God would indeed answer the prayer of the fiery, red-haired woman from Scotland. For 39 years, Mary Slessor would labor in love among the unreached, often treacherous, tribes of Africa's Calabar region. Braving sickness, danger, and death on all sides, Mary became the cherished "White Ma" to entire tribes. Her faith, steadfastness, and pioneering spirit brought her beloved adopted people their first brilliant, contrasting example of the life and freedom found in Jesus Christ.

A rip current overturned the whaleboat with eight Kanaka Christians aboard. Only three of the men could swim, and the others clung to the upturned boat. Sharks circled the three as they struggled to get to shore. The three survived, but the others could not be found. When Florence heard the news, she resolved to go on despite the dangers. Once timid and unsure of her own salvation, New Zealander Florence Young rose to her calling and became a fearless and faithful witness for Jesus Christ.

Unless God helps us, there is no hope, Captain Morris yelled over the roar of the storm. Hudson Taylor had to agree. Indeed the Dumfries might sink this very day and he would never live to see the shores of China, a land whose people he was certain God had called him to. Hudson survived his perilous maiden voyage to his beloved China. With his heart set in determined obedience to God, Hudson overcame persecution and almost overwhelming personal losses to bring God's truth to the "ripe harvest fields" of China.

Suddenly, Corrie's (1892-1983) ordered life was lost in the insanity of war. With bravery and compassion, her family and countless other Dutch citizens risked everything to extend God's hand to those innocents marked for certain execution in a world gone mad. Corrie ten Boom's life of determination, faith, and forgiveness in the face of unimaginable brutality and hardship is a stunning testimony of the sustaining power of God.

When he became God's smuggler, Brother Andrew (1928- ) was already familiar with risk. As a boy, the intrepid Andrew van der Bijl joined the Dutch Resistance against the Nazi occupation. As a young man, he fought eagerly in the Dutch East Indies - until the horror of war turned the adventure seeker to a life of alcohol and desperation. Redeemed by God, the Dutchman became a daring messenger of hope, smuggling Scripture through closed borders and equipping persecuted Christians behind the Iron Curtain.

Without formal education or a missionary organization to back her, Gladys (1902-1970) raised her own finances for the overland trip that would bring her to the country and people that God had etched so deeply on her heart...China! What follows is an amazing adventure of faith and determination. Gladys Aylward, a housemaid from England, dared to trust God in the face of dire and seemingly hopeless circumstances. Her life is one of the truly great missionary stories of our era.

The Clockwork Universe is the story of a band of men who lived in a world of dirt and disease but pictured a universe that ran like a perfect machine. A meld of history and science, this book is a group portrait of some of the greatest minds who ever lived as they wrestled with natures most sweeping mysteries. The answers they uncovered still hold the key to how we understand the world.

Born into a loving family, Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) pursued a life as a pastor, teacher, theologian - and spy. He spoke out about the trouble in Germany when Adolph Hitler came to power, urging the Christian church to rescue disparaged people groups and resist Hitler’s evil empire. Accused of being a troublemaker, Dietrich continued on fearlessly in the midst of wickedness. His work as a spy in the German resistance and participation in a plot to assassinate Hitler led to imprisonment and eventual execution.

One-hundred-fifty years later, the creation-evolution debate still rages. Both sides are half-right. And both are wrong. Meet the opponents: in one corner - Proponents of Intelligent Design like William Dembski, Stephen Meyer, and Michael Behe. Many defy scientific consensus, maintaining evolution is a fraud. They challenge decades of data in biology, chemistry, genetics, and paleontology.

Jim and Pete turned to see the Auca men, their deadly spears raised, running toward Nate, Ed, and Roger. Jim stood in the river, his hand on his pistol. Should he defend himself? He already knew the answer. Each man had promised the others that he would not save himself by killing those they had sought out in Jesus' name. Jim Elliot and his coworkers surrendered their lives in Ecuador's jungle, trusting that their sacrifice would not be in vain.

Missionary trio Mildred Cable and Evangeline and Franscesca French were the first Englishwomen to cross the infamous Gobi Desert, living for years among the diverse peoples of northwestern China in places few Europeans ever reached. Educated and rich, Mildred Cable (1878-1952) once planned to be a concert pianist. Instead she served the people of China through wars and revolutions. Mildred followed Jesus with grit, determination, intelligence, and faith.

Once a kidnapped slave baby, George Washington Carver (1864?-1943) found freedom in learning everything he could about the world around him. Overcoming poverty and racism, George became a brilliant scientist and a gifted professor who dedicated his expertise to helping black farmers escape the devastating grip of poverty. George's scientific creativity knew no limits. His ingenious experimentation with peanuts and other plants helped rescue the failing Southern economy.

William burst into the house. "I have found my destiny!" he shouted. "I have found a place where there is so much human misery in such a small space that there is a lifetime's worth of work there for me!" Horrified by the poverty and suffering most people took for granted in industrial England, William Booth dedicated his life to bringing the Gospel to the outcasts of society who would never enter a church and weren't welcome there.

Ever since he was a young boy dreaming of writing "God Is Love" on the moon so that all the world's people could see it, Loren Cunningham has committed his life to reaching the whole world with the good news of Jesus Christ, ministering in every nation on earth. Through his unswerving belief that nothing is impossible for God, Loren's vision of waves of young people became the reality of Youth with a Mission, unleashing young Christians in missionary service when that was unheard of.

Clara pushed herself to work faster. She had to get the wounded soldiers onto the train before the Confederates came over the hill. A messenger galloped up just as the last man was loaded aboard. "You have to go now!" he shouted. "The enemy is breaking over the hills. If the train is stopped, you will have to escape across country!"