The Ache of Sorrow is very deep, but the Presence of God is very real. What do you do when your world turns upside down and inside out? How do you respond when you lose someone or something that is precious to you? The loss of any person, position, or thing that we value triggers grief. This book is not just for those who are grieving because of the death of a loved one. It is also for those suffering loss from a broken marriage, rebellious children, betrayal, financial downfall, unemployment, chronic illness, or any other kind of situation that shatters one's hopes and dreams. What if you are so distraught that you cannot even pray? You breathe. Breathe a single word to the One who promises to hear every word. Breathe in God's presence. Breathe out your fears and anxieties. Say a breath prayer. Then be still and know that God is God, and let His Spirit renew your spirit. Be Still and Know is a book of breath prayers written by Lois Hoogeveen during her first year of life after her husband's death. This book contains fifty-two breath prayers, giving you the option to focus on one word each week for one year. Space is provided at the end of each chapter for you to write a personal breath prayer. The comfort, strength, and solace of these prayers provide hope for anyone who struggles with any kind of loss.

This book is written with the objective of reasonably addressing the need of Muslim gays and lesbians for a life which involves intimacy, affection and companionship within the confines of a legal contract. Contemporary conservative Muslim leaders unreasonably promote false marriages with straight spouses, failing which they prescribe the "solution" of permanent celibacy as a "test." This book delves into an extensive scholarship on the same sources that conservative Muslim leaders draw on-the Qur'an, Hadith and jurisprudence. It is argued that the primary sources of Muslim knowledge addressed sexual acts between the same gender in the context of inhospitality, exploitation, coercion and disease, but not true same-sex unions; past Muslim scholarship is silent on the issue of sexual orientation and Muslim same-sex unions. The arguments of contemporary conservative Muslim leaders are deconstructed and the case for Muslim same-sex unions is made based on jurisprudential principles and thorough arguments from within the Muslim tradition.

An accessible, practical Advent study that guides readers to look deeper at the meaning of Advent by focusing on a single word and prayer method each week.

Christian joy is the constant awareness of the loving presence of Jesus, the Son of God, in our hearts. Advent is a time when we open our minds and hearts to search for the light of love, compassion, and peace in the Word of God. It is a time set aside for more intentional reading of the Word of God-reading that leads to personal reflection, prayer, contemplation, and humble service to others. Advent challenges us to remove the barriers of arrogance, sadness, selfishness, and greed that hinder us from welcoming Christ with joy and living in communion with him and our brothers and sisters.

--From the introduction

The true meaning of Advent and Christmas finds its voice in Joyful Meditations for Every Day of Advent and the 12 Days of Christmas. From the First Sunday of Advent through Christmas and Epiphany for each liturgical year (A, B, and C), this book will help prepare for and deepen our experience this holy season.

Opening each daily reflection is a Scripture quote from the day's readings. The reflection then reaches out to us in our busy lives to consider what God's Word has to offer us during the holidays. Next, a thought to ponder brings home the message for you-to really apply the reading and reflection to your life. Now say a Prayer, an offering and petition to the Lord in our anticipation of his arrival; finally a practice, a chance to change your daily routine in simple ways to bring God's love to your life this joyous season.

Rosen offers Westerners an easy-to-read introduction to a sacred text, demystifying its considerable philosophy in a user-friendly way. This is not yet another translation, merely reiterating what the Gita itself has to say. It is rather an attempt to "culturally translate" the text, making use of concepts and categories to which Western readers are accustomed. By engaging familiar motifs--such as issues of modernity, pop-culture icons, and well-known philosophers in the West--the author brings the Gita into focus for non-specialists and scholars alike. Through a series of contemporary news references and insightful summaries, readers will finally understand the facts and personalities that make up the Bhagavad Gita. Using his many years of Gita-centered research, Rosen unlocks the mysteries of the text's spiritual underpinnings. He provides an overview of the Gita's narrative and teachings alongside documentation of its traditional application and more modern ways in which the text can be understood. Subjects discussed include: * Violence in the Gita * The Gita and the Atom Bomb * Gita in the Workplace * The Goal of Yoga * The Soul: Who Am I? * Star Wars. Students and scholars alike will rejoice in how well this book lays bare the culture and the context of the Gita, resulting in a reader's deep familiarity with this most sacred of all the world's wisdom texts.

Samuel Brengle's Helps to Holiness is a devotional classic which offers Christians guidance on following the instructions of the Lord, that they may practice faith with the greatest of fulfilment. This book's stated purpose is to guide the Christian believer to a deeper and more fulfilling experience of faith. Beginning with a definition of the term 'holiness', Brengle goes on to explain in detail tenets of Christianity that must be observed by believers in the present-day. Each separate topic is supported with quotations from the Bible, whereby Brengle ably and authentically tells the reader how to proceed with a virtuous adherence to God and His holiness. Together with its inspiring passages, which instruct the reader on how to properly devote and observe the principles set out in the Holy Bible, Helps to Holiness is an insightful account into the early history of the Salvation Army.

If man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, then Johann Starck has provided a bread basket for the Church with his Prayer-Book. This book of daily prayers, hymns, poetry, and devotions presents in every syllable the Bread that has come down from heaven. Written as daily nourishment in the Word of God, this book also lends itself to meditation and prayer during many of life's peculiar situations. Professor Dau describes Starck well when he writes, "Starck loved nothing sensational, nothing that was for mere display in matters of religion. Christian life, to him, was real and earnest, to be conducted in a sober mind. He was always bent on its practical applications to every pursuit and action, and on enlisting really the whole of a person in the service of the Master." When Christians nourish their souls daily with meditation upon the Word of God and the Sacraments, faith is strengthened. The Bread of Life fills hearts and minds, and Christ finds expression in the world through Christian life and speech. A contemporary pastor said it best when he said "Starck gives Christians a daily helping of meditation in God's Word, and leads them to satisfaction in their vocational tasks."