"Messy Blessings" is a book-length poem about showing gratitude for the things in our lives that are generally thought unremarkable at best or annoying at worst.
Renowned Bible teacher and #1 New York Times bestselling author Joyce Meyer shows readers how to not just survive but thrive amidst both the everyday and the monumental messes we experience in life. Life is often messy. We hear people say, “My life is a mess,” or “This situation is a mess.” What they mean is that life has become difficult, painful or confusing. But God never promised us a trouble-free life. In fact, His Word tells us to expect the opposite. In John 16:33, Jesus says, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (NIV). In Blessed in the Mess, beloved Bible teacher Joyce Meyer shows us how to be blessed in the midst of life’s most challenging circumstances. The Bible is filled with instructions on how to handle ourselves when difficulty comes our way, and Blessed in the Mess shares that wisdom through poignant and practical teaching that equips us to remain stable and hopeful in every situation. No matter what problems we may face, there is a way to remain joyful and patient as God works on them. If you have not handled the messy issues or challenges in your life well in the past, then with God's help, you can begin to manage them better, starting now. We should never waste our pain. Through the wisdom distilled in this book, we can learn how to gain something from our messes, use those insights to avoid trouble in the future, and share our experiences to help other people find blessings in the midst of their messes. A study guide as well as a Spanish edition, Bendición en el desorden, are also available for purchase.
* Considers each Beatitude individually and how they fit together to create a perfect whole * Includes questions for discussion and additional resources
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
A thriving medical practice and three rambunctious daughters have Joshua Darling looking heavenward for help. The harried widower’s prayers are answered when a young surgeon accepts a temporary position in his small-town practice. Soon the lady doctor fills more than Joshua’s need for a partner. She wins the devotion of his patients and his family...but can she heal his wary heart, as well? When Nicole Brandt sets out her shingle in tiny Blessing, Colorado, her dreams for the future change. Finding a new purpose, Nicole helps to restore a struggling single dad’s faith and his ability to love. Now she must discover her own destiny and fight for the life of the man she has grown to love....
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “A well-told story of love and redemption” (The Washington Post Book World) from the bestselling author of Still Life with Bread Crumbs “A polished gem of a novel . . . lovingly crafted, beautifully written.”—The Miami Herald Late one night, a teenage couple drives up to the big white clapboard house on the Blessing estate and leaves a box. In that instant, the lives of those who live and work at Blessings are changed forever. Skip Cuddy, the caretaker, finds a baby girl asleep in that box and decides he wants to keep her, while Lydia Blessing, the matriarch of the estate, for her own reasons, agrees to help him. Blessings explores how the secrets of the past affect decisions and lives in the present, what makes a person or a life legitimate or illegitimate and who decides, and the unique resources people find in themselves and in a community. Blessings is a powerful novel of love, redemption, and personal change by a Pulitzer Prize–winning writer.
The two-time Pulitzer Prize–winning biography of W. E. B. Du Bois from renowned scholar David Levering Lewis, now in one condensed and updated volume William Edward Burghardt Du Bois—the premier architect of the civil rights movement in America—was a towering and controversial personality, a fiercely proud individual blessed with the language of the poet and the impatience of the agitator. Now, David Levering Lewis has carved one volume out of his superlative two-volume biography of this monumental figure that set the standard for historical scholarship on this era. In his magisterial prose, Lewis chronicles Du Bois's long and storied career, detailing the momentous contributions to our national character that still echo today. W.E.B. Du Bois is a 1993 and 2000 National Book Award Finalist for Nonfiction and the winner of the 1994 and 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Biography.
This 365-day devotional can bring out the messes. Some touch on issues not brought up in churches. The significant part about this book is we can start anytime! Day one to 365! I prayed and wrote to get to the deepest parts of us. We realize we are a mess, then surrender it. We allow His Spirit to release the bondages. We become less of a mess. Whose mess are you? Remember, we can choose to be God’s messes. In His hands, struggles turn into something amazing! I pray this devotional will be a great tool for all of us as we draw closer to the Lord we love.
Cynthia Yanof knows how sloppy, slippery, and downright hard life can be. But as she reminds us through her laugh-out-loud stories and heartfelt companionship, God’s not surprised when we drop the ball, lose our cool, or struggle to put our Spanx on in the morning. He can use our ridiculous messes and even the really difficult I-didn’t-sign-up-for-this losses to shape us. In Life Is Messy, God Is Good, Cynthia invites us to reframe our perspective on the challenges we face so we can see God at work—and laugh more along the way. Join her in discovering how: We can be faithful to God’s purposes right where we are—baseball carpool, dog groomer, and even chaperoning the dreaded zoo field trip. We come to realize one of life’s greatest blessings is a handful of crazy, godly friends (who aren’t afraid to tell you to retire your outfit). When we let go of who the world says we should be, we are free to become who God created us to be. Whether you are navigating a difficult new season, working late on another deadline, or simply horrified that your morning routine now includes plucking chin hair, Life Is Messy, God Is Good offers an encouraging and hilarious reminder that God is at work in you—even in the mess.
In A Cup of Comfort Devotional 366 entries provide a daily dose of comfort, strength and inspiration. The perfect bedside companion to be read in the morning or evening, this magnificent work is the first of its kind to combine biblical passages and commentary with a dozen touching, heartfelt stories that have become the hallmark of A Cup of Comfort. Readers will cherish stories of Jesus entering into everyday life, such as: Ul> A young woman, traumatized during her first helicopter ride, says the Lord's Prayer and finds herself in awe as she looks down on God's creation; A woman finds out through a co-worker that Jesus can meet her right in the midst of her depression; A mother learns an unforgettable lesson of faith when a doll representing the baby Jesus in her outdoor nativity scene is stolen; With entries linked to the holidays and seasons, A Cup of Comfort Devotional brightens every day of the year, deepening our joys and sustaining us through the darker times.