You can find many of the books listed in the Bibliography at the end of this topic list for sale in our store on the website.

Divorce, Loneliness, & Singleness: (3) (4)
According to the 2000 U.S. Census the average age in America for a first marriage is 26.  In 1970, the age was 22.  Childbearing is now frequently put off for 8-10 years after the marriage has begun.  Over 93 million people in the US are single, for whatever reason.  Approximately 20 million are divorced, another 13.5 million are widowed, and another 60 million have never married.  Singles make up slightly less than on half of the adult population.  By the end of the 21st century, it is projected that singles will make up the majority of the adult population.  The Census Bureau projects that every man and woman alive today can expect to live more years single than married.
 
How do we navigate the destructive waters of divorce?  Can we avoid the hazards of bitterness, anger, resentment?  How do we cope with singleness in a couple’s world?  What do we do with the loneliness and feelings of aloneness? What do we do with our longings and desires?  How do we understand the sense of guilt and know if we are forgiven?  How do we reach out to a loved one or friend who is single or divorced?

Marriage – Being Unequally Yoked (Spiritually Unbalanced):  (5)
Many Christians are in unequally yoked (spiritually unbalanced) marriages, struggling to deal with the disappointment, tension, and heartache of living in this situation.  Maybe you and your spouse came from different religious backgrounds or beliefs.  Maybe your spouse disowned his or her beliefs after many year and now you are confused and bewildered.  Or maybe you found Christianity after marriage and your spouse didn’t.  You can still be fruitful and fulfilled in an unbalanced relationship, but how…………..?
 
Are you in such a relationship or are you concerned about a child or loved one who is?  Are you concerned about someone who is about to enter in to an unbalanced union?  You may even be in the late season of your life and looking to be married, considering “Missionary Dating”.
What can you do?  Come and find encouragement and challenge because “Pain is inevitable, but misery is optional”.

Relationships:  (6)
Relationships influence and define who we are.  When our relationships are strong, we feel strong and able to tackle life’s issues.  Whether we are talking parent-child, husband-wife, friend to friend, or adult daughter and mother, it doesn’t matter.  The principles are the same for all relationships.  Truths that will keep your relationships healthy and growing involve identifying family patterns, letting go of trying to change others and knowing how to repair relationships quickly.  What are these principles and, without feeling condemned, how can we understand why we have difficulty with some of our relationships.  Come and discover the secrets to healthy relationships.

Anger:  (7) (8) (9)
We all face situations each day that evoke energy we express as anger such as a slow driver in front of us, the loss of a job, a health crisis, misunderstandings, and of course, large issues like a divorce, a natural disaster, etc.  We find some interesting ways to talk about our anger with ourselves and with others:  “I am boiling mad.”  “Who does he/she this they are?”  “I am so stupid!”  
 
Anger is often a misunderstood emotion.  When we experience anger, we find it hard to separate the thoughts, feelings or emotions, and behaviors that we experience during this intense energy.
 
What exactly is Anger?  How does this process happen?  What is the truth? What can I do?  Can I help someone else who is stuck in an angry cycle?

Depression:  (10)
Are you struggling, often sleep-deprived and tired, hurting from a deep sense of failure, or often thinking of how much you’d like to be out of this life?  Are you concerned about someone else who is depressed?  And are you seeking to understand and help them. Or are you trying to learn about depression because you live with someone who is depressed?
 
This is what you will learn - What is depression?  What are the various forms of depression?  What are the symptoms?  What does depression look like?  I’m depressed - What should I do?  I know someone who is depressed – how should I respond to them?

Making Peace With Your Thighs: (and various other body parts):  (11)
Hollywood’s disorder has become America’s disease.  From actresses to housewives, body obsession is eating away at women’s souls and causing anxiety from middle school to mid-life.  It’s time to stop obsessing and make peace with your thighs or any other body part that has led you to feel inadequate.  Learn to resist cultural prescriptions of the feminine ideal and embrace your uniqueness.  You can create a new space – a friendlier inner environment in which to live – one that emphasizes grace, not judgment;  one that has the strength to overcome negative thoughts and anxious feelings; and one that provides hope and not despair.

Addictions:  (1) (12)
The words addiction or dependency can refer to the use of a substance (like food, alcohol, legal and/or illegal drugs, and others).  Or it can refer to the practice of a behavior (like shoplifting, gambling, pornography use, compulsive spending, TV watching, and others).  Or it can involve a problem relationship with another person – we call these “codependences’”.
 
What is an addiction or life-controlling issue?  How does an issue become a trap?  Who suffer with these issues?  Where does a person get lasting help?  Are you caught in one of these or some other addictive behavior?  Have you tried a “12 Step Program” and it didn’t work for you?  Maybe you have a loved one, spouse, or friend who is caught up and suffering. Come to a “Get Growing” conference and learn that there is healing and hope that works.

Abuse:  (13) (14)
Abuse is difficult to define because the term covers so many kind of physical and psychological maltreatment.
 
Violence and abuse, especially in the home, are increasingly being exposed.  Media attention and public outcries have riveted attention on child neglect and abuse, sexual violence, psychological maltreatment of children, rape, mate beating, mistreatment of the elderly, abandonment (both emotional and physical), and others.
 
Do you have an informed understanding of this topic?  Do you know someone who could use your help because of abuse in their lives?  Are you suffering from abuse now or from a past of abuse?

The Illusion of Control:  (15)
Are you a perfectionist who blames yourself whenever things work out less than 100% right?  Are you constantly telling yourself, “If only I would have done “x” or “y”, everything would be fine, or, “Things would be okay if I had just said/done/thought/prayed the right thing…”  Are you finding yourself increasingly depressed, with a profound sense of failure?  Have you tried to work on your problems, perhaps even with a counselor, but seem to get stuck when you try to let yourself off the hook?  Are you troubled by all the problems surrounding you, no matter how little you’ve contributed to them?  Come to a “Get Growing” Conference and find out the answers to these and other questions.

Abortion:  (16)
Abortion is the legal right of every woman in America.  According to Planned Parenthood, Christians choose it as often as non-believers.  Is it a sin, and does abortion take a life?  These questions may haunt the heart broken by abortion, but they also hold the key to recovery.
 
There is forgiveness, hope and healing for those who are wounded emotionally and spiritually by this experience.  Are you suffering from guilt and shame in the aftermath? Are you suffering along with or for someone else and want to learn more so that you are equipped to minister to them?  Come and listen in a non-threatening environment.  Learn what the Bible really does say and explore answers to the spiritual and emotional aftermath of abortion.  You will hear stories of individuals who have been healed along with insights from leading Christian teachers and writers.  Just come and rest.

Pornography:  (17)
Pornography is a huge moneymaking operation with revenues far exceeding the largest American corporations.  It is becoming a significant source of revenue for many people.  There are young women, for example, paying their way through college simply by allowing themselves to be a Pay Per View offering on the Internet.  It is obvious that one of the main motives of the industry is to attract men and get them to spend their money.  Since the goal is to get men to spend money and keep coming back for more, we need to realize that the product is designed to be addictive.  While women are less likely to be lured by pictorial porn, they can be seduced by chat rooms or romance novels.  The lies and dynamics are very similar.
 
When one is involved in these behaviors they are entering a process of becoming enslaved to the behavior.  While this slavery may not be noticeable at first, it is like the deepening of dusk.  As the sun begins to set, we do not see the change in the light – especially if it is a cloudy day.  Slowly the twilight grows and imperceptibly the evening comes. At first we do not notice it at all, but as it gets darker and darker; we realize that night is descending. Suddenly it truly is dark, and we have failed to seek shelter.  We suddenly know that we are wandering about in pitch-black darkness with no hope.
 
Learn more about this topic so that you can help yourself or be informed enough to help someone else.  You may be in danger or have children or grandchildren who are in danger - or you may know someone else who does.

Bibliography
1. Lee, Jimmy Ray, D. Min. Stepping into Freedom: A Christ-Centered Twelve-Step Program. s.l. : Turning Point, 1993, 1999. Living Free Bible Study Guide.

2. Lee, Jimmy Ray, D.Min. Concerned Persons Group. s.l. : Turning Point, 1989, 1992, 1995. Living Free Bible Study Guide.

3. Alone Again. Graham, Ruth. 2005. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference - Workshop Outline.

4. Holland, Dr. Elizabeth. The Single Christian: Living as One in a World of Twos. s.l. : Turning Point, 2005. Living Free Bible Study Guide.

5. Color Me a Woman of God: Break Me, Melt Me, Mold Me, Fill Me & Use Me. Torain, Cheryl. 2007. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference - Workshop Outline.

6. Three Truths That Will Strengthen Your Relationships. Mintle, Linda. 2008. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference - Workshop Outline.

7. Telling Yourself the Truth: Understanding Anger. Wiese, Steven R., M.S., M.Div. 2006. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference - Workshop Outline.

8. Heath, Larry. Mastering Anger. s.l. : Turning Point, 2006. Living Free.

9. Anger: Our Master or Our Servant, Creative Use of a Powerful Emotion. s.l. : Turning Point, 1996. Living Free Bible Study Guide.

10. Miles, Donald G., Ed.D. Understanding Depression: Overcoming Despair Through Christ. s.l. : Turning Point, 1998. Living Free Bible Study Guide.

11. Making Peace with Your Thighs. Mintle, Linda, Ph.D. 2006. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference - Workshop Outline.

12. The Trap & Delusion: Life Controlling Issues or Addictions. Nichols, Aleta. 2007. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference - Workshop Outline.

13. Peace & Safety in Your Heart and Home. Skog, Jacqueline, M.A. 2006. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference - Workshop Outline.

14. Lerner, Janet M., DSW. Restoring Families: Overcoming Abusive Relationships Through Christ. s.l. : Turning Point, 2000. Living Free Bible Study Guide.

15. Wiese, Steven R., M.S., M.Div. The Illusion of Control. s.l. : Crown Imperial Press, 2008. with Sharon M. Knudson.

16. Life Redeemed: Hope in Jesus Christ after Abortion - Workshop Outline. Ketola, Kim. 2008. Ruth Graham & Friends, Get Growing Conference.

17. Longacre, David. Crossroads: Choosing the Road to Sexual Purity. s.l. : Harvest USA & Turning Point, 2003. Living Free Bible Study Guide adapted by Dan Strickland.