A blend of teaching and inspiration from John MacArthur's popular books Twelve Ordinary Men and Twelve Extraordinary Women. Includes daily readings and scripture verses. --from publisher description.

"Ordinary Things and Their Extraordinary Meaning provides a new look at the everyday relationship between psychological processes and extraordinary aspects of ordinary phenomena. Why should we deal with ordinary things? People's life is made of everyday practical, taken-for-granted things, such as driving a car, using money, listening music, etc. When you drive from home to workplace, you are migrating between contexts. Is this an empty space you are crossing, or the time you spend into the car is something meaningful? In psychological terms, things have, at least, three levels of existence, a material, a symbolic and an affective one. The underlying idea is that the symbolic elaboration of everyday things is characterized by the transcendence of the particular object-sign, leading to the creation of more and more complex sign fields. These fields expand according to an inclusive logic up to dialogically and dialectically incorporate opposites (i.e., clean/dirty, transparent/opaque, hide/show, join/divide, slow/fast, etc.). Even the meaning of 'ordinary' and 'extraordinary’ follow such an inclusive logic. If you give a positive value to ordinary, extraordinary is rule-breaking; otherwise, if ordinary means trivial, extraordinary assumes a positive value. Besides, things are cultural artifacts mediating the experience of the world, the psychological processes and the construction of mind. Reflecting upon 'things' is thus a more meaningful pathway to understand Psyche." -- back cover.

This is the story of Condoleezza Rice that has never been told, not that of an ultra-accomplished world leader, but of a little girl--and a young woman--trying to find her place in a sometimes hostile world, of two exceptional parents, and an extended family and community that made all the difference. Condoleezza Rice has excelled as a diplomat, political scientist, and concert pianist. Her achievements run the gamut from helping to oversee the collapse of communism in Europe and the decline of the Soviet Union, to working to protect the country in the aftermath of 9-11, to becoming only the second woman--and the first black woman ever--to serve as Secretary of State. But until she was 25 she never learned to swim, because when she was a little girl in Birmingham, Alabama, Commissioner of Public Safety Bull Connor decided he'd rather shut down the city's pools than give black citizens access. Throughout the 1950's, Birmingham's black middle class largely succeeded in insulating their children from the most corrosive effects of racism, providing multiple support systems to ensure the next generation would live better than the last. But by 1963, Birmingham had become an environment where blacks were expected to keep their head down and do what they were told--or face violent consequences. That spring two bombs exploded in Rice’s neighborhood amid a series of chilling Klu Klux Klan attacks. Months later, four young girls lost their lives in a particularly vicious bombing. So how was Rice able to achieve what she ultimately did? Her father, John, a minister and educator, instilled a love of sports and politics. Her mother, a teacher, developed Condoleezza’s passion for piano and exposed her to the fine arts. From both, Rice learned the value of faith in the face of hardship and the importance of giving back to the community. Her parents’ fierce unwillingness to set limits propelled her to the venerable halls of Stanford University, where she quickly rose through the ranks to become the university’s second-in-command. An expert in Soviet and Eastern European Affairs, she played a leading role in U.S. policy as the Iron Curtain fell and the Soviet Union disintegrated. Less than a decade later, at the apex of the hotly contested 2000 presidential election, she received the exciting news--just shortly before her father’s death--that she would go on to the White House as the first female National Security Advisor. As comfortable describing lighthearted family moments as she is recalling the poignancy of her mother’s cancer battle and the heady challenge of going toe-to-toe with Soviet leaders, Rice holds nothing back in this remarkably candid telling.

Nine years ago, bestselling author and business consultant Mark Sanborn introduced the world to Fred, his postman, who delivered extraordinary service in simple but remarkable ways. Fred’s story inspired millions. Companies—even, cities—were inspired to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary each day. Today, with stiff competition from the networked global economy, delivering extraordinary results is more important than ever. With Fred 2.0, Mark not only revisits the original Fred to gain new insights, but also equips all of us with new strategies to achieve more. You’ll not only be inspired by Fred 2.0, you’ll also have the tools and strategies to aim higher and achieve the extraordinary.

**Nonfiction Book Awards Gold Winner and Winner of the Illumination Book Awards' 2018 Gold Enduring Light Medal** The Powers is written for people who have a drive to become highly successful in their chosen field of endeavor. Throughout this revised edition, you will meet many who came from ordinary backgrounds to achieve extraordinary things in a variety of pursuits. They came from different circumstances with a wide range of gifts as well as many personal limitations. All have experienced failure and some were serial failures. The Powers they discovered within themselves are the same Powers Erwin has identified and discusses. Through study, they can become your Powers. While everyone has different dreams and goals, everyone also possesses their own set of Powers, even if some are hidden deep within. Erwin has found that intellectual curiosity, developing a grand vision, setting clear goals, practicing persistence, and other concepts included in this book are common traits among the most successful people. After years of studying works by great authors such as Napoleon Hill, Norman Vincent Peale, and Dale Carnegie, befriending highly successful people, and exploring an experimental learning style, Erwin has found common traits that not only create success but also allow one to go from ordinary to extraordinary. Mark Erwin has mentored hundreds of people, and has collected life-changing lessons throughout his journey that brought him from a sixteen-year-old in a jail cell to a multimillionaire before he was forty. In The Powers, he shares personal stories, philosophical and practical advice, and a one-of-a-kind collection of wisdom and insights from some of the most successful people in history, many of whom are his friends. This book creates the blueprint for you to become exceptionally successful and maps out how using the Powers, in combination with your unique personality and emotional intelligence, will help you stand out and make a difference in whatever area you choose to pursue. Read and reread this book and your true path for success on your terms will be revealed, and you will know exactly how to make your dreams come true.

What is the relationship between the general, abstract norm and the singular, concrete case that sometimes affirms a parallel, contrasting, norm? The present essay engages with this question. The argument stems from an analysis of extraordinary singular cases that sometimes emerge, sometimes are “produced” or “promoted” as exemplary (for strategic reasons, like in law). In this essay Angela Condello argues that approaching normativity in art and law from the perspective of the singular case also illustrates the theoretical importance of interdisciplinary legal scholarship, since the singularity creates room for extra-legal values to emerge as legitimate demands, desires, and needs.

Originally presented as the author's thesis (doctoral--Gregorian University in Rome, 1958) under the title The moral law in regard to the ordinary and extraordinary means of conserving life.