Bøker av Elmer L. Towns

"Hello, God, it's me!"Talking to God immerses you into a new experience as you are covered over with a rich, deep tapestry, like the most beautiful woven cloth, of the vast expressions of our human need for God. The psalms express exuberant praise, worship, and adoration, but also deep guilt, anxiety, and fears. The psalms expose the happy times when we are bursting with joy, and sad times when we are crushed and can't go on.Every word in the Bible is Spirit-inspired, so each word in each psalm is given to us by God, greatly enriching our spiritual depth and breadth, and learning from the psalmist how to: Wait for GodHope in GodPray to GodTrust in GodServe GodObey God Do His willThe ten psalms explored throughout Talking to God: Psalm 23, In God's Presence; Psalm 1, Two Ways to Live; Psalm 51, A Cry for Mercy; Psalm 84, Praying to Enjoy God's Presence; Psalm 90, Praying Through Life's Struggles; Psalm 100, Rejoicing as You Enter God's Presence; Psalm 102:1-17, Praying When Overwhelmed with Grief; Psalm 137, Praying, Crying, Singing, Dreaming; Psalm 139, Thanksgiving for God's Presence; and Psalm 116, Rejoicing in God's Mercy. As you read and sing and repeat the words and music of each psalm, you discover God's presence speaking to you, singing to you. You find yourself listening for and hearing from your heavenly Father. The ultimate result of Talking to God through psalms is enjoying intimacy with Him.

The Ten Commandments According to JesusProlific author, college and seminary professor, and co-founder of Liberty University, Elmer Towns has written a second Teaching Series consisting of six profound books designed to stir your spirit and increase your biblical knowledge: Grandparents in the Bible; The Ten Commandments According to Jesus; 7 Indispensable Words for Effective Prayer; Habits of the Heart; When God Is Silent; What Is Right? Intriguing titles with even more intriguing content.The Ten Commandments According to Jesus is a unique and inclusive discussion of each of the Ten Commandments. In Jesus's earthly ministry, He emphasized keeping the Ten Commandments and explained the positive, inner motivations for keeping them.The Ten Commandments According to Jesus contains: 10 Comprehensive Chapters70 Daily Devotionals 10 Lessons (and Answers)Additional ResourcesThis book is the result of a highly hailed, in-depth Sunday school series before a class of one thousand. The truths shared have had an enormous, positive impact in changing the way Christians can understand and biblically embrace spiritual, emotional, physical, relational, and even worldly realities. There is no doubt your life will be touched as well as you glorify God and submit to His for-our-good commands.

A Christmas DevotionalA Christmas Devotional is like strolling through the month of December wrapped in all the beauty and splendor of the Christmas season. No other time of year is packed as full with excited eagerness and expectation than the month leading up to the Christ Child's birth!Like none other, this devotional presents God's greatest Gift in a daily joyfulness that includes: Scriptures from the Bible, God's personal Love Letter to you.Personal and inspirational insights and foresights to ponder-as if Jesus Himself is speaking directly to you. Prayers to Lord Jesus who chose to enter the world as a Babe. Reflective responses to His presence in your daily life. Each of the 25 days leading to His birth day is filled with an intimate "you are there" perspective as you embrace the scenes and feelings and interactions between you and the Holy One. As the day approaches and life unfolds in the miraculous, you are privy to how each manifestation of Father God's love becomes a pure and absolute reality. A Christmas Devotional is perfect as a gift for family, friends, Sunday school teachers, a neighbor, and of course for yourself-a treasure to reread year after year as you reach out and touch the greatest Gift of all-the Lord Christ Jesus.

Prayer and Fasting go hand in hand. Jesus taught the Lord's Prayer as the model for how to pray and showed us that when we prayed this way, it praises God and covers everything believers need in this life to attain eternal happiness. The Bible teaches fasting as an expression of faith in God's word and will. When Jesus taught His disciples to pray the Lord's Prayer, He immediately concluded, ''Now when you fast . . .'' (Matthew 6:16). Fasting with the Lord's Prayer will invigorate your faith because it offers hope to those who worship through prayer and fasting, for when we worship God, he comes to receive our worship. Towns explains the importance of prayer and fasting as well as six ways to fast, then examine in depth the seven petitions of the Lord's Prayer and conclude with 21 - day fasting devotional. Readers will experience deep spiritual results when two of the most powerful resources God has given us for our faith and ministry - praying the Lord's Prayer and fasting, are combined in intercession to God.

When God Is SilentHow to Hear God When He Seems Far AwayProlific author, college and seminary professor, and co-founder of Liberty University, Elmer Towns has written a second Teaching Series consisting of six profound books designed to stir your spirit and increase your biblical knowledge: Grandparents in the Bible; The Ten Commandments According to Jesus; 7 Indispensable Words for Effective Prayer; Habits of the Heart; When God Is Silent; What Is Right? Intriguing titles with even more intriguing content.When God Is Silent: How to Hear God When He Seems Far Away answers the questions many Christians ponder during their spiritual journey. Some of the questions asked and answered include: If God were to speak to us today, what would He say? Would He tell us what to believe? Would He warn us of danger?Why can't I see miracles?Why is God silent when we call for help?Eight chapters deep dive into the most perplexing questions, and after years of personal study and experience, author Elmer L. Towns reveals what he has learned. Eight lessons follow, designed to solidify the truths found in God's Word through the Holy Spirit. You can learn to listen through the sounds of silence and tune in to the voice of God ringing loudly in the world He created, the Word He composed, and the Word incarnate.

7 Indispensable Words for Effective PrayerProlific author, college and seminary professor, and co-founder of Liberty University, Elmer Towns has written a second Teaching Series consisting of six profound books designed to stir your spirit and increase your biblical knowledge: Grandparents in the Bible; The Ten Commandments According to Jesus; 7 Indispensable Words for Effective Prayer; Habits of the Heart; When God Is Silent; What Is Right? Intriguing titles with even more intriguing content.7 Indispensable Words for Effective Prayer has been specially designed for maximum reading pleasure as well as study enjoyment. Supported with numerous relevant Scriptures throughout, this exploration on prayer and praying will undoubtedly make a significant impact on your daily interaction with your heavenly Father.Effective prayers have multiple aspects that are explored in great detail, including:Forgiveness PrayingPraise PrayingWorship PrayingFaith PrayingSurrender PrayingSeven chapters delve directly into various types of praying. Fifty Daily Devotions focus on Scriptures and your personal reflections. Seven lessons illuminate specific topics and can be used individually and/or in a small group or Sunday School class setting. A comprehensive PowerPoint Guide and additional online resources are also available."...The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results" (James 5:15 NLT).

Grandparents in the BibleProlific author, college and seminary professor, and co-founder of Liberty University, Elmer Towns has written a second Teaching Series consisting of six profound books designed to stir your spirit and increase your biblical knowledge. Grandparents in the Bible is the first of six volumes. Books to follow include: The Ten Commandments According to Jesus; 7 Indispensable Words for Effective Prayers; Habits of the Heart; When God Is Silent; What Is Right? Intriguing titles with even more intriguing content.Being a grandparent is one of the most fulfilling experiences in life-fulfilling God's cycle of life placed within every person. When godly grandparents pass along their Christian heritage to another generation, those grandchildren can carry on that legacy, and on and on it goes, each family perpetuating God's plan to grow His Kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven.In this book you will learn how: Jacob was confronted by God; and at the end his life, he passed on a holy heritage to his grandchildren.Naomi and her husband turned their backs on God. But she returned to her godly roots and raised her grandson for God-who became the grandfather of King David. Asa's father, grandfather, and grandmother were evil influences. Yet in spite of an ungodly heritage, Asa led the people back to God. Noah was a man of faith who built a boat and saved the world. Both the positive and negative impacts of Grandfather Noah are seen in this chapter. Lois raised her daughter Eunice to live for God. With very little support, the grandmother and mother trained Timothy to became a godly leader in the early church. Paul produced Timothy who produced a third generation who produced a fourth generation of Christians (2 Timothy 2:2).Designed for maximum reading pleasure as well as study enjoyment, Grandparents in the Bible provides in Part One: in-depth character stories and take-away lessons. Part Two offers 50 Daily Devotions focused on relevant Scriptures and space to write your personal reflections. Part Three includes six specific lessons to use individually and/or in a small group or Sunday School class setting. Part Four presents a comprehensive PowerPoint Guide (100 slides) to be used as part of a group discussion and/or teaching. Additional online resources are also available to further explore the topic of Grandparents in the Bible.

Faith Walking Through Problems"When you think about pain and suffering, ask yourself three questions: 'Why me?' 'Why now?' 'Why this?' Then consider that there are three wrong attitudes you can have about problems in your life. First, sometimes you may think that because you are a Christian, you should not have problems. Second, you may think you are unspiritual because Christians should not have problems. Third, you may think God has forsaken you because you have problems," so writes best-selling author Elmer L. Towns, co-founder of Liberty University.Faith Walking Through Problems gives you healthy, biblically based approaches to solving problems. From identifying the causes of your problems to altering your attitude toward problems, every page offers practical ways you can lighten your emotional and spiritual load and bring you peace.All 5 chapters present step-by-step actions you can take and principles you can apply to make the right decisions leading to problem resolutions. Following the wisdom-filled chapters are 35 devotions with relevant Scripture, insights, and prayers to bring God's presence into your problems for righteous outcomes. And as with the other two Faith-Walking books in the series of three, this book concludes with 5 comprehensive lessons that not only help you solve your problems, but also provide ways to teach others problem-solving strategies.

Faith Walking Through Suffering & PainWhy read a book about suffering and pain? If you haven't suffered pain in the past, or are not suffering now, it is inevitable that you will eventually experience some type of pain. Faith Walking Through Suffering and Pain helps you get ready mentally, but more importantly, spiritually ready for when that time comes. The Bible says that "trials will show that your faith is genuine...tested as fire tests and purifies gold-though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So, when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor" (1 Peter 1:7 NLT).Author Elmer Towns looks at this sensitive issue with a heart of compassion, eyes of experience, and godly wisdom, providing you a comforting perspective. He first tackles how you can learn from suffering and pain, then gives you the best way to respond, and concludes with why he believes God allows pain. Twenty-eight special devotions are included. And as with all three Faith-Walking books, Faith Walking Through Suffering and Pain concludes with four comprehensive lessons that not only help you get through suffering and pain, but also offers a way to teach others how to cope.

Faith walking With JesusWell-known and beloved author Elmer Towns answers these life-empowering and spirit-enriching questions:What is walking by faith?Who can walk by faith and how can it happen?Can anyone walk by faith if they don't know what faith means?Why do you need both faith and works?What does it mean to take a "leap of faith"?How can you grow your faith?Faith-walking is not faith running or faith standing-it is walking by faith moment by moment daily. How is that accomplished? Each of the 7 chapters in Faith Walking With Jesus reveal truths gleaned from years exploring the Bible with the Holy Spirit, living life with Jesus, and sharing the blessings and experiences of co-founding of Liberty University with Jerry Falwell. The author testifies of faith in God's promises, "Liberty University began with 154 students that first year. Today Liberty University has 120,000 students and a financial budget of $1.2 billion a year."¿Faith Walking With Jesus also presents 49 biblically sound devotionals written to encourage and instruct you how to faith-walk. Plus, 7 comprehensive lessons not only help strengthen your exciting new or newly expanded walk of faith, but provide ways to teach others this lifestyle as well.

Temptation OvercomersWouldn't life be wonderful if there were no temptations-no possibility of failure? This question is the author's opening salvo. From there you are swept into the Garden where you overhear Adam and Eve casually chatting about daily living, told as only Elmer L. Towns can tell. The personal experiences and Bible stories he brings to life in Temptation Overcomers are not only captivating but thought, heart, and spirit-provoking. For example, he writes, "Look at temptation from a non-moral or non-spiritual perspective. A sign on the street corner says, "No right turn." But you do it anyway...there's no oncoming traffic. You didn't get a ticket or a warning from the police. Did you sin, or did you just find a convenient way to get where you were going? Was turning right wrong? We are all tempted in non-moral ways every day when dealing with manmade rules-sometimes there are consequences, and other times no one cares. But what about God's moral laws?"Temptation Overcomers overflows with ways you can claim daily triumph with 4 chapters of wisdom, 14 principles for victory-living, 28 daily devotions, and 4 comprehensive lessons that cement not only your new-found strategies but provide ways to teach others as well.

What is a God Seeker? A person who gives 100 percent of their heart, soul, and energy to seek and find the Lord. David was a God Seeker. You will follow David the shepherd, giant-slayer, fugitive, and king on his lifelong journey to seek and find the presence of the Lord. While walking along with David as he searches and seeks God, you will discover how to open your heart for more life and love, joy and excitement, confidence and success, security and peace of mind.God Seeker is divided into five parts:Part 1 - Seven in-depth chapters about David's personal and spiritual defeats and victories. Part 2 - Seven weeks of 49 days each including powerful insights, relevant Scriptures, and poignant prayers. Part 3 - Seven lessons designed to solidify the teachings-complete with answer key. Part 4 - 82 PowerPoint slides for teaching purposesPart 5 - Additional ResourcesSeeking and finding the heart of God is discovering His unending faithfulness-and your life's purpose. This book invites you to become a God Seeker-and provides everything needed for a personal adventure or to use in a group setting.

"Can you rightly call Me, God, a person?" Singing, laughing, thinking, resting. These are some of the human terms that God uses to describe Himself in the Bible. God made us in His image, so in many ways we share characteristics in common with God. But the true idea of God in all His majesty and mystery is beyond human explanation or understanding. Written in first person, Elmer Towns expresses the personhood of God from the perspective of God. The first section of the book focuses on God as a person and His relatable human characteristics. The last section looks beyond the limits of the word person to God's divine nature and attributes. Discover that our all-knowing, all-powerful God is a loving, relatable person. Learn how to commune with God more deeply. Expand your awareness of His greatness and presence.Worship Him with greater devotion and passion.Gain a greater understanding of why God created people.Know yourself better than ever before. "Yes, I am a person, it is the very core of who I am, but I am much greater and much more majestic. I am God!"

Learn how fasting can strengthen your faith and draw you closer to God, helping you to be a true overcomer in Christ. From the leading authority on fasting, this book gives you the biblical reasons for practicing this spiritual discipline, and introduces you to nine biblical fasts--each designed for a specific physical and spiritual outcome.

This careful five-view analysis helps evangelicals understand the Church Growth Movement's strengths and weaknesses and arrive at their own conclusions on issues that affect the future direction of the church.

Join three seasoned church-ministry experts on an insider's tour of the most innovative churches today! Discover a dozen types of innovation, each with profiles of congregations that have implemented that innovation. This is more than a show-and-tell tour, however. Each chapter offers a solid take-away for church leaders on how to learn and apply the appropriate innovation profiled. The authors also offer scripturally based assessments of both the positive and negatives implications of implementing each innovation, providing guidance and wisdom. There are many ways to present the gospel, and this timely book will serve as a springboard for church leaders scratching their heads and asking themselves, "What should we do next?" By learning from a dozen different church types, church leaders can become more intentional about exploring new directions and reaching more of the world for Christ.

This down-to-earth, inspirational training book by one of America's leading experts on teaching Sunday school consists of twenty-four "bite-sized" topics covering everything from motivation to gifting and teaching methods.

Towns reveals the power of prayer in this fascinating look at the Lord's Prayer. Each chapter examines a line from the prayer, revealing power points for every believer desiring a more dynamic prayer life. Towns says: "What would you say if you were ushered into the throne room of God with only one minute to request everything you needed, but didn't know how to put it into words? The Lord's Prayer includes everything you need to ask when you talk to God . . . it is a model prayer that teaches us how to pray."

For those who have ever stumbled over what to say while praying or for those who want their prayers to be more effective, How to Pray When You Don't Know What to Say offers clear guidance on the importance of prayer, a vast array of ways to approach God, why some prayers are not answered, how to deal with doubts about God's ability to answer prayer, what not to do when praying, and more. In his encouraging style, Elmer Towns doesn't induce guilt about not praying; rather, he makes readers want to drop to their knees in anticipation of meeting with the God of the universe. By following Towns's lead, your prayer life will never be the same.

Shed a spiritual light on some of the biggest problems facing people today: the need to put the role of money in a proper perspective and to solve financial problems. Elmer Towns states at the outset that this is not the primary purpose of fasting and prayer. Instead, it is all about knowing God. It is not about withdrawing prayer on an as-needed basis from some spiritual ATM kiosk. It is about meditation, studying the Scriptures, and communing with God. When we fast and pray in faith, asking for God's help and provision, He begins to teach us how to become good stewards of what He has provided. Chapter topics include "Fasting to Learn Stewardship," "Why We Have Money Problems," and "A Faith Approach to Fasting for Money." Once we understand why we struggle with money problems, we can do something about it with this practical step-by-step guide.

Elmer Towns's Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough has become must-reading as this powerful spiritual discipline of fasting has seen a revival among followers of Christ. Now Towns digs deeper into one of the most popular forms of fasting today, the Daniel Fast. With an emphasis on a healthy, simple diet, the Daniel Fast is named after the prophet Daniel who participated in a partial fast for spiritual purposes. Daniel was taken captive into Babylon when he was sixteen years old. The Babylonian king wanted the young prophet to help him administer his rule over the captive Jews--and he wanted to "Babylon-ize" Daniel, to make the young man of God more like him. The first step the king took in his campaign was to provide a sumptuous feast to tempt Daniel--food fit for a king-- basically fattening comfort foods. In response, the prophet refrained from the king's table, choosing instead to eat only vegetables and to drink only water. He honored God over the king. Dr. Elmer Towns introduces readers to the spiritual, physical, and mental basics of the Daniel Fast, coaching them through either a ten-day or twenty-one-day period of renewal, and he includes original Daniel Fast recipes created by executive chef John P. Perkins. Dr. Towns addresses practical questions, such as what to eat and when, as well as how to pray effectively. Readers will learn how to encounter God during their fast, how to worship through self-discipline, and how to pray for specific answers. They will also explore the role of weeping, repentance, and spiritual warfare in their life of faith. Daniel is a model to God's people of someone who chooses spiritual nourishment over bodily satisfaction, in The Daniel Fast for Spiritual Breakthrough, God's people can learn to follow his example.