Spreading a Feast of Life Giving Faith for your Family

I have been in the trenches of last minute school planning here in these last, hazy August days. My homeschooling journey seems to lead me further into a more authentic and dedicated Charlotte Mason based approach with each passing year. I am even committing to actually reading her own words (ha!) in her six volumes for myself- "Mother School", as it is. The thing that draws me deeper into her philosophy is how very enriching it is for all of Life's Students (ie. Everyone). One of my favorite principles to observe at play in my life is the Science of Relations- the idea that a person's mind will find connections between the rich ideas it is fed. I now see this happening quite often in my own learning. 

A word picture in Charlotte Mason's writing is Feast. She says  the teacher  is to "spread an abundant feast (of ideas) and each child takes what he needs." What a rich, joyous picture of an education! Mason is referring to scholarly topics- literature, history, etc. I heard a sermon recently where John Piper give a similar call to Pastors and churches to spread a feast of teaching and rich hymns and worship-Beauty in the Sunday morning service- for weary people to replenish their souls with. This brings me to one of my favorite teachers of Christian women, Sally Clarkson. What Mason calls education to be, and Piper exhorts the church to, I feel Sally encourages family in. 

Sally's book, The Life Giving Table, lays a blueprint for nourishing our family, physically and spiritually, through great meals and intentional discipleship. She paints a beautiful picture through sharing many real life family memories created around her table. I have always appreciated Sally's honesty in sharing the challenges in her parenting journey and also the principles and ideas that have proved successful through years of life experience. She is straightforward in that her ideas will take real intentional and consistent practice in your home- they wont just naturally happen or come without effort- but I truly think the reward of the memories and shared family culture and faith built around a table regularly spread with sacrifice and love is well worth it!

I love Sally's suggestion to narrow down a few customs, habits and holidays to personify "Who We Are" as a family. In our house, the kids and I all relish our Morning Time Meetings and Poetry Tea Times. Other special things like a certain dish for each person's birthday breakfast are suggested. I can personally attest to the deliciousness of the Clarkson's Special Cheesy Eggs (recipe found in the book). They are so good I haven't been able to contain them to special mornings. ;) Our family and our close friends/neighbors have adopted the Clarkson's traditional Shepherd's Meal as our own Advent tradition as well. We have loved gathering in a candle light room to read the Account of the Shepherds while eating delicious potato soup and have even been known to have a "follow the star" night walk of our own on adventurous years! (See Chapter 12 for Sally's wonderful description).

Sally is truly one of my longest admired, most influential "Mentor from afar". I so appreciate that she doesn't shy away from setting forth just beautiful and worthy ideals and really encouraging women to pursue them. She does this from a biblical reference and also gives very tangible ideas to accomplish it. I also really am thankful for Sally's wisdom and humility in realizing women can be in hard situations or seasons to live these things out. Her chapter on Living Out Grace was very refreshing to me as she shared some easy ways to just start small and start somewhere in creating this culture for our your own family. I have seen the wisdom in my own life from where Sally says that making space in your life for rest and beauty is pretty much a necessity. In busy or hard seasons, It is really more important to make it a priority to have times of refreshment and enjoyment. I am looking forward to putting Sally's Life Giving Table principles and ideas into practice more as my kids get bigger but I am thankful to have these encouraging ideas even as we are in the midst of baby, toddler and school age years!

Thanks to Tyndale Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book to review.    

My Top Pick Bible- the She Reads Truth CSB Bible

This review has been a long time in coming-I wanted to really live in this bible for awhile. I wanted to be in it's pages on a regular basis to get a feel for this version (CSB) and the unique format that the She Reads Truth staff brought to the table in the gorgeous rendition of the scriptures. I had my eye out on this bible even before the pre-release was announced. I happened to stumble across these beautiful linen bound bibles on Christianbook.com and couldn't wait to hear more about it! Then a month or so later, She Reads Truth made their grand announcement about their big project and I was able to see a video preview about it. I already have a *few* personal bibles, but I was pretty sure this was a necessary addition. I also knew it would make an amazing gift option for my girl friends. I had it on my birthday list just before I was given the opportunity to review it for my blog. 

I Love this bible. The linen binding, though maybe hard to keep clean in a house of grimy little hands, is an attractive introduction to this bible. I have the grey edition and love the contrast of the gold foil details and the two ribbon bookmarks. 

"Women in the Word of God every day"- this is She Reads Truth motto and lifeblood and I have witnessed them prove it true by making available solid biblical teaching in an deeply beautiful format through the multiple bible studies they have offered through the years. This carries seamlessly over to this bible. No, creatively calligraphed key verses at the start of each book of the bible isn't necessary, but I would heartily offer that it is God glorifying. I feel that the maps, timelines and supplemental reading plans for each book is the perfect balance to enhance rather than distract. I have been blessed by the devotionals I've run across while reading through the scriptures. 

I have been listening to John Piper's "Reading the Bible Supernaturally" on audiobook while doing my household chores and have been really challenged and encouraged by the fact driven home of what an amazing privilege we have to be given Divine revelation and even Christ's joy itself thru the simple and everyday act of reading. Piper talks of how opening the Word of God is our chance to have our eyes open to God's Glory, but not to stop there- to See and Savor. I appreciate this bible as an invitation to clearly see- I have been really impressed with the clarity of the Christian Standard text. Also, the added beauty scattered through pages seem to act as a chance to pause and savor the revealed Glory through the surrounding scriptures. Bravo, She Reads Truth on a stand out bible!

Thanks so much to B&H publishing for providing me with this bible to review. 

Alive in Him: Ephesians commentary by one of my favorite authors

I have loved everything put in front of me written by Gloria Furman. She has been one of my most appreciated mentors from afar. I have gleaned so much from her titles geared towards reminding mothers of the treasures found in Christ and the power of the gospel in everyday "stay at home, work never ends" life. I loved going through Missional Motherhood with my church's Mom's group. (see my reviews of both the book and the study companion here) Gloria has a powerful gift for both em-pathetically relating with christian women and also exhorting us out of and above our fleshly natures. She brings everything back to the gospel- and I just love her for it! 

I was excited to see in this title, Alive in Him: How Being Embraced by the Love of Christ Changes Everything, that Gloria branches out of addressing the topic of motherhood in Christian living to a commentary centered on a particular book of the bible- Ephesians. Studying the bible with a complementary commentary is a favorite method of mine and Ephesians has always been an intriguing book as well! 

Gloria does a great job of breaking the book into it's main themes and really delving into each and how to truly apply the truths found therein to our everyday lives. I am really excited to re-read thru the last chapter entitled, "Cruciform Armor: The Church's subversive Spiritual Warfare" as our Pastor just went through this passage and we are going to be leading our youth group through it as well.

Thanks to Crossway Publishing for providing me with this great book to review. 

Good Night Tales- The stuff that the best traditions are made of

“A children's story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children's story in the slightest.”

― C.S. Lewis

As is always the case, C.S. Lewis speaks the truth with this quote- it seems truer and truer the more children's books I dive into with my kids. "The best kids books" has become my area of expertise in a pretty big way in these years of young kids and homeschooling. I honestly love my kid's favorites books as much as they do, maybe more so in some cases! I have always loved well done children's picture books-bringing home a big stack of them from the library was one of my very favorite things. I was so pleased to be able to renew that tradition with my own children when they came along. Since I have started homeschooling my children, I have found that the consistently best quality books are the classics from years gone by. I have memorized book lists of titles to be on the look out from generations past. It's always a very pleasant surprise indeed when I run across a modern new release that I feel is worthy of a place on my bookshelves. 

 C.S. Fritz's Good Night Tales: A family treasury of read aloud stories has proven to be such a rare treasure. I love everything about this rich volume. From the gorgeous illustrations to the meaty and mysterious tales. This is one of my very favorite children's books to date.  

 The hand sketched "maps" in the end pages and all the deep and moody images throughout the book are just so engaging, even entrancing. It's truly like entering another realm and painting new images in your imagination that will surely stick there. 

The stories within these pages, most are parables of the parables and I find them so heart stirring and fascinating. Honestly, they are not the most straight forward stories you will ever read to your children, but I kind of love that. Like Jesus's parables, these tales make you really stop and think. a few of the stories are even wordless to up the thought provoking quality. I am trying to train myself to let my children alone with stories and their morals and themes but I do appreciate the discussion guide in the back of the book with coordinating scripture and questions for each story. I think it will prove useful for many parents!

I honestly think I would have missed this book if i hadn't have been given the opportunity to review it, so I want to make sure I make it known to other parents looking to immerse their children in best of the fantasy worlds to discover the deepest truths of our world. This book will be on my "must gift" list, right up there with The Jesus Storybook Bible. 

Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.-

Matthew 18:3

Thanks to Tyndale Publishers for the opportunity to review this remarkable book.

Christian Biographies for Young Readers- Irenaeus

The world is a darker place today than it seemed to be growing up- of course there are multiple things that affect this perspective including the oblivious innocence of youth- I don't remember headlines flashing with the massacre of practically an entire church congregation, practically an identical size and demographic of our own church body, no less, and the targeted annihilation of believers by Muslim extremists in the Middle East. In the midst of all this chaos and fear, I am attempting to raise these Little People-Little Believers even- to follow Christ and always hope, no matter what. To procure such deeply important roots into my children would be practically too much if relying on my own wisdom and experience, thankfully I have most crucially the Scriptures and also the advantage of some wonderful resources on the Faith.

One such enriching resource I recently added to our family's library is Simonetta Carr's, Irenaeus: Christian Biographies for Young Readers. What an encouragement to any Christian's faith to hear the noble stories of the those who have walked those path before us and stayed faithful, even to the point of death. I especially admire that first generation of believers from the infancy of the Church who fervently lived out the gospel even in the face of intense persecution. The idea of especially my children enduring such trials shakes my Mother Heart to the core, but it truly seems that children can sense the cruelty and challenges of life and want those heroes to look to imitate in their own trials. My boys have loved the Torch Lighters series, specifically the story of Perpetua and it seems that this book on Irenaeus will be a great follow up in learning about the Early Church Martyrs and Heroes. 

I was impressed and challenged myself while reading through this comprehensive and engaging biography on one of the Early Church Fathers and Defender of Scriptural Integrity. The book begins by introducing us to the world Irenaeus was born into and those who influenced him and his beliefs during his formative years. We then learn of Irenaeus' becoming a leader in the church during a period of intense persecution and how he faced the task of comforting and strengthening the faith of his flock. 

I particularly liked the chapter- For the Love of Truth. I found Irenaeus' refuting the false claims of the Gnostics to be so relevant to even our Christian cultural today. From wondering how people could possibly not give credit to the Maker for the beauty of the starry night sky to calling out the Gnostics for manipulating verses to fit their teachings by taking them out of the context of the correct scripture passage- Irenaeus fought valiantly to protect his flock from deception and also uphold the validity of Scripture for even us today. I am so glad to have this beautiful book to introduce my children to a hero of the faith. The text is both informative and encouraging and gorgeous illustrations plus some fascinating examples of historic relics from Irenaeus' time period. I would highly recommend this book to Christian families!

Thanks to Reformation Heritage Books and the Cross Focused Review program for providing me with this book to share with my readers. 

The Curious Christian- A Title I would Happily Wear

A sense of wonder is the feeling that envelops my childhood memories. Discovery, awe and time "lost"- in thought, enjoying nature, listening to music. A full life was taking things in- learning, exploring, experiencing. And then I grew up and a successful life was putting out- checking off to do lists and being productive. It didn't take me long to realize that to "grow up" didn't leave much time and space for those things my childhood were characterized by and I assumed that was okay because I had to mature. Then I had kids and I realized I pretty much was just "doing", there wasn't a lot of "being". My sense of who I was pretty well depleted- I had been so focused on the putting out that adult life and motherhood required that I hadn't been investing anything back in. As my boys grew and became more aware of the world around them, I saw that childlike sense of wonder in them and I wanted to make sure it was cultivated. The best way to teach is by example- I wanted my children to be life long learners so I needed to be learning my whole life long.

 A rich and intriguing book that helped me to flesh out the why and how of staying curious in life and even how that applies to and affects my christian life was The Curious Christian by Barnabas Piper. Barnabas is the son of well known pastor and author, John Piper, but he gives the credit for his sense of curiosity and thus the content of his book to his mother. This made my Mama heart smile and was an encouragement to dive into this book with abandon.  I loved that Piper began with the side effects of the Uncurious- binary thinking, missed connections, depleted friendships and love lost; Things we'd all rather stay away from. The books premise is that a sense of wonder and curiosity enrich every part of life. "In the end I want you to see that curiosity is more than a mere habit. It is a discipline, a skill, a habit- one that will expand your life in magnificent, if subtle, ways." 

Piper starts out by tackling the very predicament I struggled with in "growing up"- leaving behind childhood pleasures for adult responsibilities. He poses the question, "What if we leave behind childishness but not childlike?".  he then reminds us that discovery is part of our calling by God- to explore both His word and His world. We can and should always be searching for Truth in the world and in the people around us. By being curious, we will constantly be learning, always be in awe and ever be deepening our relationships. Piper touches on how the best education makes us ever-curious people and solidified some of my reasons for teaching my own children at home so I can share in their pursuit of Truth, Goodness and Beauty. 

I appreciated Piper's ideas on how a spirit of curiosity, coupled with the fruits of the spirit, could really make the Church a more vibrant and engaging entity. "Curiosity in action will lead us to ask questions of those who we perceive as different that allow them to speak for themselves and express the beauty and strength of their culture." Being truly curious means we truly ask and want to see before we judge. I thought it was balanced and wise that Piper included that while "curiosity did not kill the Christian" there are also boundaries to where we allow our curiosity to lead us. We can be a person of curiosity and conviction by "being willing to to listen arguments carefully and process them honestly, but do not move from a conviction without ample reason to do so." He also makes a good point about how grace and wonder allow us to maintain optimism about people while being realistic. We can be curious to know who someone is and assume the best and worst about them simultaneously by being wise yet gracious.

Piper also goes beyond the theoretical and philosophical and offers some practical advice on being curious that I thought was very helpful. He challenges up to consider what media and the like we are "inputting". He offers some questions to ask ourselves such as "How does this shape my life?" and "Is this trustworthy?". In the section, "On being cultured", Piper shares suggestions on cultivating an appetite and appreciation for quality literature, music, nature and science. He hits on so many interesting thoughts on such a variety of topics that it's hard to even scratch the surface of the substance of this book, but I thought the last chapter offered up some solid points for living a curious life: Be Interested, Be Humble, Look, Listen, Record, Ask, Go and Explore, Try Things, Read and Always Come Back to Scripture. "Curiosity is about God and for God. It is an expression of worship and it honors Him by exploring the depths and breadth of His creation." 

This is a book I will be periodically be rereading to remind myself of the worthiness of the pursuit of Truth and the beauty in Wonder. I hope I never stop learning and being in awe. I hope I maybe rub off on my kids a little, like they have immensely rubbed off on me. I hope one day my children each have a lively spirit of curiosity and that I am a part of some of the memories that cultivated it.

Thanks to B&H Publishing for providing this book to review. 

The Family Life of a Christian Leader- good advice for any christian home

I feel it's a little presumptuous of me to have decided a book written to christian leaders would be "for me" as I am not a man/leader in the church nor is my husband in a prominent leadership position. But, I have a curious appetite for self improvement/christian interest books and figured advice on home life given to church leaders has to be pretty potent stuff. Some of the best philosophies/concepts about marriage and family life I have adopted have come from well written, christian books. So knowing this to be a tried and true strategy I jumped into The Family Life of a Christian Leader by Ajith Fernando. Ajith is a director of the Youth for Christ program in Sri Lanka and has been in leadership for 35 years. He is a well respected voice in the christian counseling and ministry world and seems to have the real life witness to qualify him as an excellent author for this genre of book.

I found the perspectives and stories from Ajith's differing culture very interesting and yet still extremely pertinent to any family situation. He does a great job of striking a very challenging, yet applicable balance between scripture and real life strategies to apply. He also does a wonderful job of painting a very true to life yet inspiring picture of both the struggles of family life, especially with a ministry career, and also inspiring readers to see what a witness and blessing a harmonious home could be. Each chapter that addresses a "hard" issue has a corresponding encouraging one. I really appreciate Ajith's diligence to help build up Christian leaders to the biblical qualifications of church leadership while also strongly exhorting them to cherish and care for their wife and children. My family has been involved in part time ministries through the years and also have been close to families in full time ministry and know the great burden and challenge that lifestyle can be for a family. I feel this book does a great job of exhorting the importance of this grand calling while also offering very compassionate advice on lightening the load for a ministry family. 

I received this book in exchange for my honest review thanks to Crossway Publishing. 

An Amazingly Thorough, yet Whimsical Theology Course wrapped up in a Children's Book

Consistency is not my strongest suit but I have more than learned the value of good habits and routines. One practice that has started to "stick" fairly well in my boys and my daily rhythm is "Morning Time"-this happens after breakfast and chores and before I do any individual school subjects with the boys separately. We all gather at the dining room table and enjoy a "broad feast"-not of food, but ideas. We start with a quick prayer, go over our AWANA verses and read a section of the bible for our Bible Road Trip. We focus on learning a new song from Songs for Saplings each week, they offer some great catechisms set to catchy tunes. We also cover some fun, out of the ordinary ways to learn math, church history, and the boys love our time for nursery rhymes and a silly poem. The point of Morning Time is not academic but to connect as a family and focus on things that are good, true and beautiful. 

A book that I had on my wishlist for some time and was so excited to incorporate into our Feast was The Ology: Ancient Truths Ever New by Marty Machowski. This book is incredible, really. When I think of the good, true and beautiful, I picture this book. Machowski offers a dense and rich spread of theological truth written towards kids, but just as nourishing for adults and wraps it up in a gorgeous, heirloom quality format of a book. One of the tag lines from the publishers is "A beginner s book of systematic theology in the form of a beautifully illustrated storybook." I think this is really the perfect way to sum up what this book is. It truly is a very comprehensively laid out theology course in the form of an engaging children's story. 

It begins by introducing us to our main characters- Carla and Timothy who are exploring their church building when they discover not only a secret underground stairway but also a mysterious package that beckons them to "Open and Read". Within is a letter explaining that they have in their hands a last of it's kind historic children's book that teaches the Theology, the study of God. And so begins our journey with Carla and Timothy thru The Ology. 

The book is very systematic about it's teaching approach and I think that's perfect to make sure even the youngest child can begin but also make sure the more advanced student has a through and solid foundation. It starts with The Ology of God, which covers the attributes of who God is. Then, we move to The Ology of People where we're reminded of our creation and first parents. Next, we have to face the hard facts in The Ology of Sin which does a great job of clearly explaining to children what sin and it's consequences are, both at the first instance in the Garden and in their lives now. The Ology of the Promise and the Law explains God's "rescue plan" and how the law was first introduced and what it's purpose is.

 The hope comes with The Ology of Christ when children are told of Jesus' divine and human aspects and what all he did for us. Things go a little deeper still when we get to The Ology of the Holy Spirit and learn of the introduction of the Holy Spirit to the first believers and how it is with us now. The Ology of Adoption into God's Family gives us many reminders of our truest identity. The Ology of Change I think is where things start transitioning to being a great challenge and lesson to older children, past the basics of what God has done for us and focused in on how we can live for him. This section deals with how we can grow and have victory in Christ and I'm thinking my oldest who just turned 6 would really get a lot out of these lessons at his stage in understanding the faith. The Ology of the Church does a wonderful job of explaining what the purpose of the Church is and why we need to be a part of it. A much helpful to teaching parents section on The Ology of the End Times gives some great insight into the tricky subject of "things to come". And the whole book is tied up nicely with the last chapter The Ology of God's Word where we are reminded of the importance and power of this book we're studying so in depth. 

Each "lesson" is short and concise with coordinating scripture and a whimsical illustration to engage kids. There is so much packed into this volume that I don't foresee us getting through it any time too soon and I am totally ok with that. Like any delightful thing you want to draw it out, soak it up and savor it. That's most importantly, how we should feel about God's word and I think Marty Machowski has doing a wonderful job of invoking a similar feeling about the complementary study of Theology with this outstanding title. As only the best kid's books can do, I feel like this is a gift not only for them, but for me as the lucky parent who gets to read it to them. This book will be treasured by my family for many years of growth and spiritual formation to come and recommended to all my  dearest Mama friends. 

Thanks so much to New Growth Press for providing me with this title to enjoy with my children and wholeheartedly recommend to my readers.

All the Pretty Things: An Absorbing Memoir

I am a fan of a good true story. I don't expect it to be fairy tale happily ever after perfect, it can be rough around the edges- I especially love to see God shift the plot and redemption wash over the messy parts. Edie Wadsworth's All The Pretty Things is just that kind of story. I devoured this book in just a few, late nights. lifeingrace was one of the first blogs I ever read and was instantly impressed with Edie's "picture perfect" life and home (the internet lends such a rosy shade of lens to us all ;). I never knew the hard won life story behind Edie's beautiful and encouraging webpage. 

Edie has quite the narrative voice that draws you in and paints a picture of a childhood that, while very different from the one I experienced, makes you believe in and empathize with the good and the hard parts. She may not grow up in the ideal living situation with the most stable of families, but she does know love and God's providential hand gets her through. It's clear Edie had a special tie to her father and she does a marvelous job showing a realistic profile of the man who both loved her like no other and scarred her deeply with his own scars. A wide cast of characters make up Edie's colorful extended family and they all play a part in the story line of who she was and who she has become. Her upbringing causes Edie to grow up in a hurry and pursue perfection in everything that was so imperfect and incomplete in her childhood. She finds hope and direction in the Lord at a young age and her life really is turned around by clinging to that. Edie does very well at bettering herself by jumping headfirst into medical school and becoming a doctor. Along the way, she has got married young and has a couple kids and thinks she has outrun her "demons". Only after she has everything that should complete her does she realize that the work of her own hands won't bring peace-she has an affair, her marriage dissolves and she finally is brought face to face with all the wounds from her past. What is surely a very broken place proves to be fertile ground for redemption and God to step in and take over. Edie is able to make amends with her challenging childhood and remarries and becomes the face of lifeingrace that I was first introduced to. 

Never judge a book by it's cover rings true here-there is far more to Edie Wadsworth's story than meets the eye.I can imagine some parts of this story were very hard for her to bare to public scrutiny, but she does it with class and grace and we are all thankful she was willing to share this story of God's faithfulness in bringing pretty things out of sometimes ugly places.

Thanks to Tyndale Publishers for providing with a copy of this book to review.

What do you cling to when it all goes wrong? Why She Reads Truth

I am SO glad we were able to make the Advent season rich and full of soul preparation and a reminder of the full gospel story- beginning of the world to Nativity scene and all the hard waiting in between-because we definitely needed the hope of what Christmas was really and truly about come Christmas morning. I have some precious memories of this Advent season with my boys that I will be so thankful to look back on for years to come: Making candles with friends, lighting our special candles for devotional times at night and our extra special night of the Shepherd's Meal and journey to follow "the Star." We baked cookies, and cuddled up on the couch with piles of Christmas picture books and followed God's Big Story from creation to Jesus with our Jesse Tree readings. We thoroughly relished the countdown to Christmas and it really felt like one for the books-until those last few days leading right up to the Big Day and suddenly Mama is covered in a mutant looking case of Poison Oak and the Biggest Boy is coughing up a storm and all the sudden has his last set of molars popping through his gums and where did all the peaceful Magic go?! We soldiered thru, sure that all would be made well by Christmas, only to have Christmas Eve roll around and we're all about to pack in the car and head to the traditional Christmas Eve service, but wait, the baby is burning up and not ready to go anywhere. So Mama stays home and rocks a sick toddler to sleep and everybody else comes home from festivities with family only to have the Middle Boy sobbing from sickness and hot to the touch. It was a not so silent or calm night with little boys tossing and turning and no sleep to go around until well past 4 am. At this point, Christmas morning church service is out the window as well and maybe we can get thru some gifts before collapsing back into bed for a bit? Let's just say it was so not my picture perfect, ideal Christmas morning and not too long ago that would have left me so depressed, marring the whole Christmas season in my mind. After putting so much intentional time and effort into making the season the best it could be- focused on what was true and gleaning all we could from this joyous time of the year, to have that one special day out of the year go so horribly out of plan would have definitely got to me. But this year, because I did focus in on what was true about Christmas, it was ok, I knew I was ok. All the circumstances could go crazily wrong and Christmas was still Christ's birthday and that was worth celebrating and making the most of in whatever fashion we could and we did! It was a good day- a messy, tired, no-photo-proof-it-even-happened kinda day- but we were surrounded by family and blessed to give gifts and eat amazing food and most of all, remember we had Emmanuel-God with us.

As much as I should have known all this truth all along, I can't say I have been the best about actually living it out as reality in my life- really truly living like I believe and know God has it all in control, no matter what happens around me. I have tried over the last few years to really soak my life in scriptures so it does become so much more of my natural response and I have to say one resource I have found amazing helpful in bible study is She Reads Truth. This company and community has been such a blessing to me and several of my close friends; they offer beautifully designed bible study books filled with rich truths that always lead you straight back to scripture. I have done several of their studies, including their Advent study last year with a group of friends, and always feel enriched because of them. I was so excited to hear that they had a book coming out, named after the company and the real life stories of the two cofounders, Rachael Meyers and Amanda Bible Williams. She Reads Truth: Holding Tight to Permanent in a World That's Passing Away is truly a breath of fresh air in women's christian living books; I have read so many books in this category they really start to feel like repeats but not this book. 

Rachael and Amanda alternately write the chapters, weaving together a narrative of their own personal journeys with the Lord and how She Reads Truth came to be. But rather than take us through their actual business success story they focus on the more relevant topic of how their lives brought them to truly be a She who Reads Truth. Amanda shares her painful walk through losing her father to cancer and how she learned that "The promises themselves were true, and we held on tight. But there immutability was inseparable from the Promise Maker."  She read truth to find Jesus, the Perfect and the Permanent. Rachael vulnerably tells of having to say goodbye much, much to early to her precious baby.  How she asks her Father to take this cup from her, but that isn't his answer. "The cup didn't pass from us. The only way out was onward, drinking deeply. Honoring our daughter and her Maker with our grief for a life lost. Not my will, but Yours be done.They were the safest, most dangerous words we had ever spoken."  Rachael found comfort in reading scripture to know that Christ himself had asked the Father for relief from suffering but chose to trust God's ultimate plan.

I may not be able to relate to every situation and feeling that Amanda and Rachael share, but they bare their hearts in such a way that I can glean much wisdom from their experiences. I could find ties to my own struggles with anxiety and striving after being a "good girl" out of my own strength. This book was so beneficial to me- edifying and challenging, encouraging and always pointing back to Christ. There is so much I loved enough to highlight and too many quotes I could share.  These women said just what I (and I think it's safe to say every She) needs to hear- The Permanent is there for you. Whatever this temporary life has looked like, and whatever signs are waiting on the road on the road ahead, God and His Truth will always be true. You cannot change the Truth. You cannot earn it or lose it or escape it. But you can hold on to it, knowing that it holds you."

"She is Me.

She is You. 

She wants faith, hope and love. 

She wants help and healing.

She wants to hear and be heard, to see and be seen.

She wants things set right."

So, She Reads Truth.

In light of how much I love and want to recommend this book, I wanted to let you all know that shereadstruth.com is offering a free one week bible study (starting today) made of selections from this amazing book. Go check it out!

Thanks to B&H Publishing for providing a copy of this book to review. 

Thankful

I know I maybe a (couple) day(s) late with this post, but before I move into full on Christmas mode, I wanted to share a wrap up on fall and what I am thankful for in current life. 

My little boys have been true and constant sunshine in a oft times grey and dreary part of the year. We have defintely had seasons where trying to parent 3 rambunctious and very young boys was easily the biggest stress factor in my life, I am thankful this chapter lets them star as one of the biggest delights. 

School hasn't been religiously consistent, but it has happened and we have had a ton of fun learning when it does. It's been such a treat to see Cole soak up reading lessons and take such pride in is new found skills. Asher slowly but surely is improving on his speech and jumps into learning with full enthusiasm (when he's in the mood for it ;). Silas is a dependable source for joy and entertainment for the whole household- what a gift that littlest boy has been to our family! He is a go getter who has always wants to be in on the action. "I wanna Twy", is his current catchphrase. 

I can know say I have been blessed to be married to my husband for seven years. Seven is kind of my number so it almost feels like a bigger deal than say, ten. I envisioned seven years ringing in triumphant bliss- this year hasn't been an easy one in any aspect of our lives but the celebration does taste a little sweeter being hard won.

 I am so grateful for family and friends that love and support us in tangible ways- like watching our little crazies and allowing us to get away for our anniversary. We contemplated several new trip itineraries but in the end, decided to stick with our stand by- Bend. We knew we could enjoy ourselves without a ton of mental energy being expended on trying to navigate a new to us area. We slept in, ate so much great food and  refilled our kombucha growlers. We did some Christmas shopping, hiked to a gorgeous water fall and saw two movies in theatres. It's so refreshing to splurge on a weekend or so a year of just a time of fun, just the two of us. I always come home and am thrown for a bit of a loop stepping right into our extra busy holdiay season- jam packed with not only holidays but a whole lo of birthdays in our house- but I am also thankful for that little breather before jumping in to all the seasonal activities too. We came with a pretty awesome souvenir, my anniversary gift, a Pendleton blanket. It's gorgeous and something I could never justify buying for myself so it really was the perfect gift. 

Thanksgiving was of course, filled with the best meal of the year shared with loved ones. From there it's been a fast shift into the Advent season and here we are already at December first. I am really glad to have adopted some meaningful advent rhythms and traditions to our days last year and am excited to pick those back up and add in a few more this year as well. I really don't want to overload us on "doing" and loose really "being" in the season, so we're slowing down on our outside commitments and focusing in on our home and on Christ. 

I am using the Slow and Sacred Advent ebook as a weekly framework. It is a laid back, but lovely guide to the 4 weeks of advent with handicrafts and recipes. As a family devotional for the season, we are using Prepare Him Room by Marty Machowski. This book is full of scripture, projects, songs an even an original Christmas story. I am really excited to share a more extensive review on this great family resource in the near future! 

It is so neat to watch the boys become more aware of what Christmas really means more and year and be more able to be involved in the preparation and festivities. Yesterday we had a full house of little and big friends to start of the Christmas season with an afternoon of handicrafts. We all shared a big pot of hearty soup, fresh baked breads, cups of coffee (for the mamas) and hand rolled beeswax candles. What a fun project it was! The kids exceeded my expectations with their interest and ability with it all. They really loved making something with their own two hands to be used for Christmas time. the natural, honey scent of our candles is very homey and comforting-perfect for cold, winter days.  The boys loved doing our devotion by candlelight later that night. It was fun to find a project that was first for both me and the boys and to learn together. Though, we later found out that Daddy had rolled many a candle in his childhood- in preparation for Y2K! ;) 

We've strung a few popcorn garlands and enjoyed a Christmas movie or two while sipping tea. I'm looking forward to a lot more cozy time at home over the next weeks- including, of course, a lot of time snuggled up on the couch reading Christmas books. We've pretty much put school on hold to enjoy all the special books, music and other "lessons" the season has to offer. We are using Pam Barnhill's Advent morning time plans and adapting them with the Christmas read alouds we have on hand to use- including the Hans Christian Anderson The Fir Tree (which I've reviewed here!) and The Snow Queen (which all be reviewing soon!) On top of the pile of Christmas picture books I have accumulated over the last couple of years.

It's the most wonderful time of the year. 

We have a Savior who is Closer than Close

I've pretty much "grown up" as a Christian-in that I grew up in a Christian home and knew about God and what His Son did for me from the start. This is not something I am complaining about: what a great blessing and one I am trying to endow to my children now. I have also pretty much always been a "Good Girl" and have never really had a desire to be anything else. But even mild mannered, tame people who aren't even necessarily tempted to be "bad" realize in a real hurry that it's hard work doing good works and you can always be better. Call it perfectionism, Type A personality or whatever, but I don't think I'm alone in "hustling" in the Christian life. In serving more, being a part of more ministries and on top of that doing these things with the right intentions and attitudes. And then there's the whole list of sins and downfalls I can't seem to shake or move past, even though I really really want to. Being a "good" Christian is hard work and I'm frankly sort of exhausted. 

I know of grace and God's rest for me and I know I can receive those things by being close to Him. Then the question is, how do I get close to Him? I know the right steps to achieve closer proximity (or at least the way we are usually to do so)- get up early, read your bible, pray, serve others. I want to do those things, I know they have merit and are key parts of the Christian walk; but I also am kind of horrible at being inconsistent in those things and getting bogged down in the rest of life. And so I start to feel a little hopeless, like if I can't hold up my part of this deal than why should God want to be close to me and how well I ever "get it right" enough to feel close to Him? 

During a time of a lot of internal wrestling over this conundrum came a book that tackles just these questions and more. In Closer than Close: Awakening to the freedom of your union in Christ  Dave Hickman does a wonderful job of verbalizing all the doubts and fears I've secretly felt and bringing to light the true meaning of how close God wants to be to me and how it is possible. Jesus died on the cross to cleanse my sins so the gap could be crossed and I could be truly united with Him- really, Closer than Close. 

Dave starts by "introducing" himself and I instantly knew he was a voice I could trust on this journey because I could so relate with his early christian experience growing up and how tough it was to fully commit and live a mature christian life as a kid and young adult. He talks of seasons of being fully on fire for God and then being slowly pulled away by "teenage life". Of wanting so badly to give up sins and grow and yet finding yourself doing that very thing, over and over. Dave writes, "Although I was learning more about Jesus and wanted desperately to please and obey him, I became trapped in an endless cycle of sin- confession- sin- confession- sin- confession.'' And pretty soon all you feel is guilt and despair. I could very much empathize with all of this, but also when he writes, "I continued to fight for my relationship with Jesus. How could I not? How could I give up on the one relationship that is suppose to save me?"  Yes, how could I ever give up on that?

Dave goes on to share how after his first son is born and he is completely overcome with love for this child, his child, he just wants to be as close to him as possible. It's then he realizes, God reveals to him that this is who God feels about him, about his children. He wants to be closer than close, He wants to be One. He continues to look at the "Us" of God revealed thru scripture- how there is one God with distinct and different personalities or divinities within. Dave explains how the Trinity is "eternally present with one another, for another, and in one another." And how God created man as another picture of that relationship and form. Of course we know sin came in and tore that idea apart but then Christ came along to redeem and restore that beautiful concept. 

The rest of the book focuses on how to actually life like we have Christ living in and through us. How to grasp our personal identity as the Most Loved. I loved the example Dave uses of how when Jesus first steps onto the sign of public ministry with his baptism God could have understandably encouraged him with affirmation of his divinity or divine calling but instead God says, "This is my Son who I love and in whom I am pleased." This was first and foremost who Jesus was- God's most loved Son and we are at our core his most loved children. In the next chapter, Dave explores the spiritual disciplines of living closer than close to Jesus and shares how it is in some ways like living married life. As you become one with your spouse and daily draw closer to them, so with Christ, you are a new thing and daily dig deeper into what the reality of this union really is. Lastly, Dave dives into what identity and reality in Christ looks like when applied to how we approach the church and the great commission. This book is a very insightful and yet encouraging book on Christian growth, in the truest sense.

 I received this book in exchange for my honest review from Tyndale Publishers.