Minibook eBooks

You did it again. You drank. You got high. You slept with him/her. You surfed the Internet. What gift could you possibly find in so much failure? But when your helplessness drives you to turn to God and admit your need, you will experience the greatest...

"It's normal." "Everyone does it." "Nobody gets hurt." These are some commonly held beliefs about sexual fantasy and masturbation, but are they really true? Are sexual fantasies and masturbation harmless ways of dealing with sexual frustration? Marriage...

Are you ministering to someone whose trauma of sexual abuse has shattered their trust in God? Do you see them wrestling with the dichotomy between what they are told about God and the bitter facts of their wounds? If the abuse happened when they were a...

You may be surprised to learn how prevalent domestic abuse really is, even within your church community. Sadly, because spousal abuse pervades every pocket of society, the statistical reality is that we all have people in our church who have suffered as...

"What do you do for a living?" Whether you have a great answer to that question ("I have an important job!") or a not-so-great answer ("I'm unemployed!"), the problem of defining ourselves by what we do instead of who we know, means that our self-worth...

Pastors and church personnel often struggle to apply intentional and appropriate doses of both biblical grace and stringent accountability to victims and perpetrators of child sexual abuse. Churches can regularly be prone to turn the tables on survivors...

You feel emotionally isolated and sexually disengaged from your spouse. Could it be that the fantasy world of pornography has intruded upon your real-life marriage? Nicholas Black of Harvest USA, a ministry for people struggling with sexual issues,...

"I know porn is wrong for a married person, but I'm single. What can it hurt?" The accessibility of pornography through the Internet means that more singles are asking themselves if porn use really matters. But Nicholas Black of Harvest USA, a ministry...

Is a personal God really involved in our suffering? And if he is, what in the world is he up to? Why would a good God allow suffering in his world? William P. Smith addresses these and other hard questions by reflecting on what the Bible teaches about...

Your cancer diagnosis comes as a surprise and not a pleasant surprise. It is a hard and threatening jolt. Perhaps you are still in shock. Still trying to wrap your mind around the new reality of your diagnosis and what it means for your present and...

When our children experience a traumatic event, we can feel powerless to help. We fear getting it wrong or reminding them of the hurt. Or we miss important cues that signal a child is in distress, leading us to address problematic behaviors with...

When life falls apart, we feel deep confusion. Our emotions may shatter no matter how strong we have been. Our minds fill with unanswered and painful questions like the following: "Why me?" "What did I do to deserve this?" "Is there any hope for my...

If you are experiencing financial difficulties, you might be feeling anger, discouragement, fear, or even panic. There are many reasons people struggle financially-job loss, unexpected expenses, poor decisions-but, whatever the reason, money troubles...

Determining when to get your child a smartphone is a complicated yet critical decision. Parents today are facing new challenges as technology and our children's access to it gives rise to new worries and concerns. Thoughtful parents wonder how to...

Where is God in all this? Does he really love me? Perhaps you are asking questions like these in the midst of tough situations that come your way. You want to trust God's plan for your life, but when hardship intrudes, it is often difficult to believe...

Money, health, relationships. We have plenty of reasons to worry, right? In this minibook, David Powlison explains that, although circumstances bring difficult challenges, worry comes from our hearts. So to help our worried hearts, he highlights seven...

Loving an addict is incredibly painful. Not only do you have to watch them make the same mistakes over and over again, but along the way they often lie to you, hurt you, and betray you. And yet, against all odds, you still love them and hope and pray...

Walking with a child through health problems can be a frightening and painful process for both parents and their children, whether facing a sudden catastrophic diagnosis, a chronic condition, or even common childhood ailments. Children want to...

The question was never whether or not your child would get into trouble. The real question was whether or not you would get the chance to respond. Right now you have that chance! William P. Smith explains that your child's trouble is a God-ordained...

Who should pay the bills? Do the laundry? Work outside the home? Stay home with the kids? For many couples, answering these questions is difficult and frustrating. How do you decide which family responsibilities belong to you and which belong to your...