We’ve all been there. Rock bottom. The end of our rope. The last straw. During hard times, it often seems like the only option is to throw in the towel. In Hope for Hard Times, author Magrey deVega examines the lives of the great biblical prophets Elijah and Elisha and reveals a consistent message in their stories: Don’t give up, and don’t lose hope. Trust that God will help you find a way. When you look closely at the accounts of Elijah and Elisha from 1 Kings 17 to 2 Kings 8, you will find amazing stories of God’s provision. God provides for Elijah, as he faces down opposition in a mountaintop showdown and when he feels alone and ready to give up while hiding in a cave listening for God’s still, small voice. God provides for Elisha, when he brings healing to Naaman and when he is surrounded by enemies and praying for spiritual eyes to be opened to hope. There is hope for you in hard times. Your story of hurt, heartache, and hopelessness has been heard, and God has a message for you. Read these stories, pray through them, and listen as you receive encouragement and guidance for whatever you are facing today. Open your eyes, and open your hands. For just like ravens at the Brook Cherith, God is with you, giving you everything you need. Components for this 4-session study will include a book, leader guide, and four streaming videos available online featuring Magrey outlining each topic in an accessible and engaging way. Sessions Include: When the Odds Seem Against You (1 Kings 17 and 18) When You Feel Down and Out (1 Kings 18-21) When Life Takes a Turn (2 Kings 2) When All Seems Lost (2 Kings 4-8)

In hard times, it is easy to feel as if there is no hope. But Christ's work on the cross gives reason for hope even in the darkest of times.

Life is hard. And there are all sorts of pitfalls along the way. Nowhere do we find a more overwhelming chronicle of hard times than in the Bible itself. The Old Testament is a long record of the disappointments and disasters that came upon the people of Israel. Within every Scripture story of God's discipline, we find God's unceasing redemption. Within every story of man's stubbornness or selfishness that leads to strife, we find God's loving grace that leads us back to safety. God doesn't just take pity on us; he empowers us. But only when we cease to rely on our own strength can we discover that God's strength is always there for us. Theologian and TV host Scott Hahn shows us how we can use the Bible to deal with hard times, to get over hard times, and yes, even to rejoice in hard times.

Arthur Rothstein, Russell Lee, John Vachon, and Marion Post Wolcott became some of the United States' best-known photographers through their pictures of Depression-era America. Their assignment, as one of their associates described it, was to have "a long look at the whole vast, complicated rural U.S. landscape with all that was built on it and all those who built and wrecked and worked in it and bore kids and dragged them up and played games and paraded and picnicked and suffered and died and were buried in it." In Montana the four photographers traveled to forty of the state's fifty-six counties, creating a rich record of the many facets of the Depression and recovery: rural and urban, agricultural and industrial, work and play, hard times and the promise of a brighter future. The photographers captured the dignity of Montanans as they struggled to scratch out livings from dried-up fields, nurture families in the shadows of Butte head frames, and foster communities on the vast expanses of the northern plains. Hope in Hard Times, features over 140 Farm Security Administration photographs to illustrate the story of the Great Depression in Montana and the experiences of the photographers who documented it. Today these striking images, from cities like Butte to small towns like Terry, present an unforgettable portrait of a little-studied period in the history of Montana. Selected from the Farm Security Administration Collection at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., the photographs in Hope in Hard Times offer viewers an unparalleled look at life in Montana in the years preceding the United States' entry into World War II.

Of the many recipients of federal support during the Great Depression, the citizens of Norvelt, Pennsylvania, stand out as model reminders of the vital importance of New Deal programs. Hoping to transform their desperate situation, the 250 families of this western Pennsylvania town worked with the federal government to envision a new kind of community that would raise standards of living through a cooperative lifestyle and enhanced civic engagement. Their efforts won them a nearly mythic status among those familiar with Norvelt’s history. Hope in Hard Times explores the many transitions faced by those who undertook this experiment. With the aid of the New Deal, these residents, who hailed from the hardworking and underserved class that Jacob Riis had called the “other half” a generation earlier, created a middle-class community that would become an exemplar of the success of such programs. Despite this, many current residents of Norvelt—the children and grandchildren of the first inhabitants—oppose government intervention and support political candidates who advocate scrutinizing and even eliminating public programs. Authors Timothy Kelly, Margaret Power, and Michael Cary examine this still-unfolding narrative of transformation in one Pennsylvania town, and the struggles and successes of its original residents, against the backdrop of one of the most ambitious federal endeavors in U.S. history.

"Powerful and life-altering encouragement for us all."--Louie Giglio In this inspiring book, Matt and Beth Redman draw on their experiences as well as those of others, exploring how to offer praise even in the face of hardship and pain. Focusing on the psalms, many of which were written out of struggle, they show how difficult or tragic circumstances--and our choices--can propel us toward God or away from him, build up our faith or break it. Learn how to ride out the storms of life with a cry of "blessed be your name" on your lips.

In a time of uncertainty and devastation--from pandemics to environmental catastrophe--a call to action for finding beauty, creating art, and healing in community. When a beloved place is decimated by physical damage, many may hit the donate button or call their congressperson. But award-winning author Trebbe Johnson argues that we need new methods for coping with these losses and invites readers to reconsider what constitutes “worthwhile action.” She discusses real wounded places ranging from weapons-testing grounds at Eglin Air Force Base, to Appalachian mountain tops destroyed by mining. These stories, along with tools for community engagement—ceremony, vigil, apology, and the creation of art with on-site materials—show us how we can find beauty in these places and discover new sources of meaning and community.