Pre-order now. Copies will be available to pick up or ship in late November.

What do we do when the church looks nothing like Jesus?

Many followers of Jesus feel disillusioned by a broken religion—one that loves political power, promises prosperity, and feeds on fear. We are desperately trying to rationalize how a loving God can be connected to unloving churches, institutions, and people. We can no longer deny that our version of Christianity is not just imperfect but has been coopted to inflict violence, racism, abuse, hate, and even death. The question before many Christians is no longer how their faith can survive within a secular culture. It’s how their faith can survive Christianity itself.

In The Great Reckoning, writer Stephen Mattson writes out of the rubble of the failed American faith called Christendom. Instead of doomsaying or casting aspersions, however, Mattson offers hope for seekers looking for inspiration, solace for Christians fed up with an unsatisfying religion, and clarity for those sifting through the remains. The Great Reckoning is a clear-eyed yet tender critique of where we’ve gone wrong, and a guide away from the culture wars and toward the life of Jesus.

Rather than further immersing ourselves in Christendom, what if we started rethinking what it means to be a Christian in the first place? What if Christians shed the hopes and dreams of Christianity and turned instead of the Christ at the center of our faith?

Consider this a dispatch from the wreckage of American cultural Christianity, and an ode to the Jesus-looking faith we seek.

"The Trump era has convinced many people of what they've long expected: the Christian faith has been hijacked. Political agendas, corrupt institutions, culture wars, and hypocrisy have poisoned a religion struggling to emulate the person of Jesus. In The Great Reckoning, writer Stephen Mattson navigates the difference between Christendom and Christ, and offers a way back toward the latter." - Benjamin Corey, author of Unafraid and Undiluted

Pre-order now. Copies will be available to pick up or ship in early November.

Many people have questions about Scripture they are too afraid to ask. Are all the stories of the Bible true? What about all the books that got left out? What do we make of all that violence? What do we do when biblical authors seem to disagree? And what if we encounter situations the Bible doesn’t address?

Drawing from the best of contemporary biblical scholarship and the ancient well of Christian tradition, scholar and preacher Meghan Larissa Good helps readers consider why the Bible matters. Known for presenting complex theological ideas in accessible, engaging ways, Good delves into issues like biblical authority, literary genre, and Christ-centered hermeneutics, and calls readers beyond either knee-jerk biblicism, on the one hand, or skeptical disregard on the other.

Instead, The Bible Unwrapped invites readers to faithful reading, communal discernment, and deep and transformative wonder about Scripture. Join an honest conversation about the Bible that is spiritually alive and intellectually credible. Read the ancient story of God in the world. You may even learn to love it.

"The Bible Unwrapped bears untold gifts, as rich and valuable in their own way as those brought to a child by wise ones two thousand years ago. Reading Scripture is the key to reading life which stands at the heart of following Jesus. Do not let this unique gift pass by unopened and unenjoyed." --Leonard Sweet, author, scholar, speaker

"You need this book in your church, and in your work with people who are searching for answers. It is the missing piece for our discussions on current topics and the Bible." --Dottie Escobedo-Frank, author, pastor, speaker

"For all its popularity, the Bible is often misunderstood. Meghan Larissa Good skillfully reminds us that the messy and sacred world of the Bible is not a how-to book for life but a window through which we can view God's story and encounter the living Christ." --Derek Hogan, assistant professor of New Testament, Campbell Divinity School

During this season of Advent, our worship resources invite you to approach Christmas by focusing on God’s goodness. It is God who shows us what goodness truly looks and acts like. As God’s children, this goodness is our goal.

However, life still includes the varied burdens of sin we carry, and keeps us longing for the goodness, or righteousness, for which we long. This Advent, the theme of God’s goodness will lead us through experiences of watching and waiting, of telling, rejoicing in God's ways, blessing and restoring, and seeing love revealed. These themes encourage us to live in hope because we know that God's goodness is breaking out within and among us .

The prayers and activities in this booklet are adapted from the worship resources in the Fall 2018 Leader Magazine.

The Advent at Home series, originally produced by Mennonite Church Canada has been a well received Advent resource for many households since 2002-03. We are pleased that, beginning in the fall of 2016, this resource will continue to be developed by the Anabaptist Faith Formation Network.

Pre-order now. Copies will be available to pick up or ship in late December.

Humanity is nearing a technological tipping point. The blistering pace of technological, scientific, and social change is ushering in an era in which human bodies merge with devices, corporations know everything about us, and artificial intelligence develops human and even godlike potential. In possession of the most powerful tools history has ever seen, we will be faced with questions about wisdom, authority, faith, desire, and what it means to be human.

In Braving the Future, Douglas Estes equips Christians to thoughtfully and prayerfully prepare for a future of technological reign that is rapidly expanding. Drawing on Scripture, Christian tradition, and scientific literature, Estes offers a theology of work, creation, and personhood that is both prophetic and sturdy enough to keep pace with the technology of a future as yet unknown. He helps readers choose trust in God over fearful retreat and following Jesus over uncritical engagement with technology. The future may not look exactly like a science fiction movie, but are we ready to brave a future of limitless tech and boundless change?

“Douglas Estes has distinguished himself as not only a top-rate exegete of Scripture but also a cutting-edge exegete of culture. That’s why I can’t wait to get my hands on Braving the Future. We can count on Estes to offer us penetrating insights into what Scripture has to say about work, creation, and personhood, as well as faithful analysis of our tech-saturated world. Better yet, we can rely on him to guide us toward Christian fidelity in the face of some unprecedented technological changes in the years ahead.” - Todd Wilson

Format: Hardcover

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This volume is built around a collection of previously published essays by the author over the course of thirty years, supplemented by current reflections and personal narratives that place these essays into a broader and engaging theological journey.

“A rich blending of personal, church, and academic narratives and contexts. . . . This interdisciplinary collection has the potential to become a pivotal resource for the next generation of Mennonite theologians, scholars, and pastors.” - from the Foreword by Kimberly Penner and Susanne Guenther Loewen

“Theology . . . pays attention to how we name the Creator, the One beyond our naming . . . and how we name the ‘other’ in the context of relationship and dialogue . . . In addition, theological reflection includes intentionally naming ourselves, who we are, how we have experienced life within the web of intertwining relationships that have shaped us. Theology thus also names the world we live in, its complexity and its beauty, its joy and its pain.” - from the Preface by Lydia Neufeld Harder

Pre-order now. Copies will be available to pick up or ship at the end of October.

Raising kids is hard enough. But raising kids to heed Jesus’ upside-down call away from status and power and toward service and sharing? It can seem almost impossible. So how can parents model countercultural choices? What habits can help families joyfully follow Christ instead of the latest trend? Gather with your faith community to search the Scriptures and discuss how to raise faithful kids in the twenty-first century.

(6 sessions)

Pre-order now. Copies will be available to pick up or ship at the end of October.

Prayer can easily become an afterthought, a hasty sentence, a laundry list of all the things we want. But what is prayer is a time to find out what God wants for us—and for our world? What does it mean to pray that the kingdom would come here and now as it is in heaven? Explore these questions in this study, and learn prayer practices that nurture intimacy with God and sensitivity to God’s dream for the world.

(6 sessions)

Pre-order now. Copies will be available to pick up at the October 18 book launch (and will ship shortly thereafter).

Take a prayerful journey through the Christian calendar year with Steve Bell’s new book series. The seven-book series includes devotional reflections on the seasons of Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Holy Week, Easter and Ordinarytime. Drawing on poetry, music, history and tradition, Steve’s unique reflections animate a rich spiritual tradition for the seasoned and the novice alike.

Purchase as a boxed set (without CDs), or buy books and CDs individually. Consider also the two-disc companion CD, corresponding to the Pilgrim Year book series. Included are seasonal songs drawn from Steve’s three-decade catalogue of music.

This boxed set price does not include the CDs. Please purchase the CDs separately.

Is self-care different from being selfish or self-indulgent? Is it the same as caring for your soul? And what does self-care look like in light of following Jesus, who called his followers to deny themselves?

In Four Gifts, pastor and author April Yamasaki addresses these and other questions about self-care. Drawing on the ancient scriptural command to love God with our heart, soul, mind, and strength, Yamasaki helps readers think about the spiritual dimensions of attending to your own needs, setting priorities, and finding true rest in a fast-paced world. She weaves together personal stories, biblical and theological insights, questions for reflection, and practical ideas for self-care. Four Gifts helps readers sustain their spirits and balance competing demands.

Feeling overwhelmed by the pace and stress of daily life? Find respite from superficial definitions of self-care and move toward deeper engagement with God.

Includes practical ideas for habits and practices that centre the heart, soul, mind and strength on God.

(16 sessions)

"In Four Gifts, April's powerful insights are on brilliant display. With an integrative mind-body-spirit approach and the rich wisdom of a woman of color's life well-spent, Yamasaki leads us on a journey that is worth following." - Christina Cleveland, author of Disunity in Christ