The Good and Beautiful Life

The Good and Beautiful Life PDF

Author: James Bryan Smith

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2009-12-14

Total Pages: 266

ISBN-13: 0830878769

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

"I have never met a person whose goal was to ruin his or her life. We all want to be happy, and we want it all of the time." So begins James Bryan Smith in The Good and Beautiful Life. The problem is, he tells us, we have bought into false notions of happiness and success. These self-centered decisions lead us further into the vices that cause ruin: anger, lust, lying, worry, and judging. Eventually we find ourselves living a beautifully packaged life of self-destruction. Following the Sermon on the Mount, this follow-up to The Good and Beautiful God guides us to look behind these character flaws and to replace our false beliefs with Jesus' narratives about life in the kingdom of God. The Good and Beautiful Series includes four essential discipleship books from James Bryan Smith. Work through these proven Bible study resources individually or with a group to learn who God is, what it means to be a Christian, how to live in community, and how to address toxic self-narratives that hinder spiritual growth.

The Good and Beautiful God

The Good and Beautiful God PDF

Author: James Bryan Smith

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2009-12-14

Total Pages: 236

ISBN-13: 0830878343

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

Over 250,000 Sold Worldwide! "God wants me to try harder." "God blesses me when I'm good and punishes me when I'm bad." "God is angry with me." We all have ideas that we tell ourselves about God and how he works in our lives. Some are true—but many are false. James Bryan Smith believes those thoughts determine not only who we are, but how we live. In fact, Smith declares, the most important thing about a person is what they think about God. The path to spiritual transformation begins here. Turning to the Gospels, Smith invites you to put your ideas to the test to see if they match up with what Jesus himself reveals about God. Once you've discovered the truth in Scripture, Smith leads you through a process of spiritual formation that includes specific activities aimed at making these new narratives real in your body and soul as well as your mind. At the end of each chapter you'll find an opportunity for soul training, engaging in spiritual practices that reinforce the biblical messages on your mind and heart. Because the best way to make a complete and lasting change is to go through the material in community, small group discussion questions also accompany each chapter. This deep, loving and transformative book will help you discover the narratives that Jesus lived by—to know the Lord he knew and the kingdom he proclaimed—and to practice spiritual exercises that will help you grow in the knowledge of our good and beautiful God. The Good and Beautiful Series includes four essential discipleship books from James Bryan Smith. Work through these proven Bible study resources individually or with a group to learn who God is, what it means to be a Christian, how to live in community, and how to address toxic self-narratives that hinder spiritual growth.

The Good and Beautiful Community

The Good and Beautiful Community PDF

Author: James Bryan Smith

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2010-07-21

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 0830861254

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

In this Good and Beautiful Series book, James Bryan Smith helps us know how to live in relationship with others as apprentices of Jesus. "Apprentices of Jesus are not part-time do-gooders," he writes. "They live in continuous contact with the kingdom of God, and are constantly men and women in whom Christ dwells. They do not sometimes tell the truth, sometimes live sacrificially or sometimes forgive. There are myriad opportunities for us to impact the world in which we live." Yet many times we've gotten it wrong, tending to emphasize personal faith over social justice or vice versa. In these pages Jim Smith shows us how to bring spiritual formation and community engagement together, and then once again offers spiritual practices that root new, true narratives about God and the world in our souls. His insight and humility as a fellow learner with us will lead us to live in authentic ways as a good and beautiful community of Christ-followers, shining the light of the Spirit into every relationship. The Good and Beautiful Series includes four essential discipleship books from James Bryan Smith. Work through these proven Bible study resources individually or with a group to learn who God is, what it means to be a Christian, how to live in community, and how to address toxic self-narratives that hinder spiritual growth.

This Beautiful Life

This Beautiful Life PDF

Author: Helen Schulman

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2011-08-02

Total Pages: 244

ISBN-13: 0062092685

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

"ThisBeautiful Life is a gripping, potent and blisteringly well-written story offamily, dilemma, and consequence. . . . I read this book with white-knuckledurgency, and I finished it in tears. Helen Schulman is an absolutely brilliantnovelist." —Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love Theevents of a single night shatter one family’s sense of security and identity inthis provocative and deeply affecting domestic drama from Helen Schulman, theacclaimed author of A Day at the Beach and Out of Time. In thetradition of Lionel Shriver, Sue Miller, and Laura Moriarty, Schulman crafts abrilliantly observed portrait of parenting and modern life, cunningly exploringour most deeply-held convictions and revealing the enduring strengths thatemerge in the face of crisis.

The Good and Beautiful Series

The Good and Beautiful Series PDF

Author: James Bryan Smith

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2010-01-11

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780830835409

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

James Bryan Smith believes the gospel is about change in our lives today, not just our eternal destiny. In The Good and Beautiful Series he aims to help Christians develop a robust discipleship by helping them understand who God is, what it means to be a Christian and what it means to live in community as a part of God's kingdom. Throughout the series, which includes The Good and Beautiful God, The Good and Beautful Life and The Good and Beautiful Community, Smith encourages you to read, journal, pray, discuss and participate in weekly spiritual exercises to help you engage with the text. As you work through the books individually (or more ideally in a group setting) you'll discover your heart being shaped by the truth of Christ—and your life being changed. Get to know the God Jesus knew and the Kingdom he proclaimed. The transformation you seek will come as a direct result of spending focused time with him and his people. A Renovaré Resource.

Creating a Beautiful Life

Creating a Beautiful Life PDF

Author: Elizabeth George

Publisher: Harvest House Publishers

Published: 2018-11-06

Total Pages: 255

ISBN-13: 0736967591

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

What Will You Do with This Beautiful Day God Is Giving You? Each new day presents opportunities to grow your faith, manage your work and your goals, and make good use of the time God gives you. But making the right choices moment by moment isn't easy. And the first decisions of your day can affect the next 16 hours—for better or for worse. Elizabeth George, acclaimed Bible teacher, helps you navigate the options you might encounter today so you can... get up and power up for a great day establish your priorities make the most of your time choose good, better, and best options pour yourself into the people in your life Prepare to create a more beautiful and productive life and make each day more meaningful. God's best awaits you when you choose to live His way!

A Beautiful Life

A Beautiful Life PDF

Author: Sachin Gupta

Publisher: The Write Order Publication

Published: 2023-03-09

Total Pages: 117

ISBN-13: 935776285X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

The book, A Beautiful Life, is meant for people of all ages and across all stages or roles of one's life, whether one is a man or woman, son or daughter, brother or sister, husband or wife, grandfather or grandmother, maternal grandfather or grandmother, among others. As its name suggests, this book teaches the art of living. True to its title, this book will inspire people to live life to the fullest. This book is important for all people, be it a child learning the nuances of life and living or a person entering their twilight years.

The Magnificent Story

The Magnificent Story PDF

Author: James Bryan Smith

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2017-08-08

Total Pages: 206

ISBN-13: 0830889280

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

We are story-making people. We love reading stories—and we love hearing the personal stories of others. We need stories, or narratives, to make sense of our world. And those stories shape our lives. What is the story you have been told about the gospel? About God? About the Christian life? About Jesus? About the cross? About yourself? About heaven? Your answers to these questions will form a story that will determine how your life will go. The answers reveal your ability to trust, to love, to hope—and even your capacity for joy. Any story worth giving the power to shape our lives must pass a simple test: Is it beautiful, good, and true? If it is, then it is a magnificent story—and that is where transformation takes place. From James Bryan Smith, author of the bestselling book The Good and Beautiful God, comes this spiritual formation resource meant to help both individuals and groups understand the magnificent story of Christ in their lives. The field-tested material within includes spiritual practices at the end of each chapter and a group discussion guide. Uncover the true story of beauty, goodness, and truth that will satisfy the ultimate longings of your heart.

Living a Beautiful Life

Living a Beautiful Life PDF

Author: Alexandra Stoddard

Publisher: Random House

Published: 1996

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780679456230

DOWNLOAD EBOOK →

Eating. Sleeping. Bathing. Chores. These are the things we do every day, yet few of us stop to consider how we perform the routines that occupy 95 percent of our lives: in chaos or serenity, with irritation or with joy. Here, in one elegant, copious and forever rereadable book, Alexandra Stoddard shows how to live a more beautiful, more ordered life, every single day. Drawing on the wisdom of Emerson, Samuel Johnson, Rilke and many others and warmed by Alexandra Stoddard's personal anecdotes, this book deals with life both philosophically and practically -- from discovering the sources of your well-being to buying the right stationery or sheets; from using solitude to replenish your spirit to using fabrics, ribbon, paper and your own five senses to transform your daily life. Living a Beautiful Life demonstrates how to use the ordinary in extraordinary ways, suggesting hundreds of techniques for turning dull, irritating routines into life-enhancing rituals; hundreds of simple ways to transform your days -- or your bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and desk -- into delights of beauty and efficiency. There's a marvelous trick for locating the perfect psychological spot for your bed, a quick way to use "remembrance of things past" to choose color schemes that suit you, suggestions for how to turn a fifteen-minute lunch break into a restorative experience. And throughout, Alexandra Stoddard shows how taking care of "the little things" can ultimately add up to a change in the big things. Most of all, Living a Beautiful Life reveals how a beautiful life can be achieved; how daily motions become truly satisfying patterns of pleasure; and how these patterns of pleasure can add up to a lifelived deeply and well, transforming even the most cluttered and hectic existence.