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As Yourself

Fri, 27 Feb 2026 14:22:32 GMT

Download the As Yourself 6-Week Study Guide

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” —Matthew 22:39

What does it mean to love others “as yourself?”

For spiritual director, therapist, and former pastor Caroline Vogel, loving God and loving others always came easy. What was much harder, as she discovered during a difficult season in her life, was the “as yourself” part. What did Jesus mean when he said to love others as yourself?

In this heartening exploration of learning to love ourselves as God loves us, Vogel invites us to embrace God's deep and abiding love, with our whole being, just as we are, today and every day.

Through spiritual practices, Biblical insights, and personal story, Vogel shows us how to move from striving for God's love to simply receiving it. With a gentle and wise voice, Caroline teaches us how to slow down, steady our minds, open our hearts, and tap into the life-giving flow of God's grace that is already within us — calling us out of our perfectionism, fear, or shame, calling us toward our own belovedness.

Drawing on her own deep relationship with the Holy Spirit, Vogel reveals that when we are truly aligned with the Spirit and follow Her lead — mind, heart, and body — we are being infused by God's grace moment by moment. We are breathing the Spirit and the Spirit is breathing us. We are living embodied grace inside and out.

If you struggle to love yourself as God does, yearn to know God's love more deeply, and wonder what it's like to embody grace in your daily life, this book is for you.

Welcome to the journey of coming home to yourself in God's love, as yourself.

In As Yourself, readers will explore:

Why receiving God's love is as important as giving it away.
How “hustling” for God's love is the opposite of living embodied grace.
How shame is often a barrier to loving ourselves and others.
How grace already lives inside us; we simply need to open to that truth.
Biblical stories that illuminate the theology of “as yourself.”
A dozen spiritual practices to help you embody grace.

As Yourself

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 16:06:04 GMT

READ A SAMPLE

Download the As Yourself 6-Week Study Guide

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” —Matthew 22:39

What does it mean to love others “as yourself?”

In this heartening exploration of learning to love ourselves as God loves us, Vogel invites us to embrace God's deep and abiding love, with our whole being, just as we are, today and every day.

If you struggle to love yourself as God does, yearn to know God's love more deeply, and wonder what it's like to embody grace in your daily life, this book is for you.

Welcome to the journey of coming home to yourself in God's love, as yourself.

In As Yourself, readers will explore:

Why receiving God's love is as important as giving it away.
How “hustling” for God's love is the opposite of living embodied grace.
How shame is often a barrier to loving ourselves and others.
How grace already lives inside us; we simply need to open to that truth.
Biblical stories that illuminate the theology of “as yourself.”
A dozen spiritual practices to help you embody grace.

La oración de una viuda

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 19:44:11 GMT

Las crisis de la vida amenazan nuestra estabilidad espiritual.

La pérdida de un ser querido -se espere o no su muerte- es siempre traumática. El trauma de adaptarse a la nueva realidad de viuda mientras se enfrenta a una multitud de preguntas y decisiones urgentes puede ser abrumador.

En este libro de 60 meditaciones, Nell Noonan comparte con franqueza sus experiencias en los 26 meses posteriores a la muerte de su marido.

Describe su recorrido en el duelo como una jornada repleta de bendiciones y quebrantos. A pesar de los momentos álgidos, logró encontrar a Dios en medio del duelo.

Noonan reconoce que el proceso de duelo de cada persona es único.

«Mis escritos no pretenden decir qué, cómo o cuándo hacer nada», dice Noonan. «Las meditaciones sólo pretenden tomarle de la mano y sentir su dolor para que, con suerte, sea capaz de avanzar lentamente, paso a paso, hacia una vida más plena, menos quebrantada, hacia una vida nueva y llena de paz».

Este libro ayudará a las viudas, tanto si deciden leerlo solas como en grupo. Es un buen recurso para los grupos de apoyo al duelo, y un regalo apropiado para mostrar su preocupación por cualquier mujer que sufra la pérdida de su compañero/a.

La oración de una viuda

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 19:44:10 GMT

La oración de una viuda

My Story, My Song

Tue, 24 May 2022 18:20:18 GMT

My Story, My Song

Woman Overboard

Tue, 24 May 2022 16:04:37 GMT

Do you long for more passion in your life? How do you define passion?

Many people associate passion with intense romance, adventure, creativity, vocation, or calling. If you ask a pastor or priest to define passion, he or she would likely link the word to the passion of Christ, to the events of Holy Week.

The definition of passion has evolved over the years. Originally the word came from the Latin passio, which means "to suffer."

Woman Overboard invites you to join an adventure of discovering

how to find out what you were born for
how to live out your particular calling in the context of your Christian faith
how to make sense of a broken world in light of the passion of Christ

The passionate life isn't easy, Kadlecek says. Suffering can come when we pursue our passions. We have to take risks; we must jump overboard. We need to recognize that jumping overboard could be hard, scary, and dangerous. But consider how dangerous it would be to just stay where you are.

When we anchor our identity in the passion of Christ, we are free to jump overboard. We are free to take the risks we've always wanted to take, to pursue the things we've always wanted to pursue.

So what are you waiting for? Dive into the journey of waking up to the passion and gifts around you!

When You Come Unglued... Stick Close to God

Tue, 24 May 2022 16:03:45 GMT

Even when your life and faith seem broken, God loves you and wants you to enjoy a life abundant in blessings, freedom, and opportunity.

Motivational speaker, spiritual guide, and mentor to women, Patricia Wilson offers a wise and lighthearted take on the serious business of maturing in faith. Her deliciously candid descriptions of contemporary life reveal the ways we lose touch with God. Then she shows us how to reconnect and stick close.

"Sticking close to God is not as easy as I thought it would be," Wilson writes. "Not because God moved on to someone less difficult and demanding, but because I keep forgetting that my walk with God requires a conscious, daily decision. That's what this book is all about: how to stick close to God, even on those days and through those times when life comes unglued!"

If you allow it, God can begin to work in you wherever you are.

La oración de una viuda

Wed, 18 May 2022 21:26:30 GMT

Las crisis de la vida amenazan nuestra estabilidad espiritual.

En este libro de 60 meditaciones, Nell Noonan comparte con franqueza sus experiencias en los 26 meses posteriores a la muerte de su marido.

Describe su recorrido en el duelo como una jornada repleta de bendiciones y quebrantos. A pesar de los momentos álgidos, logró encontrar a Dios en medio del duelo.

Noonan reconoce que el proceso de duelo de cada persona es único.

My Story, My Song

Wed, 18 May 2022 21:25:18 GMT

My Story, My Song is the heartwarming memoir of the late 88-year-old Lucimarian Tolliver Roberts, mother of Good Morning America coanchor Robin Roberts. It details pivotal moments in Mrs. Roberts' life, revealing how faith in God gave her strength and hope to face the challenges of life.

Good Morning America viewers came to know and love Lucimarian Tolliver Roberts. For many, the heartfelt connection began the day after Hurricane Katrina blew through the Gulf Coast. They eagerly watched as Robin stood among the remnants of her hometown and talked about her desperate search for her elderly mother, who had ridden out the storm in her Mississippi home.

Once she knew that her mother was safe, Robin admitted she was not surprised to learn that even as the winds howled and floodwaters rose, Lucimarian Roberts sang hymns.

As she was working on her memoir, Lucimarian still was able to recite the lyrics to hundreds of hymns and spirituals first learned in her childhood church. She credited hymns for helping her, a black woman born in 1924, live faithfully through the turbulent times of the Great Depression, segregation, the civil rights struggle, and the loneliness and constant moves that came with being married to a U.S. Air Force officer.

Robin writes, "Folks are drawn to Mom's humility, wisdom, and spirituality. Countless times I've been told, 'Your mother should write a book.' Reflections from Robin on her mother's life and faith cap each chapter.

Now you will be able to gain insights from Lucimarian Roberts' amazing life. "God has brought the most wonderful and sometimes the most unlikely people, of all ages and races, into my life to encourage and guide me on this spiritual journey of life," Mrs. Roberts said with bright eyes.

Highlights of My Story, My Song include:

Inspiring stories of how a mother's love and character affect generations to come
A tribute to the power of hymns and music to lift the heart out of loneliness and grief
Honest childhood stories of poverty and alcoholism and the strength to overcome
Insight into life as an African American during segregation and beyond
Examples of the powerful influence of mentors and role models
Encouraging stories of aging with grace
Reminders of the impact of integrity, character, and love

You will be inspired and uplifted by this memoir of a woman who faced the best and worst of times with faith, dignity, and grace.

When You Come Unglued... Stick Close to God

Tue, 17 May 2022 01:26:48 GMT

Even when your life and faith seem broken, God loves you and wants you to enjoy a life abundant in blessings, freedom, and opportunity.

If you allow it, God can begin to work in you wherever you are.

Woman Overboard

Tue, 17 May 2022 01:22:28 GMT

Do you long for more passion in your life? How do you define passion?

The definition of passion has evolved over the years. Originally the word came from the Latin passio, which means "to suffer."

Woman Overboard invites you to join an adventure of discovering

how to find out what you were born for
how to live out your particular calling in the context of your Christian faith
how to make sense of a broken world in light of the passion of Christ

When we anchor our identity in the passion of Christ, we are free to jump overboard. We are free to take the risks we've always wanted to take, to pursue the things we've always wanted to pursue.

So what are you waiting for? Dive into the journey of waking up to the passion and gifts around you!

A Widow's Prayer

Tue, 17 May 2022 01:10:53 GMT

Life crises threaten our spiritual stability.

Losing a loved one—whether or not you expect their death—is always traumatic. The trauma of adjusting to the new identity of widow while facing a multitude of questions and urgent decisions can be overwhelming.

In this book of 60 meditations, Nell Noonan candidly shares her experiences in the 26 months after the death of her husband.

She describes her journey in grief as packed with blessings and brokenness. Despite the low points, she managed to find God in the midst of bereavement.

Noonan acknowledges that each person's grief journey is unique.

"My writing is not meant to tell you what or how or when to do anything," Noonan says. "The devotions are only meant to hold your hand and feel your pain so that hopefully you will be able to inch slowly, step-by-step, into being more whole, less broken—into a new, peace-filled life."

This book will help widows, whether they choose to read it alone or with a group. A good resource for grief support groups, and an appropriate gift to show your concern for any woman grieving the loss of her husband.

My Story, My Song

Sat, 14 May 2022 04:07:52 GMT

Once she knew that her mother was safe, Robin admitted she was not surprised to learn that even as the winds howled and floodwaters rose, Lucimarian Roberts sang hymns.

Highlights of My Story, My Song include:

Inspiring stories of how a mother's love and character affect generations to come
A tribute to the power of hymns and music to lift the heart out of loneliness and grief
Honest childhood stories of poverty and alcoholism and the strength to overcome
Insight into life as an African American during segregation and beyond
Examples of the powerful influence of mentors and role models
Encouraging stories of aging with grace
Reminders of the impact of integrity, character, and love

You will be inspired and uplifted by this memoir of a woman who faced the best and worst of times with faith, dignity, and grace.

A Widow's Prayer Enlarged Print

Sat, 14 May 2022 03:40:29 GMT

Life crises threaten our spiritual stability.

In this book of 60 meditations, Nell Noonan candidly shares her experiences in the 26 months after the death of her husband.

She describes her journey in grief as packed with blessings and brokenness. Despite the low points, she managed to find God in the midst of bereavement.

Noonan acknowledges that each person's grief journey is unique.

This Is My Body

Sat, 14 May 2022 03:17:22 GMT

Kneeling at the Communion rail, Hannah Shanks trembled as she received the bread and cup. Hours before, she had discovered she was pregnant. She heard the familiar words—"The body of Christ, broken for you; The blood of Christ, shed for you" as if for the first time. She remembered Jesus' words: "This is my body." Shanks realized that these words not only describe Jesus' death but also apply to every birth that has taken place. Suddenly, she felt a closer connection to God.

This Is My Body is organized around the framework of Communion, a central act of the Christian faith. Part personal narrative and part reflection on scripture from a woman's point of view, this book is about finding a new relationship to the acts of Christian community through the experiences of a woman's body, including pregnancy and childbirth.

Though the book centers on women's experiences, it offers an opportunity for women and men to consider how they too might be freed in the gospel proclamation, "This is my body; This is my blood." The author approaches motherhood with an understanding of its sacred nature and its profound ability to change her identity. She battles church stereotypes attached to mothering and emerges with a deeper understanding of herself and her relationship to the Holy.

This Is My Body

Sat, 14 May 2022 03:17:09 GMT

Reluctant Pilgrim

Sat, 14 May 2022 03:15:05 GMT

Finalist in the "Best Books 2010" Awards

"This is one of those books that you read and then have to sit back or curl up in a ball and 'be still and know.' In these honest, tear-stained pages are clear signs that there is a 'Hound of Heaven' hunting us down—this Spirit that is stalking us with love, winking at us with miracles, tickling us with grace, subverting everything that could destroy us, and whispering in our ears that we are truly beloved."

—Shane Claiborne
Author, activist, recovering sinner

Love God, but not so sure about church? If you've ever had doubts or felt the gnawing need to examine your interior life, you'll find a trustworthy companion in Enuma Okoro, a purse-shopping, tea-sipping, shaky follower of Jesus who wouldn't mind meeting a guy who loves God and has decent hair.

But after her father's unexpected death, her grief seems to morph into the panicky feeling that God wants something more from her, like maybe becoming a nun.

As she seeks to unravel those feelings, Okoro takes us back to the places that formed her, from her first years in church at a parish in Queens, New York, to her years in West Africa where she collected crucifixes along with Richie Rich comic books, to her studies in Europe and the United States.

Part Augustine, part Jane Austen with a side of Anne Lamott, Okoro attempts to reconcile her theological understanding of God's call to community with her painful and disappointing experiences of community in churches where she often felt invisible, pigeonholed, or out of place.

At turns snarky and luminous, laugh-out-loud funny and vulnerably poignant, Reluctant Pilgrim is the no-holds-barred account of a woman who prays to savor God's goodness and never be satisfied. It is a daring, insightful, and deeply moving field guide for the curious, the confused, and the convicted.

Reluctant Pilgrim

Sat, 14 May 2022 03:14:53 GMT

Finalist in the "Best Books 2010" Awards

—Shane Claiborne
Author, activist, recovering sinner

But after her father's unexpected death, her grief seems to morph into the panicky feeling that God wants something more from her, like maybe becoming a nun.

When You Come Unglued... Stick Close to God

Sat, 14 May 2022 02:28:06 GMT

Even when your life and faith seem broken, God loves you and wants you to enjoy a life abundant in blessings, freedom, and opportunity.

If you allow it, God can begin to work in you wherever you are.

Quiet Spaces

Sat, 14 May 2022 02:10:42 GMT

The intimate relationship with God you've yearned for is well within your grasp—despite the chaos of juggling multiple roles, deadlines, and commitments in your stretched-to-the-max life. With Quiet Spaces, you can learn to calm your mind and listen for God's still, small voice in the midst of the tumult around you.

Author and former professional speaker Patricia Wilson knows what it's like to struggle with finding a few minutes for herself. Through Quiet Spaces she shows how even a few stray minutes can become a blessed opportunity for a focused encounter with God.

Each brief prayer interlude featured in this book has 5 parts:

Calming — a passage from the Psalms to calm the mind
Centering — a practice to focus on God
Praying — a prayer for a particular situation or occasion
Listening — a passage from the Gospels with the words of Jesus
Returning — a practice to anchor the prayer experience

On hold for a phone call? Waiting for an appointment? In traffic? The quiet spaces are all around you! Capture those 5-minute breaks and use them to touch the hand of God.

You can find time to pray and connect with God—let this unique devotional book help you discover how.