Spirituality
The sanctity of Easter...how do you approach and honor this holy time of year? Now you can spend 40 days with Jesus--from leading up to His death on Good Friday, to celebrating His resurrection on Easter Sunday--and draw into worship and praise as never before. Select devotionals from Sarah Young's bestselling "Jesus Calling" are compiled into this gift book to create an experience of closeness with the Savior during the Lenten season.
In 7 Keys to Spiritual Wellness, best-selling author Joe Paprocki provides a prescription for spiritual health based on the rich wisdom of Catholic Tradition. Through his nondogmatic, downright inviting style of writing, Paprocki makes this book eminently accessible to non-Catholics and "seekers" as well.
Recognizing that the spiritual immune system is weakened almost daily by toxic patterns and attitudes that negatively impact our ability to live in a harmonious relationship with God and others, Paprocki offers seven enduring and reliable strategies for achieving spiritual wellness. After identifying practical ways to integrate each of these strategies into daily living, he describes seven persistent dangers to our spiritual well-being and how these dangers manifest themselves in our lives.
At its core, 7 Keys to Spiritual Wellness helps us see the Christian faith not as a collection of rules and doctrine, but as a spiritual path--a path whose guideposts for spiritual wellness are sure to lead us to a more meaningful life and to a much richer experience of our faith.
The title of the book, Abba, is the term used in more than one place in the New Testament for addressing God as Father and it is with the 'Our Father' prayer that these meditations are concerned. At first sight it might be thought impossible to say anything fresh on something so familiar to all Christians as the Lord's Prayer. Yet the inexhaustible depths of meaning to be found in it may, by the very fact of familiarity, all too easily escape notice and understanding.
In Abide in the Heart of Christ, Rev. Joe Laramie, S.J., offers accessible wisdom from the foundations of Jesuit spirituality--St. Ignatius Loyola's Spiritual Exercises--in a ten-day personal retreat that will help you encounter Christ, grow your relationship with him, and shape your heart.
Laramie is your guide through this accessible retreat into the heart of Jesus. Based on a structure and approach he developed as a retreat leader at White House Jesuit Retreat in St. Louis, Laramie introduces you to classic themes of the Christian life, including sin, forgiveness, and creation.
This book also helps you learn how to use key scripture passages to reflect on your own experiences. Each reflection includes teachings from the Spiritual Exercises and offers examples from Laramie's own life. Reflection questions and activities guide you in further contemplation to help you see what's in your heart, encounter Christ in your daily life, and live more fully in his love each day.
Winner of the 2018 TGC Book Award for Christian Living
"And God saw that it was good..."
Look out over the world today, it seems a far cry from God's original declaration. Pain, conflict, and uncertainty dominate the headlines. Our daily lives are noisy and chaotic--filled with too much information and too little wisdom. No wonder we often find it easier to retreat into safe spaces, hunker down in likeminded tribes, and just do our best to survive life.
But what if God wants you to do more than simply survive? What if he wants you to thrive in this world, and be part of its redemption? What if you could rediscover the beauty and goodness God established in the beginning?
By learning the lost art of discernment, you can. Discernment is more than simply avoiding bad things; discernment actually frees you to navigate the world with confidence and joy by teaching you how to recognize and choose good things. When you learn discernment and develop a taste for all that's good, you will encounter God in remarkable new ways. Come, discover the God who not only made all things, but who will also make all things good once again.
In Ancient Wisdom, Living Fire, bestselling author and multiplatinum recording artist John Michael Talbot reveals how the Church fathers--great martyrs, saints, theologians, and mystics--helped him to become closer to Jesus.
Talbot weaves his own spiritual journey with thirteen lessons he learned from Church Fathers including Sts. Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, and Gregory the Great, explaining how their witness became part of the sure foundation of his own faith and ministry.
The early Church Fathers built on the foundation of Christianity passed down to them by Jesus through the apostles. In this powerful work, John Michael Talbot introduces readers to both well-known and less familiar but highly influential Church Fathers of the first through eighth centuries. These are the great minds and hearts of ancient discipleship that have deeply influenced Talbot's own spiritual, professional, personal, and religious life. Their words and witness have drawn Talbot closer to Jesus, giving him, and all of us, the guidance, assurance, and wisdom we all seek as we walk with the Lord.
In Ancient Wisdom, Living Fire, Talbot highlights thirteen essential lessons that will show us how to grow closer to Jesus, including:
You, too, can walk along the path of the ancient fathers with Talbot to become closer to Christ.
Sally Read converted from atheism to Catholicism when her daughter Flo was only four, yet from the beginning Flo accompanied her closely--sharing her excitement, discoveries and passion, yet aware that old friends and family did not share their beliefs. This consciousness of 'two worlds' led to a great many questions in Flo, and some rebellion--which culminated two nights before her First Communion in suddenly questioning whether she should receive the Sacrament at all.
Sensing the precarious nature of faith in an overwhelmingly secular world, Read, through meditation and anecdote, began writing down the compelling reasons for holding onto both God and Church. Taking the Annunciation as her template (that most fundamental yes to God), she explores common experiences of the spiritual life: His presence and invitation (And he came to her); the fears we have to let go of (Do not be afraid); the realization of our identity in God (Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord) and what our vocation might be (Let it be to me according to your word); and when God feels very distant from us (And the angel departed from her).
Drawing on Scripture, lives of the saints, and the lives of people she has known personally and professionally as a nurse, Read shows how God is with us always--through suffering, spiritual dryness and depression, as well as in joyful and mystical ways. This book was inspired by a mother's loving response to a daughter--but what has resulted is something that will speak to any believer engaged in the bliss and bewilderment of a relationship with God.
Dare to receive what your life is now--and ask God how to live it best.
Deepen your faith life with this at-home retreat! Mark Thibodeaux, SJ, combines his Louisiana storytelling, his knowledge of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, and his gifts as a spiritual director to create an at-home retreat that is a journey of transformation. Experience God's presence in a deeper way, and encounter God's personal love for you as you follow along with this book over thirty days.
Winner of a first-place award for best front-cover artwork from the Catholic Media Association and second-place honors in collections of prayers from CMA and in the prayer category from the Association of Catholic Publishers.
Do you feel as if you are running on empty? Have you fallen asleep to the glory of God and his love being revealed to you each day?Bestselling and award-winning author and popular YouTuber Emily Wilson Hussem has been there too. She invites you on a year-long transformational journey of practicing gratitude, becoming more closely aware of God's presence in your every day and serving others in his name. These fifty-two reflections will help you cultivate a deeper prayer life, find freedom from the frenzy of tasks and the noise of the culture, and discover the lasting joy that can only blossom in a heart awakened to the beauty of God's quiet, loving presence.
Awaken My Heart is an invitation to become aware of the presence of God in your life. Emily Wilson Hussem provides a road map for replacing busyness and distraction with intentional moments of noticing God's abiding love and practicing gratitude for his many gifts--big and little blessings such as a visit from a friend, a call from your sister, the laughter of your children, a setting sun, or crumbs on the floor. These fleeting moments and everyday happenings can seem insignificant, but when you behold them with intention and thank God for making them possible, you'll find yourself in regular conversation with Jesus, the lifeblood of your deep connection with God.
This fifty-two-week devotional blends spiritual insights, authentic vulnerability, and wise guidance for women of every age who want to have a heart fully awakened to God's presence and the beautiful bouquet of blessings he's put in your life. The reflection for each week includes a specific focus for the upcoming seven days. With stories, challenges, and insights into scripture, each reflection is designed to draw you deeper into awareness of Christ's love and the love he is calling you to share with the world. Wilson Hussem also offers practical ways to choose to love--visiting the elderly, calling your mom, or pausing to pray for a special intention--that are simple enough for even the busiest lifestyle.
How and when you use the devotional is completely flexible: You can start on any day of the week and return to it as often as you need to. Each week's focus is designed to draw you deeper into the heart of God by learning to love Jesus, others, and yourself more fully.
Are you feeling restless and out of balance? Are you often anxious and exhausted from the chaos of life?
The Awaken My Heart Prayer Journal by bestselling author and popular YouTuber Emily Wilson Hussem is here to remind you that God is your refuge and the ultimate source of inner calm.
Featuring a beautiful full-color design and a ribbon bookmark, this guided prayer journal will usher you through soul-stirring reflections and writing prompts so you can begin living with a heart awakened to the beauty of your life. Wilson Hussem's wisdom and cheerful encouragement, along with relevant scripture verses and saint quotations, will help you:
Wilson Hussem also suggests activities such as visiting the elderly, calling mom, or praying for a special intention that are easy enough for busy women. This prayer journal can be used alone at your own pace or in conjunction with the Awaken My Heart fifty-two-week devotional. It's perfect for a personal treasure or as a gift for a friend or family member.
"This is your cross, and I am not going to take it away from you. I will be with you, and I will help you, but it is yours to carry."
Christy Wilkens heard Jesus speak those words after she prayed for her son Oscar's healing in her parish adoration chapel one bright September day. Almost a year later she would find herself in Lourdes, France, seeking a miracle.
The grotto at Lourdes is known as a place of healing. But sometimes the miracle that occurs is not physical, but something much deeper. Wilkens made the long trek to Lourdes with her husband, Todd, and their toddler--who is plagued by mysterious seizures--through a program with the Order of Malta. In Awakening at Lourdes, Wilkens shares that while Oscar's condition did improve after their visit, the real healing took place between she and her husband. Through their time at Lourdes, they discovered a deeper love for each other, a renewed sense of appreciation for their faith community, and an abiding confidence in God's mercy.
Persuaded by her husband to take the trip, Wilkens summoned her faith- faith in God, faith in her husband, and faith in the doctors and other helpers who surrounded them every step of the way--to embark on the journey of a lifetime. Recording their experiences with deeply personal yet highly relatable language, Wilkens offers a firsthand account of the traditions and culture of the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes and the shrine's special servers, the Order of Malta. She also captures her own doubts, questions, and fears as she attempted to process the family's physical and emotional journey.
The Wilkens family's story will help you learn to be open to what God has in store for you and to see that if you surrender control, open yourself to God's grace, and lean on your community, you are never alone.
The book includes a study guide for individual or group use.
Ten of the Bible's best-known femmes fatales parade across the pages of this popular and unforgettable study with situations that sound oh-so-familiar.
Women everywhere marvel at those "good girls" in Scripture-Sarah, Mary, Esther-but on most days, that's not who they see when they look in the mirror. Most women (if they're honest) see the selfishness of Sapphira or the deception of Delilah. They catch of glimpse of Jezebel's take-charge pride or Eve's disastrous disobedience. Like Bathsheba, Herodias, and the rest, today's modern woman is surrounded by temptations, exhausted by the demands of daily living, and burdened by her own desires. So what's a good girl to do? Learn from their lives, says beloved Bible study teacher and speaker Liz Curtis Higgs, and choose a better path. Whether they were "Bad to the Bone," "Bad for a Season, but Not Forever" or only "Bad for a Moment," these infamous sisters show women how not to handle the challenges of life.With her trademark humor and encouragement, Higgs combines a contemporary retelling of the stories of these "other women" in Scripture with a solid, verse-by-verse study to teach us how to avoid their tragic mistakes and joyfully embrace grace.
Let these Bad Girls show you why studying the Bible has never been more fun! Includes Discussion Questions and Study Guide
Winner of a 2020 Excellence in Publishing Award from the Association of Catholic Publishers (third place, spirituality).
As a parent, do you struggle with trusting God's will for your life and for those you love? Are you tired and afraid?
In Be Brave in the Scared, Catholic writer Mary Lenaburg shares how the overwhelming demands of caring for her severely disabled daughter ultimately taught her--and can teach you--that trusting in God and accepting his will can lead to profound joy, no matter what challenges you face.
Be Brave in the Scared is an uplifting account of human frailty (and stubbornness) surrendered to faith. Lenaburg tells the heart-rending story of how caring for her severely disabled daughter affected her self-image, marriage, family life, and faith.
Although she initially struggled to accept God's will and her own limitations, Lenaburg ultimately learned how to trust God. She found in that trust inexplicable joy, even during the most difficult days of her life. She writes boldly and authentically about challenges we all encounter, such as trials with control, blame, exhaustion, fear, and acceptance.
Each chapter concludes with an invitation to write and a place for readers to express their thoughts and feelings. Lenaburg's extraordinary story affirms that God's redeeming love never fails and that he is there to help us through all of the challenges we encounter.
For more than 250 years, Abandonment to Divine Providence by Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade has offered inspiration and spiritual balm for those plagued with doubt, anxiety, and fear. Motivated by his own life-changing encounter with this spiritual classic and the popular resurgence in practicing Christian mindfulness, bestselling author and retreat leader Rev. Jeffrey Kirby serves up six meditations, rooted in Caussade's work, for today's reader and presents them as a personal retreat. Perfect for anyone looking to renew their trust in God and live freely in the present moment, Be Not Troubled invites you to let go of what you can't control and discover a place of deep serenity in God.
How does the contemporary person who is constantly forced to multitask, is fragmented and torn in different directions, and feels more connection through technology than through face-to-face interaction come to know and experience God's presence?
In Be Not Troubled, Kirby draws on his decades of experience as a popular retreat leader and speaker to offer you the wisdom of Caussade distilled into a six-day personal retreat that equips you to embrace the present moment and shake fear from your mind--all by recognizing the power of God.
This process begins with time-tested tools drawn from the renowned spiritual classic Abandonment to Divine Providence, which presents a series of influential spiritual reflections from Caussade, a beloved eighteenth-century French Jesuit.
In popularizing this classic for today's readers, Be Not Troubled
Practical steps, invitations to practice presence, and reflective prayers guide you through these spiritual habits, which are broken out into six days of brief, accessible meditations that can be completed in the midst of your daily life.
Rather than the future or the past, and rather than in cyberspace or somewhere else, God is found in this moment and in this place. The present moment can be lived and cherished as a sacrament, a visible sign of invisible graces. And it's in this sacrament that we can most know ourselves and encounter the living God.
Winner of a 2018 Catholic Press Association Award: Sacraments. (First Place).
How can Christians grow spiritually in the midst of our sinfulness? How can we transform our lives in a way that allows us to share in the resurrection of Jesus?
God has already given us the perfect solution--the sacraments.
Whether it is the wound of past hurts, the strain in our relationships, or the stress of daily life, we all need to be comforted and made whole by Christ. In this follow-up to his bestselling Be Healed, Bob Schuchts explains how the sacraments can fuel your emotional and spiritual healing and bring you closer to God.
Based on more than thirty-five years of experience as a therapist and decades spent in parish ministry, Schuchts demonstrates how each of the seven sacraments can be a life-changing encounter with Christ, communicated through the power of the Holy Spirit. He pairs each healing sacrament with one of the seven deadly wounds that emanated from original sin in the Garden of Eden. We perpetuate and deepen those wounds each time we sin, but the sacraments are God's remedy for sin. They give us a way to restore us to wholeness in Christ.
In Be Transformed, You'll discover how each sacrament can help you heal from wounds that can impede your relationships and sense of self-worth. With Schuchts's help, you'll learn how:
Be Transformed offers all of the tools you need for a fresh understanding of the sacraments, including reflection questions, scripture meditations, prayers, and inspiring stories. You'll come away hungry for the sacraments in a way you never knew possible.
As St. Catherine of Siena so aptly stated, "Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire!" Despite our fallen natures, we have the ability, through the solid Christian understanding of the human person—body and soul—how we can rise above it all. The authors of this Christian personality book guide us towards spiritual maturity, by teaching us how to improve one's personality, self-esteem, and virtue, without imitating models that distract us from our own identity. We learn how to live a happier and more coherent life, and how to acquire greater empathy with others—especially with our own family members and those in our immediate environment.
We can't just talk about Christ's presence in the Eucharist; we have to believe it, celebrate it, and live it both individually and as a community of the faithful. And we must cultivate a culture in our parishes that treats Real Presence not only as an important Catholic doctrine, but also as the most important part of parish identity.
In Becoming Eucharistic People, theologian Timothy P. O'Malley, author of Real Presence, outlines four essential dimensions of a Eucharistic culture in a parish--one that fosters reverence and unity among the faithful, includes every dimension of human life in the mystery of Christ's Body and Blood, and invites people back to parish life or to become Catholic for the first time.
O'Malley--director of education at the McGrath Institute of Church Life at the University of Notre Dame, academic director of the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy, and a member of the executive planning team for the US Conference of Catholic Bishops' Eucharistic Revival--shows what it means to foster a parish culture where the Eucharist infuses the worldview, priorities, and practices of its members. O'Malley leads you through discovery and discernment about how to create a parish culture where each person is called to holiness and receives the spiritual, theological, and pastoral help they need to meet Christ fully present in the Eucharist and to become a witness to him in the world.
O'Malley will help you reflect on four essential facets of a Eucharistic parish culture:
O'Malley says that when we reflect Christ's Real Presence to others, our parishes will become sacred spaces in which every person is led to deeper communion with God and with their neighbors.
Online resources, including ideas for parish retreats, teaching resources, and videos based on this book and the US bishops Eucharistic Revival are available from the McGrath Institute for Church Life.
Books in the Engaging Catholicism series from the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame help readers discover the beauty and truth of the Catholic faith through a concise exploration of the Church's most important but often difficult-to-grasp doctrines as well as crucial pastoral and spiritual practices. Perfect for seekers and new Catholics, clergy and catechetical leaders, and everyone in between, the series expands the McGrath Institute's mission to connect the Catholic intellectual life at Notre Dame to the pastoral life of the Church and the spiritual needs of her people.
Are you starting a new job, retiring, getting married, expanding your family, or making any significant change in your life?
The first year of almost anything new can be both a blessing and a challenge. In Beginning Well, Joel Stepanek, vice president of parish services at Life Teen International, shows how being shaken out of your routine when you start something new can free you to become a better Christian. He offers seven spiritual practices to get you through transitions and help you lay a strong foundation for true happiness.
Stepanek has worked in pastoral ministry and organizational development for more than fifteen years; he understands that life's transitions are important to spiritual and emotional well-being and provide the chance to see Christ in places you may not have thought to look before. Stepanek will help you refine your thoughts and behavior to more closely align your life to the Gospel as you grow through your first year of almost anything.
In Beginning Well, you will learn how to
Stepanek draws on his experience, personal faith, biblical narrative, and Catholic tradition to show you how to grow and thrive as you begin your next big thing.
The Big Hearted book gives you an inside look into the triumphs, struggles, joys, and sorrows of ordinary families with generous hearts. It invites you to witness extraordinary love in ordinary moments like the simple cooking of a meal or the hug between a teenaged brother and his baby sister and other inspiring family stories. Just like your family, these families experience pain, setbacks, and challenges. And just like your family, they also experience love and immeasurable blessing through their commitment and care for each other.
Nobel Peace Prize Laureates His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have survived more than fifty years of exile and the soul-crushing violence of oppression. Despite their hardships--or, as they would say, because of them--they are two of the most joyful people on the planet. In April 2015, Archbishop Tutu traveled to the Dalai Lama's home in Dharamsala, India, to celebrate His Holiness's eightieth birthday and to create what they hoped would be a gift for others. They looked back on their long lives to answer a single burning question: How do we find joy in the face of life's inevitable suffering? They traded intimate stories, teased each other continually, and shared their spiritual practices. By the end of a week filled with laughter and punctuated with tears, these two global heroes had stared into the abyss and despair of our time and revealed how to live a life brimming with joy. This book offers us a rare opportunity to experience their astonishing and unprecendented week together, from the first embrace to the final good-bye. We get to listen as they explore the Nature of True Joy and confront each of the Obstacles of Joy--from fear, stress, and anger to grief, illness, and death. They then offer us the Eight Pillars of Joy, which provide the foundation for lasting happiness. Throughout, they include stories, wisdom, and science. Finally, they share their daily Joy Practices that anchor their own emotional and spiritual lives. The Archbishop has never claimed sainthood, and the Dalai Lama considers himself a simple monk. In this unique collaboration, they offer us the reflection of real lives filled with pain and turmoil in the midst of which they have been able to discover a level of peace, of courage, and of joy to which we can all aspire in our own lives.
"Brother Rohr may just take you to places you've both avoided and longed for, to truth, union, joy, laughter, and, greatest of all, to your own precious self, here on earth with us, child of God."--Anne Lamott, from the foreword
We all suffer from unhealthy dependencies that we continually return to in hopes of having a better life. But after yet another TV show is streamed or another drink is swallowed, we find we once again feel worse, not better, than we did before. Where is the hope for that fully awakened life we long to live?
World-renowned author Richard Rohr says we can only be healed and find true fulfillment by facing our dependencies head-on. In Breathing Under Water he will guide you to:
Those who are ready to break negative patterns and experience greater internal freedom will find bold hope and transformation in this insightful book.
You are gods. Blasphemy? No, those mysterious words, spoken by Jesus in the Gospel of John and alluded to in Psalm 82, point to a holy longing deep in our hearts that tells each of us that we were created for more.
"Imagine that you were to wake up tomorrow to discover that, by some miracle, you had become a god overnight," writes Dr. Gregory Popcak. "Not THE God--omnipresent, all-knowing, all-powerful--but a god in the classic sense. That is to say, you woke to find that you were perfect, immortal, utterly confident in who you are, where you were going in life, and how you were going to get there. It might seem ridiculous to consider at first, but allow yourself to imagine this truly miraculous transformation. What would it be like to live without fear? How would it feel to be completely at peace with yourself and the people in your life? Imagine what it would be like to be able to resolve--once and for all--the tension that currently exists between all your competing feelings, impulses, desires, and demands. What would change in your life as a result of your having become that sort of divinely actualized person?" Bold questions are in need of bold answers. And in Broken Gods, a work that is both practical and inspirational, Dr. Greg explores what our deepest desires--and even our darkest desires-- tell us about our ultimate destiny and reveals a commonsense approach to fulfilling our true purpose in life.
