Bøger af Vaughn Kohler

"If someone needed a spiritual renewal, he should avail himself of the traditional resources; prayer, Bible reading, attending a church service, that sort of thing. If you couldn't discover the Lord in your own hometown, what made you think he would reveal himself more fully, simply because you had hopped a plane to France or hiked to a Catholic Church in Spain? No. While I thought taking a trip might improve my physical and emotional health, I scorned the idea that it could lead a soul closer to God. That is, until-as an embittered Christian and burned out pastor-I found myself with no other option than just getting away." -from Pilgrim on the Sound

"The front door opened and as she walked in I swear there was a rush of wind and a couple of red and orange leaves cartwheeled in front of her, like giddy children running the street in a homecoming parade. She wore a cream colored sleeveless mock turtleneck, a short, grey and red plaid skirt, and had black shoes, the kind I call 'witch shoes.' She had long black hair with the sheen of a vinyl record. Her face was friendly and her eyes dark and lovely. The sunbeams from outside reflected in the corners of her pupils in the shape of little shining bells. Her smile was so brilliant, her teeth well ordered, like fresh linens nicely stacked in a hotel closet. But the crowning glory of this woman was her lips. My friend Jeff always used to call nice, full lips jalapeños, and nothing else could better describe the Pretty Latina Girl's most impressive feature. Bonita! A girl like that deserved more than the conventional 'Hi, I'm Adam. There's a new John Cusack movie out this Friday. Care to join me?' Somehow that seemed beneath her dignity-like giving the Blessed Virgin a chest bump." -from The Pretty Latina Girl and Adam Jones In this charming short story, kind and quirky Adam Jones is captivated by a beautiful Latina he sees in a coffee shop, but complicates the process of asking her out to comical extremes. With the support of his best friends Nick and Splenda, he pursues a convoluted strategy to win the heart of this unattainable goddess; but in the end, a startling act of sacrificial love opens his heart and mind to a simple truth he should have embraced long ago.

"To be as happy and successful as we want to be, we have to have confidence-confidence to engage and connect with people. We have to be bold in talking to them; whether they are a potential customer, our boss, or the man or woman of our dreams. Yes. We need confidence! We need the strongest, most unshakeable confidence possible. This little booklet is designed to provide you a simple, surefire way to maximize your confidence with people. The truth is, I believe the conventional wisdom for building confidence is helpful, but it is insufficient. There's a whole different way-in some ways, a far more effective and reliable way-to increase your confidence."

One question in particular has been asked time and time again by fellow Christians: "Is it okay for me to be ambitious?" In other words, is it okay for a Christian to want to be financially successful, to be in the best possible physical shape, to crush lofty goals, or to exercise great influence in the world? In many cases, these are fellow Christians who want to be, say, a dominating head football coach, the top salesperson in their company, a Fortune 500 entrepreneur, or a worldwide social media influencer.Should they feel guilty about that?My answer to them-and to you? There is sinful ambition, and there is holy ambition. We can be driven to excellence and success by our selfish ego, simply wanting to make a name for ourselves and amass material possessions for their own sake. Or we can work to cultivate what I'd like to call sacred drive-a righteous motivation to pursue our God-given potential, not just for our gain, but for God's glory and the good of the world.This book is my humble attempt to help you do that.-from the introduction to Sacred Drive