Small
Group
Spiritual Life
Development Library
USA Western Territory
The 3 Colors of Community: How the 7 Communal Qualities
of Healthy Small Groups Can Help You Overcome the 7
Deadly Sins –Christian A. Schwarz
The 3 Colors of Community presents an altogether new way
of approaching small groups. Rather than being preoccupied
with the technical aspects of small group ministry, this book
focuses on the qualities that are fundamental for any sort of
Christian community, be it a family, a prayer meeting, a
Bible study group, a task force, or a choir. Based on
comprehensive research, The 3 Colors of Community
portrays seven qualities that all healthy communities have
in common. Applying these principles not only generates
enthusiastic responses from the participants, but also
sustainable effects in their lives.
A Spiritual Formation Workbook: Small Group Resources for
Nurturing Christian Growth–James Bryan Smith with Lynda
Graybeal
This fully revised workbook provides balanced, practical,
and effective small-group strategies for spiritual renewal
and growth. Includes guidelines for beginning a fellowship,
study plans for the first eight sessions, and a questionnaire,
all leading to a richly rewarding experience. Based on six
dimensions of Christ's life---the contemplative, holiness,
charismatic, social justice, evangelical, and incarnational
traditions.
Kindle: $8.00 Nook: $8.99
Devotional Classics: Selected Readings for Individuals &
Groups –edited by Richard J. Foster and James Bryan Smith
These fifty-two selections have been organized to introduce
the reader to the great devotional writers through the
course of one year. Each reading is accompanied by an
introduction and meditation and includes a related biblical
passage, discussion questions, and individual and group
exercises.
Devotional readings in the Prayer-filled life, the Virtuous life,
the Spirit-Empowered life, the Compassionate life, the
Word-centered life, and the Sacramental life, by writers
including: Augustine of Hippo, Blaise Pascal, Francis of
Assisi, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Julian of Norwich, Martin Luther,
Soren Kierkegaard, Annie Dillard, Thomas Merton, Kathleen
Norris, Dallas Willard, and John Calvin.
Essential Christianity: Practical Steps for Spiritual Growth –Bill
Hybels
Like a house built on a firm foundation the Christian faith is
founded on some key, enduring truths. Do you know what
they are? If not, you owe it to yourself to find out whether
you're building your life-and your eternity--on solid ground.
This book is your invitation to spirited discussions with
others as you explore the basics of faith--principles deeper
and more far-reaching than you may have imagined. You'll
learn what it means to really know Christ. You'll discover the
secret to confident living, how to grow spiritually, how to
handle your failures, how to follow Jesus in a world that's
anything but devoted to Him, and the different ways God
wants to guide you in the practical concerns of life.
Kindle: $5.99 Nook: $5.99
The Good and Beautiful Community: Following the Spirit,
Extending Grace, Demonstrating Love –James Bryan Smith
"Apprentices of Jesus are not part-time do-gooders," Smith
writes. "They live in continuous contact with the kingdom of
God…” 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.
Kindle: $9.20 Nook: $10.49
The Good and Beautiful God: Falling in Love with the God
Jesus Knows –James Bryan Smith
We all have ideas that we tell ourselves about God and how
he works in our lives. Smith invites you to put your ideas
about God to the test. 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. www.apprenticeofjesus.com. 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.
Kindle: $10.49 Nook: $10.49
The Good and Beautiful Life: Putting on the Character of
Christ –James Bryan Smith
"I have never met a person whose goal it was to ruin his or
her life. We all want to be happy and we want it all 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 selfcentered 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 selfdestruction.
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.
Kindle: $9.20 Nook: $10.49
Hidden in Christ: Living As God’s Beloved –James Bryan Smith
Memorizing and studying a passage in depth can offer a
deeper sense of the meaning of each word. In this unique
introduction to the hidden life in Christ, James Bryan Smith
walks readers through a thirty-day immersion in Colossians
3:1-17. Each of the thirty short chapters of this book brings
out the main truth of just one word or phrase of this rich
passage. You'll also find a very simple daily practice to take
up, reflection questions and a guide for five weeks of group
discussion.
This book can be used privately, or as a part of a small
group. The best way to get the most out of this book is to
read the chapter, engage in the daily/weekly exercise,
repeat the summative affirmation throughout the day or
week, answer the questions using a journal, and then meet
with a fellow Christ-follower to discuss it together.
Kindle: $9.19 Nook: $9.99
Learning from Jesus –A Renovare Resource
To Christians, Jesus is many things: the Son of God, the
pivotal figure in whom we put our trust and who speaks on
our behalf, a companion in the life of faith. But Jesus is also
an incredible example of how to lead a faithful life. Jesus, as
a human, walked on earth and confronted the same
struggles that we face. Our primary mission as his followers
is to learn from him -- to become his apprentices. In this
book we seek to further our apprenticeship by studying
everything from Jesus's interactions with those around him
to the revolutionary wisdom recorded in the Gospels.
Learning from Jesus is conveniently organized for individual
or group study, and each section of this guide leads you
further down the path to true discipleship.
Kindle: $9.78 Nook: $10.99
Prayer and Worship –A Renovare Resource
Prayer and worship compose the heart of the devotional life
and are essential practices for a close relationship with God.
But too often our prayer is nothing more than a checklist of
requests, and our worship happens only in church. What
does it mean to communicate with God? How do we enter
his presence in the midst of our daily lives? Utilizing the
beloved book of the Psalms, this guide reveals many
different ways to come before God in prayer and worship,
including wrestling with God, pleading with God, lamenting
to God, and longing for God. Conveniently organized for
individual or group study, Prayer and Worship offers insights
and avenues to help us bring every part of our lives before
God and truly enter his presence.
Kindle: $9.78 Nook: $10.99
Small Groups, Big Impact: Connecting People to God and One
Another in Thriving Groups –Jim Egli and Dwight Marable
Why do some small groups thrive and grow while others
struggle and falter?
The authors have surveyed over 3000 group leaders in more
than 200 churches. Their findings will place practical,
applicable principles into the hands of small group leaders
and pastors. This book also includes access to additional
resources from the author's website.
Spiritual Classics: Selected Readings on the Twelve Spiritual Disciplines
–Edited by Richard J. Foster and Emilie Griffin
St. Augustine, Thomas Merton, Fredrick Buechner, Evelyn Underhill,
A.W. Tozer, G.K. Chesterton, Thomas More, Martin Luther King, Jr.,
Amy Carmichael, Simone Weil, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Hildegard
of Bingen, John Milton, Dorothy Day, Leo Tolstoy, Gerard Manley
Hopkins, and more.
From nearly two thousand years of Christian writing comes Spiritual
Classics, fifty-two selections complete with a profile of each author,
meditations for group and individual use, discussion questions and
exercises, and a personal reflection by Richard Foster on each
selection. Editors Richard Foster and Emilie Griffith also offer
recommendations for further guided reading and exploration.
A variety of CD & DVD’s available from recorded Aprentis events, including:
Grace is a Conversation (Richard Foster, John Ortbert, and Others)
Grace and Goodness, Beauty, and Truth (James Bryan Smith)
Grace and Fear (Nancy Ortberg), Grace and Jesus (John Ortberg)
How to become Twice the Child of Hell in the Name of God: The Graceless Life (Nathan Foster)
The Grace That Transforms: Ways and Means (Richard J. Foster)
Awake Your Senses: A Workshop to Help More of You Experience More of God (Beth Booram)
Conquering the Darkness: Spiritual Formation, Poverty, and God’s Kingdom Reign (Matt Penner)
Creating Sustainable Congregations and Pastors: Exploring a Lifetime of Ministry Live Well (Nathan Foster and Terry
Hedrick)
Flourish: Curating Environments for Communities of Christian Practice (Mike King)
Grace and Truth in the Real World: Living with Integrity in a Culture of Distraction and Uncertainty (Bob Fryling)
iFollow: Grace for Social Media (Patrick Sehl)
Renovation of the Church: Making Spiritual Formation the Center of Congregational Culture (Kent Carlson & Mike
Lueken)
Transformed Lives: The apprentice Program (Karen Bables, Cathy Dreyer & Jeff Huisman)
Spiritual Formation and the Church: Session 1 (Kent Carlson & Mike Lueken)
Spiritual Formation Basics: Cooperating with God’s Spirit for Life Change (Adele Ahlberg Calhoun)
The Apprentice Series and Congregations
http://ncrsusa.com/cgi-bin/store/main-aic.html
Discipleship Training: A Venture in Learning and
Accountability –Dr. Charles Lake
Sadly, discipleship is often the undiscovered art of the
Church. As in the realm of athletics, the early Church
provided the training ground where believers developed
into mature Christian disciples. Since today’s Church tends
not to emphasize discipleship, few are left to effectively
accomplish its mission in the world; and many falter in the
hectic environment of today’s society.
What do we mean by discipline? It is the teaching and
encouraging of believers through systematic, personal and
Spirit-directed training that holds them accountable for
developing Christian disciplines. Critical disciplines include
daily quiet times with the Lord and Bible reading.
Available at United States Trade Departments with a
discount for Officers
Replenish: Leading from a Healthy Soul –Lance Witt
In a time when pastors are leaving the ministry in record
numbers due to cynicism, disillusionment, weariness, and
personal scandals, there is an urgent need for soul care in
the private lives of leaders. Replenish helps leaders focus on
the back stage, the interior life, in order to remain spiritually
healthy. In a caring, encouraging tone, it will show pastors
how to prioritize matters of the soul, develop healthy
spiritual practices address problems that lead to burnout,
create a healthy rhythm in their lives, improve their people
skills and the spiritual climate of their team, develop better
systems in their churches, discover how to lead an
unhurried life. For the many ministry leaders who feel
alone, in over their heads, or simply worn out, this book will
offer welcome relief and a healthy way forward.
Kindle: $9.99 Nook: $10.49