Reading, Writing & Pondering

We joke about it, but the reality is life in 2020 has been difficult for many of us. The Kissing Tree by Regina Jennings, Karen Witemeyer, Amanda Dykes and Nicole Deese is a book of four novellas written in such a way to take you away from the stress of today's world for awhile and to leave you with a happy ending sigh. The Kissing Tree begins with Broken Limbs, Mended Hearts by Regina Jennings and is set in 1868. The past few years have been difficult for Bella Eden after suffering a broken wrist and heartbreak at an old oak tree in town. Then a man from her past returns to town and disrupts her life with his new job and new invention. Inn For a Surprise by Karen Witemeyer is an uplifting story about Phoebe Woodward building a new inn in the late1800s. Her father sends, Barnabas, a property manager to help her with promotion to make the inn a success. Will the two be able to work together to do just that? From Roots to Sky by Amanda Dykes is set in the 1940s and follows WWII airma...

  As families spend more time inside together this year, an Advent workbook/journal may be just the thing to help everyone stay focused on the real reason for Christmas A Better Than Anything Christmas by Barbara Reaoch is a unique book that can inspire everyone in the family--no matter what age or experience. A Better Than Anything Christmas has a devotion for all age groups for every day of Advent starting on December 1. Each day has four parts: Explore, Explain, Engage and Enter In. The Explore section involves reading the Bible passage of the day together and answering a couple of questions. The Explain section relates the passage to our modern life today with a short reading. Then the Engage section asks questions and the questions are written for both older and younger children or for those who know Jesus versus those who do not. It ends with a prayer and a journaling page in the Enter In section. Extra pages are in the back for families who have more than one person who wa...

  If you and your kids feel like you need to switch up your Christmas children's books to something different and fun, look no further than There's a Lion in my Nativity! by Lizzie Laferton and Kim Barnes.  There's a Lion in my Nativity! is a cute and colorful book full of surprises that remind readers what Christmas is really all about. Mary is ready to take her starring role in the nativity play and to be the center of attention. Then narrator Sam reminds Mary that it isn't all about her as things have been changed around to put the focus where it needs to be at Christmas. The illustrations in There's A Lion in my Nativity! are so well done and fun to look at. The rhyming prose tells a fun story that brings out what is truly important in a way that will leave children with lessons learned without even realizing it. This book is so original and one that my family would enjoy over and over every year. The last page of the book reminds everyone what Jesus is all ab...

  Does your family read a book together for Advent every year? We did that a lot when our son was younger and all through the years. Seven Words of Christmas by Robert Morris would be a good book to read with the whole family through the Advent season.  Seven is a special number in the Bible. Pastor Morris says that the number seven signifies completeness or perfection. In Seven Words of Christmas, Pastor Morris says that God heralded His son into the world with seven unique prophetic words that still speak to us in our world today. Those words are: Salvation, Favor, Blessed, Guidance, Joy, Redemption and Peace. Throughout Seven Words of Christmas , Pastor Morris shares Scripture and stories around each of these seven words as he shares the story of Christmas. I read through this book in a short amount of time and enjoyed it so much. Seven Words of Christmas brought the Christmas story to life for me today starting with the Scriptures in Luke as Zacharias and Elizabeth find ...

  As Joyce Meyer says in the introduction of Quiet Times with God Devotional , the world is increasingly loud. If you find time during the day to slow down and spend time with God, Meyer says your life will be much better for it.  Quiet Times with God Devotional is a smallish, thick book with a devotional for every day of the year in it. Each reading starts with a Bible verse, has a short devotional written by Meyer, shares the main thought for the day, and concludes with where in God's Word to Dig Deeper to learn more about the theme of the day's reading. Each of the readings in Quiet Times with God Devotional is so relevant to today's world. Some of the titles include: Choosing Peace, One Day at a Time, The Difference Between Faith and Trust and God's Power at Work. I like that she helps make the Bible so relevant for today. I also like the short readings and thoughts to reflect on. I also like that she directs the reader to where to learn more in the Bible. I could...

  I have never read a Nicholas Sparks book but I have been wanting to for a long time. When the opportunity came up to read The Return , I took it and I'm glad that I did. Trevor Benson moved back to New Bern, North Carolina after his grandfather passes away. He moves into his house and tends his grandfather's beloved beehives. Trevor was a navy doctor who was devastatingly injured in Afghanistan and is looking forward to becoming a psychiatrist to treat other wounded vets with PTSD--a condition he has also been dealing with. Once in New Bern, he meets a deputy sheriff named Natalie Masterson and feels a connection with her. He also is intrigued by Callie, a teenage neighbor girl who lives down the road. He also is trying to solve a mystery related to his grandfather's death.  I admired Nicholas Sparks' prose as The Return slowly progressed--in places it seemed lyrical to me. It was also interesting to me to read the book from Trevor's perspective because I don...

  Several years ago, I worked at a Christian bookstore and the NIV Study Bible was one of our top sellers. I didn't own one but I sure did want one. Now I am so excited to have this new fully revised edition of the NIV Study Bible from Zondervan through Bible Gateway. The NIV Study Bible is a heavy Bible, which is the only drawback that I can see. For me, I probably wouldn't carry it to church--it does weigh 5 pounds. However, I definitely appreciate having this rich resource for doing Bible study at home. In that case, it doesn't matter to me that it is fairly heavy. To start using the Bible, there is a Quick Start Guide in the front which explains what a Study Bible is and explains some of the features. There is an extensive table of contents which contains not only the books of the Bible but also lists what page the articles, maps, models and such are on. Then a preface and introduction to the study Bible give a little more information on using the Bible followed by a co...

  My husband and I have been watching Andy Stanley on Sundays, along with our own church, for the past several years. When we saw Better Decisions, Fewer Regrets was releasing, we knew we would want a copy.  Better Decisions, Fewer Regrets covers five basic questions to ask yourself to help you determine the best decision that you can make in a situation. Pastor Stanley encourages readers to remember that all of our decisions, big or small, affect someone else. How will our decisions affect those around us or other family members? He encourages us to ask questions from 5 different angles that will help us make the best decisions so our stories are stories we are proud to tell others. He shares some personal stories from his life. He also shares stories from famous Bible people that help us to see how God helped them to make the best decisions.  Better Decisions, Fewer Regrets is a small but powerful book. Andy Stanley writes in such a way that I can relate well to what...

  I read Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers not long after it was released years ago. Like most of her books, it reached my heart and soul. I was excited to get a copy of A Path to Redeeming Love based on the book, written  by Rivers along with Karin Stock Buursma.  A Path to Redeeming Love is a 40-Day devotional. Each day features an excerpt from the book along with a newly written reading based on that portion of the book and Scripture. In the introduction, Rivers said that they made sure each reading was grounded in Scripture. I also liked that she shared a bit of how this story came to be in the introduction. Each day's reading concludes with something to think about or do to help the message stick in the reader's heart.  I like A Path to Redeeming Love. I want to re-read the original book again, then go through the devotional again, and I think it will all mean even more to me. Still, I remembered the story in bits and pieces through the devotional. I liked ho...

  Has your day ever started out with a seemingly inconsiderate driver cutting you off in traffic? Or dealt with someone who pushed ahead of you in the grocery line? Those little things can not only be frustrating, but can add stress to our whole day if we take them personally. However, Nicole J. Phillips has a lot of good ideas to handle things differently in The Negativity Remedy --for your own peace of mind.  The Negativity Remedy   starts out with Phillips sharing her personal story of having a bad day and how someone turned it around for her with a simple positive comment. Then throughout the book, she shares a lot of her personal stories, as well as other people's stories, about how kindness has changed their day--and maybe even someone else's day. She also encourages readers to be kind to your family members at home to start with. And she shares about the harder challenge of being nice to those who have hurt us. At other times, Phillips acknowledges that kindness pr...

  I confess that I was drawn to The Key to Love by Betsy St. Amant by the gorgeous cover. It is one of the prettiest covers that I have seen this year. Bri Duval lives in a small town in Kansas and works in a bakery--just like her mother did. A video involving the bakery goes viral leading travel writer Gerard Fortier to the bakery to write a feature story. Bri and Gerard don't hit it off initially. The bakery also became involved in a series of events that threatened its existence.  How will Bri handle some new changes in her life and the new man in town? Honestly, I have mixed feelings about The Key to Love . I didn't really like the characters all that much to begin with. . .but as the book went on, Bri and Gerard grew on me. I did enjoy all of the bakery talk about the goodies that they made. At the same time, I wasn't sure what to think about another character who rushed in to marriage. I also am not a big fan of sarcasm that is unkind. That may be your thing though, ...

    The Sowing Season by Katie Powner is a wonderful debut novel. Powner's story touched my emotions and I both laughed and cried in places.  Gerrit Langinga is forced to sell his dairy farm in his early 60s and retire. He really doesn't know what to do with himself and has relationship struggles with nearly all of his family members. Rae Walters is fifteen and learning to drive reluctantly. Her parents are pushing her to pass her driver's test and to follow her blueprint for life that they have helped her lay out.When Gerrit and Rae cross paths, things begin to change for both of them in some unexpected ways. I truly enjoyed the characters  of Rae and Gerrit as well as several others in The Sowing Season . This book is set in the Northwest but as a Midwestern girl with farmer family members and friends, I thought a lot of her farm descriptions were spot on. It was refreshing to see that both Rae and Kylee were only children as I am an only child and I could relate ...

  Wow! I finished Pearl in the Sand by Tessa Afshar and spent a couple of days thinking about it. What a beautiful story of God's redemption, mercy, and love. Afshar brought this Bible story to life for me and touched me heart and soul with it. I did not read Pearl in the Sand the first time it was released 10 years ago. I understand this edition has new features but as a reviewer I can't compare. What I do know is that this story of Rahab and Salmone is both heart wrenching and, ultimately, heart warming. Rahab is a woman living in the walls of Jericho. She has also put up walls around her heart after years of being betrayed by those she loved and trusted, starting with her father. Yet, she is drawn to God and seeks to live for Him. Through her, Hebrew spies are kept safe. . .and ultimately her family is spared in return. Yet, she is a woman who has a past she is not proud of. Salmone is a Hebrew leader. He is also a man of faith and full of pride. How can the two form a rel...