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Beautiful Things Happen When a Woman Trusts God
by Sheila WalshDo you ever question God's ability to catch you when you fall?Do shame, fear, and brokenness keep you from fully trusting God?Do you secretly believe your dreams are unreachable? Do you secretly believe your dreams are unreachable? You are not alone.This is a book about trust. How we fight it. How we learn to do it. How it transforms us. Life is not safe. That reality slips over us as we grow. Our response to the Father in that reality allows us either to swing higher and higher with the trust of a child . . . or fearfully shrink back from the swing set altogether. As we weigh that choice, God whispers: Trust me.In a remarkably transparent account, author and speaker Sheila Walsh opens wide her lifelong battle with trust and the moment-by-moment choices she made to follow where God led. Sheila has lived a life ruled by the "hidden places" of insecurity and brokenness and knows the overwhelming beauty of a life wholly handed over to Christ.As you encounter her struggles and triumphs, you also meet ten of the Bible's transformed--Tabitha, David, Paul, and others--who teach us that in spite of overwhelming circumstances, just one trusting encounter with Christ sets beautiful things in motion. It can resurrect dreams, instill purpose, and ignite hope.
Beautiful Uncertainty
by Mandy HaleTo seek, pursue, and fall in love with Jesus with radical abandon. Single Woman Mandy Hale shares with readers what can happen in their lives by praying this powerful prayer. She has shown women how important it is to be secure in singleness by being smart, strong, and independent. In this all new book, she will prompt readers to never settle and not miss out on the beauty that can be found in times of "waiting." The Single Woman Says: "Whether you're idling in stubborn sinfulness or walking in seeming never-ending singleness or living with any sort of waiting: Waiting for love, waiting for babies, waiting for marriage, waiting for a cure, or a miracle, or a sign, or for GOD . . . I hope my journey will make the wait a little easier and the uncertainty a little bit more beautiful." Starting with relationships, but going beyond into areas like career, friendships, and life, Mandy will guide readers through what you can achieve if you look beyond your current circumstances, never settle for less than what God has for you, and find beauty in the waiting.
Beautiful Union Study Guide: A Practical Companion for Deep Reflection, Good Conversation, and Tough Questions You Really Want to Ask (But Haven't Yet)
by Joshua Ryan ButlerA practical, illuminating companion guide to Beautiful Union, Joshua Ryan Butler&’s positive exploration of how God&’s design for sex reveals the good, true, and beautiful in Scripture . . . and all of life.Designed as a companion to that life-changing book, this dynamic study guide is your road map for diving more deeply into the key concepts of Beautiful Union—whether by yourself or with a group.Through seven fast-paced sessions, you&’ll encounter thought-provoking questions, be prompted to reflect on powerful concepts, discover what God&’s design for sex was always meant to reveal, and consider what it all means for living a joyful, faithful life. These sessions include features such as:• Unpack It: questions to illuminate Beautiful Union with space to record your reflections• Use Your Imagination: exercises to creatively help you see God&’s larger invitation for human flourishing• Reflect on It: ways to understand our lives in the expansive story of God that sex points toWith this guide, you&’ll experience a bigger, more beautiful vision of God, the gospel, and the Christian vision for sex.
Beautiful Union: How God's Vision for Sex Points Us to the Good, Unlocks the True, and (Sort of) Explains Everything
by Joshua Ryan ButlerA powerful call for Christians to understand sex as a window into God's story of redemption, and a validating guide to living with authentic love in a changing culture—from the influential pastor and author of The Skeletons in God&’s Closet.Beautiful isn&’t likely the first word that comes to mind when we think about sex.Our reactions are as varied as our experiences and backgrounds. Perhaps the word brings up past baggage. Perhaps it holds yearning for a dream that has never come true. Maybe we would rather not talk about it. Maybe it&’s all we want to talk about. Around us, our culture is divided by this topic. On one side, &“progressive&” voices seek to dismantle historic Christian teachings to fit current norms. On the other side, &“conservative&” voices can reinforce messages of shame, judgement, and repression.Beautiful Union offers a third way, one that is both true and beautiful. It gives us a provocative, positive look into the deepest Christian understanding of sex . . . and what sex reveals about God, our world, and even ourselves. Through biblical teaching and livable, joyful answers to our tough questions about sexuality, author and pastor Joshua Ryan Butler shows how sex illuminates the structure of creation, the nature of salvation, the abundance of God&’s kingdom, and God&’s heartbeat for the world.Discover afresh the beautiful invitation of our sexuality . . . as God intended it to be.
Beautiful Work: A Meditation on Pain
by Sharon CameronThe stories one tells about pain are profound ones. Nothing is more legible than these stories. But something is left out of them. If there were no stories, there might be a moment of innocence. A moment before the burden of the stories and their perceived causes and consequences. For Anna, the narrator of Beautiful Work, there were moments when it was not accurate to say in relation to pain "because of this," or "leading to that." They were lucid moments. And so she began to hunger for storylessness. In order to understand the nature of pain, Anna undertakes a meditation practice. We tend to think of pain as self-absorbing and exclusively our own ("my pain," "I am in pain"). In distinction, Sharon Cameron's Anna comes to explore pain as common property, and as the basis for a radically reconceived selfhood. Resisting the limitations of memoir, Beautiful Work speaks from experience and simultaneously releases it from the closed shell of personal ownership. Outside of the not quite inevitable stories we tell about it, experience is less protected, less compromised, and more vivid than could be supposed. Beautiful Work brings to bear the same interest in consciousness and intersubjectivity that characterizes Cameron's other work.
Beautiful and Terrible Things: Faith, Doubt, and Discovering a Way Back to Each Other
by Amy ButlerFrom one of America&’s most prominent ministers comes an inspiring, provocative reflection on the necessity of community, the inevitability of conflict, and the transformative power of radical love.&“I so love and admire the work and witness of Pastor Amy Butler.&”—Anne Lamott&“Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don&’t be afraid,&” said theologian Frederick Beuchner. Pastor Amy Butler, the first woman at the helm of New York&’s historic Riverside Church, knows firsthand that to navigate such a world, one must be courageous, honest, and compassionate. In Beautiful and Terrible Things, Pastor Amy draws on the most meaningful, challenging, and soul-shaking moments of her own life to offer larger lessons on theology and relationships.Pastor Amy grew up in a conservative Evangelical family in the diverse culture of the Hawaiian Islands. As she realized she was more inclined to be a pastor than to marry one, she began an unlikely journey, breaking one stained-glass ceiling after another. Holding increasingly high-profile ministry positions in New Orleans, Washington, D.C., and New York City, Amy weathered rigidly unwelcoming congregations and enormous trials, ultimately learning that only the radical love of community could generate healing. As she describes her experiences leading a church to publicly affirm its LGBTQ community members, losing a child, and undergoing an unexpected divorce, Amy offers a thoughtful lens on all the ways life can push us to see the world from another&’s perspective. In her signature compassionate, witty voice, she offers fresh, nonjudgmental perspectives on faith—which, at its most beautiful expression, allows for the possibility that there is more than one way to experience God.
Beautiful, Disappointing, Hopeful: How Gratitude, Grief, and Grace Reflect the Christian Story
by Drew HyunLife is both beautiful and disappointing.In Beautiful, Disappointing, Hopeful, Drew Hyun explains how the Christian faith provides a lens through which we can understand the beautiful and disappointing world we live in, while offering the kind of promising hope we long for.Throughout history we have tried to make sense of the world that we inhabit and how we can navigate through the tension of all that is good and broken in this life. Yet most of our attempts to avoid loss simply lead to greater anxiety—an unresolved fear that we will eventually lose what we most love and need. Weaving a rich tapestry of Christian tradition and personal illustrations, Hyun offers Christianity as a true and compelling vision for life that faithfully points the way through loss to true beauty. He presents three deep practices that can build lasting spiritual resilience and help you learn how to grow through life's losses and disappointments.By exploring these contemplative spiritual practices—Gratitude, Grieving, and Grace—as a means of centering your life more fully into a holistic spirituality, you can uncover meaningful responses to the full range of lived experiences that will lead you to a grounded yet transcendent hope.
Beautifully Broken: An Unlikely Journey of Faith
by Paige Wetzel Josh WetzelRestore your faith in love and family with one Army wife's courageous story of how she helped her husband recuperate from losing both of his legs while serving in Afghanistan.Paige received the phone call that every military wife prays will never come. Her husband, Army Sergeant Josh Wetzel, stepped on an improvised explosive device while patrolling in Afghanistan. The blast resulted in the immediate loss of his legs. His survival was uncertain, and in the days to come, this traumatic incident began an unbelievable journey of faith for them as a couple. Paige's vulnerability as she struggles physically, emotionally, and spiritually, will remind you of the power of commitment and love in the face of adversity. You will discover the bravery and grit of a woman who stood behind the battle lines but faced a battle of her own to save her marriage and her family. As a military wife, Paige had to come to terms with the priorities of the military: God, Country, and then Family.
Beautifully Broken: From the Horizon Home Series
by Samantha Baily&“The reason I left the place I did is to find a home. But I also had no freedom there, and I value my liberty. I&’ll not let you tell me what to do.&”Etta Alby is determined never to let anyone tell her what to do again. She&’s already spent her entire life being pushed around by her cruel, heartless great-aunt Gertrude Badger.But not anymore.Now the girl is on her way to Calico, a silver mining town in the Mojave desert. Little does Etta know that she may have to let down her guard and learn to trust others if she wants to thrive. Along the way to Calico, she meets Timere, a young man whose destination is the same as hers. Soon becoming friends, the two team up and head for Calico. With a determined spirit and a gift with horses, Etta is sure she has a chance to live her own life. But things don&’t always go as planned.
Beautifully Interrupted: When God Holds the Pen that Writes Your Story
by Teresa Swanstrom AndersonForeword by Mandy Arioto, President of MOPS InternationalTeresa Swanstrom Anderson is living the life she thought she never wanted. With an art history degree and dreams of living in Europe as a curator, Teresa had big plans for herself. She had no desire to have kids -- didn't even like them -- but after a decision to lay her exciting plans at the feet of Christ, God began changing her heart little by little. While dating the man who eventually became her husband, the two felt called to adopt from Africa. Now, Teresa's house is bursting at the seams with the loves of her life -- her husband, Ben, and their six children, four of whom were born in Ethiopia. She believes in celebrating the everyday and instilling the love of God and others in her children's hearts. She views her life as a series of redirected dreams, stumbling, falling, getting up, and wondering if she is investing her time where it matters most. Through it all, Teresa grasps joy tightly amid the craziness of everyday life. Go from dreaming about your life to living it fully with God in control. Pick up this book, grab a notebook, curl up on the couch, and open your heart to the potential of allowing your life to become beautifully interrupted. Includes reflection questions and Bible study prompts. Have you gotten so caught up in life and your well-intentioned plans that you may have accidentally planned God right out of it all? Teresa Swanstrom Anderson did just that. Her carefully laid out life changed course when she whispered to God, "Send me. Use me." Be inspired as you read Beautifully Interrupted and learn the importance of giving your plans back to God and allow Him to expand the borders of your life and heart. This book offers strategies and encouragement for living through the in-between times of waiting, as well as facing trials with grace and active faith. Become equipped to brave the storms and embrace the life-changing power of seeking God's plan first and sacrificing time and set plans in favor of something far greater.
Beauty & the Bitch: Grace for the Worst in Me
by Jan Meyers ProettAn authentic, inspiring guide to help women see beyond their imperfections and failures—and rediscover the beauty within. As an experienced counselor, Jan Proett has logged countless hours listening to women describe themselves in the worst possible light. She&’s also had plenty of practice at turning that light on herself. In this bracing and bravely personal book, Proett invites women to face the truth about themselves. And the truth is this: No matter how imperfect, fearful, shameful, and downright bitchy we have been, we can be restored. A life of fear and control can be met by peace and freedom. A heart full of rage can be overwhelmed by kindness. The demands of more can be trumped by gratitude and rest. And the best part is that every last ugly, nasty place in our hearts can be made beautiful. When we take an honest look at ourselves, beauty is what we&’ll find underneath all the stuff we&’ve piled on top. No matter who we think we are or what we&’ve done, there&’s a beauty inside us that defines us, a beauty we&’ve forgotten. Rediscover that beauty and let it tell you who you really are.
Beauty Among Ruins
by J'nell CiesielskiIn Ciesielski&’s latest sweeping romance, an American heiress finds herself in Scotland amid the fallout of the Great War, and a wounded Scottish laird comes face-to-face with his past and a woman he never could have expected.American socialite Lily Durham is known for enjoying one moment to the next, with little regard for the consequences of her actions. But just as she is banished overseas to England as a &“cure&” for her frivolous ways, the Great War breaks out and wreaks havoc. She joins her cousin in nursing the wounded at a convalescent home deep in the wilds of Scotland at a crumbling castle where its laird is less than welcoming.Alec MacGregor has given his entire life to preserving his home of Kinclavoch Castle, but mounting debts force him to sell off his family history bit by bit. Labeled a coward for not joining his countrymen in the trenches due to an old injury, he opens his home to the Tommies to make recompense while he keeps to the shadows. But his preference for the shadows is shattered when a new American nurse comes streaming into the castle on a burst of light.Lily and Alec are thrown together when a series of mysterious events threatens to ruin the future of Kinclavoch. Can they put aside their differences to find the culprit before it&’s too late, or will their greatest distraction be falling in love?Praise for Beauty Among Ruins&“An atmospheric, engrossing romance for fans of Downton Abbey and Somewhere in France. A real gem!&” —Aimie K. Runyan, internationally bestselling author&“A satisfying and highly enjoyable read that I recommended for readers of historical fiction, mystery, and romance.&” —Tea Cooper, author of The Woman in the Green DressWorld War I historical romanceFull-length stand-alone novelBook length: 113,000 wordsIncludes discussion questions for book clubs
Beauty Begins: Making Peace with Your Reflection
by Chris Shook Megan Shook Alpha&“Beauty begins. That&’s the point of this book. Our understanding of beauty got started somewhere and somehow, and probably due to someone. Now that may have been a good start, but then again it may not have.&” We live in a culture obsessed with beauty. Walk by any magazine stand or turn on a television and you&’ll be bombarded with the images and ideals that our culture believes are the definition of beautiful. And if you&’re like most women, you&’ve probably spent countless hours trying to measure up to this standard whether you realize it or not. But if you don&’t make peace with your reflection, you&’ll end up declaring war on yourself. That&’s where mother-daughter team Chris Shook and Megan Shook Alpha want to help. In Beauty Begins, they challenge each of us to trade the pressure of perfection for God's perfect love. Poignant, relevant, and relatable, Beauty Begins is for every woman who wants to reclaim what it means to be truly beautiful.
Beauty Beyond the Ashes
by Cheryl McguinessOn the morning of September 11, 2001, Cheryl McGuinness kissed her husband good-bye as he headed off to work. She never saw him again. Tom McGuinness was the co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 11 -- the first airplane to crash into the World Trade Center. On that day, Cheryl's world fell apart. But since that day, Cheryl McGuinness has learned how to hope again. Through her powerful story, the rest of us can find our way to hope as well. Cheryl's message of renewal, recovery, and faith is a message that resonates with every aching heart. As you read through this intimate look at heartbreak and joy, you will discover an incredible sense of the good that is yet to be, and you will find in yourself a growing conviction that with God's help, you can face any sorrow or pain.
Beauty Is Oxygen: Finding a Faith That Breathes
by Wesley Vander LugtBeauty is oxygen because it comes from the lungs of God. Isolating individualism, rank injustice, and everyday monotony threaten to suffocate our souls. But Wesley Vander Lugt shows how beauty can breathe life back into us. Written in a graceful cadence that invites readers to turn these pages slowly, Beauty Is Oxygen weaves together theological reflection, poetry, cultural criticism, and Scripture. Throughout, Vander Lugt shows how beauty can break us out of self-centered malaise, promote healing and hope for our broken world, and reenchant our lives. Beauty is about more than positive feelings or pleasing aesthetics. Beauty is as essential to our souls as oxygen is to our bodies. As readers encounter these traces of divine glory in Vander Lugt&’s finely crafted meditations, they will find how Christ will &“make all things new.&”
Beauty Marks: Healing Your Wounded Heart
by Linda BarrickIn this powerful healing journey, Linda Barrick applies the words Jesus spoke during His time of greatest pain to help readers transform their deepest wounds into their highest purpose. In one second, Linda Barrick’s life changed when a drunk driver slammed into her family’s van, nearly killing her daughter and leaving Linda, her husband, and their son critically injured. Barrick draws on her remarkable story of loss and hope to lead readers toward emotional, physical, and spiritual restoration. Everyone experiences shattered dreams and emotional pain. Some scars are visible, and some are hidden deep in the heart. Whether the pain happened yesterday or fifteen years ago, Beauty Marks shows readers that they don’t have to keep covering up their wounds. As Barrick leads readers through Jesus’s words of abandonment, forgiveness, and release, she shows how pain has purpose—and that God can transform scars into beautiful marks of victory.
Beauty Shop Tales (Mystery and The Minister's Wife #3)
by Beth PattilloWhen the empty house next to Faith Briar Church goes up for sale, Kate's inquiries at Betty's Beauty Parlor lead to questions about the former owner, the reclusive Mavis Bixby. Mavis disappeared just over a year ago, and no one knows where she went. The suspicious circumstances surrounding her departure make Kate fearful that something bad happened to her. While Paul is occupied tracking down his mother's secret recipe for the big chili cook-off, Kate looks for answers. Missing documents, a suspicious stranger, and a dangerous secret lead to a life-and-death chase for the missing Mavis. As Kate gets closer to solving the mystery, she begins to understand how secrets can hurt but the truth can set you free.
Beauty Will Save World: Recovering the Human in an Ideological Age
by Gregory WolfeA writer in residence at Seattle Pacific University, Wolfe founded and edits the literature and arts journal Image. Here he shares his thoughts about how Christian humanism can improve the world. His sections cover from ideology to humanism; Christianity, literature, and modernity; six writers; three artists; and four men of letters. Among his topics are a portrait of the editor as a young man, the writer of faith in a fractured culture, Evelyn Waugh, Wendell Barry, Mary McCleary, and Malcolm Muggeridge. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc. , Portland, OR (booknews. com)
Beauty Will Save the World: Rediscovering the Allure and Mystery of Christianity
by Brian ZahndIn today’s world we have technology, convenience, security, and a measure of prosperity, but where is the beauty? For thousands of years, artists, sages, philosophers, and theologians have connected the beautiful and the sacred and identified art with our longing for God. Now we live in a day when convenience and practicality have largely displaced beauty as a value. The church is no exception. Even salvation is commonly viewed in a scientific and mechanistic manner and presented as a plan, system, or formula. In Beauty Will Save the World, Brian Zahnd presents the argument that this loss of beauty as a principal value has been disastrous for Western culture, and especially for the church. The full message of the beauty of the gospel has been replaced by our desires to satisfy our material needs, to empirically prove our faith, and to establish political power in our world--the exact same things that Christ was tempted with and rejected in the wilderness. Zahnd shows that by following the teachings of the Beatitudes, the church can become a viable alternative to current-day political, commercial, and religious power and can actually achieve what these powers promise to provide but fail to deliver. Using stories from the lives of St. Francis of Assisi and from his own life, he teaches us to stay on the journey to discover the kingdom of God in a fuller, richer, more beautiful, way.
Beauty and Bands: Finding Beauty Among the Ashes
by Henrietta WisbeyThe poems and corresponding texts reflect my story. Thoughts and prayers gathered form gleaning behind the reapers.Listening and seeking to respond to the Divine promptings and guidance have led me to discover, on the one hand the sovereign workings of God's mysterious ways and my human responsibility on the other.Beauty and Bands were broken, how and why?My quest; I needed to find a shepherd.He was there.Himself broke and wounded for me.My life has been transformed. Beauty continues to be restored because of the Bond He made.
Beauty and the Brit
by Lizbeth SelvigTough and self-reliant Rio Montoya has looked after her two siblings for most of their lives. But when a gang leader makes threats against her sister Bonnie, even Rio isn't prepared for the storm that could destroy her family. When their dreams are shattered in one dangerous moment, Rio seeks refuge for them all at a peaceful horse farm in the small town of Kennison Falls, Minnesota.Rio should feel safe in Kennison Falls, but her budding romance with the stable's owner, handsome British ex-pat David Pitts-Matherson, feels as dangerous as her past. The incredibly sexy David is as far from her type as any man could get, yet he tempts Rio in a way she never expected. But Rio knows that her time in Kennison Falls is limited, that her family is still in danger, and that she and David come from completely different worlds--a recipe for disaster.David has his own secrets, and even the sparks he feels flying with the fiery and beautiful Rio may not be enough for him to let her into his heart. Can the beauty and the Brit ever find common ground? Or will their pasts stand in the way of true love?
Beauty by the Book: Seeing Yourself as God Sees You
by Nancy StaffordFrom celebrated Hollywood starlets to the covers of Cosmo, our society seems obsessed with beauty. Actress and Main Floor host Nancy Stafford (best known for her starring role as Michelle Thomas on Matlock) digs below our culture's fixation on outward appearance to show you that true beauty is more than skin-deep. "Every woman has beauty," says Stafford, "but not everyone sees it. I want you to see it. " In Beauty by the Book she bares her heart to readers, laying out the Scriptures, promises, and truths women need to know to find their true value. Her liberating reflections will help you see yourself as God sees you -- worthy, lovable, and beautiful. "Mirror, Mirror, on the W allhellip;" What do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you see a unique individual created in the image ofBeautyitself-one chosen, Cherished, and valued in the eyes of God? If not, you may be looking in the wrong mirror-one distorted by emotional wounds, lies from your past, or the unrealistic standards of our culture. "Everyone has beauty and worth," says Nancy Stafford, "but not everyone sees it. I want you to see it. " Nancy shares her own poignant story and holds up the true mirror of God's Word-inviting you to see yourself as God sees you, to absorb His truth, and to knowbeyond a shadow of a doubtthat the King is enthralled by your beauty!
Beauty for Ashes (Grace Livingston Hill Series #48)
by Grace Livingston HillGloria knew the benefits of wealth. Her life had been filled with every conceivable luxury, which would only continue when she was married to a well-known and wealthy man. But Gloria's world is shattered when her fiance is found murdered--in very questionable circumstances. Brokenhearted, Gloria flees to the quiet country town where her father grew up. There she meets sincere, humble people who seem satisfied without money--and discovers a love she never dreamed existed. But can even the love of handsome Murray MacRae release Gloria from the shame of her past? Nearly all of the one hundred books by Grace Livingston Hill are in Bookshare's library. After the text in this book on pages 280-282 is a numbered list of 100 novels by this well loved author of Christian Fiction to help you find them all.
Beauty for Ashes: Receiving Emotional Healing
by Joyce MeyerBestselling author Joyce Meyer explores the true path to emotional healing through God's love. Many people seem to have it all together outwardly, but inside they are falling apart,crushed and wounded by their past. But God has a plan to heal the broken-hearted and the victims of abuse. For over 30 years, Joyce Meyersuffered the devastating effects of verbal, sexual, and physical abuse. Today, she has a worldwide ministry of emotional healing for others like herself. In BEAUTY FOR ASHES, she outlines the major truths that brought healing to her life and describes how other victims of abuse can also experience this healing, including how to deal with the emotional pain of abuse, how to understand your responsibility to God for overcoming abuse, why victims of abuse often suffer from other addictive behaviors, how to grab hold of God's unconditional love, and the importance of God's timing in working through painful memories. By sharing her personal story, Joyce Meyer wants to help others find inner peace through their belief in God.
Beauty in Disguise
by Mary MooreAfter her scandalous first Season, Lady Kathryn needs a new beginning. Concealing her stunning hair and sapphire eyes beneath a dowdy facade, she's grateful to earn her keep as companion Kate Montgomery. Until she comes face-to-face with her past in Lord Dalton, the only man she has ever loved.The debutante Dalton fell in love with years ago was beautiful beyond compare. The gentle, mysterious young woman he encounters at a country house has qualities he now values more highly-until he learns of her deception. Kate has broken his heart not once, but twice. Can faith help him see that love, like true beauty, always comes to light?