Parakeets make delightful pets. We cage them or clip their wings to keep them where we want them. Scot McKnight contends that many, conservatives and liberals alike, attempt the same thing with the Bible. We all try to tame it. McKnight's The Blue Parakeet calls Christians to stop taming the Bible and to let it speak anew to our heart. McKnight challenges us to rethink how to read the Bible, not just to puzzle it together into some systematic belief but to see it as a Story that we're summoned to enter and to carry forward in our day.

A budgie, as the common parakeet is typically called, is the subject of this Complete Care Made Easy pet guide that presents new and experienced bird keepers with insight into every aspect of selecting, caring for, and maintaining well-behaved happy pet birds. Angela Davids has written an ideal introductory pet guide, with chapters on the characteristics of the irresistible budgie, the history of budgies in the wild, selection of a healthy, typical pet bird, housing and care, feeding, training, and health care. The selection chapter offers potential owners excellent advice about selection of the color and sex, suitability of the delicate budgie with families, children, and other pets. In the chapter on housing and care, the author discusses selection of the right cage, placement of the cage, and the purchase of toys, cups, perches, and more. A bird’s diet is critical to its ongoing health, and the chapter devoted to feeding the budgie gives the reader all the info he or she needs about choosing the best diet, different types of seeds, greens, fruits, veggies, grit, as well as human foods to avoid. The chapter “Training Time” addresses finger training, towel training, perch training, and offers an easy-to-follow primer on teaching a budgie to talk. The final two chapters of the book will be useful for bird fanciers interested in learning more about the breeding and the basic color variations and genetics of this perfect beginner’s bird. The book concludes with an appendix of bird societies, a glossary of terms, and a complete index.

"In this elegant narrative, celebrated naturalist Ted Floyd guides you through a year of becoming a better birder. Choosing 200 top avian species to teach key lessons, Floyd introduces a new, holistic approach to bird watching and shows how to use the tools of the 21st century to appreciate the natural world we inhabit together whether city, country or suburbs." -- From book jacket.

Well-known evangelical leaders from a broad range of denominational affiliations and ethnic diversity share their surprising journeys from a restrictive view about women in leadership to an open, inclusive view that recognizes a full shared partnership of leadership in the home and in the ministries of the church based on gifts not gender.

FIRST came the bestselling book. Then the popular blog. Now essential Christian formation for anyone between 16 and 22. The gravity point of a life before God is that his followers are to love God and love others with everything they have. Scot McKnight calls this "The Jesus Creed." Now, he's worked it out with high school and college students, seeking to show how this double commandment to love makes sense and gives shape to the moral lives of young adults. The Jesus Creed for Students aims to demonstrate a simple truth - that followers of Jesus, follow Jesus. (Also, its practical, filled with stories, and backed up and checked by youth pastors.)

“Make sure this new guide for living is on your shelf.” —Max Lucado This 15th anniversary of the bestselling classic The Jesus Creed invites us to rediscover the core of biblical Christianity: Loving God and Loving Others. Memorizing the Great Commandment is one thing, but living by it is quite another. One of today’s most engaging and sought-after Biblical scholars, Scot McKnight demystifies this ancient creed and reveals its power to transform the lives of believers today. He explores how Jesus connected the ancient Jewish commandments to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and strength” and to “Love your neighbor as yourself” to become the foundation of his ministry. In The Jesus Creed, his seminal work, Scot invites followers of Jesus to step back into the world in which Jesus lived and to hear his core teachings like we’ve never heard them before. And just like his disciples, we discover how praying the Jesus Creed will close the gap between the people we are right now and the people God created us to be. In The Jesus Creed, you will: Learn about the identities, hopes and struggles of the people closest to Jesus – Joseph and Mary, John the Baptist, Peter, and John Discover how Jesus's radical acts of compassion restore those who are marginalized, oppressed, or grieving Discover how the Jesus Creed can shape society to grow in justice, faith, and joy Discover how the Jesus Creed deepens our love for Jesus, leading to healing, forgiveness and wholeness in our personal lives

This book explores the role that scripture plays in spiritual formation. Mulholland examines obstacles often encountered in spiritual reading and introduces a new approach to reading that will enliven the scriptures. He also compares informational reading (reading to be informed) with formational reading (reading to be spiritually formed). Readers are released to God's initiative, allowing the scripture to form a spiritual life inside themselves.