When Ben and Barbara Girod married in 1973, they had no idea their new life together would be one of shared burdens and blessings, lovely dreams and bitter disappointments. Both products of a strict and conservative Amish upbringing, they sought to know Jesus, and they wanted more than the form and tradition of their Amish upbringing. In An Amish Journey to Forgiveness, author Ben Girod tells his remarkable and unusual story of Amish life, reflecting his painstaking social and spiritual journey over many decades. His responsibilities as a bishop and church leader were manifold as he dealt with the predominant and inherent traditions of the Old Order Amish church. A divine encounter with God brought peace and joy to their lives, but this was soon followed by misunderstanding and rejection by family, church members, and leaders, ultimately ending in excommunication from their respective district. Devastated, confused, and unable to understand why this was happening, they turned to the Lord in search of meaning and purpose. An Amish Journey to Forgiveness shares their story as they began to understand that God was allowing such persecution and suffering to draw them closer to Him. It shows how God used Girod to bring about an awareness of the need for healing and reconciliation throughout the body.

Seven Letters To Heaven - Award-Winning Finalist in the " Spirituality: Inspirational" category of The USA "Best Books 2011" Awards. Author Felicita Terry Robinson found herself at a spiritual crossroads as she was faced with the daunting task of uprooting herself and her family from their native Jamaica. For her, writing her prayers down gave her a sense of solace and the strength to accomplish her goals.

In her new book, Seven Letters to Heaven A True Story of Faith and Answered Prayers (published by iUniverse), Robinson shares with readers seven of 21 personal letters of prayer she wrote as a way of communicating to God to seek His help with the small day-to-day problems she was experiencing. After looking back on her letters, she realized that not only were her prayers answered, her faith was also strengthened, leading her to wanting to share her experience with others. I have always felt that there was something missing that I needed to so spiritually other than being a good Christian, said Robinson. I realized that the actual publishing of my personal letters was the missing piece that I needed, not only to help others, but in order to help me grow spiritually.

Taking place during the last four months Robinson was in Jamaica prior to relocating to the U.S., Seven Letters to Heaven is about the trials and tribulations that came as a result of leaving home to start a new life, and the problems inherent with moving from one country to another. The book focuses on Robinson s written letters of prayers to God, sharing her day-to-day problems as well as poems and biblical quotations, and finding peace through her powerful faith. The story behind Seven Letters to Heaven is a simple one; however the message is very powerful. This book will take readers on a walk of faith that shows God can truly become a real friend to anyone and most importantly, He does answer prayers, in His own way, in His own time and at His own will. Review Comment by Rev. Basil Aguzie, MSP follows:

"Faith, hope and courage are virtues every Christian on a spiritual journey with God must have. Seven Letters to Heaven confirms this. This book is not just about communicating with God through letter writing but also, it is a spiritual process of seeking God in one s situation and recognizing His hands at work in one s life; firstly in the means by which God answers one s prayers, and secondly the times when He actually does so. What is remarkable about this book is that it not only serves as a guide, but also an easy to read spiritual companion. This is why I would recommend it to anyone searching for a deeper intimacy with God."

I was hospitalized for six days. After Dr. Michael Friedman, M.D., F.A.C.S., my urologist, studied the test and he said that I had a bladder infection, cyst on my kidneys, and my prostate was enlarged which would have to be surgically removed. The medical term is BPH (Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy). I did not have the surgery. In a follow-up appointment, Dr. Friedman and his nurse did a Cystoscopy. Before finishing, he turned and asked, "What did you do? The prostate is completely healed. It has returned to its normal size " I answered, "I did the same as I did about my heart - I prayed " I shared my testimony with a lady, my age and gave her a tract. When I saw her the next month, the first thing she said was, "Mr. Graham, I want to thank you for sharing your faith. It has truly affected my life, and I want you to know it. Thanks. I had not read my Bible or prayed in years, but I began doing both that day and I continue each day." Jesus said, "whoever acknowledges me before man, I will also acknowledge before God." Matthew 10: 32. Vicki Caldwell had typed 80% of my original manuscript. She has worked on it, making changes, additions, corrections etc. from the first word to it's ending, several times. One day as I gave the last handwritten copies of three Chapters to her, Vicki reached out and touched my hand. Looking at me, she said, "R.C., I was born Greek Orthodox and raised in Catholic schools, but I want you to know I have learned more about the Bible through talking with you and typing your manuscript than I have through my entire church life. Thanks."

This biography of the writer of Amazing Grace takes us on a journey worthy of a Hollywood extravaganza with swashbuckling adventures on the high seas coupled with the horrors of the slave trade. Once Blind retells Newton's conversion during a crushing storm no one expected to survive, moving on to his most unusual career as an evangelical clergyman with the Church of England during which he was known for his ability to bridge gaping theological chasms. In the end, John Newton risked his reputation, his wife's emotional well-being, even his cherished right to preach--all so that he could bear witness to the horrors he had witnessed and had participated in, and to help bring about laws that would stop the slave trade. This is indeed a timely book as we mark the 200th anniversary of the laws that set in motion the end of 18th century slavery, for God's grace is every bit as amazing today as it was in Newton's era.

Three million girls across the world are at risk of female genital mutilation (FGM) each year. When Ann-Marie Wilson met a girl named Fatima in West Darfur, who had experienced FGM at the age of five and was pregnant by the age of ten, she knew she had to do something. Her life's work since then has been geared toward speaking out against FGM, as well as supporting the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of as many survivors as possible. Built on the experience of more than 3,000 FGM survivors' stories as well as meetings with heads of state and the Pope, Overcoming tells the compelling story of how Ann-Marie leaned on her Christian faith through her darkest moments to build 28 Too Many. This international organisation offers hope to the millions of girls who, just like Fatima, are at risk of FGM each year.

'My Confession' is Tolstoy's chronicle of his journey to faith; his account of how he moved from despair to the possibility of living; from unhappy existence to 'the glow and strength of life'. It describes his spiritual and philosophical struggles up until he leaves the Orthodox Church, convinced that humans discover truth not by faith, but by reason. The story begins when at the age of 50, Tolstoy is in crisis. Having found no peace in art, science or philosophy, he is attacked by the black dog of despair, and considers suicide. His past life is reappraised and found wanting; as slowly light dawns within. 'As gradually, imperceptibly as life had decayed in me, until I reached the impossibility of living, so gradually I felt the glow and strength of life return to me... I returned to a belief in God.' Here is a quest for meaning at the close of the 19th century - a time of social, scientific and intellectual turbulence, in which old forms were under threat. Tolstoy looks around at both old and new alike, and like the author of Ecclesiastes, discovers that 'All is vanity'. His spiritual discoveries first take him into the arms of the Orthodox Church; and then force his angry departure from it. 'My Religion' carries on from where 'My Confession' left off. Describing himself as a former nihilist, Tolstoy develops his attack on the church he has left. He accuses them of hiding the true meaning of Jesus, which is to be found in the Sermon on the Mount; and most clearly, in the call not to resist evil. For Tolstoy, it is this command which has been most damaged by ecclesiastical interpretation. 'Not everyone, ' he writes, 'is able to understand the mysteries of dogmatics, homilectics, liturgics, hermeneutics, apologetics; but everyone is able and ought to understand what Christ said to the millions of simple and ignorant people who have lived and are living today.' Here is Tolstoy's religion; and non-violence is at its heart.

When he was only nine years old, Satish Kumar renounced the world and joined the wandering brotherhood of Jain monks. Dissuaded from this path by an inner voice at the age of eighteen, he became a campaigner for land reform, working to turn Gandhi's vision of a renewed India into reality. Fired by the example of Bertrand Russell, he undertook a peace pilgrimage, walking from India to America without any money, through mountains, deserts, storms and snow. It was an adventure during which he was thrown into jail in France, faced a loaded gun in America, and delivered packets of 'peace tea' to the leaders of the four nuclear powers. He settled in England, taking on the editorship of Resurgence magazine, and becoming the guiding light behind a number of ecological, spiritual and educational ventures, including Schumacher College.This edition of Satish Kumar's inspirational autobiography commemorates the foundation of Schumacher College, with new chapters about the college and bringing Satish's story up-to-date. Following Indian tradition, in his fiftieth year he undertook another pilgrimage: again without any money, he walked to the holy places of Britain - Glastonbury, Lindisfarne, and Iona. Written with a penetrating simplicity, No Destination is an exhilarating account of an extraordinary life.

""Robert Y. Ellis' A Collision of Truths is a beautifully written and insightful autobiography of one man's journey of faith. Ellis was raised a Christian Scientist but later both rejected and appropriated many of its central beliefs. Ellis narrates the role Christian Science played in providing balance and meaning in his life while questioning its hostility to critical inquiry and modern medicine. Through sensitive description of the arc of his own life, Ellis calls his readers to re-examine their basic values and commitments amidst the complexities of daily existence in a digital world where knowledge increases exponentially. A genuine achievement and must read for fellow travelers who are looking for meaning and hope in our time.""
-Mark I. Wallace, PhD, Professor of Religion, Swarthmore College, Author of "Finding God in the Singing Rive"r

"A man would be singularly inert if he were not to find this account vastly tantalizing. What an extraordinary tale The way Ellis proceeds through his life from earliest childhood on keeps a reader wanting to know what comes next. And his prose is a blessed relief to anyone who loves good English prose.""
-Thomas Howard, PhD, author "Christ the Tiger"

This narrative is the first to reveal one Christian Science family's story, their faith's underpinnings and those singular episodes that collided with Ellis' beliefs including his Christian Science mother being treated by a beam of protons at the Harvard University cyclotron, his father's unsolved murder in Harlem, and the religious tensions in his childhood home that ultimately exploded. Ellis' sometimes painful, always captivating journey will inspire everyone being challenged by today's extraordinary scientific discoveries which appear to leave no room for God.