Peculiar Treasures

Katie Weldon catches more than just the bouquet at the wedding of her best friend, Christy Miller. She also snags a job offer that launches her into an adventure she never imagined. Katie eagerly accepts the job as resident assistant at Rancho Corona University only to find herself in a community of conflict. She thought this was where God wanted her, but how can God use her—love her—when everything is falling apart? Especially with her boyfriend, Rick.Katie turns to the women in her life for solace. In the safety of their love and encouragement she finally allows herself to spill her heart about her relationship with Rick. But even their advice can’t postpone the decision Katie must face, a decision that will define who she is and the woman she’s becoming. The first book in the Katie Weldon Series, Peculiar Treasures follows Katie as she struggles to believe that God can love her, faults and all.

I was determined to protect this baby, and I was angry at everyone that wanted to harm it. I didn't want it and prayed for a miscarriage, but I wasn't going to kill it. However, the first time I felt the baby move, I loved the child within me. My prayer changed simply to, 'O God, help us.' When Tamara Lee becomes pregnant after being raped by her ex-boyfriend, she feels abandoned and lost. Some people encourage her to have an abortion, and others refuse to believe it was rape. In the face of judgment and heartbreak, Tamara becomes angry and rebellious. She quickly learns that this attitude will not help her handle the pressures of life. Only by turning to God can she find the grace, mercy, and forgiveness that she longs to receive. Throughout Tamara's life she meets trial after trial with faith in God's guidance. As she searches for a lifelong romantic relationship and a strong church community, she learns that only by listening for God's voice can she hope to make the right decisions. Like a diamond in the rough, her life is a perfect example of how God creates Peculiar Treasures out of difficult lives.

A woman's personal conviction to begin keeping the seventh-day Sabbath in 1926 would challenge her husband to begin an intensive study to prove her wrong. That study would spawn a new religious movement under Herbert W. Armstrong. A fledgling group would form in 1934, and an audacious media operation would make the Radio Church of God (later named the Worldwide Church of God) grow by 30% per year over the next 35 years. Proclaiming a unique understanding of the Bible, traditional Christian orthodoxy would be challenged, making that church most peculiar indeed. Internal and external forces would alter Herbert Armstrong's view of his own mission, and especially after Loma's death, doctrinal and administrative turmoil would stagger the church for the rest of his life. After his death in 1986, the empire would implode, and successors would dismantle everything that the Armstrong's had built. Was it all just a fantastic, fraudulent escapade-conceived by a lucky and opportunistic salesman-or might it have been a divine Work-God's own peculiar treasure?If it did begin with God's inspiration, why and how did it all go so wrong? Is there anything left of it today that has any redeeming value? These are the questions that will be answered, with evidence to suggest that there is yet an enduring legacy of Herbert and Loma Armstrong.

In this second book of his popular lexical trilogy, Frederick Buechner profiles more than 125 of the Bible's most holy and profane people -- and one whale. In his lively and witty prose, Buechner brings to life such moments from scripture as: Adam's pangs of regret for a remembered Eden Delilah's last glimpse of Samson as they dragged him away Lazarus's first impressions upon rising from the dead To read Peculiar Treasures is to realize that many of these legendary figures are not who we thought they were. But they are -- in their human dreams,ambitions, and imperfections -- very much like us.

Insightful and humorous profiles of more than 125 of the Bible's holiest and most profane people--and one whale--from the celebrated author of Listening to Your Life. "Frederick Buechner is one of our finest writers".--Annie Dillard. 107 line drawings. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.