Below are some resources from our staff about relationships; whether single, dating, or married. This page will be updated periodically throughout the sermon series!
| The Sacred Search | Gary L. Thomas | Book | Single, dating, engaged women & men, or married who want to disciple others well | Written by a Pastor who has provided pastoral care to men and women for many years, and walked them through the good and bad related to relationships. In the book he provides a practical approach, and many considerations, for viewing dating / engagement / marriage in a biblical manner. |
| Friendish | Book | Kelly Needham | Single, dating, engaged, and married women & men – everyone who wants to invest in their friendships | Kelly Needham explores what the Bible has to say about friendships, identifies ways we get confused about what friendship is supposed to be like ("counterfeit", "selfish", "marriage mimicking", etc.), and offers insights into what healthy friendships could look like |
| Life Together | Book | Dietrich Bonhoeffer | Good for anyone, but could be especially useful for CGs, families, couples, roommates to go through together | Bonhoeffer asserts that communal life, the physical presence of other Christians, is a gift of grace, that it is the “extraordinary, roses and lilies” of the Christian life. He aims to describe the nature of Christian community through five concepts and devotes a chapter to each: Community, The Day with Others, The Day Alone, Ministry, and Confession and Communion. |
| The Great Sex Rescue | Book | Sheila Wray Gregoire | Anyone who is mature enough to read a book about sex and also mature enough to understand nuances about church culture in America without being tossed to and fro in their faith | Sheila Wray Gregoire bases much of her book on a groundbreaking in-depth survey of 22,000 Christian women, which makes her work unique in her attention to research. She engages with Scripture and offers a lot of critique on where Christian teachings may have led to unbiblical and/or harmful views about sex. It is a book that clearly advocates from the perspective of women who have been hurt by sex in their marriages. |
| Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community? | Book | Martin Luther King, Jr. | Good for anyone as long as they have a basic understanding of how to interpret social situations through a Christian lens | Written by MLK. Dives into an understanding of God's Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. Contextualized to American issues of inequality, poverty, and violence. Unique in that MLK talks about God's Kingdom in a practical way–not just "not yet" but also "already here". |
| Loveology | Book | John Mark Comer | Good for anyone | Written by a pastor in a post-Christiann context. Provides biblical exegesis and cultural exegeis around the themes of love, relationships, sexuality, and intimacy. |
| How We Love: Discover Your Love Style, Enhance Your Marriage | Book | Milan and Kay Yerkovich | Married couples especially, but also any non-married folks who want to grow in self-understanding regarding relational style | Written by a couple who are licensed counselors and Milan is also an ordained minister. Unique in how they weave psychology, Bible, and their own personal journey in marriage to offer practical discussion questions and tools meant to help married people relate to one another better and more healthily. |
| Unnecessary Complications: Christian Dating in a Modern World | Book | David Mills | About dating and pursuing marriage. For Christian audience. Good for Singles and nonmarried couples struggling with dating. | This book aims to tackle why we as christians date like the world and why we need to change. In how to honor God in our pursuit of marriage and relationships. |
| 7 Myths about Singleness | Book | Sam Allberry | Good for anyone, is written for singles, but I think any married person that wants to build community and disciple people should read it. | This is a book about the lies we (singles and married) believe about singleness, how the Bible addresses them, and what we can do to not operate out of those lies. He does a really great job addressing the gifts of singleness without putting down marriage, and doesn't talk with a bitter heart. |
| So, about friends. | Podcast | 30 Min with the Perrys (Jackie Hill Perry and Preston Perry) | For anyone wanting to grow in their friendship relationships. | This is a great episode that speaks about the importance of commitment to friendships, of being wise about selecting friends, and who do we want to invest for the long run. |
| Marriage | Book | Paul David Tripp | People who have been married for any length of time, but particularly those married a little bit longer, hoping to breathe more life into their marriage. This is honestly a phenomenal book and I wish I found it earlier. | Everyone enters into marriage selfish. We can't help it. We're looking fro something we can get. The gospel rids us of self though and says it is better to give; that this is where we truly come to life! If we learn gospel commitments in marriage, not only will our marriages flourish, so will we. |
| The Meaning of Marriage | Book | Tim and Kathy Keller | Anyone looking to understand why God created marriage, and how to prepare for or flourish within it | |
| You and Me Forever | Book | Francis and Lisa Chan | ||
| Marriage Be Hard | Book | Kevin and Melissa Fredricks | Anyone looking for a more down to earth, non-theological but still wholesome read | Marriage is hard! Communicating frequently and checking in with one another is a way to help overcome this hardship |
| The Mingling of Souls: God's Design for Love, Marriage, Sex, and Redemption | Book | Matt Chandler | Good for anyone. | This book follows the process of young man pursuing a young women in ancient Israel. He is a sheperd and she is a sheperdess. It walks through the process of attraction, courtship and marriage. |
| Genesis Process | Workbook and Group | Michael Dye | Men and women struggling with any sort of addiciton whether sexual, substance, food, etc. who desire to understand why they do the very thing they don't want to do and how they can change and heal. | The Genesis Process blends biblical priciples with the latest clinical research in brain science to help people desiring to change experience the change they long for. Groups of 5-7 spend 6 months together going through the workbook in order to heal from wounds and relationships leading to destructive coping behaviours. These groups will start the week of September 11th 2023 and finish the week of March 11th 2024. |
| 7 Pillars of Freedom | Workbook and Group | Dr. Ted Roberts | Men whether married, single, dating, or engaged who are looking for disicpleship and freedom from sexual addiction. | 7 Pillars is a 9-month discipleship group for men focused on healing from sexual brokeness. Similar to the Genesis Process, this group brings together biblical principles with clinical research providing an integratative recovery methodology. Men meet weekly for 9 months forming strong accountability through relationships in order to heal. Groups start the week of September 11th and run through the week of May 13th. |
| The Freedom Fight: The New Drug And The Truths That Set Us Free | Book | Ted Shimer | Good for those struggling with addiciton to pornography or for those who want to learn more about the pervasiveness of this issue. | Ted Shimer provides insight into the state of addiction to pornography both inside and out of the church. He shares a variety of stories from those struggling with this addiction and proven methods for helping people find freedom. |
| The Idolatry of Marriage | Podcast | 30 Min with the Perrys (Jackie Hill Perry and Preston Perry) | Good for everyone! Especially those who struggle with exalting marriage above and before their relationship with Christ, and the pursuit of becoming more Christ-like (both singles and marrieds). | Marriage is to be honored as the Bible directs us but is it being held in highest honor? Or in other words, have we, the church, made an idol out of the institution of marriage? Yes? No? Maybe so? Listen in as Preston and Jackie share their thoughts on the topic. |
| Gay Girl, Good God | Book | Jackie Hill Perry | Women and men struggling with same sex attraction and gender confusion | Jackie shares her personal testimony of finding wholeness in Christ after years of same sex attraction and gender confusion. In this book she shares her story along with practical tools to help others struggling with SSA, or those who desire to love them well. |
| Washed and Waiting: Reflections on Christian Faithfulness and Homosexuality | Book | Wesley Hill | Everyone. Great resource for everyone to be able to learn about Same Sex Attraction | Wesley Hill walks through his journey of disclosure to community about his struggle with same sex attraction as a Christian. Though means of personal testimony, Hill details what his struggle has looked like, the loneliness that comes with celebracy, and remaining obedient to the commands in scripture as it relates to same-sex relationships. |
| Unraveled | Workbook and Group | Heather Kolb and others | Women whether married, single, dating, or engaged who are looking for disicpleship and freedom from love and/or sexual addiction. | Unraveled is a 9-month support group that provides a safe place for women to process their stories and struggles. Discover how lifelong healing comes from a greater understanding of who God is and who He created us to be in “Unraveled: Managing Love, Sex, and Relationships.” This group brings together biblical principles with clinical research providing an integrative recovery methodology. Women meet weekly for 9 months forming strong accountability through relationships in order to heal. Groups start the week of September 11th and run through the week of May 13th. |
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