Category Archives: Blog

Book Review: Pulling back the Shades

23 March 2015Blog, Book ReviewsChristian Books

Erotica, intimacy and the longings of a woman’s heart

Authors: Dannah Gresh & Juli Slattery

Christian women don’t have to choose between being sexual and spiritual. They have legitimate longings that the Church has been afraid to talk about, and books like Fifty Shades of Grey exploit. Yet spiritually and sexually were never meant to be mutually exclusive. Whether you are single or married, sexually dead or just looking to revive your sex life, Pulling Back the Shades will address your desire to be both sexual AND spiritual. With solid Biblical teaching and transparent stories, trusted authors Dannah Gresh and Juli Slattery offer an unflinching look at the most personal questions women ask. The book offers practical advice for women to address five core longings:

to be cherished by a man
to be protected by a strong man
to rescue a man
to be sexually alive
to escape reality

God designed women with these longings and has a plan to satisfy them. It’s time for women to identify their intimate longings and God-honouring ways to fulfil them. Open the pages of this book to discover the satisfaction you deeply longed for.

CBD PRICE: R160.00

Look out for our Wednesday Blog in which Tim Challies examines 7 lessons we can learn from Fifty Shades of Grey.

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20th Birthday Celebration: March Promotion

20 March 2015Blog, PromotionsChristian Books

CBD IS CELEBRATING ITS 20^TH BIRTHDAY THIS YEAR. SO EVERY MONTH WE WILL BE OFFERING 20 BOOKS AT SPECIAL, NEVER-TO-BE-REPEATED PRICES. STAY CONNECTED TO OUR BLOG SITES FOR OTHER AMAZING DEALS.

BOOK TITLE	AUTHOR	PUBLISHER	RETAIL PRICE	DISCOUNT	BIRTHDAY PRICE
Why we love the Church	DeYoung & Kluck	Moody	R185.71	43%	R105.00
Man of Faith – George W Bush	Aikman, David	Word Publishing	R185.71	47%	R100.00
Windows on the World from the Word	Coffey, Ian	Bible Reading Fellowship	R100.00	50%	R50
Jesus Gospel or Da Vinci Code	Edwards, Brian	Day One	R50.00	80%	R10.00
New Bible Dictionary		IVP	R628.57	50%	R315.00
Love and Respect (Geared for Growth)	Potter, C M	Christian Focus Publications	R50.00	50%	R25.00
Help! I’m a slave to food	McCoy, Shannon	Day One	R21.43	53%	R10.00
Week in the Life of MAF	Howat, Irene	Christian Focus Publications	R157.14	53%	R75.00
Christianity Explored (DVD)		Good Book Company	R621.43	75%	R155.00
Help! My Teen is Rebellious	Coats, Dave & Judi	Day One	R21.43	54%	R10.00
Life God Rewards Devotional	Wilkinson, Bruce	Multnomah	R30.00	67%	R10.00
Hitch-Hikers Guide to Heaven	Blanchard, John	Evangelical Press	R185.71	52%	R90.00
Power of Humility	Kendall, R T	Charisma House	R271.43	45%	R150.00
Doorways from the Word to the World	Coffey, Ian	Bible Reading Fellowship	R100.00	50%	R50.00
Kings, Pharaohs, Bandits	Edwards & Anderson	Day One	R28.57	48%	R15.00
Human Cloning – right or wrong	Davies, Eryl	Evangelical Press	R16.57	40%	R10.00
Five Points	Piper, John	Christian Focus Publications	R135.71	48%	R70.00
Family Money Matters	Temple, John	Day One	R85.71	48%	R45.00
Lit!	Reinke, Tony	Crossway	R214.29	51%	R105.00
Memoirs of Ordinary Pastor	Carson, D A	Crossway	R185.71	52%	R90.00

These prices are valid until 31st March 2015 or while stocks last.

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Moments with a Mom: Encore of the first-time mom (part 2)

18 March 2015Blog, DevotionalsChristian Books

Candice

Candice is a busy wife to Matt and mom of Noah (5) and Tyler (3 going on 21). Candice also works part-time at our Rosebank Store of Christian Book Discounters. In her spare time Candice writes for her own blog and is a travel consultant.

Candice shares more thoughts about her experience so far and what she has learnt so far in Park 2. For Part one of this blog click here…

Eating sand, running in the muddy puddles in a Spiderman suit or wearing your gum boots to the mall is cool. Cultivate the explorer in your children. Let them experience. Let them get dirty. Don’t be a mom that stops them from trying new things.
Be an example to your kids. I’ve often found myself disciplining my children and then taking a step back and realising that I do the same thing, yet I tell them not to do it. I heard it said that life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a mom. We’re the blueprint they work off in learning how to react, how to behave, how to deal with emotions, how to express emotions.
We should always have the courage to admit when we’re wrong and say sorry.
We can NEVER hug, kiss or tell them you love them enough. Never stop.
Let your kids surprise you. They are more capable than we think. That happened to me on Sunday with Noah at Sunday school. I expected him to come running back to me and have me walking in holding his hand. Alas. I was shut down! 🙂 Give your kids the opportunities to show how they’ve grown, even if that means they don’t need you as much anymore. Be proud of that. They know you’re always there when you need them but have the courage to let them go. It’s harder than it sounds, believe me.
Be honest about your struggles. Other moms will appreciate that.
This is the MOST important thing I can tell you ~ always remember, you are their mother first and their friend second. That might be choosing the harder road sometimes and it hurts but you’re their mother first, before you’re their friend.
The birth of a child is also the birth of a mother. Miraculous as it is, motherhood is ours at every stage and at every age. Motherhood is difficult. I sometimes feel like loads of moms pretend like it isn’t. Believe me, it is. On the days that you think you just aren’t shaping up, remember this:

“ No matter how busy or difficult your life gets, never forget: To your little people, your kisses stop pain, your voice defeats monsters and your hugs make the world right again.”

Nobody can ever take that away from you… ever.

Motherhood has been my greatest character shaper. Funny how the littlest people teach us the greatest things. What a privilege to have a front row seat ~ whether you’re a first time mom of a newborn, or a first time mom of a 5 year old like me. Either way, we’re both rookies thrown in the deep end, and that’s where we learn the most.

See you in the trenches, fellow mommy warriors. Chin up. One day we’ll drink HOT tea together and wish our babies fitted in our arms again. At least we know for sure, they’ll never outgrow our hearts.

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Book Review: Made for More

16 March 2015Blog, Book ReviewsChristian Books

By Hannah Anderson

In an uncertain world, we crave the security of knowing exactly who we are and where we belong. But too often as women, we try to find this safety in our roles and relationships, our professional accomplishments, or our picture-perfect homes. And as we do, our souls shrink smaller and smaller.

The truth is that you are made for more. Because you are made in God’s image, these things will never be large enough to hold you. You will only ever know yourself-only ever be yourself-as you find your identity in HimIn Made for More, Hannah Anderson invites you to re-imagine yourself, not simply as a set of roles and categories, but as a person destined to live in the fullness of God Himself. Starting with our first identity as image bearers, she shows how Jesus Christ makes us people who can reflect His nature through our unique callings. She also explores how these deeper truths affect the practical realities that we face as women-how does being an image bearer shape our pursuit of education, our work, and even our desire for holistic lives?

So come and discover what it means to truly find yourself in Him. Because when you do, when His nature defines everything about you, you will finally be free to live as you were meant to live. You will finally be free to live in His image.

CBD PRICE: R160.00 (limited stock available)

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20% Discount on all Shopping Cart Purchases

13 March 2015Blog, PromotionsChristian Books

Christian Book Discounters is offering a whopping 20% discount on all orders placed on our online shopping cart from 13th -15th March inclusive.

To redeem your discount, please insert “20th Birthday” for the coupon code.

Please note that this offer applies to all our regular-priced stock items and excludes books already on promotion.

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Setting my kids up for Salvation

11 March 2015Blog, DevotionalsChristian Books

By Tim Challies

I trust God with my soul. I do. I have no other hope in life and death but the confidence that I am in Christ for all eternity. I trust God with my soul, but for some reason have a much tougher time trusting him with the souls of my kids. I wonder if you can identify with the struggle.

I am convinced that God saved me by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. I did nothing to merit this salvation. There is nothing in me that turned God’s eye in my direction. There is no vestige of goodness that compelled him to look my way. I was not seeking him when he began seeking me. It was all of his grace without even the smallest bit of my merit. I added nothing to my salvation but the sin that made it necessary.

I believe all this about myself, but somehow find it more difficult to believe when it comes to my children. Now it’s not quite as simple as you might think: I have seen enough of my kids to know that they suffer from the same total depravity as their father. I know they have no merit to bring before the Lord. No, my problem is deeper than that, and a little more difficult to root out.

When it comes to my kids, I seem to want to believe that God’s action is dependent upon my action. I believe that for God to save my kids, I first need to do the right things. If I want God to save them, I need to cross the spiritual t’s and dot the spiritual i’s. And if I don’t, well, their salvation may just be questionable. When it comes to their eternal destiny, it’s like he isn’t looking to their good deeds, but to mine, as if they will be justified by my merit or condemned by my lack of merit.

I don’t actually articulate this, but I see it trying to manifest itself in my life. Read More…

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Equip Book of the Month: March

9 March 2015Blog, Book Reviews, Equip Book ClubChristian Books

Lila (a novel)

Author: Marilynne Robinson

This novel is set in the fictional Plains town of Gilead, Iowa. Lila tells the story of a young girl, homeless and alone after years of roaming the countryside, who steps inside a small-town church and ignites a romance and a debate that will reshape her life. She becomes the wife of a minister, John Ames, and begins a new existence while trying to make sense of the life that preceded her newfound security.

Neglected as a toddler, Lila was rescued by Doll, a canny young drifter, and brought up by her in a hardscrabble childhood. Together they crafted a life on the run, living hand to mouth with nothing but their sisterly bond and a ragged blade to protect them. Despite bouts of petty violence and moments of desperation, their shared life was laced with moments of joy and love. When Lila arrives in Gilead, she struggles to reconcile the life of her makeshift family and their days of hardship with the gentle Christian worldview of her husband.

“The value of an exceptional novel lies in its ability to embed itself in your memory long after you have finished reading it. Its value is measured in how often you find yourself thinking in the voices of the characters, or thinking through the ideas, or remembering its images. A great novel has its after-image in other books, films, people, and events. A truly great novel has a spectral presence that will follow you for days, weeks, months, even years.” Equip Bookclub Blogspot

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Marilynne Robinson is the author of the novels Home, which was a Finalist for the National Book Award, Gilead, which won the Pulitzer Prize, and Housekeeping, which was also a Finalist for the National Book Award, and four books of nonfiction, When I Was a Child I Read Books, Mother Country, The Death of Adam, and Absence of Mind. She teaches at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop.

CBD PRICE: R315.00 (Hardcover)

SPECIAL EQUIP PRICE: R250.00 (valid until 5th April 2015 or while stocks last)

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Audio Books

8 March 2015Blog, PromotionsChristian Books

Do you struggle to find time to read books? How about trying one of our great audio books instead? You can listen to them just about anywhere… on you way to work, in the bath or making supper, the opportunities are endless.

Here are just some of the list of audio CD’s that we stock. For a full list of titles available, please visit our on-line shopping cart.

These prices are valid whilst stocks last.

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Book Review: Unbroken

2 March 2015Blog, Book ReviewsChristian Books

A World Ware 11 Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption : By Laura Hillenbrand

In boyhood, Louis Zamperini was an incorrigible delinquent. As a teenager, he channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics. But when World War II began, the athlete became an airman, embarking on a journey that led to a doomed flight on a May afternoon in 1943.

When his Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean, against all odds, Zamperini survived, adrift on a foundering life raft. Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater. Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion. His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will.

Appearing in paperback for the first time, with twenty arresting new photos and an extensive Q&A with the author, Unbroken is an unforgettable testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit, brought vividly to life by the author.

Hailed as the top nonfiction book of the year by Time magazine; Winner of the Los -Angeles Times Book Prize for biography and the Indies Choice Adult Nonfiction Book of the Year award.

CBD PRICE: 210.00

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Three great new small group studies by The Gospel Coalition

27 February 2015Blog, Special PromotionsChristian Books

The Gospel Coalition is a fellowship of evangelical churches deeply committed to renewing their faith in the gospel of Christ and reforming their ministry practices to confirm fully to the Scriptures. They want to generate a unified effort among all people – an effort that is zealous to honour Christ and multiply His disciples, joining in the true coalition for Jesus.

The Gospel of Luke from the outside in: By David Morlan & D A Carson

Luke’s Gospel not only provides an accurate account of Jesus, but also the pathway to get to know Him personally. Because Luke knew what it was like to be on the outside of God’s people he clearly sympathizes with outsiders. As a result, the implications of the message of Jesus in Luke’s Gospel particularly resonates with those who are on the outside looking in. This 12 week study calls us to repentance and re-orientates our relationship with God, with Jesus residing at the very center.

Member Book: R160.00

DVD Leader Kit: R670.00

Sermon on the Mount: By Jen Wilkin

In his sweeping depiction of Kingdom citizenship, Jesus utters some of the most familiar passages in all of Scripture. Most of us have only encountered the Sermon on the Mount in fragments, considering its subdivisions as complete teachings in their own right. But this nine session study navigates these 3 chapters in Matthew as they were originally heard: as one cohesive, well-ordered message, intended to challenge us to think differently about what it means to be a follower of Jesus and a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Member Book: R160.00

DVD Leader Kit: R670.00

Rebuild: A study in Nehemiah: By Kathleen Nielson & D A Carson

This 8 week study takes readers on a journey through one of the most compelling Old Testament narratives. As Nehemiah leads the returned Jewish exiles to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, it is clear God is watching over His people. God made promises to his people that reach back to the beginning of the biblical story and reach forward all the way to us today – Nehemiah tells a crucial part of the story of redemptive history – our history. It points us forward to the One in whom we can draw near to God … Jesus.

Member Book: R160.00

DVD Leader Kit: R670.00

Available on our on-line shopping cart and selective CBD Stores countrywide.

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Let’s be Frank: Thought for the Day

25 February 2015Blog, DevotionalsChristian Books

Frank Retief was pastor at St James Church Cape Town for 31 years, having planted the church in 1968 with his wife Beulah. He became the Presiding Bishop of the Church of England in South Africa until he retired in 2010. Frank remains active in ministry through preaching, teaching, pastoral work & writing, and has authored a number of books.

Your Sins are Forgiven…

Mark 2:5 “Son, your sins are forgiven”

There can be no greater need in the human heart and conscience than to hear that our sins are forgiven. So many of us live with shattered lives and broken dreams, because of past mistakes, errors in judgement, hasty words, bad actions and perverse deeds.Regrets and fears sometimes stalk the conscience of even the very best of human beings. After her death in September 1997 Time magazine published a cover story on Mother Theresa entitled “Mother Theresa’s Crisis of Faith”. In this article written ten years after her death and quoting from her correspondence, they showed that even such a highly revered person was plagued by doubts about her relationship with God. This only showed how human she was and many of us can identify with her strugglesHow wonderful then to hear these the best of words from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ “……. Your sins are forgiven”! In the story in Mark’s Gospel the man who was ill was not presented to Jesus to have his sins forgiven. He was a paralytic and his friends frantically tore a hole in the roof to let the man down in front of Jesus to be healed. But the Saviour is wiser than the wisest of men and perceived a greater need in this man than simply the healing of his limbs, great though that need undoubtedly was. There was a much greater need. He needed his sins forgiven. This is a great reminder to us that sometimes the outward symptoms we experience occasionally mask a greater need. Often when people are struggling for instance with a persistent depression or other troubling affliction it is because the prevailing problem is not the chief problem. There is often a hidden need. Forgiveness is needed for some sin or failure buried deep away in past memories.

The thing for us to notice is that this carpenter from Nazareth not only had the insight to know this about us but also has the power and authority to forgive us because of who He was and what He came to do for us.

Perhaps your conscience is heavy as you read this. What can you do? You can turn to Jesus in full confidence that not only does He receive all who come to Him but that He has the full authority to forgive all our sins forever.

Prayer: “Lord, see my heart, know my need. Please forgive me for all my past sins. Know my heart and set my conscience free and may your name be glorified. Amen”

Follow Frank Retief’s daily blog on http://frankretief.co.za/

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Book Review: One way Love

23 February 2015Blog, Book ReviewsChristian Books

By Tullian Tchividjian

Real life is long on law and short on grace. The demands never stop, the failures pile up, and fear sets in. Life requires many things from us- a stable marriage, successful children, a certain quality of life. Anyone living inside the guilt, anxiety, and uncertainty of daily life knows that the weight of life is heavy. We are all in need of some relief.

Bestselling author Tullian Tchividjian is convinced our exhausted world needs a fresh encounter with God’s inexhaustible grace. His one-way love. Sadly, however, Christianity is perceived as being a vehicle for good behaviour and clean living, and the judgments that result from them rather than the only recourse for those who have failed over and over and over again. Tchividjian convincingly shows that Christianity is not about good people getting better. If anything, it is good news for bad people coping with their failure to be good.

In this book, Tchividjian calls the church back to the heart of the Christian faith – grace. It is time for us to abandon our play-it-safe religion, and to get drunk on grace. It goes against everything we have ever known and shatters every boundary we have every put in place. But if you dare to receive it, your life will never ever be the same. One way Love powerfully explores the depth and beauty of God’s grace in a way that will leave you feeling lighter and more loved.

CBD PRICE: R185.00

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