Like millions of her millennial peers, Rachel Held Evans didn't want to go to church anymore. The hypocrisy, the politics, the gargantuan building budgets, the scandals - church culture seemed so far removed from Jesus. Yet despite her cynicism and misgivings, something kept drawing her back. And so she set out on a journey to understand the Church and to find her place in it.

Are you weary? Worn out by the bills that keep stacking, a virus that keeps raging, or a heart that keeps aching? If so, the book of Esther brings welcome news: Relief will come! To be clear, you didn't ask for this struggle. You want to get past it. You don't know how much longer you can hold up. But what if God is with you in this difficult season? When life seems off the rails, remember this truth: the minute you bow your head to pray is the moment God lifts his hand to help.

What do we do when life lurches out of balance? How can we reconnect to one other and to what’s sustaining, when evil and catastrophe seem inescapable? These questions lie at the heart of Stitches, Lamott’s profound follow-up to her New York Times - best-selling Help, Thanks, Wow. In this book Lamott explores how we find meaning and peace in these loud and frantic times; where we start again after personal and public devastation; how we recapture wholeness after loss; and how we locate our true identities in this frazzled age.

Before a vision of a mysterious "Lady" invited Clark Strand and Perdita Finn to pray the rosary, they were not only uninterested in becoming Catholic but finished with institutional religion altogether. Their main spiritual concerns were the fate of the planet and the future of their children and grandchildren in an age of ecological collapse. But this Lady barely even referred to the Church and its proscriptions. Instead, she spoke of the miraculous power of the rosary to transform lives and heal the planet, and revealed the secrets within the rosary’s prayers and mysteries.

These true stories are your unique, personal opportunities to enjoy a taste of Heaven from here on earth. Heaven Is Beyond Your Wildest Expectations shares the testimonies of 10 ordinary people who have been to Heaven - having died and returned, or in a vision or dream. These real-life, modern-day stories inspire faith that, no matter what happens here on earth, all troubles are momentary, light afflictions compared to the glory that awaits you in Heaven.

Fox News religion correspondent Lauren Green uses her wealth of stories, her vast network of contacts, and her own extensive study of theology to take the listener on a unique journey of spiritual discovery. With few female authors writing in the field of theology, Green provides an important perspective to all who wish to move closer to not only a deeper relationship with God, but an understanding of what makes that possible.

Francis and Jesus is the story of how the poor and humble St. Francis of Assisi gave away all to gain all, sharing in God's kingdom on Earth. Francis' life exemplifies what it means to be a genuine disciple of Jesus, walking in Christ's footsteps to show how ultimate truth is lived in small, unique ways. Franciscan Father Murray Bodo takes us on the journey with Francis, as we see his pain, his suffering, his dying to self. On that difficult road we are reminded that death to self creates new life....

Did Jesus have bad habits? In our culture we have a tendency to describe Jesus in ways that soften his revolutionary edge. Len Sweet uncovers and presents to us the offensive and scandalous Jesus described in the Bible. Did he disappear when people needed him most? Yes. Did he refuse to answer questions directly? Yes. Did Jesus offend the people of his day? Absolutely yes. Popular author and speaker Len Sweet examines the words and actions of Jesus and places them in context.

In a culture that can belittle womanhood on the one hand - making it irrelevant - and glorify it on the other - making it everything - it's hard to know what it really means to be a woman. But when we understand womanhood through the lens of scripture, we see that we need a bigger category for what God has called "woman". This book breathes fresh air into our womanhood, reminding us what life in Christ - as a woman - looks like.

Some people have learned how to live. They can handle all that life brings. They are composed. They radiate strength. They are whole, with lives worth emulating, and when they speak people listen. They are, in a word, wise. How did these people get wisdom? And perhaps more importantly, how can we? In his long-awaited first audiobook, Daniel Grothe of New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, shows us how to get wisdom for ourselves by examining what the Bible has to say about it and by providing practical steps for acquiring it.

In Gay Girl, Good God, author Jackie Hill Perry shares her own story, offering practical tools that helped her in the process of finding wholeness. Jackie grew up fatherless and experienced gender confusion. She embraced masculinity and homosexuality with every fiber of her being. She knew that Christians had a lot to say about all of the above. But was she supposed to change herself? How was she supposed to stop loving women, when homosexuality felt more natural to her than heterosexuality ever could?

If you're considering this book, you were meant to know of these profound energy bundles that can be called upon in times of trouble for yourself and others, including your pets. It's critical to ask for help - but what's repeatedly reminded by the spirit world is the importance of asking the right person the right thing. If you ask Grandma Cop for help with astrophysics, be prepared to get Grandma Cop's advice.

The sovereignty of God, the sexual nature of humanity, and the gospel of God's mercy for the undeserving-these massive realities never change. And since God is still sovereign, and we are male or female, and Jesus is alive and powerful, A Sweet & Bitter Providence bears a message for listeners from all walks of life. But be warned, Piper tells his audience: This ancient love affair between Boaz and Ruth could be dangerous, inspiring all of us to great risks in the cause of love.

Pop culture and psychobabble tell us to make ourselves the center of the universe in order to be happy. Churches have communicated the false idea that God exists to give us all that we selfishly want. In this book, Max Lucado reminds us that it's not about us, it's all about God. It is through this shift in thinking that we can truly live an unburdened, happy life.

It was Blessed John Paul II's greatest gift to the Church: the theology of the body. A window into who we are, the theology of the body is a theology for the rooms where we make love. But it's also a theology for the rooms where we work, where we eat, where we laugh, and where we pray. These Beautiful Bones takes you on a walk through those rooms. With both humor and practical wisdom, it sheds light on what the theology of the body has to say about life.

Alone among the creatures of the world, man suffers a pang both bitter and sweet. It is an ache for the homecoming. The Greeks called it nostalgia. Post-modern man, homeless almost by definition, cannot understand nostalgia. If he is a progressive, dreaming of a utopia to come, he dismisses it contemptuously, eager to bury a past he despises. If he is a reactionary, he sentimentalizes it, dreaming of a lost golden age. In this profound reflection, Anthony Esolen explores the true meaning of nostalgia and its place in the human heart.

"There is a promise Holy Mother makes to us," explains Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes, "that any soul needing comfort, vision, guidance or strength, can cry out to her, flee to her protection, and Blessed Mother will immediately arrive with veils flying. She will place us under her mantle for refuge, and give us the warmth of her most compassionate touch, and strong guidance about how to go by the soul's lights." Untie the Strong Woman is Dr. Estes' invitation to come together under the shelter of The Mother - whether she appears to us as the Madonna, Our Lady of Guadalupe....

In our age when the church can too often seem like a poor copy of the world, Chad Bird challenges us to reclaim the astounding originality of our ancient, backward faith. With compelling examples from the Bible and today, Bird paints an enticing picture of the counterintuitive, countercultural life that God wants for us. He helps listeners delight in all of the ways that Jesus turned the world upside down, allowing us to experience true freedom, not from our weaknesses but in the midst of them.

Call Her Goddess - call her God the Mother - call her the Feminine Principle - her children need her, and our world deeply suffers the pains of her absence. Through the warmth and the wit of poetry, this book is an invitation for all - women, men, of any religion or of no religion - to welcome her home and set a permanent place for her at the family table. Carol Lynn Pearson’s poetry is accessible, thoughtful, and thought-provoking - the perfect balance of wisdom, humility, and humor.

Words are one of the most powerful forces in the universe, and they can be used for good or evil. When God created our world, He did so with words. He said Let there be...and it was so. While our words cannot bring into existence things that are not, they do have the power to build courage into a husband's life, instill confidence into a child's heart, fan into flames the dying embers of a friend's smoldering dreams, and draw the lost to Christ. This book is for every woman who desires to use her words to build up rather than tear down....

This classic work of spirituality from the author of A Wrinkle in Time offers life-transforming insights on the rich heritage of the Bible and shows how the characters of this ancient text are relevant for living the good life now. In the first book of her Genesis Trilogy, beloved author Madeleine L'Engle casts long, loving, and perceptive glances not only at the created universe but also at its Creator.

Here is the best of the audio from the famous Catholic television program, "Life is Worth Living!" For more than 30 years, Archbishop Fulton Sheen was the voice of the Catholic Church, with his radio and television ministries that touched hearts all over the world. His wisdom and gentle insight are once again available in digitally remastered audio recorded from his live programs.

A sacred text to Ethiopian Christians and Jamaican Rastafarians, The Kebra Nagast tells of the relationship between King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba and their son, Menyelik, who hid the Ark of the Covenant in Ethiopia. This edition of the Ethiopian text is edited by Gerald Hausman, with an introduction by Ziggy Marley.

She Walks in Beauty draws on poetry’s eloquent wisdom to ponder the many joys and challenges of being a woman. Caroline Kennedy has divided the collection into sections that signify to her the most notable milestones, passages, and universal experiences in a woman’s life, and she begins each of these sections with an introduction in which she explores and celebrates the most important elements of life’s journey.

Are you weary? Worn out by the bills that keep stacking, a virus that keeps raging, or a heart that keeps aching? If so, the book of Esther brings welcome news: Relief will come! To be clear, you didn't ask for this struggle. You want to get past it. You don't know how much longer you can hold up. But what if God is with you in this difficult season? When life seems off the rails, remember this truth: the minute you bow your head to pray is the moment God lifts his hand to help.

Did Jesus have bad habits? In our culture we have a tendency to describe Jesus in ways that soften his revolutionary edge. Len Sweet uncovers and presents to us the offensive and scandalous Jesus described in the Bible. Did he disappear when people needed him most? Yes. Did he refuse to answer questions directly? Yes. Did Jesus offend the people of his day? Absolutely yes. Popular author and speaker Len Sweet examines the words and actions of Jesus and places them in context.

Fox News religion correspondent Lauren Green uses her wealth of stories, her vast network of contacts, and her own extensive study of theology to take the listener on a unique journey of spiritual discovery. With few female authors writing in the field of theology, Green provides an important perspective to all who wish to move closer to not only a deeper relationship with God, but an understanding of what makes that possible.

In a culture that can belittle womanhood on the one hand - making it irrelevant - and glorify it on the other - making it everything - it's hard to know what it really means to be a woman. But when we understand womanhood through the lens of scripture, we see that we need a bigger category for what God has called "woman". This book breathes fresh air into our womanhood, reminding us what life in Christ - as a woman - looks like.

From a cemetery in a mythical small town in Illinois, the dead speak about their lives. Each free-verse monologue stands as an epitaph for the person speaking, yet the play is ultimately about life, not death. Featuring 50 performers with specially commissioned original music, this is the only audio version of this landmark classic available.

Who was medieval Italy's Francis of Assisi? Millions knew him as the saint who first received the stigmata of Christ, as a champion of the poor, and as a mystic who possessed a divine rapport with the natural world. But few know that Saint Francis also created an extraordinary system of practices to radiate a joyfulness of spirit inward to the soul and outward to the world. On The Way of Saint Francis, scholar and friar Murray Bodo reveals the life of this celebrated saint and shares specific meditations, prayers, and teachings to cultivate the 5 great keys of Franciscan spirituality: Silence, how to use inner and outer quietude to prepare a sacred dwelling place within; Purification, true forgiveness, the secret to purifying the heart; Openness, how to embrace your deeper suffering and simpler joys in the manner and spirit of Saint Francis; Response, the way of the Poor Christ, a life made rich through prayer, contemplation, and selfless service; Time, how we enter the state of the timeless divine. You will learn how to use each of these miraculous keys to open the door to the cell within - a sacred inner space of stillness and strength available to you at any time and in any situation - and to transform yourself into a true instrument of peace.