Most people who heard of my story referred to it as near-death experience. However there was no out-of-body perception involved. I was just somewhere, but not in this world. It 's like being all eyes and heart for I saw, and felt, but did not exist - bodily For some who might have similar experiences, this might be a time of sharing a story. Mysterious. Mystical. Yet, very hopeful While trying to understand what happened, I studied the supernatural experiences of Saints, and others. It was quite an eye-opener for a regular Catholic who is suddenly faced with a new, life-changing outlook. Life became more challenging, but also spiritually rewarding.

To Be a Jew deals with the question of the meaning and rationale that the writer Joseph Chayim Brenner attributes to Jewish existence. Many of Brenner's readers assumed that Brenner completely negated Jewish existence and sought to form a new way of life completely disconnected from the traditional Jewish existence. In contrast to this perception, Avi Sagi proves that not only did Brenner not reject the value of the Jewish existence, but the core of his creation was written out of a deep Jewish commitment. Brenner's greatest innovation is found in his new conception of Jewish existence. To be a Jew, according to Brenner, involves the willingness to discover solidarity with actual Jews, to participate in a society in which Jews can live a free life and to fashion their culture as they wish. Sagi presents the idea that Brenner's is not a Utopian, but a realistic, conception of Jewish existence. Thus this unique conception of Jewish existence is founded on an infrastructure of existential thought.

For most of its history, contemporary Paganism has been a religion of converts. Yet as it enters its fifth decade, it is incorporating growing numbers of second-generation Pagans for whom Paganism is a family tradition, not a religious worldview arrived at via a spiritual quest. In Pagan Family Values, S. Zohreh Kermani explores the ways in which North American Pagan families pass on their beliefs to their children, and how the effort to socialize children influences this new religious movement. The first ethnographic study of the everyday lives of contemporary Pagan families, this volume brings their experiences into conversation with contemporary issues in American religion. Through formal interviews with Pagan families, participant observation at various pagan events, and data collected via online surveys, Kermani traces the ways in which Pagan parents transmit their religious values to their children. Rather than seeking to pass along specific religious beliefs, Pagan parents tend to seek to instill values, such as religious tolerance and spiritual independence, that will remain with their children throughout their lives, regardless of these children's ultimate religious identifications. Pagan parents tend to construct an idealized, magical childhood for their children that mirrors their ideal childhoods. The socialization of children thus becomes a means by which adults construct and make meaningful their own identities as Pagans. Kermani's meticulous fieldwork and clear, engaging writing provide an illuminating look at parenting and religious expression in Pagan households and at how new religions pass on their beliefs to a new generation.

We need answers-answers that are sure and dependable, answers that bring goodness and contentment. Today, perhaps more than ever before, the human condition has been confused and in turmoil. We are longing for essential aspects to fulfill our needs, but often fall short of the true fulfillment. We are created with core longings that were designed to be ultimately fulfilled by God. However, we have been hurt by bad relationships, abuse and neglect, unfulfilled promises, and shortcomings of our own contrived pursuits. As we begin the Created For series, we will introduce these six core longings and begin with the focus on significance. My prayer is that you will find healing for your soul and restoration for your spirit.

"Dr. Robert Shaw has spent his life in the people-helping business. He has a unique ability to key in on the many dynamics of the human condition and the biblical answers that can help individuals become all that God truly intends them to be. In this work, he introduces and expounds upon human core longings: love, significance, security, understanding, purpose, and belonging. In a culture that has become narcissistic and driven by 'what's in it for me, ' Dr. Shaw reveals what it means to live a truly meaningful life based on identifying and honoring these God-given core longings. In your quest for the experience of the truth as revealed in Scripture and most importantly in Christ, this work will provide you with a clear pathway to genuine satisfaction from the inside out in a way that brings glory to the One who created you for eternal significance." -Mark J. Chironna, MA, Ph.D., Senior Pastor and Life Coach, Church on the Living Edge, Orlando, Florida

"Dr. Shaw writes with eloquent simplicity on a complex matter of God's creative design. He has gathered nuggets of truth and packaged them for both scholarly and practical consumption, as a source of being reminded of our God-given significance. As a consummate clinician and a devout minister of the gospel, he possesses a rare capacity to write with a full measure of the spiritual savvy to discern and articulate timeless truths with grace and contemporary relevance. Everyone will be well served to drink deeply from this well of wisdom." -Adrian F. Starks, Senior Pastor, World Victory International Christian Center, Greensboro, North Carolina

The book chronicles the life story of a woman pioneer in the electrical trade. It begins with the early childhood experiences that formed her approach to life. The empowerment of feminism was a natural result of her changed life that lead her into teaching, nursing, farming and the formation of her own electrical contracting company. Another aspect in the book is her journey from realism to faith. The dynamic tension between both of these themes and the resolution of them is the substory in this very interesting memoir.

At the end of each devotional is a brief review, and at the end of the book is an opportunity to dig deeper into God's Word. The reader and the disciple will be able to reflect on a key concept and re-examine the Scripture text together. This is an ideal time to work with another person or in small group to follow up and develop meaningful discipleship relationships.

Born 8-30-58 in Cleveland Ohio, graduated from Lincoln-West high school in 1977 (Honor Roll), and was on the chess and track team, and started working for the city of Cleveland water dept. in 1977 and retired in 2007. I write short stories, slogans, saying, philosophy, songs, and comedy, restore paintings and comic books, and I can invent almost anything technical. I jog and it seems like I dont age; do to mixing a Fountain of youth type concoction when I was 20 years old. My parents are Joseph and Dorothy Bonkowski. I wrote The secrets of mind reading revealed (Howell Press), and Casablanca 2 (Unpublished), the Theory of Relativity 2, which expands on Einsteins Theory of Relativity (Only 200 copies printed.) My future plans are to keep on writing, and start a career in comedy. I still have thousands of unpublished quotes and saying, and if this book sells well I will write a second book lord willing.

Every person on earth has been through something or will go through something! Whether it is dealing with sickness, the passing of a loved one, abuse, problems in their relationship, children who give them the blues...something. The key to going through something, is to be determined to come out of it. The way to do that, is by maintaining a positive mindset and trusting that God will work things out for you. The Determination of I is a peek into the lives of real people who have been through the storms of life, yet managed to weather the storm.

A special twenty-fifth anniversary edition of the classic work of Celtic spirituality and mysticism by beloved poet and philosopher, John O'Donohue, with a new introduction by the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, an afterword by the late author’s brother, Pat O'Donohue, and insightful material from O'Donohue's circle of close friends.

In this revered classic, John O’Donohue excavates themes of friendship, belonging, solitude, creativity and the imagination, among many others. Widely recognized for bringing Celtic spirituality into modern dialogue, his unique insights from the ancient world speak with urgency for our need to rediscover the thresholds of the soul.

With lyrical wisdom and fluency, O'Donohue encourages pathways of discovery to come home to the natural rhythm in ourselves in sacred connection with one another and the landscapes we inhabit. This timeless collection nourishes the heart and elevates the spirit. It is "a book to read and reread forever.” (Irish Times)

I really never thought much about becoming a poet. My writing poetry was a way of expressing my innermost feelings about things that affected my life or that I enjoyed or cared about. I think that you will sense a growing mataurity in my writing as you read more of my poems. My poems touch on a number of subjects such as life, death, nature, love of family, and love of God while others reflect on just ordinary things that each of us deal with in our lives. I hope that reading these poems causes each of us to think more deeply about who we are and who we want to become. I hope some of them make us laugh at ourselves while others give us a different perspective about life. I feel that God meant for this gift of poetry to be shared with others. That is why it is being published. Enjoy the journey. Wayne Hampton

Once again, Father Lawrence Ventline inspires us with his imaginative, creative writing. He finds such beautiful ways of describing the so-called ordinary...the "official dump." JoAnn Loria Spiritual Director and Pastoral Associate Sterling Heights, Michigan Green is frequently found in Scriptures, but seldom refers strictly to color. Green brings to mind the freshness and vigor of growing vegetation. It denotes a healthy and prosperous condition of things. One could hardly disagree with the author's challenge to live in the manner in which Christians of new birth and hope should conduct themselves in order to maintain the wellness of their families, community, country and world. Mr. and Mrs. Dewey Totty Transfiguration Parish Southfield, Michigan

This Treasury of Biblical Moments is a collection of selected Scripture verses from all sixty-six books of the Bible. A theme is chosen for each verse, and that theme is developed with clarification of the text and other supporting Scripture. Effort has been made to point to the God we worship, to His saving grace through Jesus Christ, and to see practical applications to the concerns of our daily lives as children of God.

It has been the author's desire to show that our Lord and Savior understands the paths we tread, the valleys and mountain peaks of our lives, and that He walks with us every step of our journey. Here you can spend a few moments in time that can have eternal value."

Embedded in the soul and renowned for its versatility, the mind interfaces between the spirit and the body and, in the process, determines the outcome of the twosome. It operates optimally on divinely gifted keys, which unlocks its abounding treasures. However, by reason of its abuse, these keys can be lost, misplaced, or stolen. The ensuing consequences are misery, chaos, and finally, death. Its discovery and right application births life anew and leads to the recovery for divine exploits in congruence with life's purpose. Ostensibly written using a very practical approach, Your Mind Is a Treasure captures the place of the mind in the quest for self-discovery and workability in the universal space. It targets using the instrumentality of the mind to achieve quintessential excellence based on biblical principles. Also, it expounds on the potency of the mind and its pivotal essence in the attainment and sustenance of good success in life. It is a book that speaks to your mind.

One Man's Adventure in Faith...
Only God could have foreseen the incredible life and adventures of a German missionary named Hans Wilhelm. Fleeing Communists in China...surviving Japanese bombing raids...enduring an internment camp...joining, and later rejecting, the Hitler Youth...giving his heart to Jesus Christ in a bathtub...and that was just the beginning. From Amsterdam to Zambia, Hans Wilhelm has traveled the world as an ambassador and servant of the Lord, seeking His will and sharing the gospel. China Hans is the remarkable, often exciting, and always inspiring true story of one man's quest to honor and obey his God-wherever He leads.

In my early years of life, I grew up in an abusive home. My father was a good man to me when he was not drunk, but when he got drunk he would become someone else. I will describe him as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He did not abuse me but he abused my mother numerous times. My mother finally decided to leave him and she took my youngest brother, sister and I and we all moved to Miami, Florida in 1973. I did not understand at the time why she made the move but as I got older, I understood. Many things happened in my family during our life here in Miami. As I got older, I began to seek God for answers to many of my questions about why bad things happened to my family. It was many years later when I saw my father again, but he was a different man. I knew he was different - not because of something he did but because of something that was allowed to happen to him.

Back in 2000, Episcopal priest, William Dopp and his wife, Janet, were on their way to Kisoro, Uganda to be part of a special celebration at St. Andrew's Cathedral in that remote part of east Africa. They stopped over in London, where they had the opportunity to attend Sunday worship at St. John the Baptist Church in the Kensington section of London. The contrast between the two churches inspired this book.

The old gothic church in London was nearly empty on Sunday morning. One week later, the Dopps took part in worship in rural Kisoro where the 1200-seat cathedral was not large enough to hold the crowd. The church in London had on its literature, "Preserving Holy Worship." The church in Kisoro, Uganda proclaimed on a sign, "Jesus is our living hope." One church lives in the past; the other is in mission proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ. These two churches are the symbols of what Dopp calls the old chapel church, the OCC, and the emerging missionary church, the EMC. Congregations of all denominations fall into these two categories. Through engaging ministry experiences backed up by current statistics, he illustrates how the emerging missionary church transforms the lives of people.

"Evelyn Peterson was a most remarkable and courageous woman. Born with a hereditary muscular disease she was forced to spend almost all her life in a wheelchair. This disability, however, in no way affected her intelligence or her determined motivation to achieve the best with the gifts that God had given her. This book is a "must-read" for someone suffering with any physical problems, or indeed anyone striving to achieve his or her fullest potential in the face of adversity."

From Introduction by O. Quentin Hyder, M.D., M.Div.