Showing results by narrator "Nan McNamara" in All Categories

When Julia Zarankin saw her first red-winged blackbird at the age of 35, she didn’t expect that it would change her life. Recently divorced and auditioning hobbies during a stressful career transition, she stumbled into birdwatching, initially out of curiosity. What she never could have predicted was that she would become one of them. Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder follows the peregrinations of a narrator who learns more from birds than she ever anticipated, finding new meaning in midlife.

Nicknamed “the negotiator” as a child, Fotini Iconomopoulos has been honing her skills her entire life. As a sought-after expert, for more than a decade she’s been empowering Fortune 500 executives and their teams to achieve their objectives, guiding them through high-stakes scenarios in industries such as consumer packaged goods, retail, professional services, energy, telecommunications, tech, and finance. Now for the first time, Iconomopoulos shares her simple and innovative strategies, debunks common negotiation myths, and more.

When their newly engaged kids ask all four divorced parents to meet each other over brunch, everyone RSVPs yes—secretly hoping someone at the table will get to the bottom of the bottomless mimosas fast enough to say what they’re all thinking: that this engagement, coming after a whirlwind romance between two people barely out of college, is too much too soon. But at that brunch it’s not the impulsive couple's decisions that end up under the microscope, as it turns out June, mother of the bride, and Amy, mother of the groom, certainly do know each other—they're ex-best-friends.

As a movie actress Lucille Ball was, in her own words, "queen of the B-pluses." But on the small screen she was a superstar - arguably the funniest and most enduring in the history of TV. In this exemplary biography, Stefan Kanfer explores the roots of Lucy's genius and places it in the context of her conflicted and sometimes bitter personal life.

Affluence, autonomy, safety, and power. These are the central values of the American dream. But are they actually compatible with Jesus' command to love our neighbor as ourselves? In essays grouped around these four values, D. L. Mayfield asks us to pay attention to the ways they shape our own choices, and the ways those choices affect our neighbors. Where did these values come from? How have they failed those on the edges of our society? And how can we disentangle ourselves from our culture's headlong pursuit of these values and live faithful lives of service to God and our neighbors?

With passion and purpose, Greg Laurie and Ellen Vaughn tell the amazing true story of the Jesus Movement, an extraordinary time of mass revival, renewal, and reconciliation. Setting fascinating personal stories within the context of one of the most tumultuous times in modern history, the authors draw important parallels with our own time of spiritual apathy or outright hostility, offering hope for the next generation of unlikely believers - and for the next great American revival.

Flossy Merrill has managed to—somewhat begrudgingly—gather her three ungrateful grown children from their dysfunctional lives for a summer reunion at the family’s Rhode Island beach house. Clementine, her youngest child and a young mother of two small children, has caused Flossy the most worry after enduring a tragically life-altering year. But Samuel and his partner Evan are not far behind in their ability to alarm: their prospective adoption search has just taken a heart-wrenching turn.

Rachel Anne Ridge was at the end of her rope. The economy had crashed, taking her formerly thriving business along with it. She had been a successful artist, doing work she loved, but now she felt like a failure. How would her family pay their bills? What would the future hold? If only God would somehow let them know that everything was going to be all right... and then Flash the donkey showed up.

“I know I should praise God, but I don’t know how...I don’t have time...I just don’t feel like it.” Christians who long to experience God in a fresh, deep way will treasure this powerful, personal praise guide. Every day for just one month, a Scripture-based devotional cultivates the “heart habit” of praise and worship. Listeners will be gently inspired to appreciate and adore the Lord in all things - yes, even in the midst of pain, disappointment, and heartache. A deeper intimacy with God - and a greater love for Him - is the sure result.

Throughout the Bible, we read stories of individuals praying desperate prayers - and receiving miracle answers. This leaves us with a question: What does it take to push through - to break the miracle barrier? In this powerful new release, apostolic leader Jennifer LeClaire reveals a surprising key to obtaining breakthrough, veiled in the prayer lives of people crying desperately to see godly desires manifested, loved ones delivered, and enemies defeated.

With her special blend of housecleaning tips, humor, and musings about daily life, Marla Cilley, a.k.a. "The FlyLady", shows you how to manage clutter and chaos and get your home - and your life - in order. Drawn from the lessons and tools used in her popular mentoring program, the FlyLady system helps you create doable housekeeping routines and break down overwhelming chores into manageable missions that will restore peace to your home - and your psyche.

What does the Christian life look like when life is unpredictable, hard, or just plain ordinary? We live in an instant-gratification world, where results are quickly measured and words like discipline and perseverance evoke thoughts of legalism or asceticism. But Everyday Faithfulness explores what daily perseverance in Christ looks like during various seasons when spiritual growth seems especially difficult.

In this extraordinary work of narrative nonfiction, eight years in the making, sociologists Pamela Prickett and Stefan Timmermans uncover a hidden social world. They follow four individuals in Los Angeles, tracing the twisting, poignant paths that put each at risk of going unclaimed, and introducing us to the scene investigators, notification officers, and crematorium workers who care for them when no one else will.

When someone suffers through trauma, can healing happen? And, if yes, how does it happen? Dr. Diane Langberg tackles these complex and difficult questions with the insights she has gained through more than 40 years of counseling those whose lives have been destroyed by trauma and abuse. Her answer carefully explained in Suffering and the Heart of God is Yes, what trauma destroys, Jesus can and does restore.

Skyboat Media presents, paired together for the first time, both the novel and the play of The Evil Genius by Wilkie Collins. Although both versions of the story were written at the same time, the play has never before been published and was only ever performed once on the stage. In fact, it is almost entirely unknown and is otherwise unavailable.

Radio personality and best-selling author Barbara Rainey knows firsthand the challenges newly married couples face. Dismayed by Hollywood depictions of marriage and the seemingly easy solution of divorce, she sees a desperate need for a voice of experience, a mentor who has been there and understands - and can encourage, coach, and care. As her daughters began their married lives, Barbara wanted to share with them, and now you, some of the lessons learned throughout her own marriage as well as those gleaned from years of ministry to couples.

Guided by current research from Barna Group, Mettes illustrates the profound physical, emotional, and social toll of loneliness in the United States. Surprisingly, her research shows that it is not the oldest Americans but the youngest adults who are loneliest and that social media can actually play a positive role in alleviating loneliness.

In Incurable Faith, Andrea Herzer writes from the midst of her own long-term illness to give you hope wherever you are on your journey with medical issues. Whether you are facing a new diagnosis, mysterious pain, or any other illness, you can go from being a victim to being victorious through God’s sustaining love.

When children have a listening companion who hears, acknowledges, and encourages their early experiences with God, it creates a spiritual footprint that shapes their lives. How can we increase our capacity to engage children in spiritual conversations? In this audiobook, Lacy Finn Borgo draws on her own experience of practicing spiritual direction with children. She offers an overview of childhood spiritual formation and introduces key skills for engaging conversation-posture, power, and patterns - from a Christ-centered perspective.

Using the ancient Japanese idea of illuminating the beauty in imperfection (known as wabi sabi), Wabi Sabi Love provides all the tools necessary for you to experience more balance, harmony, and joy in your relationship than ever before. No matter what stage of your relationship, Arielle Ford delivers the secret to lasting love.