: TheThoughtfulChristian.com

The history of Valentine's Day is as mysterious as the anonymous flower sender! We don't know the actual origin of the day or even which saint named Valentine is honored.Today we celebrate romantic love on this day. Yet there are many different kinds...

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The Bible is filled with stories of marriage and children and chapter after chapter ■on who begat whom, but in the midst of laying out the Christian family tree, ■romance has not been forgotten. But to limit ourselves to seeking only romance, ■we may miss the opportunity to find fulfilling love in its many other forms.

Make Love Not War
A History of Valentine's Day

By Stephens G. Lytch

If someone told you that our contemporary Valentine's Day was rooted in an ancient ruler's need to recruit soldiers for battle, a subsequent ban on the bond of holy matrimony, and the execution of a priest named Valentine, well, one might wonder wher...

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$7.50

The Meaning of Thanksgiving

By Martha Bettis-Gee

How will you spend this Thanksgiving? In a traditional way? What does that mean, and where did that tradition come from? Do we celebrate Thanksgiving as it was first celebrated? Do we even know how it was first celebrated? This one-session study tell...

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$7.50

Learn to LIVE* in 21 Days (*Listen, Immerse, View It Wider, and Explore)

New Year's Resolutions

By Jason Byassee

Is there anything inherently religious about the ways we celebrate New Year's? Should there be? In this one-session study, author Jason Byassee shares some ways Christians might celebrate New Year's. The Leader's Guide invites participants to reflect...

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$7.50

Has the joy of Christmas being replaced by the chores of the holidays? How did ■we let that happen? In this study, participants will trace the history of Christmas, ■learn to recognize the secular elements of the Christian holiday, and consider ■ways in which they can make their celebration of Christmas less stressful, more ■fulfilling, and more spiritually meaningful as a Christian celebration.

Reclaiming Christmas
Seeking an Alternative

By Greg Garrett

If you're anything like most Americans, the upcoming Christmas season will be a mixed blessing-along with time with friends and family and at least some attempt to focus on "the reason for the season," you will probably find yourself eating too much,...

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$7.50

Why do we so often make mythical heroes out of people of faith like Saint ■Patrick? (And what's with all those shamrocks, anyway?!)

St. Patrick's Day
A Study for Adults

By Martha Bettis-Gee

For most people, knowledge of the origins of St. Patrick's Day are limited to a story based largely on myth and folk tales, but behind those traditions is the story of the patron saint of Ireland. Under the surface of the traditional celebrations of ...

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$7.50

Explore the history of the patron saint of Ireland, his contributions to the growth of ■Christianity, and his continuing relevance today. (And what's with all those ■shamrocks, anyway?!)

St. Patrick's Day
A Study for Youth

By Martha Bettis-Gee

This youth study offers an excellent opportunity to explore the history and myth behind St Patrick's Day, and to help today's youth make connections between the celebration of the holiday and a meaningful observance of the holy day.Although this sess...

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$7.50

Trick or Treat
What's Halloween About?

By Stephens G. Lytch

How should Christians respond to Halloween? What are the origins of Halloween, and is there any connection to All Saints' Day? This one-session study explains the evolution of Halloween and the traditions of the holiday so that Christians may examine...

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$7.50

Halloween--pagan holiday or harmless fun? Can we reclaim the connection ■between Halloween and All Saints' Day?

Trick or Treat
What Youth Should Know about Halloween

By Martha Miller

Traditionally, Halloween is a time for ghosts and goblins and all things creepy! After all, most people like a good scare every once in a while. Unfortunately, for many of our youth Halloween also represents an excuse to dabble in activities that may...

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$7.50

Turkey Day or Thanksgiving?
Rethinking Gratitude

By Martha Miller

Who doesn't love Thanksgiving? For many of us it means a four-day weekend, great food, and annual marathons of football and family. But other than the few moments spent saying a blessing before the big meal, the concept of giving thanks on Thanksgivi...

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$7.50