Covenant Hearts: Marriage and the Joy of Human Love


Bruce C. Hafen - 2005
    Satan is ever striving to blur and contort the truth; modern society is experiencing a shifting toward a culture of divorce. In a way that no other book has, this book provides an eternal perspective about marriage. Noting that marriage can be the most sanctifying — yet the most demanding — experience of our lives, Elder Hafen observes that marriage is "the home room of the earth school our Father created to give his children a place to learn and grow. Families are the laboratories where we test and develop our religion." See through the confusion in our society and create an environment in which human love overcomes all opposition and lasts forever.

Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story


Ben Carson - 1992
    Gifted Hands will transplace you into the operating room to witness surgeries that made headlines around the world, and into the private mind of a compassionate, God-fearing physician who lives to help others. In 1987, Dr. Carson gained worldwide recognition for his part in the first successful separation of Siamese twins joined at the back of the head -- an extremely complex and delicate operation that was five months of planning and twenty-two hours of actual surgery, involving a surgical plan that Carson helped initiate. Gifted Hands reveals a man with humility, decency, compassion, courage, and sensitivity who serves as a role model for young people (and everyone else) in need of encouragement to attempt the seemingly impossible and to excel in whatever they attempt. Dr. Carson also describes the key role that his highly intelligent though relatively uneducated mother played in his metamorphosis from an unmotivated ghetto youngster into one of the most respected neurosurgeons in the world.

Redefining Joy in the Last Days


Chris Stewart - 2009
    Drawing on unforgettable real- life experiences and rich examples from the scriptures, he offers suggestions for reorienting our lives in order to achieve greater joy and happiness even in the most challenging times. Redefining Joy looks at some of life s most difficult questions. But be prepared. The answers may surprise you.

If You Only Knew: My Unlikely, Unavoidable Story of Becoming Free


Jamie Ivey - 2018
      It’s exhausting, this guarding of our stories and struggles. Fear of being found out had caused me to hide—but I wasn’t just covering my flaws, I was unintentionally blocking the beauty of God’s grace. My journey to real freedom began when I quit running from my mess and started trusting Jesus to make something beautiful of it.    This book is that story. It’s stepping out of shame and insecurity into gospel freedom. It’s letting God turn our failures and frailties into testimonies of His faithfulness. I’ve discovered that when we quit hiding, God gets the glory and we are able to fully embrace not only our relationship with Him, but also with one another.  Transparency brings freedom, and in every moment, we'll find that God can absolutely be trusted.

Before My Heart Stops: A Memoir


Paul Cardall - 2010
    God made up the difference."After living for more than three decades with congenital heart disease, popular musician Paul Cardall has undergone twenty-eight operations and seven open-heart surgeries. But the one surgery he needed most - his last chance at seeing his three-year-old daughter, Eden, grow up - was a heart transplant. This is the remarkable true story of one man's struggle to survive long enough to get a second chance at life.Along the way, Paul wrote down his thoughts, feelings, and observations in an online blog called Living for Eden. This book reflects those weekly blog entries - insights and wisdom beyond his years. After reading his story, yu may come away asking yourself, "Who do I need to love ... before my heart stops?"

Hard Times and Holy Places


Kristin Warner Belcher - 2009
    First diagnosed with bi-lateral retinoblastoma at the age of seven months, she had feared blindness since childhood. Ironically, the treatment that had saved her life as a baby was responsible for the radiation- induced cancer that again threatened her life as an adult. Now a wife and mother of two young sons, she faced her greatest challenge. Five major surgeries within the space of five months left her physically and emotionally devastated-- and completely blind. Yet during that horrendous time, Kris discovered moments of spiritual strengthening that became holy places in her life-- places where she could feel the purifying, transforming power of Christ that enabled her to survive and to learn how to live in a world of darkness. Compelling, honest, and at times humorous, her story and the insights she gained will help others find hope and healing in the midst of their own trials.

Seven Women: And the Secret of Their Greatness


Eric Metaxas - 2015
    Each of the world-changing figures who stride across these pages—Joan of Arc, Susanna Wesley, Hannah More, Maria Skobtsova, Corrie ten Boom, Mother Teresa, and Rosa Parks—is an exemplary model of true womanhood. Teenaged Joan of Arc followed God’s call and liberated her country, dying a heroic martyr’s death. Susanna Wesley had nineteen children and gave the world its most significant evangelist and its greatest hymn-writer, her sons John and Charles. Corrie ten Boom, arrested for hiding Dutch Jews from the Nazis, survived the horrors of a concentration camp to astonish the world by forgiving her tormentors. And Rosa Parks’ deep sense of justice and unshakeable dignity and faith helped launch the twentieth-century’s greatest social movement.Writing in his trademark conversational and engaging style, Eric Metaxas reveals how the other extraordinary women in this book achieved their greatness, inspiring readers to lives shaped by the truth of the gospel.

A Severe Mercy: A Story of Faith, Tragedy and Triumph


Sheldon Vanauken - 1977
    S. Lewis, and a spiritual strength that sustained Vanauken after his wife's untimely death. Replete with 18 letters from C.S. Lewis, A Severe Mercy addresses some of the universal questions that surround faith--the existence of God and the reasons behind tragedy.

Shaken: Discovering Your True Identity in the Midst of Life's Storms


Tim Tebow - 2016
    Then he had a miracle playoff run with the Denver Broncos before being traded to the New York Jets. After one season he was cut by New York. Next he was signed by the New England Patriots then let go after training camp—a scenario that repeated itself the following summer with the Philadelphia Eagles. Tim Tebow has achieved big victories and plunged the depths of failure, all while never letting go of his faith, even in the face of doubt and disappointment. In Shaken he explains why neither the highs nor the lows of his life can define him—and he reveals how you, too, can find confidence in your identity and know who you are. In revealing passages, Tebow pulls back the curtain on his life, sharing the vulnerable moments of his career that have shaken him to his core—while also teaching the biblical principles that will enable you to keep the faith, no matter what comes your way.

The Mother's Mite: Why Even Our Smallest Efforts Matter


DeAnne Flynn - 2011
    As mothers, grandmothers, nurturers, and caregivers, we are often tempted to view our ordinary daily contributions as an endless string of undersized tasks, none of which seem worthy of any special consideration. But they are. This collection of small-and-simple moments provides reassurance that although our small offerings may not seem significant at the time, these tiny tributes undeniably make an immeasurable difference to those we love. • Each true story concludes with an unexpected gift, an offering far greater than the act of service. • Includes recipes and ideas to inspire your own "mother's mites." • A perfect Mother's Day gift for women in all stages of life.

Mothers of the Prophets (revised edition)


Leonard J. Arrington - 1987
    We know how she hid the gold plates from thieves, wrote Joseph's history, and was fiercely loyal to her son as he helped restore the gospel of Jesus Christ in this dispensation. But what of the mothers of other latter-day prophets? What were they like? What stories do we know of their lives? Each of the 14 prophets and presidents of the church since Joseph Smith had a mother who taught and influenced him as much as Lucy Mack influence Joseph. Their stories are perhaps not as well known to us, but are just as powerful.----------------------------[From the back flap]In this newly revised edition of Mothers of the Prophets, you will get to know these remarkable women, who taught their children to love the gospel and love the Lord. You will be moved by their stories and touched by their faith. Originally written by the father-daughter team of Leonard J. Arrington and Susan Arrington Madsen, this revised edition was recently updated by daughter and granddaughter Susan Arrington Madsen and Emily Madsen Jones. Expanded to include all the mothers of the latter-day prophets through President Gordon B. Hinckley, and enhanced with photographs throughout, this book is a must have for anyone interested in Church history or anyone who is curious about the power of a mother's influence.----------------------------[From the back]David McKay, father of the Prophet to David O. McKay, was telling his family about his mission to Scotland. As he described the fields of heather, the music of bagpipes, the imposing castles, and the thousands of sheep dotting the hillsides, one of his sons asked him if he had seen any miracles while on his mission. David's eyes immediately met those of his wife, Jeanette, and putting his arm around her and pulling her clothes, he replied, "Your mother is the greatest miracle I have ever seen on this earth." Filled with such stories, Mothers of the Prophets is a book that will both inspire and delight. In these pages, you will come to know and love the mothers of the latter-day prophets. And your testimony will be strengthened as you see how the Lord sent each of his prophets to a home with a mother that would love, nurture, and teach him--helping to prepare him for his calling to leave the Church in this dispensation.

Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies about Who You Are So You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be


Rachel Hollis - 2018
    Now comes her highly anticipated first book featuring her signature combination of honesty, humor, and direct, no-nonsense advice.Each chapter of Girl, Wash Your Face begins with a specific lie Hollis once believed that left her feeling overwhelmed, unworthy, or ready to give up. As a working mother, a former foster parent, and a woman who has dealt with insecurities about her body and relationships, she speaks with the insight and kindness of a BFF, helping women unpack the limiting mind-sets that destroy their self-confidence and keep them from moving forward.From her temporary obsession with marrying Matt Damon to a daydream involving hypnotic iguanas to her son's request that she buy a necklace to "be like the other moms," Hollis holds nothing back. With unflinching faith and tenacity, Hollis spurs other women to live with passion and hustle and to awaken their slumbering goals.

Reason for Hope: A Spiritual Journey


Jane Goodall - 1998
    From the unforgettable moment when a wild chimpanzee gently grasps her hand to the terror of a hostage-taking and the sorrow of her husband's death. Here, thoughtfully exploring the challenges of both science and the soul, she offers an inspiring, optimistic message as profound as the knowledge she brought back from the forests, and that gives us all...reason for hope.

The Quotidian Mysteries: Laundry, Liturgy and Women's Work


Kathleen Norris - 1998
    Definitely not "for women only." +

Leaving the Witness: Exiting a Religion and Finding a Life


Amber Scorah - 2019
    She volunteered to take the message to China, where the preaching she did was illegal and could result in her expulsion or worse. Here, she had some distance from her community for the first time. Immersion in a foreign language and culture--and a whole new way of thinking--turned her world upside down, and eventually led her to lose all that she had been sure was true.As a proselytizer in Shanghai, using fake names and secret codes to evade the authorities' notice, Scorah discreetly looked for targets in public parks and stores. To support herself, she found work at a Chinese language learning podcast, hiding her real purpose from her coworkers. Now with a creative outlet, getting to know worldly people for the first time, she began to understand that there were other ways of seeing the world and living a fulfilling life. When one of these relationships became an "escape hatch," Scorah's loss of faith culminated in her own personal apocalypse, the only kind of ending possible for a Jehovah's Witness.Shunned by family and friends as an apostate, Scorah was alone in Shanghai and thrown into a world she had only known from the periphery--with no education or support system. A coming of age story of a woman already in her thirties, this unforgettable memoir examines what it's like to start one's life over again with an entirely new identity. It follows Scorah to New York City, where a personal tragedy forces her to look for new ways to find meaning in the absence of religion. With compelling, spare prose, Leaving the Witness traces the bittersweet process of starting over, when everything one's life was built around is gone.