A novel of self-discovery, family bonds and the healing of one small southern town Twelve Gates to the City is the much-anticipated sequel to Black's acclaimed debut, They Tell Me of a Home. In this novel, Sister assumes the voice of the narrator, speaking from the spirit realm, telling her brother TL things he could have never known about their family. She constructs the story as a series of spiritual revelations, exposing to readers both who she was in the years of TL's absence and how every event in his life was an orchestration for his return. TL in the meantime is back in Swamp Creek, to stay this time, but he's still haunted by his sister's death. His decision to become the Schoolmaster is the only thing he's sure about, and his impact upon the students becomes palpable. But he still doesn't know what happened to Sister. As he searches for ultimate truth, he discovers the secrets and beauty of Swamp Creek. Twelve Gates to the City is a novel about spiritual revelation, and communal healing, ushered in by one who finally realizes that his gifts were bestowed upon him, not for his own glory, but for the transformation of his people.

Get ready for life after death. Combining three books that together have sold nearly 1 million copies, Heaven and the Afterlife gives you Erwin Lutzer’s best reflections on eternity and what it means for you today. The trilogyincludes: One Minute After You Die. A simple and moving explanation of what the Bible teaches about death, this book makes you consider a sobering truth: one minute after you die, your life will not be over. Rather, it will be just beginning—in a place of unimaginable bliss or indescribable gloom. Are you ready for that moment? How You Can Be Sure You Will Spend Eternity with Godsummarizes the Bible’s teaching on salvation, answering questions like, “What role do I play in my own salvation? Can I lose my salvation if I commit a serious sin? What if I doubt that I’m saved?” Your Eternal Reward. This book explores the often-overlooked Scriptures about reward and judgment for Christians, answering questions like, “How will believers be judged? Do rewards for faithfulness vary? If heaven is perfect, why do rewards even matter?” Together these books will help you live faithfully today, readying you for that final hour when you meet your Maker.

In The Twelve Gates, clinical anthropologist John Rush embarks on a spellbinding journey through death rituals in various cultures, centering on the ancient Egyptian philosophy of death and resurrection. The first part of the book provides an overview of different rituals, encouraging readers to confront their feelings about death and to reevaluate their lives. The author details his own experiences preparing for death, including a painful tattooing process inspired by the ancient Egyptian Books of the Netherworld. He then guides readers through the Twelve Gates of the Underworld, symbolic ritual stages during which they can figuratively experience death and rebirth. A set of full-color tarot cards, designed by the author, is included as an aid in passing through each of the Gates. These ancient rituals, performed by pharaohs and priests for thousands of years, help ease the way toward a peaceful, conscious death.

Inside the Gates of Heaven is one of the most compelling accounts of an individuals encounters with God in this generation. Not only does this account take you on a journey through the gates of glory, it answers some of the questions long asked by many about our eternal destination. I have personally read and re-read this account in light of what the Lord is revealing to many of us in this hour and find that Brother Oden was a forerunner for many of us. His words and experiences have been repeated through many others who have had similar experiences. The Lord is truly trying to encourage this generation with the reality that awaits all of us - Heaven, our eternal destiny. Bruce Allen For those unsure of the existence of Heaven, Oden Hetrick’s detailed account of his visits to the place we all long for serves as a true doubt-demolisher and faith-injector. The fact that Oden led an exemplary righteous, Christian life lends further credence to his written testimony. It was my honor both to have known him as a friend and to have been inspired by his great faith. Steve Jones Extra Mile Ministries www.extramileministries.net The Hetrick family is very special to me. They adopted me into their family like a daughter and sister, and have blessed me in many ways. Dad Hetrick was a genuine man of God with a gentle spirit. I trust you will be blessed and edified by what the Lord has revealed to him. I look forward to experiencing the exciting glories of Heaven soon that he has left on record for our encouragement and instruction. Arlene A. Cober

In Opening the Gates of Heaven, Perry Stone shows you how to release the flow of heaven's blessing through both God's revelation and the intervention of angelic messengers.

Trapped by the creature Thadnelius J. Gromfort, Cillian McGonegal must find the missing pieces of an ancient artifact to free his friends who have been sent on a journey of their own into the afterworld. Time is running out. Together with his brother Patrick, Mary his assistant and Liam his good friend he must navigate time itself and time can be very unforgiving. Time is also running out for Susanne McKinnon and Nathan McPhee as they travel through the Twelve Gates of Judgement. The weight of his responsibility for their rescue falls squarely on Cillian’s shoulders, but he is bound by the whims of the stone which grows more powerful with each moment. Find the missing pieces or all is lost. Into time’s void, they step. The Twelve Gates: The Road to Redemption is book two of the McGonegal Chronicles. It explores events in ancient history and what the future may hold. Time is not linear. Time is bendable and with many dimensions as Cillian, his assistant Mary, his brother Patrick, and Liam his good friend will quickly discover. The origin of the artifact is a mystery, but its power is immense. Where will it take them and what about their trapped friends? Will they survive the Road to Redemption as they navigate The Twelve Gates? Time will tell. In this book the author uses actual historical events combined with ancient myth and highlighted with science fiction and adventure to weave a story of love, sacrifice, and obligation. The main character, Cillian McGonegal must navigate an impossible situation and failure is not an option. Throughout the story the reader is beset with numerous examples of bravery and cleverness as the characters face their greatest fears and most menacing challenges. It is a wild ride.

Zen is famous for koans (called kong-ans in Korean, and in this book), those bizarre and seemingly unanswerable questions Zen masters pose to their students to check their realization (such as “What is the sound of one hand clapping?”). Fear of koans keeps some people from ever giving Zen practice a try. But here, through the experience of seeing a modern Zen master work with his students, you can see what koan training is really like: It’s a skillful, lively practice for attaining wisdom. This book presents the system of ten koans that Zen Master Seung Sahn came to call the “Ten Gates.” These koans represent the basic types one will encounter in any course of study. Each of the ten gates, or koans, is illuminated by actual interchanges between Zen Master Seung Sahn and his students that show what the practice is all about: it is above all a process of coming to trust one’s own wisdom, and of manifesting that wisdom in every koan-like situation life presents us with. For more information on the author, Zen Master Seung Sahn, visit his website at www.kwanumzen.com.

This volume offers a survey about what is known about the Ancient Egyptians' vision of the afterlife and an examination of these beliefs that were written down in books that were later discovered in royal tombs. The contents of the texts range from the collection of spells in the Book of the Dead, which was intended to offer practical assistance on the journey to the afterlife, to the detailed accounts of the hereafter provided in the Books of the Netherworld. The author looks closely at these latter works, while summarizing the contents of the Book of the Dead and other widely studied examples of the genre. For each composition, he discusses the history of its ancient transmission and its decipherment in modern times, supplying bibliographic information for any text editions. He also seeks to determine whether this literature as a whole presents a monolithic conception of the afterlife. The volume features many drawings from the books themselves.

Twenty-eight-year-old protagonist Tommy Lee Tyson steps off the Greyhound bus in his hometown of Swamp Creek, Arkansas--a place he left when he was eighteen, vowing never to return. Yet fate and a Ph.D. in black studies force him back to his rural origins as he seeks to understand himself and the black community that produced him. A cold, nonchalant father and an emotionally indifferent mother make his return, after a ten-year hiatus, practically unbearable, and the discovery of his baby sister's death and her burial in the backyard almost consumes him. His mother watches his agony when he discovers his sister's tombstone, but neither she nor other family members is willing to disclose the secret of her death. Only after being prodded incessantly does his older brother, Willie James, relent and provide Tommy Lee with enough knowledge to figure out exactly what happened and why. Meanwhile, Tommy's seventy-year-old teacher--lying on her deathbed--asks him to remain in Swamp Creek and assume her position as the headmaster of the one-room schoolhouse. He refuses vehemently and she dies having bequeathed him her five thousand-book collection in the hopes that he will change his mind. Over the course of a one-week visit, riddled with tension, heartache, and revelation, Tommy Lee Tyson discovers truths about his family, his community, and his undeniable connection to rural Southern black folk and their ways.

The final book of the Bible, Revelation prophesies the ultimate judgement of mankind in a series of allegorical visions, grisly images and numerological predictions. According to these, empires will fall, the "Beast" will be destroyed and Christ will rule a new Jerusalem. With an introduction by Will Self.