Culture tells us that in order to be liked we must masquerade as someone other than who we are. So, we lacquer ourselves with credit cards and plastic surgery and status updates hoping no one will see the person underneath. This "veneer" allows us to silence our real selves as it gives voice to the alter ego we'd like others to see. But, is this all there is to life or have we been duped? Does material success equal significance? Is our only identity the one we steal from Hollywood? God's idea of humanity is altogether different from the world's. There is a way to live that sees beauty in our imperfection and, as Tim and Jason put it, once we realize this we can strip our veneers and live an unveneered life of freedom, honesty, and beauty.

    Sometimes we stay on one plateau thinking that is all we need to do, but if we can move forward toward the next plateau we would find that there is more to learn and more to do.

    It is the gift God gave us to be able to have direct access to His throne room and communicate with Him. This book of prayers is purposed to encourage and guide you as you pray for specific aspects of your husband’s life. If you have been blessed by Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian, you will also be inspired by 31 Prayers For My Husband. My hope is that this resource motivates you to intentionally pray and petition for your husband and your marriage through the power of prayer. There is even free writing space for you to add your own thoughts and prayers to each prayer, to make them your own, and to lift up specific prayer requests your husband may have. I urge you to consider the importance of being a wife of faithful prayer, to commit to praying for your husband daily, and seeing God move in his heart!

    We never wanted for anything, except maybe more time together....When Eddie was twelve years old, all he wanted for Christmas was a bike. Although his life had gotten harder -- and money tighter -- since his father died and the family bakery closed...Eddie dreamed that somehow his mother would find a way to have his dream bike gleaming beside their modest Christmas tree that magical morning.What he got from her instead was a sweater. "A stupid, handmade, ugly sweater" that young Eddie left in a crumpled ball in the corner of his room.Scarred deeply by the realization that kids don't always get what they want, and too young to understand that he already owned life's most valuable treasures, that Christmas morning was the beginning of Eddie's dark and painful journey on the road to manhood. It will take wrestling with himself, his faith, and his family -- and the guidance of a mysterious neighbor named Russell -- to help Eddie find his path through the storm clouds of life and finally see the real significance of that simple gift his mother had crafted by hand with love in her heart.Based on a deeply personal true story, The Christmas Sweater is a warm and poignant tale of family, faith and forgiveness that offers us a glimpse of our own lives -- while also making us question if we really know what's most important in them.

    From interviews with friends and lots of research they came up with The Ten Most Common Stressors That Mess with a Woman s Mind: daily challenges that routinely steal her sense of peace and joy. Together Becky and Rachel cook up a plan to live a less depleted and more nourished life. Opposites in many ways mom and daughter share their successes and failures as they make peace with their imperfect bodies, create living spaces they love, get wiser in their relationships, tame jam-packed schedules, settle into God s love, and more. In short, they stumble and journey together toward a life that better nourishes them body, mind, soul and spirit."

    . . a real work from the heart” are just a few words readers have used to describe Realer than Real, a true story of a Nebraska family’s journey to find grace, hope, and healing amidst tragedy, regret, and disappointment. The tale is told by Ryan, the Wilkins family’s only son, who chronicles a life-changing loss the family suffered in 2004, the tragedy’s impact on the family, and the unique, winding, complex spiritual paths each family member walked before intersecting in the wake of new misfortune. With candor and perceptiveness, Ryan develops characters the reader feels he or she knows. He displays a remarkable willingness to be transparent and vulnerable in all aspects of the personal struggle, grief, and suffering that his family endured, individually and collectively. He seamlessly weaves humor and insight around heavy subjects—including death, disability, divorce, and abuse, among others—and breathes life into the family’s high and lows, incredible miracles and devastating tragedies, in a way that is both honest and instructive.Cumulatively, the Wilkins family’s struggles and setbacks over the past decade seemingly defy all probability that one group could endure so many traumatic events over a relatively short period of time and come through it stronger, not weaker. But through reliance on their Christian faith and an outpouring of community support, the family withstood and grew through these trials, learning much about God and themselves in the process. With insight and vulnerability, Realer than Real captures the struggle, pursuit, perseverance, and restoration that accompany faith. The book will captivate readers across walks of life, inspiring them to behold their blessings and to trust God through their trials. “Once you begin reading, it is almost impossible to stop.”

    Every late-night conversation with a hurting friend and each precious, adopted child needing a little extra tender loving care—exhausting, yet imperative, ways to be extensions of the gospel. In each of these vignettes illustrating Lisa’s overextended life, we learn that even in the middle of our own pure motives and hectic schedules, it is only by resting in God’s sovereign mercy that we are able to keep risking our hearts to serve his people and fulfill the callings he has placed on us.Real life . . . abundant life . . . godly life is about loving Jesus and the people he allows us to rub shoulders with well—which means some days you’ll be stretched emotionally and physically. You’ll feel overextended. Thankfully God will expand our hearts and calendars to accommodate the calling. He is in the business of supplying us with new mercies every morning . . . new candles to burn, for more lives needing his light.

    Discover the wonders of creation and how they reveal a majestic God whose mastery of detail is evident everywhere. Learn to see yourself as God sees you: a treasured creation with whom He desires intimate relationship. Indexed for easy reference

    In fact, you may want to read this book before you answer at all. Consider it a 'Define the Relationship' conversation to determine exactly where you stand. You may indeed be a passionate, fully devoted follower of Jesus. Or, you may be just a fan who admires Jesus but isn't ready to let him cramp your style. Then again, maybe you're not into Jesus, period.In any case, don't take the question---Are you a follower of Jesus?---lightly.Some people don't know what they've said yes to and other people don't realize what they've said no to, says Pastor Kyle Idleman. But Jesus is ready to clearly define the relationship he wants with his followers.Not a Fan calls you to consider the demands and rewards of being a true disciple. With frankness sprinkled with humor, Idleman invites you to live the way Jesus lived, love the way he loved, pray the way he prayed, and never give up living for the One who gave his all for you.

    Mark and Debra Laaser go to the heart of the matter. Instead of focusing on how to sidestep or compensate for perceived differences, they dig deeper, to the core of our souls, to examine how the basic desires and needs of all people make us more alike than different.The Seven Desires of Every Heart explores the common desires God gives you—to be heard, affirmed, blessed, safe, touched, chosen, and included. Using stories, Biblical references, and sound psychological principles, the Laasers explain each desire and show us how we seek it and what it feels like to have it truly fulfilled. You also will learn healthy ways to embody these desires in your relationships. You will be given the tools you need to start repairing and rebuilding relationships and developing new skills for creating emotional and spiritual intimacy.

    Instead of feeling good about themselves, most of them just feel like tired supergirls, living in the gap between who they are and who they long to be.Susanna Foth Aughtmon honestly confesses her battles with pride, worry, fatigue, beauty, jealousy, and chocolate. In every chapter she faces a nemesis--like Worry Man or Mrs. Prideful--who implies that she is not living up to her potential. She meets each enemy with the secret weapon of God's Truth. Readers will identify with her humorous examples from daily life and will gain insight from this tired supergirl on her journey of grace.

    We need each other to lean on and to love on. More and more women are weaving their stories, their burdens and their God-given gifts into big dreams, intentional businesses and God's work. Our prayer for this book is to keep you tethered to your faith and to the Lord, who without His saving grace, all dreaming and doing is in vain. Curated by The {Well} Studio and written by an inspiring group of dreamers and doers, the prayers and scripture that fill these pages are written to accompany you on this the journey of brilliant dreams and scary risks, weary struggles and joyful success, inspiring ideas and fears of failure....all in light of how God has created us to be and to do all things well....not perfectly, but {well}. PRAYERS INCLUDE: Faith, Prayer, God's Word, Grace, Identity, Freedom, Seasons, Motherhood, Marriage, Comparison, Fears, Simplicity, Rest, the Dreams of our Spouses and Children, Influence, Business, Finances, Social Media, Goals, Creativity, Simplicity, Ministry, Dreams, Authenticity, Fears, Productivity, Branding, Health, Loving {well}, Collaborating, Confidence, Calling + Purpose.

    David Jeremiah brings clarity to the complex topic of spiritual warfare. From his years of teaching on this subject, Pastor Jeremiah has selected answers to your pertinent questions concerning victory in the spiritual realm.

    With fresh biblical insight tracing all the way back to Eve and a treasury of practical application, Jess and Hayley reveal how women today can walk in the true liberty we already have in Jesus.Because you don’t have to be everything to everyone. You don’t have to try so hard to button it up and hold it together. And you certainly don’t have to quiet the voice that God gave you when he created you to sing. Wild and Free will help you shake off the lies of insecurity in your life, and step forward to maximize your God-given influence for his glory and the world’s good.

    The book shares the heart of a young woman—the oldest Kelly daughter, Erin—who has experienced the loss of a sibling and stood by her father’s side as he battled cancer. Never-before-shared photos, journals, and stories will be revealed. Readers will go behind the scenes with the Kelly family and experience their private struggles and failures as well as their determination and passion. In this book, readers will see a close-knit family who is not exempt from the realities and struggles of life. How they choose to approach the situations they face shows a real, lasting love and hope that digs deep and goes beyond this temporary life. Kelly Tough is a story of finding strength in weakness, hope in the midst of heartache, and joy in spite of suffering.