Amazon.com
In order to call themselves good Christians, many people have drawn overly flexible boundaries (unwilling to say no, always accommodating others' needs) or overly rigid boundaries (to the point of being righteous and judgmental). Psychologists and inspirational speakers Cloud and Townsend show readers how to set reasonable boundaries in order to follow the true path of Christianity. This book has become immensely popular, most likely because it makes personal boundaries easier to define and is filled with spiritual purpose. Some cautions: the format can be overly self-helpish for such a complex discussion and the authors at one point imply that judicious spankings may be an acceptable form of setting boundaries with children. However, many Christians will probably find themselves grateful for this biblical context of boundaries. --Gail Hudson
Book Description
Having clear boundaries is essential to a healthy, balanced lifestyle. A boundary is a personal property line that marks those things for which we are responsible. In other words, boundaries define who we are and who we are not. Boundaries impact all areas of our lives: Physical boundaries help us determine who may touch us, mental boundaries give us the freedom to have our own thoughts, emotional boundaries help us to deal with our own emotions and spiritual boundaries help us to distinguish God's will from our own.
Customer Reviews:
Boundries, When to say yes, When to say no to take control of your life........2007-10-11
I am enjoying this book except I had expected the entire text. I was not aware that I was ordering a miniature at the time. I somehow overlooked that information. I will be much more observant the next time I order something from Amazon. I would suggest miniatures be described as such in a more obvious manner.
Great help for structuring your life!.......2007-10-10
This is a wonderful help for structuring your life and not having bad feelings about saying no when you should. They have a solid teaching on how to view youself as being a good stewart of your life and giving when you should.
Read this book, save your marriage, friendships, and self-esteem.......2007-10-07
Few things cause as much grief and heartache in relationships as the failure to establish healthy interpersonal "rules of conduct." This book is perhaps the best and most important read on that subject. James Dobson says that most breakups are due to disrespect. This book is about establishing respect, both for oneself and within relationships. A lot of psychological dysfunction and pain is caused by others trampling on a person's life, self-respect, and dignity. This book will show you how to lovingly establish healthy conduct in all of your relationships. It will save many friendships and even marriages if read, used, and thoughtfully applied to a person's life.
Beware iPod Users.......2007-09-28
The content of this set of 10 CDs is wonderful!! The problem is that each disk has between 45 and 70 tracks which are titled: Track 1, Track 2, etc. So... when you download them to your iPod, they get sorted alphabetically and you get Track 1 (from disk 1), Track 1 (from disk 2), etc. You have to either download one CD at a time, or rename all the tracks. It was very time consuming and disappointing not to have all I wanted in an organized way to download to my iPod. Just be aware when you buy these CDs.
Itty bitty book .......2007-09-28
Got to have good eyes to see the print.
My bad... did not realize it was a Brief on the Large one.
Makes a nice little accessory sitting next to Librarian Barbie... makes her look so smart.
Smile
Book Description
Learn when to say yes and when to say no--to your spouse and to others--to make the most of your marriage.
Customer Reviews:
eye opening.......2007-09-29
This is an excellent book. I had never heard of the concept of 'boundaries', but it makes a lot of sense and is very eye opening. I recommend this book to anyone that is married because it gives alot of guidance in how to make your life and your marriage much better.
Boundaries in Marriage--Great Study!.......2007-09-27
The Boundaries in Marriage book and study by Cloud and Townsend is a wonderful study for newly married couples, long-time married couples and even engaged couples. To learn how to relate to our spouses in healthy ways--owning our feelings and attitudes but not accepting responsibility for theirs can be a very freeing concept once practiced. That is just one of the 10 "Laws of Boundaries" taught in this book and study--the other nine also have the potential of helping to create strong, healthy relationships if put into practice.
Anyone who has benefited from any of the other Boundaries books by these authors will also gain some helpful tools for marriage in this book.
inciteful and a must read before marriage if possible.......2007-09-17
My daughter married young. Guess what...they did not know how to establish personal or marital boundaries. This book easily explains possible boundaries and why. Highly recommended for anyone prior to marriage as it can help avoid many problems. Marital problems in progress read it together do the workbooks and move forward instead of the divorce court.
Shame, Shame, Shame.......2007-08-27
What a horribly un-biblical book. It flies in the face of the Genesis and New Testament accounts of marriage. Of course, what else can you expect from these two idiots, who will give "advice" on anything for a buck. I truly hope Cloud/Townsend will be held accountable for all the marriages they have ruined with this book. Shame on them.
Amazing.......2007-05-12
This book has become an important part of my counseling practice. It is excellent at teaching what each spouse is personally responsible for in marriage. Developing healthy boundaries is essential to vitalized marriages.
Dr. Keith Gaddis, LMFT
Book Description
Between singleness and marriage lies the journey of dating. Want to make your road as smooth as possible? Set and maintain healthy boundaries -- boundaries that will help you grow in freedom, honesty, and self-control. If many of your dating experiences have been difficult, Boundaries in Dating could revolutionize the way you handle relationships. And even if you’re doing well, the insights you'll gain from his much-needed book can help you fine-tune or even completely readjust important areas of your dating life. Written by the authors of the best-selling book Boundaries, Boundaries in Dating is your road map to the kind of enjoyable, rewarding dating that can take you from weekends alone to a lifetime with the soul mate you've longed for.
Customer Reviews:
The importance of boundaries in dating.......2007-10-10
I have read this book and it changed my life. I learned the limitations to put in my life to protect myself from foolish mistakes. The boundaries are also given in the bible.....so confirmation of my actions based on my reading this book is given from the Highest.
I decided to give this book to a friend who is having dating difficulties.
If she takes the principles seriously and puts them into action....she will create her single life to be a more peaceful one.
I reccommend this book to all single people who are dating or who will be dating.
Great starting point.......2007-10-03
This is a great guide to trying to date while living a christian life.
I would recommend it to any single person trying to navigate the dating life while maintaining integrity.
Boundaries... .......2007-09-28
Well, if only my daughter would use it... then I would know if their advice works. Smile
AWESOME!!!!.......2007-07-15
HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!! After going through a divorce and finally at a place where I was ready to maybe date again, I read this book. What a thought provoking book! Where was this book when I was dating at 16yrs old??? This book helped me reflect where I had been and where I wanted to go. It provided such great insight and wisdom. This book helped me become emotionally healthy. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!!!
ALSO please check out the other books that Dr. Henry Cloud has written. His original "Boundary" book was integral in helping me deal with my Ex as well as my Ex-In-Laws. There is also a cd series available.
Great advice for safe dating/courting/friendships.......2007-04-11
This book was life changing. Coming out of an abusive situation which led to a divorce, I knew I needed help if I were ever to marry again! I figured that it was best to figure out why the abuse happened, as well as what I had done wrong in my choice of mate. This book was SO insightful that I wish it had been in print before my first marriage.
As it happens, I got into a dating relationship much sooner than I had expected. I had figured that I needed at LEAST 2 years to regroup before even planning to begin dating again. "Fate" had other plans. I got into a very bizarre and abusive dating relationship with a man who was unlike anyone I had ever known in that he manipulated me, lied, and had the gall to accuse me of trying to control him! Soon I began to feel those awful, trapped feelings from before.
I kept trying to step back and just slow things down (since he wanted to date me AND someone else at the same time and I happen to think one should be patient enough to date only one person at a time for the sake of other people's feelings). Part of the reason it felt so exhausting was the way he would talk about really wanting to marry me and then in the next breath tell me about a date he planned with the other gal he was just starting to see. When I challenged him about the hypocrisy and cruelty of playing with my feelings, he would accuse me of being controlling. When I tried to just be "coffee friends" until he decided how he felt about the other gal, he would accuse me of being controlling and not wanting the best for his son and himself. God had to finally wrest him away from me by having him dump me without telling me and then find out in a month or so that he was planning to marry yet a different gal in 4 months. Praise God for His mercy AND for THIS BOOK!
After the fact I read this book and it was like a bolt of lightning sending me back to reality. NO, it hadn't been wrong for me to tell him how I only felt comfortable dating one person at a time and only dating people who felt the same way. YES, I had been right to be bothered by the "little" lies he told me about his whereabouts. And YES, I was really wrong to have felt so desperate that I was so unattractive and getting old so fast (at 44--LOL) that I was not taking the time to think things through and to insist on an equal footing in our relationship.
I have given a copy of this book to several people, including to my own handsome but single sons:) One of them only barely escaped from a very controlling girl when she began to press him to change his college plans and get married a year early, before graduating from college and before having a very clear idea of what first job he wanted to pursue! He feels SO free having applied the principles of this book.
My story has a happy ending in that several months after the end of that nutty relationship I met a very honest, polite, considerate, generous, kind, affectionate, hard working man who just adores me:) It was a whirlwind romance, but the RIGHT kind. We are coming up on our 4th wedding anniversary and the 5th anniversary of our first email and first date. God is good and this book is the kind of great advice one would hope to get from BOTH one's mother and father (if one were smart enough to LISTEN to them--LOL).
I recommend this as essential, insightful reading for guys and gals from age 12 to age 100! If you follow these guidelines I can almost guarentee that you will NEVER get yourself into another abusive relationship. Just make sure that YOU are the same kind of person that the book discusses so that you may bless your date as well as he/she may bless you! Happy dating:)
This is ALSO a great book for picking out your friends! These authors have written several other great books such as Changes That Heal, Boundaries, Boundaries in Marriage, Boundaries With Children, and a book which I think is called 12 Things That Can Drive You Crazy. God bless you!
Book Description
Based on the best-selling, award-winning book by Drs. Cloud and Townsend, this is a psychological survival manual that will give you biblically based answers to questions you have about setting and maintaining boundaries.
Customer Reviews:
more info please.......2007-09-22
I received an miniature version of this book. Was not aware that that was what it was. I emailed them, and never heard back. I then looked up the order and it does say that. My bad
Boundries Wookbook.......2007-08-09
Perfect condition and arrived ahead of schedule. Thank you!! Will do business again!
Has nothing to do with real psychology.......2007-05-30
I am a psychologist, and am writing this review as a good-natured warning to consumers to be informed. Certain authors pretend to be spokespersons for psychology who are actually anything but, and who (in this case) seem to actually know very little about the study of psychology. Boundaries, a bestseller, has absolutely nothing to do whatsoever at all with sound clinical practice. It is nothing but Christian evangelism and apologetics. It references no studies, and has no research or evidence to back its claims. It is simply a book that tries to use the Bible and a narrow interpretation of Christianity to advance a certain religious viewpoint. It is silly fluff that might make someone of faith feel warm and fuzzy for awhile, but is not likely to instigate any important behavioral change or substantive and meaningful improvement. If this is what you are looking for, then more power to you. But beware, if you are actually looking for what REAL psychology (the science of clinical psychology) has to say about the importance of setting boundaries in your personal, familial, and professional life, as well as evidence-based suggestions on how best to do it, then it would be best to avoid this touchy-feely, religious propaganda. All you'll find here is nebulous vacuity, such as when the authors tell us that God respects our boundaries by not doing our work for us. Such passages least allowed me to enjoy this book as unintentional high comedy. This book is irresponsible nonsense all around.
Boundaries.......2007-05-13
It was a religious based book. I wasnt exactly looking for faith based products. Rather I was looking for psychologically/parenting oriented book
Boundaries Workbook.......2007-05-12
Great workbook to go with my Boundaries book. This is a really good program for those who allow themselves to be taken advantage of. How to set boundaries and not overstep personal capabilities.
Book Description
A noted clinical psychologist, speaker, and radio host, Dr. Henry Cloud is ready to break out to a whole new audience with this book that explains the central importance of character and integrity in success—and how you can develop yours.
Customer Reviews:
An exercise in well intentioned mediocrity.......2007-10-02
First things first, Henry Cloud deserves praise for putting the subject of Integrity on the table. Integrity, or as our grandparents called it, Character, seems to have acquired an almost quaint, musty old time patina of days gone by.
Nothing could be further from the truth. In contemporary language, the central failing of our age is what clinical psychologists call Character Disorder. The endless litany of leadership breakdowns, the Enrons, the WorldComs, ad infinitum, the narcissistic exhibitionism of reality TV, the oily relativism of modern politics, are all manifestations of the Character Disordered personality.
This stands in contrast to the preceding generation which seems to have labored greatly under the weight of excess repression and neurotic anxiety. The Baby Boom in its impatience decided that "repression" was a blanket social ill, and all that need be done was remove the repression and by an unspecified magic, an inner goodness would be liberated.
In this philosophical adventure, the Baby Boom generation was terribly misguided, and then swerved in the opposing direction with a velvet fascism of their own design, Political Correctness. But neither the cult of the liberated self nor the shaming of the compliant self would lead to a resolved state of Character.
The reason for this is that the concept of Character rests on the idea of being tested by adversity. We wanted Character minus the adversity, resolution with challenge, the bargain basement Hero's Journey, and then we'd "put lipstick on the pig" and pretend we'd had some great Soul shaping life adventure.
Here I wish Dr. Cloud had delineated his subject with more brimstone and less soft soap. As timely as his book is, and as welcome as it is, and as useful as I am sure it will be until something more gripping hits the shelves, it still comes across as something of a bland scoutmaster's talk to the boys around the campfire.
Integrity.......2007-07-12
Excellent reading! You don't want to put it down. Down to earth principals for everyone. It should be read by all Management and they should encourage employees to read.
Theory meets practice.......2007-07-05
This is rare book in terms of solid theoretical insight into human behavior, coming essentially from Dr Cloud's extensive experience as a clinical psychologist combined with analysis and inference drawn from his consulting experience with business leaders and CEOs.
The introductory chapters however lack the punch and clarity on what the book is about does not emerge initially. This is perhaps because in my opinion, the approach and definition of the topic of integrity of character is radically new and takes some time to understand. The definition that integrity is much beyond and higher than just honesty and ethics and is about the courage to meet the demands of reality is difficult to comprehend at the beginning. Thereafter the book devotes one part each to the six dimensions of integrity - Establishing trust, Orientation toward reality, Getting results, Embracing the negative, Orientation toward increase and Orientation toward transcendence. Each of these facets as I like to call are like the sides of a hexagon; equally important to create the whole.
The depth of discussions of each of the six dimensions is accompanied by actual case studies and quotes from some of the best business books. In the part devoted to Establishing Trust, Dr Cloud narrates a situation in which a CEO completely fails to convince his people on the benefits of a merger. In fact the meeting intended to get the buy-in of the folks turns counter productive. The CEO was talking, but not communicating. He failed to empathize to some of the genuine concerns of the people thereby ending up alienating the team.
In the chapter `In touch with reality" Dr Cloud starts with the story of the CEO of a dog food company who obstinately tries all possible ways to increase the sales of the company's product except in finding out what his ultimate customers really want. When finally explained to the CEO by an employee "Sir... the dogs don't like it", reality finally dawns. Dogs bark, but reality bites!
In many chapters I found commonality in inferences to CEOs' achieving corporate results and to success of marriages. Perhaps this is a reflection of Dr Cloud's typical mix of clientele.
The six dimensions are well sequenced and are interrelated. Ignorance or failure of one dimension can lead to overall nonperformance explains Dr Cloud. The "gap" in a person who lacks the wholeness of character is bound to result in failure in three specific ways and to quote from the book (page 38):
1. Hitting performance ceiling that is much lower than ones aptitude
2. Hitting an obstacle or situation that derails you
3. Reaching great success only to self destruct and lose it all.
This book was presented to me by a colleague. While I thank him for the wonderful gift, trust me, I loved it and shall do my best to put it into practice to fill in my gaps.
A Really Good Book that will help you tremendously!.......2007-04-24
In my view some of the reviews are a bit hyped up. One is far too negative. This is a really good book aimed at bringing up the integrity factor for corporate leaders. We all know this is a problem.
I think Dr. Cloud has offered up a number of great concepts in a very readable form that will help many CEO's 'get it'. Many of his illustrations bring a sense of healthy reflection and conviction to the reader. Many (but not all) of his illustrations feed the concept he is making well. I found myself agreeing with him because of the pure logic of his points (over and over).
A few problems some of my buddies pointed out with this book are:
He has redefined the word integrity to include a lot more than the word normally means. The problem with this is that many readers will tend to forget his nuanced definition over time and therefore may forget what he is saying they need to do. Whenever someone takes a common word and expands it's definition to mean more than the dictionaries give for that word, we risk cultivating a short term memory of the concepts given.
For myself, I think I found nagging questions left unanswered in my mind.
How does he know these are the keys? What has research shown? What are the real priorities of a great or successful leader?
I think the research I am aware of points to different factors, and this is why I was a little unconvinced that he has hit on 'the key' for success. One can have integrity and still not be a great leader. Leadership and integrity are two different things. To bring success to a corporate organization requires more than integrity. It requires inspiring and equipping leadership. This is the 'inspirational factor'. Hasn't research proven these are keys that cannot be overlooked for success? I think so. I think that integrity in the soul of a powerful leader then becomes inspiring, partially because of the integrity, but also because of the leadership and competence of the leader.
So I found myself asking the question...why has he chosen these things. He says that he chose them because they occured to him in a conversation. That was unconvincing for me. Now the points he makes seem really important, but how do we know that they are really the keys for success that he claims they are? Surely some studies could be developed to bear this theory out or to show if it needs adjusting. Having said all this, Integrity is a really good book. It's packed with great points and will help you tremendously.
So I would suggest that this book be read as it really is, a proposal on what we need to bear in mind for success in our ventures. With that in mind, I think this book is very helpful, it is very creative and it is fun to read. He challenges us in six essential areas that all feed into integrity in one way or another. One of his concepts is that success requires us to finish well. Another one is that we must connect well with others and gain their trust. The intrinsic logical quality of the points is as solid as it can get. This book is also packed with a steady stream of great illustrations. If you are a reader who loves illustrations, you will absolutely love this book.
I think this book is good for owners, presidents of corporations or managers of people in various settings.
I highly recommend Integrity for developing great leadership talent in churches as well. There are a lot of great ideas in this book that any trainer of leaders can use. I hope you enjoy it thoroughly. I certainly have.
Required Reading for Recruiters, Hiring Managers and Human Resources -- Crisis-Resistant Personality Traits .......2007-04-04
Your candidate may have the skills and experience to succeed -- but do they possess the character traits to rise above times of crisis? I've seen enough "can't miss candidates" crash and burn to be skeptical. However, this book provided clarity on many a bad hiring decision I've made in the past, as well as how unlikely stars can emerge in "interesting times". It won't stop me from ever making a poor personnel decision, but I'm certainly better armed to assess the intangible traits that can make or break job performance in changing times -- whether the change signals crisis or success.
Book Description
Finding safe people provides the foundation for building healthy, lasting relationships. Here's how to identify safe people.
Customer Reviews:
One of the best books I've ever read.......2007-07-18
This book is one of the best books I've ever read on why I was attracting unsafe people and how to find safe ones and the importance of evaluating character.
The first story was amazing since I think I dated that very girl Dr. Townsend wrote about. The girl that says one thing and then does another. On the next page, they discuss their concern when college kids tell them they want a Christian spouse who is spiritual, religious, and funny. It concerns them, because when people come for marriage counseling, those aren't the reasons, but rather character issues like listening, working too much, and not being attentive to each other.
The characteristcs of unsafe people next provides a great way to evaluate the people in your life.
Next, they discuss why you are choosing unsafe people. It really cuts to the nitty gritty of your past. They then go through a number of false solutions that a lot of us attempt, including doing too much and giving to others. I know I can be a perfectionist sometimes, causing me to reject potentially safe people, filling the void with unsafe ones.
I really appreciated the next sections pointing out that safe people are everywhere. It says that we can learn OUR unsafe people through our safe people who will tell us.
Finally, the last chapter, Repair or Replace. They discuss how to mend a broken relationship, though those steps have never worked for me. But they sound nice to me.
As a person with many friends in their twenties, I see a lot of people who do not have enough safe people in their lives, causing them to make poor choices. I recommend this book as much as possible to them.
EVERYONE needs to read this book!.......2007-06-19
This is my 2nd book written by Dr Henry Cloud and its just as excellent at the other (boundaries in marriage). This book is NOT for persons in dangerous relationships anymore than an asprin will help your broken bones.
However, this book WILL help you reconnect with the basic fundamental idea that society has been drilling out of us since we were small.. We all really DO NEED PEOPLE in our lives. Self sufficiency is not what God had in mind for us. He built us to need eachothers company/attention/love/time and some very unhappy things happen inside us when we don't get that from others. This book helps identify how that can effect us and shows us how to find people who are safe to share who we are. This book is for you and for me.
opened my eyes.......2007-06-08
Safe People was given to me by my therapist,because there are people in my life who are not safe for me.I suffer from depression and anxiety so the book helped me look at myself and identify the qualities that me and others around me possess. not quite as good as Boundaries but close.
Safe People Workbook.......2007-02-12
This workbook helps you to personalized the material found in the book Safe People. It helps you to learn valuable life skills.
Revealing.......2007-01-09
This book is revealing both about yourself and others. Safe people are in the world and in the church, but so are unsafe people. It helped me identify why I kept repeating the same mistakes and how to enjoy healthy relationships.
Book Description
This book focuses on four developmental tasks -- bonding to others, separating from others, integrating good and bad in our lives, and taking charge of our lives -- that all of us must accomplish to heal our inner pain and to enable us to function and grow emotionally and spiritually.
Customer Reviews:
Changes that Heal.......2007-09-10
Not only is the delivery quick; product is in excellent condition. Always try Amazon first!!
let's get real.......2007-04-01
I have read many books by Cloud & Townsend prior to this book-- How to Get a Date Worth Keeping, Boundaries, Boundaries in Dating, Safe People, and Nine Things You Simply Must Do: To Succeed in Love and Life. I read Changes that Heal in little bites-- usually no more than 30 minutes worth before bed each night. It touched on things I had never thought before, supported ideas explored in previous books, and brought a lot to the light. I learned a WHOLE lot about myself as I read this and processed it. And the beauty of it all, is that it was very direct, to the point, and calls you out on your issues without a hint of condemnation. I was challenged in areas no one had ever asked me to be accountable in and I was freed from condemnation (my own and others) in other areas. My "symptoms" make sense now because I am beginning to get to the roots of the issues. The wisdom and insight of these two men along with their genuine commitment to see people reconciled in all areas has been a great blessing to me.
Changes that Heal.......2007-03-12
I have passed it out and have been using it for some teaching.
Anyone needed a healing, this is the book to read.
Changes That Heal more than you'll believe.......2007-01-21
All I can say about this book is, "Wow, why didn't I read this 25 years ago. It would have made all the difference in the world!"
If you want real straight-forward answers to why you can's say, 'no' or why you're suffering from depression then you'll find them here. You'll also find solutions and comfort in the fact that your issues can be overcome.
I recommend this to everyone!
Excellent.......2007-01-17
This book is somewhat of a repeat of "Boundaries", by the same authors, but is very good reading if you are interested in what causes people to have problems in life. It would be good for counselors to use.
Amazon.com
Whether you're hoping to achieve personal and spiritual growth or are looking for guidance to help others, you'll find practical and proven wisdom in Drs. Henry Cloud and John Townsend's How People Grow: What the Bible Reveals About Personal Growth. Starting with the premise that all growth is spiritual growth, the authors then expound on the concept. Cloud postulates that we spend too much time focusing on problems, rather than on root issues. "We are not just to help others 'feel better' or relate better or perform better," writes Cloud. Rather, he says, people must get back into a relationship with God. With this in mind, there's a brief lesson in theology ("the 'Big Picture'"), then a look at topics such as acceptance, forgiveness, obedience, and suffering. The authors have impressive credentials: they are cofounders of Cloud-Townsend Clinic, cohosts of the nationally broadcast New Life Live radio program, and Gold Medallion winners for the bestselling Boundaries. Boxed summaries of important concepts for growth facilitators, charts, counseling anecdotes, and lots of bullet-pointed text make the content accessible. Professional and lay readers will both find biblically based tools here for personal growth and guiding others. --Cindy Crosby
Book Description
How People Grow reveals why all growth is spiritual growth and how you can grow in ways you never thought possible. Unpacking the practical and passionate theology that forms the backbone of their counseling, Drs. Henry Cloud and John Townsend shatter popular misconceptions about how God operates to reveal how growth really happens.
Customer Reviews:
Only for the brave.......2007-03-03
Resisting easy fix-its and letting God search the heart is only for the brave. But, if you are willing to face truth no matter what the cost, so that God may change you with it, ask God to use this book to produce the kind of growth that will create a transformed emotional and spiritual legacy in you and your descendants.
Growing Up.......2007-01-04
It has been an excellent study for me. It raises questions I had not thought about and attitudes I didn't realize I could be harboring. It was an excellent study guide for me.
Important reference work.......2005-07-21
How People Grow is an easily accessible, Biblically-centered, psychologically-deep, and thorough overview of the growth process. I have read through this book twice and refer to it sporadically to refresh my memory on various parts of the growth process and, in my work with college students, urge them to read the book. I have found that living out and sharing its insights has helped me in every area of life, from becoming a more effective evangelist to developing stronger work habits. My main challenge in reading it is owning up to how misguided my understanding of the growth process has been, how I have subsequently misled others, repenting of these mistakes, and seeking to think and live differently in the future. It is a book that speaks to deep issues in a grace-filled but challenging way.
Insightful viewpoint, very interesting.......2004-12-28
This book can be summarized as a Biblical based approach to understanding personal growth and how that relates to spiritual growth. Two psychologists, Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend examine the personal growth process and point out how that process is found within the pages of the Bible. With that personal growth process as the starting point they then show how personal growth is in fact spiritual growth. This is one of the best books on personal growth that I have read. How People Grow is highly recommended to anyone seeking to change their life, get out of the rut of stagnation, or move to a happier place in their life. It is also recommended to Christian counselors, Pastoral counselors, and others involved with helping people.
Excellent resource!.......2004-02-15
This book encouraged me and reminded me that God uses all things to work together for good, for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. The authors bring together their many years of psychiatric hospital experience and their theological training. An excellent resource for anyone seeking to understand themselves or those they love.
Book Description
Keys for establishing healthy boundaries--the bedrock of good relationships, maturity, safety, and growth for children and adults.
To help their children grow into healthy adults, parents need to teach them how to take responsibility for their behavior, their values, and their lives. The authors of the Gold Medallion Award-winning book Boundaries bring their biblically based principles to bear on the challenging task of child rearing, showing parents:
* how to bring control to an out-of-control family life
* how to set limits and still be loving parents
* how to define legitimate boundaries for the family
* how to instill in children a godly character
Download Description
Since the 1992 release of their Gold Medallion Award-winning book, Boundaries, Drs. Henry Cloud and John Townsend have heard these three questions rephrased thousands of times. As parents begin to realize the tremendous impact poor boundaries have had on their own lives, their concern naturally extends to their children. How can they help their sons and daughters form healthy boundaries that lead to well-rounded characters and successful adult lives? Now there are answers. Boundaries with Kids helps parents apply the Ten Laws of Boundaries (first described in Boundaries) to the challenges of raising children. In their popular, readable style, Cloud and Townsend help moms and dads make choices and develop a parenting approach that sees beyond the moment to the adults their children will become. For parents who want their kids to escape the struggles they themselves have experienced, here's an in-depth look at how to implement the preventive medicine of character development by establishing sound boundaries starting with the parents. Boundaries with Kids helps moms and dads learn how to (1) bring control to an out-of-control family life set limits and still be loving parents (2) define what legitimate boundaries are in the family (3) transfer what they are learning as parents to help their children develop healthy boundaries. Illustrating its points with numerous case studies and anecdotes, Boundaries with Kids gives parents the can-do guidance they need in order to model healthy boundaries for their kids. This book may well be the best investment parents will ever make into the lifelong welfare of their children.
Customer Reviews:
Great baby shower gift!.......2007-09-10
I wish someone had loved me enough to give this to me at my baby shower. This is a great book and wonderfully easy to read. OK maybe the baby shower is a bit early, but I would definitely recommend it for parents of toddlers and older. I ordered a copy for my best friend. I had always heard about respecting your kids so they'll respect you, but never the real "how to's". This book gives what you need.
An amazing book that will change the way you look at parenting........2007-08-22
For most parents, it is just anough to make it through. They are not looking at the long term and the fact that they are shaping the life of a future citizen of the world (and hopefully heaven). Many parents, even Christian ones, miss the mark in parenting because they forget that God teaches that discipline is a neccassary part for maturity. If children do not learn discipline at a young age, they will have a hard time coping with stress in the future, or dealing with people in general.
This book teaches you how to raise your child Biblically, and how to train them so that when they head out into the world they will not ultimate fail. This book tackles such subjects as attitudes of entitlement, how to teach your child to respect boundaries of others, and how to teach them how to deal with other children.
I have a read a lot of books, and few books have shed the light onto why so many people behave the way that they do today. So, if you have problems dealing with people and you want to understand the roots of it, or you have children (whether your own or ones you watch) then you should read this book. It will change the way that you view childr-rearing and will dramatically improve your results.
God Bless ~Amy
Just OK.......2007-06-27
I finished reading the book in no time. There are several interesting stories in this book. However, many opinions listed in this book are just common sense to me.
The Best Parenting Book Out.......2007-05-11
This is without a doubt the best parenting book I have ever read! I am a Pastor and a Foster Parent and have greatly benefitted by putting these principles into practice. I know if these principles work with kids who are troubled and come from broken homes, they will work with any children.
I especially appreciate the way the authors emphasize how teaching children boundaries when they are young will set them up for success as adults. They focus on the value of teaching children life lessons while the cost is low so they don't have to learn them as adults when the cost is so much greater. I would recommend this book to anyone with kids regardless of their age.
Deserves AT LEAST 6 stars! .......2007-04-21
This is by far the most amazing parenting book I have EVER read. I have a two year old and an infant and feel much better prepared to raise them to serve God in their lives.
I can't stop talking to my friends about how practical, simple, and easy-to-apply the principles of this book are - I'm reading the book again because it is so full of great information that I have to absorb it for a second time.
I do believe that this book has to be put into practice BEFORE a child reaches their teen years, simply because that is a time when children become adults and it could be more difficult to apply boundaries only if you have not started the boundaries when they were young. If your child is a teen already, this book might just frustrate you because it will make you wish you had started earlier...just to be honest.
Book Description
From David Mitchell, the Booker Prize nominee, award-winning writer and one of the featured authors in Granta’s “Best of Young British Novelists 2003” issue, comes his highly anticipated third novel, a work of mind-bending imagination and scope.
A reluctant voyager crossing the Pacific in 1850; a disinherited composer blagging a precarious livelihood in between-the-wars Belgium; a high-minded journalist in Governor Reagan’s California; a vanity publisher fleeing his gangland creditors; a genetically modified “dinery server” on death-row; and Zachry, a young Pacific Islander witnessing the nightfall of science and civilisation -- the narrators of
Cloud Atlas hear each other’s echoes down the corridor of history, and their destinies are changed in ways great and small.
In his captivating third novel, David Mitchell erases the boundaries of language, genre and time to offer a meditation on humanity’s dangerous will to power, and where it may lead us.
Customer Reviews:
A challenging but rewarding book.......2007-08-26
Truly original works of fiction are hard to find these days. David Mitchell has given us such a work. Most of what's out there is like candy, fun to take in and soon forgotten. Mitchell doesn't take such a low view of the reader. This is an extremely challenging work which will reward the reader willing to open his mind and take in the story on a deeper level than what's on the surface.
The book is structured like a Russian nesting doll. Each story is somehow interrelated with the story after it. There are six stories total here. Mitchell ends stories one through five abruptly, and then tells all of story six, and tells the ends of the rest of the stories five to one. It's a very unique structure, and it says something about Mitchell's abilities that he's able to make it work.
Each story is also totally different in terms of style. We begin with a Melvillean tale of the sea, proceed to an English rogue's story, then a hardboiled 70s pulp mystery, then the story of a contemporary degenerate English book publisher, forwarded to a dystopian scifi tale set in the near future, and finally a halting, odd narrative of a man living in a post apocalyptic Hawaii. Each story has a distinct narrative style and has little in common with the preceding story, save the link.
This book gets the reader thinking about many themes. The main theme is breaking free of the shackles life puts on us. Each narrator is somehow constrained, either by society or the government. It also explores the effect rules for the society have on the individual. There are a few other minor themes, but you really should read the book to find out what they are.
My only quibble with this was the sixth story. The narration was so stilted and disjointed that I found it tough to finish it. I ultimately did not, because it was so tough to get through. This is my own failing, and I will have to read it at some point in the near future. It's one of the many challenges Mitchell puts to the reader.
This is a masterful work, which is sure to reveal new truths with each reading.
Serendipity.......2007-08-02
My chief complaint with this book is the title. I was actually looking for "The Cloud Atlas" by Liam Callanan when I picked up this instead in the library, realized my mistake and read it anyway. What a knockout!
As other reviewers here say, the book features quite a welter of plot threads that take some time to weave into the fabric of a good story, but it's well worth the slight wait (my guess is you'll be hooked by the first page of chapter 3).
Yes, Mitchell does flex and flourish his dialects, but not to the point of distraction. And, yes, the book ends on a sci-fi note, but I wouldn't cast it as science fiction alone. It simply deals with human relationships that bridge time and anonymity...including the past and well into a speculative future. I found myself feeling more connected to humanity; not only to today's living cohort but also to yesterday's and tomorrow's. Now that's a trick.
Beautiful, Engaging and Funny.......2007-07-27
The author, at a reading in Philadelphia, admits to liking the structure
of this book because it makes it easier to serialize for magazine sales.
Good for him! Dickens wrote with that in mind and Mitchell is at least
as clever and a much better stylist to boot.
All the stories here-six tales, each with their own reprise-involve
improbable struggles against slightly mad circumstances. The comparison
to Murakami is unavoidable, but Mitchell is more concrete, less ethereal
and possessed of a certain sardonic wit that makes him unique.
Reading this book is not always easy, but the prose is seductive and
the stories will stay in your imagination.
--Lynn Hoffman, author of THE NEW SHORT COURSE IN WINE and
the novel bang BANG. ISBN 9781601640005
Great expectations of readers.......2007-07-23
Even after finishing the book I have a hard time telling friends what it's about. Too many details spoil the plot - suffice to say the individual six tales are subtly connected, though inherently separate, both in voice and substance. Perhaps the underlying message is that on one level or another, we are connected to the past and future of humanity.
The book demands a lot of its reader: we are asked to step inside the lives of very different personalities, via extremely different styles of writing. If you didn't like reading classic lit in school, or can't buy into sci-fi, you may have a problem with the overall story. It bothered me (in a good way) to be torn away from a character I'd just come to love, only to have to start over again with a new tale. Thankfully all stories are excellently told, and indirectly connected by the end (if you've read Stephen King's Dark Tower series and recognized the referrences to his other stories, then you get a rough idea of how these six tales are intertwined).
I particularly enjoyed the social commentary on a wide scale of subjects (from old age to potential downsides to consumer greed). My only criticism is that I would have loved to learn even more about some characters' fates. But perhaps that is the book's very charm, that it leaves you wanting more. It's definitely turned me on to Mitchell's other work.
Essentially a book of short stories.......2007-07-10
While I get that the 6 stories were supposed to be related, I found all the reincarnation babble incredibly cheesy compared to the rest of the writing, and found it tedious to have to stop the middle of one story, start another, then continue it much later and forget who was supposed to be who. I obligingly read the book in order though, expecting a payoff, but found not much reason for this style other than the reincarnation cutesiness. However, a couple of the stories were extremely well-written and enjoyable, the first one about Adam Ewing being the least so (what was that?? So boring compared to the rest of the book, I can't figure out why he would choose to begin and end his book with that). The centerpiece story, the one that is uninterrupted, is absolutely my favorite, it brought me near tears several times. I would read this book again, but I would just read each story uninterrupted and skip the first one.
Books:
- Captured by Your Kiss: Brides of the Bloodstone
- Centered Riding (A Trafalgar Square Farm Book)
- Christmas with Paula Deen: Recipes and Stories from My Favorite Holiday
- Club Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 3)
- Come the Spring (Clayborne Brothers)
- Computational Electrodynamics: The Finite-Difference Time-Domain Method, Third Edition
- Dinner with a Perfect Stranger: An Invitation Worth Considering
- Dragon of the Red Dawn (A Stepping Stone Book(TM))
- Flashman and the Angel of the Lord
- Gemstones (Smithsonian Handbooks)
Books Index
Books Home
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General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Boundaries Workbook
Boundaries with Kids
Boundaries in Marriage
Changes That Heal: How to Understand the Past to Ensure a Healthier Future
Safe People: How to Find Relationships That Are Good for You and Avoid Those That Aren't
