Are you struggling to connect with your church community? Do you find yourself questioning the core beliefs that you once held dear? Searching for Sunday, from New York Times bestselling author Rachel Held Evans is a heartfelt ode to the past and a hopeful gaze into the future of what it means to be a part of the modern church. Like millions of her millennial peers, Rachel Held Evans didn't want to go to church anymore. The hypocrisy, the politics, the gargantuan building budgets, the scandals--to her, it was beginning to feel like church culture was too far removed from Jesus. Yet, despite her cynicism and misgivings, something kept drawing Evans back to church. Evans found herself wanting to better understand the church and find her place within it, so she set out on a new adventure. Within the pages of Searching for Sunday, Evans catalogs her journey as she loves, leaves, and finds the church once again. Evans tells the story of her faith through the lens of seven sacraments of the Catholic church--baptism, confession, holy orders, communion, confirmation, the anointing of the sick, and marriage--to teach us the essential truths about what she's learned along the way, including: Faith isn't just meant to be believed, it's meant to be lived and shared in community Christianity isn't a kingdom for the worthy--it's a kingdom for the hungry, the broken, and the imperfect The countless and beautiful ways that God shows up in the ordinary parts of our daily lives Searching for Sunday will help you unpack the messiness of community, teaching us that by overcoming our cynicism, we can all find hope, grace, love, and, somewhere in between, church.

Running down "do-gooders" has become a popular pastime in recent years. Lampooning, criticizing and even attacking philanthropists for their charitable activities has become sport for journalists and academics alike. Big donors have been subjected to specific vilification as their acts are characterized as a means to self-aggrandisement or tax evasion. Yet, it is widely acknowledged that philanthropy has played a critical role in both developed and developing societies from the establishment of Carnegie Libraries in Victorian England to the global health interventions of the Gates Foundation. Arguably, without philanthropists - big or small - society would be greatly impoverished and projects beyond the scope of government and the market would never receive funding. In an impassioned defence of the role of philanthropy in society, Beth Breeze tackles the main critiques levelled at philanthropy and questions the rationale for undermining, disparaging and trivialising philanthropic acts. She contends that although it might be flawed, philanthropy is a sector that ought to be celebrated and championed so that an abundance of causes and interests can flourish.

Rachel Huber returns to her hometown of Reflection to care for her ailing grandmother. Twenty years ago, a tragedy occurred in Reflection and people hold Rachel responsible. Now she finds herself the object of anger and hostility. She's not without her allies, however. Lily Jackson, a young woman who was personally touched by the tragedy, perplexes everyone by treating Rachel with compassion. And Michael Stoltz, the minister of the Mennonite church, is elated by Rachel's return. He and Rachel were close friends as children, and that childhood bond quickly evolves into a loving relationship that must be hidden from the town. It is Rachel's grandmother, Helen, however, who becomes her strongest advocate, surprising Rachel with her wise counsel and rare strength--and with a wealth of secrets she has long been concealing. "Diane Chamberlain's finest work to date. . . The reader is swept into the town's emotion and suspense." --Richmond Times Dispatch.

Drawing upon twenty-five years of professional work as a water engineer, negotiator, and commentator, Mark Zeitoun provides a unique insider's account of our complex relationship with water. He explains how un-checked assumptions about water mix with political and economic systems to create an insatiable and ruinous thirst for ever more water. He shows how we use water to lethal effect in wars, and demolish drinking-water systems with wanton disregard. He questions why we transform the most majestic of rivers into canals which spark international conflict and challenge our capacity for preventative diplomacy. The answers reflect more about our society than we might care to admit. If we are to restore water's inner grace, Zeitoun argues, we should worry not so much about 'saving' water, but about what we do with it when it's in our hands. Reflections draws upon the author's decades of experience teaching and communicating complex water issues, and replaces widely held myths with new concepts from around the globe. He brings attention to the dissonance between how we see and feel about water and what we do with it, calling upon readers to develop an informed ethos of water that reflects the restorative nature of this essential resource.

Get ready to cast off and cruise down waterways that continually beckon, softly whispering: Come follow me. Come follow me. Travel along the Mississippi and Tennessee Rivers, Norris Lake, the Intracoastal Waterways, and the North Channel to name but a few. Watch diamonds dancing on the water, traverse through towering locks, spend the day swinging on anchor, listen to the chorus of night sounds and ride out a storm or two. In REFLECTIONS ON THE WATER: Traveling the Waterways with God, Jan Boys incorporates visual, mental and written reflections with glimpses into the nautical life. While water surrounds her boat and reflects the world around it, Jan filters the images through her spiritual beliefs constantly looking for the presence of God, seeking to travel the waterways with Him. Based on her boat logs, this book is not only an inland waterway cruise, but a spiritual journey as well. This is not a story to read cover to cover, but a book of reflections and meditations to explore one chapter at a time, as you search and listen for the whisperings of God. Read it leisurely. Follow along on the map. Savor and enjoy each destination. Let these reflections resonate deep within your soul and awaken your senses to the ever-abiding presence of God. ~ ~ ~ Cruise any part of America ́s coastline, inland rivers or lakes and you can ́t help but discover the special meaning natural beauty offers to all of us. Jan Boys, however, takes a very large step beyond the obvious. She borrows from what she wrote in the ship ́s log and her personal journal as she and her husband cruised thousands of miles. Jan reveals and shares with you what she felt about her surroundings and experiences and how she related them to the love and concern God has for all of us. Indeed, with each page, you can almost believe you were there with her as she discovered "reflections" that continue to reassure and comfort her. Most likely, you will remember this book not for the stories but rather for the insights resulting from this writer ́s ability to weave reality, imagination and belief in God into a convincing and compelling reason to see the world differently. Fred Myers, journalist and editor, author of cruising guides for the Tennessee River, Cumberland River and the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway ~ ~ ~ Let Jan and Gene guide you through a taste of the travels and adventures of three boats they owned during the last twenty-five years. Cruise with them up and down rivers, across lakes and bays, into canals and locks, on open water crossings, through the Great Lakes, and even into another country. These waterways have many faces: clean or muddy, curious and amusing, depressing and aggravating, or stressful and frightening. Mainly, however, they are peaceful and prayerful, beautiful and breathtaking, majestic and awe inspiring. Yet they remain ever changing and ever beckoning: Come follow me. See what lies around the next bend. ~ ~ ~ This is my Father ́s world; all nature rings and round me sings the music of the spheres. Jan Boys ́ musing of the heart is a song of recognition and gratefulness. Jan sees God ́s hand in every bend of the river. Travel is more than a geography lesson or a cross-cultural experience. It ́s the handiwork of God that inspires and amazes us. This is a walk with God on the waters—a personal psalm of a boater and a believer in touch with the creator. Anyone looking for a sacred passage on America ́s waterways will be both inspired and rewarded. Ron and Eva Stob, founders of America ́s Great Loop Cruisers ́ Association (AGLCA) and co-authors of Honey, Let ́s Get a Boat...

This manuscript has been composed over a while. The beginning of it was written some time back and the last half has been recent. It has seen its share of additions, deletions and adjustments. Yet the constancy that has remained has been a need to convey insights into life, humanity and the undying perseverance of that which causes one to hold on, to endure, to be honest with oneself, to smile through tears, and remain steadfast and determined; love and spirit, heart and soul, endurance, perseverance and determination to live instead of merely exist. Truth with all of these is freeing, my words as included in these works, demonstrates this. Having chosen to bring into the heart many a person whose existence and life crossed paths with mine, it was what I saw in them as they passed by that caused me to take notice and hold on. Sadly however, and more often than not, they failed to see the beauty that is within them. With my writings, I sought to place a mirror before them so as to show that what some individuals have been blessed with being able to convey, they also possess. It is my belief that the greatness that is aspired to in heart and soul … is within each of us.

CIRCLE OF SONG is designed as a resource book for musicians, teachers, educators and anyone interested in sharing song, dance and ritual.