Edelweiss

   Hello all! This is to be my last post on this blog. I told you in a previous post that I was feeling led to turn my focus into writing for my sisters in Christ, and so I shall. But, because of my OCD nature, I simply cannot bring myself to redo this blog, and so I must begin another. (Plus I've spent alot of time making it really cute, and it would be a shame to let it go to waste!)

   My new blog, is entirely focused around young ladies, and though I have not posted there yet, please feel free to browse the tabs I do have up, and let me know what you think.

   In closing, I invite you to imagine me singing "Edelweiss" to you all, as I shall miss this blog very much. And  I hope that you will all join me in prayer for my new blog, that God will use it to touch the lives of the young women He brings to it's pages. 

Walking with Bilbo ~ A book review

  I was first introduced to Sarah Arthur, on my fifteenth birthday, when my parents got me her book Dating Mr. Darcy. I poured over that book, so that the covers are now bent. When I found that I could review "Walking with Bilbo" , I jumped on it, and couldn't wait to get it in.

The Pros:
   Sarah Arthur writes with humor and insight that keeps me either laughing or nodding my head in agreement. In this book, she is showing how when we accept Christ we embark on a journey of faith, and can choose either to stay comfortably in our 'hobbit holes' or follow Him. She draws many other charming parallels, between "The Hobbit" and our walk with Christ, that helped me to see things in a whole new perspective! The chapters are all short, sweet and to the point, followed by probing questions, and verses to look up. It's great to read in just a few minutes and then meditate on throughout the day.

The Cons:
   If you are not familiar with the story lines of "The Hobbit" and the LOTR trilogy, you will not get as much out of this study, and may be lost in some parts.

In Conclusion:
   If you are even a mild LOTR fan, and are ready to embark upon the adventure of faith, "Walking with Bilbo" is an excellent book to get you excited and provide encouragement.


*I received this book free from Tyndale House Publishers for my honest opinion.

From the Archives ~ Planking

(This is the third post on my "From the Archives" series. I hope you are enjoying it so far! This particular post was originally published on  August 29, 2011.)

³And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? ⁴ Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 
⁵ Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
                                  - Matthew 7: 3-5

     I memorized these verses several years ago for my Bible class in school and they sounded pretty hilarious to my childish mind. I would imagine myself with a board sticking out of my eye, hitting peoples heads with it as I turned to look at them. And while that is amusing to think of, its also painful, because with my (slightly) more mature teenage mind, I can see so clearly the truth in it. You see, I have a problem with pride...not one of those little annoying habits, but a serious problem. I can honestly say that 97% of all of my sin issues have their origin in  pride. It especially manifests itself in my judgmental spirit. I can profess to love someone dearly, as mentally run over every thing about them that bugs me. I can hug them and laugh with them as I plot how to tell them just exactly what I think of a certain character flaw that they possess. I can tell them I'm praying for them and try to give them a spiritual lift, when not ten minutes earlier I was gossiping about how they really need to get right with God because their life is going down the drain. And especially frustrating to me is when I'm supposed to be listening to a great sermon, but I'm really sitting there wondering if so-and-so is paying attention to the message. (as if I am!)   In fact, just to be honest (and also to practice some much needed humility) I'm sitting here writing this right now, trying not to hope that certain people will read this post. 

   The more I reflect on this tendency, the more I realize that I truly am hitting people in the head! I try to help them see the error of their ways ( in a rather self-righteous way) when in reality I'm pushing them farther and farther away because of this painful plank.

   I'm going to end this post a little differently today. Instead of asking everyone to search their hearts or join me as I seek to rid my life of this pesky problem (though that would be great!). I am instead going to ask for prayer. Pray for me that I will allow God to have His way in my life, no matter how hard it may be on my pride, and that I may become an empty vessel, ready to be filled with Him and poured back out. And that maybe, I won't hit anyone else in the head with this plank.

From the Archives~ What Manner of Person Ought I To Be?

(This is my second post in my "From the Archives" series. It was originally published on August 26, 2011.)

¹⁰ But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. 
¹¹ Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
                                                2 Peter 3:10-11 

    I don't know about you, but these verses hit me right between the eyes. I mean, I've always known the concept behind them, but having it so clearly laid out really brought it home. I heard an expression once, I can't remember the exact wording, that talked about people going to heaven smelling like smoke, because everything that they did here was burned up, it didn't count!

      So, I started thinking, what manner of person ought I to be? How does God want me to live my life, so that when I stand before Him one day to give an account, I don't 'smell like smoke'? And God, in all of His faithfulness, has used these last few days to show me ways that I need to grow in Him and redeem the time that He has given me. Now, I'm not going to go into the things that He has taught me in this post, I may later. I just want to encourage you to join me as I search my heart, and together we can  ask ourselves, "what manner of person ought we to be?"

From the archives ~ Something Borrowed

(The last few days, I have been re-reading some old posts, and have found that the truths in them, continue to convict and challenge me. So, I have decided to spend the next week or so, on a "From the Archives" series. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do! This particular post was originally published on May 25, 2011)

     Yesterday afternoon I finished reading "In His Steps" by Charles Sheldon, and I started thinking about modern Christianity. It seems that so many of us Christians today borrow our faith. And by that I mean, we use the faith of someone else, or the faith that we used to have, to cover up the gaps in our present faith. We have so much knowledge today about how to be a great Christian, how to walk as Christ walked, and how to talk as He talked, and yet there is a surprising shortage of people who actually do.
   
    I'm guilty of this myself! I know all the right words to say and the all the proper things to do, but I often don't allow my heart to be changed by the wisdom that I glean from others. I substitute a passion for Christ, with a shallow excitement for the thrilling aspect of doing things for Him. And the knowledge that I have of God, comes not from intense hours spent in His presence, but information I have obtained from other peoples experience of Him. While it is good to hear and be inspired by what other people have to say, it is wrong to substitute their words, for the words of the Father.
   
   So the question I have is this: What if we as Christians began laying aside the words of others, and learned to listen to the words of our King, applying them to our lives, without thought to the personal cost? That question may never be answered until we ourselves muster the courage to know Christ, and stop borrowing our faith.

Against the Tide ~ Book Review

   I first discovered Elizabeth Camden, who majors in historical Christian fiction, through her first book, "The Lady of Bolton Hill". I fell immediately in love with her writing style, and her fresh characters, so when I had the opportunity to receive her third book free to review, I jumped on it!

The pros:

   As I read this book, I was struck by the historical depth and accuracy, as well as the consistency that Camden shows throughout the changing settings in her book. I have read too many stories where the author can't keep their facts (dates, ages, events, etc...) straight, so this was very refreshing. Also, the story itself was riveting! Camden, throws in several plot twists, some, I could see coming, but several surprised me and kept me turning the pages. I especially loved that the story did not drag. Many books, even good ones, have 'dead spots' in them, which I generally skim through to get to the action. This plot however, was so cleverly planned, that when I most expected to be coming upon a lull, I would find a twist instead, which definitely kept the story hopping. And, since this is a Christian novel, there are no dirty words, or bad scenes, which is a plus. 

The Cons:

    As much as I love a good mystery and romance, I prefer to read books that leave me longing to be a better Christian, and this book just didn't do that for me. The hero, is a Christian, and the heroine is not, but instead of guarding his heart, the hero jumps right into love with the girl, which was disappointing to me. Also, I was saddened to find that the Gospel is not mentioned in the story. It appears at the end that the heroine is following Christ, but there is no mention of her making a specific decision to accept Christ as her Savior, which I found anti-climactic.

In conclusion:

   If you are looking for a clean, adventurous, well-written story to pass some time, you cannot go wrong with "Against the Tide". If, however, you are seeking a spiritually edifying story line that will leave you thirsting for more of Jesus, you can take or leave this book.

*I received this book free from Bethany House publishers for my honest opinion. 

Procrastination, and Random Notions

 

    Hello all! I am so sorry for my super long blogging break. I would say that I have been super busy lately, (which would be absolutely true) but it is also (and probably more so) true that I have been procrastinating.
   I have alot of things on my heart and mind that I want to share, if I knew how, but since I don't, I will wait a little longer on them. I am however planning to add book reviews to my blog. I have already posted a couple on here, but these will be reviews for free books!!!! (I have to feed my habit somehow...)
   Also, I sometimes feel hemmed in, on what I can say here, because I have no set audience. I have been wanting to change this for some time, and turn the focus of this blog toward my sisters in Christ, so be looking for some changes to that effect in the near future.
   I believe that, this is all that I want to say, so good night, and I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday tomorrow!!!