Bücher von Marilyn McDonald

While looking up to heaven and praying one day, I heard in a small soft voice from my Lord, "You are going to help women." I knew I was a sinner and that Jesus came to save sinners. I began a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I felt a life-giving hope that led me to worship the God of the Bible. After seminary training, I heard that same quiet voice, lay on my heart the words from Jeremiah 29:11, "I know the plans I have for you, . . . plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." (ESV) About 25 years later, I can testify with Paul from Philippians 3:8-9, "I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith." (ESV) I believe, I trust and obey as a woman of God, who is the only author of permanent change.

A look at the history of Tassajara Hot Springs, for millennia used by Native Americans who went there to cure their ills. In the 1800s the Spanish came, then trappers and homesteaders. First accessible only by foot or horse, a road was cut through the mountains by Chinese laborers so that horse-drawn wagons could make the treacherous trip. With photos and stories of those times up to the mid-eighties: tents, log cabins, fish and game, the early cars, the people and their attire, the sandstone hotel. This famed resort in the 1960s become the site of the Western world's first Zen Buddhist monastery founded by Shunryu Suzuki, author of the classic Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind.With its healing waters, rugged remoteness, memorable characters, perilous road, fires, restorations, conversations under Gossip Oak, peace and quiet, Tassajara has a special place in the hearts of those who've traveled there. Marilyn McDonald has given us its history which endears us even more to this unique retreat nestled in the Santa Lucia Mountains of Monterey County, California.

Take a Look in the Mirror is more than a book of poetry. It is a collection of passionately inspiring messages targeted to diverse youth - all races and socio-economic circumstances. From low self-esteem to self-doubt, the collection takes readers on a journey of self-awareness and personal empowerment. We live in a time where even our youth are defined by what is portrayed on social media, magazines and movies. What is natural is no longer considered enough, and what is artificial is now considered the standard of what young people should aspire to be. Take a Look in the Mirror plants seeds of love necessary to combat today's unrealistic cultural values that dictate how our youth should look, act and feel about themselves. It encourages our youth to embrace who they are and understand that they are strong, intelligent, bold, powerful, capable, influential, resilient and beautiful just the way they are.