Blessed Woman

After reading The Blessed Church and hearing a lot about The Blessed Life by Robert Morris, I was excited to read the The Blessed Woman written by his wife, Debbie Morris. I must say though that as I began to read it I was a bit disappointed. I was expecting it to be similar to the other books, but written specifically for women. It was sort of that, but fell short in some ways. Not to say that it was a bad book, or even one that I wouldn’t recommend, it just wasn’t what I was expecting.

The book is basically comprised of stories of different women (with a few men thrown in) from the Bible who Debbie has learned some great life lessons from. Within short snippets of the retelling of the Bible characters stories she interweaves stories from her own life and how she related to, or learned from the Bible characters. Debbie writes in a way that is easy to read and she tells the stories from her life in a very welcoming way. The Blessed Woman is subtitled Learning About Grace from the Women of the Bible. Honestly I’m not sure that that subtitle really fits with the book. Sure the topic of grace was talked about, but there were also many other topics that were covered. To read that you may assume that the book is about grace, but it really isn’t.

One great thing about this book is that it comes with a study guide in the back of the book that is designed to be used in a small group or Bible study setting. This is a great bonus because it means that if someone wants to use the book in one of those settings they don’t have to buy a separate workbook or come up with their own material. I do think that this book would be even better and I probably would have gotten more out of it if I had read it and then been able to discuss it with others. And considering that Debbie is the executive pastor of women’s ministry at Gateway Church, maybe that is how she really envisioned this book being used. 

One final note, the cover art from this book is lovely.   I know they say, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” The cover is one thing that drew me to wanting to read this book though. Just wanted to throw that in here.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this reviewing purpose.

Plastic Donuts

Giving, tithing, yep heard about all of that, lots of times in fact. Having grown up in church this isn’t a new topic to me. Quite honestly I felt like I had heard all that there is to hear on the topic and everything was the same old, same old. I was hesitant to really want to read Plastic Donuts because I thought it would be the same thing with the same info that I have already heard. Then when I got the book it was a small book, kind of like one of those “gift books” that is a condensed version of a full book, or just has a bunch of quotes. Well, I’m not too fond of those books either. Didn’t exactly make me want to dive right in cause I sort of already had the idea that I would be disappointed by this book. To my surprise Plastic Donuts is a lot more than I had thought it would be.

Jeff Anderson does a great job of taking the subject of giving or tithing and putting it into a different perspective. This book isn’t about the do’s and don’ts of giving, or some magic formula of giving so that you will be blessed. (Not that God doesn’t bless you for being obedient to Him.) It is about giving to please God. It is about the fact that giving is really just a tool for us to grow closer to God and see the heart of the Father. This book helped to change my perspective in giving and the way I give. It was challenging at times and freeing at times.

I would recommend Plastic Donuts for anyone. It would be great for use in a small group setting, Sunday school class, or financial class. At the end of the book, Jeff Anderson, has several different ways listed for how this book could be used, as well as information on his ministry.   

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Limitless Hope

If you have read other books from Nick Vujicic, this book, or rather devotional will be no surprise to you. Many of the stories are the same stories taken from parts of his other books. This isn’t bad, but you should know that you aren’t getting something different from what he has already written.

Limitless is a very quick and easy read. It is set up in fifty short chapters, 2-3 pages each. So, you can read one a day, several a day, or whenever you need a bit of inspiration and hope. While reading it, I kept thinking this would make a great graduation gift. It has a lot of advice for life and it would be great for someone who is in their late teens to early twenties. Limitless would also be a great book for anyone who has a disability. It isn’t an overwhelming read, and it is easy to read and understand.

Vujicic stays true to himself and his message with this devotional. He writes with honesty and throws in a lot of humor that is a reflection of who he is as a person. Every chapter also begins with a Scripture verse that reflects the message of that chapter. Each chapter ends with a little recap or challenge for the reader. With Limitless, Vujicic continues to share a message of hope, a message of overcoming, a message or triumph, a message of inspiration, and a message of love.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Not Just For Pastors

The Blesses Church is a book that could be easily overlooked by the average reader because they may assume that is primarily just for pastors. This is not true though. The Blesses Church can be applicable to pastors, leaders in the church, other ministry leaders, anyone who aspires to be a pastor or church leader, or anyone is who is simple a regular attendee of a church. If you fit into any one of these categories, read this book!

Robert Morris does a good job of not telling you a specific formula of XYZ to have a blessed church. Instead he gives you pointers of things that have been established in his own church, things that are based on God’s Word. Not every church is going to be a huge mega church, but every church can be a blessed church. There are many great nuggets of truth and insight that are weaved through The Blesses Church. Along with those are stories from his personal life and life in ministry. All of which serve as examples of the points that he is trying to make.

Although this book is a quick and easy read, it had a lot of valuable material in it. I would recommend this book for anyone who is a part of a church body. If you are the pastor it can give you great pointers for leading a blessed and healthy church. If you are a ministry leader it can give you guidelines and examples of what to implement in your ministry area. If you are a part of a church it will give you a better understanding of what it takes to lead a church and how you can help to be a support to that church.  

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

A Wreath of Warmth on a Cold Winter Day

Liz Curtis Higgs will sweep you away to a wonderful Victorian Scottish town with delightful characters in A Wreath of Snow. The story intertwines the lives of two main characters, Margaret (Meg) Campbell and Gordon Shaw. Their lives come in contact one blustering snowy evening when the train that they are both using to run from the pains of their pasts is suddenly snowbound. What they soon discover though is that their lives intertwined long before that time though.  A Wreath of Snow is a heartwarming story of hurts being healed, forgiveness being given, and love being found. Read the fist chapter here.

I began reading this book on a very cold winter weekend, and finished it in the same weekend. This is the first book in a while that I have found that I didn’t want to put down. It was the perfect story to read to warm me from the chilliness outside. This would be the perfect book to curl up by a fire with. It may be written as a Christmas story, but really it would be a great read anytime of the year.

Liz Curtis Higgs is such a versatile writer. She covers a broad spectrum of genres. When reading her works you can tell that she not only loves what she does, but she put a lot of thought and a lot of heart into her writing. This book is just another example of that.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Live, Move, and Have Our Being

Acts 17: 28 states, “In Him we live, and move, and have out being.” What does it mean to live in God, move in God, and have our being in God? In A Sudden Glory, Sharon Jaynes takes you on a journey of just what that is. Along the way she shares about something that most people experience at one time or another, a glory ache, the need and longing for something more, something more than we have or are experiencing with God. That longing can be satisfied with realizing the moments of sudden glory that we have all the time.

Sharon combines personal stories, Scripture, and stories of others she knew or had received messages from, to take you on this journey of discovering what it means to live, move, and have your being in God. She writes with an openness of herself that is refreshing and comforting. At times I found myself reading and thinking “I understand what she is saying.” Then at other times it was deeply touching, sometimes convicting, sometimes challenging, but always hopeful and promising. While reading this book I felt challenged to really think about sudden glory moments in my own life. It also made me really think about what it truly mean to live, move, and have out being in God.

 This is a book that I would recommend for any woman to read. It is also nice that included in the back of the book is a study guide that could be used for someone on their own or in a group setting.

I was given a free copy of this book to review by Watermark Multnomah Publishing.

Lover of Animals or Lover of Redeemed Lives

Whether you are a lover of animals or a lover of changed lives, this is a great read for you. Blind Hope relays the story of a young woman, Laurie, and the dog, Mia, that she rescued. Or should it be said that Mia rescued her. Either way that you look at it, it is a great story of true redemption.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It is written simply and openly which makes it an easy read. At times I found myself smiling, laughing, crying, or looking introspectively at my own life. It truly is a story of hope and the unconditional love that God offers.

Thanks to Laurie Sacher for being willing to share her story of how rescuing a dog helped her to see the changes that she needed to make in her own life. The lessons that she learned for Mia are truly insights into the truth of God. Also, thank you to Kim Meeder for working to make it possible to share Laurie’s story with others. The work that is done at Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch is truly amazing.

I was given a free copy of this book to review by Watermark Multnomah Publishing.