Natalie Moore is about to lose what little cleavage she had. She'll shave her head, leave her church, fall for a man in scrubs, learn to tap, and flash a roomful of women. Natalie needs to know with or without her breasts she is more than the sum of her parts.
Still working her temp job, grieving her divorce, and longing for children, Paige Kelley dutifully puts her dreams on hold to care for her ailing, widowed mother. After she finally begins to break free, she discovers that God's plan for her promises more than she ever imagined.
Academic theology is in need of a new genre. In "Transgressive Devotion" Natalie Wigg-Stevenson articulates a theological vision of that genre as performance art. She argues that theology done as performance art stops trying to describe who God is, and starts trying to make God appear. Recognising that the act of studying theology or practicing ministry is always a performance, where the boundaries between what we see, feel, experience and learn are not just blurred but potentially invisible, Wigg-Stevenson brings together ethnographic theological fieldwork, historical and contemporary Christian theological traditions, and performance artworks themselves. A daring vision of theology which will energise anybody feeling ‘boxed in’ by the discipline, Transgressive Devotion blurs borders between orthodoxy, heterodoxy and heresy to reveal how the very act of doing theology makes God and humanity vulnerable to each other. This is theology which is a liturgy of Divine incantation. In other words: this is theology which is also prayer.
Presents diverse, international, in-depth case studies. While there are many books showcasing graphic design work, few present in-depth projects, exploring concept, designerÆs strategy, visual problem-solving, and specifics, illustrating the concrete use of design principles to achieve intended communication goals. As a result, readers are often left with only a surface understanding of how a project might have evolved or how the visual aspects of its design are brought together to convey its intended message. The case studies in Design Evolution comprehensively demonstrate the real-world application of visual principles discussed in a more formal, educational context. Readers will understand how the principles for image, layout, type, and color explored in volume 1, Design Elements, work in combination, to execute the overall solutions showcased in this volume. The depth and range of content presented in these case studies distinguishes this book from all others in the design showcase genre -- offering readers a chance to not only be inspired by the quality and innovation of showcased projects, but to understand how they were realized.
Sometimes you have to go a little bit crazy to discover the life you were meant to live. Heather Curridge is coming unhinged. And people are starting to notice. What's wrong with a woman who has everything--a mansion on a lake, a loving son, a heart-surgeon husband--yet still feels miserable inside? When Heather spends the summer with two ancient Quaker sisters and a crusty nun running a downtown homeless shelter, she finds herself at a crossroads. Life turns upside down for Heather in a Quaker Summer. “One of the most powerful voices in Christian fiction, Samson delivers ...a staggering examination of the Christian conscience.” –Publishers Weekly
In the tradition of M. C. Beaton, Hope Taylor, pastor of a small-town California church, tries to find out who sent a church elder to Heaven. Hope Taylor arrives in Apple Springs to start her new life as the first female pastor of Faith Chapel Episcopal Church. The northern California town's quaint cottages, bungalows, and shops promise a fresh start for the 42-year-old widow and Bogie, her scruffy black Labrador. But where is Father Christopher? The kindly old rector who hired Pastor Hope was supposed to meet her upon her arrival, but he's nowhere to be seen. Hope's faith springs eternal, so she explores the little white church hoping to find Father Christopher. But when she enters the columbarium, she instead finds church elder Stanley King--his skull crushed by a fallen burial urn. Hope had made Stanley's acquaintance before, and had struggled to take a charitable view of his character. Stanley was as wicked as he was wealthy, as petty as he was pious. His soul may have been holy, but his behavior was wholly rotten. The last time Hope had seen him, he had shouted drunkenly that she would preach at Faith Chapel over his dead body. Many of the townsfolk witnessed the altercation, so Hope finds herself as the prime suspect in Stanley's murder. With Bogie's four-footed assistance, Hope is determined to find the real killer and clear her name...even if it will require a bit of divine intervention.
Everyone's favorite film geek Phoebe Grant heads off to Merrie Old England-and changes her cinematic dreams from black and white to living color. Phoebe's family has money troubles. Her spiritual life is dragging. She misses her long-distance best friend, Lindsey, terribly. But all that's bearable because of Alex, the gorgeous man who shares her love of movies and actually likes women with a little meat on their bones. At last-someone to kiss on New Year's Eve! But by New Year's Eve, Alex is in London, called home by a family emergency. Newly engaged Lindsey has turned into a long-distance Bridezilla, and the snooze button still sabotages Phoebe's morning quiet times. She needs a break, which is why she jumps at the cheap off-season fare to England. She's not chasing Alex. Really. She just wants to broaden her horizons. But what awaits Phoebe in the land of Mrs. Miniver and Notting Hill is nothing short of disaster . . . and nothing less than a miracle.
Adventurous, off-beat Becca Daniels will try almost anything-purple hair, skydiving, even her book club's crazy challenge. To prove she's not commitment-phobic, Becca agrees to twenty-five dates with whoever asks her out next. When churchy Ben-definitely not Becca's type-calls, the hilarious and eye-opening dates could lead to Becca's greatest adventure yet.
Can you have your (wedding) cake and eat it, too? Betsy Blessing is about to have it all–the chance to be senior minister of Church of the Shepherd and a long-awaited first date with her best-friend-turned-love-interest, David Swenson. But David’s unexpected marriage proposal and a developer’s surprise offer to buy the dying downtown church building thrust Betsy into a whirlwind of decisions. Betsy’s future mother-in-law, editor of Budget Bride magazine, plans to feature the nuptials in an upcoming issue, but is Betsy ready to buy her wedding gown at Goodwill and register for china at Chips-n-Dings? And not everyone at Church of the Shepherd thinks relocating to the suburbs is a great idea. Can Betsy persuade the naysayers that she can lead them to the Promised Land? Factor in a homeless man named Booger, a demanding parishioner with a broken hip, and David’s clandestine meetings with his former fiancée, and Betsy has more than she can handle. Is happily ever after out of reach for the fabulous Reverend Blessing? From the Trade Paperback edition.
Original insights from some of today's top Christian authors, musicians, leaders, and business people help graduates prepare for what's next and to pursue God's plan for their lives.