The Best Gift Ever Given

An Interactive ADVENTure for Your Family Toys and games are great, but the best gifts from God last a lifetime and beyond. Help your children understand the real meaning of Christmas with this 25-day discovery of the good things God has given us, leading up to the greatest gift of all, Jesus Christ. From creation to Christmas, your little ones will gain a greater understanding of what God has done and how all of Scripture points toward Jesus. Each day your children will learn a key Scripture verse based on that day’s brief teaching interact with modern and detailed illustrations that correspond to the text answer insightful, open-ended questions to help apply the day’s reading read a prayer that reinforces the biblical concept being taught As you walk your children through the Advent season, your family will gain a deeper appreciation of God’s goodness and develop a stronger sense of gratitude for the ultimate gift of salvation. Begin a special new tradition in your home this December with The Best Gift Ever Given.

In this festive VeggieTales book, the Veggies are celebrating Christmas—decorating the tree, singing carols, and exchanging gifts. But in the middle of all the activity—though it’s so much fun to give and receive presents—the Veggies all know that the greatest gift of all was God’s gift of Jesus, his Son. Children will love the colorful art featuring their favorite Veggie friends. Parents can use this book to introduce little ones to Jesus’ birth as the reason we rejoice at Christmastime.

The Ivory Mirror / Stephen Perkinson -- The Light at the End of the Tunnel : Manuscript Illumination and the Concept of Death / Elizabeth Morrison -- Chicart Bailly and the Specter of Death : Memento Mori in a Sixteenth-Century Estate Inventory / Katherine Baker -- Plates -- List of Plates -- Memento mori Beads : Collecting Histories and Contexts / Naomi Speakman -- The Poetry of Death / Emma Maggie Solberg

In need of a bit of good advice? Well here is the best advice ever recorded--a compendium of personal tips, traditional proverbs, and clever observations from the literary, political, and entertainment world. The Best Advice Ever Given covers such diverse topics as life, love, success, forgiveness, friendship, character, health, and many more, including: * "Good advice is something a man gives when he is too old to set a bad example."--François de La Rochefoucauld * "The first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want."--Ben Stein * "Never play cards with a man called Doc. Never eat at a place called Mom's. Never sleep with a woman whose troubles are worse than your own."--Nelson Algren * "When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen."--Ernest Hemingway * "Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much."--Oscar Wilde * "The secret of business is to know something nobody else knows."--Aristotle Onassis * "In baiting a mousetrap with cheese, be sure to leave room for the mouse."--H. H. Munro ("Saki") * "Keep cool; anger is not an argument."--Daniel Webster * "Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig."--Source Unknown * "Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names."--John F. Kennedy * "If someone offers you a breath mint, accept it."--H. Jackson Brown * "In the fight between you and the world, back the world."--Franz Kafka

As a child in a non-religious family, Michael Ridenour found a Bible one day and began reading. Initially excited by its lively stories, he paused at the New Testament, faced with a baffling inner question: Where in the world is Christ today? An unexpected answer came during his teenage years with a spontaneous experience of the Christ being, but this only led to more questions. Later, discovering the work of Rudolf Steiner, he found the authentic vision and language he needed to clarify and better comprehend his own experiences, but the questions kept coming. The Greatest Gift Ever Given is a fruit of Ridenour’s life-long search for answers: a book that is at once deeply thoughtful, humorous, philosophical and poetic. In Part I, ‘Raising the Foundation’, he studies the Judeo-Christian mysteries. After humanity’s ‘fall’ into materialism, these mysteries signal the development of human individuality. The impulse for self-hood continues with Christ, who brings a new path of divine love. But the mystery of Christ leads naturally to his shadow. Today, we can no longer escape the question: Where in the world is Judas? Without Judas’s betrayal, Christ’s greatest gift could never have been given. We can’t reject Judas, but should transform him within ourselves. In Part II, ‘Lowering the Temple’, Ridenour relates the theme of metamorphosis to the contemporary world. Once guided by initiates, personal transformation now needs to blossom from within each individual human soul. The topic of evolution takes us to a consideration of the perennially-controversial Charles Darwin, as well as the intuitive approach of Goethe and the living thinking of Rudolf Steiner. A rich treasure-trove of ideas, The Greatest Gift Ever Given sharpens a dynamic focus on current spiritual needs and contributes a thought-provoking response to them.

George Pratt, depressed and contemplating suicide, is allowed to see what his community would have been like if he had never been born, in a hardcover reissue of the story that inspired the film It's a Wonderful Life. 100,000 first printing.

How to focus on Christ during Advent Most Christians agree that Christmas is all about Jesus, yet most of us spend little time preparing our hearts to celebrate Him. Why is this? Partly because we don’t know how. In Unwrapping the Names of Jesus, Asheritah Ciuciu leads readers through the four weeks of Advent (Hope, Preparation, Joy, and Love). Each week: Begins with an interactive family devotional that equips readers to celebrate Advent together Offers five daily reflections that focus on that week's name of Jesus Includes suggestions for fun-filled family activities or service projects This devotional can be used by readers in their own personal worship times or as a tool to engage in family worship during the busy holiday season. Either way, participants will gain a greater sense of awe and wonder at who Jesus is. By focusing on the person and character of Jesus throughout the Advent season, readers will prepare their hearts so that when they admire the live nativity, sit in the candlelight service, or wake up on Christian morning, they can join the faithful who sing from the bottom of their hearts, "O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!"

If you had one hour to live and could make just one phone call, who would you call? What would you say? Why are you waiting? Richard Carlson's sudden, tragic death in December 2006 left his millions of fans reeling, but even their many letters, calls, and emails couldn't erase the loss felt by his wife, Kristine. To try and come to terms with her loss, she pored over 25 years of love letters, reliving the memories and cherishing her late husband's memory. But one letter stood out. Richard had written to his wife on their 18th wedding anniversary and attempted to answer the question: if you had one hour to live, what would you do, who would you call, and what would you say? An Hour to Live, an Hour to Love is a profoundly moving book that shows the importance of treasuring each day as the incredible gift it is.