Unpack the secrets of strong, thriving communities and relationships.When we enter relationships with the illusion that people are normal, we resist the truth that "normal" does not exist and that the very idea of normality runs counter to Scripture. We enter an endless attempt to fix others, control them, or pretend that they are what they're not. One of the great marks of maturity is to accept the fact that everybody comes "as is."In Everybody's Norma...

Is there really any hope for a spiritual way of living that actually works?Admiration, comfort, love, power, success, pleasure, escape, control: we're all addicted to something, whether we realize it or not.In this deeply heartfelt book, author John Ortberg offers a guide for transformation when we know something needs to change but we can't do it on our own. Rooted in the teachings of Jesus and using the framework of AAs 12 steps as a guide, Ortberg offers...

In this thought-provoking look at what's really important in life, John Ortberg uses games as a metaphor to help us recognize and play for life's real prize: being rich toward God.Told with humor and wisdom by this bestselling author, pastor, and game-strategist, When the Game is Over It All Goes Back in the Box reminds us that everything on earth belongs to God, and everything we "win" is just on loan. Being Master of the Board is not the point; playing b...

Something in us is waiting—for what, we don't know. Something different? Something better?For Christians, perhaps the deepest expression of what we're waiting for is found in the phrase "eternal life." But what is eternal life? Why do we want it? And how do we know if we have it?In Eternity Is Now in Session, pastor and bestselling author John Ortberg dispels the myth that eternal life is something way out in outer space that we can only hope to ex...

The Me I Want to Be will help you discover spiritual vitality like never before as you learn to "live in the flow of the spirit."Why does spiritual growth seem so difficult?God's vision for your life is not just that you are saved by grace, but that you also learn to live by grace, flourishing with the Spirit flowing through you. And this book will show how God's perfect vision for you starts with a powerful promise: All those who ...

I’d Like You More if You Were More like Me takes on one of life’s most important questions: How can I get closer to God and other people?We were created for deep connections. When people have deep connections, says John Ortberg, they win in life. When they don’t have deep connections, they cannot win in life. I’d Like You More if You Were More like Me offers help in overcoming one of the biggest obstacles to making deep connections: the fact that we’re so different. Different from ...

The child in Bethlehem would grow up to be a friend of sinners, not a friend of Rome. He would spend his life with the ordinary and the unimpressive. He would pay deep attention to lepers and cripples, to the blind and the beggar, to prostitutes and fishermen, to women and children. He would announce the availability of a kingdom different from Herod’s. A kingdom where blessings—full value and worth with God—was now conferred on the poor in spirit and the meek and the persecuted.Pe...

2016 Christian Book Award finalist (Nonfiction category)Very rarely in the Bible does God command someone to "Stay." He opens a door, and then he invites us to walk through it—into the unknown. And how we choose to respond will ultimately determine the life we will lead and the person we will become. In fact, to fail to embrace the open door is to miss the work God has made for us to do.In All the Places to Go . . . How Will You Know?, bestselling a...

In this refreshingly candid look at what it takes to live a life of faith, John Ortberg takes an honest look at the misgivings and uncertainties that often shake our beliefs as we navigate through the highs and lows of life.Reflecting on his own bouts with doubt and uncertainty, Ortberg shares with readers his discovery that, rather than being a contradiction in terms, doubt and faith may be very much a part of each other. He challenges readers to consider how doubt can motivate us...

What Does It Mean to Be Saved?Some people think that salvation is merely about meeting the minimal entrance requirements needed to get into heaven when they die. But that’s not how Jesus talked about it. Rightly understood, salvation is an invitation to know God and to experience His presence, favor, and power starting right here on earth. In How Do I Know if I’m Really Saved, bestselling author John Ortberg:Dispels the myth that eternal life is something we can only hope to ...

What if the most important word is the one in the middle? We often think of doubt as the opposite of faith, but could it actually strengthen our relationship with God? According to John Ortberg, best-selling author and pastor, the very nature of faith requires the presence of uncertainty. In this refreshingly candid look at a life of faith, he traces the line between belief and unbelief: less a dividing line between hostile camps than a razor’s edge that runs through every soul. His findin...

The day after Jesus' death, whatever small mark he made on the world seemed destined to disappear. Instead, his impact on human history has been unparalleled, leading believers and nonbelievers alike to ask, Who Is This Man?In Who Is This Man, bestselling author John Ortberg explores the paradox of Jesus, history's most familiar figure while simultaneously the man no one knows. Who Is This Man traces Jesus' incredible life and legacy from...