Mind, Body & Spirit Spirituality Books

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit and watching in this with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints – Ephesians 6:18Prayer. Satan laughs as he looks at the church today and says to himself, “You can have your Sunday schools and your young people’s small groups, your boys’ and girls’ programs, your vacation Bible schools, your Christian schools, your elegant churches, your retreats, your music programs, your brilliant preachers, and even your revival efforts – as long as you don’t bring the power of almighty God into them by earnest, persistent, believing, mighty prayer.”It is not necessary that the whole church prays to begin with. Great revivals always begin first in the hearts of a few men and women whom God arouses by His Spirit to believe in Him as a living God, as a God who answers prayer, and upon whose heart He lays a burden from which no rest can be found except in persistent crying unto God.May God use this book to inspire many who are currently prayerless, or nearly so, to pray earnestly. May God stir up your own heart to be one of those burdened to pray, and to pray until God answers.About the AuthorReuben Archer Torrey traveled all over the world leading evangelistic tours, preaching to the unsaved. It is believed that more than one hundred thousand were saved under his preaching. Torrey married Clara Smith in 1879, with whom he had five children. In 1908, he helped start the Montrose Bible Conference in Pennsylvania, which continues today. He became dean of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles (now Biola University) in 1912, and was the pastor of the Church of the Open Door in Los Angeles from 1915 to 1924. Torrey continued speaking all over the world and holding Bible conferences. He died in Asheville, North Carolina, on October 26, 1928.

Take your fate into your own hands by facing death, not fleeing from it.Easwaran is one of the twentieth century's great spiritual teachers and an authentic guide to timeless wisdom. Understand death, Easwaran writes, and you’ll live more wisely – you’ll learn more, love more, and contribute more to all around you. By facing death, not fleeing from it, you take your fate into your own hands.With stories from East and West, and quotes from the world’s mystics, Easwaran explains the meaning of death, the process of dying, and how to use simple spiritual practices to find the source of abiding joy and security within us all.This essay has been excerpted from Easwaran’s book "The Undiscovered Country".

New, updated and annotated edition.And all things, whatever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. – Matthew 21:22Persistent prayer is a mighty movement of the soul toward God, and it stirs the deepest forces of the soul toward the throne of heavenly grace. It is the ability to hold on, press on, and wait. Restless desire, restful patience, and strength of grasp are all embraced in it. Prayer is not an incident or a performance but a passion of soul. It is not a want or half-needed desire but a sheer necessity.List of ChaptersCh. 1: Prayer and FaithCh. 2: Prayer and Unwavering FaithCh. 3: Prayer and TrustCh. 4: Prayer and DesireCh. 5: Prayer and FervencyCh. 6: Prayer and PersistenceCh. 7: Prayer and PerseveranceCh. 8: Prayer and CharacterCh. 9: Prayer and ObedienceCh. 10: Prayer and SurrenderCh. 11: Prayer and VigilanceCh. 12: Prayer and the Word of GodCh. 13: Prayer and PreachingCh. 14: Prayer and the House of GodAbout the AuthorEdward McKendree Bounds was born in Shelby County, Missouri, on August 15, 1835, and died on August 24, 1913, in Washington, Georgia. He was admitted to the bar in 1854 at the age of nineteen, but left the profession five years later when he answered the call of God to the ministry. Beginning in 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, he became the chaplain of the Fifth Missouri Regiment of the Confederacy. Bounds married Miss Emmie Barnett of Eufaula, Alabama, in 1876. By this union, he became the father of two daughters, Celeste and Corneille, and a son, Edward, who died at the age of six. His wife Emmie died in 1886, and later Bounds married Miss Hattie Barnett, Emmie’s cousin. Together they had six children: Samuel, Charles, Osborne, Elizabeth, Mary, and Emmie. However, Charles died at the age of one, so in the end, the family consisted of seven children. After serving several important churches in St. Louis and other places to the south, Bounds became editor of the St. Louis Christian Advocate for eight years and, later, associate editor of The Nashville Christian Advocate for four years. The trial of his faith came while he was in Nashville, and he quietly retired to his home without even asking for a pension. His principal work in Washington, Georgia (his home), was rising at four o’clock in the morning and praying until seven o’clock. He filled a few engagements as an evangelist during the eighteen years of his life work in Washington, Georgia.

What is compassion? Much more than just being nice, compassion is about looking deeply at ourselves and others and recognizing the fundamental goodness we all share. It’s about opening up to the vulnerable space inside every one of us and letting our barriers down. And it’s about daring to be present to ourselves and others with genuine love and kindness. Empowering personal awakening and social change, it might be the most radical and transformative thing we can do.The cultivation of compassion has long been at the core of Naropa University’s mission, since its origins in 1974—and its students and faculty have been leaders in contemplative education with heart. In celebration of Naropa’s fortieth anniversary, Shambhala Publications is pleased to offer these teachings on the path of compassion from a collection of authors who have helped shape the school’s unique and innovative identity, including:   • Chögyam Trungpa on opening ourselves more and more to love the whole of humanity   • Dzogchen Ponlop on how to cultivate altruism with the help of a spiritual mentor   • Judith L. Lief on the common obstacles to compassion and how to overcome them   • Gaylon Ferguson on awakening human-heartedness in oneself and society amidst everyday life   • Diane Musho Hamilton on connecting to natural empathy and taking a compassionate approach to conflict resolution   • Reginald A. Ray on spiritual practices for developing the enlightened mind and heart in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition   • Ringu Tulku on the practices of bodhisattvas, those who devote themselves to the path of enlightenment for the sake of all beings   • Pema Chödrön on building up loving-kindness for oneself and others with help from traditional Buddhist slogans   • Ken Wilber on what it really means to be a support person, with reflections from his own life   • Karen Kissel Wegela on avoiding caregiver’s burnout and staying centered amidst our efforts to help those in need   • and reflections on Naropa University and the meaning of radical compassion from longstanding faculty member Judith Simmer-Brown