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Between the covers of this tome lay truly wondrous things. Composed of colors previously unseen and sounds rarely heard, these buds will blossom in your hand. As they do, they will burst into light that will illuminate the darkness. As that light reflects upon a table, a feast is seen before us. Take up arms, in spoon and ladle, and prepare to experience ephemeral tastes and aromas never known. So whet your appetites my friends, hone them and apply them to the job at hand. Then join me, if you will, as we feast on these delectable delights. Yet, if you don't mind as much, we'll leave the bones behind.Praise for J. Michaels [CENTER]""The Poet's Quill is an inspirational uplifting book of poetry that will have readers aspiring to new goals. With over one hundred poems ranging in titles such as 'One Soul To Save,' 'Beauty By The Bay,' 'I Want My Perfection Back,' 'Heaven's Gate,' and many more equally thought provoking, how can one not explore the vast possibilities of this wonderful book of poems. The author, J. Michaels, has reached into the depths of his soul and produced an amazing book that will touch readers' hearts, minds, and souls.""-Angela SimmonsMember, Reviewthebook.com

Using crucial chapters from Paul's magnum opus as points of theological departure, Delano Palmer provides in-depth discussion on important themes like the role of first-century women in pastoral work and the nature and duration of spiritual endowments. Romans in Context is divided into three parts. Part one reviews the career and legacy of the apostle Paul against the backdrop of his cultural milieu and history. Part two takes up the knotty problem of what exactly does the apostle mean by justification by faith in its exploration of the declarative/demonstrative proposal of modern theologians. The section also explores what Paul has to say concerning the status of the justified in Romans 5-8. It is the final section that wrestles with matters of spiritual gifts, the role of female pastors, as well as the apostle's best-documented thoughts on Christian mission.

This book is a scholarly inquiry into several dimensions of culture, exploring the close relationship between architecture and metaphysical ideas as well as religious and philosophical concepts in each period of human history, a relationship which has, however, been largely forgotten or neglected by modernity. Rather than being a specialized account of any particular epoch, it is an intellectual attempt to map out a general picture of how certain ideas have made their way into architectural structures or shaped them in one or another way, from classical Antiquity through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance to the present. The four essays it contains, focusing on light, water, color, and sound in architecture, are written by an author who is a historian and critic of architecture as well as literary scholar, who firmly believes in the value of discussing these issues from the perspective of the history of ideas. The author is conscious about the limits of any generalizations, but he believes that architecture should be studied not only as an art in its own right, but as something larger, enveloping many layers of culture and reflecting the bonds between human thinking and the practice of the art of building.

Charlie's Christmas Letter is a little document in the form of a letter to my grandson, which seeks to answer the questions that a bright teenager ought to be asking: Why were the shepherds in the fields in winter? Who were the three wise men? Why do we bring holly into the house? Of all the ways of entering a house why does Santa choose the chimney? What is the Messiah about? Why did Tchaikovsky drink unboiled water during a cholera epidemic? What is the Jewish Celebration of Lights all about? The letter presents some of the more interesting features of the season and incidental matters. Much space is devoted to details of the nativity and the transmittal of these through the uncertainties of the gospel reports; then there are the primitive rituals of food and drink; the origin of Santa Claus; and a summary of the wonderful legend ""The Cessation of the Oracles.""Then come features of the season not part of the nativity story: Messiah, The Nutcracker, A Christmas Carol, containing some of the more colorful and significant details of the lives of Handel, Tchaikovsky, and Dickens. Then Hanukkah. Then Shopping. At best tangentially related, these have in them elements of Christian value. Next, the climax of the season: church on Christmas morning and the carols. Finally the book concludes with an attempt to present for the boy the huge dimension of the inconceivable phenomenon of the Incarnation. The chatty, simple style avoids long words where possible and offers parenthetical explanations. It is not without occasional, innocent wit and is sometimes a bit didactic: there are grandfatherly prescriptions, which Charlie may find a bit pompous.

Cairns have decorated the landscapes of cultures throughout time. Piles of stone-one stone placed on top of another-are set in place all over the earth to recall battles, identify burial sites, mark trails, and spur hearts and minds to remember sacred, noble, and critical events. They are landmarks. They are sacramental presences in space and time. Our lives are littered with markers of meaning. They all reveal who we are, where we have been, and offer us a jumping off point for the future. In the true mystic tradition, everything straddles meaning and is potentially available to reveal the inner life, God Himself, and all that Is. My hope is that we will begin to look at the markers of meaning in our lives and notice how we store that meaning in our heart. My hope is that we will reconstruct our prayer life and the shape of our interior world, that we will recognize the impact things have on us and discriminate toward health. Our journey in this book will be more like an amble or a wandering. We will hop from pillar to post looking for meaning and attempting to infuse things with meaning. We will look at our practices and the practices of those from our shared human past. We will begin to notice that there is a hidden depth to how we live-one that reveals we live in layers or dimensions, not simple and flat lines.

At each turn in life we are bombarded with the idea of normal. Normal finds a job he hates so it can pay for things he doesn't need while he wishes he was doing something else. Normal believes that creativity, imagination, innovation, and dreaming should cease after the fifth grade. Normal goes to church for an hour on Sundays but doesn't get carried away or allow her faith to truly intersect her life any other time of the week.Each day of normal becomes a tedious, hard-pill to swallow. But each day of normal also swells our thirst for something more. Have you ever wondered if there was something beyond normal? Have you ever craved adventure? What about purpose? Wished for meaning? Longed to know that what you do really matters? Maybe you've just longed to know that you matter.What if you could unlock the secrets to an abnormal life just like those men and women in Hebrews 11? What if God's design for your life is so much more than the trappings of this world? What if there is a life up ahead that could be meaningful, adventurous, and most of all, matter for eternity? What if God is not done altering the course of history? This is your invitation to travel miles past normal.

Se estima que la poblacion hispana en los Estados Unidos era 45.5 millones en el ano 2007, convirtiendo a los hispanos en la etnicidad minoritaria mas grande de la nacion. Los hispanos constituyen el 15 por ciento de la poblacion total de esta nacion. La poblacion latina en los Estados Unidos se triplicara, y de acuerdo a las proyecciones del Censo, los hispanos representaran el 29 por ciento de la poblacion en los Estados Unidos para el ano 2050.Este libro ofrece sugerencias para capacitar a lideres hispanos que se involucraran en el ministerio en diferentes regiones de los Estados Unidos. Las conclusiones y principios revelados en este proyecto investigativo proveen informacion, entendimiento y sugerencias que pueden tambien contribuir en los esfuerzos para capacitar a lideres emergentes y misioneros de otros grupos raciales tanto en los Estados Unidos como en otros paises.

Grief is universal, permeating all avenues of life on planet earth; no one can escape it. Pain and sorrow come in all different shapes and sizes. An Ordinary Story of Extraordinary Hope accepts that life is hard. It explores the full scope of grief issues to proclaim that grace and hope are stronger than the hardness of life; grace and hope are saturated with redemptive power.The book illustrates how those times of heartache result in growth that shapes our character and perspective. It teaches that it's our response to grief that determines whether growth will be positive or negative.An Ordinary Story of Extraordinary Hope provides true-life narrative tied to Scripture to describe God's presence in the midst of painful circumstances. It demonstrates that over time God uses both positive and negative experiences to accomplish his purposes in our lives. Its testimony to perseverance is an encouragement to others on their faith journey.

The latter half of Chapter 4 of Paul's letter to the Ephesians is the watershed of this magnificent document that is often referred to as the ""holy of holies."" Paul was never hesitant to declare God's truth as he proclaimed it to those professing faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, after praising The Triune God for the love, wisdom, and blessings bestowed upon us during the first three and one-half chapters Paul does an about face and enjoins the believers with these strong words saying, ""This I . . . testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk in the vanity (futility) of their mind."" He is telling the hearers that once they are Christ's they are to walk to a different drummer, the Master Himself.Paul completes the watershed transition by reminding professing Christians, ""But ye have not so learned Christ."" It is with these simple, single syllable words that he opens new horizons for the members of Christ's body and paves the way for enunciating the duties and responsibilities they are to learn and to do when Following Christ. This learning and practicing is not easy, but it us joyful, rewarding, and worthwhile.That is why Paul, before embarking on Christ's learning pathway, tells the followers in the way to, ""put off . . . the old man; be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And . . . put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness."" May we heed God's truth as revealed to Paul by the Holy Spirit. These blessings are comforting, strengthening, and manifold when committing ourselves to Walking With Jesus.

The Apostle Paul realized that he was an infant in the faith after his encounter with the Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus. He experienced what was required to become a member of Christ's body and to walk as a mature Christian. Therefore, he wanted to share these truths with the Ephesians and with us.What does he do? First, he presents doctrine regarding the Holy Spirit, the Lord Jesus Christ, and God the Father. Then, he focuses on the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Why? He knew we needed to acquire knowledge of God's Word and develop a personal relationship with the Triune God.He concludes this portion of Scripture with comforting words and stern warnings. The former assures us of attaining spiritual maturity, whereas the latter warns against the predators espousing false doctrine, trickery, cunning craftiness, and deceit, which are only overcome by an intimate knowledge of the Son of God.

Description:Paul proclaimed he was in prison because he was Christ's prisoner. Why? Because he proclaimed the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ uncompromisingly without fear of retribution. He served the living Christ and succumbed neither to the wiles of Satan nor to the demands of the secular world. He gives all the glory to God and in so doing proclaims: the grace of God; knowledge in the mystery of Christ, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, . . . and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel. He became Christ's minister by God's grace and His effective power working in him. God does this to enlighten and to strengthen each individual professing faith in Christ and endeavoring to walk with Jesus along life's pathway while enjoying blessings and gifts, as well enduring trials, tests, and temptations. Paul was the ultimate pastor and teacher in expounding Christ's teachings. He was a God server, not a man server. May those who preach and teach follow in Paul's footsteps by proclaiming God's entire Word faithfully.Endorsements:""Bob Callahan is a man who loves the Scriptures and loves the God to which they attest. His lessons on Ephesians are deep and rich. Bob has as his conversation partners the great minds and spirits of the church, and he is at once very readable and very faithful.""-Todd B. JonesPastor, First Presbyterian ChurchNashville, Tennessee""One would be hard-pressed to find a more thorough investigation of the treasures of Ephesians than what Mr. Callahan has written. The author has taken meticulous care to draw from the epistle as many of the theological riches as he could glean--and the reader could digest.""-Norman H. McCrummen IIISenior Pastor, Spring Hill Presbyterian ChurchMobile, AlabamaAbout the Contributor(s):Robert B. Callahan Sr. founded Callahan & Associates, Inc., in 1976, a telecommunications consulting firm. He is the author of The Triune God Speaks to the Saints, Volume 1 in an eight volume expository commentary on the Apostle Paul's epistle to the Ephesians.

Though One Go With Me is the sequel to Pastor Blackstone's first book, Though None Go With Me, which retraces the steps of a Maine pastor back to the fabled land of India. This time the 'one' is the pastor's daughter, Marnie. Travel along as Blackstone introduces his daughter to her first taste of hot, spicy foods, an auto-cart ride, playing with elephants, and traditional Malayalam dress. Once again journey through the State of Kerala on a Sunday Safari into the tea mountains of India, take a sunset stroll along the sands of Kovalam Beach, and enjoy the uniqueness of wearing a pepper necklace around your neck and eating with your fingers. Witness and wonder as Marnie drinks coconut milk straight from the shell, goes on a shopping spree for a beautiful sari, enjoys the smell of a jasmine and rose myla, and experiences the G-Mart (India's version of Wal-Mart). The purpose of this second trip to Edyappara was to be graduation speaker at Kerala Baptist Bible College, where the pastor had taught for 40-days on his first trip, and to deliver a half a million rupees to a small congregation in Venmony so they could start building a church sanctuary and parsonage. Relive the adventures of a father and daughter as they trek through a tropical paradise filled with hospitable people, amazing animals, and breath-taking scenery in their own version of 'The Amazing Race'!

After a half-century of activism, John McConnell, the true founder of Earth Day, here relates his global promotion of peace, justice, and Earth care. Following the Kennedy assassination, McConnell's Minute for Peace gained worldwide attention. This led to his Earth Day and other initiatives aimed at promoting people and planet. In this book, he shares the views that garnered support during the environmental movement from 1969 onward, and that have inspired followers for forty years at annual Earth Day ceremonies at the UN and cities across the globe.John McConnell coined the term Earth Day in 1968, proposed its celebration on the spring equinox to the City of San Francisco in October 1969, and announced it in November at a UNESCO Conference. The City responded by hosting the first Earth Day on March 21, 1970. Margaret Mead, UN Secretary-General U Thant, President Ford, and thirty-three Nobel laureates supported McConnell's Earth Day, and thirty-six worldwide dignitaries signed McConnell's Earth Day Proclamation, supporting Earth Day on the spring equinox, an annual planetary holiday linking people everywhere without regard to politics, culture, national border, or religion. In 1957, after Sputnik, McConnell promoted the Star of Hope, a satellite devoted to peace. This effort sparked his origination of Earth Day, the Earth Flag, Earth Trustees, and the Earth Magna Charta. He worked with UN officials and other leaders to overcome differences and build common ground for peace, aiming to ensure our planet's future and human survival. This book chronicles his global mission, his life journey, and his unique contributions toward a peaceful and cherished planet.

This is not your grandfather's poetry. It is spun for the everyman and woman. It is bred of a spiritual nature, yet it smiles and laughs and screams. Some are funny, some are sad. Some spit in the face of conformity, amused at the absurdity of the world whilst seeking a better way. These odes defy conventional structure and content. They rhyme without embarrassment yet experiment unapologetically with such. They convey messages of hope and love and clearer sight. And they challenge the accepted and popular notions of reality and illusion while offering superior alternatives to both. They will amuse and dismay, provoke and possibly offend, but they will not leave you unchanged. So join me, if you will, as we accompany The Illusion Warrior on his quest to dispel chimera and discover truth.

Every Christian is assailed by the gales of temptation, but those in professional ministry face fiercer storms than the rest. As C. H. Spurgeon warned, contrary to what is often assumed, "our dangers are more numerous and more insidious than those of ordinary Christians." This perspective was shared by the unified voice of the historic church, leading some patristic church fathers to initially flee the call to ministry. The same dangers were repeatedly identified in the writings of the early English pastoral theologians as they sought to mentor their proteges in successful ministry. A Most Dangerous Profession surfaces these gems so often overlooked in historic Christian literature, and ends with their practical advice on how to overcome. As both a pastoral and spiritual theology, A Most Dangerous Profession is bound to add an important voice to the ongoing dialog about pastoral self-care.

Logizomai is the Greek word meaning "to reckon," or "to reason." The Apostle John identifies Jesus as the "Logos" (John 1:1, 14)-the Divine Word. To most Christians in the West today, Christianity is nothing more than a duty, a feeling, a name badge, or something one does on Sunday's. But Christianity is more than that. Christianity is a complete worldview that makes sense of the world. A right theology results in a right understanding of the world and the gospel is that right theology. The Church is sick because she is shallow. What we need is a logizomai faith-a reasonable faith. Such a reasonable faith encounters hardships with perseverance, animosity with love, and evangelism with Spirit-filled skill. Most refuse to share their faith because they don't understand it and are unable to articulate it. If Christianity is logizomai, then the issues we face today present no real challenge. We must, therefore, learn to apply the truths of the gospel to our dying, hurting world. To do so, we must have reason, rooted in the gospel and inspired by the cross.

To have known Adrian van Kaam in person is to have loved him for reasons human and spiritual. His kindness to everyone is as legendary as his fidelity to the mystery in all the peaks and valleys of daily life. His humility is the fire that enkindles his original vision of formative spirituality. His gentle, joyful spirit radiates on every page of this retelling of his life story. In it he takes us to the heart of his thinking in the fields of psychology and spiritual formation. He welcomes us wholeheartedly into the intimate corners of his family, his friendships, and his pastoral and professional life. He brings us into a little known arena of world history, the infamous Dutch Hunger Winter of 1944--1945. We travel with him from that bleak period through the renewal of his life's work in the United States to its crowning phase in the Epiphany Association, co-founded with his colleague and editor of this unforgettable work of love, Dr. Susan Muto.

New Horizon in Male-Female Relationships attempts to break new ground in the discourse on gender equality, love, happiness, and marriage. Author David Samuel Green succeeds admirably and wastes no time in tracing the evolution of human relationships. But he also puts forward new theories regarding the state of relations between males and females across the globe, including married couples.What Green's new book further accomplishes lies in its no-holds-barred exploration of matters of the heart. Specifically, the author examines methods we can employ to eliminate problems that tend to hamper our relationships, and shows us how best to get the most out of our unions, with emphasis on how ""product thinking"" and ""egalitarianism"" assist remarkably.Besides offering solutions for troubled marriages and other relationships, the book also extols several concepts that go hand in hand with love and happiness. At the same time, it becomes clear that if we want our unions and partnerships to work, we have to bring the right attitude to the table. After all, as we learn, the ingredients for a successful relationship must include compassion, forgiveness, and understanding.

"Why is this happening to me?" is a question being asked by millions of people who have lost their livelihoods in today's economic recession. In Better for Life you will find answers to this question as you explore the trials of several biblical characters and the purposes for those trials. Within these pages you will not only discover the purpose of your trial, but you will also learn what you can do about it. You can't change your situation, but you can change yourself. God's plan is not merely to get you out of your trials, but to transform you while you are in them. Take a journey to discover the reasons for your hardships, and learn how you can use these circumstances to your advantage. Remember: God is not so concerned with making life better for you; He is interested in making you better for life. So, if you are tired of struggling under the burden of your circumstances, then it is time to become better for life!

Dr. John H. Leith (1919-2002) enjoyed Christmas. He appreciated it especially as a celebration of the goodness of this world that God not only created but also, in the incarnation of Jesus Christ, entered, blessed with his presence, and redeemed. And at Christmas he especially wanted to be in contact with, and to minister to, those whom he loved, those whom he had taught, and those whom he cherished as colleagues in the Christian and Reformed ministry of preaching, teaching, and pastoral care.This little book comprises a collection of Leith's Christmas letters to his former ministerial students at Union Theological Seminary in Virginia. The letters grew lengthier and richer through the years. We have gathered them here so that others may enjoy reading them also.

Proceeding from Voltaire's conclusion that "God is a comedian playing to an audience that's afraid to laugh," this book seeks to uncover some of the many instances in which biblical texts offer readers grace and insight through the divine gifts of humor, wit, and laughter. Readers are invited to take a strikingly unusual, if not unique, approach to the texts, imagining not only the voice inflections but also the body language of their narrators to capture the humorous nuances and ripples of laughter that likely attended the first telling of many biblical stories.

Countless books have been written about the impending death of the institutional church, but this one both celebrates the resurrection that will follow and lights the way toward a new kind of spiritual community. The Way of Jesus identifies seven principles upon which authentic and vibrant Christian communities can be built in today's diverse and ever shrinking world. Toby Jones traveled across the country, from San Francisco's Glide Memorial Church to New York's Church of the Holy Apostles, and from Chicago's Wicker Park Grace to Minneapolis's Solomon's Porch. He sojourned with seven communities in all and conducted in-depth interviews with their leaders and participants to reveal what distinguishes resurrection communities from those in precipitous decline. In The Way of Jesus, Jones draws both from the scriptures and from such fresh thinkers as Brian McLaren, Dallas Willard, Doug Pagitt, and Shane Claiborne, offering genuine hope and practical direction to the millions of spiritually homeless. But just as importantly, The Way of Jesus offers a clear path to struggling, shrinking congregations who desire to re-form themselves in a way that is both more faithful to the Gospel and compelling to post-modern generations, who have long since abandoned the institutional church.

The purpose of this book is to present a comprehensive review of deception, its essential component of neurolinguistic dialectics, and how it is used by Satan to corrupt the human mind from devotion to Jesus Christ. These theological subjects are explored in an interdisciplinary fashion in an attempt to reveal historical knowledge of religious and secular developments of the ages needed to understand spiritual failure, deception, sin, apostasy, the role of the human mind as the venue or battlefield of deception, and how faith in God becomes weak and susceptible to doubt. Always at issue here is "why humanity replicates behavior that regresses to the same results of apostasy and utter spiritual failure induced by deception?" This interdisciplinary approach eludes the prototypical, one-dimensional approach to understanding deception and sin and presents the reader with a "how to" methodology that will hopefully defeat deception and sin. It also shows how deception results from heretical doctrine advanced by false prophets and preachers. Moreover, this book will help readers hone their skills necessary to examine issues of contemporary life with critical thinking in the context of religious and human history that facilitates their becoming better human beings.

This poetry becomes an agent of transformation in offering a new direction for our lives. It provokes a little holy agitation by tossing poems like pebbles into placid pools of water to cause some waves. Such poetry gives us prophetic alerts to pay attention to things that matter, like peace not war, like economic and immigrant justice, like an earthy passion for life more than death. This book of poems describes a link between poets and peacemakers:Maybe peacemakers are like insurgent poets,Irrelevant, dissident, disregarding the status quo,Imagining a vision of a world that gets alongThis poetry--too dangerous for right wing religion--will offer a resource for church activists and for taking the next step of courage. It will be a companion for marching to a different drummer and hearing the still voice of God amplified through ordinary occasions.

The Emerald Mandala is a spiritual shelter, a sanctuary of sorts. It is a harmony of words and rhymes to take you to far away inner places. Inside you will find fables, prayer, dilemma, and intentional absurdities. Angelic advocates wait to take you on wings widespread and destined for the heavens. Love is discussed, insights appraised, mind and spirit explored. The Emerald Mandala is a journey from which you will return changed, maybe ever so slightly, but changed nevertheless. It will likely provoke you. It may touch your heart. It might leave you mystified or confused, but it will certainly leave you in better thought. Within these emerald walls, we will explore ourselves together, we will challenge our beliefs to see if they endure, and we will pray and hope for similar providence. I ascribe my poems to no particular religion or doctrine. I seek God by any means left to me. There are as many paths back as there are rays of the sun. Join me now and let us ignore our differences, embrace our alikeness, and seek together that we may end up as One. Let the Emerald Mandala transport us beyond the worldly bonds that seek to contain and diminish us. Let it be our mutual conveyance to set our direction, side by side, to the road Home.

What if reality TV met one of our oldest stories of blood revenge, lust, envy, and coming-of-age? Though the story of Salome has been told down through the ages, this new rendition from a woman's perspective portrays mother-daughter forgiveness based on the story of the sensuous young woman who danced for Herod then demanded John the Baptist's head on a platter at her mother's instigation. Lush language and a riveting storyline combine to create this small jewel from debut novelist Patti Rutka.

Jairus's Daughter is a literary-historic novel that sets up a rhythm between two women separated by twenty centuries. Their lives nonetheless mirror each other in subtle ways and finally intersect in modern Israel. Aviel, a scribe in first-century Israel, has a gift and a secret that, millennia later, will affect the choices of Anna Washington, a modern rock climbing woman searching for her heart's direction. Colorful characters and striking detail combine in this tale of passion and integrity from midrashic novelist Patti Rutka.

Told in the first person by the author of the Gospel of Mark, The Cloak and the Parchments relates the story of how the earliest gospel came to be written against the backdrop of emergent Christianity's doctrinal tensions. But it is also the story of one man's struggle of faith, especially with the remarkable notion--at least for a first-century Jew steeped in monotheistic tradition--of the divinity of Jesus Christ. The year is 64 CE, and Paul has summoned Mark and Timothy from Ephesus to his prison cell in Rome. On their journey, the travelers discuss many of Paul's teachings, including that Jesus is truly the Son of God. After reaching Italy they meet up with Peter, whose own account of Jesus's ministry quickly poses a challenge to Paul's views. But there will be no opportunity to hear Peter and Paul debate their differences, for they arrive in Rome at the outbreak of the Great Fire. Amid the turmoil of the resulting Christian persecution, Paul urges Mark to escape and write Peter's account of Jesus's ministry consistently with Paul's own teaching. Mark finds himself conflicted by his promises to both men, and by the disparity between Peter's eyewitness testimony and Paul's claim to direct revelation. In the end, he finds the answer he seeks hidden in the depths of his own soul--as ultimately, we all must.The Cloak and the Parchments brings these New Testament characters to life in all of their humanity, and presents a cogent argument for the necessity of mystical experience in religious belief.

Answering the Call is the story of nineteen Catholic permanent deacons from the Diocese of Savannah (Georgia) whose lives underwent profound transformations as they embarked upon a journey of self-discovery which revealed to them both the awesome power of God and the holiness of everyday life. When these deacons, who come from vastly different spiritual, professional, and educational backgrounds, responded to God's call, they soon became aware of the profound impact their decision would make on their lives as husbands, fathers, and, most of all, servants of God. Any person who experiences a crisis of faith or wants to deepen his or her relationship with God, will find the theological, pastoral, and spiritual aspects of these essays informative as they will inspire further reflection and discernment. Each of the essays can be read as a guide to ministry that provides personal and experiential advice about how to minister in a God-centered and healing manner. A person considering a religious vocation, or any man discerning God's call as a permanent deacon, or is a candidate or a deacon now, will appreciate the honesty with which each deacon describes the expected and unexpected stages of his journey.

Listen closely. Hear the Spirit Song. In good turn, all will come along. Join me in this adventure, as we play in rhythm and rhyme. Explore the hidden places, all in real-time. Let us laugh and cry together, let us be alertly surprised. Come with me, dear brother, let us jointly seek the Prize. These poems come from a special place, one I can little describe. They are meant as gifts, but for a minor fee. I am honored to be the scribe of such wonderful things. I have recorded them here so you may see, all that is given, all that is free. Join me if time allots you so. A gift cannot be without a beneficiary. Pearls must be claimed, to shine. Take a chance, my friend. Let us join the Golden Dance in time.