Through adversity and trying times, the Lord God never fails us. He may seem absent at times, but know that he is always around, looking out for us with each step we take. Bobby Smith is no stranger to the wonders and miracles of God. He has suffered, from early childhood throughout adolescence and adulthood. He has faced trials and has come to the point of giving up several times in his life, but God always pulled him back and straightened him out. Find out how Bobby overcame his struggles, his battles against drug addiction, alcoholism; dig deep into the life of a survivor in liver transplant, how he copes with day-to-day activities and how he remains steadfast in the face of tribulations. Learn how he has conquered his fears and how he made a 180-degree turn from hell no to . . . heaven yes!
This compelling and controversial book strikes at the heart of Christian theology and Christianity itself. It presents a balanced and scholarly re-exploration of "one of Christianity's most offensive doctrines"-Hell and the greater issue of the extent of God's grace (mercy, love, compassion, justice) and wrath in the eternal, afterlife destiny for all people. Inside, conflicting views are re-evaluated, their strengths and weaknesses re-assessed, and all the demands of Scripture are reconciled into one coherent and consistent synthesized view. The author further suggests that our limited earthly view has been the problem, re-discovers the ultimate mystery of God's expressed desire, will, and purpose, and transcends troubling traditions as never before. Bottom line is, God's plan of salvation and condemnation may be far different and greater than we've been led to believe. In a clear and straightforward manner, this book lays out the historical and scriptural evidence as never before.
This Side of Heaven is a powerful book of inspirational and cutting-edge reality based poetry, prayer, prose and what the author calls “spiritual writings,” or essays of faith, that help us to look at the issues of life, examine the doubts and pains of living, and still look to a brighter tomorrow as we celebrate the very real power and presence of God. Designed with Reflection and Application Study pages at the end of each chapter, Robinson helps us to chart our feelings, dreams, and fears, and challenges us to embrace the power of God within, and affirm not just ourselves, but others. Upon reading this book your life will be enhanced and ideas made to come alive as you realize that she touches a very real place within your heart, and helps you to see the unlimited possibilities of a God-centered lifestyle. Sheila V. Baldwin, Columbia College Chicago English professor and Co-Chair of the English Department says: [In the beginning of this new millennium], the African-American community still lives within the shadows of post-traumatic stress resulting from slavery. Samira E. Robinson’s collection of poetic writings, This Side of Heaven, provides a source of solace and optimism. [For] Before Iyanla Vanzant became a pop icon, before Oprah Winfrey fashioned a moment of spirituality into her television show, and long before urban, top-forty radio stations across the country began to include gospel music on their play list, collectively the African-American community appeared to say: Lord, I need help. Samira E. Robinson’s writings remind us that we need only to follow and surrender all to God, and to be quiet and listen to our still small voice, the voice of God within who constantly advises us to expect the best. Bishop Arthur M. Brazier, pastor of the Apostolic Church of God in Chicago, Illinois states: Samira E. Robinson is a woman of faith who has dedicated her life to God through helping others. Her book, This Side of Heaven, is an insightful approach on how to enjoy life to its fullest potential. And finally, Melody Spann-Cooper, President & General Manager of WVON Radio (The Talk of Chicago) had this to say: This Side of Heaven - what a joy to read! The passion of her gift shows in every line.
A doctor's account of her own experience of death, heaven and return to life with a new realization of her purpose on earth. Dr Mary Neal, an orthopaedic surgeon, was on a kayaking holiday in Chile. Sceptical of near death experiences, she was to have her life transformed when her kayak became wedged in rocks at the bottom of a waterfall and was underwater for so long that her heart stopped.To Heaven And Back is Mary's faith-enriching story of her spiritual journey, her first-hand experience of heaven and its continuing life-enhancing effects.
Each volume features 90 two-page spreads with each spread containing a devotional reading and an accompanying Scripture passage. The devotions are short, topical, and easy-to-read. The Scripture passages, all excerpted from the NIV, are also short and tie directly to the devotional reading. The books feature clean, contemporary feminine cover designs, patterned ribbon markers, pages for notes/journaling, and designer endsheets.
Perhaps no other group of people has been as much formed by biblical texts and tropes as African Americans. From literature and the arts to popular culture and everyday life, the Bible courses through black society and culture like blood through veins. Despite the enormous recent interest in African American religion, relatively little attention has been paid to the diversity of ways in which African Americans have utilized the Bible. African Americans and the Bible is the fruit of a four-year collaborative research project directed by Vincent L. Wimbush and funded by the Lilly Endowment. It brings together scholars and experts (sixty-eight in all) from a wide range of academic and artistic fields and disciplines--including ethnography, cultural history, and biblical studies as well as art, music, film, dance, drama, and literature. The focus is on the interaction between the people known as African Americans and that complex of visions, rhetorics, and ideologies known as the Bible. As such, the book is less about the meaning(s) of the Bible than about the Bible and meaning(s), less about the world(s) of the Bible than about how worlds and the Bible interact--in short, about how a text constructs a people and a people constructs a text. It is about a particular sociocultural formation but also about the dynamics that obtain in the interrelation between any group of people and sacred texts in general. Thus African Americans and the Bible provides an exemplum of sociocultural formation and a critical lens through which the process of sociocultural formation can be viewed.
