Showing results by narrator "Al Kessel" in All Categories

You've heard the tale of the Beauty and the Beast before, but not like this. The original French fairy tale written by Madame de Villeneuve relates the tale of a wealthy family plagued by misfortune and of a father who wished to give his beloved daughter, Beauty, the only gift she desired - a rose. But the rose Beauty's father decides to pick for her comes with a great price - a price exacted by the lord of the palace, a Beast of a man!

Walt Before Mickey is a look at Walt's decade-long career before he became an international sensation with the creation of Mickey Mouse in 1928.

A GHOST you say? Well, when young Clayton tells his story of encountering a rather... incompetent apparition trapped in the "real" world, and how he helped the spook return to the ether, his friends at the Mermaid Club refused to believe him. Until he showed them HOW he helped the poor soul. And what happened next, changed everyone's view of the afterlife.

Disneyland - as you remember it, and as you've never seen it before... In the Shadow of the Matterhorn author, - and former cast member - David Smith, takes you inside the Magic Kingdom for a completely different kind of VIP tour. Never-before-published stories about working inside the park, growing up down the street, and the profound effect that Disneyland has had on so many people, are all part of this moving and revealing book.

In The 7 Most Important Equations for Your Retirement, Moshe Milevsky argues that 21st-century retirement income planning is indeed a science and has its foundations in the work of great sages who made conceptual and controversial breakthroughs over the last eight centuries. In the book, Milevsky highlights the work of seven scholars - summarized by seven equations - who shaped all modern retirement calculations.

"This is the Way." In Star Wars and Philosophy Strikes Back, the Way wends through entirely new adventures in the Star Wars galaxy far, far away: not only the films of the Skywalker saga, but also Rebels, The Bad Batch, Rogue One, Solo, and The Mandalorian. Like the creators of these films and television series, the authors in this book harness the magical mix of humor, action, empathy, characterization, adventure, and fan service that constitutes Star Wars.

"The unexamined life is not worth living," according to Socrates, but pursuing the examined life strikes many as daunting, unappealing and even unnecessary. Is philosophy important? Why do I need philosophy if I have the Bible? Aren't philosophers simply engaged in meaningless disputes that are irrelevant to everyday life? Mark Foreman addresses these and other questions in this "prelude" to the subject. Unlike a full introduction to philosophy, this book is a preliminary discussion that dispels misunderstandings and explains the rationale for engaging in philosophical reasoning.

The doctrine of reprobation—that is, the eternal, unconditional decree of God for the non-elect—is frequently misconstrued in both pastoral and theological literature. In Reprobation and God's Sovereignty, Peter Sammons reintroduces this oft-misunderstood doctrine, revealing its relationship to divine sovereignty. With Romans 9 as a guiding text, Sammons presents a thoroughly researched defense of reprobation as an essential part in a Reformed theology that magnifies God and encourages believers to trust in him.

There are so many misconceptions about Calvinism that it is safe to say that even most Christians do not truly know what it teaches. You may have grown up in a Reformed church, or you may have heard about Calvinism mostly in arguments. Either way, it may surprise you to know that this belief has huge, and very positive, implications for a believer's daily life!

Many think of God as wrathful and angry, smiting people right and left for no apparent reason. The Old Testament in particular seems at times to portray God as capricious and malevolent, wiping out armies and nations, punishing enemies with extreme prejudice. But wait. The story is more complicated than that.

In The Wisdom of Walt, Professor Jeffrey Barnes distills Walt Disney's vision, his knowledge, and his methods into a series of actionable lessons. Through historical vignettes about Disneyland, as well as plentiful examples and exercises, Barnes creates a framework through which you can apply Walt's wisdom to improve your career, your company, and your life.

Take a magic-carpet ride through Disney's wonderful world of films and entertainment experiences and discover the wisdom within its most popular and enduring stories.

In today's technology-driven culture, reading has become a lost art. With smartphones offering information at the tap of a finger, reading a book is often seen as a tedious and outdated activity. Christians are not immune to this problem, as many find it hard to read books - even the Bible - consistently and attentively. Recovering the Lost Art of Reading addresses these timely issues by exploring the importance of reading generally as well as studying the Bible as literature, giving practical suggestions along the way.

There are many paths to lose your way. And only one way to find it. So said Jesus of Nazareth, the most compelling and controversial teacher of all time. This book aims to make sense of his counterintuitive claim: Unless we lose our lives for his sake, we will never discover our true selves. Writers from around the world tell their stories of healing and hope amid many hardships. Joni Eareckson Tada, Sam Allberry, Christopher Yuan, Aixa de Lopez, and many other contributors share how God found them amid many dangers, toils, and snares.

Karl Albrecht defines social intelligence (SI) as the ability to get along well with others while winning their cooperation. SI is a combination of sensitivity to the needs and interests of others, sometimes called your "social radar", an attitude of generosity and consideration, and a set of practical skills for interacting successfully with people in any setting. Social Intelligence provides a highly accessible and comprehensive model for describing, assessing, and developing social intelligence at a personal level.

We are living in angry times. No matter where we go, what we watch, or how we communicate, our culture is rife with conflict. Unfortunately, Christians appear to be caught up in the same animosity as the culture at large. We are perceived as angry, judgmental, and defensive, fighting among ourselves in various media while the world looks on. How have we failed to be a people of reconciliation and renewal in the face of such tumult?

In this pithy and pragmatic book, seasoned management consultant John Weathington helps leaders better understand the secrets of esprit de corps in a fresh way that incorporates recent discoveries in neuroscience, anthropology, and organizational behavior. John walks the listener through the technical and emotional decisions that should be made during difficult circumstances, using examples from his own thirty years of experience working with complex and gifted organizations.

Elder and ethicist Bill Davis presents biblical principles, case studies, and practical advice for Christians who seek to honor aging parents who have become cognitively altered, physically frail, or emotionally needy...

A woman searching for a sister lost at sea. A man bent on finding lost treasure. A mother who has lost all hope. A maniac who believes all life exists for his pleasure. The man who would keep them all safe. Together, they will all seek below the waves for treasures long buried, and riches beyond belief. But those treasures hide something. Something ancient, something dark. A creature that exists only to feed on those that would enter into its realm. A creature... of The Deep.

Fear is so much a part of the human experience that we may think there's no escape. Our own earthly solutions fall short, but God has offered us a better remedy: a spirit of "power and love and discipline" (2 Tim. 1:7 NASB) that can overcome fear of others, irrational fear, and sinful fear. Through short lessons and discussion questions, Wayne and Joshua Mack show how we can find true courage by fearing God and trusting in him alone. This book can be used for individual growth and development, for group study, or for homework assignments for those in counseling.