The NFLs Most Valuable Player for 2005 shares the amazing journey God has prepared for him. He recounts the years that led up to his success on and off the field, and how God gave him the dream of his achievements.
Somewhere along the way, our culture lost its definition of manhood, leaving generations of men and men-to-be confused about their roles, responsibilities, relationships, and the reason God made them men. It's into this "no man's land" that New York Times bestselling author Mark Batterson declares his mantra for manhood: play the man. In this inspiring call to something greater, he helps men understand what it means to be a man of God by unveiling seven virtues of manhood. Mark shares inspiring stories of manhood, including the true story of the hero and martyr Polycarp, who first heard the voice from heaven say, "Play the man." Mark couples those stories with practical ideas about how to disciple the next generation of men. This is more than a book; it's a movement of men who will settle for nothing less than fulfilling their highest calling to be the man and the father God has destined them to be. Play the man. Make the man.
There never has been and never will be anyone like you. But that isn’t a testament to you. It’s a testament to the God who created you. The problem? Few people discover the God-given identity that makes them unlike anyone else. Mark Batterson calls this divine distinction our soulprint. God would like to introduce you to yourself. In Soulprint, Mark pours the contagious energy he’s known for into helping you experience the joy of discovering who you are...and the freedom of discovering who you’re not. The wonderful fact is that your uniqueness is God’s gift to you, and it’s also your gift to God. A self-discovery book that puts God at the center rather than self, Soulprint encourages you to recognize and explore the five defining moments in your life that will determine your destiny. Along the way, you’ll find that you’re not just turning the pages of a book. You’re turning the pages of your remarkable, God-shaped, world-changing life.
The story of African Americans in Kentucky is as diverse and vibrant as the state's general history. The work of more than 150 writers, The Kentucky African American Encyclopedia is an essential guide to the black experience in the Commonwealth. The encyclopedia includes biographical sketches of politicians and community leaders as well as pioneers in art, science, and industry. Kentucky's impact on the national scene is registered in an array of notable figures, such as writers William Wells Brown and bell hooks, reformers Bessie Lucas Allen and Shelby Lanier Jr., sports icons Muhammad Ali and Isaac Murphy, civil rights leaders Whitney Young Jr. and Georgia Powers, and entertainers Ernest Hogan, Helen Humes, and the Nappy Roots. Featuring entries on the individuals, events, places, organizations, movements, and institutions that have shaped the state's history since its origins, the volume also includes topical essays on the civil rights movement, Eastern Kentucky coalfields, business, education, and women. For researchers, students, and all who cherish local history, The Kentucky African American Encyclopedia is an indispensable reference that highlights the diversity of the state's culture and history.
Torn from an idyllic life with a loving, extended family in 1960’s Alabama, young Johnny Turnipseed found himself in Minneapolis, Minnesota with a father he no longer recognized and empty cupboards. A.C. Turnipseed’s alcoholism and womanizing started a chain reaction of poverty, violence, addiction and despair that nearly destroyed three generations. From lost and frightened little boy to gang leader, drug dealer and pimp to one of the nation’s most respected pioneers of community restoration, John Turnipseed’s story of transformation and restoration is told with unflinching honesty and contagious hope.
The Orange Bowl has been played 88 times since 1935. Originating as the small Festival of Palms Bowl, meant to attract tourists to Miami, it has grown into a national football event watched by 16 million people. Beginning with Bucknell's first victory over Miami, this book covers each Bowl in detail, including the first game in Miami Orange Bowl stadium in 1938; Charles Bryant's breaking of the color barrier in 1955; the four national championship games of the 1980s; the move to what is now Hard Rock Stadium in the 1990s; and the new era of the Bowl as a semifinal game in the College Football Playoff.
Bible teacher and former professional football player Shaun Alexander describes five stages of spiritual maturity and shares his thoughts on the benefits of walking with God.
At 23 years old, Josh Bidwell felt as if he were on the top of the world. A stellar college kicking career at the University of Oregon earned him a fourth-round NFL draft pick. But everything seemed to fall apart at the Packers' training camp when he received a diagnosis of aggressive testicular cancer. Now Josh shares his gripping story of overcoming adversity and eventually becoming one of the NFL's leading punters. From his insider's view, Josh describes what life is really like in the high-pressure world of professional sports--and how he is able to maintain a vibrant faith in a seemingly secular environment. He offers an inspiring tribute to those who influenced him along the way, and he provides tremendous motivation to readers who seek to overcome their own adversity or encourage others to become the people God created them to be.
If there's a recurrent theme that runs through any team sport, it's fairly obvious that it's likely to have something to do with teamwork. But strangely, there seems to be an epidemic in the modern world of sports that breeds personal agendas, selfish attitudes and win-at-all-cost mentalities. The Teamwork devotional offers a very different way of looking at teamwork, one that advocates dependence, empowering and equipping, working, celebrating and hurting together, as well as appreciating each individual's giftedness. In these meaningful readings, coaches and athletes will discover how a band of brothers are even stronger when they become a band of believers, how to spot the enemies of team unity and how to build an amazing team. Learn from those who have found a higher plane of play when there is unity within the team.