FaithfulReader.com - 2008 FATHER'S DAY ROUNDUP

2008 FATHER'S DAY ROUNDUP

Provider, counselor, caretaker --- a father’s role is complex and his duties are countless. Our annual roundup of Father’s Day titles is filled with books as diverse as the males who raised us. In it, you will find true stories of faithful men, role models from the Bible, inspirational fiction and powerful devotionals. Taken together, these selections, with their varied perspectives, offer a more complete picture of what it means to be a dad.

THE ATTENTIVE LIFE: Discerning God's Presence in All Things
Leighton Ford
IVP Books
Devotional
ISBN: 9780830835164

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If you're busy, distracted and rushing through each day, you might be feeling disconnected from God, unable to see how He's working. You might be missing Him. But the way toward Him starts with a pause and a prayer --- with intention and attention --- and becomes a way of life, awake and alive to the peaceful, powerful presence of God. Framed around the monastic concept of praying through the hours of the day, Leighton Ford helps you to develop spiritual attentiveness so you can pay attention to how God is working through you and in the world around you.

BROKEN ANGEL
Sigmund Brouwer
WaterBrook Press
Futuristic Suspense
ISBN: 9781400070329

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This fast-paced, futuristic suspense novel features turns on the relationship between a devoted father and a daughter who thinks he’s betrayed her. Follow Caitlyn’s mysterious story to find out why she’s so different from everyone else, why her father abandoned her and what her future holds.

A DANGEROUS FAITH: True Stories of Answering the Call to Adventure
James Lund and Peb Jackson
WaterBrook Press
Christian Ministry
ISBN: 9781400073450

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Where did we get this idea that God wants us to be complacent? What if we were called to forfeit our comfortable lifestyles? Featuring brave Christians everywhere from Iraq to Africa, the 10 true stories in this collection will inspire dads to get up and cheer --- and then pursue their own dreams.

DO YOUR KIDS A FAVOR... LOVE YOUR SPOUSE
Kendra Smiley, with John Smiley
Moody Publishers
Marriage & Family Life
ISBN: 9780802469427

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Building a healthy marriage can give your kids a great head start in life. Kendra and John Smiley learned this through the ups and downs of raising three sons, all now grown. With her trademark humor, honesty and the wisdom that she has shared on Focus on the Family and Family Life Today, Kendra offers practical, day-in, day-out insights on kids, marriage and much more.

FALLING INTO THE FACE OF GOD: Forty Days and Nights in the Judean Desert
William J. Elliott
Thomas Nelson
Memoir
ISBN: 9780849900716

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In this spiritual memoir, author Bill Elliott takes a journey to the Judean desert for 40 days, but he really travels to the center of his own soul. While he's there, he learns many deep and poignant truths about himself, his world, and his relationship with God. Readers seeking deeper spirituality will devour this book.

FAMILY SQUEEZE: Tales of Hope and Hilarity for a Sandwiched Generation
Phil Callaway
Multnomah Books
Parenting & Families
ISBN: 9781590529164

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For every mid-lifer caught in the squeeze between aging parents and growing children, author/speaker/television host Phil Callaway offers hope and a touch of hilarity --- because you can’t stop the wrinkles, but you can ease the worry!

FATHER & SON: Finding Freedom
Walter Wangerin Jr. and Matthew Wangerin
Zondervan
Memoir
ISBN: 9780310283942

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Award-winning novelist Walter Wangerin Jr. and his adopted son, Matthew, share their deeply personal story. Each in his own words, father and son narrate the history of their relationship and how they found new meaning --- and new identities --- through times of brokenness, hope and rediscovery. FATHER & SON is a profound meditation on fatherly love and a son’s independence --- and one family’s search for reconciliation.

FATHERS OF THE BIBLE: A Devotional
Robert Wolgemuth
Zondervan
Devotional
ISBN: 9780310272380

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No one can take a father’s place in the life of his children. Adapted from MEN OF THE BIBLE, FATHERS OF THE BIBLE furnishes a unique devotional experience for dads to help them ground their relationship with their children on God’s Word.

HER WEDDING WISH
Jillian Hart
Steeple Hill
Fiction
ISBN: 9780373874835

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Jonas Lowell, a police officer shot in the line of duty, now had amnesia. And his wife, Danielle McKaslin Lowell, had tried everything to spark his recollection of her, of their young children, but he could look at his adoring wife only with a stranger’s gaze. His memory of the life they shared --- the future they’d dreamed of --- was gone. But with a lot of faith and a sweet new courtship, Danielle’s handsome husband just might fall in love all over again.

IN HIGH PLACES
Tom Morrisey
Bethany House Publishers
Fiction
ISBN: 9780764204678

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After the death of their wife and mother, 16-year-old Patrick Nolan and his father, Kevin, uproot to West Virginia to start a new life as the owners of a rock-climbing shop. But when Kevin’s depression drives him to attempt increasingly dangerous and extreme climbs, Patrick realizes that he and his unlikely ally, the daughter of a local pastor, must act before he loses both parents.

LETTERS FROM A SKEPTIC: A Son Wrestles With His Father’s Questions About Christianity
Dr. Gregory A. Boyd and Edward K. Boyd
David C. Cook
Theology
ISBN: 9781434799807

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Greg Boyd longed for his father to know Christ. But as a former atheist turned believer, Greg understood Ed Boyd’s reservations. So he offered a unique invitation: His father could write Greg with any questions on Christianity, and he would in turn deliver a thoughtful response. What began as an intimate correspondence between father and son soon captivated seekers everywhere. LETTERS FROM A SKEPTIC presents a profound defense of the Christian faith. Filled with intelligent questions often asked by new and non-believers and insightful practical answers, each letter addresses provocative issues that get right to the heart of Christianity.

LURE OF THE BIG CATCH: A Fisherman's Reflections on the Things That Matter
written by Norm Wright
paintings by Scott Kennedy
Harvest House Publishers
Inspirational
ISBN: 9780736919739

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Avid fisherman and noted counselor Norm Wright shares his favorite times with rod and reel. Readers will enjoy discovering insights for better living, successful fishing techniques and the awesome wonder of God. Vibrant paintings of the outdoors, insightful quotes and fun facts make this a great gift book.

NO ATHEISTS IN FOXHOLES: Reflections and Prayers from the Front
Chaplain Patrick McLaughlin
Thomas Nelson
Memoir
ISBN: 9780849919985

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Patrick J. McLaughlin is an active duty Navy Chaplain who has ministered to heads of state and to soldiers living and dying in the heat of Iraq. NO ATHEISTS IN FOXHOLES assembles Chaplain McLaughlin’s experiences and prayers from e-mails, private notes and personal conversations that take us real-time into realms of duty and spirit: from the quiet darkness of his infant son’s New England bedroom on September 11, 2001, to the bomb-shelled medical tents and blistered Army Humvees of Anbar Province. Chaplain McLaughlin believes that prayer is not only possible, but critical.

RISKING FAITH: A 40-Day Journey into the Mystery of God
Dr. Steve Stephens
Tyndale House Publishers
Devotional
ISBN: 9781414306001

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God is always leading us somewhere, and a truly adventurous heart is the one willing to take a chance on following him. In RISKING FAITH, Dr. Steve Stephens invites readers to embark on a 40-day journey of spiritual adventure. As readers go deeper with God each day, they will be challenged to trade ordinary life --- and ordinary faith --- for something truly extraordinary…something that's worth risking everything for.

ROOKIE DAD: Thoughts on First-Time Fatherhood
David Jacobsen
Zondervan
Parenting
ISBN: 9780310279211

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In a series of personal literary essays, David Jacobsen reflects humorously and heartbreakingly on the joys and fears of first-time fatherhood --- from his wife’s pregnancy to his son’s first birthday.

A TALE OF TWO SONS: The Inside Story of a Father, His Sons, and a Shocking Murder
John MacArthur
Thomas Nelson
Religion & Spirituality
ISBN: 9780785262688

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The Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) has been preached from nearly every pulpit in the world and is known by many who read and cherish the Bible. Unfortunately, many Christians would say that they have nothing new to learn from this gem of Scripture. It has lost its luster. But in A TALE OF TWO SONS, John MacArthur restores the brilliance of this passage, giving engrossing historical background and unveiling a surprise ending readers have never heard before.

TOO BUSY NOT TO PRAY: Slowing Down to Be With God - 20th Anniversary Edition
Bill Hybels
IVP Books
Christian Life/Prayer
ISBN: 9780830834754

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Revised throughout with a new introduction and new chapter on praying for the needs of the world, this 20th-anniversary edition of TOO BUSY NOT TO PRAY calls both young and old to make prayer a priority, and broadens our vision for what our eternal, powerful God does when His people slow down to pray.

THE WAY OF THE WILD HEART: A Map for the Masculine Journey
John Eldredge
Thomas Nelson
Christian Living
ISBN: 9780785288688

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THE WAY OF THE WILD HEART is John Eldredge’s teaching in answer to two questions: “How do I become a man?” and “How do I help my sons become men?” Through personal stories and practical guidance, he provides a map through the six stages of a man’s journey: Boyhood, Cowboy, Warrior, Lover, King and Sage. God wants to father men through this journey, says Eldredge, however old they may be. And provide for them all that they never received from their fathers. A book filled with immediate application and deep healing, parents will find it a profound resource for raising boys.

WHEN IT’S FOURTH AND LONG: Keeping the Faith, Overcoming the Odds, and Life in the NFL
Josh Bidwell
Harvest House Publishers
Memoir
ISBN: 9780736920520

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Josh Bidwell shares his gripping story of overcoming adversity to become one of the NFL’s leading punters. He describes what life is really like in the high-pressure world of professional sports --- and how he is able to maintain a vibrant faith in a seemingly secular environment.

WHY GUYS NEED GOD: The Spiritual Side of Money, Sex, and Relationships
Michael Erre
Harvest House Publishers
Christian Living
ISBN: 9780736921268

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Is the Christian community doing a good job of presenting the message of Jesus in a compelling way to men? Pastor Mike Erre rejects cultural definitions of masculinity and offers a thoroughly biblical and engaging theology of manhood that is missing in many churches today.

--- Compiled and written by Mary Dubbs