J. Dana Trent

A powerful, unforgettable memoir about a girl who escapes her childhood as a preschool drug dealer in rural Indiana--only to find that no one can really "make it out" until they make peace with where their story began: home Home, it turns out, is where the war is. It's also where the healing begins. Dana Trent is only a preschooler the first time she uses a razor blade to cut up weed and fill dime bags for her schizophrenic father, King. While King struggles with his unmedicated psychosis, Dana's mother, the Lady, a cold and self-absorbed woman whose personality disorders rule the home, guards large bricks of drugs from the safety of their squalid trailer. But when the Lady impulsively plucks Dana from the Midwest and moves the two of them south, their fresh start results in homelessness and bankruptcy. In North Carolina, Dana becomes torn between her gritty midwestern past and her newfound desire to be a polite southern girl, struggling to reconcile her shame with an ache to figure out who she is, and where she belongs. But the past is never far behind. After persevering through childhood and eventually graduating from Duke University, Dana imagines that her hidden Indiana life is finally behind her, only to realize that running from her upbringing has kept her from making peace with the people and places that shaped her. Ultimately, Dana finds that though love for family is universally complicated, there is no shame in survival, and for those who want it, there is always a path home.

Exploring a new approach to interfaith/interreligious communication, the contributors to this collection seek to interact from the perspective of their own tradition or academic discipline with Ernest Becker's theory on the relationship between religion, culture and the human awareness of death and mortality. While much interfaith/interreligious dialogue focuses on beliefs and practices, thus delineating areas of disagreement as a starting point, these chapters foster interactive communication rooted in areas of the universal human experience. Thus by demonstration these authors argue for the integrity and efficacy of this approach for pursuing intercultural and interdisciplinary communication.

You have a calling, but you also have a "sending." A calling is a familiar idea. People search for their true calling, hoping to find what they were made to do, eager to fulfill their life's purpose. Let God Send reminds us that regardless of our individual vocation, we are always sent people, propelled by God's Spirit into the world to serve others. This sent-ness comes from the very nature of God who is always on the move in our world. Jesus was sent. The Holy Spirit is sent. Abraham and Moses were sent. The first disciples became sent-ones as well. The journeyers in the biblical narrative show us that when God sends, the path is never clear or direct. Being sent can be daunting, disconcerting, and disorienting. We can feel under-qualified, under-educated, or unprepared. But none of our hesitancy changes the reality that a life of following Jesus is a life of being sent out. Using strong biblical narratives and questions for reflection or group discussion, Matt Brough guides us into an examination of what holds us back from making a move, how to go in a humble and listening way, and ultimately what each disciple of Jesus is called to do in our going. Let God Send is a straightforward, plainspoken plea for people who follow Jesus to get moving.

You have a calling, but you also have a "sending." A calling is a familiar idea. People search for their true calling, hoping to find what they were made to do, eager to fulfill their life's purpose. Let God Send reminds us that regardless of our individual vocation, we are always sent people, propelled by God's Spirit into the world to serve others. This sent-ness comes from the very nature of God who is always on the move in our world. Jesus was sent. The Holy Spirit is sent. Abraham and Moses were sent. The first disciples became sent-ones as well. The journeyers in the biblical narrative show us that when God sends, the path is never clear or direct. Being sent can be daunting, disconcerting, and disorienting. We can feel under-qualified, under-educated, or unprepared. But none of our hesitancy changes the reality that a life of following Jesus is a life of being sent out. Using strong biblical narratives and questions for reflection or group discussion, Matt Brough guides us into an examination of what holds us back from making a move, how to go in a humble and listening way, and ultimately what each disciple of Jesus is called to do in our going. Let God Send is a straightforward, plainspoken plea for people who follow Jesus to get moving.

In secular mainstream America, meditation has become as ubiquitous as yoga. But how does meditation fit into Christianity, and how does it differ from prayer? One Breath at a Time: A Skeptic's Guide to Christian Meditation reframes meditation for those who are skeptical because (1) they doubt their ability to be still and quiet and (2) they doubt the validity of meditation as a Christian spiritual practice. Using scripture, theology, and examples from the early church, this book challenges the prayer habits of Christians that leave little room for enough silence to experience and listen for God. Using five approaches-breath meditation, lectio divina, centering meditation, loving-kindness meditation, and devotional meditation-One Breath at a Time provides a practical, 40-day guide to beginning and sustaining a Christian meditation practice in an often chaotic world.

Discover a spiritual practice that helps you maintain spiritual, emotional, physical, and mental health." We toiled on computers seven days per week, rising as early as 4:00 a.m. to squeeze in spiritual quiet time before we both retreated to our respective laptops, typing the days (and weekends) away. Though I grew up keeping Sundays sacred, six years into our marriage, we'd fallen into the trap of using the Lord's Day to catch up. ... At its worst, our church attendance was less than 50 percent. ... I began, for the first time in my life, to understand why people don't attend church services."-J. Dana Trent, chapter 1In our culture of constant busyness, most of us feel like we're never caught up. The lines between home and work have blurred as we stay tethered to our mobile devices and computers. Many people use weekends to catch up on errands and other work that doesn't get done during the week. God's commandment to "Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy" seems like a relic from a simpler time. Many Americans balk at the idea of setting aside a whole day for worship, rest, and time with those who matter most to them. Yet we long for more time to spend on what matters most-unrushed time to rest, reconnect with friends and loved ones, and deepen our relationship with God. An ancient spiritual practice exists that can help restore balance to our lives: the practice of keeping sabbath. But how exactly do we manage to build time for sabbath into our busy lives? Dana Trent explores this question in For Sabbath's Sake. With humor and honesty, Trent reveals her own struggles with setting apart a day devoted to God, rest, and community. This book traces the rich history of sabbath, helps you find ways to overcome barriers to this spiritual practice, and suggests achievable ways to build sabbath into your life.