Reading, Writing & Pondering

It is not easy task to live each day for Jesus and to walk the path of  Christian leadership in this world. Bobbie Houston shares wisdom that she has gleaned from living her life for Christ and encourages others to Stay the Path . Throughout Stay the Path , Houston draws on her forty years of ministry and encourages women (and men) to live a life of example and to remain true to their calling. Each chapter is packed with personal stories and Scripture, along with helpful advice, to live each day with boldness for Christ and to lead by example. Houston writes these words near the end of the book, "Keep your boots in the soil of the fields you are called to, keep your eyes on the dawn light of that approaching day and keep the flame of His love burning bright within." She also shares lyrics from Hillsong's praise songs within several chapters. If you are familiar with those lyrics, you can hear the music in your mind and the message sticks even better. It took me a l...

When Natalie and her husband got married, like many of us, they had a plan. However, after a few years, God showed them a new plan that was completely different than theirs. Natalie Gwyn shares how her and her husband doubled the size of their family through God's plan of adoption in Okayest Mom . Natalie Gwyn shares her family's story in Okayest Mom starting with when they received God's idea of adding to their family through adoption between her and her husband, and then sharing the idea with her two biological children, and finally sharing how they did indeed adopt four children from Ethiopia and how the early years of that adoption went for them. While this adventure is mostly shared through her eyes, at times she also shares details about this adventure from everyone's point of view throughout the book. She shares the details, the ups and the downs throughout the process. If a reader is looking to adopt, this would be a great book for them to read. Okayest M...

Do you struggle to get your children to eat their vegetables (like we do)? I can't guarantee that they will eat them after reading D inner for Dinos but you sure will have a fun time reading this new book from Tommy Nelson with your family! Dinner for Dinos is a rhyming board book geared for children ages four to eight. . .but honestly the rhyme is just plain fun for any age to listen to. The dino family starts out at the grocery dino-store and "rhymingly" works their way through dinner. The dino family makes meal time a lot of fun and learns how to use their manners and to eat healthy food, among other things. . .including eating their veggies. Dinner for Dinos was a lot of fun to read (over and over) with the rhyming story that was well-written. It is a book that any family with young children would enjoy reading together. It was just good clean fun and a great way to make your own dinner time fun. It is educational in the best way that the children won't ...

Has your path to motherhood looked different than the other women around you? While many women do have "normal" pregnancies, for some women, there can be challenges. Perhaps getting pregnant was an unexpected challenge. For others, things don't go as planned with the pregnancy resulting in miscarriage or other difficulties. Jamie Sumner in Unbound shares her journey to motherhood, which involved a lot of courage through unexpected challenges. Through her story, I believe other women can gain courage. Unbound is sort of a motherhood memoir of her story from trying to conceive to giving birth paired with women throughout the Bible. It is divided into four sections: The Wanting, The Waiting, The Getting and The Appreciating. She shares her story in detail but with beautiful prose as she and her husband struggled through infertility to having their child. It is a beautifully told story where she bares her heart and soul. Through her story she effortlessly tells the sto...

I often remember my dreams and I wonder what they mean. Maybe you do too? The Complete Guide to Dream Interpretation by Marsha Trimble Dunstan is a great tool for the Christian to use to interpret dreams. The Complete Guide to Dream Interpretation is part the author explaining how to interpret your dreams and part dreamer's dictionary to explain what common dream symbols mean. Dunstan explains that she has been studying and teaching others about dreams and interpretations for nearly two decades. She says that she sees her book as a tool that needs to be used correctly by  the reader through discernment, faith and a good relationship with the Holy Spirit. She shares common dream questions she has answered over the years, the steps to interpreting dreams and some example of types of dreams and their interpretations. I found The Complete Guide to Dream Interpretation to be an interesting book. I especially like that this book comes at the topic from a Christian angle since my...

Where Hope Begins by Catherine West starts out with Savannah Barrington in the middle of a messy, difficult life. Her world has been shaken when her husband of more than twenty years has an affair and leaves her. Life in their house feels so very lonely that she leaves for her parents' lake house in the Berkshires. Savannah becomes fast friends with the next door neighbors--an elderly woman with a lot of wisdom, her nephew, and his daughter. Through their friendship, Savannah learns that she is has a purpose and is worthy of God's love. Then, as life happens, Savannah must face challenges from the past and face all that the future holds. West deals with some tough issues in Where Hope Begins --adultery, a child's death, suicide--and the challenges of living with the results of those events. I don't want to share any spoilers in my review so I want to stop there. I did think she handled the subjects well. I read the book in one day. I giggled in a couple of places ...

Many women love perfume. . .and they try to select a perfume that fits their body and personality. Robin T. Smith in Perfumed Letters relates women's perfume to women's anointing from God. She uses the Bible to illustrate just how God creates each of us in our own scents to be pleasing to the Lord. Perfumed Letters is a series of short chapters, essays if you will, that relate perfume and fragrance to a Christian woman's life. Smith shares from the Bible and from her personal life through the book to help other women see how they can have a scent that draws others to Christ and is most pleasing to Him. At the end of each chapter, Smith offers a "reflection" section where she gives a few closing thoughts to remember and offers some questions to think about. As a whole, Perfumed Letters is an interesting book relating perfume and fragrance information that seems to be well-researched to the life of a Christian Woman. There is a lot of Scripture and a lot to ...

After more than 17 years of marriage, our marriage is in a good place, but I still enjoy an occasional marriage book. I found Fierce Marriage by Ryan and Selena Frederick to be a inspiring read and full of encouragement for couples to keep their marriage centered in Christ if they have been married awhile and to start with their marriage in Christ if they are newlyweds. Fierce Marriage starts out with the Fredericks sharing their personal story of their early marriage years. Then throughout the book they encourage couples through their story to keep the marriage covenant, to keep their marriage centered on Christ and what that means, to communicate and connect fully, to agree on how they spend their money and steward their resources, how to fight fairly and how to fight for their marriage. Each chapter in the book shares stories from Ryan and Selena with a little bit from each of their viewpoints. At the end of each chapter, are a few questions to ask and reflect on together. I...

From the time that Alex Seeley was young, she was told that she was "an accident." She also wore other labels that defined her in negative ways until she learned that through God she was Tailor Made . Seeley was born and raised in Australia. She shares her story throughout Tailor Made from the time she was young until now. She shares how God helped her see that the labels she grew up with--stupid, ugly, unsuccessful, an accident--were not the labels that God wanted her to wear. Instead, she shares how God helped her see that in His eyes she was His unique child and created in His glory.Through her story and her encouragement, she helps the reader to see that they are also uniquely created and special to God. I was also told lies about who I am that I believed. Honestly, sometimes I still struggle with those beliefs coming back to haunt me. Seeley's book is a good reminder to me that God does care and I am uniquely designed by Him. Tailor Made would be an encouragin...