You've stumped us all."They didn't see it coming.They would never be the same.You'll find their story...AuthenticPowerfulHumorousMovingInsightfulRivetingYou may even find it intersecting with your own story.John and Joanna Stumbo have been married twenty-eight years--some great, some not so great. They have three grown children--all great. Joanna grew up in Ohio and Florida and a few other places; John in Minnesota and Montana. They have spent their adult lives figuring out what it means to be pastor and wife in churches from Pennsylvania to Oregon. John has a lifetime love for most anything outdoors and athletic. Joanna loves family and home. John never planned on spending seventy-seven days in the hospital. Joanna never had aspirations of being a caregiver. Neither of them ever planned on writing a book such as this. They are both the better for the journey they've been on, confusing though it be.

    In this new collection of sermons she practices the old-fashioned art of gospel home remedies like a true evangelist, summoning with piercing clarity and wit the Old and New Testament stories that have the power to mend our spirits, strengthen our weaknesses, and restore us to wholeness. Scripture comes to life in the contemporary people and places of which Taylor speaks. Georgia apple-growers become God's sharecroppers of the gospel parable; through Mary's embracing of her role as God-bearer we are dared to take risks in our own discipleship; in Jonah's angry stand-off with God we see reflections of our own struggles with a God who is more forgiving than we want him to be; with tender awe after years of waiting Sarah wipes her hands on her apron and goes to tell Abraham she is to bear a child. Through the stories of Scripture, Taylor addresses with moving simplicity the contemporary wounds of anger, abandonment, fear of judgment, and a longing for home, healing, and mercy.

    S. Lewis's works continue to attract thousands of new readers every year, appealing to those seeking wisdom and calm in a hectic and ever-changing world. Each volume is written with the lucidity, warmth, and wit that has made Lewis revered as a writer the world over.From The Problem of Pain—a wise and compassionate exploration of suffering—to the darkly satirical The Screwtape Letters, Lewis is unrivalled in his ability to disentangle the questions of life. His writings offer hope, wisdom, and a true understanding of human nature.

    All experience has the potential to be revelatory, and God is singing one unending song seducing each of our hearts. So the call is to listen, to attune to the words God utters in the world."--from the AfterwordBreak open this ancient contemplative practice of listening deeply for God's voice in sacred texts. Drawing on her own experience as a monk in the world, Christine Valters Paintner introduces the foundations for a practice of lectio divina. She closely examines each of the four movements of lectio divina as well as the rhythm they create when practiced as a process. She then invites you to expand your practice beyond traditional sacred texts to a sacred reading of the world through image, sound, nature and life experience.Whether you want to start a contemplative prayer practice or deepen your experience of lectio divina in new ways, you are invited to savor the gifts lectio divina has to offer your heart and spirit.

    Sharing inspiring stories from his own experiences as a prayer circle maker, Batterson will help readers uncover their heart's deepest desires and God-given dreams and unleash them through the kind of audacious prayer that God delights to answer.

    Matthew Shares with us astonishing words of Jesus: a promise of everlasting happiness, far removed from the usual recipes for gratification. Blessed are the poor in spirit! Blessed are those who mourn! Happy are the meek!... Fr. Jacques shares with us a profound clarity to the full scope of meaning behind Christ's eight beatitudes, and in turn, outlines for us a way in which we can live them in our daily lives. We learn how each beatitude gives insight into how we can situate ourselves in an honest and fulfilling relationship with God, with oneself, and with others, and how to confront head-on the difficult realities of life. Author Bio Fr. Jacques Philippe is a member of the Community of the Beatitudes, founded in France in 1973. After studying in Nazareth, Jerusalem, and Rome, he was ordained a priest in 1985. He primarily devotes himself to spiritual direction and preaching retreats internationally, and his published books on spirituality are the consolidated result of such work. His books Real Mercy, Interior Freedom, Fire & Light, and Thirsting for Prayer, among others, are also available from Scepter.

    Mr. Blai is an auxiliary member of the International Association of Exorcists, a peritus of religious demonology and exorcism in the Roman Catholic church, and he trains priests in exorcism and deliverance on a national level in the United States. He has worked on demonic cases for about 10 years and has combined this with his professional training in adult clinical psychology, brain research experience, and clinical exposure to mental illness. This unique perspective and experience has been summarized here for the public audience.

    This catechism is specifically designed for Catholic adults, for those who are new to the church, and especially for those who are journeying through the Rite of Chrisitian Initiation.

    Where was he in the interim? Ancient Buddhist manuscripts say Jesus left Palestine and traveled to India, Nepal, Ladakh and Tibet. For the first time, Prophet brings together the testimony of four eyewitnesses of these remarkable manuscripts plus three different translations of the texts. Illustrated with maps, drawings and 79 photos.

    A. Pierce, author of Spirituality at Work The concluding prayer of the Mass is a command: Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. We are charged to go forth and quite literally transform our families, our communities, and our world through the redeeming sacrifice of Christ as celebrated in the Mass. Fr. Dominic Grassi and Joe Paprocki use this challenge as the starting point for their inspiring and illuminating look at the central act of Catholic worship. They ask, What would our faith look like if we truly understood the gift of the Eucharist?Living the Mass will stir a new passion for and a greater understanding of this sacred two-thousand-year-old celebration offered freely to all who come, to all who believe.  Also available in Spanish! Vivir la misa

    How would you finish that sentence?The subject is there, and so is the verb, but what comes next? Your answer could shed light on the path to becoming who you were made to be. In these pages, Judah Smith fills out that sentence again and again, each time further revealing the character of Jesus. He writes as if to a friend, revealing the Jesus that somber paintings and hymns fail to capture. With passion, humor, and conviction, he shows that Jesus is life. Jesus is grace. Jesus is your friend. Jesus is a new and better way to be human.

    Drawing heavily on poignant anecdotes from his own experience as a life-long Catholic born in 1960s, Madrid offers readers a way of looking at the Church--its members, teachings, customs, and history--from perspectives many may have never considered.Growing up Catholic during a time of great social and theological upheaval and transition, a time in which countless Catholics abandoned their religion in search of something else, Patrick Madrid learned a great deal about why people leave Catholicism and why others stay. This experience helped him gain many insights into what it is about the Catholic Church that some people reject, as well as those things that others treasure. Drawing upon Madrid's personal experiences, Why Be Catholic? offers a deeply personal, fact-based, rationale for why everyone should be Catholic or at least consider the Catholic Church in a new light.

    But sometimes Jesus spoke words that followers then and now have found difficult. He instructs disciples to hate members of their own families (Luke 14:26), to act as if they were slaves (Matthew 20:27), and to sell their belongings and give to the poor (Luke 18:22). He restricts his mission (Matthew 10:6); he speaks of damnation (Matthew 8:12); he calls Jews the devil's children (John 8:44).In The Difficult Words of Jesus, Amy-Jill Levine shows how these difficult teachings would have sounded to the people who first heard them, how have they been understood over time, and how we might interpret them in the context of the Gospel of love and reconciliation.Additional components for a six-week study include a DVD featuring Dr. Levine and a comprehensive Leader Guide.

    This one-volume survey of the history of the Catholic Church--from its beginning through the pontificate of John Paul II--explains the Church's progress by using Christopher Dawson's division of the Church's history into six distinct "ages," or 350-400 year periods of time.

    In this grounded, practical book, author Derek Olsen uses The Book of Common Prayer for a template to a deeper spiritual life. Olsen explains the purpose and intention of the prayer book with fresh insight, offering practical applications for daily living.