Newsletter - September, 2000

The unity of the Church is an article of faith; a gift of the Holy Spirit. Happy are we when we recognize that unity across the centuries, through denominational and cultural barriers, or in the midst of our present personal struggles. Jesus knows his own.

OUR USED BOOKS ON PRAYER are now listed on abebooks.com and on our web page www.companyofsaints.com/prayer.html Going at present rate, we ought to have all our books listed by the beginning of the next millennium

STACKS: In the ever entertaining task of seeing how many more books we can squeeze onto our shelves, we have resorted to stacking certain prolific authors on their sides. This breaks up the shelves into what we hope are eye-pleasing segments and highlights particular authors: Charles Swindoll, Robert Schuller, Frank & Edith Schaeffer, J.B. Phillips, Norman Vincient Peal, J.I. Packer (whose KNOWING GOD was so pivotal for me that I allow 3 copies of it on the stack, despite rules about off-loading multiple copies) Andrew Murray, Keith Miller, Gordon MacDonald, Catherine Marshall, Bruce Larson, Pope John-Paul, Hannah Hurnard, Majorie Holmes, Jack Hayford, Kenneth Hagin, Billy Graham, (he has TWO stacks), Gene Edwards, Chuck Colson, and Carlo Carretto, Ray Comfort. These authors are all stacked on our "non fiction by author" shelves. Some authors, like C.S. Lewis would be in a stack, but are scattered all over the store. Others, like Dobson are stacked in their particular venue.

QUOTE courtesy of Jane: "If you are too busy to read, you are too busy." (Richard J. Foster)

UNSTACKED: Meanwhile there are certain authors that people ask about and that move out almost as fast as they come in: Henri Nouwen, Thomas Merton, Fredrick Buechner, Richard Foster, Max Lucado, (Though we did recently get his THE GIFT $3 and it hasn't gone out yet) Philip Yancey....If you'd like to unload any of these, we've got people who would like to buy them.

FANTASY & FAITH, a 12-week course for readers, writers & ruminators will begin Friday, September 29th at noon. Cost is $30 and includes a copy of The Tolkien Reader. I'm also contemplating an e-mail version of the course, which will function like a newsgroup. You get to do the work, but miss my brilliant 10 minute lectures (not to even mention the comments from the peanut gallery). Let me know of your interest, as class size is limited.

MINISTRY: I remember reading an article--I think in the New Yorker--where a women wanted to minister to the poor, so the pastor 'set her up with a phone and an office.' I felt a pang at the time, a mixture of longing and disappointment. For all my desire to minister under the banner of Christ, no pastor ever 'set me up.'
Yet looking around our cozy little den this first rainy day of the season, I see that the Church has indeed set us up with a phone and an office (not to even mention a library). I say, 'the Church' because while I know The Word Shop is the Lord's gift, it has been given through the Church...not any particular building, group of attenders or denomination...but through the various members of His body who have given time, resources, books, encouragement and love; AND through those who have received books, time, resources, encouragement and love. Thank you!

"It makes a big difference," says Luke Timothy Johnson in LIVING JESUS, "whether we think someone is dead or alive."
Yup.

Blessings,
Alliee +