Through exploring the depths of my inner self in segments of mind, body, spirit, environments, and connected relationships it was revealed that we are deeply connected by seen and unseen forces. By just asking "why" to millions of questions over the course of my life I had pushed the limits of what I was able to mentally comprehend and accept I broke mentally. I'd pushed beyond the limits of my design but in doing so I had to rebuild myself from the ground up. I dove into faith because that was the last untapped resource I had not fully accepted. The more I dug into the deeper meaning of scripture the more I was able to decode my human behaviors and align myself with core fundamentals of living a freed life. I'd discovered that true lasting success and power came from living a right life style. I had to fight off my own human nature as well as societal norms to harness peace, love, and joy in this world. The most powerful scripture that blew my mind was Mathew 16:26 "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" To be void at the center of your heart and soul you truly have nothing, and I know because I had it all and lost it all. My purpose in life is to share this information to help anyone who is lost in this world and wants some real answers and solutions for lasting change. This book is a tool to help humans reveal, heal, and then to rebuild yourself and your life so you can then teach others to do the same and live lives worth living. I didn't arrive by taking a traditional route but I arrived nonetheless. Fighting and never losing hope in my creators power, not my own. When you stop asking why and start believing, you then have true faith. Enjoy your journey it's going to be interesting!

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight. — Psalm 19:14 Do you long to deepen your intimacy with the Lord? To find a sense of soul-steadying peace? To develop emotional strength? Then you will need to pause long enough to be still and know He is God. Trusted Pastor Robert Morgan leads us through a journey into biblical meditation, which, he says, is thinking Scripture—not just reading Scripture or studying Scripture or even thinking about Scripture—but thinking Scripture, contemplating, visualizing, and personifying the precious truths God has given us. The practice is as easy and portable as your brain, as available as your imagination, as near as your Bible, and the benefits are immediate. As you ponder, picture, and personalize God’s Word, you begin looking at life through His lens, viewing the world from His perspective. And as your thoughts become happier and holier and brighter, so do you.

"Every believer in Jesus Christ deserves the opportunity of personal nurture and development." says LeRoy Eims. But all too often the opportunity isn't there. We neglect the young Christian in our whirl of programs, church services, and fellowship groups. And we neglect to raise up workers and leaders who can disciple young believers into mature and fruitful Christians. In simple, practical, and biblical terms, LeRoy Eims revives the lost art of disciple making. He explains: - How the early church discipled new Christians - How to meet the basic needs of a growing Christian - How to spot and train potential workers - How to develop mature, godly leaders "True growth takes time and tears and love and patience," Eims states. There is no instant maturity. This book examines the growth process in the life of a Christian and considers what nurture and guidance it takes to develop spiritually qualified workers in the church.

Reading is a revolutionary act, an act of engagement in a culture that wants us to disengage. In The Lost Art of Reading, David L. Ulin asks a number of timely questions - why is literature important? What does it offer, especially now? Blending commentary with memoir, Ulin addresses the importance of the simple act of reading in an increasingly digital culture. Reading a book, flipping through hard pages, or shuffling them on screen - it doesn't matter. The key is the act of reading, and it's seriousness and depth. Ulin emphasizes the importance of reflection and pause allowed by stopping to read a book, and the accompanying focus required to let the mind run free in a world that is not one's own. Are we willing to risk our collective interest in contemplation, nuanced thinking, and empathy? Far from preaching to the choir, The Lost Art of Reading is a call to arms, or rather, to pages.

Reading is a revolutionary act, an act of engagement in a culture that wants us to disengage. In The Lost Art of Reading, David L. Ulin asks a number of timely questions - why is literature important? What does it offer, especially now? Blending commentary with memoir, Ulin addresses the importance of the simple act of reading in an increasingly digital culture. Reading a book, flipping through hard pages, or shuffling them on screen - it doesn't matter. The key is the act of reading, and it's seriousness and depth. Ulin emphasizes the importance of reflection and pause allowed by stopping to read a book, and the accompanying focus required to let the mind run free in a world that is not one's own. Are we willing to risk our collective interest in contemplation, nuanced thinking, and empathy? Far from preaching to the choir, The Lost Art of Reading is a call to arms, or rather, to pages.

A Christian Perspective on the Joys of Reading Reading has become a lost art. With smartphones offering us endless information with the tap of a finger, it's hard to view reading as anything less than a tedious and outdated endeavor. This is particularly problematic for Christians, as many find it difficult to read even the Bible consistently and attentively. Reading is in desperate need of recovery. Recovering the Lost Art of Reading addresses these issues by exploring the importance of reading in general as well as studying the Bible as literature, offering practical suggestions along the way. Leland Ryken and Glenda Faye Mathes inspire a new generation to overcome the notion that reading is a duty and instead discover it as a delight.

For too long church leaders have focused on increasing the size of their church rather than increasing their reach outside of the four walls of the church building. The result? Church life becomes a predictable set of routines with predictable results. Church members struggle to reach the neighborhoods they drive through on their way to church programs, unable to penetrate their surrounding communities in a meaningful way. Reaching the Unreached recounts the stories, struggles, and triumphs of individuals and churches that have reinvented themselves to meet the world where it is, working to reach the ones that no one else is reaching. The search for the “silver bullet” of success has diverted us from tapping into the timeless principles found in the book of Acts, says author, pastor, and front-line church planter Peyton Jones. Yet the spiritual climate that Paul and the Apostles stepped into is not all that different from the brave new world the church faces today. From accidentally planting a church in a Starbucks in Europe, to baptizing members of the Mexican mafia in Long Beach Harbor, Jones has been on the frontlines of today’s missional movement and has lived to tell the tale. In Reaching the Unreached, he teaches church planters, pastors, and church leaders how to convert pew jockeys into missionaries and awake the sleeping giant of Christ’s church, one person at a time. Today there are two types of churches: those who put their proverbial heads in the sand, and those who champion 1st century principles, meet the challenges head on, and embrace the adventure of mission in community. Tomorrow, only one type of church will survive—those that accept the challenge to reach the unreached.

Sensuality equals beauty—that’s what today’s young women are learning from our sex-obsessed society. Millions of 20somethings are caught up in trying to look like fashion models, movie stars, or the hottest new pop singer and end up plagued by insecurity, eating disorders, and sexual promiscuity. Bestselling author and speaker Leslie Ludy (Set-Apart Femininity and Authentic Beauty) shares a different vision for feminine loveliness as God intended it to be—the breathtaking radiance of a young woman who has been transformed by Christ from the inside out. With candid personal stories, practical advice, and inspiration, Leslie leads young women on a life-changing journey to become women of feminine grace, beauty, and enduring style. Leslie inspires girls toward inner changes but also talks about practical social grace and manners, how to dress beautifully, and even how to create a warm and lovely environment in the home. Clearly, true beauty is more than skin deep.

A book that shines fresh light on the world's major religions to help us build bridges between faiths and rediscover a creative and spiritual engagement with holy texts—from the New York Times bestselling author of A History of God “[An] unusual, often dazzling, blend of theology, history, and neuroscience” —The New Yorker The significance of scripture may not be immediately obvious in our secular world, but its misunderstanding is perhaps the root cause of many of today's controversies. The sacred texts have been co-opted by fundamentalists, who insist that they must be taken literally, and by others who interpret scripture to bolster their own prejudices. These texts are seen to prescribe ethical norms and codes of behavior that are divinely ordained: they are believed to contain eternal truths. But as Karen Armstrong shows in this chronicle of the development and significance of major religions, such a narrow, peculiar reading of scripture is a relatively recent, modern phenomenon. For most of their history, the world's religious traditions have regarded these texts as tools that enable the individual to connect with the divine, to experience a different level of consciousness, and to help them engage with the world in more meaningful and compassionate ways.

A Columbia University physician comes across a popular medieval text on dying well written after the horror of the Black Plague and discovers ancient wisdom for rethinking death and gaining insight today on how we can learn the lost art of dying well in this wise, clear-eyed book that is as compelling and soulful as Being Mortal, When Breath Becomes Air, and Smoke Gets in Your Eyes. As a specialist in both medical ethics and the treatment of older patients, Dr. L. S. Dugdale knows a great deal about the end of life. Far too many of us die poorly, she argues. Our culture has overly medicalized death: dying is often institutional and sterile, prolonged by unnecessary resuscitations and other intrusive interventions. We are not going gently into that good night—our reliance on modern medicine can actually prolong suffering and strip us of our dignity. Yet our lives do not have to end this way. Centuries ago, in the wake of the Black Plague, a text was published offering advice to help the living prepare for a good death. Written during the late Middle Ages, ars moriendi—The Art of Dying—made clear that to die well, one first had to live well and described what practices best help us prepare. When Dugdale discovered this Medieval book, it was a revelation. Inspired by its holistic approach to the final stage we must all one day face, she draws from this forgotten work, combining its wisdom with the knowledge she has gleaned from her long medical career. The Lost Art of Dying is a twenty-first century ars moriendi, filled with much-needed insight and thoughtful guidance that will change our perceptions. By recovering our sense of finitude, confronting our fears, accepting how our bodies age, developing meaningful rituals, and involving our communities in end-of-life care, we can discover what it means to both live and die well. And like the original ars moriendi, The Lost Art of Dying includes nine black-and-white drawings from artist Michael W. Dugger. Dr. Dugdale offers a hopeful perspective on death and dying as she shows us how to adapt the wisdom from the past to our lives today. The Lost Art of Dying is a vital, affecting book that reconsiders death, death culture, and how we can transform how we live each day, including our last.