my summer reading list

With it being summer, I want to do some reading! I have this bad habit of buying books before reading the ones I already have…thus my to-read pile never gets smaller. But I want to make a dent in that stack over the next few weeks. And part of that is finishing some that I've started - I have a bad habit of doing that as well :)

I've read Shauna's other book, Bittersweet and am excited about reading Cold Tangerines.  She tells all of these individual stories but they come together. She shares from her life - the ups and the downs - and it's that honesty that makes me like her writing. 

I've started Let's All Be Brave and like it so far! Each year I pick a word that is my theme and this year, my word is brave. 

I've read Praying for Your Future Husband twice already. I like that there's space to make notes and questions at the end of each chapter. It's interesting to see what I've already written and what my thoughts about each chapter are now. Each chapter has a different thing to pray about for your future husband - it's a really good book and I love that by praying for him, I'm preparing myself as well. 

Other People's Children is a book I'm reading for work. I'm reviewing Fifty Shades of They by Ed Young. It's about the importance of the right relationships in our lives. I've started T.L. Lowery's Walking in the Supernatural but am not very far into it. Whew! That's lots of reading but I'm looking forward to it! 

yes!

I'm reviewing a book right now, What Happens When Young Women Say Yes to God by Lysa and Hope Terkeurst. I'm only on the second chapter but the verse at the end of this chapter really got my attention. I love how you can look at a verse in a different translation and it's like you've never read it before! Psalm 19:7-10: "The revelation of God is whole and pulls our lives together. The signposts of God are clear and point out the right road. The life-maps of God are right, showing the way to joy. The directions of God are plain and easy on the eyes. God’s reputation is twenty-four-carat gold, with a lifetime guarantee. The decisions of God are accurate down to the nth degree.  God’s Word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds. You’ll like it better than strawberries in spring, better than red, ripe strawberries."

 

trust God through the hard times

I'm working through Joyce Meyer's devotional, Trusting God Day by Day and today's reading struck a chord with me. The title is "Trust God Through the Hard Times":

"Often when we think of trusting God, we think of trusting Him for things we need or want - financial provision, physical healing, the restoration of a relationship, or a promotion at work. A true relationship of trust in God extends beyond trusting Him for something and includes trusting Him through a situation. We need to learn to not simply look to Him for the results we desire; we need to learn to trust Him through the process of attaining them...because He is with us, we can go through trials in our lives with stable, positive attitudes, trusting God completely, even against seemingly impossible odds." 

"radical" by david platt

Radical is a book to challenge you. It's about moving away from comfortable Christianity and being stretched - my goal for the recent mission trip I went on. "In our quest for the extraordinary, we often overlook the importance of the ordinary, and I'm proposing that a radical lifestyle actually begins with an extraordinary commitment to ordinary practices that have marked Christians who have affected the world throughout history" (pg. 193).

I read Radical last year. It stirred me up and made me want to do more than just go about life as usual. It's a book to read more than once. You can learn more about the book as well as download banners for the book and and chapter resources for the book. 

week of reviews!

I've decided to go a little crazy and post a review every day this week! Here's what this week will look like:

Tuesday ~ Matched by Ally Condie

Wednesday ~ Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Thursday ~ Crossed by Ally Condie

Friday ~ Entwined by Heather Dixon

to read

I don't know why I enjoy doing this to myself. My stack of books to read is steadily getting smaller but then I act on a whim and add no less than five more books to my stack. It's a vicious cycle :) I went to the library today, just browsing the shelves and walked out with (as I just mentioned), five books. I want to throw out a disclaimer that since I'm in the elementary education profession, I have permission to read YA books. In case you were curious :) On top of these, I have a few more titles I'm wanting to conquer for my summer reading:

from left to right, top to bottom:

a Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman, close to famous by Joan Bauer, Ida B by Katherine Hannigan, Tumtum & Nutmeg: The Rose Cottage Tales by Emily Bearn, Tumtum & Nutmeg: Adventures Beyond Nutmouse Hall by Emily Bearn, Through My Eyes by Tim Tebow, The Cause Within You by Matthew Barnett, and The Skin Map by Stephen Lawhead. 

nurture

I'm currently reading Nurture by Lisa Bevere. She included this quote and I really like it. Her book is about the importance of us, as women, to reach out to other women and embrace who God has called us to be.

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

- Marianne Williamson

brain food

One of my goals for this year is to read my stack of review books. I've set a goal to have them all finished by the end of May, leaving my summer free to work on other things - I've already been working on a list :) I'm really excited about the books I need to read - here's a few of them:

From the Library of A.W. Tozer by James Stuart Bell

The Whole Bible Story by Dr. William Marty

The Story of Your Life by Matthew West

Nurture by Lisa Bevere

Wholly Jesus by Mark Foreman

Why We're Not Emergent by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck

I've also bought The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and Divergent by Veronica Roth. These are ones that I've heard were good (you know, there was a recent movie about the first one that just came out :) and the other is one that's been on my list to read for a while and I finally picked up a copy!

I'd love to know if you've read any of these and what you thought! Happy reading!

what i'm reading - may

I'm really trying to slow down on my reading. Really, I am : ) May is another busy book review month for me...but I'm excited at the chance to read such great books. This month I'll be reading:

The Fitting Room by Kelly Minter
Handle with Prayer by Charles Stanley
The Lightkeeper's Ball by Colleen Coble
How Huge the Night by Heather & Lydia Munn
The Redeemer by Linda Rios Brook
Secrets of the Heart by Jillian Kent
False Witness by Randy Singer
Fully Engaged by John Busacker

I have at least one recipe I'll be posting (it's for banana pudding and is a hit every time I make it) plus a giveaway. Not to mention my random thoughts. It's going to be a fun month!

book beginnings

"True Courage can throw you at first, because it's counterintuitive. In other words, it's the opposite of what you might expect. My best example? Getting into a pickup and backing up a trailer into the garage. No sweat, you say? What's the big deal about backing a trailer into a garage? It's no sweat until you try to pull it off. If you've never done it before, thirty seconds into it you're sweating like a fire hydrant because the pickup and trailer are twisted like a pretzel - and you're suddenly parked in the flowerbed with no clue how to get out."

I'm reading True Courage by Steve Farrar. He's made some really good points along the way. I posted the FIRST review Thursday but will be adding my thoughts as soon as I'm finish.

Wanna join in? How to participate: Share the first line (or two) of the book you are currently reading on your blog or in the comments. Include the title and the author so we know what you're reading. Then, if you would like, let us know what your first impressions were based on that first line, and let us know if you liked or did not like the sentence. The link-up will be at A Few More Pages every Friday and will be open for the entire week.

Thanks to Book Ponderings for getting me involved with this!

book beginnings

"The distant hoofbeats were growing louder. Elisabeth Kerr quickly pushed aside the curtain and leaned out her carriage window. A cool spring rain, borne on a blustery wind, stung her cheeks. She could not see the riders on horseback, hidden by the steep hill behind her. But she could hear them galloping hard, closing the gap."

I'm reading Mine is the Night by Liz Curtis Higgs. This is the sequel to Here Burns My Candle, continuing an updated retelling of Ruth and Naomi in Elisabeth and Marjory Kerr. I'm a huge Liz Curtis Higgs fan so I picked up the first book solely because her name was on it. I enjoyed it and was excited to review the sequel. Getting into the flow of reading Irish brogue takes a little time but she does an amazing job of weaving the accent, setting and story all together.

Wanna join in? How to participate: Share the first line (or two) of the book you are currently reading on your blog or in the comments. Include the title and the author so we know what you're reading. Then, if you would like, let us know what your first impressions were based on that first line, and let us know if you liked or did not like the sentence. The link-up will be at A Few More Pages every Friday and will be open for the entire week.

what i've been reading

What better way to kick off December than with a giveaway (keep reading for details)? This year marked my first year as a book reviewer and it's allowed me to read books that I would've passed by in the store just beause I wasn't familiar with the author or the title didn't sell me enough to pick it up (I've learned not to judge a book by it's cover - literally :-). Some of the ones I've read I did actually purchase but the majority have been freebies (who doesn't love free stuff?). I decided to keep a list of all the books I've read, just for curiousity sake. Let's take a look...

1. "Beautiful" - Cindy Coloma
2. "Take Your Best Shot" - Austin Gutwein
3. "An Amish Christmas" - Beth Wiseman
4. "Engaging Father Christmas" - Robin Jones Gunn
5. "Washington's Lady" - Nancy Moser
6. "Beautiful Things Happen When a Woman Trusts God" - Sheila Walsh
7. "Twilight" - Stephanie Meyer
8. "New Moon" - Stephanie Meyer
9. "Eclipse" - Stephanie Meyer
10. "Different Eyes: the Art of Living Beautifully" - Steve Chalke
11. "Breaking Dawn" - Stephanie Meyer
12. "Escaping the Vampire" - Kimberly Powers
13. "Pure Scum" - Mike Sares
14. "Never Let You Go" - Erin Healy
15. "Caleb + Kate" - Cindy Coloma
16. "Plan B" - Pete Wilson
17. "A Bride in the Bargain" - DeAnne Gist
18. "A Day with a Perfect Stranger" - David Gregory
19. "God Never Blinks" - Regina Brett
20. That Certain Spark" - Cathy Marie Hake
21. "Happily Ever Laughter" - Ken Davis
22. "Billy Graham" - David Aikman
23. "The Short 2nd Life of Bree Tanner" - Stephanie Meyer
24. "Unburdened" - Chris Tiegreen
25. "Demon" - Tosa Lee
26. "Loving Mr. Darcy" - Sharon Lathan
27. "The Edge of the Divine" - Sandy Patty
28. "Flight to Heaven" - Dale Black
29. "The Mountain Between Us" - Charles Martin
30. "The Will of Wisteria" - Denise Hildreth
31. "Crazy Love" - Francis Chan
32. "Maid to Match" - DeAnne Gist
33. "Raising the Dead" - Chauncey Crandall
34. "Permission to Speak Freely" - Anne jackson
35. "Immanuel's Veins" - Ted Dekker
36. "Love, Charleston" - Beth Webb Hart
37. "Outlive Your Life" - Max Lucado
38. "Power Thoughts" - Joyce Meyer
39. "LOL with God" - Pam Farrel
40. "City on Our Knees" - Toby Mac
41. "The Nativity Collection" - Robert Morgan
42. "Bittersweet" - Shauna Niequist
43. "Almost Heaven" - Chris Fabry
44. "The Preacher's Bride" - Jody Hedlund
45. "Uncertain Heart" - Andrea Boeshaar
46. "Nebraska Legacy" - DiAnn Mills
47. "Nightingale" - Susan May Warren
48. "Hatteras Girl" - Alice Wisler
49. "Dining with Joy" - Rachel Hauck
50. "First Things First" - Kurt Warner
51. "Delilah" - India Edghill

Whew! Out of all these, "Plan B" by Pete Wilson is at the top of my list of favorites. I highlighted things I liked as I was reading it and I've been skimming it, letting those quotes speak to me again. So, because I liked it so much, I want to give a copy away!! All you have to do is leave a comment with your favorite book from this year (and leave a way for me to reach you). The contest will end on Friday, December 31 at 8:00 p.m. (yep, New Year's Eve).

#2 approval of others

“Life. Now.” Chapter 2 – What If No One Claps For Me?

The second obstacle that we must overcome in order to go after our dreams is the realization that we can’t please everyone and we have to do what’s right for us and not let what others think keep us from moving forward. Part of this is being able to just say no. We can’t be afraid of disappointing others that we are constantly trying to appease everyone. “We need to be comfortable outside of other people’s approval. Because if we choose to pursue our dreams and get from where we are to where we want to go in life there is a guarantee that other people’s approval isn’t something we will always have.”

The authors stress the point that we must stop feeling as though we need permission in order to say no. “We do not need to raise our hands and ask for permission before doing something like pursuing our dreams and what we honestly believe to be God’s will for our lives.” One of the key points from the chapter is that in some instances, approval from others can’t be taken as a sign that we’re making the right choice. “What we need to realize is that the approval of other people doesn’t always serve as confirmation that we are headed in the right direction. Many times the approval of others stands in stark contrast to the approval of God.”

The end of the chapter talks about how it’s sometimes in unexpected moments that we taste glimpses of our freedom. One choice leads to another until we begin living a lifestyle of not letting what others think weigh us down and influence our choices. The last sentence inspired me and I want to end with it: “You are on the verge of your emancipation. Step forward with boldness and embrace it – now.”

#1 fear

"Life. Now." Chapter 1 - What If It Doesn't Work Out?

So the first obstacle to overcoming your dreams is fear. Fear can come in many shapes and sizes. We can have a fear of failing, fear of what others may think of us and a fear or change. By never venturing away from the comfortable, we can ensure that we'll never come up against failure. "We think it is better to not try and not fail than it is to fail when we do try." One of the things the authors point out is that going after our dreams doesn't mean we're not afraid but you're deciding to act in spite of that fear. "You learn not to give in to it [fear]. That knot you have in your stomach may very well always be there. You just need to learn to realize that God is bigger than that knot, and if He has called you to do something, He is going to take your hand and lead you all the way through it. Every time you think you can't do something, realize that you are right. You can't, but God can. Because of that you don't need to give in to fear."

Fear of what others may think is rather ironic because most often the biggest critics are the ones who are the most afraid. Because they won't go after their dreams, they want to make sure you don't either. "If you let other people control your dreams, they will essentially control you, making you as miserable and unhappy as they are."

By wallowing in the comfortable, we're allowing ourselves to fall into a rut and once in a rut, it can be a hard place to get out of. Most often we'll be unable to get out on our own and if we're not cautious, once out, we may wind up jumping right back in when things don't go exactly as planned.