Terribly Interesting

  The Lifegiving Parent: Giving Your Child a Life Worth Living for Christ by Clay Clarkson My rating: 5 of 5 stars I am not sure how to write a review for one of the best parenting books I have ever read. Every single page was inspiring. I have continually read tons of books on parenting to gather skills that I did not learn and instill virtue in my own heart. Sally and Clay have written something I will read again and again. I have already purchased the study book so that I can work my way back through it. Read it. If you see Sally out and about, ask her if she will come live with me. This book will help you realize the time you have with your kids is precious and how to number the days you have with them. You will be equipped to nurture your child's spirit, guard their heart, renew their mind, and shape their will/character. In the process, yours will be shaped and formed as well. It is full of what is good, true, and beautiful. My favorite line: "Only you-parent...

The Spirit-Led Heart: Living a Life of Love and Faith Without Borders by Suzanne Eller My rating: 5 of 5 stars I came across this book on a prayer prompt page I follow. It gives you one idea to pray for each day. Their May calendar was based on things in this book. When I saw it come into my queue for review, I was excited! Y'all. I loved it. I cannot tell you how many times I screen-shotted something and sent it to a friend, highlighted things, or wrote words from this book down in a journal. It's good. It's full of wisdom. It's solid. It reminds us that a Spirit-led heart is defined by truth. This is not some weird book about the Holy Spirit. This is Bible-based goodness. I have something highlighted on 81 out of 201 pages. That's a lot of love. Suzanne tackles and gives light to many things we are looking for answers for. She gives light to confusing things in a beautiful, simple way that gives them great clarity. Mostly, she reminds us that we are i...

The Better Mom: Growing in Grace between Perfection and the Mess by Ruth Schwenk My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a good book. It helped me breathe a deep breath in the chaos of mothering young children. It helped me clearly see that children are like a payment we can receive joyfully—and one we must handle wisely. No matter the struggles we face, our children are a reward. “In God’s hands, our kids can grow up to fulfill God’s purpose of piercing the darkness of the world in which they live—they are like weapons of truth, life, and light in a broken hurting world.” This book is akin to having an exceptional mentor. It hits on the topics Christian moms truly care about. We want to know how to care deeply for our children and keep alive ourselves. Ruth reminds us that God used suffering and pressure to help Paul learn to rely on God’s strength. God used hardship to teach him to focus on building up an eternal kingdom. This is what we yearn for in our own hearts and those of o...

42 Seconds: The Jesus Model for Everyday Interactions by Carl Medearis My rating: 4 of 5 stars The thought that Jesus’ interactions were so short and intentional is fascinating. The average length of his talking with someone in scripture is 42 seconds. He didn’t give a bunch of long theological speeches to convince people to come to his kingdom. He simply saw into what was going on with people and spoke to their needs. Carl did a great job writing a simple guide on how to have simple conversations that draw people to Christ. He encourages us to be normal. That something a lot of us over eager evangelists have trouble doing. We are so focused on our agenda that we miss the people we are talking to. This book is an invitation to take notice. {As a side note that has nothing to do with the book, I immediately thought of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy when I saw this. The super smart computer told them the answer to everything was 42. Maybe they were on to something.} :) ...

Better Together: Discover the Power of Community by Rusty George My rating: 4 of 5 stars As I read through Better Together, I thought that I should tell everyone longing for community and everyone in a community group to read it. It’s a cut above the cookie cutter idea of community. It’s a call to vulnerability and admitting we do need someone. The pages dive into the “we” of scripture and the Jewish culture. “I remember when WE crossed the Red Sea, when WE were fed by manna, when We heard that Jesus was the Messiah, when wE found out Jesus was alive...” It dismantles the western ideal of me and my experience. It reminds us to take joy in the success of others. “Our problem is not the monster, the clown, or even the haunted house. Our problem is that we have failed to lock arms, circle up, and walk bravely into the darkness.” This book is full of beauty and reminders of real men like CS Lewis and fictional men like Frodo who found healing in community and went on to heal...

  Today we were holy interrupted. We had just sat down on the back porch of our cottage in Gruene when this woman apologized for wandering in to our space. I told her she wasn’t bothering us and we’d be totally happy if she just joined us on the porch. She started telling us how she had just had a divine encounter on a rock out back. She was walking by and thought about standing on the solid rock. She climbed up there and she was stunned by how being three feet off the ground (on the rock) changed her perspective. I thought that was such a powerful sentiment. Standing on the rock changes your perspective. Emily and I thanked her for sharing her story and maybe told her we loved her and her boldness.She told us she was on an new journey and then went off exploring more. As I sat there, I thought of someone I wanted to share her story with so I called out to her and asked if I could get a picture of her on that rock. That’s when the deeper story began to unfold... As we walke...

The Rescue: Seven People, Seven Amazing Stories… by Jim Cymbala My rating: 4 of 5 stars These six stories are soul stirring and faith building. Each story is the worst case scenario of perpetrators and perpetrating. There is deep sin with a great foothold. But, when God writes a story... there is redemption. The thing that stood out to me the most is how simple acts of kindness brought these people to Christ. It was not some great movement, it was simple words and gestures. One man living in an alley heard a tv from one of the apartments above him saying that Jesus was the only way. He was able to get off drugs and out of homelessness after this encounter. It spoke to me because it is so easy to be discouraged and not feel like small acts of kindness do anything. These six stories help us remember that no act is to small to be used by Christ. I am a big fan of Ann Spangler and the stories that come out of the Brooklyn Tabernacle via Jim Cymbala. View all my reviews P...