Erik Kolbell – författare

In this hopeful book, Erik Kolbell, an insightful writer and caregiver, looks back through Scripture and finds that it reveals a God of second chances. The Bible is rich with words like re-conciliation, re-demption, re-vival, and re-surrection, and Kolbell eloquently explores one "re" word in every chapter, each pointing to a well-recognized biblical theme that speaks in its own way to how, when our spirits are weary, God gives us a second chance to deepen our lives of faith. Drawing from a wealth of biblical and contemporary illustrations, Kolbell offers comforting guidance to all spiritual seekers who yearn to find their way back to the sufficiency of God's love and gain the wisdom to know how to respond in return. This volume includes questions for discussion or reflection.

Challenging our expectations and forcing us to look anew at our reality, Erik Kolbell demonstrates how the eight pillars of the Beatitudes--meekness, empathy, righteousness, peace, persecution, purity, poverty, and simplicity--are still valuable codes of conduct for our individual and collective lives. In this engaging book, he masterfully shows the timeless value in these poetic and paradoxical words from Jesus and how they offer relief and direction in our all-too-confusing world.

"In When Your Life Is On Fire Erik Kolbell listens, provokes, and most of all, shares with us the enduring lessons and insights of life and faith as realized by a diverse population of thoughtful people. It's a town hall of the soul." -- Tom BrokawIf your life were on fire, what would be the one thing you save?Progressive minister and psychotherapist Erik Kolbell asks that question of 13 remarkable and unique individuals. The answers are provided by such notable people as journalist Jane Pauley, actor Alan Alda, and jazz impresario Regina Carter, as well as Brenda Berkman, a New York City firefighter who responded to the World Trade Center attacks of 9/11, and Don Lange, a U.S. Veteran severely injured in the Iraq war. The insights of these and other ordinary people put into extraordinary situations, will help all of us consider what it is that we value most in life.