great allegory for young and old. I read this to my son when he was young and he has always remembered the story of a young boy becoming a hero through a series of events in his life. It has wonderful character building lessons and will leave an imprint on your heart.
I bought this for our son for a Christmas gift (he is now 25 years old). He was ecstatic when he opened his gift. He is now reading it with his fiance. Her mother read it and has bought 3 more copies to give as gifts. I highly recommend this for all ages.

My son andI read this book together. The lessons in it are incredible. The story is interesting and the opens the doors for great disscusion about life issues.

I came to Amazon to purchase a copy of TALES OF THE KINGDOM by David and Karen Mains. There were several reviewers that were disappointed in the illustrations of the newer editions. So, I sprung the extra money to buy an older copy. BELIEVE me, the old illustrations by Jack Stockman are only "fabulous" if you have some childhood memories to make them special. Otherwise, they are rather ordinary and do little for the stories. The stories themselves shine and shine. Such excellent stories. If I had to do it again, I would buy the newer edition and save my $$ for other books.

This book teaches (probably better than any other)that God is in tune and does care and is involved behind the scenes in YOUR life. It is a great book if you doubt God's care or observance during the hard times that life can deal. It provides many scriptures to support that God can be trusted and we can find security in trusting God - regardless of our circumstances.

It is an insightful book that penetrates to the core of the issue in regards to human suffering and God's sovereignty. Biblically sound, thorough, well-written -- it is a must read for every Christian who is serious about deepening one's faith, especially in the midst of adversity and pain.

This book teaches believers how to traverse of the of the greatest hurdles in any Christian's life--trusting God in the midst of suffering and adversity.

Bridges shows how a loving God works for our good. God controls circumstances, people, nature, and all of the other things that affect our lives. That does not mean that we are not responsible to pray and work for what we believe to be the correct course of events in our lives; it simply means that if our initial plan is in some way thwarted, we should submit to God in full knowledge that what He has brought about is ultimately for our good, as difficult as it may seem for us to believe that when we are in the midst of adversity.

This is a great study on the sovereignty of God--you don't necessarily have to be in the midst of any great trial to get a lot out of this book. The book is written in a warm, assuring style, and reads as though it was written by a wise uncle doing his best to give you guidance and comfort.

Best book I've read on "why bad things happen". I really appreciated the fact that Mr. Bridges used scripture to back up what he had to say, and not his "feelings" or "experiences". Also, unlike most writers on this subject, he didn't try to explain God. Guess what? If we could EXPLAIN Him, He'd be one of US! The author doesn't minimize God, but challenges us to really rest in WHO HE IS.

This book is wonderful and is essential reading for anyone, not only those going through hard times, but also those with questions as to how to let go of our anxieties and worries. Everything Bridges says he back up with the Bible, and he does not skip around the difficult questions, but addresses them. This book was exactly what I hoped for and will be re-read many times I am sure.

What a wonderful book. The biblical insights have changed my understanding of God's love for ever.

What a breath of fresh air. Excellent bible study. Powerful, new and extremely informative.

Very interesting, encouraging and informative bible study of God's love. I have read many books and this is the best I have found.

This is utterly new and powerful! What a treasure of biblical insight and wisdom!

This is the best book I have ever read for explaining scripture. It makes so much sense and puts everything about God's love for us into clear, cohesive, and proper prospective.

I work in hospice and see many lives affected by great loss. Often children are forgotten as adults mourn. I give this book to parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles to provide both attention to the children and a way to help them through a difficult time. This book is helpful and hopeful to all!

Good book, dragonflies are our 'mascot' for my cancer support group and we love this story.

This simple book is the best yet on the subject of discussing death with a youngster. It was enlightening for ME!

Death and Dying are a difficult concept to explain to young children. Water Bugs & Dragonflies gracefully addresses this subject with illustrations that are clear and meaningful enough to share with grieving adults. Because of this book, our family has adopted the dragonfly as a meaningful symbol representative of a beloved friend recently deceased. I highly recommend this book.

I know many pastors who recommend this book for use with children. I recently gave it to an adult friend on the death of her sister. Simply put, it is a tale of transformation told for those who are left behind when a loved one goes on to the next phase. simple and timeless.

The great power of Arnold's book is in the real world examples of forgiveness he offers. Some of the examples have an "everyday" kind of quality to them while others are staggering in terms of the ability of people to somehow cut through their hurt, anguish and rage to come to the point of forgiveness. Arnold avoids the "Oprahzation" of forgiveness by reminding the reader that forgiveness takes both truth and grace into account He neither diminishes nor denies the hard realities with which people must live. Arnold devotes much space to the self-interested nature of forgiveness. We forgive because such an act works toward our own good. I would have liked to have seen him devote a bit more space to those instances in which people forgive because they see it as a way to display something of the character of God even when they themselves may never find peace through forgiveness. My only critique of the book is that author does not provide bibliographical references. The book is full of wonderful quotes and stories. I would like to have known the sources. Further, a recommended list of readings would have been helpful. However, having said all of that, this is the kind of book that makes you want to take off your shoes as you read...you recognize that you are on holy, holy ground.

Why Forgive? Hard as it may be this book shows in a simple and powerful way that the only way to true freedom is through forgiveness. While bitterness seems the roads to take and hatred towards those who have hurts us the excepted emotion, Arnold dares to tells us the true stories of people who choose the road less travel and in the end found the freedom to let go and change their world by forgiving. He also gives us a look into the lives of those who choose to be angry, only to destroy themselves. This book is moving and powerful, it is a striking lesson of something most people and talkshows refuse to speak about. I only pray that people out their struggling with bitterness and revenge read this book and know there is another way.

A powerful, emotionally driving book, "Why Forgive" provides a framework of forgiveness that not only defines why it is important to forgive, but also how not forgiving eats at us like a cancer until it kills our happiness and our very essence.

With true life stories of amazing acts of forgiveness, the book shows how forgiveness is required before truly moving on to complete healing when you have been wronged. The extremely powerful stories show how forgiveness has allowed individuals to regain their lives after severe tragedy has entered their lives. Instead of taking the easy path and allowing anger and hate to destroy them, they make a choice that results in a deep peace. Pick up the book, learn to forgive, learn how it is necessary for true peace, choose the road less travelled and choose forgiveness. If there is a book that should be required reading for everyone, this is a contender for that book.

This book will banish any lingering doubt that forgiveness and reconciliation is the linchpin of good in this world. Filled with compelling personal accounts of those who truly have the right to ask us all to forgive, the book has the power to change the direction of your life for the better. Don't miss it!

Forgiveness is the key to real freedom. The path to forgiveness is not always easy. The renewal of the act of forgiving makes the path easier to travel. The road to forgiveness becomes smoothly paved as we forgive and keep on forgiving. Our journey gets easier with each trip down the original path, leading to the paved road of freedom and happiness. See chapter 14, Not a step but a Journey.

This book serves as a constant inspiration to me in my own meditation practice; I have read it countless times. As a psychotherapist whose modality involves working with my clients in a state of mindfulness (www.wisemenopause.com), I also recommend this book as a clear, concise introduction to meditation.

I have an edition of this book that I picked up about 15 years ago. I keep returning to this book year after year and have never tired of it. It has survived many purges of my spiritual library over the years. This book is sweet, easy to understand, and helpful. It defines a meditation practice that is easy to apply to one's daily activities. It is helping me relate more gently to the world and my life and is helpful in learning to awaken to the spaciousness and freedom that are ever present.

Fabulous book. Chapters are different talks given during a retreat. Insightful, down-to-earth as usual for her writing.

This is one of my favorite books by Pema Chodron. It not only does a very good job of describing the essence of Buddhism, but it goes beyond that in making Tibetan Buddhism more understandable and relevant to a Western audience without deveating from the tradition. In short, it contains the heart of the teachings of the Vajrayana. A nice complimentary book if you are interested in going deeper into Tibetan Buddhism is Fundamentals of Tibetan Buddhism. These books compliment each other and the latter puts all of the Buddhist traditions in historical context. Huston Smith's essay in The World's Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions or Buddhism: A Concise Introduction. You get more bang for your buck with the former Huston Smith book, however.

The fundamental teaching of the Buddha involves the following realizations: 1) Life is suffering; 2) The cause of suffering is selfish desire; 3) To get rid of selfish desire, follow the eightfold path. The essence of the eightfold path is a moral life grounded in a strong loving-kindness practice (A Mahayana emphasis, but true of all schools). This book provides precisely that -- a path of loving-kindness that any person could follow and apply to their life. When asked what religion the Dalai was, he once said... "my religion is loving-kindess." While the Dalai Lama didn't officially endorse the book that I know of, certainly it is written in keeping with this spirit.

This book covers a LOT of ground in short volume of about 108 pages. It looks at the existential situation of not being able to escape our life and the human condition which is characterized by suffering. The Buddha said as his last words, "be a lamp unto yourselves." I believe the intent here was that no super mommy or daddy in the sky is going to come down and save you from the human condition. You must look deeply to see the truth and this will liberate you from samsara or the cycle of suffering. In this book, Pema Chodron describes the Buddha's teachings and more importantly practices to help you to arrive at a place of loving-kindness and equanimity.

What I most like about this book is that she keeps things simple. She also describes Tonglen practice and other forms of meditation and habits of thought that cultivate a mind that is not locked in conditioned thinking. Krishnamurti once said, "seeing the truth deeply is what liberates, not your efforts to be free." A corallary to this might be... yes... but what limits how deeply you can see is your depth of compassion for others, but primarily for yourself. This book is a manual about how to cultivate a loving-kindness that allows you to penetrate the insufficiency of living for things like money, sex, power and status. It is a good read for anyone.

If you are interested in a somewhat different Western perspective or something to contrast these writings with then try A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life. This book by Jack Kornfield emphasizes an earlier Buddhist tradition namely the Theravada (Way of the Elders). Mahayana Buddhism was an outgrowth of these teachings and Tibetan Buddism (Vajrayana) a further extension and elaboration. Jack Kornfield is a Western psychologist who spent a number of years in Thailand as a Buddhist monk and his perspective is accessible, entertaining, practical and complimentary to this book. If you are looking for a more integrative read that relates to Western Psychology directly try Toward a Psychology of Awakening: Buddhism, Psychotherapy, and the Path of Personal and Spiritual Transformation. This is a more difficult read, but extremely worthwhile. There are other recommendations on my listmania lists of this is your area of interest.

Don't get me wrong, this is a good book, but there are just a couple of things about it that make it not quite as good as I was hoping. First, her interpretation of the Four Noble Truths is problematic in my eyes. Basically she take Tibetan teachings on egolessness (which are great teachings in their own right) and superimposes them on the Four Noble Truths. Her interpretation does not ring true for me - she states that the 2nd Noble Truth is "resisting life causes suffering" and that the 3rd Noble Truth is learning to let go of our "selves"/ego. These are valuable teachings but do not represent the more usual (and probably academically correct, as well as more powerful, in my opinion) translations that I have read: that (very summarily put) the 2nd Noble Truth is that that craving/desire/grasping causes suffering and the 3rd Noble Truth is that ceasing to crave/desire/grasp results in the cessation of suffering. Her interpretation is not wrong, but it is a bit of a Chinese whispered version of the Four Noble Truths and I would have liked her book better had she not re-interpreted them like this. Secondly, she writes "from above" a little. I feel that she comes across like a lovely, cosy, caring and wise Aunty. For me this made her teachings have less impact. I preferred Tara Brach's "Radical Acceptance" (which deals with a similar subject - accepting life as it is) to "The Wisdom of No Escape": Brach's writing is a bit more raw and personal and she writes like one sister to another sister (or brother)).