Books published by WestBow Press

Jesus, that Holy night You invited me in,You knew how much anger I still harbored within.Too deep-rooted to simply releaseFar too long I've felt like an evil beast.But something changed today.My Naked Soul shares author Crystal Joy's brutally honest and sometimes heart-wrenching poetic quest to make sense of her world. Inspired by her grandmother, Vinnie Collins, a Christian poet, she allows the spiritual forces behind her words to eventually scream of hope.In these verses, Crystal presents the perspective of a spiritually hot and cold soul struggling with past trauma and bipolar disorder. She knows she isn't perfect and sometimes wants to simply surrender to life's journey, but her fight to live always wins-or, more accurately, her faith in Jesus wins the victories for her. Crystal describes her spiritual wrestling match among sin, faith, grace, suicide, hope, praise, and redemption. She kneels at her Savior's feet for dear mercy and praises Him.Through her pain and her triumphs, Crystal's poetry shows one can never deny the work of Christ in her life. God is the only reason she is alive today.

The Scriptures are filled with fire, including the encounter that Moses had at the burning bush.The truth that Moses discovered holds the same relevance today as it did thousands of years ago-and you will live a more fulfilling life when you appreciate the everlasting fire of the Lord.God wants you to possess the fire that He has to offer. In this book, the author celebrates the power of God's fire, answering questions such as:¿ Does the fire of God ever really burn out in your life?¿ How can you rekindle God's fire if you're struggling with your faith?¿ Why should you let the everlasting fire of God burn within you?The primary message of this book is that although you may be filled with hurt and pain, God's Spirit can burn in you again and make you whole.Join the author as he explores how to overcome obstacles and enjoy the warmth of God's fire.

Six-year old Pidge lives on a dairy farm where she helps with small daily chores. One day her mom gives her a handful of pumpkin seeds presenting Pidge with an exciting new challenge. Will little Pidge be up for the big task of growing her own pumpkins? It requires a lot of hard work and determination to ready the hard soil, to clear the weeds, and to carry big water buckets every day in the hot sun. But Pidge has a clear goal: she will grow the biggest and best pumpkins for mom's special horn of plenty at Thanksgiving. All her effort is rewarded with the daily joy of watching her plants grow and grow and grow! But one day something terrible happens to her beloved pumpkins. Pidge is devastated to find her pumpkin patch squashed by the wheels of a big truck. With the help of a kind stranger and words of wisdom from mom, Pidge finds the ambition to plant a new crop. This charming story demonstrates how disappointment can be changed into hopeful determination. "Pidge's Pocket Change" encourages its young readers to persevere in pursuit of their goals and how to find resilience when things don't go as expected.

This book is written for those with a longing for the joy of being alive, who desire the satisfaction of living, and who pray for the refreshing of life. God, through Jesus Christ, offers us the water of life freely to drink if we are thirsty. In this book, we explore what the rivers of living water are. We give examples of those who have drank of it. And we show how the bible teaches us to drink of it.

If you are willing to be weak with the weak, vulnerable with the vulnerable, and powerless with the powerless, you just might hear God say, "You can do something about that!"David F. Nixon, a church leader and passionate Gospel preacher for over four decades, urges the readers of this book to start doing instead of dreaming. He emphasizes that bystanders watch change happen; participants make it happen.Fortunately, for believers, God specializes in the impossible-and we get to be on His team. Find out how faith, obedience, and a willingness to act can help you:Assist those who are less fortunate;Change the world with seemingly small acts of kindness;Be a better parent to your children;Appreciate the value and significance of mission work.Throughout the book, the author shares his own experience as a missionary, explaining how he's lived life to the fullest by putting on his dance shoes-the Gospel of peace--and clothing himself with his Jesus jersey- compassion-and doing the next right thing.

Paramedic Lieutenant Kelly Ridge is the most decorated Firefighter in Gold City. He has more awards and citations that any other member of the Gold City Fire Department.Kelly was raised in a Christian home by Doctor David and Margaret "Maggie" Ridge. His dad serves as Senior Pastor of Gold City Community Church, while Maggie is a simple housewife. As his experience grows, so does his ego. As the years go by out on his own, he achieves awards and commendations for the next five consecutive years. Everything is going picture perfect for him.A-Shift Captain Becker assigns him to be the duty officer for a shift on the engine. As he responds to a call with another department, his life changes drastically. After a deadly crash, he fights for his life in a coma. Through prayer warriors from his own family, to his dad's church members, and people throughout the community, he miraculously survives. It is not over for him yet, as he faces many trials and hardships on his road to recovery. Will he ever reconcile with his Dad? Will he realize where he went wrong? Will he surrender his life to Christ and serve Him instead of himself?

This book disagrees about the traditional viewpoint of the Christian wife's role at home, and advocates married women to work and have their own careers. This viewpoint is based on careful exegesis of the relevant biblical scriptures throughout the Bible. It also proposes that fathers rather than mothers shall be primary teachers for their children at home. In addition, this book also suggests that mothers should not take on the responsibility for homeschooling unless they are called to teach young people at home. Hope these refreshed biblical interpretations from a female Calvinist can shed new light on Christian women's roles and virtue at home.

Teaching youth can be challenging and is often difficult. You need to know your subject but more importantly know your students. Do you like young people? Would you want to teach Bible lessons from the viewpoint of a teenager and encourage their faith? This forty-eight-lesson guide helps you focus as a religious teacher to youth. Youth Track identifies stories about young people in the Bible, including related scripture references for those stories. It presents suggested thoughts and current-day questions to involve your students. This is not a cookie-cutter guide but a solid place to start, since teaching kids can be hard work.Although this guide was written as a series of weekly lessons, it is also appropriate in other situations. Select just the New Testament stories for a shorter period. At special times of the year such as Christmas or Easter, use the stories about those celebrations. If you know your students, pick stories that you can relate to their day-to-day lives. Youth are very special. With the help of this guide, use your abilities, your knowledge, and your experiences in whatever way you can to encourage their Christian growth and faith.

This book is to make readers aware that every single born-again believer has the power of Jesus in them to live the Christian life. The Holy Spirit comes to reside inside that saved soul when a person is born again. One can build an intimate relationship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit and experience a powerful Christian life.

Everyday Extraordinary is a follow up to My Saturday Morning Posts, the compilation of a weekly journal posted on social media that followed Penny Sparks' first year of grief after the unexpected loss of her husband. Through this format, her healing process developed into a continued walk through the "more" that everyday life can bring. So often we can see God clearly in crisis, turning points or big decisions, but what about the routines in our average days? He promises we will see and do more if we engage Him in the middle-of-the-road moments. This collection of thoughts is divided into four seasons in recognition of how we can feel differently and more deeply at different times of the year. Penny uses her everyday moments to share extraordinary lessons about the goodness of God. These stories will inspire you to see God in the seemingly insignificant stuff and show you how He doesn't just work in the earthquakes of life, but in the gentle whispers as well.