Messy Truth

From the author of Messy Grace, a former pastor raised by gay parents, comes a compassionate playbook to help Christians, church staff, and ministry leaders create a culture of belonging without sacrificing theological convictions. What should we do? This is a question many Christians are asking as they face shifting societal norms, conflicting opinions, and often inaccurate scriptural interpretations regarding those who identify as LGBTQ+. Caleb Kaltenbach believes there’s a more helpful question:What am I willing to do to keep and build influence with ______________? Caleb knows our love for others is best measured by the lengths we’ll go to help them. He also recognizes that people find and follow Jesus better in community than in isolation. As a child raised by three activist gay parents, Caleb experienced firsthand the outrage of some Christians. That’s why he is committed to creating a sense of belonging for all people. True community can happen only when Christians are intentional in infusing their attitudes, systems, and values with grace and truth. This hopeful, practical book offers tools for encouraging church involvement, strengthening personal relationships, increasing empathy, and engaging in pivotal conversations about grace and truth with our whole community. Fostering a culture of belonging is a messy process, but it holds a massive possibility for everyone involved: a growing relationship with Jesus.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A passionate manifesto that exposes hypocrisy on both sides of the political divide and points a way out of the tribalism that is tearing America apart—from the CNN host hailed as “a star of the 2016 campaign” (The New York Times), now seen on The Van Jones Show Van Jones burst into the American consciousness during the 2016 presidential campaign with an unscripted, truth-telling style and an already established history of bridge-building across party lines. His election night commentary, during which he coined the term “whitelash,” became a viral sensation. A longtime progressive activist with deep roots in the conservative South, Jones has made it his mission to challenge voters and viewers to stand in one another’s shoes and disagree constructively. In Beyond the Messy Truth, he offers a blueprint for transforming our collective anxiety into meaningful change. Jones urges both parties to abandon the politics of accusation. He issues a stirring call for a new “bipartisanship from below,” pointing us toward practical answers to problems that affect us all regardless of region or ideology. He wants to tackle rural and inner-city poverty, unemployment, addiction, unfair incarceration, and the devastating effects of the pollution-based economy on both coal country and our urban centers. Along the way, Jones shares memories from his decades of activism on behalf of working people, inspiring stories of ordinary citizens who became champions of their communities, and little-known examples of cooperation in the midst of partisan conflict. In his quest for positive solutions, Van Jones encourages us to set fire to our old ways of thinking about politics and come together to help those most in need. Includes an invaluable resource of contacts, books, media, and organizations for bipartisan bridge-building and problem solving. “Van Jones is a light in the darkness when we need it most. In the tradition of the great bridge builders of our past, Van’s love for this country and all its people shines through.”—Cory Booker, U.S. senator, New Jersey “Van Jones’s voice has become an integral part of our national political debate. He is one of the most provocative and interesting political figures in the country.”—Bernie Sanders, U.S. senator, Vermont

Sometimes, grace gets messy. Caleb Kaltenbach was raised by LGBT parents, marched in gay pride parades as a youngster, and experienced firsthand the hatred and bitterness of some Christians toward his family. But then Caleb surprised everyone, including himself, by becoming a Christian…and a pastor. Very few issues in Christianity are as divisive as the acceptance of the LGBT community in the church. As a pastor and as a person with beloved family members living a gay lifestyle, Caleb had to face this issue with courage and grace. Messy Grace shows us that Jesus’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself” doesn’t have an exception clause for a gay “neighbor”—or for that matter, any other “neighbor” we might find it hard to relate to. Jesus was able to love these people and yet still hold on to his beliefs. So can you. Even when it’s messy. “Messy Grace is an important contribution to the conversation about sexual identity for churches and leaders. Caleb's story is surprising and unique, and he weaves it together compellingly. He states his views clearly, leaves room for disagreement, and champions love no matter where you are in this conversation.” —Jud Wilhite, Sr. Pastor, Central Christian Church

Alli Webb, co-founder of Drybar, had it all--until she didn't. When Drybar and its world-famous blowouts took off seemingly overnight, she found herself surrounded by celebrity clients like Zooey Deschanel, Jennifer Garner, Gwyneth Paltrow, Julia Roberts, Maria Shriver, and others. She was named to multiple prestigious lists by Fast Company, Fortune, Marie Claire, and Inc. She published a New York Times bestselling book--all before she turned forty. But it wasn't until her marriage fell apart, her teenage son entered rehab unexpectedly, and she no longer found meaning in the wildly successful business she had built that Alli realized she was spiraling into deep depression. She'd lost sight of what made her happy in favor of an aimless push to succeed above all. Something had to give. Piece by piece, Alli began to reinvent her personal and professional life with the goal of accepting her messy truth. She learned how to embrace the honest in lieu of the perfect and realized that most of life happens somewhere in the middle, between the laughter and the tears. In The Messy Truth, Webb invites readers into her world as an entrepreneur, a mother, and a partner, examining with startling humor and wisdom the truths and fictions we tell ourselves and others as we learn to embrace the mess of life.

From near bankruptcy to creating her own multimillion-dollar business, an entrepreneur's inspirational journey of listening to her soul's voice calling for her to rise. Raw and richly authentic in its ups and downs, fitness entrepreneur Danette May's deeply personal memoir is a clear calling to unlock the power we each possess deep within our souls. After the tragic loss of her son and a marriage that ended in divorce and near-bankruptcy, May found herself questioning all that she had been and all that she thought she could be. But even through the shambles, she began to hear a voice inside telling her it was time. May never predicted that her journey would take her to a world bikini competition, to a sacred healer in Costa Rica, or through a re-examination of who and what home was. And she definitely didn't know it would lead to establishing her own international business, touching the lives of millions of people around the world. Yet it was her soul's calling that led her there. By embracing her own radical truth, May was able to unearth the self-love and forgiveness she needed to connect with her greatest self. And with an accepting and forgiving embrace, she calls for you to rise to be the you that you are meant to be.

The Reapers aren't exactly what they seem. They're the most elite of the world's fighters--but all they have in common is that their countries and their families can never know that they exist. Axel Martinez lived and breathed life as a Marine until his entire squad was massacred. A chance offer from a multi-billionaire provided him exactly the escape from his past he wanted and for eight years, he managed to forget his past. Until now. Beatrice Li has been a gun-for-hire since she was old enough to pick up a knife. One strange meeting on a rooftop changed her life forever and now she saves the world, one assassination at a time. But when Axel's life is threatened by a ghost from Bea's past, Bea's going to have to use all her strength to keep up her guard--both from those that want to kill her sexy and seductive mechanic, and also from him chipping away at her carefully crafted walls around her heart. His smart mouth and cocky flirtations keep her on her toes, but she'll give as good as she gets.

In the 2020 CBC Massey Lectures, bestselling author and renowned technology and security expert Ronald J. Deibert exposes the disturbing influence and impact of the internet on politics, the economy, the environment, and humanity. Digital technologies have given rise to a new machine-based civilization that is increasingly linked to a growing number of social and political maladies. Accountability is weak and insecurity is endemic, creating disturbing opportunities for exploitation. Drawing from the cutting-edge research of the Citizen Lab, the world-renowned digital security research group which he founded and directs, Ronald J. Deibert exposes the impacts of this communications ecosystem on civil society. He tracks a mostly unregulated surveillance industry, innovations in technologies of remote control, superpower policing practices, dark PR firms, and highly profitable hack-for-hire services feeding off rivers of poorly secured personal data. Deibert also unearths how dependence on social media and its expanding universe of consumer electronics creates immense pressure on the natural environment. In order to combat authoritarian practices, environmental degradation, and rampant electronic consumerism, he urges restraints on tech platforms and governments to reclaim the internet for civil society.

The 2nd Edition of Introduction to the Practice of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, the highly successful practice-oriented handbook designed to demystify psychoanalytic psychotherapy, is updated and revised to reflect the latest developments in the field. Updated edition of an extremely successful textbook in its field, featuring numerous updates to reflect the latest research and evidence base Demystifies the processes underpinning psychoanalytic psychotherapy, particularly the development of the analytic attitude guided by principles of clinical technique Provides step-by-step guidance in key areas such as how to conduct assessments, how to formulate cases in psychodynamic terms and how to approach endings The author is a leader in the field – she is General Editor of the New Library of Psychoanalysis book series and a former editor of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy