Friendship Development

We’ve all had friendships that have gone bad. Whether it takes the form of a simple yet inexplicable estrangement or a devastating betrayal, a failed friendship can make your life miserable, threaten your success at work or school, and even undermine your romantic relationships. Finally there is help. In When Friendship Hurts, Jan Yager, recognized internationally as a leading expert on friendship, explores what causes friendships to falter and explains how to mend them - or end them.

After almost every presentation activist and writer Mia Birdsong gives to executives, think tanks, and policy makers, one of those leaders quietly confesses how much they long for the profound community she describes. They have family, friends, and colleagues, yet they still feel like they're standing alone. They're "winning" at the American Dream, but they're lonely, disconnected, and unsatisfied.

For more than 25 years, small-talk expert Don Gabor has helped thousands of people communicate with wit, confidence, and enthusiasm with his best seller How to Start a Conversation and Make Friends. This newly revised and updated edition combines classic techniques in the art of conversation with necessary skills for communicating in the 21st century.

You'd love to have a "ride or die" posse like you see on social media, but instead you have a host of really good...acquaintances. After all, trying to find a soul friend in the midst of dirty dishes, deadlines, and, oh, a crazy busy life can be overwhelming. But what if developing great friendships was actually easier than we thought? And what if finding a "soul friend" wasn't necessarily our highest goal? In The Life Council, Laura Tremaine tells us what we've been hoping was true all along: making, keeping, and even releasing friends doesn't need to be as hard as we make it.

Pastor Mark Driscoll and his wife, Grace, talk about sex and marriage in down-to-earth terms, hitting issues other Christian books won't. While a wonderful wedding day is important, it's the last day of marriage that really counts. Will the last day of your marriage come prematurely through divorce? Will it be filled with regrets as you sit at the funeral of your spouse? Or, by God's grace, will the last day be a time to rejoice in the life you lived together?

Although Paul Auster and J. M. Coetzee had been reading each other’s books for years, the two writers did not meet until February 2008. Not long after, Auster received a letter from Coetzee, suggesting they begin exchanging letters on a regular basis and, “God willing, strike sparks off each other.” Here and Now is the result of that proposal: the epistolary dialogue between two great writers who became great friends. Over three years their letters touched on nearly every subject, from sports to fatherhood, film festivals to incest, philosophy to politics....

It’s the great paradox of the digital age, what Radha Agrawal calls “community confusion” - the internet connects us to hundreds, thousands, even millions of people, and yet we feel more isolated than ever, with one in four Americans saying they have zero friends to confide in. Where are our people? The answer is found in Belong, a highly energetic guide to discovering where and with whom you fit.

In this practical and deeply touching guide - inspired by her book Reach Out, Gather In - popular author Karen Ehman gives you 101 actionable ideas you can implement today to truly make a difference in the lives of other people. Make Their Day is filled with creative ideas to connect with your family and friends on a deeper level throughout the year. This book will help you develop habits of kindness, reconnect with friends and family, and make encouraging people a priority.

Belinda Bauman was living a comfortable life as a wife, mother, and nonprofit leader - but her soul was checked out. Then she met Esperance. An assault survivor living in one of the poorest, most dangerous countries in the world, Esperance and other Congolese women shared their harrowing stories with Belinda. Their vulnerability set Belinda on a path of embracing empathy. If Esperance could love in the face of so much pain, maybe there is hope for the world, too.

Based upon powerful insights from the scriptural book of Ephesians, and seasoned with personal stories and practical wisdom, Defined challenges you to let the One who knows you best be the One who guides your heart the most. It’s time for all of us to live in the amazing light of His acceptance, abundance, and strength.

We all long to do life together with people who really "get" us. But it can feel like there are so many obstacles. But once you find real, authentic relationships maintaining those friendships and taking them to a deeper level can be even harder. In Here For It (The Good, the Bad, and the Queso), Amy Weatherly and Jess Johnston, bestselling authors and founders of the wildly popular "Sister, I Am with You" online community, simplify some of the trickier aspects of friendship and give you practical ways to deepen the friendships you already have.

In Let's Take the Long Way Home, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Gail Caldwell offers a powerful and moving memoir about her coming-of-age in mid-life and her extraordinary friendship with Caroline Knapp, the author of Drinking: A Love Story. Though they are more different than alike, these two fiercely private, independent women quickly relax into a friendship more profound than either of them expected. They grow increasingly inseparable until, in 2003, Caroline is diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer.

Nothing could be more enchanting than a summer wedding - or two! - in Charleston's fabled Lowcountry. A centuries-old church, an avenue of ancient oaks dripping moss, a storied ballroom, a sand dune at sunset.... Yet when a stranger arrives, a long-held family secret could silence the bells ringing for the Muir sisters. Scandals surface, family bonds are questioned, and promises are broken and renewed.

Author Rebecca Frech details the different types of friends, ways to grow intentionally in friendship, and how to decide which friends really deserve a place in our inner circle. Ultimately, Can We Be Friends? reminds us that authentic, life-giving friendship not only gives us a stable tribe in which to belong, it helps us to become our true self.

Patricia brings the latest scientific research to life with engaging stories about real people who illustrate that the road to success is paved with relationships that are built with authenticity and trust. She offers new ways of resolving age-old relationship issues with curiosity, humility, and greater self-awareness, and explains how to bridge compatibility gaps and navigate the space between others actions and your response.

Having faced personal struggles and triumphs, Cassandra McBride brings a unique blend of experience and professional expertise to guide you on your journey. She has helped countless individuals overcome similar hurdles, and now she’s here to help you. "The Better Relationship Guide for Work, Life, Friendships, and Intimacy" is your indispensable companion on the path to extraordinary relationships. In this audio, you'll find the keys to unlock a world of fulfillment, happiness, and success in all aspects of your life.

Many of us wish to share a meal, share our faith, and share our lives with others. We want to open our home to friends and neighbors for the sake of meaningful community, but we're overwhelmed with hospitality hang-ups. Our welcome has been influenced by the messages of the world that tell us hospitality is about our ability to be, host, live, and cook a certain way. In Gather & Give, Amy Hannon inspires you to embrace the simple hospitality of the Bible that values connection more than perfection and people more than presentation.

Loneliness doesn't care what age you are, how many Instagram followers you have, or where you call home. It doesn't care how "put together" you appear to the outside world. We have a collective wound that only authentic sisterhood can heal. With real-life vulnerability and "I’ve been there, too" wisdom about building deep and satisfying friendships, Amy and Jess unpack the lies we've been told about friendship

Sought-after speaker and writer Rabbi Daniel Lapin delivers an inspiring and insightful discussion of how to bring joy and confidence to all of life's many challenges. Rabbi Lapin introduces you to his unique 5F system, weaving together family, faith, finance, friendship, and fitness. He demonstrates how to organize your life so that you're not neglecting one area to achieve success and connection in another.

The beloved creator of Blues Clues and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and protégé of Fred Rogers explores the importance of kindness and how it can change your life in this essential guide and tie-in to the PBS special The Power of Radical Kindness.