Read and Share

It's been a while since I've done a review of Thomas Nelson books... I've had one for a while, Read and Share Stories about Jesus.  I'm pretty sure I've had this since before Oliver was born, but it could have possibly arrived shortly after just as well.  This is a large board book that has a short parable with a cartoon-style picture on each page.  There isn't a ton to write about this book since it is just short Bible stories accompanied by a picture, but I will say that it's for an older child.  I would say more of a 3-6 year old.  A two-year old might sit still if you could point out things in the picture for them to find or look for as you read, but it isn't as engaging as other books like this I've seen.

Voices of the Faithful

I had the opportunity to read Voices of the Faithful thanks to Thomas Nelson - and let me be the first to say that I don't do well with daily reading style books.  I just don't keep up the routine.  Even with Bible 365 - as often as I'd try, I would most times read several days at once, whether before it was 'due' or after to catch up. 

I really enjoyed this book - I've just about finished it so I've obviously not used it as a daily devotional -its intention, but the stories were short and it was a quick read - the perfect book to take to weekly doctor visits! :)

The neat thing about this book is that while it's 'by' Beth Moore (who doesn't just adore her?!), it's really just edited by her as the contributing authors are all missionaries.  The stories are from all over the world and share a depth that only someone 'in the field' could - some stories were easy to relate to and others not so much, but overall I liked most of the snippets.

This would be a great book to have around for those days when you don't really have time to sit and read for long periods of time, but you don't want a magazine either.  Perfect for keeping in the car waiting on children after school, in the bathroom (is that weird?!) - it would also be a great gift book as part of a basket of goodies!

'Big Red' Bible

Some time ago, I requested Thomas Nelson's 'Big Red' Children's Bible.  I took some time to flip through and read different sections as I wasn't familiar with the children's translation.  I loved that it was simple to read and understand, but was a little disappointed in the overall Bible as it was '3D' and holographic... but it was not really.  There were a few glittery pictures, but I'd imagined a little more in terms of images.  Baby boy has two children's Bible's - one from my friend Jill and another from his Great Aunt Jean, so this will be a great one for him to have when he's a little older.  I would really like to see this one made into a chronological form because I have so enjoyed my paperback chronological Bible - but that's something I'll have to keep an eye out for in the future.  For some reason the picture won't load, but here's a link to it on Amazon's site.

Best Children's Christmas Book - EVER

Pax won't be here for Christmas this year, but he will defintely be here for Christmas 2011! For several years I've said that I didn't want to 'do' Santa Claus. I don't like the materialism that Christmas has seemingly become and I don't want Pax to be caught up in the 'want' and the 'stuff.' I'll be the first to admit that Santa Claus still comes to visit me and I would be disappointed to learn that he wasn't coming anymore - childish? Maybe. I like the stuff. It's the way I've been groomed. But I don't want that for my child. I want him to want to give more away than he wants to have for himself.

As mom is a kindergarten teacher and spent more than 30 years involved in early childhood development and education, she's my go-to for books. She's helped grow my library of hardback children's books and she recently went through some books she had and gave us about 40lbs of books. As I was going through her stash, she questioned why I didn't want some of what used to be my favorite Christmas books. I turned them down becaues they focused on Santa. I just don't want that...

When Thomas Nelson listed The King's Christmas List as an available book - I wasted no time. It did not disappoint... it's about a little girl, Emma, who had just gotten a playhouse. She gets a letter from the King who invites her to His birthday party. She goes into her playhouse to bring the cake she and her mother made, grabs her favorite teddy bear, a shawl, and her dog (how much did I love that?!) and off she goes to the party...

Along the way, she meets a woman whose son is cold so Emma gives him her shawl. Later there is a little girl crying because she lost her teddy bear, Emma gives the girl her bear. When she gets to the party, she sees everyone giving gifts to one another and she wonders why no one has given a gift to the King. Shu-Shu (her dog, who talks...) runs up to the King to ask Him why and He explains that Emma is the only one who did give Him a gift...

Matthew 25:40, Whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me.

LOVE THIS BOOK! It's the most perfect Christmas book. I hope that we can teach Pax what Christmas is truly about and that he will be excited to flip through gift catalogs that provide chickens, goats, etc... to families in need. Or that he would want to do something for our friends in Uganda - David and Linda - and their family and our HAI friends. I hope that he understands that not all children have toys or houses.

My only complaint with this book is that there isn't a boy version.

One of my most favorite books ever is Falling Stars. It's out of print now, but it's roughly the same story minus the Christmas part. It's a beautiful story and The King's Christmas List is a wonderful, wonderful updated version.

Outlive Your Life

I read Crazy Love, The Hole in the Gospel, When Helping Hurts... so I was not planning to request Outlive Your Life - it just seemed redundant. But I am SO glad I did! I got my book late so I didn't get to finish it on the timeline I'd planned, but I LOVED it! It's by Max Lucado and it is awesome. The message is not new - it's about helping others and what we go through to make decisions on when and how we act (and react).

The main message is that ordinary people are the ones who change the world. Ordinary people. God does not call the equipped or qualified, He equips and qualifies the called. Outlive Your Life takes several examples of people who were called years ago, Peter, Jonah, and Moses for example, and compares their fears of following and leading to our fears.

I really thought this would be overkill, but I found myself underlining sentences and tagging pages... Such a great book! I also like that Max Lucado is donating profits of this book to World Vision.

One Hand, Two Hands

Is it too obvious that I've stopped reading adult books? Kidding... I've been accumulating children's books for years - every Christmas and Easter mom gives me hardback children's books. Back when I used to nanny, I had a family that had three children and they LOVED to read. Every night they were each allowed to choose one book. Well, before there were three they picked two each but when #3 came along it was just one. They would try to sneak more books though and I loved how much they enjoyed reading. It's always been a goal of mine for my children to be as excited about reading. As books are so expensive, I figured that I better start working on a collection early, so... when Thomas Nelson offered children's books, I decided I better jump on it!

This one is SO sweet! It's very similar to the last one, The Boy Who Changed the World, but it's geared more for pre-school aged children. It starts out with a little anatomy lesson on hands and how hands work and then goes into how little hands can help others. I'm really excited to read this one to Bino as it's one that I won't have to wait for him to grasp since it's so simple. And who knows, maybe he'll be write his own books about helping and giving one day! ;)

The Boy Who Changed the World

Thomas Nelson sent this book a few weeks ago and it's such a sweet story! It's about a little boy who learns how to help others. The author expands on that to show the ultimate effect of the little boy's kindness. It gets a little confusing as the story goes on because the characters are connected to one another so the first time I read it I was lost! That said, I doubt it really matters too much as most children won't really pay as much attention to that part. The story itself is beautiful and I love that I'll be able to read this to our sweet little boy next year!

A Hole in the what?

Recently, Thomas Nelson allowed me to review A Hole in the Gospel. Wow. It was not what I was expecting. I LOVED this book! I thought it would be just another, the Bible says this and this is why we should do it type books...

Instead, I was surprised by the part autobiography/personal growth and part expression of need. Not only that, it was AWESOME that at the end, there were actually things one could do to make a difference.

Written by Rich Stearns, President of World Vision, 100% of all profits benefit World Vision programs. This is definitely one of my favorite books!

Follow-up to Priceless

Check out this post from Children's HopeChest - it's about 10 minutes of video, but please watch!

Priceless

Have you heard of Tom Davis? He's the founder of Children's HopeChest and he's written a few books, including one I read a few months ago, Scared. His new book, Priceless, came out on June 1st and I couldn't wait to read it. Both books are about a photojournalist, Stuart Daniels, and things he experiences while on assignment. The first book, Scared, is about a young girl in Swaziland who is the head of the household, but Priceless is about the sex-trafficking industry in Russia.



Several years ago, I sponsored a girl, Masha, from Russia through a small NGO called Orphan Sponsorship International. Masha was 15 and I only sponsored her for a year because she started leaving the orphanage and hanging out with some rougher older kids in the area. Her sponsorship ended not too long after that.

Reading Priceless, I couldn't help but think of Masha and other girls in her orphanage. Tom Davis is an amazing author. He has a way with words that pulls you into the story and after reading Priceless, I was immediately ready to do something. Children's HopeChest has sponsorship opportunities for individuals interested and able to donate and make a connection with a child in need.

Parts of Priceless were ugly, sick and completely and utterly disgusting - but that is the truth for SO many young girls around the world - not just in Russia. I was sent this book by Tom Davis and his publishing company in exchange for an honest book review on my blog. If you read this book, I imagine that you too, will feel compelled to do something - even if it's only to learn more. Anne Jackson, a popular Christian blogger, traveled to Russia and Moldova with Tom Davis earlier this year. I encourage you to check out her posts from the trip. As the only female in the group, she writes a candid and sometimes creepy account of their experiences.

I'm going to find out if I can do a giveaway of this book, it was an option with the letter I received. If you're interested in that or just reading it, would you comment and let me know so that I can let them know if it's something my friends would like? Thanks!

In the meantime, if you're at the bookstore or happen to be shopping Amazon - BUY this book! I read it in just a few hours last Friday and couldn't put it down. It's an amazing story with so much truth woven into each page. You can read chapter one right here.

Also, be sure to check out the book's webite, She is Priceless and if you do NOTHING else, READ THIS POST.

Achoo!

Have you heard of Booksneeze? Let me just pass on this little blessing! I've been meaning to post about it forever and obviously just remembered I hadn't done it yet! A friend emailed me about a book and it reminded me I needed to post - so...

Here's the deal, Thomas Nelson Publishing company has a nifty little program that they call Booksneeze. You 'apply' and then get to select books to read - for FREE! All you have to do is blog about it and post a review on a third party's site.

Simple right? How can you NOT jump all over this? I've gotten a few books from them already. Not all of the books I post about are because of this program, typically I've noted in my posts that I got the book from Thomas Nelson. From here on out, I'll continue to do that when it's a book from Booksneeze. Some I've really loved. I loooooove to read so this is a great program. Have you clicked yet?

What are you waiting for? Do it! I requested A Hole in the Gospel - anyone up for an unofficial book club?

If I Could Ask God Anything

I blog for many reasons, but one reason is that it helps me focus. Odd perhaps, but it works for me. I've shared a lot of my spiritual journey here and when Thomas Nelson had this book available through their book review program, I jumped at the chance to read through this one. It's target audience is children, but I've found that parts of the Bible can be pretty difficult to understand and I keep a children's Bible on my bookshelf for those times.

This book was really neat - a lot of the answers were presented in a way that everyone can understand. Many were basic and simple while others took a while to read through. All in all, it was a nice break down and I think it would be useful for someone who enjoys teaching others about Jesus and Christianity. Should you rush out to get it? Probably not, but it may make a nice reference item to keep on the shelf.

I think my next book will be A Hole in the Gospel. I've been wanting to read it and it's finally out in paperback!

What are you reading???

Take Your Best Shot

I finally finished Take Your Best Shot - it was so sweet! It's about a young boy who learns about poverty through child sponsorship (via World Vision). After I got used to his reflections, "back when I was eight...," I was finally able to dive into the story - I will say, I was surprised at how well organized the book is considering the author is so young, but it was written much better than I'd imagined before I started it.

Basically, Austin (the author) watches a video about a little girl living in poverty and his family ends up sponsoring a little boy in Uganda. Austin visits and well, I won't tell you everything in case you want to read it - but he is able to make some amazing dreams happen for children in Africa.

If anyone has kids around middle-school aged, this would be a GREAT book for them to read. I could completely see this book being used for homeschoolers - there are literally dozens of projects that come to mind. Austin is 9-years old when he does a lot of the things in the book and I think it is totally inspiring for other children.

It took me a while to read this since there were other more "adult" type books that I'd been trying to get through, but I'm glad I read this as it was a pretty good book, and an easy read. I really loved that there were questions following the chapters and scripture that corresponded with some of the lessons Austin learned. It was nice and while the questions were simple, they were great because it did make me think more about the topics he presented.

Check it out! If you'd like my copy, let me know! :)

Books

I've been reading a lot lately.

Recently, a friend told me about this book:

It arrived on Christmas Eve so I've not opened it yet, but it's in the queue to be read.

While on christianbook.com a couple of weeks ago, I found this book:

The author, Kelly Minter, also wrote a Bible study that goes along with the book. I actually thought I was buying the Bible study, but realized I goofed when I opened the box. Oh well! I'd printed the first week of the Bible study from the website and wow - it's good! I love the format too, it makes me wish my Bible study girls were in my living room!

I don't remember who recommended this book, but it's become one of my favorites. I feel like I'm always falling asleep during my prayers or I forget to pray for things. Not only does this book talk about those things, it takes it a step further and has some great insight. I'm reading it slowly, chapter by chapter instead of all at once.

Chandler got this book for me for Christmas this year:

I told him I felt like I needed a little guidance in the cooking department and that every woman has this book. :) I hope he's not expecting much now.... I can bake but I'm no dinner chef!

When my sweet friend and her MIL surprised me with this book, all I wanted to do was read it! We don't use the Bible much in church, or at home really - so I was a little lost. It had a lot of great footnotes, but I still needed a little more help! I found this book:

So far, so good! I love the pages and the additional insight it offers with photographs. The more I read my Bible though, the more I realized that even the NIV was a little too much for me. I got a copy (tiny!) of The Message and started reading from the beginning. I paralleled with my NIV Bible and have really been enjoying the learning. I was hoping to finish by the end of the year, but I don't think that will happen. It will be close! I need to read Isaiah, Lamentations, and Ezekial - and all of the new testament. It's possible.... :)

Mom surprised me with this on Christmas Eve:

I'd mentioned that I was looking through it during one of our trips to the bookstore and she got it for me! Chandler thinks I'm crazy for the number of Bibles I now have... but I like that this one poses questions after some of the readings. It's challenging and I like that it makes me think. I don't always understand what I read and the questions often get my attention and I realize the deeper meaning of what I just read.

About that collection...

When I started reading the Bible through, confused is not even the word I'd go for... I had no idea how much was repeated. Someone suggested that I read a chronological version. What? They have that? Yep indeed. So, I found a cheap paperback copy and I'll start on Friday.

I'm really lucky that our insurance company has points we can earn by logging health and wellness activities. So far, I've used all of my points to order books from Amazon.

These are just a few of my current books. I have another stack that consists of some novels, other nonfiction, and then a stack of magazines that date back to August that I still haven't gotten around to reading. Can one be a stay at home reader? I could write some mad reviews!

What books are you reading?

Note to self

Half of the year has come and gone... and as I approach the one year mark of blogging [again], I find myself reflecting on the purpose of my blog. It has sort of evolved from personal, deep, meaningful thoughts to every day fun and randomness (which is totally okay!).

Looking back, I want to try and maintain the purpose of this blog. For my own sake. That said, it's no secret that I've wrestled a bit with my faith over the past few years. I've always considered myself to be a "Christian," but until last year, when I really started to feel without, I really had no idea what being a Christian really meant. I've mentioned before (pardon that middle hiking-with-dogs post, not sure why that filtered in the search) that I was reading a book, Crazy Love. It has truly changed my life. Well, that and some help from Beth Moore (who doesn't love her?!). And then there were some special friends along the way...

All of this to remind myself of why I started this blog. And because it was going to lead into a journal entry I wrote that I find myself going back to - frequently - pondering. But I think I'll save that for another post.

What difference do it make?

A few months ago, I read Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. It was a great book and renewed my desire to volunteer locally. I just finished this book yesterday and was probably a little over excited when I read in one of the chapters about the woman who developed Blessing Banks! Did you read my last post on here?! Had I read the "About Us" section on the website, I would have been expecting this, but I didn't. I admit that I was so excited about the concept, I posted it to share with you all and didn't even do my research. Sorry friends! The good news, is that it's still a SUPER great wonderful thing and you should still totally buy one for a friend! Or you own child. :)

Back to the book, it also mentions a family that adopted a little boy from Ethiopia. Turns out, I remember visiting this family's blog because they had their blog designed by Nikki, the same person I who did mine!

All this to say, it's not only a small world, it's a tiny one! I truly do believe in six degrees of separation. Oh the stories I could tell you about how Hope Aid's directors in Uganda met with a man from Duke University while he was visiting Kampala and how this Rev. Duke Professor apparently knew our assistant rector very well! Or how in the middle of a rural Tanzanian village, I met up with two mzungus from Raleigh... but I digress.

What Difference Do It Make isn't a sequel or second book to the original story, however it is a follow up to the rest of the story. It chronicles some amazing tales of people who were motivated to do more after reading Same Kind of Different As Me. It is a quick read with short chapters and it's a great book to pass along to friends. While you wouldn't have to read the first book to understand the second, it would be good to do...

Same Kind of Different As Me is by far one of my favorite books.... check out both of them!

Fearless, Max Lucado

I just finished reading Max Lucado's new book, Fearless. It was awesome! Have I mentioned I hate flying? Planes = death trap. When I do fly, I'm ridiculous. Serious.

So anyway, I read Fearless hoping that it would help.

While I'm not "cured," I can certainly say that there are a lot folded pages and underlines!

Just to give you an idea of the book, here are some notes, things I underlined, scripture, etc... from the book.

-"It's not the absence of storms that sets us apart. It's whom we discover in the storm: an unstirred Christ."

-"Fear corrodes our confidence in God's goodness."
-"And it turns us into control freaks."
-"Fear, at its center, is a perceived loss of control."

(Err, does he know me?!)

-"The one statement he made more than any other was this: don't be afraid."
(this one really hit home for me...)

-A few scripture notes w/ regard for fear: Mt 9:2, Mt 6:25, Mt 10:1, Mt 14:27, Mt 10:28, Lk 12:32, John 14:1,3, John 14:27, Lk 24:38, Mt 17:7, Mt 8:26

-"Seek first the kingdom of safety, and you'll jump at every crack of the twig. But seek first his kingdom, and you will find it."

-"We cannot go where God is not. Look over your shoulder; that's God following you. Look into the storm; that's Christ coming toward you."

-"Feed your fears, and your faith will starve. Feed your faith and your fears will."

Each chapter takes readers through a different topic from "silly" fears, financial fears, economical fears, etc... Not all chapters were applicable to me but Max Lucado had so many great stories and scripture that it was easy to get something from each section. I plan to go back and read this book again using the Discussion Guide in the back. It appears that it could be for individual or group purposes. I could have finished this book in a couple of sittings but instead chose to read each chapter at a time so I could reflect on what was presented. Parts were deep. My book is thoroughly marked up!!!

Psalm 61:1

Hear my cry, Oh God; listen to my prayer.

Recently, I finished reading The Shack. Someone at work recommended it to me and after my Amazon.com order finally arrived, I was excited to dive right in... I'd read that it was a life-changing book from numerous reviews, but when I was about a fourth of the way through, I was beginning to wonder what all the hype was about. I kept reading... and reading... and then found myself folding down pages as I read through it. It wasn't until well into the second half of the book that I realized what it was that was so deep.

I should divulge that while I'm not completely naive, I am spiritually immature. Evan Almighty provided a defining moment in how I understood how God worked. Morgan Freeman (God) met with Steve Carell's (Evan Baxter) wife (in the movie) and commented that she had been praying for courage but she wasn't exercising it. She couldn't understand what he meant so he (He?) explained that courage wasn't something that would just show up like in the Wizard of Oz; if she prayed for courage then God would give her opportunities to use courage. Yes, it took a movie to teach me this. Was this ever addressed in church? As plainly as it was shown in that movie? Girlfriends Guide to God, anyone? I certainly could use it!

As I continued reading The Shack I found that it wasn't a book that I, personally, could read quickly. I needed time to reflect. Now, if you're a bit more advanced in the eh, spiritual department than I am, it may be a faster read for you, but I needed the time. Oh boy did I need the time.

While I would love to share all of the pages I marked, I'll try to exercise some restraint because it truly is a great book and I'm sure everyone gets something different from it. I'm also sure theologians may dispute some parts of it but it provided a remarkable way of how God works. Or at least one view on it.

Just like my pivotal Evan Almighty moment, I had a similar moment when the book discussed the "hierarchy" of relationships. We often hear that God should be first, then others, then self. Our city actually has a nonprofit called JOY (Jesus first, others second, yourself last). It's a soup kitchen, but I digress... I learned from the book that this, actually, is alllll wrong! Jesus, God, should be center. Not first. Center. Center means that everything surrounds Him. Makes sense. Why am I just now learning this? I'd like to think that this is how I conduct myself, but I can't be too sure. Can I?

Check it out -- it was a #1 New York Times Bestseller and there are over two million copies in print. I forget how many languages it's being translated into (or just "to?") but it's good enough to be translated in every language. My opinion of course...

Luxury or Necessity?

I've been reading a book called Hope Lives (by Amber Van Schooneveld) as part of a study group with some Compassion friends. Last night Amber compared the rich to the poor and discussed how in the US, our per capita is roughly around $37,000 while India's is $530 and Ethiopia's is $90. With the economy in shambles right now a lot of people are feeling their purse strings tighten. Mine included. I am not necessarily feeling it but I am conscious of what I'm spending more so than I was before. At any rate, when you look at global figures, just living in the US inflates your wealth by a ton.

When we look at how much money we spend helping others, how much does it really total. How much are we really giving to people who are less fortunate than us -- are we without? do we spend unnecessary cash? have we reclassified our luxuries into necessities?

Lately I've been trying not to eat out. It's hard as a single person. Cooking for one is easy to do but leftovers are only good for so long and let's just face it, no one wants to eat the same thing day after day. In a typical week I probably pick up food at least 5 times. Working two jobs makes it hard to find time to make much of anything at home. But when I read last night's section of the book and really thought about necessity, I've decided to stop eating out as an excuse. It truly is a luxury and I could take more steps to prepare -- after all, it's no surprise which nights I work. There is plenty of time to make something for later.

As Amber said, "I am the rich fool." I am the one who spends somewhat frivolously. It may not be on an oversized Lexus or a $800,000 house, but I do spend. I. Am. The. Rich. Fool. But I am also aware, which means I can change that. I can decide how and where to spend my money. As the Christmas season approaches I will chant this over and over. Maybe I will memorize Leviticus 27:30-32. Don't know what it says? Look it up!

Reflection

Fall is one of my most favorite seasons (yeah, I know there's only four) and I absolutely LOVE the trees and watching the leaves fall into big colorful piles all over the ground, and having my windows open when I'm home, and curling up in cozy pajamas and quilts...

I find myself reflecting upon life more during this time of year than any other. Maybe the cool weather stirs something inside, but it's when I become restless and eager to bounce onto all sorts of possiblities.

This year, I've realized that I seek something deeper inside myself. Maybe we have two mid-life crisises, one in the first half of life and one in the second half of life? Nevertheless, one thing I do know is that I am seeking to be nearer to God. Somehow in the last couple of years I have lost what I once had. I still pray, I still have faith, and I still believe, but I've lost my relationship. Caveman bought me a book called No Small Snakes and it's been nice reading someone else's journey. I'm also reading Hope Lives as part of a study group with some of my Compassion friends. Actually, one of the girls who works at Compassion wrote it (how neat is that?!).

As I journey to a place where I want to be, I've found comfort in the following verses:

-Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. (Hebrews 11:1)

-They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

-And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)