This book addresses the spiritual needs of senior adults, a group of people often neglected both in churches and in society. If you are a senior, this book will help guide you through common issues faced by seniors in today's society. Topics range from spiritual growth to death and dying. This is a wonderful, much needed, easy to read book.

Anyone looking for a useful guide for understanding the Christian faith will find it in this book.

This book is an excellent overview of Christianity, the Church, and the whole concept of orthodoxy. It offers a great discussion of the historical development of the concept and the various ways Christians have used and abused the term over the years.

The author gives a helpful analysis of the way a church functions in the life of a Christian. He also explains in a practical way what it means to be both human and Christian. In his discussion, he makes clear the difference between faith and belief. Anyone who doesn't understand the difference needs to read this book.

Every year two million people are hospitalized and 120,000 people die because of failing to following the instructions for taking their prescription medication, or the drug reacting adversly with some other drug being taken. Pharmacist Henry Luchtefeld has written Taking Control Of Your Prescription Health for the specific purpose of helping the reader to avoid this pervasive medical problem. Luchtefeld clearly explains the necessary questions to ask a doctor and/or pharmacist when receiving prescription medication and includes such vital information as: reducing the risk of medication related problems; helpful hints regarding medication; drug interactions; medications to be avoided by the elderly; and answers to the common questions he has encountered in his professional duties as a pharmacist. If you or a loved one are taking or about to be put on prescription medications, read Taking Control Of Your Prescription Health -- it could safeguard your health and even save your life.

If you have ever dealt with parents who have waited too long to plan for aging, this book provides very thought provoking information that all baby-boomers need to heed. A realistic vision of aging can help one transition from what may seem like eternal youth to the inevitable stages of decreasing energy and increasing frailty. Proper planning- both financially and mentally - are covered by the authors. Taking the right mental attitude into the years after 55 may be the key to successfully aging. I have recommended this book to all my friends and consider it one of the most important I have read this year.

Henry Mahan is one of the best preachers of the gospel of Sovereign Grace. In this book, he goes from Genisis to Job and shows the various pictures/types of Christ shown in the Old Testament. I found the book to be very enlightening without getting bogged down. Plenty of scriptures to look up and read for yourself! A very good book!

In volume two, Henry Mahan (the excellent preacher of the doctrines of Sovereign Grace) continues showing us the various pictures and types of Christ in the Old Testament. This book covers Psalms to Malachi and is a good study aid! Make sure you get volume one as well.

There are few books out there that play on the borders of both worthlessness and pricelessness. This is one of them.

Cloud brings out life-changing principles in his analysis of boundaries, bonding, good and evil, and adulthood. It has the potential of completely revamping your view of healthy interaction with others (and God).

At the same time, it is very poorly written. I found it to be unstructured, long-winded, and completely unengaging in many places. Moreover, there is frequent misuse of scripture and a number of statements that could be taken to horribly unhealthy extremes.

Read the book. Be changed, but be wary.

I have read many Christian books-this is my favorite. It opens on Truth and Grace and Time. Key elements of understanding our role in God's kingdom. It focuses on taking responsibility and quite honestly when not to. Dr. Cloud references scriptures at every turn so you can feel confident these teachings and wisdom, are biblical. My friends have noticed changes in my areas of acceptance and placing boundaries and it has helped our relationships tremendously. I have learned to love God more because of this book.

A-plus! This is a GREAT book that helped me understand how my past affected every area of my life (work, relationships, and my underlying attitudes). Although I had experienced great success in the business world, my personal relationships were suffering terribly and I was miserable on the inside. This book helped me understand why and how to change.

It clearly explained the important things I needed but didn't get out of each developmental stage while growing up from an infant to an adult. While reading the book, it became clear how I developed coping mechanisms to get through life--trying to get my needs met--with mixed results. On the outside, I was a picture of success, but on the inside I was tired, empty, unhappy and frustrated.

With this understanding, and a continued commitment to find new ways to think, act and live, I am now learning to live a life that promises to be happier and healthier. Thanks Dr. Cloud for your part in bringing about these changes in me!

I highly recommend other books written by Henry Cloud's (Safe People, Boundaries) as they are also well written and very good resources for healing the innermost areas of the heart and minds to help enjoy the journey to wholeness and joy!

'Changes That Heal' is a book that is informative and life changing. Change and Healing IS possible! Definitely worth reading! A-plus!

"Safe People" deals with the problem of character discernment, or evaluating who is good for us and who isn't. According to the authors, Drs. Henry Cloud and John Townsend, "safe people are individuals who draw us closer to being the people God intended us to be." Cloud and Townsend "believe the Bible contains the keys to understanding how to tell safe people from unsafe ones. It also teaches how to become safe people for others. In this age of broken relationships, these scriptural principles are both timeless and timely."

The authors devote Chapters 1 through 4 to examining and discussing who unsafe people are and the identifying traits of unsafe people. Chapters 5 through 8 examine the origin of the problem: why one might choose unsafe people to be in relationship with and how to repair this problem. The rest of the book is devoted to learning more about what safe people are and why we need them. The authors offer practical help on successfully meeting and relating to safe people. Overall, the book is designed to help one look both outside and inside oneself. As the authors cite from Matthew 7:5, "First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."

Cloud and Townsend raise a valuable point in that people tend to look for people to be in relationship with who are "spiritual," "godly, "ambitious," "fund to be with," and so on, and yet, these are not the issues that cause relationships to break apart. Relationships break apart because one partner doesn't listen to the other; because of perfectionistic tendencies; because of emotional distance; because of controlling tendencies; for promises that are made but not followed through; from condemnation, judgment, and anger; and most of all, because of a lack of or breakdown in trust. "We tend to look on the outside and not the inside of a person," the authors state. "We look at worldly success, charm, looks, humor, status and education, accomplishments, talents and giftedness, or religious activity." None of these qualities are character issues, which are precisely at the heart of both successful and failed relationships.

But the authors do not merely point the finger at unsafe people outside of ourselves. To begin with, a critical question they ask their readers is to reflect on what each one has learned about him- or herself from failed relationships. Furthermore, they tackle the issue of how our own actions reflect our relationship with God and how God lives through us. "The church often emphasizes our relationship with God and de-emphasizes our relationships with other people," they write. "We need to be around others who help us to grow and become the people who God made us to be ... We often learn about the divine from the fleshly. As John writes, 'If anyone says, 'I love God,' yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen' (1 John 4:20)."

Recognizing that the typical response to being in relationships that have hurt is to retreat into isolation, withdraw, and shut down emotionally, Cloud and Townsend respond by citing the Bible to indicate that God created us to be in relationship with one another. "Finding safe people is not just a luxury," they write. "It's a necessary part of growing spiritually mature ... Everyone is created to be relational."

One way the authors counter the cultural norm toward self-sufficiency is by comparing spiritual hunger with physical hunger. "God created within us a hunger, a longing to be known and loved. This hunger functions exactly like physical hunger. It's a signal. It causes discomfort, a warning saying, 'Get up and get connected. Your tank's empty.' Hunger keeps us aware of our needs ... Make friends with your needs. Welcome them. They are a gift from God, designed to draw you into relationship with him and with his safe people. Your needs are the cure to the sin of self-sufficiency," which pushes us only further into isolation.

"The best example of a safe person is found in Jesus," they write. "In him were found the three qualities of a safe person: dwelling, grace, and truth." Safe people are also a very forgiving people, according to Cloud and Townsend. "They expect failure and disappointment from those they love ... Learn to receive forgiveness [and] learn to give forgiveness," they suggest.

Finally, the authors deal with whether to repair or replace a hurting relationship. "The chief theme of the entire Bible is reconciliation of unsafe relationships." While by no means suggesting that people remain in unsafe, dysfunctional, or abusive relationships, the authors differentiate between forgiveness in a relating sense and clearly drawing one's boundaries.

"The good news is that you can be saved from a life of relational hell with unsafe people. The bad news is that you must take up your cross and do the hard work of dealing with your own character problems. We have found in our lives and in the lives of others that this process works. If you will do the hard work of distinguishing safe and unsafe people, abiding deeply with the safe ones and dealing redemptively with the unsafe ones, you will develop an abundant life, full of satisfying relationships and meaningful service to God."

This is a book everyone should read. It can be life changing if while you are reading it you ask yourself, "am I a safe person?" It takes you through the characteristics of an unsafe person, a safe person, how to become a safe person, and then what to do with unsafe relationships you already have. You need to look at safe people from both sides - are your friends safe, and are you safe?

This book is full of life-changing material. It teaches you about discernment and how to break the cycle of bad relationships. Since it is based on Biblical principles, it gives you a framework on which to build relationships. I read it along with the workbook as part of a Bible study a couple of years ago and it made a tremendous impact on my life. I recommend this book to anyone I meet who is having any kind of relationship problem - either with their friends or their family. It is excellent!

Blackaby and King have written an excellent practical workbook for the Christian who is serious about deepening his relationship with God. The central question of the book is, "What is God doing in my life, and around me?" The followup question is, "How then can I join that work?" The authors then challenge the participants in the study to examine how they listen to God and see God work, how they respond in faith, and how they change their lives to reflect that faith. The focus in the book is on God. It is biblical in almost every point. This book is to be done in connection with other Christians. Just reading it is not enough, nor is doing it by oneself. Others teach you and you teach them as you go through the study. I have done this study four times with different groups and have profited every time. I recommend the book highly as a paradigm-breaker and maker. God bless.

Steve Austin

It was the early 90's, a buzz was in the air about a new book or something called, Experiencing God. It seemed that every time I turned around, a seminary friend was asking me whether or not I had gone through Experiencing God. I would reply, "Yes I have experienced God, what about it?" They would respond by saying, "No, the study entitled, "Experiencing God? It is an awesome study." Anyway, my curiosity got the best of me, well, no, it was God's unique way of getting my attention, and prodding me to buy it. And this I did.

Read my lips. Nevermind. READ MY CAPS! THIS STUDY CHANGED MY LIFE, and I am not saying this to boost my ratings as a reviewer. Experiencing God is not just a good Bible-based study (which it is), it will literally change the way you view God. Henry Blackaby gives you "Seven Realities" in your discovery to know God in a personal way. When I began to apply these scriptural realities or truths, I began to experience God in a fresh new way.

Have you ever struggled with God's will? Have you ever questioned God's plan for your life? If you have, then you need to chew on this study.

Last summer, I had the privilege of meeting Henry Blackaby at the airport and must have dialogued with him for forty-five minutes as we waited for our planes. I told him how the study changed my life and I thanked him that day in the airport terminal for writing it. It was quite an honor to sit next to the man, who in my opinion is one of the most humble, genuine, and Godly men in history. And guess where he was headed that day? He flew into Houston from San Diego, and was headed for Germany to assist in an Experiencing God conference; and furthermore, the man is retired!

I hope I have sold you on purchasing this study. I have facilitated this course on numerous occasions, and others have commented in much the same way that I have with you. The magnitude of its influence has spread to all parts of the world; therefore, "Amazon-it" today! It will CHANGE YOUR LIFE!

I've participated in a small group study of Experiencing God once, and I taught it twice after that. I think this is one of those rare workbooks that in a simple way, captures the deeper truths of God and the Christian life. It is profoundly simple. I've read a lot of Christian books in my time, and there really isn't one like this. It's in a category of its own. You should definitely do it in the context of a small group. Beware though, it is demanding for the average reader. There are daily exercises that can take 20-30 minutes to do. These exercises are chalk full of great wisdom and insight, but for some it is a lot to do. I've read probably a hundred Christian books/workbooks, etc., and this one is definitely in my top 10, if not my top 5. I highly recommend it. If you're a teen, I'd use the teen version. It's great for everybody.

A fairly strong book with some pretty insightful stuff regarding the boundaries that you have to set and maintain in a dating relationship. The point of the book is that the boundaries you set now will determine the relationship you grow into later.

Very true, but I didn't really feel challenged by this book and felt that most of it was common sense. The chapter on physical boundaries basically said to save yourself for marriage. I agree, but what about other, hazier areas? Not answered.

Nothing very revolutionary and I'm not sure how much I'll apply anything new that I learned.

I think this book might be best for Christians new in their faith and really trying to get an idea for how a dating relationship fits into their life.

this is a great handbook for dating. i thought i was pretty good at the whole priorities and boundaries thing, but this book has helped to polish and shape some of that. it provided me with insight on many aspects of my dating experience . it has made it easier for me to understand and help my friends whose dating lives are less than satisfactory......

i reccomend this book especially if you just can't seem to find mr./ms. right, or if you have problems in the relationship you are in now.....it can make a world of difference in your life!

My family raved about "Boundaries In Marriage" (also written by the same authors as this book). I had never heard of the series before, but thought I would give this "dating" book a try. I have never spent so much time taking notes, (I didn't get the workbook and should have... but just ordered it) and highlighting things. It gave me a new sense of depth... for myself and for future relationships. It also ensured current beliefs and brought me to new levels that I otherwise wouldn't have obtained on my own. Though this book is based on the reader being Christian, the general idea is great for everyone... Christian or not!