Between Heaven and the Real World by Stephen Curtis Chapman--I particularly loved this book because I could relate to many of the emotions contained in it. Stephen struggles to honor God while trying to "fix" his problems, but "God never calls us to be successful, he calls us to be faithful." Stephen Curtis Chapman is called to praise God in the midst of one of life's most difficult situations. One of the lessons God teaches him is faith. He quotes Oswald Chambers, "When you don't know what to do, trust God and do the next thing. Take the next obvious step in front of you and trust God to lead you." I have been there. I could relate to the paralysis by analysis that Stephen describes. I often worry about what the next best step is and am hesitant to move until I hear God's clear direction. But this part in the book particularly struck me. Stephen records how God drew his attention to this passage in Isaiah:
"Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying,“This is the way, walk in it,”Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left." Isaiah 30:21
He goes on to point out that the fact that the voice is speaking behind you when you are turning to the left or right means that you are already in motion. This is the faith journey--sometimes walking in total darkness but trusting God to direct us. The book also was a good reminder to seize the opportunities with your kids; you never know how much longer you will have. 4/5 stars
I Dared to Call Him Father by Bilquis Sheikh-- This is an autobiography of a middle aged Pakistani who chose to become a believer, despite threats of death. It is also an interesting glimpse into the Eastern culture. Bilquis perpetually lives so as to "not lose Her father's glory," her words for obedience to Christ. It is not a dramatic read, but I appreciated the reminder to daily walk with Christ in intimate communion. 3/5 stars
The Unmapped Sea by Maryrose Wood-- This is the fifth book the the series The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place. It was definitely my least favorite of the bunch. There were fewer clever and comical phrases, and much mystery was revealed but all rather a let-down. Most of the characters in this book were rather unpleasant, unlike the flawed but winsome characters introduced thus far. But there was enough mystery and adventure left for one final book which is to be released soon. 3/5 stars
God's Double Agent by Bob Fu-- This is an autobiography of a Chinese atheist who becomes a believer while in school and later leads the underground church in China. It is not as well-written as other missionary biographies I have read, but it did a good job describing the culture of China. It clearly shows the oppression for not only Christians but all non-government individuals under the communist party. What struck me most is the level of persecution that is still ongoing in 2013...not 20 years ago, but even to today in 2018. I had heard once that the Chinese Christians pray for Americans to undergo the same persecution to wake them from their stupor. I was taken aback at first, but then realized that indeed it is in large part to the persecution in China that people are turning to Christ like never before. We should be eager to embrace the same if it means a revival in the United States. 3/5 stars
The Memorial Box by Linny Lee Saunders-- My sister had told me about this book moons ago, but it wasn't until she gave me a copy in the fall that I took the time to read it. I first picked it up because it was on my nightside and it was short. But it was powerful!!! This book is up there with my favorite reads. The author describes how she started the precedent early on (was it before she got married even, maybe?) of memorializing big events in her life where God had showed Himself faithful. Just like the children of Israel were called upon to put up piles of "memorial stones" in various locations to remember, she takes little trinkets, pictures or other small momentos and places them on a shelf in the middle of her house in order to remember when/how God showed up. This book is the stories of several of those memorials. I particularly loved that her relationship with the Lord so definitely filters into every aspect of her life. She looks for God in both the little ways and the big ways. She made a point to document not just the blatantly miraculous but also the "purely coincidental" always giving God the glory in either case. I could relate to so many of her stories. One prompted me to start praying again for a matter that I had casually prayed over once or twice. And here seems an appropriate place to memorialize what God did.
When we moved from our house, we had not had the chance to say goodbye to our mailman...with whom we had developed a sweet relationship over the previous 12 years. I began praying that I would have the opportunity to see him and say thanks. Shortly thereafter, the kids and I decided to drive through the old neighborhood to check out what was going on. As we were about to leave, we saw the mail truck turn onto Cypresswood. We followed it but lost him after pulling into the next neighborhood. I opted to turn right and sure enough! It was Gordon, our mailman! We were so thankful to be able to see him and thank him. Back in the car, the kids and I thanked the Lord for an answer to prayer (they had been praying with me). Nevertheless, the story was not over. The next day, we ventured into a Walmart that we no longer frequented because we needed something quick and were driving by. As we were checking out, I heard a "Why! Hello!" I turned around to see Gordon! We greeted him again and told him that this was another answer to prayers. Back in the car, we thanked the Lord for doubly blessing us. Nevertheless, it gets even better. The very next day, we decided to go out to eat. I ran into Gringos to see how long the wait was. It was really long, and I came back out to the car to tell Michael. But before I could get to the car, I saw the kids running out of the car and hugging someone. You guessed it...it was Gordon! God chose to answer my prayer not only once, not twice, but three times as if to sweetly whisper, "I love you!"
So this book--full of many of these stories itself-- is incredibly touching to read and full of encouragement as I read how God quietly whispered His love to Linny too. Definitely worth the few hours that it takes to read. Will likely be reread again too sometime. 5/5 stars
East Meets West: Parenting from the Best of Both Worlds by Kim Parker-- This book is written by a long-time friend of mine. She is a wife, mom to three sons and runs her own social work counseling practice. She was born in Vietnam and immigrated to the US as a young girl. The first bit of the book talks about those early years. This is an interesting look into life as an immigrant. I also enjoyed further insight into the author, my friend. The latter 1/2 of the book is geared toward explaining the differences (and occasional similarities) between her upbringing in an eastern background and the western culture that also influenced her after moving to the US. Her parenting style is a blend of the two. Having been born in Japan myself to western parents, many of the thoughts were not new to me, but I found several thought provoking points. The writing is not as smooth and easy to follow in the latter half of the book...there is a lot of complicated sentence structure and not enough breaks, but if you are willing to stay the course, there are nuggets of truth and wisdom. 3/5 stars
Undone by Michele Cushatt-- This book was again recommended by my sister. I was not prepared to appreciate it as much as I did. It is the memoir of a broken woman with a broken marriage and a far from perfect life who allows God to work in her and through her in the midst of her often messy life. She is humble and yet humorous. Her stories are quite relatable despite being far different from my own. And in the end, it is because she is Undone that she is able to see the hand of God at work. Very much enjoyed this book. 4/5 stars
Meet Martin Luther by Anthony T Selvaggio-- This is a short biography of the life of Martin Luther, the father of the Reformation. I knew much of his life but still found it fascinating to hear more about his early life and how that had influenced him and his later position in the church as the Reformation was getting ready to change the world. There is so much more in here than just the 95 theses. I listed on audiobook; it was a quick listen which gives better insight into the Protestant movement, of which I am a partaker. 3/5 stars
Risen by Angela Hunt-- This is a fictionalized account of the events that take place leading up to and after the resurrection of Christ. The main character is a Roman who is tasked with finding the body of Christ after he goes "missing." He eventually comes to the realization that Christ must be the risen Messiah. It definitely did make the gospel accounts come alive--particularly as I read this right around Easter time. I wasn't fond of the fact that there was great license in the events and it seemed to focus more on the fictionalized events than the actual events, but if you have never heard some of the apologetics arguments for the resurrection, this book presents them well. Be aware that the book is not kid-friendly as there is an ongoing intimate relationship between the two main characters that is carefully but transparently spelled out. 3/5 stars
The Third Target and The First Hostage by Joel Rosenberg-- These two books are the first of three in the JB Collins fictional series by Rosenberg. Like the others, they are a little too real to be completely fiction. The characters are all fiction, but the events are a blend of fiction, someday possibly not fiction, and true past history. These books take place in the Middle East and focus on a crisis with Syria and ISIS. The main character is a journalist who follows the lead into harm's way to interview the top ISIS men. Events are set into motion to steal nerve gas, use it, and kidnap the president of the United States. Each book is a stand alone, but they are not nicely wrapped up completely prompting you to want more. My third book just came in the mail today. I look forward to reading it soon. I would say this series, more than any of his others, is geared toward a more mature audience. Even without images, the violence is graphic. It prompted me to pray for the folks who are experiencing the same in the world today. I might let my son read this as a teen, but likely not before. Still preferred the Last Jihad series the best, but this one is another page-turning read. 4/5 stars
Upstanders: Season 1 by Howard Schultz-- This was a freebie I got at some point on Audible. It is the "inspiring" stories of 10 individuals/neighborhoods who made a difference in our world. The audio book itself is a bit disjointed. There was at least one grammatical error. And lots of these stories were liberal feel-good propaganda. Definitely not written from a Christian perspective (hello--they are put out by Starbucks!) But for all that, I still found several of these stories motivating, especially as believers, to be willing to work for change. Too often we don't give credit to the work that one person alone can make. Yes, often change is prompted by one individual who inspires others to change. The stories are varied from homelessness to food waste to environmental activism to a pastor who embraced his neighbor. When God calls us to make change, don't back down from the impossibility of the task. 3/5 stars
Funny Amazon Reviews read by Jane Lynch-- This was another freebie from Audible. It was a very quick listen. The comedienne Jane Lynch is often more stupid than she is comical, but the compilation of these Amazon reviews is done in a very witty way. As a previous Amazon star reviewer in a previous life, I could appreciate and laugh at the wit with which so many of these reviewers answered the questions about the product. There were a few crude jests, primarily at the beginning, but most were actually quite humorous. Will you be buying a banana slicer, or a howling wolf shirt, or gallon of imported milk? 3/5 stars
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