Religious Life

Born into a Christian family, author Bill Brack learned the importance of serving the Lord early on. He built his character even further by joining the Marines and serving his country during the Vietnam war years. But everything changed when he suffered a diving accident and found himself completely paralyzed. A long process of healing and restoration began, during which he drew upon his faith to rediscover the joy of living.

In the early 1970s, Swami Kriyananda asked Asha to start taking notes for the book he knew she would someday write. He explained himself to her in a way he did to only a few others. Since then, she has stayed in constant contact with him, as a devotee, friend, personal assistant, and eventually, a spiritual teacher in her own right. It's a rare gift to live with a true teacher. Experience it for yourself, as Asha brings you into meetings, conversations, personal counseling, living rooms, classrooms, long walks, meetings, and meditations.

Included in this three-in-one collection are the titles Candy Bombers, Beetle Bunker, and Smuggler’s Treasure, which together follow a family from the end of World War II to the fall of the Berlin Wall, with each entertaining story highlighting what kids experienced at key moments in history.

Cold Tangerines is a collection of stories that celebrate the extraordinary moments hidden in our everyday lives. It is about God, and about life, and about the thousands of daily ways in which an awareness of God changes and infuses everything. It is about spiritual life, and about all the things that we have called nonspiritual life that might be spiritual after all.

Alban Butler was born in England and worked for a time as a Roman Catholic missionary priest. He was later appointed president of an English seminary in France. His primary literary work, the Lives of the Saints, was published between 1756 and 1759.

For most of her life, Crystal McVea was a skeptic whose history of abuse and bad choices made her feel beyond the reach of God - who questioned if God was even real. She had all but given up hope. Then came December 10, 2009...and the moment that changed everything. Crystal doesn't remember the trauma or losing consciousness; she just remembers waking up in heaven, next to God....

C. S. Lewis is the 20th century's most widely read Christian writer and J. R. R. Tolkien its most beloved mythmaker. For three decades they and their closest associates formed a literary club known as the Inklings, which met weekly in Lewis' Oxford rooms and a nearby pub. They read aloud from works in progress, argued about anything that caught their fancy, and gave one another invaluable companionship, inspiration, and criticism.

In For a Greater Purpose: The Life and Legacy of Walter Bradley, authors Robert Marks and William Dembski detail the story of this remarkable man whose passion for God, science, higher education, and human empowerment provides an excellent model of someone who integrates faith and learning.

Sara Stanley is only 14, but she can weave tales that are impossible to resist. In the charming town of Carlisle, children and grown-ups alike flock from miles around to hear her spellbinding narratives. And when Bev King and his younger brother, Felix, arrive for the summer, they, too, are captivated by the Story Girl.

Anya and the Dragon is the story of fantasy and mayhem in 10th century Eastern Europe, where headstrong 11-year-old Anya is a daughter of the only Jewish family in her village. When her family's livelihood is threatened by a bigoted magistrate, Anya is lured in by a friendly family of fools, who promise her money in exchange for helping them capture the last dragon in Kievan Rus. This seems easy enough, until she finds out that the scary old dragon isn't as old - or as scary - as everyone thought. Now Anya is faced with a choice: save the dragon, or save her family.

In this timely and compelling audiobook, Harold Kushner addresses our craving for significance, the need to know that our lives and choices mean something. We do great things, and occasionally terrible things, to reassure ourselves that we matter to the world. We sometimes confuse fame, power, and wealth with true achievement. But finally we need to think of ourselves as good people and are troubled when we compromise our integrity to be successful and important.

Gautama Buddha, also known as Siddhartha Gautama, was a spiritual teacher who lived in ancient India between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE. He is the founder of Buddhism, one of the major religions of the world. Buddha was born into a royal family, but he renounced his luxurious lifestyle at the age of 29 to seek the truth about life and the nature of suffering. He spent six years as a wandering ascetic before attaining enlightenment at the age of 35.

In his signature style of stand-up comedy bits, Jeff Allen shares the inspirational and at times laugh-out-loud story of how God rescued him from alcoholism and despair through the book of Ecclesiastes. At times, his story is tragic and even tear-jerking—but in the end, it demonstrates that God takes a customized approach to reaching each of His children. Known as “the King of Clean Comedy,” Allen’s memoir won’t disappoint.

Augustine is widely considered to be the most influential theologian in church history after the apostle Paul. Dramatically converted from a life of licentiousness to one of wholehearted devotion to Christ, the humble North African pastor quickly established himself as a leading figure within the ancient church. In Augustine on the Christian Life, historian Gerald Bray explores the rich spirituality of this extraordinary man, examining his historical context, approach to the Christian life, and work as a preacher and teacher of God’s Word.

In Reposition Yourself, best-selling author T.D. Jakes shares insights that will help you adjust to the many changes that life brings. This is a shrill wake-up call to take charge of your life now, confronting areas where subtle passivity, or even poor choices, may have stifled your creativity. It's also a how-to for managing change and maximizing life now. Covering financial, relational, and spiritual creativity, Jakes shows how adapting to transitional moments is the path to an enriched existence.

David, King of the Jews, possessed every flaw and failing of which a mortal is capable, yet men and women adored him, and God showered him with many blessings. A charismatic leader, exalted as "a man after God's own heart", he was also capable of deep cunning and bloodthirsty violence.

Drawing on over 130 interviews as well as numerous national surveys, Addicted to Lust tells us that, compared to other Americans, pornography shapes the lives of conservative Protestants in ways that are uniquely damaging to their mental health, spiritual lives, and intimate relationships. Perry demonstrates how certain pervasive beliefs within the conservative Protestant subculture unwittingly create a context in which those who use pornography are often overwhelmed with shame and discouragement, sometimes to the point of depression or withdrawal from faith altogether.

St. Francis of Assisi is one of the most venerated Christian figures, and his profound teachings, deep love of nature, and commitment to simplicity have resonated with generations of followers. St. Francis of Assisi, a title in the Essential Wisdom Library, offers a simple and universal introduction to Francis' life, his key teachings, and the spiritual practices that enriched his faith and the lives of those who follow his legacy.

Welcome to my world. I'm Amal Abdel-Hakim, a 17-year-old Australian-Palestinian-Muslim still trying to come to grips with my various identity hyphens. It's hard enough being cool as a teenager when being one issue behind the latest Cosmo is enough to disqualify you from the in-group. Try wearing a veil on your head and practicing the bum's up position at lunchtime and you know you're in for a tough time at school.

From a highly successful career in motivational speaking to a daily struggle overcoming the effects of a head injury, Zig Ziglar's life changed drastically in just minutes when he suffered a traumatic fall down the stairs one fateful night. After years of speaking and writing about the value of having a positive attitude and being thankful, Zig was challenged to put his own words into practice.