Stories have always been about us, serving as a mirror that reflects our deepest hopes and dreams, as well as our most significant dilemmas. In “Once Upon a Time: A Collection of Short Stories for Those Trying to Find Their Way Home,” retired clinical psychologist Samuel L. Blumenthal, Ph.D., encapsulates these notions with profound clarity and spiritual depth.<\/p>\n
Samuel Blumenthal’s eclectic background lends an exceptional voice to his writing. After coming to faith in Christ mid-life, and growing up in a Reform Jewish home in the South, he leverages his thirty years as a psychoanalytically-oriented psychologist to explore the inner workings of the mind and heart. His analysis of human emotions and spiritual queries is both profound and empathetic, making his stories resonate on multiple levels.<\/p>\n
The stories in this collection revolve around crucial themes\u2014Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration\u2014all viewed through the lens of God’s perfect love. Blumenthal encourages readers to slow down and listen closely to these tales, believing that stories carry deep-seated meanings that often go unnoticed. These themes not only guide the narrative but also aim to meet readers at their points of need, offering spiritual and emotional sustenance.<\/p>\n
Blumenthal asserts that stories can touch our hearts deeply, reminding us of God’s desire to be present in our lives. His stories offer readers the courage to delve deeper within themselves, understanding why they think and feel as they do, why they struggle as they do, and what can indeed redeem them. In offering this insight, “Once Upon a Time” isn’t just a collection of stories; it is a poignant guide to finding your way home, where one can be healthy and whole.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
“Stories have always been about us, a mirror in which we can see ourselves-our hopes and dreams, but also our greatest dilemmas.” In\u00a0Once Upon a Time: A Collection of Short Stories for Those Trying to Find Their Way Home,\u00a0<\/span>retired clinical psychologist Samuel L. Blumenthal, Ph.D. illustrates gospel truths on the themes of creation, fall, redemption, and restoration, all of which come into clearer focus through the lens of God’s perfect love.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Sam Blumenthal came to faith in Christ in mid-life, after growing up in a Reform Jewish home in the South. His thirty years as a psychoanalytically-oriented psychologist gives him a unique perspective on the inner workings of the mind and heart. He says, “Since the dawn of man, stories have been pregnant with meaning, much of which has gone unnoticed. But if you are willing to slow down and listen more closely, stories will meet you in the very places you need them and guide you home where you will be healthy and whole.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n He presents stories to touch hearts and remind us of just how much God desires to be present in our lives. These stories offer us courage to look deeper within ourselves to learn why we think and feel as we do, why we struggle as we do, and what can truly help and redeem us and enable us to find our way home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1810,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[52],"product_tag":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1808","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"product_cat-book","7":"desktop-align-left","8":"tablet-align-left","9":"mobile-align-left","11":"first","12":"instock","13":"taxable","14":"shipping-taxable","15":"purchasable","16":"product-type-simple"},"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/1808","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1808"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/1808\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2487,"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/1808\/revisions\/2487"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1810"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1808"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_brand?post=1808"},{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=1808"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abundance-books.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=1808"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}