Showing results by narrator "Carla Mercer Meyer" in All Categories

Forget the Kama Sutra. When it comes to inventive sex acts, just look to the sea. There we find the elaborate mating rituals of armored lobsters; giant right whales engaging in a lively threesome while holding their breath; full-moon sex parties of groupers; and daily mating blitzes by blueheaded wrasse. Deep-sea squid perform inverted 69s while hermaphrodite sea slugs link up in giant sex loops.

Sarah Ivill contends, “As we study prayer through the lens of the unfolding story of Scripture, it will teach us how to pray, but more importantly it will reveal the Covenant God to whom we pray.” And such an endeavor provides the foundation and motivation necessary to enrich our prayer life. See how Old Testament prayers find their fulfillment and transformation in Christ. Discover boldness and joy in prayer because Christ is the high priest who gives us access to the throne of grace. Moreover, look forward to an eternity in which our prayers will consist of unhindered praise.

Emma Sharpe, granddaughter of world-renowned art detective Wendell Sharpe, is a handpicked member of a small Boston-based FBI team. For the past decade Emma and her grandfather have been trailing an elusive serial art thief. The first heist was in Ireland, where an ancient Celtic cross was stolen. Now the Sharpes receive a replica of the cross after every new theft - reminding them of their continued failure to capture their prey.

Stay follows Abbey, a young woman from Canada now living in a village outside Galway. She falls in love with Dermot, an older Irish man, in an unconventional, affectionate but troubled relationship.

Ten years ago, Stacy Buchanan's mother—the mayor—was found dead in Coldwater Cove, Maine. Her death was ruled an accident, but Stacy never got over the feeling that something was off. Her father's health takes a turn for the worse, and she is forced to pass up a dream job to return to the cove. After Stacy finds a key piece of evidence that proves her mother's death was no accident, the case gets reopened. She can't move on with her life or find closure until justice is served, but a desperate killer is still out there and will do anything to keep the truth buried in the past.

These 50 true inspirational stories as told by the people who lived them will encourage your heart and fill you with hope. No matter what life circumstances you're facing, God is right there with you. He's with you in the middle of the pain, the heartbreak, and the unknown. You'll be inspired, awed, and comforted by these intimate real-life moments of when God showed up mysteriously, tangibly and gloriously offering his love, his peace, his deliverance, his comfort, and his healing power.

So many Christian women are exhausted because we've come to believe that God's purpose for us is rooted in what we do - which means we're constantly striving to have somehow done enough. But there is hope! Elizabeth takes us back to the gracious plan God laid out for us in Genesis: He created us to bear his image, he is inviting us to live out that purpose, and through Christ, he frees us to flourish as those who are unconditionally loved.

Many Christians are alarmed by the decline in church attendance and seek a culprit. Too often, we point the finger away from the church, make culture the enemy, and build walls between us and others. But our antagonism and enemy-making are toxins that further eat away at our witness. Is there a better way? Tara Beth Leach could easily be one of those millennials giving up on the church. Instead, she is a pastor who loves the church and is paradoxically hopeful for its future.

While many leadership books focus on the individual, Lifelong Leadership offers a comprehensive mentoring community model to support and develop Christian leaders, extending the work of God in and through ministry. This model was inspired by Leighton Ford as a way to inspire and support young leaders. MaryKate Morse is the inheritor of this leadership legacy. Her team has developed the mentoring community model, which is easy to replicate in a variety of settings.

God delights in transforming lives. In Broken into Beautiful, singer and songwriter Gwen Smith's first book, she tells the real-life stories of women with shattered dreams, shameful secrets, and damaged souls and the God who makes them beautiful again. Each chapter features a compelling personal story coupled with relevant biblical teaching and application. Listeners will meet women wounded by infidelity, abortion, widowhood, abuse, and other tragic events, only to discover the joy of being restored by a loving heavenly Father.

Women are fierce and fed-up, and they have been joining hands together for the purposes of societal change for as long as there has been injustice. Women of faith are guided by the Holy Spirit to work together to bring down these injustices, to build on the foundation Christ laid for the beloved community of God on earth. This book is women joining together to speak and act in new ways in response to the increasing challenges of our day.

Shawn Halstrom has an assignment: travel to Atlanta, Georgia to investigate the Heart of Atlanta refugee center so that Burke Enterprises can make a donation. The job should take two weeks tops, but he wasn’t planning on falling for a Cuban refugee named Carolina Diaz. When work pairs the unlikely duo together, Shawn and Carolina see a different side to each other and the world. But when the refugee center where Carolina works faces closure, the two must decide if they are strong enough to work through the difficulties ahead and if love is a risk they’re willing to take.

In Sacred Mundane, Kari Patterson pulls open the dusty blinds to let the light of truth shine in. Even the most unremarkable life is an opportunity to see, know, love, and be utterly transformed by a God who knows no bounds and who upsets every expectation. He eagerly awaits your invitation to fill your world with mundane miracles and holy habits. Through her entertaining narrative, candid real-life stories, Bible study, and practical instruction, Kari will take you by the hand to discover the beautiful sacredness in the life you already lead.

Jami Amerine, author of Stolen Jesus, returns with a totally relatable account of her experiences as a mom. She's eager to help you see how to let your Heavenly Father parent you so you can embrace peace as you parent. Come find the miracle in the mayhem and meet the one whose presence turns sticky floors into sacred ground.

Jordan Burke, billionaire owner of Burke Enterprises, doesn't have time to date. His sister thinks it's time for him to find love and sets him up with her best friend, but Jordan can't leave his work behind. After the disastrous date, a stray puppy saves his life, and Jordan meets a woman who makes him rethink his priorities. Madison is attracted to Jordan from their first meeting but wary of his billionaire status. Despite her fears, she can't ignore the pounding of her heart and the sparks flying between them or the tender way Jordan has with his new puppy.

When Lexi Burke escaped the remnants of a cold winter in Chicago, it wasn't a random vacation. She left the hectic pace of Burke Enterprises behind with enough money to retire at age 32, intent on settling into the idyllic island life... until she met local photographer Derek Mitchell - a talented man with a grudge against rich tourists. From art night to snorkeling lessons, hiking, and chopping coconuts, Lexi can't talk herself out of spending time with the handsome, hardworking man who knows the value of every dollar. She also can't find a way to tell him the truth about herself.

You were made for more than this life has to offer. In Age of Crowns, Kori de Leon will awaken the dreamer in you as she invites you to explore glorious images of the "Age to Come". This book is an inspiring examination of how the future hope of heaven changes your today. It will teach you how to faithfully await (and prepare for) the "Age to Come", as well as how to live a more purposeful and fulfilling life with Christ here and now.

In these profound reflections on the mysteries of life and death, Stone unpacks how childbirth reveals our anxieties, our physicality, our mortality. All who are born or give birth will someday die. While living and working in one of the world's most impoverished countries, teacher, doula, and mother Rachel Marie Stone unexpectedly caught a baby without wearing gloves, drenching her bare hands with HIV-positive blood. Already worried about her health and family and whether her service was of any use, Stone grappled with realities of human suffering, global justice, and maternal health.

Do you remember your first love? Have you ever wondered what would happen if you had a second chance to follow your heart? In this collection of novellas written by award-winning and best-selling authors, come home to Echo Ridge as summer winds down and hearts once broken and lost are given one more chance, a second chance to love. This collection includes novellas by Lucy McConnell, Janette Rallison, Cami Checketts, Heather Tullis, and Rachelle J. Christensen.

We long to see firsthand the power of God as displayed in the Bible. Miracles, prophecy, dreams, healing - most of these tend to be missing from our normal, safe, predictable faith. Yet we tend to view any movement of God outside our own experience with mistrust and confusion. But what if we've got "normal" all wrong? In this audiobook is an invitation to a new way of living: embracing God's power through simple yet bold prayer. It's for the night owl, the caffeine-addicted, even the skeptic, beckoning all of us out of our comfort zones with stories of spiritual breakthrough, mind-blowing miracles, and physical healing.