Abstract theology is overrated, for God can be found in even the most ordinary of things. Jesus used things like a lily, sparrow, and sheep to teach about the kingdom of God. And in the Old Testament, God repeatedly describes himself and his saving work in relation to physical things such as a rock, horn, or eagle. In God of All Things, pastor and author Andrew Wilson invites you to rediscover God in this way, too--through ordinary, everyday things. He explores the idea of a material world and presents a variety of created marvels that reveal the gospel in everyday life and fuel worship and joy in God--marvels like: Dust: the image of God Horns: the salvation of God Donkeys: the peace of God Water: the life of God Viruses: the problem of God Cities: the kingdom of God God of All Things will leave you with a deeper understanding of Scripture, the world you live in, and the God who made it all.

Gerard Hughes's popularity lies in the fact that he always writes directly for the individual struggling with issues of faith and life and gets right to the heart of spiritual needs and concerns. His best-seller GOD OF SURPRISES published nearly 20 years ago has sold nearly a quarter of a million copies. GOD IN ALL THINGS is a follow up to that book written for a different world and a different spiritual climate. This is a guidebook for the inner journey. It is about recognising God in the ordinary, in the joy and sadness of things, about knowing that God cannot be separated from whatever we experience. It is written for people on the fringes of Christianity, or those who are disillusioned with church structures and dogmatic theology. Hughes has written this book because he is concerned at the split between religion and life, as if religion was something apart and detached from the rest of God's creation. Apart from being a brilliant spiritual guide this book is a call to a faith in terminal decline to enlarge its concept of God and break out of the straitjacket of pious religion.

What if you knew--what if you really knew--that everything that happened to you would eventually work for good in your life? Would it change the way you felt, thought, and lived?Dramatically! That's the unstoppable power of Romans 8:28, the ultimate promise in the Bible, that all things work together for the good of those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.Romans 8:28 is all-inclusive, all-powerful, and always available. It can touch any hurt and redeem any problem. It isn't a mere platitude but a divine promise. Romans 8:28 morphs us into resilient, cheerful people, whatever our temperament.

Some animals are little, others are bigÑbut big or small, God made us all! Frolic board books playfully introduce basic faith concepts in a way thatÕs fun and age appropriate for very small children.

The practice of spiritual direction assumes a theology of the Holy Spirit, a theology of revelation and of the Church, and a theology of prayer. Seeking God in All Things explores each of these themes as the underpinnings of spiritual direction and examines what makes the Christian religious experience distinctive. Since not every experience of God bears a Christian imprint, William Reiser, SJ, asks whether and in what way a Christian might be ale to assist someone who is not Christian in developing his or her interior life. This question looks beyond suggesting the concrete steps a person might take in initiating, nurturing, and solidifying a way of praying. It looks, rather, toward the fundamental issue of helping others as they discover and deepen their relationship to the mystery of God. Chapters are It Is God Who Directs," *Imagining Divine Action in Human Lives, - *Where Do Holy Desires Come From? - *What's Distinctive About the Christian Religious Experience? - *Further Elements of Christian Distinctiveness, - *The Incarnation as a Starting Point for Spiritual Direction, - and *Should Christian Spirituality Move Beyond Jesus? - William Reiser, SJ, PhD, is a professor of theology in the religious studies department at Holy Cross College, Worcester, Massachusetts. Over the past twelve years, he has also served as an associate staff member at the Center for Religious Development in Cambridge. He is the author of Jesus in Solidarity with His People, published by Liturgical Press. "

As a Christian social activist, George McClain found himself yearning for a sense of integration between his active life and his spiritual life. At one point, not knowing what spiritual direction really was, he enrolled in a training program for spiritual directors. In the inner dialogue between that course and his social activism, he recognized the importance of a focused spiritual life in augmenting one's social witness. McClain surveyed other social activists and found that they too responded as he once had - making decisions in the arena of social witness in terms of what they should do, making personal decisions on the basis of what they discerned that God wanted them to do. This book is McClain's attempt to name this disjuncture in the lives of people of faith, to build on the growing intersection in people's lives of action for justice and the inner journey in the Spirit, and to offer rituals groups can use to begin to be religious together.