Many friends and associates have written wonderful books in recent years — books that will encourage you, inspire you, and inform you, on your journey in life. All of them are available on amazon.com
Most personal struggles we all face in life have a foundation in one, or all, of the following – 1) a faulty belief system, 2) a distorted concept of personal value and worth, and 3) a deep-seated tie to a life-altering and subtle form of addiction, which to some degree all of humanity must deal with – food, meds, clothes, cars, money, drugs, sex, control, cell phone, pornography, television, sports — you fill in the blanks. All levels and means of addiction take their toll over time.
More than a book of instruction, New Beginnings is a complete examination of what God has provided his people to bring a completeness and fulfillment to those with the courage to overcome every complex issue and every thorny situation we experience in life — with the template he offers to those ready for a new beginning.
Rick Surley, M.A. is a Board Certified Clinical Psychotherapist and owner of New Beginnings Christian Counseling Clinic in San Antonio, Texas. Rick has counseled for more than 50 years and was a founding officer and Clinical Director with the Rapha program of inpatient care. Rick strongly believes that effective counseling for a Christian must be Christ-centered. He and his wife Carol have three sons.
Blissfully Unremarkable is Tom Sodergren’s humorous culinary and cultural romp through the mid-century heartland. His parents grew up during the Great Depression and the lessons they learned became instincts. As Sodergren says, “After the Depression and war years, my parents had powerful instincts to never waste money. Ever. On anything. On me.” From his family’s frugal kitchen and home life, to their newly-built neighborhoods and budget travel, American domesticity was so different in so many ways. Though he writes as a “child of a child of the Depression,” this is not another dysfunctional family story laced with despair. Sodergren writes about what he calls his typical mid-century Midwestern family with humor and joy. After all, they were blissfully unremarkable.
Tom Sodergren was a Judge of Missouri’s 19th Circuit Court in Jefferson City for 24 years before he took Senior Judge status in 2019. Born in California, Sodergren spent his Blissfully Unremarkable childhood in Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri. In 2022, the Preservation Foundation named a chapter from the book Runner Up in their international writing competition.
As the founder of the non-profit Open Hearts Ministry, Sandy Burdick sensed the need to minister to victims of all types of abuse, both male and female in many areas worldwide. The organization is facilitated by volunteers and one full time staff worker. The work is to walk with the wounded and train others to do the same. Training takes participants through a 12-session program from their Journey Guide. Most of the leaders have spent time in their own stories. The Christ-centered program has been proven to be of great help to people of diverse spiritual backgrounds. The ministry website is: https://ohmin.org
Although Sandy’s husband, Bill, is with the Lord now, he served God faithfully throughout his days as a surgeon at hospitals in Central Michigan. Bill and Sandy raised three wonderful daughters.
This book studies the doctrine of man’s makeup by exploring systematic theology, church history, biblical word studies and theology. The viewpoints on monism, dichotomy, and trichotomy are scrutinized and evaluated biblically. The author makes a strong case for holistic trichotomy: man is one in personhood with two divisible parts (material and immaterial), yet three distinguishable parts: spirit, soul, and body. Implications are drawn concerning biblical counseling.
John Woodward pastored in Canada for 19 years and since 2001 is Director of Counseling and Training with Grace Fellowship International in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. He studied at Northeastern Bible College (B.A.), Biblical Theological Seminary (M.Div.) and Luther Rice Seminary (D.Min.).
The Shackling of Grace is a book that will rock your world. If you are convinced that Christianity as you experience it, has not transformed your life or set you free from the shackles of the controllers around you, it is time to read this book. Lee LeFebre has spent 40 years lecturing, teaching, and counseling Christians in both the US and foreign countries. He taught how to find and experience the freedom that God intended for the believer. He found that the shackling of grace is a universal phenomenon which needed to be confronted. Is another reformation needed because the grace of God has been marginalized? Have Christians been blind-sided and fed lies? Join Lee in discovering God’s alternative to today’s distorted gospel!
Exchanged Life Ministries of Colorado was founded and incorporated in 1986 by Lee and many of his like-minded staff who had worked closely together for several years under Grace Fellowship in the Denver area. The staff of ELM are committed to utilizing the finished work of Christ and the sufficiency of the Scriptures for counseling, training, and discipling.
It is hoped that by reading this collection of articles the reader will come to accept the acceptance of God. The author believes the most common misconception regarding the Christian life is that God is external to the believer. This in turn creates an erroneous distance between God and his children. This belief is quite understandable and yet terribly unfortunate because it leaves the Christian in a position of constantly feeling a need to do things to get “right with God.” In other words, the Christian life becomes one grand performance in an effort to earn God’s acceptance. Behavior becomes the model for measuring one’s spiritual growth. Lists of do’s and don’ts fit nicely into this system whether they are dispensed by the church or conjured up in the mind of the believer. The common theme throughout this book is the antithesis of this misconception.
Volume II scratches the surface of the beliefs of today’s “believers” and exposes the reality that many no longer believe the basic truths of Scripture. It is the author’s hope that through spending time in the pages of this little book you may come to a deeper understanding of who Jesus is and who he wants to be in your life as you travel on your journey.
Jack Purcell retired from a 20 year stint in the Army, then spent 15+ years in academia. H enjoyed teaching and being a senior administrator at two Christian Universities. Although Jack is now at home with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, his wife, Mary, lives in the Texas Hill Country near their children.
A complete, easy-to-follow, book on the process of do-it-yourself Luxury Vinyl Plank and Tile Flooring products. Selecting, estimating, critical prepping, tips, and installation — this flooring contractor’s previous books on Flooring Basics have been used gratefully and successfully over recent years by those who want to install hardwood flooring in areas of their home. There is no substitute for years of raw experience in the delicate issues of installing many of the great new flooring products in today’s marketplace. The book provides 33 steps with forms, checklists, tips, and warnings, to assist you in the process of achieving the important procedures that professionals follow.
For more than three decades Chip Alliman (Roger’s son) served his community as a flooring contractor, and currently builds beautiful homes in the Arkansas Valley of Colorado. He knows, first hand, there is no substitute for years of raw experience in the delicate issues of flooring selection, planning, tips, and installation for the many great new products in today’s vast marketplace.
The Publications of Roger Alliman 