Book Review: "Unglued Devotional"

I have wanted this book since I saw it previewed on a mom's group facebook page I follow. So when it came up for review I couldn't wait!!!! The book, Unglued: Making Wise Choises in the Midst of Raw Emotions by Lysa TerKeurst, didn't interest me, but the devotional I wanted. I was going to order when I finished the devotional/prayer book I started before it was released but I was very happy to see it come up.

I'm very glad I got it. And I want to read it again when I have the time to do one each day. We have a deadline to do these reviews so I didn't get a chance to do it for the 60 days. I did it more in two days. I definitely want to spend the time reflecting on each day.

"For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you,

 Do not fear, I will help you."

Isaiah 41:13

In the midst of chaos, out of control emotions, and prayers being cried out for relief, God is there, ready to help. TerKeurst reminds us that it doesn't matter what's going on in your life, what you're feeling, what you're struggling with, God is always bigger. With His unending grace, He can reign in your life, everything, and glue it back together. 

For 60 days TerKeurst addresses areas of "imperfect progress". Imperfect progress meaning that you will slip again, you will fall back, but with God, you can keep progressing, keep going forward. 

The author provides a scripture verse to claim each day and a simple idea how to put it into practice in your life. A quick prayer and love poured out from being in the same situation. Sometimes, when you're completely unglued, that's all you need. Someone to show you that God's love is all you need.

Disclaimer:  I received this book from booksneeze.com for this review. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Book Review:: At the Feet of Jesus

"Jesus simply didn't want Martha to be so caught up in the Kitchen Service for Him that she missed out on the joy of Living Room Intimacy with Him" 

How often do we find ourselves working on "something" for God? Get so wrapped up in the calling that you miss the Caller? In At the Feet of Jesus Joanna Weaver takes a whole year to get your heart back to being with Jesus. In this devotional, Weaver takes excerpts from a few of her best selling books (Having A Mary's Heart in a Martha World for example)  and turns them into a devotional to challenge the heart and mind, bring us back into a relationship with God that we all deep down desire. 

We don't have to do anything to get there: "The only requirement for a deeper relationship with God is showing up with an open heart and ready to receive." Weaver also includes a few Going Deeper areas as well as questions at the end of each day to really hone in on getting our hearts back into the God we are serving. 

"The cross did more than pay for my sins; it set me free from the bondage of the 'shoulds' and 'if onlys' and 'what might have beens.' And Jesus's words to Martha are the words He wants to speak to your heart and mine: 'you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed (Luke 10:41-42)

The 'one thing' is not found in doing more.

It's found by sitting at His feet." (pg 4)

I didn't get to take the time to do this as intended and maybe if I did it would have been more for me. This wasn't at all what I was expecting. It's just a reworking of her other books into a devotional. She pulled apart some good books to make a years worth of separate daily readings. I feel, in doing that, she took away from the the power of her other books, especially Having a Mary's Heart in a Martha World. It seemed choppy and the flow was lacking. Don't get me wrong, her message is an important lesson we all need to learn. But you can get it with more passion and power in her other books.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah for this review. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Book Review:: Dirty God

"The Bible teaches us that God 'demonstrates his own love for us' (Romans 5:8) in how he came to us in Jesus. He didn't expect us to climb up to him. He climbed down to us. He got his hands dirty so we could have our hearts cleaned."

In Dirty God, Johnnie Moore gives us a human, humble Jesus who came to give us grace that really can be experienced, felt, and freely given. Jesus wasn't and isn't a well showered, clean shaven, spotless man with nothing to offer but  God who took on man to reach us, to live and eat with the dirtiest of dirty, to love and care for the sickest of the sick, to touch a hardest of hearts, to save the worst of us: "Jesus inaugurated a kind of faith the spirit of which is encapsulated in the words of the great missionary C.T. Studd: 'Some wish to live within the sound/ Of church or chapel bell,/ I want to run a rescue shop/ Within a yard of hell.'"

In part one, Moore gives us a Jesus who we can actually see and touch. A Jesus who we can relate to, accept and know that he was really on earth instead of a god who was aloof, absent and uncaring. He was real. Like you and me. He dressed like us, ate like us, lived like us. He became us for us: "We think of God as far away- like a famous person we admire but don't really know. We kind of keep track of what's happening in his story, but surely he doesn't know much about ours, and if he does, he doesn't care enough to know." He came to bring us grace.

And it can be received, it can be 'gotten'. Moore closes part one with grace. The given grace of God. Grace for us to really grasp and understand. A grace in which God "knows us fully , and he loves us just the same." If we can really, fully comprehend this kind of grace, then we need to share it, spread it, and get our hands dirty.

In part two, Moore extends the grace past you and me. He challenges us to give it.

"God expects us to get our own hands dirty, just as he dirtied his own. He wants to meet us- not in the sanctuary but in the slums. Where hopelessness resides is where the rivers of grace are meant to flow more freely...God's not waiting for us at the alter. He is waiting for us to take the alter to the streets."

If our Dirty God roams the trenches, we need to be willing to live out the love God has shown us. 

"He didn't want his followers to stand out as walking billboards, their t-shirts painted with cliches and bible verses...He imagined our difference as having more substance, a more subversive quality, and greater effectiveness...we should seem different because we are living out what we believe in a way that causes others to wonder what curious belief undergirds our lifestyles."

Are your hands dirty?

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This book is a life changer, or a life challenger I should say. It'll challenge your ideas of Jesus, grace and paying grace forward. It'll challenge your actions and thoughts. Moore writes in a way that really brings Jesus and grace from the pedestal to your level, no matter how far down the ladder you think you are. His humor and style are perfect for the committed Christian and one who is seeking this grace and love. 

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from booksneeze.com for this review. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Book Review:: Grace

Do you know the definition of grace?

Do you know what it means to give or receive grace?

Do you know grace?

We all think we do. It's just something we talk about and use regularly. We say grace before meals. We use it as a name. We sing it in just about every song in church. But do we really know grace?

In his book, Grace, Max Lucado talks grace in a way you've never experienced. The grace you thought you knew will be defined in a life changing way. 

"My child, I want you in My new kingdom. I have swore away your offenses like the morning clogs, your sins like the morning mist. I have redeemed you. The transaction is sealed: the matter is settled. I, God, have made My choice. I choose you to be part of My forever family."

How wonderful it is to know that God chose you? He wanted you. And His grace to you in never ending. It doesn't matter what you've done, where you come from or what's going on in your life right now. God has grace enough for you. Lucado wants you to understand grace as never before. Fully knowing grace will change your life in ways you've never imagined. There is no fear with God because of His grace: so rest. There is no judgement with God's grace, it covers all: so let go of regrets and hurt. God's all consuming grace can fill your life with joy.

I can't even begin to write a good description of this book.

It. Is. Amazing.

Life. Changing.

Exactly what I needed at this point in my life.

It's written in a way that someone who has never experienced God or grace can be wrapped with both within the first pages. And if you have seen both, it can seep further into your life and heart with simple wording that comes alive.

If you can get your hands on a copy of this book, please do. You won't regret it.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from booksneeze.com for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Book Review::This Scarlet Cord

I. Love. Historical. Fiction.

It is probably my favorite genre.

And yes, this is fiction. Please keep that in mind as you read this and the book.

This Scarlet Cord  by Joan Wolf brings the story of Rahab to life. Rahab was a real Canaanite girl who turned away from her false gods and helped some of Joshua's spies escape the city of Jericho. Joshua was leading the Israelite army into the Promised Land. The spies were sent in ahead of the army to relay information about the much fortified city. As the infamous Bible story continues Joshua marches around the city and the walls that never could fall crumbled at the hand of God. This is the historical part of the story.

Wolf takes this story to a fictional level. Through research about the culture and history of the time period when it is believed Rahab lived, Wolf develops a beautiful story of Rahab and how she becomes an agent of God in His will. Rahab gets a history, a personality and a future. She gets a family. Wolf even produces a reason and way of Rahab's change in beliefs. (Really, who hasn't sat and wondered how and why Rahab decided to give up her gods for the One True God?). She makes Rahab a real person we can all relate to, feel and know that no matter what we have done in our history, God has a plan for us and will use us for His glory!

I had to remember as I was reading this book that it was truly fiction. But it was fun trying to take the real story and piecing together what was going on in the book. It's always fun to dream up what isn't written in Bible as a background (as long as it doesn't take away from the Truth, anyway).

My only complaint is that in the beginning of the book I feel Wolf tried too hard to make this story real. Her descriptions to bring the story to life were a bit over kill and a lot was repeated for no reason. We got the picture the first time. But after the first few chapters, Wolf settled into a rhythm and flow that made this story a good one!

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from Booksneeze.com for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Book Review:: The Girl's Still Got It

Oh the joys of summer vacation...relaxing in the sun, reading a book, feet up...yeah right....not with an almost 1 year old. So please forgive the gap in the blog...

Now onto the latest book I finally finished. I've had it for a while.

Ruth has always been a favorite Bible story of mine. Who doesn't enjoy a nice love story full of redemption and 'fate'? Liz Curtis Higgins tells this beautiful story as if you, the reader, are standing with Ruth and Naomi, taking the road back home, coming upon the man she is to marry waiting for her (I mean, really, how much more sweet can the be?) and beginning her life with her new God. The Girl's Still Got It takes you step by step through their journey. Right from the very start Curtis makes the characters come to life, makes you feel present in history, and, above all, makes God come alive on the pages of a book written thousands of years later.  Even after all these years, Ruth and her story still have it. Ruth is still worth something.

If you haven't met Ruth yet I'll give you a little background: She comes from a very pagan nation, marries into Naomi's God-fearing family. Her husband dies, as well as her father in law and brother in law, leaving Naomi and two daughters in law. History will tell you this isn't a good situation. Due to a famine lifting in the Promised Land, Naomi heads home bringing with her Ruth (her other daughter in law did most of us would do and high tailed it home). I can't tell you much more because the hand of God works wonders in Ruth's life. Just know she was not only redeemed in love and family but with God as well.

Even though I wasn't real fond of Curtis' writing style, I still loved the book! As I said previously, Ruth is a favorite (Should I have favorites? Eh, why not!). I did enjoy her taking the characters and making them more real, more touchable, more like me. I felt more involved in the story than just being told again. Curtis took the characters and made them more available, made their feelings and thoughts more real.

But that's not the important part of the book.

Curtis made God silent hand in the story more real. God never speaks in the book of Ruth, in fact He's hardly mentioned. But you know He's there. Because of the way her characters came to life, God comes to life also. You can see Him, now, behind the scenes.

"Our desire as believes isn't to be more like Ruth; it's to be more like Jesus. With each admirable thing Ruth does, we will see the Lord's handiwork...when we read the final page, I hope instead of saying 'wow, what a woman' we'll be saying, 'wow, what a Redeemer!'"

 

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Book Review:: Monday's with My Old Pastor

This is what you'd call a highlighter book (I struggled against it because I love to pass these books along and I'd rather have the next reader decide what they feel is 'highlighter' worthy). The quotes from this Pastor could cover a wall. If you write them all down, you'd be violating copyright laws! I wish I could give you more quotes but I can't decide which ones to write. The wisdom in this book is beyond comprehension. It's one you'll need to take your time reading, mediating and praying for it to seep into your own life and soul.

Monday's with My Old Pastor chronicles the journey of Jose Luis Navajo through the struggles we all face at some point in our lives. Navajo is a pastor who suffered from the medically diagnosed disease of 'burn out'. He was at a point in his ministry and life where he felt he just couldn't finish, just couldn't go on. He was ready to give up, ready to say this was not what God had called him to do even after many fruitful years. Through the urging of his wife, Navajo schedules a meeting with his aging Pastor. The man who first led him to the ministry. Every Monday, for about 12-13 weeks, the men met. Through stories of personal growth, age old stories fables, and, most of all, a life the bleeds the cross, Navajo comes away with a renewed love for God and His calling. Even in the face of death, the "old Pastor" held the cross in front of him:

"I was born in the shade of the cross. I want to live anchored to it, and may it be the ladder that lifts me up to His presence when my time comes."

I cannot say enough about this book. There is no way I could put into words the wisdom this man held and passed to future generations. There is convictions, hope, tears and pure honesty. I cannot write the thoughts and feels I had while reading this book. They swirl about daily in my mind. They convict. Even if you're not at the point of giving up your faith, you feel like you've lost it already, this book is for you. It doesn't matter how much you know. It doesn't matter if you have the Bible memorized front to back. It doesn't matter how long you've been a Christian, how long you've preached the Word. This book will scream that you can never know enough. 

Soak up this wisdom. True, pure wisdom is hard to find these days. 

How much better to get wisdom than gold, to choose understanding rather than silver.

Proverbs 16:16

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from booksneeze.com for this review. Opinions expressed are my own.

Book Review:: 1000 Days

1000 Days by Jonathan Falwell is fantastic. I had seen various reviews on it so I was a little hesitant about ordering it to read. But something kept pointing to me to this book. I had skipped over it the last few times I've chosen books, this time I just couldn't. And I'm so glad! It made me look at the life of Christ is a different way, it pointed out things that I had heard thousands of times but never really picked up on or knew how it would ever apply to me. His 1000 days were just that: 1000 days of ministry to lead us to the cross, to find redemption in His death and eternal life in His resurrection, to show Who He was. But those few days were something bigger, way bigger for us. They are a way for us to become more like Him.

Falwell takes you through the ministry of Christ during his roughly 1000 days of teaching, preaching, healing and loving. It sounds overwhelming but really it's not. (If I could have read it all in one day I would have. Time constraints made me spread it out over a few weeks.) He takes the ministry to a whole new level. Not to level of being too hard to understand or too easy, but one that perfect, one that can explain the happening in our modern terms and lifestyle.

 Falwell explains major events in Christ's life in a way we can apply to our lives not just as something amazing Christ did or said. For example, we all know the story of when Christ entered the temple and read scripture at the very beginning of His ministry. But did you know that the scripture that was read that day was planned years before? As in the leaders of the temple plan out their sermons years before. How amazing it is that Jesus read Isaiah 61?

"A hush probably fell over the room as He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant beside the table in the center of the room, and sat down...how would He interpret what He just read? He said 'Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing' (Luke 4:21)...Jesus chose that small group in His hometown to announce 'I am the Messiah. I am the One who will do all these things Isaiah wrote about..." (pg 19.)

Falwell also takes you through the storms, the hypocrisy, His radical love, all the way through the cross and resurrection. He shows you ways to mold your life into a way that you could be living Christ's 1000 days, seeking Him, being like Him. 

Disclaimer: I received this book through booksneeze.com for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Book Review: "Proverbs Reconstructed"

I started this book because I love the book of Proverbs. It holds so much wisdom and knowledge that I only can wish I'd fully understand. Bits and pieces, a few at a time.

Proverbs Reconstructed by Gus Dallas was written to simplify the Proverbs into one easy book that even a person who never opened the Bible could learn. In a way that's true. Dallas goes through the book of Proverbs and gleans every bit of wisdom he can find about a number of subjects. He takes the verses and separates them into the subjects. The book is lists of verses for just about any subject you can think of. Anything from abomination to feet, yes feet, and folly to, my favorite part, being a Godly wife.


While this book is a handy resource for someone looking for a quick Scripture reference, it's not anymore helpful than just reading the Word yourself. I was expecting more discussion, more practical explanations, ways to apply the verses to my life. As I said before, I enjoy the book of Proverbs. Breaking it up for no other reason than to list verses per subject was a bit disappointing to me. It took away the beauty of the prose and rhythm of the Proverbs. But if you're looking for references to the Proverbs this is your book! I plan on keeping it for that reason. It will be helpful as I raise my family in the Truth and as I return to Biblical counseling in the near future.

You can get his book here.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free through Booksneeze.com for this review. The opinions expressed are my own.