Showing results by narrator "Nan McNamara" in All Categories

In western post-Christian society, humans are thought of less like precious image bearers and more like commodities. The canary in the coal mine of this ideological shift is often women and children, which manifests itself in the seemingly built-in disdain towards motherhood and children for their lack of production of economically valuable goods. However, the risk of this utilitarian approach to human life is not just outside the church, but within those spaces as well.

For the past two decades, Rocky has looked forward to her family’s yearly escape to Cape Cod. Their humble beach-town rental has been the site of sweet memories, sunny days, great meals, and messes of all kinds. This year’s vacation, with Rocky sandwiched between her half-grown kids and fully aging parents, promises to be just as delightful as summers past—except, perhaps, for Rocky’s hormonal bouts of rage and melancholy. Her body is changing—her life is, too. And then a chain of events sends Rocky into the past, reliving both the tenderness and sorrow of a handful of long-ago summers.

Who was among the last at the cross and the first at the empty tomb? Mary Magdalene. Her role in Jesus's ministry as told in all four Gospels was pivotal in many ways. Yet her story is often overlooked, confused, or scandalized by the church. In The Mary We Forgot, award-winning church historian and theologian Jennifer Powell McNutt unpacks Scripture and church history to reveal the real Mary Magdalene as a model of discipleship for all Christians today—women and men alike.

It is a perfect July morning, and Elle, a 50-year-old happily married mother of three, awakens at “The Paper Palace” - the family summer place she has visited every summer of her life. But this morning is different: Last night, Elle and her oldest friend, Jonas, crept out the back door into the darkness and had sex with each other for the first time, all while their spouses chatted away inside. Now, Elle will have to decide between the life she has made with her genuinely beloved husband and the life she always imagined she would have had with her childhood love.

In this epic Biblical narrative, ideal for fans of The Bible miniseries, a young woman taken into the prophet Isaiah's household rises to capture the heart of the future king. Isaiah adopts Ishma, giving her a new name - Zibah, delight of the Lord - thereby ensuring her royal pedigree. Ishma came to the prophet's home, devastated after watching her family destroyed and living as a captive. But as the years pass, Zibah's lively spirit wins Prince Hezekiah's favor, a boy determined to rebuild the kingdom his father has nearly destroyed.

In the everyday battle of raising kids who love Jesus while living in a world that doesn't, God invites you to come to Him. No cleaning up, no pretenses, no fancy words-all you need is to tell Him what's truly on your heart and then ask for the wisdom, encouragement, and protection that only He can provide.

Trusting God. It's such a cliche. Yet nothing means more to our heavenly Father than when we surrender our lives completely to him and choose to believe he has our best in mind. David modeled that kind of deliberate dependence: as a shepherd boy, as a man running for his life, as a king who made grave mistakes. In both triumph and failure, David looked to God rather than to himself. In Embracing Trust, Joanna Weaver, bestselling author of the runaway hit Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World, shares personal stories, practical tips, and life-changing principles gleaned from Scripture.

The former middle-distance Olympic runner and high-end escort speaks out for the first time about her battle with mental illness and how mania controlled and compelled her in competition but also in life. This is a heartbreakingly honest yet hopeful memoir reminiscent of Manic, Electroboy, and An Unquiet Mind.

This is a book for Christians who want to learn how to do better. Heather Matthews has experienced sexism in the church firsthand. In Confronting Sexism in the Church, she explores the history and culture of sexism in our contemporary evangelical world and describes the many ways—subtle and not so subtle—that it lives on in the church today. She gives simple, practical steps for how Christians can actively fight sexism in its many forms.

Flossy Merrill has managed to—somewhat begrudgingly—gather her three ungrateful grown children from their dysfunctional lives for a summer reunion at the family’s Rhode Island beach house. Clementine, her youngest child and a young mother of two small children, has caused Flossy the most worry after enduring a tragically life-altering year. But Samuel and his partner Evan are not far behind in their ability to alarm: their prospective adoption search has just taken a heart-wrenching turn.

Most of us have different aspects, "parts", or "ego states" of ourselves, which manifest as particular moods, behaviors, and reactions depending on the demands of our external and internal environments. This audiobook offers a grab bag of ego state interventions - simple, practical techniques for a range of client issues - that any therapist can incorporate in his or her practice. In her characteristic wise, compassionate, and user-friendly writing style, Robin Shapiro explains what ego states are, how to access them in clients, and how to use them for a variety of treatment issues.

Radio personality and best-selling author Barbara Rainey knows firsthand the challenges newly married couples face. Dismayed by Hollywood depictions of marriage and the seemingly easy solution of divorce, she sees a desperate need for a voice of experience, a mentor who has been there and understands - and can encourage, coach, and care. As her daughters began their married lives, Barbara wanted to share with them, and now you, some of the lessons learned throughout her own marriage as well as those gleaned from years of ministry to couples.

This is the story of Barbara and Larry Savage's sometimes dangerous, often zany, but ultimately rewarding 23,000-mile global bicycle odyssey, which took them through 25 countries in two years. Miles from Nowhere is an adventure not to be missed! Along the way, these near-neophyte cyclists encountered warmhearted strangers eager to share food and shelter, bicycle-hating drivers who shoved them off the road, various wild animals, rock-throwing Egyptians, overprotective Thai policeman, motherly New Zealanders, meteorological disasters, bodily indignities, and great personal joys.

It was the Golden Age of Radio and powerful men were making millions in advertising dollars reaching thousands of listeners every day. When television arrived, few radio moguls were interested in the upstart industry and its tiny production budgets, and expensive television sets were out of reach for most families. But four women - each an independent visionary - saw an opportunity and carved their own paths, and in so doing invented the way we watch TV today.

As kids, the three of them were inseparable; as soldiers, they would be torn apart. Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago fought alongside Dom’s elder brother Carlos at Aspho Fields in the epic battle that changed the course of the Pendulum Wars. There’s a new war to fight now, a war for mankind’s very survival. But while the last human stronghold on Sera braces itself for another onslaught from the Locust Horde, ghosts come back to haunt Marcus and Dom.

On the cusp of her fiftieth birthday, Libby Quinn's Pinterest-perfect life has turned into a disaster. When her husband leaves with all her money, Libby is left broke, alone, and unemployable. A surprise invitation from her aunt to enjoy a retreat at the family's old summer beach house could be the balm she needs.

Self-criticism is often our default setting. But we can have a more gracious posture toward ourselves. We can practice disciplines of self-kindness. Editor and spiritual director Cindy Bunch calls us to self-care through greater compassion for ourselves. She helps us pay attention to the frustrations that bug us in order to identify negative thinking about ourselves or others. As we do so, we can discern what we need to let go. This allows us to lean into the things that bring us joy. Each chapter is filled with spiritual practices and creative exercises for reflection and celebration.

When someone suffers through trauma, can healing happen? And, if yes, how does it happen? Dr. Diane Langberg tackles these complex and difficult questions with the insights she has gained through more than 40 years of counseling those whose lives have been destroyed by trauma and abuse. Her answer carefully explained in Suffering and the Heart of God is Yes, what trauma destroys, Jesus can and does restore.

We do not have a spirit of fear and timidity; we have a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind. When we walk by the Spirit, we are not conformed to a world of worry and anxiety. Bad habits must cease. Negativity, confusion, and worry are banished. The enemy has no playground. Sound impossible? With God, nothing is impossible. Author and speaker Kelly Balarie offers a rousing call to be transformed through the renewing of your mind by taking every thought captive to Christ.

Sam and Haley Quaid buried their 10-year-old son and then ended their marriage, all in one week. It wasn’t a volatile divorce, but three years later, except for trading Christmas cards, Sam and Haley have completely lost touch...until a dramatic weather report sets their paths on a collision course once more. Tropical Storm Gladys is heading straight toward coastal Texas, and locals are anxious as they prepare for potential devastation. Haley, a realtor, has an appointment to show a property and is determined to keep it, but a hurricane isn’t the only looming danger.