Discover the honesty, humor, depth, and wisdom of the front porch in this inspirational masterpiece of soulful small-town stories, which has garnered widespread acclaim for Quaker writer Philip Gulley. Reminiscent of the stories of Jan Karon and Garrison Keillor, this collection of real-life tales grew outof essays Gulley wrote for the newsletter of the Quaker church he pastored inIndiana. Graced with a gentle style and deft simplicity, these stories powerfully conjure the little truths of everyday life.
Philip Gulley is gifted with the rare ability to convey the extraordinary moments and insights of ordinary people. Join thousands of satisfied readers on the front porch of this consummate American storyteller.

Front Porch Tales: Warm-Hearted Stories of Family, Faith, Laughter and Love

Gulley, Philip

Literature & Fiction

HarperOne

In the course of our lives, we discover the wisdom of Ecclesiastes -- for everything there is a season. No writer depicts the seasons of life like Philip Gulley, the bestselling author of Front Porch Tales and Hometown Tales, whose readers have found that a visit to his hometown is a balm to the soul. Now this master storyteller delights us with tender, often humorous stories that celebrate the seasons of divine grace in our sometimes turbulent lives.
Filled with a cast of loveable and quirky characters and punctuated with simple miracles, the truths of life in this small town speak with uncanny clarity to our own befuddled world. No matter where you live, no matter what your season, you are invited to come along for the journey to where all is in place under heaven.

For Everything a Season: Simple Musings on Living Well

Thousands of readers have fallen in love with acclaimed Quaker writer Philip Gulley's Home to Harmony, a charming novel of a small town with a kindly spirit whose endearing and eccentric residents are like old friends. In this new edition with a bonus chapter from its sequel, Just Shy of Harmony, readers will ponder the mysteries and miracles that make Harmony a place worth visiting again and again.
Written in a warm, down-home style, this novel chronicles the moving and humorous world of Quaker pastor Sam Gardner in his first year back in his hometown. Laugh and cry with Sam as he reflects on the quirks of human nature in such memorable vignettes as "The Aluminum Years," in which a bumbling Sam mulls over the proper aluminum item to give his wife for their tenth anniversary. In another unforgettable story, the church quilt mysteriously displays the image of Jesus, drawing throngs of the faithful to the remarkable "Shroud of Harmony." Through it all, Sam's love -- for Billy Bundle, the "World's Shortest Evangelist"; Dale Hinshaw, the narrowminded church elder who "knew just enough Scripture to be annoying, but not enough to be transformed"; and all the others -- shines through in a collection of stories that readers will treasure for years to come.

Home to Harmony

Religion & Spirituality

Christian Books & Bibles

In this sequel to his immensely popular bestseller Front Porch Tales, Quaker writer Philip Gulley envelops readers once again in a rare world of plainspoken and honest values. These tender stories of his life are gathered around the enduring themes of the great spiritual virtues: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Each story reminds us how we long for such virtues in a world sorely in need of the love and hope they bring.
With his folksy style and rustic ear, Gulley treats his readers to a great variety of personalities -- from the loveable to the eccentric -- who make small town life fascinating. Readers will discover a simpler way of life, where things are less complicated and folks care for one another and are willing to do what is right -- no matter the cost.

Hometown Tales: Recollections of Kindness, Peace and Joy

Master storyteller Philip Gulley returns to the winsome ways of Harmony, Indiana, the small Midwestern town that captured the hearts of readers in his acclaimed debut novel, Home to Harmony. Just Shy of Harmony follows the happenings of an eventful year spanning two Easters, in which Quaker pastor Sam Gardner and the members of his flock discover surprising answers to life's challenging mysteries.
Sam has an unexpected crisis of faith -- will he overcome it? Does the future of the church really lie with Pastor Jimmy of the Harmony Worship Center and sermons like "Ten Mutual Funds Jesus Would Die For"? Will Wayne Fleming resolve his conflicted love for the beautiful lawyer Deena Morrison, owner of The Legal Grounds Coffee Shop, where ten dollars buys you a cup of coffee and the answer to any two legal questions?
All the lovable Harmony characters are here, with all their homely charms. Readers will discover a secret illness, learn of a surprise lottery recipient, and laugh at the progress of Dale Hinshaw's ill-hatched Scripture-egg ministry. When Easter dawns, all will expect a miracle in Harmony.

Just Shy of Harmony (A Harmony Novel)

Contemporary

It's another bustling year in the lives of this quirky Quaker community. Dale Hinshaw is back and floating another of his crackpot ministry schemes-this time, quite literally, with his Salvation Balloons project. Pastor Sam Gardner's wife, Barbara, the 1977 Tenderloin Queen, wins a trip to the Caribbean and thinks she might just go without her workaholic husband. Deena Morrison struggles with being single and alone, while the Friendly Women's Committee strategizes on how they can "help" her. Jimmy Muldock has a secret only his mother knows, though the ever-curious Furnace Committee is bent on discovering it.
Throughout it all, three things are certain: the Friendly Women's Circle will make more noodles, Dale Hinshaw will push Sam Gardner to the end of his pastoral rope, and the good in human nature will just nudge out the bad.
Filled with master storyteller Philip Gulley's trademark humor and depth of insight, this wise, joyous novel will delight and satisfy both those who know and love Harmony and those who are just discovering it.

Signs and Wonders: A Harmony Novel

Humor & Satire

Pastor Sam Gardner is back in his fourth year serving the eccentric Quaker community of Harmony, Indiana, which continues to bustle with gossip, scandals, and small-town fervor. This year, the Sausage Queen is impeached after a shocking revelation, plunging the town into anarchy as her many and varied responsibilities go unmet. Dale Hinshaw gets his comeuppance when his wife, Dolores, hits the road, leaving Sam to cook Dale's food and do his laundry. With a new doctor in town, Deena Morrison's days of spinsterhood might be drawing to a close, while the Friendly Women's Circle beseeches the Lord for new kitchen cabinets.
Amidst the surprising and annoying struggles of his congregants, Sam's commitment is put to the test. As he sits in the empty meetinghouse on a snowy Sunday, Sam wrestles with what it means to faithfully preach the gospel to this community. He becomes even more endearing as he faithfully seeks to serve his quirky flock.
A masterful storyteller who peppers his narrative with profound spiritual truths in the most natural way, Gulley has created a fictional world that will quickly become a welcome refuge.

Life Goes on

Sam Gardner never dreamed he would be thanking God for Harmony's self-appointed general of the religious Right, Dale Hinshaw. God does indeed work in mysterious ways.
Amanda Hodge, who has been living with her Uncle Ellis and Aunt Miriam since her parents abandoned her years ago, now faces their return and their desire to be a part of her life again. Dale Hinshaw hovers on the brink of death, in dire need of a heart transplant The whole town is abuzz as the beautiful Deena Morrison marries the town's most eligible bachelor, Dr. Pierce. And in the midst of these triumphs and tragedies, Pastor Sam Gardner helps the people of Harmony negotiate the sometimes rocky road of family life, faith, and forgiveness.
Although Harmony's characters develop and grow with each novel, one thing remains constant -- Philip Gulley's ability to capture both the flavor of small-town America and the paradoxical beauty of our own humanity.

A Change of Heart: A Harmony Novel

Philip Gulley takes us to Harmony, Indiana, at Christmastime as inspiration strikes the inimitable Dale Hinshaw. Always looking for a way to increase the church's profit margins, Hinshaw brainstorms a progressive nativity scene that will involve the whole town, complete with a map like those for the Hollywood stars. Neither Pastor Sam Gardner nor the other members of the Harmony Friends meeting express any enthusiasm for this idea, but Dale is unstoppable. Meanwhile, Pastor Sam has his own concerns: he's having his annual argument with his wife, and he's worried that the four-slotted toaster he bought for her may be too lavish a gift.
Amidst the bustle of the season, the citizens of Harmony experience the simple joys and sometime loneliness that often go unseen. Sam comes to the realization that Dale, in his own misguided way, is only trying to draw meaning from the eternal story of Christmas. "In this unsettled world, it is good to have this steadiness -- the Christmas Eve service, the peal of the bell. . . .There is a holiness to memory, a sense of God's presence in these mangers of the mind. Which might explain why it is that the occasions that change the least are often the very occasions that change us the most."

Christmas in Harmony (A Harmony Novel)

United States

If God is love . . . Why are so many Christians fearful? Why do so many Church leaders sound hateful? Why does religion often create more pain than healing? What would it take for our world to become more gracious? In If Grace Is True, pastors Philip Gulley and James Mulholland revealed their belief that God will save every person. 
They now explore the implications of this belief and its power to change every area of our lives. They attempt to answer one question: If we took God's love seriously, what would our world look like? Gulley and Mulholland argue that what we believe is crucial and dramatically affects the way we live and interact in the world. 
Beliefs have power. The belief in a literal hell, where people suffer eternally, has often been used by the Church to justify hate and violence, which contradict what Jesus taught about love and grace. The authors present a new vision for our personal, religious, and corporate lives, exploring what our world would be like if we based our existence on the foundational truth that God loves every person. Gulley and Mulholland boldly address many controversial issues people in the pews have wondered about but churches have been unwilling to tackle. For too long, the Christian tradition has been steeped in negativity, exclusion, and judgment. Gulley and Mulholland usher us into a new era -- an age where grace and love are allowed to reign.

If God Is Love: Rediscovering Grace in an Ungracious World

Reference

Mulholland, James

Encyclopedias & Subject Guides

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