The Blessing of Christmas: Meditations for the Season


Benedict XVI - 2005
    Taken from his sermons as well as his writings, these beautiful meditations by the acclaimed spiritual teacher, writer and now Pontiff, give his usual fresh insights into the deeper meaning of this most wondrous event, and show the Pope to be a man who knows how to address both the mind and the heart. Includes many Illustrations. "Christmas is the most profoundly human feast of faith, because it allows us to feel most deeply the humanity of God. The cirb has a unique power to show us what it means to say that God wished to be "Immanuel" - a "God with us," a God we may address in intimate language, because he encounters us as a child. This makes Christmas a feast that invites us in a special way to meditation, to an internal act of looking at the Word. It awakens in us a deeper perception of the truth of the words from Scripture, "The goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior has appeared.'"

Awkward Moments (Not Found in Your Average) Children's Bible - Vol. 2


Horus Gilgamesh - 2014
    awkward! There are verses we'd like to forget or that have been changed throughout the centuries. There are many verses you've never heard before in church, let alone seen in your average children's Bible! Not to mention the verses that have been added over the centuries!Most people were raised in the faith chosen by their family. Young children learn a few Bible stories taken out of context and accept them without question. (On what basis could they possibly question their parents or church leaders?) After decades of repetition and tradition, it's understandable that we might put our beliefs on auto-pilot and just nod as a pastor repeats the verses and ideas that are already familiar and comfortable to us. It's no wonder that recent studies show an incredible lack of Biblical knowledge among Christians - 55% unable to even name the four Gospels of the New Testament - the very foundation of Christianity!The Goal? Awkward Moments encourages readers to really understand what is in their Bibles and think for themselves about the context of Biblical teaching. The 32 color illustrations and included commentaries will likely challenge some readers to reflect on how religion continues to shape the lives and culture of future generations. If readers happen to laugh out loud in the mean time - it's just an added bonus!Skeptical about a verse? Crack open your favorite Bible and read along to share the Good News with friends!REMEMBER: Don't blame us, it's in the Bible!

Wounded Shepherd: Pope Francis and His Struggle to Convert the Catholic Church


Austen Ivereigh - 2019
    Through battles with corrupt bankers and worldly cardinals, in turbulent meetings and on global trips, history’s first Latin-American pope has attempted to reshape the Church to evangelize the contemporary age. At the same time, he has stirred other leaders’ deep-seated fear that the Church is capitulating to modernity—leaders who have challenged his bid to create a more welcoming, attentive institution.Facing rebellions over his allowing sacraments for the divorced and his attempt to create a more "ecological" Catholicism, as well as a firestorm of criticism for the Church’s record on sexual abuse, Francis emerges as a leader of remarkable vision and skill with a relentless spiritual focus—a leader who is at peace in the turmoil surrounding him.With entertaining anecdotes, insider accounts, and expert analysis, Ivereigh’s journey through the key episodes of Francis’s reform in Rome and the wider Church brings into sharp focus the frustrations and fury, as well as the joys and successes, of one of the most remarkable pontificates of the contemporary age.

Write These Laws on Your Children: Inside the World of Conservative Christian Homeschooling


Robert Kunzman - 2009
    society—the National Center for Education Statistics recently reported that in the last decade it grew at twelve times the rate of public school enrollments. Yet information about this population is terribly incomplete. In this groundbreaking book, Robert Kunzman uses his unprecedented access to six conservative Christian homeschooling families to explore the subset of this elusive world that most influences public perception and rhetoric about the homeschooling movement, from its day-to-day life to its broader aspirations to transform American culture and politics.From the Trade Paperback edition.

Take a Thru-Hike: Dixie's How-To Guide for Hiking the Appalachian Trail


Jessica "Dixie" Mills - 2016
    While preparing for my journey on the Appalachian Trail (AT), I often felt lost in a sea of information, usually overturning more questions than answers. The purpose of this guide is to help cut through the confusion, condense the information and present it in a straightforward and simple way. I want to leave you feeling more confident about your upcoming escapade, rather than intimidated by the thought of planning it. My first overnight backpacking trip was thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail, so I hope my perspective can be appreciated by novice and seasoned hikers alike. Some of the topics included in this ebook are: -Physical & Mental Prep -Gear List -Picking a Pack -Backpacking Stoves -Shelter Selection -Hygiene on Trail -Financial Breakdown (of my hike) -Etiquette -Safety & Wildlife -Hiking With a Dog ...and more! Download a free sample!

Whole: Restoring What Is Broken in Me, You, and the Entire World


Steve Wiens - 2017
    People and places are broken all around us.We were made for better than this: We were made to be whole, and wholly human, to tend a world that is wholly humane. We were made in the image of God. This book is a quest to recover that image in ourselves and our neighbors, to help us all become human and humane again.For Christians who lament the brokenness in themselves, their neighbors, and the world around them, Whole offers a rallying cry to pursue wholeness together.

How to Be an (A)theist: Why Many Skeptics Aren't Skeptical Enough


Mitch Stokes - 2016
    But the truth is, they're not nearly skeptical enough.While they champion the importance of a critical stance toward religion, they often fail to take that same stance toward their own beliefs. This double standard results in grandiose claims about the certainty of unbelief. However, their confidence in the rational strength of their own position is logically inconsistent at best and intellectually dishonest at worst. Turning atheists' skepticism around on their own naturalist worldview, philosopher Mitch Stokes critically examines two things that such skeptics hold dear—science and morality—revealing deep inconsistencies among atheists' most cherished beliefs, inconsistencies that threaten to undo atheism itself.

Be Still


Cherie Hill
     *Don't Miss Cherie Hill's latest release: "empty." (Living Full of Faith When Life Drains You Dry) ************************************************************************************** When the storms of life threaten to overcome us, we find ourselves crying out to the heavens, "Lord, don't You care?" As our soul is capsized with heavy silence and we continue to pray for a miracle, God's answer comes in the form of a question, "Where is your faith?" "Be Still" uncovers the profound life-applicable meaning of the miracle, "Jesus Calms the Storm." Through this powerful message, your spirit will be submerged with hope, peace, and comfort, as you find your way to the back of the boat...resting with Jesus. Just like the Disciples, many times you find yourself so overwhelmed by your storm that you look right past the only One who can save you and who is always beside you-Jesus. As you gain a deeper understanding of this great miracle, you will find that when God allows a storm in your life...it comes with great purpose; if you miss the purpose, you may miss God's will for your life. So, let go of your fear by grabbing hold of your faith...let the storms come, and let the waters rise-God is taking you deeper. "Be Still" reveals that there is victorious calming in all of your storms of life, when you learn how to have faith in the One that controls them. "'Be Still' is a healing balm to the soul. My best advice-get this book, use it, and buy another one for your best friend!" -Jim Thomson, M.A., LCPC, author and speaker. "'Be Still' is not a book that you read once, put on your bookshelf, and then forget about. It's a book that doesn't promise quick fixes, or endless sunshine. Instead, it is a lifeline attached to God's Word, designed to help the reader find peace in the midst of each and every storm that comes their way." -Deborah Porter, writer, editor, and radio talk show host. ****BONUS FEATURE**** Read the 1st Chapter of "Beginning at the End" (Finding God When Your World Falls Apart) by Cherie Hill

Holy Rover: Journeys in Search of Mystery, Miracles, and God


Lori Erickson - 2017
    If you've ever been curious about the ancient spiritual practice of pilgrimage, come along with Lori Erickson as she explores a dozen holy sites around the world. Travel writer, Episcopal deacon, and author of the Holy Rover blog at Patheos, Erickson is an engaging guide for pilgrims eager to take a spiritual journey. Both irreverent and devout, Holy Rover describes travels that changed her life and can change yours, too.

Second Guessing God: Hanging on When You Can’t See His Plan


Brian C. Jones - 2006
    Like a good friend, Brian comes alongside those seeking help in trials of life to help them find meaning and strength.

The Taking of MH370


Jeff Wise - 2019
     ""It’s an astonishing performance. Wise goes through every piece of evidence, every report, every word and comes to the conclusion that investigators were deliberately and brilliantly misled by whoever took over the plane to look in the wrong place. Read this stunning piece of investigative journalism and see if he convinces you." -- John Podhoretz, Commentary magazine. Five years after a state-of-the-art Boeing 777 vanished into the night over the South China Sea, renowned science and aviation author Jeff Wise offers a compelling and detailed account of what happened that night and in the months and years that followed. In his follow-up to "The Plane That Wasn't There," named the Best Kindle Single of 2015, Wise walks readers through the many developments that have taken place in the meantime and explains why despite spending hundreds of millions of dollars and searching an area of seabed the size of Great Britain, authorities were unable to locate the plane's wreckage. Officials and independent experts were stunned by their failure, but Wise predicted it four years ago. Here he distills the fruits of exhaustive research and arrives at a conclusion that upends our understanding of what humans are capable of, both technologically and morally. Jeff Wise is a science journalist specializing in aviation and psychology. A licensed pilot of gliders and light airplanes, he has also written for New York, the New York Times, Time, Businessweek, Esquire, Popular Mechanics, and many others. He is also the author of Extreme Fear: The Science of Your Mind in Danger. A native of Massachusetts, he lives outside New York City with his wife and two sons.

The New Rosary in Scripture: Biblical Insights for Praying the 20 Mysteries


Edward Sri - 2003
    This popular introduction to praying the rosary draws readers closer to Jesus and Mary by placing the mysteries-including the new mysteries of light-in the context of Scripture. The book addresses commonly asked questions about Mary and the rosary and provides the biblical background for all twenty mysteries. It also includes a scriptural rosary that offers ten Bible texts suitable for meditation on each mystery. An appendix offers the complete text of Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Letter, Rosarium Virginis Mariae. A Servant Book.

Life After Heaven: How My Time in Heaven Can Transform Your Life on Earth


Steven R. Musick - 2017
    He returned from his near-death experience with new eyes to see the kingdom of heaven in this life. Now he wants to help you experience heaven on earth today. For years Steve Musick kept his amazing story to himself, afraid no one would believe or understand it. A major allergic reaction had stopped his heart, hurling him into a five-week coma and powerful experience of heaven. After returning to life, he couldn't forget the memory of that vibrant place--and, most of all, the loving words and touch of Jesus. But that was only the beginning. An amazing series of miracles, dreams, and other supernatural events had been set in motion, showing Steve that heaven was close, even in this life. God was calling him to discover echoes of heaven in the here and now--echoes that can happen at any moment, to anyone--that bring overwhelming joy. At last Steve is ready to tell the story of his journey of a lifetime--two lifetimes. In it you'll learn the secret of bringing heaven to earth in your everyday world, and how to nurture a relationship with God so real and intimate that you'll feel his nearness as strongly as Steven did. Experience one man's incredible vision of heaven--and learn how to live in God's presence and power in your own life now.

St. Rita of Cascia: Saint of the Impossible


Joseph Sicardo - 1993
    Rita is known as the \"Saint of the Impossible\" because of her amazing answers to prayers, as well as the remarkable events of her own life. Desirous of being a nun, she instead obeyed her parents and married. Her husband was cruel, and caused her much suffering, to which she responded with love and prayers and eventually converted him. After the death of her husband and two sons, Rita was able to enter a convent, where she devoted herself to prayer and penance. She abandoned herself totally to God, diminishing herself as He increased in her. An inspiring story of a soul completely resigned to God\'s will. 132 pgs, PB

Everyone's Guide to Demons Spiritual Warfare: Simple, Powerful Tools for Outmaneuvering Satan in Your Daily Life


Ron Phillips - 2010
    By incorporating demon-defying principles in our daily spiritual lives, we can learn to put the enemy to flight and move from bondage into freedom. The author also identifies several specific demonic spirits that attack God’s people, and provides strategies for overcoming evil in our lives.