Reading, Writing & Pondering

Whatever is Lovely is a beautiful new adult coloring book  that mixes art time with your Quiet Time with God. This color book is geared towards peace and worship time with God. There are 46 coloring pages that all include a contemplative quote from an inspirational writer, beloved hymn, or Scripture, along with decoration  to color with the words. The pictures are all on the front of the page, which I think is different from other color books I have seen, and I like this format. The paper is thick and heavy. I used both colored pencils and markers for the two sample pages that I did and I had no problems with either one bleeding through the pages. With the blank backer pages, I also didn't have to worry about color accidentally transferring onto another picture if it wasn't quite dry.. To help set the mood for worship with creative coloring expression, Waterbrook has included a link to the Whatever Is Lovely playlist on Spotify. I did not have the Spotify app on my Ipad...

Max Lucado seeks to remind you that you are not alone on your anxious days or lonely days. If you are struggling, Lucado says "You are not alone. There is One who is always with you, always available, always caring." This 365-day devotional begins each week with a prayer and scripture, followed by six days of devotions and scripture for reflection.Each devotion is taken from one of Max Lucado's books: Before Amen; God's Story, Your Story; Outlive your life; Grace; Glory Days; For the Tough Times; On The Anvil; In the Manger; Pocket Prayers; and On Calvary's Hill.While it isn't all new material, these short readings contain some uplifting snippets from some of the best of Lucado's writing. I also like that these readings seem to work for our whole family as a family devotional, but our son is also a teenager. Even so, I think they are relatively short, uplifting and easy to relate to for various ages. They are also especially uplifting if you are goi...

Does this spark joy? Marie Kondo, author of the bestselling book, The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, says these four words have to power to change your mindset. By asking yourself which things, activities, and relationships spark joy, and which don't, you can mindfully change your life. This journal gives the writer a space to write a small bit each day on what sparks joy for them. Every year for the past 4 years, I have kept a gratitude journal. I have kept note of a few things each day that I am grateful for. As 2016 begins, I am excited to start this new journal for something different. . .For me, it sounds like I will be taking the gratitude journal up a notch. Marie Kondo says that if you are looking to make changes in your life, this journal can be used to help envision your ideal life. Ask yourself, what would make my job spark joy for me? What about my daily errands? My meals? My surroundings? According to Marie Kondo, "By imagining actual ways you can spark ...

The Oz Family Kitchen is a gorgeous, full colored cookbook full of delicious recipes for all types of eaters. One of the things I especially appreciate about this book is that Lisa shares how their family is made up of vegetarians, gluten free eaters, and meat eaters. In my own family, I sometimes struggle to make recipes that fit the bill to make us all happy as a meat-eater, a gluten/dairy free eater and another that is mostly vegetarian. It can be a challenge to make meals we all enjoy. Lisa shares how they make recipes and meals that can work for all of them. Lisa shares that she wrote this cookbook for families like theirs who are "trying to juggle healthy options with hectic lifestyles and varied eating styles." In the beginning of the book, Lisa shares how to create healthy meals and what types of things they cook.From shopping ideas to menu planning to actual cooking secrets, Lisa shares how she makes their meals work for them and how the reader can apply those p...

The Longevity Kitchen by Rebecca Katz with Mat Edelson is a beautiful cookbook chock full of healthy recipes. However, this book is more than a cookbook, it is a guide to many of the foods that are voted most likely to help you live longer.  The Longevity Kitchen starts out with three very important chapters for the reader to use before cooking. The first chapter offers a ton of information by taking a tour through your body and how to care for your gut/liver/kidneys, brain, heart, bones and muscles, immune system, respiratory system, circulatory system, nervous system and endocrine system. Don't let  that intimidate you as this book is user friendly and Katz and Edelson make this information easy for the reader to understand.The second chapter lists several of the most healthy foods along with their benefits. The last part of the chapter shares how to tie the body systems together with the foods in the recipes that are in the book to build up your body's health. Chapter...

When the War Room movie from the Kendrick Brothers came out, my family went the first weekend. I not only enjoyed the movie but I felt challenge to step up my prayer life once again. I have read other prayer books and prayed in the past, but I had become tired and discouraged from some recent stressful events in my life. The movie was a breath of fresh air for me. The Battle Plan for Prayer by Stephen and Alex Kendrick looked like a way to continue to add fresh air to my prayer life--and it has.  The Battle Plan for Prayer is one of the most comprehensive prayer books that I have ever read. I took my time and I didn't rush through this book. There is so much good information in this book that, from my point of view, it is best digested in small bites to remember it better. The Kendricks shared that their hope for the book is "that you not only experience the joys of answered prayer more fully, but that you'll get to know God more deeply and fellowship with Him more ...