The date is May 22, 2011. Elly's "very good" graduation day becomes even better when three enormous butterflies appear at her bedroom window; incredibly beautiful, almost other-worldly in their splendor. Her first thought is, "Thank You, Jesus! You know how I love butterflies." But when Elly, then her mother, then other members of the McConnell clan begin to see them in the most unlikely places, their presence begins to feel strangely ominous. And when they appear to be watching the family's every move, it's hard to avoid a growing sense of foreboding. On this perfect spring Sunday, when families across southwest Missouri are celebrating their high school graduations, could these exquisite creatures actually be harbingers of looming tragedy? Then a rare and massive EF5 tornado unexpectedly turns that bright day in May dark and deadly. As the storm of the century bears down, can the McConnell family survive? And in the midst of unspeakable terror and devastation, why are so many children of the tornado seeing butterfly people? Sandi McReynolds is a life-long resident of Southwest Missouri who found herself intrigued by the butterfly people stories that abounded after the monstrous Joplin Tornado of May, 2011; and more than inspired by the generosity and faith of her community. "Butterflies at the Window" is a novel recounting some of those stories based on true and very personal events involving family and friends.
As the seventh daughter, Igho is rejected at birth by her father who desperately wanted a boy. At age eight, she is molested by her father's laundry man. Constantly being punished for crimes she did not commit, she secretly begins to long for a better home. Igho goes to live with her elder sister but soon begins to suffer domestic abuse from sister and sexual harassment from her sister's husband. Due to the psychological trauma resulting from the abuse, Igho drops out of high school and runs away from home at age seventeen. She begins to live on the street begging strangers for food, shelter and money. With the help of a youth Pastor, she finds a new home and gains admission into the university where she graduates with a second class upper degree. After two years of paid employment, Igho resigns from her job to start her own business. Now Igho has a business that is becoming a brand to reckon with and a ministry to help youths overcome their painful past.
Why did these rich people ask for a magical sign and then gang up to destroy it? An unbelievable miracle causes the people of "Thamud" to go totally OUT OF CONTROL! The incredible story of Prophet Salih is a mix of astonishing events that will make your heart pound with excitement and thrill! A golden camel appears out of nowhere to face the challenges and impossible requess of those stubborn people, only to find they had the most TERRIFYING plan in mind...
The Bible teaches us that we are to be filled with God's Spirit and that God's presence and grace is manifested among his people as they serve, love, and minister to one another. Yet some of the gifts that God offers to his people aren't commonly seen in many churches today. Gifts of prophecy, healing, tongues, and other supernatural gifts of God seem to be absent, and many Christians are unsure how to cultivate an atmosphere where God's Spirit can work while remaining committed to the foundational truth of God's Word. How can Christians pursue and implement the miraculous gifts of the Spirit without falling into fanatical excess and splitting the church in the process? In Practicing the Power, pastor and author Sam Storms offers practical steps to understanding and exercising spiritual gifts in a way that remains grounded in the word and centered in the gospel. With examples drawn from his forty years of ministry as a pastor and teachers, Storms offers a guidebook that can help pastors, elders, and church members understand what changes are needed to see God move in supernatural power and to guard against excess and abuse of the spiritual gifts. If you long to see God's Spirit move in your church and life, and aren't sure why that isn't happening or where to begin, this book is for you.
Do miracles still happen today? This book demonstrates that miraculous works of God, which have been part of the experience of the church around the world since Christianity began, continue into the present. Leading New Testament scholar Craig Keener addresses common questions about miracles and provides compelling reasons to believe in them today, including many accounts that offer evidence of verifiable miracles. This book gives an accessible and concise overview of one of Keener's most significant research topics. His earlier two-volume work on miracles stands as the definitive word on the topic, but its size and scope are daunting to many readers. This new book summarizes Keener's basic argument but contains substantial new material, including new accounts of the miraculous. It is suitable as a textbook but also accessible to church leaders and laypeople.
Discover desperate circumstances in America's past and how men and women rose up with faith and courage and situations unexplainably turned around. Read of captivating, little-known stories during the French & Indian War, Revolution, Barbary Pirate War, War of 1812, Civil War, WWI & II, and up through Apollo 13. Learn "the rest of the story" of how leaders prayed, challenged and inspired the nation and disaster was averted! YOU will be inspired as you uncover "Miracles in American History - 32 Amazing Stories of Answered Prayer." ARE you aware of these past crises when America's fate hung in the balance? In 1746, 70 ships with 13,000 troops sailed from France to lay waste to the American colonies. Massachusetts Governor William Shirley proclaimed a Day of Fasting. What happened next was unexplainable! After the Battle of Monongahela, George Washington wrote from Fort Cumberland to his younger brother, John Augustine Washington, July 18, 1755: But by the All-Powerful Dispensations of Providence, I have been protected beyond all human probability or expectation; for I had four bullets through my coat, and two horses shot under me, yet escaped unhurt, although death was leveling my companions on every side of me! How did Thomas Jefferson's resolution for a Day of Fasting on June 1, 1774, lead to the forming of the Continental Congress, and eventually Independence? Read how in 1781 the providential rising of three rivers in 10 days allowed Americans to escape British General Cornwallis? Or how the uncanny way Benedict Arnold's planned betrayal of West Point was discovered? George Washington exclaimed: "The Hand of Providence has been so conspicuous in all this (the course of the war) that he must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith." Ben Franklin declared: "In the beginning of the Contest with Great Britain...we had daily prayer in this room for Divine protection...All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a Superintending Providence in our favor." In 1865, President Lincoln proclaimed a Day of Fasting for April 30. What freak accident happened two days later which changed the course of the Civil War? What did Woodrow Wilson declared as the U.S. entered WWI. Or Herbert Hoover during the Great Depression? Or FDR, Eisenhower, MacArthur and Patton during WWII? Or Truman during the Korean War? When Apollo 13 was lost in space, what happened after President Nixon called all of America to pray? Are you aware of these American Miracles? Find out as you read "Miracles in American History - 32 Amazing Stories of Answered Prayer."
"When the odds were stacked against us, and there have been many times when the great experiment we call America could have and should have failed, did God intervene to save us?"That question, posed by authors Chris and Ted Stewart, is the foundation for this remarkable book. And the examples they cite provide compelling evidence that the hand of Providence has indeed preserved the United States of America on multiple occasions. Skillfully weaving story vignettes with historical explanations, they examine seven instances that illustrate God's protecting care. Never, at any of these critical junctures, was a positive outcome certain or even likely. Yet America prevailed. Why?"No man is perfect," write the authors. "And neither is any nation. Yet, despite our weakness, we are still, as Abraham Lincoln said, the best nation ever given to man. Despite our faults, this nation is still the last, best hope of earth." In short, God still cares what happens here. This reassuring message is a bright light in a world that longs for such hope.
Get a glimpse of the Son shining through your storm clouds as you read this book. Its sure to give inspiration and hope to any reader who is struggling with problems. The Tim Fitzgerald family has experienced many miracles from God during their times of storms (infertility, pregnancy, adoption, finances, life-threatening diseases). Each chapter shares about their joys, struggles, miracles and reasons to praise God through the storms. Included are humorous accounts such as when one son decided to glue his feet to the floor and another son decided to be the Holy Ghost with some help from the kitchen. The conclusion of each chapter provides a personal time of meditation titled, Meaningful Moments with the Master.