Spiritual Biography

In Ley Lines of Love, Olivia Ames Hoblitzelle shares wisdom gained from a lifetime of spiritual seeking and devoted practice. A dedicated practitioner of Buddhism, she shares many remarkable stories about her inner journey, including the joys of learning from enlightened teachers. She also recounts how her years of involvement with a devotional tradition from India ended in an archetypal story of disillusionment.

Your faith is a long-distance run, Pastor John Van Pay tells us: an everyday endeavor to follow Jesus that will sometimes feel impossible, even painful. To give us strength, Van Pay retells the inspirational stories of 20 believers in the Bible who persisted, endured, and thrived in their faith by applying the fundamental principles of endurance running to the single most important journey - the journey to loving and following God.

Jason Lozano is a true living miracle and has led an inconceivable life of remarkable achievements. He is known and admired by people all over the world for his passionate pursuit to see lives powerfully transformed by God. As a young man, Jason Lozano never imagined a life that didn’t involve drugs, violence, and chaos. His life was riotously spiraling deeper into darkness and destruction.

"Operating with God: A Surgeon's Stories of Emunah/Faith" by Dr. James Elist is a captivating journey through the life of a prominent surgeon, driven by his unwavering connection to His Creator. This remarkable memoir explores Dr. Elist's career, filled with unexpected encounters, Divine providence, and life-altering decisions. Dr. Elist is keenly aware of how God's hand weaves through his everyday experiences, and teaches us to be similarly attentive.

David Brainerd's diary is a poignant testament to the relentless pursuit of faith amidst the challenges of missionary life in colonial America. As a Puritan of Puritans, Brainerd's unwavering commitment to Calvinist theology shaped every facet of his existence, from his thoughts to his actions, all dedicated to the glorification of God. Sent as a missionary to the Native Americans in Pennsylvania during the 18th century, Brainerd's diary chronicles his struggles, triumphs, and deep spiritual introspection throughout his brief yet impactful life. Within the pages of Brainerd's diary, readers...

This is the true story of Ora-Jay and Irene Eash, Amish farmers from northwest Montana whose lives changed in an instant when a semi-truck struck the family buggy, killing their two young daughters. After the accident, the couple turned to their Amish community for comfort, but they remained haunted by the thought that they might not see their girls again in heaven. Would their deeds be good enough?

Dorothy Newton was married to Dallas Cowboy football star Nate Newton, who abused and threatened her until Dorothy found refuge through a relationship with Christ. Silent Cry is a testament to Dorothy’s strength, will to live, and the peace that comes with hope in the God who sees and hears your tears—even when no one else does.

What They Meant for Evil is the account of that unimaginable journey. With the candor and purity of a child, Rebecca recalls how she endured fleeing from gunfire, suffering through hunger and strength-sapping illnesses, dodging life-threatening predators - lions, snakes, crocodiles, and soldiers alike - that dogged her footsteps, and grappling with a war that stole her childhood. Her story is a lyrical, captivating portrait of a child hurled into wartime, and how through divine intervention, she came to America and found a new life full of joy, hope, and redemption.

These are the firsthand accounts of sisters Helen and Barbara Shores about growing up with their father, Arthur Shores, a prominent Civil Rights attorney, during the 60s in the Jim Crow south Birmingham district - a frequent target of the Ku Klux Klan. Between 1948 and 1963, some 50 unsolved Klan bombings happened in Smithfield where the Shores family lived, earning their neighborhood the nickname “Dynamite Hill.” Due to his work, Shores’ daughter, Barbara, barely survived a kidnapping attempt.

A husband dead in a fiery crash. A son claimed by a killer’s hand. Tammy Horvath doesn’t think she’ll ever smile again. Strengthened by her faith, she bravely heads solo to Iceland to see the northern lights, where she climbs glaciers and ventures into caves before seizing the opportunity to travel more often. Tammy will take you on a journey of love, laughter, and inspirational life lessons as she swims in the crystal-clear Caribbean Sea, gets stuck atop one of Mexico’s pyramids, endures a tropical storm in the Bahamas, and hikes amid Yellowstone National Park’s spectacular scenery.

It’s been over sixty years since the late Loretta Lynn first rose to stardom, transforming from a coal miner’s daughter to the Queen of Country Music. Loretta knew she was blessed—to record music, to sing her songs to such great crowds, and to write books. A Song and A Prayer is a collection of devotionals combined with song lyrics that delivers a unique form of worship. Inspired by her songwriting sessions with Kim McLean (a fellow songwriter, music producer, as well as ordained minister and reverend doctor), Loretta's love of God is felt in this book.

Jaci Velásquez, artista nominada al Grammy y vendedora de varios discos de platino, cuenta cómo superó los desafíos de la fama a edad temprana y un matrimonio fallido, y cómo confió en que Dios convertiría sus piezas rotas en tesoros de un valor incalculable.

As a troubled teenager, Tamara Laroux just wants the pain to go away. Crying out to God for forgiveness, she makes the heart-wrenching decision to end her life. As she plummets from her body to a place of vast darkness, torment, and agony, Tamara instantly realizes the finality of her rash decision and begs God to save her.

When Carol Cymbala says that nothing is impossible for God, she means it. For nearly thirty years she has experienced God's light shining steadily in the heart of a city that has become synonymous with coldness and decay. She has watched in awe as he has mended human beings whose lives seemed beyond help. She has also seen how prayer can be the dynamic tool God uses to solve the worst kind of problems.

More than any other world leader in recent times, George W. Bush is a man of faith...a conservative Christian who has brought the power of prayer and the search for God's will into the Oval Office. His faith has proven to be a bedrock of strength and resolve during two of the most tumultuous years in our nation's history.

Ruth Graham - third child and youngest daughter of Billy and Ruth Bell Graham - offers a rare, inside look at the 20th century's most influential evangelist. In this substantive portrait, Ruth reflects on several different subjects, including her father's love for the world, his humility, grace, and loyalty. She concludes the book with a chapter on authenticity, written just after Dr. Graham's final crusade, which was held in New York in June 2005.

More and more people - especially millennials - are turning to religion as a source of comfort and solace in our increasingly chaotic world. But rather than live a cloistered life of seclusion, the Daughters of Saint Paul actively embrace social media, using platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to evangelize, collectively calling themselves the #MediaNuns. In this collective memoir, eight of these Sisters share their own discernment journeys, struggles and crises of faith that they’ve overcome, and episodes from their daily lives.

Between Heaven & Hollywood is David's inspirational journey from the wheat fields of his Mennonite home outside of Dodge City, Kansas, to the bright lights of Los Angeles. This story of perseverance will assure you that your dreams aren't frivolous. They might be the most important part of your life.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama. She was not trying to start a movement. She was simply tired of the social injustice. Yet her simple act of courage started a chain of events that forever shaped the landscape of American race relations. Now, decades after her quiet defiance inspired the modern civil rights movement, Mrs. Parks' own words tell of her courageous life, her passion for freedom and equality, and her strong faith.

With a unique mix of passionate revelation and quirky humor, River Jordan takes us on a journey through her Southern childhood to her present-day life as a novelist. Her stories run the gamut from dancing disco nights and midnight desert rides to surprise visitations with the divine. Included are comforting letters to personal friends and loved ones about faith, death, heartbreaks, and their futures.