Recommendations based on "Return to Me"

“The most powerful spiritual healer, fixer, teacher on the planet.” —Oprah WinfreyIs it the job you hate but need in order to pay the rent? Is it that relationship that you gave your all to only to end up with a broken heart...again? Perhaps it's your children, a family member, or a life-long friend doing you in, dragging you down, pushing you to the brink. If you are an honorary member of the Black Woman's Suffering Society, you have probably been told that it's all your fault. Or that struggling and suffering is your lot in life. Iyanla Vanzant says, No! Life is an Act of Faith and suffering is optional! Those everyday challenges, obstacles, and dilemmas are what Iyanla calls "valleys." As bad as they may seem, there is a purpose or, as Iyanla says, "There is so much value in the valley."If you've ever been disappointed, betrayed, rejected, abandoned, or just plain old scared to let go, then you've been or may still be in a valley. Iyanla knows—she's been there and on a bad day she's still there, but now she shares the way out with you.

Lisa Gungor thought she knew her own story: small-town girl meets boy in college and they blissfully walk down the aisle into happily ever after. Their Christian faith was their lens and foundation for everything—their marriage, their music, their dreams for the future. But as their dreams began to come true, she began to wonder if her religion was really representative of the ‘good news’ she had been taught.She never expected the questions to lead as far as they did when her husband told her he no longer believed in God. The death of a friend, the unraveling of relationships and career, the loss of a worldview, and the birth of a baby girl with two heart defects all led Lisa to a tumultuous place; one of depression and despair. And it was there that her perspective on everything changed. The Most Beautiful Thing I’ve Seen tells the story of what can happen when you dare to let go of what you think to be true; to shift the kaleidoscope and see new colors and dimension by way of broken pieces.Lisa’s eloquent, soul-stirring memoir brings you to a music stage before thousands of fans and a front porch where two people whisper words that scare them to the core. It is the story of how doubt can spark the beginning of deeper faith; how a baby born with a broken heart can bring love and healing to the hearts of many, and ultimately, how the hardest experience in life often ends up saving us.

Winner of the Gold Medallion Award and an inspirational best-seller for over twenty years, Where is God When it Hurts? Has been revised and updated by the author to explore the many important issues that have arisen during that time. Sensitive and caring, this unique book discusses pain--physical, emotional, and spiritual--and helps us understand why we suffer from it and how to cope with our own and that of others. Using examples from the Bible as well as the author's personal experiences, this expanded edition speaks to everyone for whom life sometimes doesn't make sense. Philip Yancey can help us discover how to reach out to someone in pain even when we don't know what to say. It shows us how we can learn to accept without blame, anger, or fear that which we cannot understand.

An instant New York Times bestsellerTwo spiritual giants. Five days. One timeless question.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.

New York Times bestselling author Rachel Held Evans embarks on a quest to find out what it really means to be part of the Church. Like millions of her millennial peers, Rachel Held Evans didn't want to go to church anymore. The hypocrisy, the politics, the gargantuan building budgets, the scandals--church culture seemed so far removed from Jesus. Yet, despite her cynicism and misgivings, something kept drawing her back to Church. And so she set out on a journey to understand Church and to find her place in it. Centered around seven sacraments, Evans' quest takes readers through a liturgical year with stories about baptism, communion, confirmation, confession, marriage, vocation, and death that are funny, heartbreaking, and sharply honest. A memoir about making do and taking risks, about the messiness of community and the power of grace, Searching for Sunday is about overcoming cynicism to find hope and, somewhere in between, Church.

Sink deep into the everyday goodness of God and savor every moment In this daily devotional, Shauna Niequist becomes a friend across the pages, sharing her heart with yours, keeping you company, and inviting you into the abundant life God offers. And there are recipes, too, because spiritual living happens not just when we read and pray, but also when we gather with family and friends over dinners and breakfasts and late-night snacks. These recipes are Shauna's staples, and each one should be enjoyed around a table with people you love. So read and learn and pray and cook and share. Remember to savor each day, whatever it holds: work and play, coffee and kids, meals and prayers and the good stuff and the hard stuff. Life is all about relationships, and your daily relationship with God is worth savoring in every moment.

We often try to do a lot for God--without him. Relaxed is a call to let go of spiritual performance, reject our cultural tendency to live under pressure, and find freedom to walk with God and toward God, one gentle step at a time. Jesus was never in a hurry to be anywhere other than where he was, trusting and obeying his Father. Could the same be said of us We long to know peace, purpose, and contentment, but life's stresses, the world's discouragements, and our own striving for growth get in the way. In Relaxed, pastor and teacher Megan Fate Marshman explores what it means to set aside our addiction to trying to figure everything out and relish a slower, compelling, powerful, and relaxed life with God. As Megan takes us word by word through Proverbs 3:5-6, she helps us discover: The joy of a continual, intimate relationship with God What God calls us to do with the burden of shame and guilt What it looks like to be relaxed in the midst of grief, financial stress, mistakes, and fatigue The freedom and forgiveness of being found "in Christ" How to incorporate rhythms of walking with God into our everyday routines God never intended for us to be in control. As we lean away from our own understanding and into an intentionally relaxed spiritual life, we join Jesus in trusting a God who knows what he is doing--and isn't worried about a thing.

Have you ever wondered if you’re the only one who’s hurt, struggling, lonely, and confused? It’s not just you. Grace Valentine wants you to know one thing for sure: You’re not alone in your struggle. You’re not the only one feeling freaked out by the future. You’re not the only one dealing with crap. You’re not alone! Many women joke about having trust issues—laughing at their struggle because it feels common but secretly feeling there is no hope. Grace Valentine was one of them. In her twenties, she realized her trust issues were not humorous because, in reality, hers were trust issues with Jesus, her community, her family, and herself. And they were destroying her faith. Grace told herself she was simply being realistic, but the truth was, she was entangled with doubt and lies. In Grace’s second book, Is It Just Me?, she’ll walk you through how to handle rejection, stop joking about your issues, and find peace and healing for your scars by answering five deeply felt questions: Am I the only one who is tired, overwhelmed, doubting, and fearful? Am I the only one who feels hurt and lonely? Am I the only one who still is struggling to find my purpose? Am I the only one struggling to trust that God is there? Am I the only one confused about how to be an adult? Grace’s prayer is that as you journey with her through early adulthood, you’ll remember you have a Savior who loves you, flaws and all. By learning to trust in God’s design and His plans for your future, you’ll find you have everything you need to thrive in your twenties—and beyond.

A life-changing guide to accessing the new life Jesus came to bring—from the bestselling author of Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World   “You’ll emerge from this reading experience a changed woman.”—Liz Curtis Higgs   You long to serve God with grace and strength and reflect Christ in every word and action. Yet you find yourself continually struggling to bring that vision to life in your daily walk. At our very core, every one of us is a “twisted sister” within whom the flesh and spirit are battling constantly for control. We are afflicted with a chronic disconnect between our good-girl desire to put Jesus first and our bad-girl realities that crowd our thoughts and push Him out of the way. In Having a Mary Spirit, Joanna Weaver directs your gaze past your own shortcomings to the God who stands ready, willing, and able to make a new woman out of you. She equips you with biblical insights and practical tools to partner with Christ, inviting Him into the hidden places of your soul and giving Him full permission to redeem and renovate. Drawing on the stories of the biblical Marys (Mary, mother of Jesus; Mary, sister of Martha; and Mary Magdalene) and others whose experience with God transformed their lives, Joanna points you toward lasting personal transformation—soul-deep change that results in a complete makeover—from the inside out.   Includes a fourteen-week Bible study (adaptable to twelve weeks) for both individual reflection and group discussion.

This major new work of channeled literature shows readers how to develop their own intuitive abilities and continues the program of self-development begun in Paul Selig's popular previous book, I Am the Word.In this bold, bracing, and tremendously practical new work of spiritual psychology, author and medium Paul Selig takes the channeled teachings begun in his acclaimed I Am the Word into dramatic new territory. In this fresh revelation, the invisible teachers who speak through Selig actually instruct readers on how to develop their own powers of intuition, clairvoyance, and inner knowing.The Book of Love and Creation simultaneously helps readers develop as spiritual beings within, while growing into increasingly capable, resilient, and confident individuals amid the demands of outer life. Filled with meditations, exercises, psychological insights, and affirmations, The Book of Love and Creation immediately produces change in the life of every dedicated person who approaches it. Perfect for returning readers and newcomers alike, the book is an extraordinary experience in a new body of channeled wisdom that is attracting readers across the world.