HOW A MARATHON INSPIRED A CALL TO PURPOSE On the outside, I was like every other 4-year-old. I had no idea what cancer was, or the real reason my parents had uprooted our family and moved to America. They did it for me, to find a cure before it was too late. So begins a personal journey decades in the making. Author Bishoy Tadros has faced seemingly insurmountable setbacks and impossible odds--from his childhood bout with acute lymphoblastic leukemia to crossing the finish line in Central Park competing in the TCS New York City Marathon. Break Barriers is a story about uncovering your potential, even if you are the underdog. It's about learning to apply the virtues of patience, perspective, and purpose to achieve whatever you dream in life. Bishoy's message is a reminder that your comeback will always be stronger than the original setback.

In a world filled with dysfunction, futility, and confusion, people are looking for meaning and significance. They want to break through the barriers holding them back. BREAKING THE BARRIERS offers three foundational pillars to equip readers for overcoming the most difficult obstacles in their lives. These three pillars teach readers how to: -Take on the character of God the Father -Take on the wisdom of the Son -Take on the discipline of the Spirit. Through dynamic stories of people who have overcome seemingly insurmountable odds, and the powerful example of the author who has overcome great adversity in his own life, this book shows readers that God is on their side and desires for them to fulfill the dreams and purposes he has placed in their hearts.

For nearly sixty years, the University of Oklahoma, in obedience to state law, denied admission to African Americans. Only in October 1948 did this racial barrier start to break down, when an elderly teacher named George McLaurin became the first African American to enroll at the university. McLaurin’s case, championed by the NAACP, drew national attention and culminated in a U.S. Supreme Court decision. In Breaking Down Barriers, distinguished historian David W. Levy chronicles the historically significant—and at times poignant—story of McLaurin’s two-year struggle to secure his rights. Through exhaustive research, Levy has uncovered as much as we can know about George McLaurin (1887–1968), a notably private person. A veteran educator, he was fully qualified for admission as a graduate student in the university’s School of Education. When the university denied his application, solely on the basis of race, McLaurin received immediate assistance from the NAACP and its lead attorney Thurgood Marshall, who brilliantly defended his case in state and federal courts. On his very first day of class, as Levy details, McLaurin had to sit in a special alcove, separate from the white students in the classroom. Photographs of McLaurin in this humiliating position set off a firestorm of national outrage. Dozens of other African American men and women followed McLaurin to the university, and Levy reviews the many bizarre contortions that university officials had to perform, often against their own inclinations, to accord with the state’s mandate to keep black and white students apart in classrooms, the library, cafeterias and dormitories, and the football stadium. Ultimately, in 1950, the U.S. Supreme Court, swayed by the arguments of Marshall and his co-counsel Robert Carter, ruled in McLaurin’s favor. The decision, as Levy explains, stopped short of toppling the decades-old doctrine of “separate but equal.” But the case led directly to the 1954 landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which finally declared that flawed policy unconstitutional.

Some churches grow rapidly, only to hit a ceiling. Other churches have experienced declining or static attendance--many of them for decades. Frustrated pastors and church leaders want growth methods that work, but without adding to pastoral fatigue. How to Break Growth Barriers argues that growth comes when effective leadership and lay-empowerment skills work hand in hand. This requires a shift of focus from the shepherd as the primary caregiver to shepherd as developer and coach of many caregivers. The authors show pastors how to communicate a vision for the future and then how to lead the congregation into the paradigms necessary for potentially limitless growth. The strategies found in this book are not only tried and true, and taken from a biblical perspective of a "harvest" vision. They're also newly updated to reflect our changing culture, including helpful charts and checklists for self-evaluation.

Johnny Quinn shares his “wild dream” of playing in the NFL, being crushed after getting cut three times, losing $2.6 million in contracts, and blowing out his knee. At age thirty, when most professional athletes are considered “over the hill,” Johnny was competing for Team USA in the sport of bobsled at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. This book ushers readers through the valleys of life to the thrills of rocketing down icy mountains at 80+ mph with no seat belt. Discover how the author overcame failure on the road to achieving greatness. From an NFL failure to a US Olympian, Johnny Quinn had a “what’s next” attitude that led him to success he had never imagined. In Push, he looks at failure as a season of life rather than a death sentence. He provides incredible insight into the “what’s next” instead of “what could have been.” We all experience failure at some level; Quinn equips us to embrace change, accept risks, and learn to push through barriers, to live life on purpose.

Rise above your greatest trials and discover the power of God's greatness with five simple strategies -- and step into the blessings of your life. We were not created to live average, unrewarding, or unfulfilling lives. God created us to leave our marks on our generations. Every person has seeds of greatness planted within by the Creator. When life weighs upon us, pushes us down, and limits our thinking, we have what it takes to overcome and rise above into the fullness of our destinies. In this dynamic, inspiring and faith-building new book, New York Times bestselling author Joel Osteen provides practical steps and encouragement for creating a life without limitations. This book will help you break out and break free so that you can increase your productivity, improve your relationships, and believe in bigger dreams. Here's how you can move beyond barriers: Dare to believe that the best will happen Adopt an irrepressible "break out" attitude Make room for increase Pray bold prayers Follow God's plan beyond your circumstances Filled with faith and inspiration, Break Out! will challenge you to build a new perspective, let nothing hold you back, and reject any limiting labels. Pastor Osteen will inspire you to see that a life-changing attitude begins in your own mind: "When you break through in your mind, believing you can rise higher and overcome obstacles, then God will unleash the power within that will enable you to go beyond the ordinary into the extraordinary life you were designed to live."

For some unknown reason, Peter Altschul was born totally blind. He grew up in a working-class town where, with the help of his persistent mother, he broke through barrier after barrier, determined to live a full life. After attending a private school that initially turned him away-simply because he was blind-Peter details how he discovered his gift for music, eventually playing percussion in the orchestra, marching band, and jazz ensemble at Princeton University. But it was only after Peter graduated from college that it became evident he would need a guide dog. Heidi, a Weimaraner with a large repertoire of barks, howls, and grunts, would assist Peter for the next eight years through the halls of New England Conservatory, where he eventually obtained a masters degree in music composition. Peter relays how he blazed a unique professional trail while simultaneously overcoming obstacles; managed his uneasy relationship with music; and embraced his unexpected entrance into an unfamiliar and romantic world. He also provides an unforgettable glimpse into the wonderful ways his five guide dogs supported him on his journey from urban bachelorhood to the light of love. Breaking Barriers shares a compelling account of one mans journey through life as he and each of his specially trained dogs learned to trust each other, ultimately melding into a smooth working team that tackled the worldtogether.