Hugs from Heaven on Angel Wings

“He would lock me in a small room with the animals. Days turned into weeks, and my stomach would growl. He never gave me enough to eat,” said Nadish. “Weeks turned into months, and my body would ache. The work was hard, and there was never enough time to rest. Months turned into years, and I began to think that this would never end.”

But through a miraculous event, Nadish found his way back into the loving embrace of his mother. Dr. K.P. Yohannan’s book, No Longer a Slumdog, unveils the true-life accounts of many of South Asia’s children, like Nadish. The message hits hard. He speaks of “winds of change” and a powerful move of God.

The children’s stories tell of going from a life of heartache and poverty to finding joy, laughter and a bright future. Despite the affliction these children face, Yohannan shows us there’s opportunity for change as many find new life in God’s redeeming love.

No Longer a Slumdog inspires faith that a better tomorrow is truly possible.

In 1979 President Spencer W. Kimball challenged members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to “move forward in a major way. . . . We have paused on some plateaus long enough. Let us resume our journey upward and forward.”

Using the analogy of climbing a mountain, Bishop Glenn L. Pace, second counselor in the Church’s Presiding Bishopric, suggests three major plateaus, or comfort zones, on which the Saints may rest as they work toward developing their spirituality.

The first plateau, which Bishop Pace labels testimony, is the beginning of the trail. “Many Latter-day Saints look upon a testimony as the pinnacle of spiritual progress,” he writes, “but unless we do something about that testimony, we are barely out, and the world’s magnetic pull will tug forcefully on us.”

The second plateau, sanctification, pertains to receiving the ordinances of the gospel and remaining true to covenants. This process, which occurs over a period of time, is described as “coming unto Christ.”

The third plateau, spiritual graduate school, deals with mysteries, miracles, and signs, and their appropriate roles in spiritual development.

“The Lord loves each of us, and He stands at the top of the trail beckoning us,” Bishop Pace explains. “He also comes to assist us and encourage us even when-and perhaps especially when-we may have fallen. He says to each of us, ‘You can make it. I know it because I know you.'”

Spiritual Plateaus is a book for all who are willing to accept President Kimball’s challenge to resume their spiritual journey forward and upward.

How to Get Ready for Short-Term Missions

In this book, Eung Chun Park reconstructs a focused and coherent narrative of the last two decades of the life of Paul as it revolved around Gentile mission. The result is a detailed and thorough analysis of the Pauline letters that shows how Paul’s theology changed over the course of his life as a result of his struggle to defend his gospel against those who advocated a different kind of gospel.