These are the manger and the cross of Jesus Christ." "No priest, no theologian stood at the cradle of Bethlehem. And yet, all Christian theology finds its beginnings in the miracle of miracles, that God became human." These stirring words are among forty devotions that guide and inspire readers as they move thematically through the weeks of Advent and Christmas, from waiting and mystery to redemption, incarnation, and joy. Supplemented by an informative introduction, short excerpts from Bonhoeffer's letters, and passages from his Christmas sermons, these daily devotions are timeless and moving reminders of the true gift of Christmas.

    The inhabitants of Kissing Bridge are adorable. I wish I could give it 10 stars!”S.Stevens - Kindle Good BooksIncludes the first four best selling books of Christmas on Kissing Bridge Mountain. Includes, Christmas Kisses and Cookies, Valentine Wishes and Holiday Kisses, Chocolate Kisses and Heartfelt Wishes and Firework Kisses and Summertime wishes. They all take place in magical Kissing Bridge Mountain. All the books are stand alone love novels about a different woman trying to find love against all odds. It is also suitable for young adults and Christians. Sure to make you light up with Christmas spirit!! Look for the Christmas Kisses and Cookies Complete Box Set coming soon. It features a box Set of all 6 books that weaves all your favorite characters together at the end - due out in October 2017 . “Within a matter of pages I was laughing my socks off and immediately fell in love with the slightly crazy Summer … Linda West has such a knack for the humorous side of characters … Her writing style is so upbeat and unique and most of all inspirational!!! I hope to see more of these characters I’ve come to love - can’t wait to see what happens next in the adorable town of Kissing Bridge!”Debbie Dragna"Funny, unique and charming! I laughed out loud! I want to move to Kissing Bridge and live in their world. I loved both the first two in the series but this might be the best yet!!!!" Cheryl Patchett "I have become a huge fan of Linda West! I LOVE her books! This one did not disappoint! I hope the Kissing Bridge series never ends! Just ordered the newest one Firework Kisses and Summertime Wishes. Can't wait to read it!”BeachluverI read this book in 24 hours. It was great getting to know all the characters. You will not be able to stop reading this book! Diane Price This is the set of four books that are laugh out loud funny and clean wholesome love stories! By popular demand we have put them all together! 5.0 out of 5 starsWhat a great book I started this book at 8:30 one night and finished it at 1:00 the next afternoon. It was a book I just could not put down. Can not wait to read the next book in this series. Published 21 days ago by Deena Folsom 5.0 out of 5 starsTasty Fabulously tasty book. I really enjoyed this book. From beginning to end it was smashing. Christmas miracles really do come true. Published 1 month ago by SNOWFLAKE SNOWFLAKE The series starts when Summer Landers, superstar model, finds herself called back to her hometown of Kissing Bridge Mountain. Once she gets home to the holiday crazy town she gets swept up into the manic cookie contest and the need to defend her family's long time legacy. Once there she runs into her long time love and must deal with the hilarious consequences of their past.THE COMPLETE SET OF KISSING BRIDGE COMEDY LOVE STORIESThese books will make you smile!

    If you haven’t yet met the Thomas family, you are in for a real delight! “Every era has its own refiner's fire, and World War II put general Church membership and Utah to a test,” Dean Hughes explains. In Children of the Promise, his first historical fiction series for adults, Dean shows through the eyes of the Thomas family how LDS families were tested to the limit. Volume 1: Rumors of War - The first volume, Rumors of War opens in 1938 with Elder Alex Thomas and his companion serving in Germany. It soon becomes obvious that he will never complete his mission. War is coming, and that will affect not only Elder Thomas but also his family back home in Salt Lake City.Volume 2: Since You Went Away - Picking up where the bestseller Rumors of War left off, Since You Went Away continues with Wally Thomas's struggle to survive as a prisoner of war on the Bataan Peninsula while his family begin to disperse due to the war. Bobbi and Alex Thomas are leaving for military duty at the infant stages of World War II — Bobbi as a naval nurse at Pearl Harbor and Alex in army basic training. A gripping novel filled with memorable characters, Since You Went Away will draw you into a past charged with danger, action, romance, and the importance of family and faith.Volume 3: Far From Home - In Far From Home, Alex Thomas is still battling the Nazi forces. He’s also worried about whether or not he can preserve the lives of the men in his company, especially Howie, a particularly young and inexperienced soldier. But his biggest concern is staying alive for his wife, Anna, in England. Far From Home is a moving, powerful novel about the effects of adversity, and about the love of family members for each other.Volume 4: When We Meet Again - Following the Battle of the Bulge, Alex Thomas is reassigned — not without reluctance — to an intelligence unit in Germany. The new assignment challenges Alex's deepest moral values and is more life threatening than combat. As a POW in Japan, Wally suffers torture that may only find relief in death, while Bobbi sorts out her true feelings when she runs into Professor David Stinson thousands of miles away from home.As Long As I Have You - The war is over, and the Thomas family is slowly coming back together at home in Salt Lake City. But that doesn't mean all is well in Zion. In As Long As I Have You, the final volume of the Children of the Promise series, author Dean Hughes presents a moving picture of what life was like for an ordinary LDS family at the end of World War II.

    W. H. Auden had recently moved to America, fallen in love with a young man to whom he considered himself married, rethought his entire poetic and intellectual equipment, and reclaimed the Christian faith of his childhood. Then, in short order, his relationship fell apart and his mother, to whom he was very close, died. In the midst of this period of personal crisis and intellectual remaking, he decided to write a poem about Christmas and to have it set to music by his friend Benjamin Britten. Applying for a Guggenheim grant, Auden explained that he understood the difficulty of writing something vivid and distinctive about that most clich�d of subjects, but welcomed the challenge. In the end, the poem proved too long and complex to be set by Britten, but in it we have a remarkably ambitious and poetically rich attempt to see Christmas in double focus: as a moment in the history of the Roman Empire and of Judaism, and as an ever-new and always contemporary event for the believer. For the Time Being is Auden's only explicitly religious long poem, a technical tour de force, and a revelatory window into the poet's personal and intellectual development. This edition provides the most accurate text of the poem, a detailed introduction by Alan Jacobs that explains its themes and sets the poem in its proper contexts, and thorough annotations of its references and allusions.

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    M. Nouwen guide the faithful on a spiritual journey through the Advent and Christmas season in this book of waiting, hope, anticipation, and celebration. Each day of the Advent season (28 in all, to accommodate the varying number of days in the season) and each day of Christmas (12 in all, ending with Jesus' baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist) contain a pertinent excerpt from the writings of Father Nouwen, a related quotation from Scripture, a prayer for the day, and a suggested activity that offers a concrete response to mark the season. Advent and Christmas Wisdom is indeed an easy-to-use, daily program to celebrate the momentous arrival of the Christ Child and the joyous news of our salvation. It is also an ideal book for the individual seeking active participation in the season and a renewal of faith for the start of the liturgical year.

    He knows the ways he wants to change your life and the plans he has for your happiness in this life and the next. He has big dreams for you.So much about our world, today is empty and cold. If some of that emptiness and coldness has seeped into your heart, I pray this book will warm you, just a bit, to the idea that you were made for something better, something bigger, and something new. You were made for an intimate relationship with a God who knows you and loves you inside and out.

     Elizabeth is barren, yet her trust in God remains fertile. Mary is betrothed in marriage, yet she is willing to bear God’s Son. Anna is a widow full of years, yet she waits patiently, prayerfully for the Messiah to appear in the temple courts. Following in their footsteps, you too can prepare for the Savior to enter your heart, your mind, and your life in a vibrant, new way. Best-selling author Liz Curtis Higgs explores the biblical stories of Elizabeth, Mary, and Anna, unwrapping each verse with tender care and introducing you afresh to The Women of Christmas.

    All the animals are eager to welcome the baby Jesus to their home.A warm, lyrical book your family will cuddle up with for years.

    Enjoy three romances of adventure and faith in one great bundle! A little girl longs for a new mother for Christmas so she convinces her single father to advertise for a mail-order wife, whose arrival offers them the chance to forge a real family. A would-be bride discovers her intended groom has abandoned her before she even arrives but then she unexpectedly falls for the groom's brother. A gruff rancher's marriage offer to a widowed single mother is based solely on convenience…until it becomes a matter of the heart. This bundle includes: MAIL-ORDER CHRISTMAS BRIDES MAIL-ORDER HOLIDAY BRIDES MAIL-ORDER MISTLETOE BRIDES

    His key role in the downfall of communism in Europe, as well as his apologies for the Catholic Church’s treatment of Jews and to victims of the Inquisition, racism, and religious wars, won him worldwide admiration. Yet his papacy has also been marked by what many perceive as misogyny, homophobia, and ecclesiastical tyranny. Some critics suggest that his perpetuation of the Church’s traditional hierarchical paternalism contributed to pedophiliac behavior in the priesthood and encouraged superiors to sweep the crimes under the carpet. The Pontiff in Winter brings John Paul’s complex, contradictory character into sharp focus. In a bold, highly original work, John Cornwell argues that John Paul’s mystical view of history and conviction that his mission has been divinely established are central to understanding his pontificate. Focusing on the period from the eve of the millennium to the present, Cornwell shows how John Paul’s increasing sense of providential rightness profoundly influenced his reactions to turbulence in the secular world and within the Church, including the 9/11 attacks, the pedophilia scandals in the United States, the clash between Islam and Christianity, the ongoing debates over the Church’s policies regarding women, homosexuals, abortion, AIDS, and other social issues, and much more. A close, trusted observer of the Vatican, Cornwell combines eyewitness reporting with information from the best sources in and outside the pope’s inner circle. Always respectful of John Paul’s prodigious spirit and unrelenting battles for human rights and religious freedom, Cornwell raises serious questions about a system that grants lifetime power to an individual vulnerable to the vicissitudes of aging and illness. The result is a moving, elegiac portrait of John Paul in the winter of his life and a thoughtful, incisive assessment of his legacy to the Church.

    It is a Christmas story of hope, of human kindness and forgiveness, of mistakes, altruism and regrets. It is engaging, entertaining and surprising - a suspenseful crime thriller that’s filled with twists and turns. The arrest of Maxwell Sheppard, internationally renowned and despised conman, made worldwide news. Max made a fortune duping the mega rich with an ingenious Ponzi scheme, but then his luck ran out. As part of his punishment, the district attorney forces Max to read letters from people he’s hurt and respond to each of them. One of these letters, penned by a teenage boy, stuns him. Someone had used his name and investment firm falsely which threatened many homes to foreclosure in a small Iowa town right before the Christmas holiday. This sends Max on a quest to right his wrongs; to save a small town of hard working, innocent people from losing their homes. Can he save this town? An engaging and entertaining book that leaves you to wonder what will happen next. Buckle up for the surprising ending!

    Using simple illustrations and the same clear, conversational style that characterized his earlier book, Bergsma introduces four of the most important writers in the New Testament: Matthew, Luke, Paul, and John.With humor and simple illustrations, theology professor John Bergsma focuses on Matthew, Luke, Paul, and John, whose writings comprise about 90 percent of the New Testament. The gospel of Matthew, written for Jewish Christians, illuminates the life and teachings of Christ as the long-promised Messiah. In Luke's gospel, readers will delve into the infancy and Triduum narratives, as well as the Acts of the Apostles and the life of the early Church. This leads the reader to discover St. Paul and his first and arguably greatest theological treatise: Romans. Finally, "the beloved apostle" St. John draws us in to the unsurpassed beauty of the fourth gospel, as well as the most mysterious book of the New Testament: the book of Revelation. A concluding chapter offers suggestions for further study.Intended as an introductory work for those who are new to scripture study, this New Testament book does not aspire to be a comprehensive guide to all twenty-seven books of the New Testament, but is intended to lay the foundation for a lifetime of scripture reading.

    As long-held beliefs on love, faith, and God are challenged by the aggregate of changes that have overhauled our world, many of us are left feeling confused and uncertain while old norms are challenged and redefined at breakneck speed.In Wrestling with God, Ronald Rolheiser offers a steady and inspiring voice to help us avow and understand our faith in a world where nothing seems solid or permanent. Drawing from his own life experience, as well as a storehouse of literary, psychological, and theological insights, the beloved author of Sacred Fire examines the fears and doubts that challenge us. It is in these struggles to find meaning, that Rolheiser lays out a path for faith in a world struggling to find faith, but perhaps more important, he helps us find our own rhythm within which to walk that path.

    When Dustin Lockwood arrives at her family’s ranch, she finds herself in grave danger of losing her heart to the cowboy she never forgot. A heartwarming Christian romance by a NYT bestselling author. Comfort and Joy by Lynette SowellWhen her tree is selected as the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, a short trip to the Big Apple means a second chance at love for Gwynn Michaud. Professor Theo Stellakis is trying to get through finals and the loud Christmas season, but doesn't plan to fall for Gwynn—at his age. How can two set-in-their ways people from different worlds build a new one together? Read this sweet Christian romance to find out.Christmas Diamond by Hallee Bridgeman: This Christian romance novella proves that Christmas is a time of miracles. Faith Green and TJ Viscolli share the common bond of a love of history and romance blossoms. But an accident during the Christmas Eve air show threatens their hope of a life spent together. Will God provide a Christmas miracle, or will the future look cold and dark like a winter night?Christmas Grace by Rose McCauley: Grace Buchanan needs to show herself and others some grace this Christmas before she leaves Tennessee to return to Chicago. This Christian romance set in Gatlinburg, Tennessee is a reunion story about two friends whose friendship grows into love. A Christmas Bond by Lee Tobin McClain: Take one handsome, jaded veteran. Add a nervous, beautiful crime victim. Throw them together to help an old woman locate the baby Jesus doll that’s missing from her lawn crèche, and they just might find the greatest gift of all: love. This inspirational story kicks off the Sacred Bond series of Christian romances.More Than a Tiara by Valerie Comer: Marisa Hiller's interest in competing in Miss Snowflake Pageant for the city of Helena, Montana's, 150th anniversary is at zip zero zilch when she discovers the official photographer is Jase Mackie. Can Jase make amends for past mistakes and offer her, not only a tiara, but a partner in her crusade to help needy children and families? Read this heartwarming inspirational novel for a wonderful dose of Christian romance when you need a lift. Believe in Me by Autumn Macarthur:Can a Hollywood actor, in London to play a department store Santa, convince the stressed Ms Scrooge accountant to believe that God's gifts of love and forgiveness last all year round? Humor and a heartwarming ending make this inspirational romance novel a winner!