Leaving Carolina

This week I have a great novel to share with you all by Tamara Leigh that I have only been able to get half way through it only for lack of time, not for lack of desire!  This story is a great, easy read, and quite funny.  Leaving Carolina is about a young southern woman, Piper Pickwick, who left her hometown of Pickwick with her mother when she was young in search of a new life far away from the shenanigans of the Pickwick family.  Despite her attempts to leave her Pickwick family and life behind without a second thought, she has become involved with a political figure and needs to return to Pickwick to convince her old Uncle Obe not to change his will.  Not because she wants the money, or the estate, rather she only is worried about an incident that she caused, yet allowed an innocent girl to take the blame for and if Uncle Obe has his way, he will bring to light the truth of all of the Pickwick’s horrible encounters with the law and other ill fated events.  Piper is worried that she will ruin her chances of wedded bliss with her boyfriend, Grant, if her secret is unveiled with Uncle Obe’s changes.  But Uncle Obe has other plans for Piper’s love life, and his attorney doesn’t help Piper’s plan to “Get in, Get out” of Pickwick by changing their meeting multiple times.

 

So far I’ve loved this story and look forward to finishing it!! It will make a great gift for any book worm in your life.  With the Holidays coming up in only weeks, I highly recommend you purchase this for any book lover.

Leaving Carolina : http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?isbn=9781601421661

Book: Leaving Carolina

Author: Tamara Leigh

Summary:

Piper Wick left her hometown of Pickwick , North Carolina , twelve years ago, shook the dust off her feet, ditched her drawl and her family name, and made a new life for herself as a high-powered public relations consultant in LA. She’s even “engaged to be engaged” to the picture-perfect U.S. Congressman Grant Spangler.

Now all of Piper’s hard-won happiness is threatened by a reclusive uncle’s bout of conscience. In the wake of a health scare, Uncle Obadiah Pickwick has decided to change his will, leaving money to make amends for four generations’ worth of family misdeeds. But that will reveal all the Pickwicks’ secrets, including Piper’s.

Though Piper arrives in Pickwick primed for battle, she is unprepared for Uncle Obe’s rugged, blue-eyed gardener. So just who is Axel Smith? Why does he think making amends is more than just making restitution? And why, oh why, can’t she stay on task? With the Lord’s help, Piper is about to discover that although good PR might smooth things over, only the truth will set her free.

 

This book was provided by Waterbrook Multnomah Random House publishing for review.

Last Minute Chili

One of my greatest passions and the task I enjoy the most in my role as mom and wife is cooking. I love to try new things and I enjoy the challange of making a great meal out of whatever is in my kitchen cupboards. Tonight it ended up being really cool outside and I had pulled out some beef patties this morning with the intention of making spaghetti but decided last minute to make chili. So I remembered that I had some cans of red kidney beans in the pantry, and some onions and green peppers and garlic in the fridge. And in place of the diced tomatoes I usually add to my chili I had to substitute some plain spaghetti sauce and a can of tomato sauce. Sautéd the onion, garlic and peppers then added ground beef, salt and pepper until browner then put everything into a big pot added some chili powder, ground cumin, cayenne, and garlic powder and voilà! Scrumptious last minute chili!!! I never measure anything I just add a little taste add a little more taste and do that til I like what I’ve made!! Serve with cheese, red pepper, sour cream, crackers and whatever other toppings you like!

General idea of the ingredients:
4 – 15.5 oz cans red kidney beans(half light red half dark red)
1 onion diced
1 green bell pepper
2 cloves garlic minced
1 small can tomato sauce
About 5-6 cups traditional spaghetti sauce
2 lbs ground beef
1-2 tbl sp ground cumin
1-2 tbl sp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder

In large pan sautee onion, green pepper, and garlic with about 2 tbl sp oil until softened. Add ground beef and some salt and pepper cook until brown. I added some Lawreys seasoning to the beef as well. In large pot combine all other ingredients on medium heat. Add meat mixture. Turn up to medium high heat and put lid on until boiling. Serve hot.

Clay or Wax?

I came upon this on another blog today and just thought I would share

“Hardened clay is brittle and easily damaged. If dropped, it can fracture into a thousand pieces… Dropped wax, it only bends from the pressure of the fall. Impressionable and pliable, it can quickly be remolded.People are like that. People who are hardened in their resolve against God are brittle, their emotions are easily damaged. But those who bend to the will of God find perfect expression in however God molds them.

The same sun that hardens the clay, melts the wax. There is no change or variation in the sun itself. It’s just the way the clay or wax responds.

Trials and sufferings will harden some just like breakable clay, baking in resentment and bitterness. The same circumstances can melt others, teaching them endurance. The trials have no value or intrinsic meaning in themselves. It’s the way we respond to those trials that makes all the difference.” Joni E. Tada

Wisdom Hunter and Shadow Government

This week I have not one but two books to report on to you all.  One of them I loved! The other, I couldn’t get past the second chapter despite my efforts to force myself to continue reading.

Wisdom Hunter

by Randall Arthur

This is an older book first published in the early 90’s, but is being re-released so it is completely new to me. But when I mentioned it on Twitter while I was in the middle of the book my mom said she read it when it was first published.  It takes place from the 1970s through the 1980s.  It’s a story about , Jason Faircloth, a pastor of  a mega church in Atlanta, GA and some tragic events that take place and turn his life upside down, leaving him to question all that he has believed and taught thousands of others to believe throughout his many years in ministry.  The story follows Jason through many years after the events that changed his life as he runs from country to country in search of his granddaughter who is his only living relative.  Through the years of searching for his granddaughter he ends up redefining his faith, and learning what true Christianity is and how far from the truth he has been all the years of his life spent in ministry.  He learns through extreme circumstances that the only way he will ever find happiness and peace again is by letting go of his past and laying his future in God’s hands for His work. Despite his desire and efforts to find his granddaughter, Jason finally finds peace when he lays all of his life down at the foot of the cross, and only then does he allow God the chance to reinvent Jason and give him the hope needed to carry on.

I absolutely LOVED this book and dreaded when I had to put it down to tend to my daily tasks.  I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves an action packed adventure with a foundation in faith and hope.  I’m also thinking about sending this to a relative who has had a falling out with Christianity and all that has been shown to them through the many legalistic churches that have flooded the Western nations.

From the Publisher:

Book: Wisdom Hunter

Author:  Randall Arthur

Summary:

Pastor Jason Faircloth knows what he believes. His clear faith, in fact, is why he is one of the most prominent pastors in Atlanta . He relies on it to discipline his daughter, his wife, his church. He prays daily that others would come to see God’s ways as he does.

And it is about to cost him everything.

Groping for answers in the face of tragedy, Jason begins a search for the only family he has left: the granddaughter kept hidden from him. Soon he finds himself on an international adventure that will take him straight into the depths of his soul. He is determined not to fail again.

A fast-paced suspense novel rich in spiritual depth, Wisdom Hunter explores what it means to break free of Christian legalism—and discover why grace can mean the difference between life and death.

Author Bio:

Randall Arthur is the bestselling author of Jordan’s Crossing and Brotherhood of Betrayal. He and his wife have served as missionaries to Europe for over thirty years. From 1976 till 1998, he lived in Norway and Germany as a church planter. Since 2000, he has taken numerous missions teams from the United States on trips all over Europe . Arthur is also the founder of the AOK (Acts of Kindness) Bikers’ Fellowship, a group of men who enjoy the sport of motorcycling. He and his family live in Atlanta , Georgia .

Do you have any blogger friends who might like to participate in this or any other blog tours? Please direct them to the official WaterBrook Multnomah Blogging for Books site page at http://www.randomhouse.com/waterbrook/bloggingforbooks/.

To purchase Wisdom Hunter click here

 

The second book I (tried to) read is:

Shadow Government: How the Secret Global Elite Is Using Surveillance Against You

by Grant R. Jeffrey

 

I was very excited to read this book when I signed up for this blog tour but ended up finding it borderline paranoid and quite irritating to be truthful.  Let me start by saying I was raised in a Spirit filled, prophetic home with my father who was a Pastor and spoke and prayed in tongues often.  I was water baptized at 17 and was baptized in the Holy Spirit at the age of 18.  I have been prophesied over and have had my own prophetic visions as well.  I believe that the Word of God is alive and believe all of the prophecies to be true and if haven’t already been fulfilled will be fulfilled one day.  So, with all that said.  I also believe that we, as Christians, need to be aware and knowledgeable of the prophecies in the Bible and ready for when Christ comes back.  But I don’t believe that we need to be so focused on the fulfillment of the prophecies as we need to be focusing on making an impact in the lives of those around us who are unaware of the Truth and that need to be told the Good News.  I understand all the information and worries that Jeffrey has compiled and written in his book, but for me personally, I found the book (the part that i read) to be based more in fear than in faith.  I know that there will be an antichrist.  I know that there are cameras, and tracking devices, and hackers, and other “evils” in and around my life every day.  But we aren’t called to live in fear of these things, we are to be aware and knowledgeable of them but we are to focus on the Lord and His truths as we are to spread His love to others.  We aren’t supposed to be making cases for Him and convince people that the prophecies are going to be fulfilled so they need to become followers based in fear, rather we are to show them through our own lives that God is a God of love and truth and wants to have a relationship with Him through faith and honesty, knowing that He will protect us and guide us as the prophecies are fulfilled.

I will continue to try to finish the book, because Jeffrey may very well explain in the end all of this in this way, but as for the few chapters I got through, he seems to focus on RFID chips, and security cameras, IP addresses to the point where I felt like I was listening to a paranoid person who may as well be living in a cement underground bunker, growing his own food and living off the land in fear of the lurking evil behind technology.

 

From the Publisher:

Book: Shadow Government

Author:  Grant Jeffrey

Summary:

Security cameras, surveillance of private financial transactions, radio frequency spy chips hidden in consumer products, eavesdropping on e-mail correspondence and phone calls, and Internet tracking. No one is protected, and privacy is a thing of the past.

An ultra-secret global elite, functioning as a very real shadow government, controls technology, finance, international law, world trade, political power, and vast military capabilities. These unnamed, unrivaled leaders answer to no earthly authority, and they won’t stop until they control the world.

In Shadow Government, prophecy expert Grant Jeffrey removes the screen that, up to now, has hidden the work of these diabolical agents. Jeffrey reveals the biblical description of Satan’s global conquest and identifies the tools of technology that the Antichrist will use to rule the world.

Readers will have their eyes opened to the real power that is working behind the scenes to destroy America and merge it into the coming global government. Armed with this knowledge, readers will be equipped to face spiritual darkness with the light of prophetic truth.

 

Author Bio:

Grant R. Jeffrey is the internationally known prophecy researcher, Mideast expert, and author of Countdown to the Apocalypse, The New Temple and the Second Coming, The Next World War, and twenty other best-selling books. He is also the editor of the Prophecy Study Bible. His popular television program, Bible Prophecy Revealed, airs weekly on TBN. Jeffrey earned his master’s and PhD degrees from Louisiana Baptist University . He and his wife, Kaye, live in Toronto .

To purchase Shadow Government click here

 

These Books were provided for review purposes by Random House and Water Brook Maltnomah publishers.

The Sound of Sleigh Bells

The Sound of Sleigh Bells
By: Cindy Woodsmall

It’s that time of year again! Everyone is gearing up for the holiday season and what better way to kick it off than with a short, sweet story that takes place at Christmas time?

I loved this story from start to finish. Beth Hertzler is a young Amish woman who seems to have submitted to a life as an old maid along side her single aunt Lizzy Hertzler due to a secret she has been holding on to for the past 18 months. Beth and Lizzy run a very well established business selling and buying Amish goods both for their Dry Goods store and for the Amish and Englischer commuinties throughput Ohio and Pennsylvania. During Beth’s first buying and selling trip across the various counties since the accident that changed her life, she finds a beautiful treasure carved by an Amish man known as Old Man she has never heard of before. Beth fights to convince her Bishop (who is being seen with her Aunt more and more often raising her suspicions of something more than friendship taking place) to be able to sell the carved treasures in her store. When her Aunt goes to meet the carver of these treasures Beth has fallen in love with she deceives the man into a correspondence setup for disaster.
Will Lizzy or Beth ever find love? Who is this Old Man and what is his secret? What is Beth hiding that causes her to continue a life as a mourning woman??

This is a great short read for anyone who loves stories surrounding the Amish or for a quick holiday read. It’s a nice small book that would make a great stocking stuffer for that bookworm in your life as well. Pick it up today at http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780307446534

From the inside cover:
The auther of The New Yprk Times bestselling When the Soul Mends tells a captivatingstory of two guarded hearts, the letters that unlock their secrets, and the surprise of healing grace. Beth Hertzler works alongside her beloved Aunt Lizzy in their dry goods store and serves as a contact between Amish craftsmen and Englischer retailer. But remorse and lonliness still echo in her heart every day, and she still wears dark dresses to indicate her mourning of her fiancé. When she discovers a large, intricately carved scene of Amish children playing in the snow in an Englischer store, something deep inside Beth’s soul responds, and she wants to help the unknown artist find homes for his work.

Lizzy sees the changes in her niece when Beth shows her the woodworking and after meeting Jonah, the artist, she is determined that Beth come to know this man whose hands create healing art. But it’s not that simple-Beth HD cut herself off from any possibity of romance. Will Lizzy’s elaborate plan to reintroduce her niece to love work? Will Jonah be Ble to offer Beth new hope and a second chance at real love-or just more heartbreak?

Cindy Woodsmall is the author of When the Heart Cries, When the Mourning Comes and The New York Times bestseller When the Soul Mends. Her ability to authentically capture the heart of her characters comes from her real-life connections with Amish Mennonite and Old Order Amish families. A mother of three sons and two daughters-in-law, Cindy lives in Georgia with her husband of more than thirty years.

This book has been provided for review by Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing.

Thoghts from the crazy mom

WARNING: DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE ONE TO TAKE OTHER PEOPLE’S THIUGHTS AND FEELINGS AS A PERSONAL ATTACK AGAINST YOU. THESE THOUGHTS ARE MY OWN AND AGAINST NO ONE IN PARTICULAR ONLY MY PERSONAL VENTING FOR WHATEVER CRQZY THIUGHTS ARE GOING THRIUGH MY HEAD. THESE ARE MY FEELINGS AND THE CURRENT ISSUES IM WORKING THROUGH.IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU.

Sooooo it’s been a really really rough week this week for me as a mom. My hormones are all out of whack because my body is still trying to get back to “normal” after being pregnant and/or breastfeedong the past few years and it is not fun!! I get to this point where i feel like my hormones are having a hardcore crazy party in my blood stream and the energy and frustration starts to boil over and I don’t know how to control anything on my own because my mommy brain is not as quick or strong as it was before it became a mom. If that makes anysense at all I’m not sure.

I’m so sick and tired of being the “crazy mom”. I’ve really had a hard time going back to our church the past year because I have felt like a sore thumb every time I go. Every relationship I try to make or nourish with any and all or the moms at the church turn into me trying to talk to and connect with them only to be ignored. Okay, so I don’t give a shit about how I dress or if my hair do is the newest trend or whether I should wear Crocs with every outfit. Yeah I admit I don’t wear makeup, and I don’t get my hair highlighted. I dot shop at Gap, Banana Republic, Saks Fifth Avenue. No I don’t eat all organic food. Yeah so my kids sleep in bed with me and my husband, every night, and we love it. No I don’t even own a crib. Yeah I breastfed my kids past 12 months, why didn’t you?? No I didn’t circumcise my son, and no I don’t believe that he will have issues getting into heaven because of it. Yeah I signed up to help in the nursery and kids program but Boone called or pun me on the schedule so don’t give me that look like I don’t “give” to the church. No we don’t have a “schedule” for food and sleep. We have a routine. We wake up, we eat, we play, we nap (or try to), we play some more, we eat, we bathe (every few days but not always every day and not always at night sometimes in the morning), we read books, we sleep. Yes my kids are in cloth diapers, and I love it.
I knew that when I had kids my life would be forever changed. My life “does revolve around my kids but no they don’t “manipulate” me. They clean up their own toys, they clear their own plate after they eat their fill, I don force the. To eat every bite, I don’t force myself to eat every bite. They choose out their own clothes, when they want. I let my kids play in the puddles, I let them run ahead of me at the beach with out yellin at them to get by my side. I allow my kids to explore and learn on their own, I allow the. To br independent and make their own choices. I don’t hover over them and gasp everytime they try to climb to the highest point at the play ground. I allow them to make choices and learn from those choices. Sometimes they do it over and over again, and skin their knee the sake way three or four times before they realize what they are doin may not be the best idea.
I don’t tell you how to raise your kids, or balk at you when you tell me your kid sleeps in a crib by himself in his own ro and God forbid he ever even sit in your sacred marriage bed let alone sleep in it. I mean, if your child sleeps in your bed where do you, ya know, do it??? Well dear, who ever said sex only took place in a bed?? Maybe your husband would be excited if you tried to have some fun on the couh, or in the play room, or the office?? I don’t see where it says in the bible “thou shalt always and only have sex with thy husband in thy own bed.”. But there are a lot of other things that aren’t in my bible that are apparently in yours.

Sorry for the word vomit. But it’s my blog and it’s my heart issues and that’s what I needed to say.

Voices of the Faithful Book 2

Voices of the Faithful Book 2
By Kim P Davis and Beth Moore

I have had the great pleasure to read and review this amazing devotional which is compiled of inspirational stories written by Christian missionaries from all around the world. I have bought and attempted to read many year long daily devotionals but many if not most of them end up being repetitive and just plain boring in my opinion. I love that these devotions are not so much something written by someone and how they have interpreted the s rupture rather the various daily verses are supported by true life events and experiences that have happened to many individuals jsu like you and me in their daily lives attempting to live out and walk their faith in their places of ministry. I highly recommend this book to anyone iwho enjoys reading encouraging daily devotionals thriughout the year, and for any one who desires to learn more about the lives of foreign missionaries.

Voices of the Faithful

In these pages, you’ll hike mountain paths, jolt down rutted desert roads, and pick your way through teeming markets and crowded urban slums. You’ll meet boisterous children, worried parents, anxious teens, and curious seniors- all hungry, whether they know it or not, for the Good News.

You’ll witness moments of looming danger and crushing heartache, moments of shining hope and pure miracle. You’ll be inspired anew by those who dare to obey God’s call to take His story to the ends of the earth. And you’ll be encouraged to pray for those who dare to open their hearts not only to the message but also to the One who calls and sustains them.

“the art of any story is the truth that it paints. I pray you’ll find this book chock-full of truth. I pray that every single entry causes words of Scripure to jump off the page and onto the pavement of authentic human experiences, causing you not only to see their lives differently but also to change the way you see your own.”
- from the introduction by Beth Moore

To purchase this book go to Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/A3GAKZMQ51GFI6/ref=cm_cr_thx_pdp
Or purchase from your favorite book seller.

O2: Breathing New Life into Faith by Richard Dahlstrom

I have had the honor and pleasure of reading this awesome book to review by Richard Dahlstrom. Never before has a book struck my spiritual heart strings so strongly. In O2 Dahlstrom challanges readers to live out their faith rather than speak out their ideals and religious convictions at others in the world. He touches on all topics of life from conserving energy and recycling to parenting, music and entertainment, drinking and hospitality, foreign ministry and church planting and muchuch more. He shares with readers his many experiences during different seasons in his life from losing his father and best friend at the age of 17 and his anger towards God for that, to how he and his wife began a camp to feed the needs of many looking for solitude and hospitality at their mountain camp. Dahlstrom has shed light of many areas in my own life through his writing bringing both conviction and encouragement to seek out solitude and silence in my own life and relationship with the Lord. He encourages one to not only Understand the immediate effects of abortion, poverty, and war on humanity but also the distant effects all of these topics have on us all as citizens of the Earth. I highly recommend this book to any and everyone seeking out peace and understanding and how to make a real impact on the world outside of the typical church activities geared to meet only half of the needs of humanity.

O2: breathing new life into faith

Your physical body needs oxygen in order to survive. Inhale, exhale…one leads naturally to the other. Inhale too long, and you feel as if your lungs will burst. Exhale too long, and you get light-headed.

The same rhythm is essential in the life of faith. You inhale life-giving strength from God through things like prayer, study, solitude, and silence. You exhale generosity, hospitality, and service to the poor. If you try to do one without the other, you won’t last very long.

This fresh perspective on the classic disciplined of the faith will empower you to process the oxygen of the Spirit. Discover how you can develop a balanced spirituality that reflects the life of Jesus and keeps your faith growing strong.

You can buy this awesome book from Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/O2-Breathing-Life-Faith-ConversantLife-com®/dp/0736922148/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1252780996&sr=8-2
Or from your favorite bookseller.

I am…a planner

I have always been one that likes to be prepared. I over prepare usuAlly. Whether it be packing for a trip, shopping for food or planning for a trip. I love to research and plan our vacations, but I hate when every minute is scheduled. I like to know what my options are and have plenty of them, but I don’t like to feel commited to a specific agenda. I love to know that I have everything I need in my house to bake cookies or muffins or a cake and to have enough meals for ten days to a week. But I don’t like to have a menu set for every day of the week. I always pack more than enough clothes for a trip, just in case we get stuck for an extra day or the weather isn’t as we expected or I need to change twice in one day. I also like to stock up on household items before I run out of them, whther it be shampoo, tooth past, sugar or cleaning products. I like to keep my car prepared as well for any last minute trips to the beach in the summer, by having at least one towel and some sand toys for the kids. I always have bottles water in my car and try to keep some sort of munchy and a couple toys in there as well for anytime the kids and I get stuck somewhere when the kids or I may be hungry or thirsty.
But my current thing I’m so excited to be prepared for is Christmas! And the kids’ birthdays. Since the first of the year, after spending way too much money last Christmas and doing last minute shopping with two babies I decided to buy the kids’ birthday and Christmas gifts throught out the year so by the time the holidays come I will be ready and waiting without a bead of sweat on my brow worried about the crazy shoppers or the outrageous prices. I have a closet full of gifts and wrapping paper waiting for the holidays to arrive and am enjoying stretching my favorite part of the holiday out over the whole year, shopping for gifts! All I have left to do is get stocking stuffers and find some things for my husband and I’m all set! Plus I’m buying all items on clearance, so I’m spending a whole lot less than I would if I waited. Call me crazy, but I’ll be sitting at home with a good book and some hot cocoa while the rest of the world runs around doing their last minute shopping.

She says it well..

I am reading a book called O2 right now by Richard Dahlstrom and it is awesome so far. I just wanted to share a quote that he has in the book by Sophie Scholl that my spirit hoops and hollers over.

“the real damage is done by those millions who want to “survive”. The honest men who just want to be left in peace. Those who don’t want their little lives disturbed by anything bigger than themselves. Those with no sides and no causes. Those who won’t take measure of their own strength, for fear of antagonizing their own weakness. Those who don’t like to make waves- or enemies. Those for whom freedom, honor, truth, and principles are only literature. Those who live small, mate small, die small. It’s the reductionist approach to life: if you keep it small, you’ll keep it under control. If you don’t make any noise, the bogeyman won’t find you. But it’s all an illusion, because they die too, those people who roll up their spirits into tiny little balls so as to be safe. Safe?! From what? Life is always on the edge of death; narrow streets lead to the same place as wide avenues, and a little candle burns itself out just like a flaming torch does. I choose my own way to burn.