Reading, Writing & Pondering

Do you feel like you have way too much stuff and your house is always a mess? If so, then Decluttering at the Speed of Life by Dana K. White might be just what you need to help you through the mess to the light at the end of the room. Decluttering at the Speed of Life is written by someone who says she is a reluctant decluttering expert. White admits that she had to get her own house under control so they could live better lives. She shares what she learned in this book. It is divided into Four parts: Building a Decluttering Mind-set, Decluttering Room by Room, Helping Others Declutter, and Special Circumstances in Decluttering. She shares her story and she offers practical advice to work through your own clutter. I did a lot of cleaning out before moving to our current house three years ago, so I don't have a huge amount of clutter. I was just looking for some spring cleaning inspiration so I chose this book. I think it would be a great book if you are looking for help to ...

The Audacious Molly Bruno by Marie Armenia is the story of a real-life woman of prayer that the movie, War Room, was based on. The forward is written by War Room Director  Stephen Kendrick and he shares some background information on how he came to know this prayer warrior who was the basis for Miss Clara in the movie. The Audacious Molly Bruno is full of a prayer warrior's guidance for both praying and living the Christian life. Written by Molly Bruno's daughter, Armenia shares true-life stories of growing up under the watchful guidance and love of a true prayer warrior. Armenia shares a wealth of life lessons about witnessing, reading the Bible, being a wife, mom and daughter, everyday living and how to approach dying, among other lessons. This warm book is full of both stories and advice that could help you be a better prayer warrior. The back of the book contains an appendix that sums up all of the life lessons from Molly that are shared in the book. As a bonus, I was ...

If you aren't familiar with Bob Goff, he is a wonderful storyteller. I couldn't wait to read Everybody Always , his third book after Love Does. (Read the book to find out what happened to book two.) Everybody Always is a series of essays with Goff telling stories and revealing the lessons he learned from those stories. One of the great things about Goff is that he is areal. He doesn't hold back and just share the pretty parts of his life where he has never messed up. Goff shares it all. He also hope that you will take what he shares and start living your life with more love every day to every one--even the creepy people. One of the secrets Goff shares is the reminder that we are probably creepy to someone else too. I laughed and I cried as I read Goff's stories. I tried to stretch the book out but I ended up continuing to pick it back up and finishing it in about two sittings. It is that good! I encourage anyone and everyone to pick up a copy of Everybod...

La La Lovely: The Art of Finding Beauty in the Everyday by Trina McNeilly is a beautiful book filled with a series of essays full of stories and inspiration from McNeilly. There is beauty in both the design of this book and in the prose. La La Lovely is divided into three parts. Each section contains essays that encourage readers to find beauty among the broken parts of their lives. McNeilly shares hard places she went through and how she came to find beauty through the hard things with her faith in God. She also shares practical advice on decorating your home, finding your own style and creating your own kind of beauty where ever you are. I was not familiar with McNeilly's blog, La La Lovely before reading this book. I don't know if some of the material is also on the blog. I do know that I enjoyed this book so much more than I ever expected. La La Lovely isn't all fluff and pretty stuff as I thought it might be, although there is some of that. Instead, I appreci...

Are you struggling to enjoy life? Do you dread each day instead of looking forward to it? Joyce Meyer's new book, Living a Life You Love , offers solid advice to help ensure that you can truly declare, "I love the life God has given me!" Living a Life You Love is divided into three sections: Loving life begins with loving God, Love yourself and you will love your life, and Love other people and you will love your life. Each section is divided into chapters with practical advice for living life in our world today with a focus on loving God first. Meyer ends each chapter with a short summary of her key points in a small section called, "Don't Forget." I especially like that she sums up her key points to easily remember them and to reference them later. I always appreciate that Meyer is down to earth. Her books offer solid advice for living a better life in Christ based on the Word of God. Living a Life You Love is her latest book to do just that. If ...

The Great and Small Bible is truly a gorgeous little keepsake for Babies. It would make a precious Baby gift for any little one. The Great and Small Bible has several pages of inserts where you can write little notes for your baby that include: Baby's date of arrival and how you found out you were expecting, Baby's measurements and features; family tree information, your baby's favorite things; hopes, prayer and a special verse for your baby; and some of your baby's firsts. The illustrations are of various baby zoo animals and are so sweet. The Bible measures about about 6 1/2 inches by 4 /2 inches. It also contains the words of Christ in red and includes a presentation page in the front. This little Bible would make a truly wonderful baby gift. It comes in a box ready to wrap and present to the new little one. I highly recommend The Great and Small Bible . I received this Bible from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

I don't know about you, but there are days I wish someone would give me a letter of encouragement as I do this mothering thing. A Letter for Every Mother by Kara Lawler and Regan Long is a book full of encouraging letters for moms written by moms who understand the challenges of mothering. A Letter for Every Mother contains letters for moms of all ages and all types. Some of the letters include: To the Mom on the Sidelines at the Water Park, To the Mom of the Autistic Child (they nailed this one and had me in tears!), To Every First-Time Parent, Dear Tired Mother, To the Good Mom, the Bad Mom, the Supermom, and I'm Just a Mom.  One of the letters I especially wish I had had when I was a younger mom, For all of my fellow busy mothers. . .to be given the freedom to let go of all of the busy-ness that I felt I had to do to please every one. For the purposes of this review, I read A Letter for every Mother all the way through. These letters are so encouraging and uplifting...

The Way of Abundance is Ann Voskamp's new devotional book.  Sixty devotions in this gorgeous book offer sixty steps from feeling broken and weary to a life of abundance. Each reading is two to three pages long and includes both insights from Scripture and story's from Voskamp's life. At the end of each reading there are two questions for reflection. Voskamp's prose always draws me in as I read her reflections on her life and her insights from Scripture. Through these readings and the reflective questions at the end of each devotion, I am drawn to reflect on my own life and how to better serve those around me as I reflect the love of Jesus. I find the readings to be a good addition to my quiet time. I also like to use a journal to reflect on the questions at the end of each reading. I received a copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.