Showing results by narrator "Renee Ertl" in All Categories

In the charming town of Smithville, Texas, Brooke Holloway is raising two young children on her own, supporting them by running the family hardware store. The last thing on her mind is falling in love. But she’s intrigued when a stranger moves to town and buys the old Hadley mansion. She’s always heard that house holds a secret - maybe even a treasure - and she can’t wait to see inside. When she meets the new owner and they spend time together, she can’t deny the attraction. Could God be giving her another chance at happiness? Or is she betraying her late husband’s memory?

Lillian's first 27 years have been challenging at best. Her decision to get reacquainted with her Amish grandparents in Lancaster County, PA, is an attempt at finding peace in a complicated world. But her plan has a flaw.... Lillian is practicing the Amish lifestyle with no real understanding or relationship with God. And despite her best efforts, complications arise when she takes a fancy to Amish widower Samuel Stoltzfus who has an 11-year-old son, David.

Nones claim no religion. Dones have become disillusioned and left the church. Research shows many young adults are landing in one of these camps. But that's not the end of the story. Many emerging adults, ages 18 to 33, are tossing aside the none and done labels and are instead embracing a transformative Christian faith. Based on her extensive research, scholar-practitioner Beth Seversen outlines a model for how to engage and retain millennials and Generation Z in the life of the local church.

Under normal circumstances, Anna Byler would have her choice of any of the young men in her Amish community. But because of the strict rules enforced by her grandfather, the bishop, the available suitors are afraid to court her. Then handsome Jacob Hostetler moves to Paradise and decides Anna is worth the challenge. Anna sees that the bishop’s legalism is dividing the community and even risking the lives of its members - but her grandfather doesn’t. When she is forced to deception in order to pursue her dream of marriage and family with Jacob, Anna feels her own faith slipping.

Miriam Raber enjoys life in her Old Order Amish community, and she is hopeful that Saul Fisher will propose to her soon. But when Saul starts talking about leaving the only world either of them has ever known, Miriam imagines what her life might look like as an Englischer. One thing she knows for certain, she loves Saul and feels he’s the one God has chosen for her. But Saul’s indecision has come at an inconvenient time, as Miriam is noticing advances from Jesse Dienner, a man she went to school with and who wants to marry.

Too many Christians, especially those in ministry, believe they are untouchable - that they're too faithful to fall or too spiritual to give in to temptation. They deny any sort of weakness, fail to draw proper boundaries, and end up doing the very things they swore they'd never do. Pastor and author Brittany Rust was one such person - until she found herself in the middle of moral failure and a church-wide scandal. Bewildered, humiliated, and ashamed, she thought she was beyond redemption. But God's grace met her on the ground, and here she shares what she's learned through her painful journey.

At the age of 15, Jennifer Rothschild confronted two unshakable realities: Blindness is inevitable...and God is enough. Now this popular author, speaker, and recording artist offers poignant lessons that illuminate a path to freedom and fulfillment. With warmth, humor, and insight, Jennifer shares the guiding principles she walks by - and shows you how to walk forward by faith into God's marvelous light.

The least of these have the most to give. In Wherever the River Runs, Kelly Minter invites us on a journey down a river teeming with piranhas and caimans, as well as machete-wielding mothers, heroic jungle pastors, faith-filled children, and miracles too seldom experienced in our part of the world. Kelly's honest and engaging narrative pulls back the curtain on one of the most captivating places on earth as well as on parts of the gospel we may be able to recite but have never fully believed.

Dr. Tori Taylor rules the operating room with a cold precision that makes nurses cower and her colleagues take notes. But even with her success as a respected surgeon, Tori finds herself alone in her moment of desperation - dying on her own operating table. Tori needs a heart transplant, but what she receives is far more than just a donor organ. Lying loveless and friendless in the recovery room, Tori experiences flashes of terrifying events she never witnessed.

Some dreams were meant to come true. Jessamine Brady has been in the Shaker Village for half her young life, but in spite of how she loves her sisters there, she struggles to conform to the strict rules. Instead she entertains dreams of the world outside. When Tristan Cooper seems to step out of those dreams to entice her into the forbidden realm beyond the Shaker Village, her life turns upside down. Will Jessamine be able to survive the storms of the world? Or will she retreat back to the peace of Harmony Hill?

It is 1844 and Lacey Bishop's life is a tangled mess. Estranged from her own family, at age 16 she went to work for a preacher and his wife. When his wife died, the preacher convinced Lacey that the only decent thing to do was to marry him. That way she could continue to act as mother to the little girl who was left on his doorstop. But Lacey never expected he would decide to take them all off to a Shaker village. In the Shaker village, Lacey’s still married but living in a community that believes marriage is a sin.

.She thought she was content...until a love from the outside world turned hers upside down. Gabrielle Hope and her mother joined the Harmony Hill Shaker community in 1807. The community promised stability and devotion that Gabrielle wholeheartedly embraced. But when a local doctor must be brought into Harmony Hill from the outside, he sets into motion a chain of events that will challenge Gabrielle's loyalty to the Shakers.

Astrid Bjorklund wants to use her medical training to serve God and feels that He might be leading her in the direction of missionary work. Smarting from a misunderstanding with Joshua Landsverk, the young man she thought she loved, she heads east to a missionary training school, hoping to eventually use her skills in some remote outpost in Africa. When she is called home unexpectedly to help in a family medical emergency, Astrid learns of a deadly measles outbreak on the nearby Indian reservation.

Anxiety Interrupted grapples with the anxiety that creeps into our lives and helps us look to the promises of God and to the hope that He holds us securely. As Christians, we can struggle with our questions and experience His sovereignty when we invite His peace into our moments. God can handle our doubts. He can handle our anxieties. He can handle our fears. He can handle our hard questions. These things do not make us less than as Christians. God is the only steady hand that can handle our questions, doubts, and fears.

Josephine Dronberger was a scared teenager when she left her baby in the care of an Old Order Amish couple. But 17 years have passed, and Josie longs to reconnect with her daughter. Linda - as the couple named the child - is promised to Stephen Ebersol, the bishop's grandson. They plan to marry in the fall. When her birth mother comes to Paradise, Linda is drawn to a world she's never known. Will the direction she's been heading since birth be suddenly derailed, and who will stand by her convictions - mother or daughter?

Carley Marek experiences culture shock when she visits her friend Lillian's family on their farm deep in Amish country. She'll get an article out of the visit - and maybe some of Lillian's newfound peace will somehow rub off on her. Just when Carley is getting used to the quiet nature of the Plain community, Lillian and Samuel's son falls ill. But the local doctor who can offer the most help has been shunned by the community and forbidden to intervene. As David's condition deteriorates, Dr. Noah determines to do whatever it takes to save the boy's life.