Glimmers Of Grace

Glimpses of God's Grace in the Hospital Room If you've ever spent time in a hospital, you know that it can be a place of struggles and hardships. These hardships aren't limited to physical problems; often when our bodies are in pain, our spiritual lives can suffer too. Former trauma surgeon Dr. Kathryn Butler experienced this firsthand as she walked alongside patients, colleagues, and friends through various illnesses and aching loss. In Glimmers of Grace, Butler draws from this experience to guide believers through the deep questions of God's trustworthiness in the midst of suffering. Blending memoir and devotional reflections, Butler interweaves her own stories of grace with narratives from Scripture to reveal how God's steadfast love endures even in times of great affliction.

It started with a Tootsie Roll. The day then-18-year-old Faith Hakesley was to testify in court against the well-liked Catholic priest who had raped her, a court guard pressed a Tootsie Roll into her hand. It was the first glimmer. The little piece of candy reminded her of the Scripture about "faith the size of a mustard seed," and this bit of encouragement, by way of the guard, but really from God, gave her the courage she needed to endure the trial. In Glimmers of Grace: Moments of Peace and Healing Following Sexual Abuse, Faith shares what she has learned about the gifts God wants to give victims throughout their journey of healing. Practical, personal, and versatile, Glimmers of Grace accompanies readers step by step from acceptance to true freedom. In each reflection, you'll explore the healing gifts God offers, including: Hope Kindness Perseverance Self-compassion Joy Each reflection includes a gratitude prompt, positive affirmation, achievable to-dos, and journaling questions to help you embrace each gift. Like Faith, you can learn, slowly but surely, to see where and how God is speaking to you and find hope and healing after sexual abuse. Glimmers of Grace can also help spouses, friends, loved ones, or anyone who works with abuse victims gain perspective and understanding. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Faith Hakesley is a wife, homeschooling mother of three, and blogger. In 2008, she was one of five victims of clerical abuse to meet privately with Pope Benedict XVI during his trip to Washington, D.C. She is passionate about sharing her personal story of healing in order to offer hope, healing, and peace to those who are suffering. Visit her website www.faithhakesley.com for more information.

“To prepare yourself to make difficult medical decisions in a distinctly Christian way, you won’t do better than to read Between Life and Death.” —Tim Challies Modern medical advances save countless lives. But for all their merits, sophisticated technologies have created a daunting new challenge, namely a blurring of the expanse between life and death. The dying process is often hidden behind a complex web of medical terminology, statistics, and ethical decisions, making it difficult for patients and loved ones to know how to approach the end of life in a dignity-affirming, Godhonoring, faith-filled way. This book offers a distinctly Christian guide to end-of-life care. It equips readers by explaining common medical jargon, exploring biblical principles that connect to common medical situations, and offering guidance for making critical decisions. In these pages, readers will find the medical knowledge and scriptural wisdom they need to navigate this painful and confusing process with clarity, peace, and discernment.

An Adventure Novel for Middle-Grade Readers Steeped in Magic, Mystery, and Glimmers of Hope—Book 1 in the Dream Keeper Saga Even though she's only 12 years old, Lily McKinley already feels the weight of the world's brokenness. She's seen it in her mother's exhaustion, her grandmother's illness, and the cruelty of Adam, the bully at her school. But most tragically, she experienced it two months ago when her father died in a terrible accident. As an artistic daydreamer, Lily has a brilliant imagination to help her cope, but that imagination often gets her into trouble. One day, it transports her to a fantasy world called the Somnium Realm, where her father's secret history embroils her in an epic quest. With the help of a dragon guide named Cedric, Lily battles evil shrouds, harpies, and other creatures to find her way through grief, rescue the world from evil, and discover the power of redemption. This thrilling novel by Kathryn Butler mixes fantasy with Christian themes, taking middle-grade readers on a quest through castles, forests, and caverns to help a young girl find hope and usher in restoration. Christian Themes: This exciting story invites readers into deep conversations about the gospel and theological issues including faith, mourning, sacrifice, salvation, and redemption Ideal for Middle-Grade Readers and Families: Includes kids' favorite fantasy and adventure elements with imaginative new characters and settings they'll love Book 1 in the Dream Keeper Saga by Kathryn Butler

Grace is one of the best gifts you'll ever give . . . or receive. This collection of endearing stories and uplifting quotes reminds us that the generosity of God's wonderful grace is all the motivation we need to become great-hearted givers ourselves. A trend-setting color pallet and contemporary design form the background for this unique collection of inspiration, advice, and humor from best-selling Women of Faith speakers and writers. Based on the 2008 WOF theme of grace, the writings are divided into chapters such as "Grace in the Daily Grind," and "Hearts Always Glimmer with Grace." This type of fun, feminine, faith-filled book makes a perfect gift for a broad audience.

Christians trying to model their lives after Jesus may find that He gets buried under lists, rules, and formulas. Now bestselling author Randy Alcorn offers a simple two-point checklist for Christlikeness based on John 1:14. The test consists of balancing grace and truth, equally and unapologetically. Grace without truth deceives people, and ceases to be grace. Truth without grace crushes people, and ceases to be truth. Alcorn shows the reader how to show the world Jesus -- offering grace instead of the world's apathy and tolerance, offering truth instead of the world's relativism and deception. Grace or Truth…or Both? Truth without grace breeds self-righteousness and crushing legalism. Grace without truth breeds deception and moral compromise. Is it possible to embrace both in balance? Jesus did. Randy Alcorn offers a simple yet profound two-point checklist of Christlikeness. “In the end,” says Alcorn, “we don’t need grace or truth. We need grace and truth. And for people to see Jesus in us, they must see both.”

Amazing Grace is Jonathan Kozol’s classic book on life and death in the South Bronx—the poorest urban neighborhood of the United States. He brings us into overcrowded schools, dysfunctional hospitals, and rat-infested homes where families have been ravaged by depression and anxiety, drug-related violence, and the spread of AIDS. But he also introduces us to devoted and unselfish teachers, dedicated ministers, and—at the heart and center of the book—courageous and delightful children. The children we come to meet through the friendships they have formed with Jonathan defy the stereotypes of urban youth too frequently presented by the media. Tender, generous, and often religiously devout, they speak with eloquence and honesty about the poverty and racial isolation that have wounded but not hardened them. Amidst all of the despair, it is the very young whose luminous capacity for love and transcendent sense of faith in human decency give reason for hope.

Holding Grace embraces a contemporary, free verse style of poetry as the voice for sharing a range of life’s experiences and emotions, creating an approachable and highly readable collection. Within these pages are recognizable tales of friendship and loss, contentment and longing, reflections on current events and locales, and the pure pleasure that may be found when one stops to soak in the beauty and rhythm of nature. The storytelling here breathes life into the moments captured. From the exuberance of a child free to swing high on a rope and drop into cool waters in Washed Anew, to the quiet reflection of a young father realizing life’s blessings on Christmas morn in A Morning Made of Perfection, the images conjured by the author strike a chord that is at once familiar and emotional. Tenderly written remembrances of childhood, tales of middle-aged angst as one feels the press of time, and backward glances at life’s choices are all countered with stories of nature’s challenging beauty, and the too infrequent simplicity of enjoying a quiet rain or a frozen breath on a cold day. This collection offers sentimental reflections on life and the memories we carry, as well as an unblinking look at the need to accept the passage of time with grace and appreciation. Pause and take in the life moments, both common and unique, that are so lovingly shared in Holding Grace.