"In 2007, Kevin Palau and a few dozen pastors approached Portland's mayor and posed the question: How can we serve you with no strings attached? Officials identified five initial areas of need--hunger, homelessness, healthcare, the environment, and public schools-- and so began a partnership, CityServe, between the city and a band of churches seeking to live out the gospel message. Since then, the CityServe model has spread like wildfire, inspiring communities across the country to take up the cause in their own cities"--Provided by publisher.

In Unlikely Couples, Thomas E. Wartenberg directly challenges the view that narrative cinema inherently supports the dominant social interests by examining the way popular films about "unlikely couples" (a mismatched romantic union viewed as inappropriate due to its class, racial, or gender composition) explore, expose, and criticize societal attit

Some memories are permanently seared into our childhood brains with a hot iron of adrenaline and fear. For five-year-old Greg, it was the memory of his ma walking back to the house after confronting his stepdad with a splintered, bloodied baseball bat in her hand. Greg Stier was raised in a family of bodybuilding, tobacco-chewing, fist-fighting thugs. He never knew his biological father because his mom had met his dad at a party; she got pregnant, and he left town. Though his mom almost aborted him, in a last-minute twist, Greg’s life was spared for so much more. Unlikely Fighter is the incredible story of how God showed up in Greg’s life—and how he can show up in yours as well. This is a memoir of violence and mayhem—and how God can transform everything.

This trail-blazing book explores previously uncharted aspects of law and literature, as well as the psychology, paradoxes and wonderful mystery of creativity. A study of artistic inspiration, Unlikely Muse examines and analyzes the lives and works of three very different writers who combine law, literature and imagination: nineteenth-century French novelist Honor de Balzac, modernist American poet Wallace Stevens, and controversial playwright-memoirist Lillian Hellman. From the literary careers of those three writers emerge two intertwined and exciting new themes. The first theme demonstrates unexpected synergy between law and literature. Opening original lines of inquiry, Unlikely Muse probes the possible relationship between legal training and artistic creativity. A surprisingly large number of great creative artists - writers (such as Balzac), poets (such as Stevens), painters (such as Matisse) and composers (such as Tchaikovsky) - studied or practiced law. This book asks whether such people became great creative artists because of or despite their legal background. Others, such as Hellman, had no legal training but wrote much about the law. This book sketches the intellectual atmosphere and biographical background that shaped these three writers' creative process, highlighting the impact of the law on their work. The second theme uses these same three writers to focus on the changing role of imagination in literature. From Balzac through Stevens to Hellman and beyond, the author traces imagination's arc from a positive artistic quality to something that is sometimes more controversial, perhaps deceitful, and negative. In the last few decades - ever since Hellman's memoirs were attacked as untrue - journalists, memoirists and other writers have palmed off works of fiction as non-fiction, often causing literary scandals. This book offers a new theory why this phenomenon is happening and how it should be regarded.

Shortly after the end of World War II, the world is still trying to put itself back together, Europe most of all. Within the chaos, a French heroin cartel takes advantage and begins successfully trafficking drugs into the United States, via New York City, utilizing a covert Latin American organization. The DEA is on the hunt. Meanwhile, Israeli Intelligence struggles to pin down the location of ex-Nazi war criminals. Their investigation collides with that of the DEA, and two very unlikely parties become allies. As the agencies work together, they soon come to a shocking revelation. The Latin American connection, sneaking heroin onto U.S. soil, is linked to the ex-Nazis hunted by the Mossad. Now more than ever, two countries must share confidential information to stop not only a drug epidemic but also bring to justice hateful men who tortured and murdered thousands.

In her heartwarming New York Times bestsellers Unlikely Friendships and last year’s Unlikely Loves, Jennifer Holland revealed the surprising emotional bonds that exist between animals of different species. Her books spent dozens of weeks on bestseller lists and caught the attention of major media from CBS This Morning to USA Today. Why? Because she opened our eyes to the rich inner lives of animals, showing us that the power of love and friendship is not for humans only. In Unlikely Heroes, Ms. Holland uncovers and celebrates yet another side of animals that we often think belongs primarily to people—heroism, that indefinable quality of going above and beyond, often for altruistic reasons, often at great personal risk. These 37 inspiring true tales show animals whose quick acts have saved lives, like the pod of dolphins who protected swimmers in New Zealand from a great white shark by forming a screen around them. There are stories of animals who simply and unselfishly give, like Rojo the llama, who shines his very special light of lovingkindness on the elderly patients in an Oregon rehab center. And there are compelling stories of heroic resilience: like Naki’o, the abandoned puppy who lost all four paws to frostbite but found the grit not only to overcome that terrible hardship but to reclaim the joy of life—that’s him, smiling on the cover of the book.

How much do you really know about former Alaskan governor Sarah Palin? The revelations in Matthew ZenceyÆs account of her tenure will surprise you. Although Palin is widely seen as a conservative social ideologue, her political career in Alaska was marked by a progressive approach that is at odds with her current right-wing Republican identity. A self-described red-meat conservative, the partisan ôpit bull with lipstickö had been a bipartisan, pragmatic, and surprisingly progressive governor who raised taxes on Big Oil and distributed oil revenue to every Alaskan. She also rankled her social-conservative supporters by vetoing an antiûgay rights measure and placing a pro-choice woman on the Alaskan Supreme Court. But her mishandling of accusations of ethics violations made her politically vulnerable at home, and her foray into the partisan brawling of national politics broke apart her bipartisan governing coalition in AlaskaÆs capital. After her failed 2008 bid for the vice presidency, Palin spent one more legislative session trying to run a big-government state while maintaining her national stature as a small-government conservative, but it was politically untenable. With no hope of achieving any major political accomplishments, plus a growing strain on her family life, huge legal bills, and a large book advance in hand, she resigned. Zencey, an editor at the Anchorage Daily News during PalinÆs tenure, shows how the Sarah Palin who was so popular in Alaska is starkly different from the Sarah Palin who is now so popular with the Tea Party.

Friendless, homeless and hunted, Primrose feels nothing else could go wrong.Desperately in need of a safe place to stay and plan her revenge, Primrose pins all her hopes on finding an Ancient Tree; a secretive place, rumoured to possess magical qualities and feared by many. To Primrose, it seems to be the perfect place to hide and plan her revenge.Meanwhile, Dilly, a young wolf, has to face her worst nightmare when the new wolf pack turns on her. But life has many unexpected twists and turns for both of these wonderful characters in this fast-paced magical tale.

It is 1963. South Africa is in crisis and the white state is under siege. On 19 August the dreaded Security Police swoop on Griggs bookstore in downtown Durban and arrest Eleanor, the daughter of the manageress.

Enoch, who never died . . . Samson, who killed an army with a donkey's jawbone . . . James, who grew up as the brother of the Messiah . . . These are fascinating people whose stories are woven through history and the Bible. They show us God at work in unexpected ways and numerous cultures. They each reveal another little piece of His great plan. But how do they affect my life? If John MacArthur's Twelve Unlikely Heroes presents intimate portraits of these individuals, this study guide is the bridge between those portraits and our daily lives. Commentary and poignant questions bring the points home with unflinching candor, urging us toward a deeper walk with the One who has written all our stories. REWIND—look again at important passages RETHINK—check all the angles REFLECT—consider how it affects you REACT—change your life