Guest Author - Terrie Lynn Bittner

Book: Exceptional Stories from the Lives of Early Apostles
Book: Memorable Christmas Stories
Author: compiled by Leon R. Hartshorne
Publisher: Spring Creek
Publication Date: 2004

It's getting colder and we're settling in for the holidays. This is the perfect time to curl up with a couple of good books filled with uplifting and heartwarming stories. Leon R. Hartshorn has compiled two wonderful books to keep you warm during the coldest winter days.
Memorable Christmas Stories offers more than fifty inspiring stories that can be shared in family devotionals, family home evenings, and church classes. Some are previously published and the book is a mixture of true and fictional stories. Whether you have too much or too little Christmas this year, the stories will help you keep your heart in the right place for the holiday.
What happens when a family discovers their neighbors' house on fire on Christmas Eve, and learns that all their Christmas has been destroyed? When the children suggest they give their entire Christmas to this family, a Christmas is born that will warm them more than any number of special gifts and foods.
What was the first Christmas in Utah like for the pioneers? There wasn't a store filled with goodies, and few families had the resources to pay for such a Christmas anyway. In fact, Christmas was a working day that year, and was instead celebrated spiritually on the Sabbath. Read the story from someone who was there.
When a rich man's Christmas is accidentally delivered to the home of a family who has none, Christmas miracles follow.
What do you give your children for Christmas when you have nothing at all? You give them the chance to take Christmas to the poor….and don't worry that you are poor yourself.
Miracles, joy, service, and the true spirit of Christmas…this is a book that belongs in your Christmas collection.

Exceptional Stories from the Lives of Early Apostles is a wonderful glimpse into the lives of our early church leaders. This book features a biographical sketch followed by a number of special stories for each apostle. Featured are: Melvin J. Ballard, Adam S. Bennion, George Q. Cannon, Rudger Clawson, Matthew Cowley, Jedediah M. Grant, Alonzo A. Hinckley, Anthony W. Ivins, Heber C. Kimball, Anthon H. Lund, Joseph F. Merrill, Henry D. Moyle, Orson Pratt, Parley P. Pratt, Franklin Dewey Richards, George A. Smith, Reed Smoot, James E. Talmage, Orson F. Whitney, John A. Widtsoe, and Brigham Young.

The stories are a mixture of miracles, inspiration, humor and insight that are perfect for devotionals, but which also make good reading on a quiet Sabbath afternoon. Enjoy the story of how Anthon H. Lund is chased by a woman with fire-tongs, a frightening event that leads to a surprising conclusion. Find out how Satan literally tried to shut down the work of the Logan temple. Read of Parley P. Pratt's miraculous cure of a blind woman. Experience the astonishing week when Heber C. Kimball baptized hundreds in a place believed to house the wickedest, most hard-hearted people in the region.

This is an exceptional collection of stories about exceptional men, some stories often told, and others new to most of us. It's the perfect gift for gospel teachers and anyone who needs a testimony-building reading experience.


Exceptional Stories from the Lives of Early Apostles