Joyce Meyer

I started reading a book by Joyce Meyer called 100 Ways to Simplify Your Life.  WOW!  What a great book!

I have decided that I know some people who might be getting a copy of this book for Christmas this year.  I have been a little depressed lately, and this book has totally encouraged me.  I am so thankful that I found it at the library!

I'm going to buy a copy for myself, too.

Amy Grant

We went to the library the other day, and they had a new addition there.  It's a book called Mosaic by Amy Grant. Well, I have always loved Amy Grant.  Yes, she's been controversial to the Christian faith because of her divorce and subsequent marriage to to Vince Gill.  But she is a human being and has a human life... just like the rest of us.

I am only half-way through the book, but so far, it has been great.  She has interwoven the lyrics to her songs within the stories she tells, and honestly, some of those songs have given me chills for as long as I remember.

If you need some encouragement in your life, or if you are bored, this book is a good read.  And you might walk away from it feeling better than you did when you started reading it.

Oh, and I am going to add that her new song, Better Than a Hallelujah, is one of the best songs I have ever heard in my life.  It explains all of our lives in a way that only Amy Grant can.

Happy Mother's Day - A Little Late

I went to the library last week, and I couldn't find much I was interesting in reading.  I finally found two books that I left with that day.  I started reading both them, but I have read more of one.  It is by T.D. Jakes and is called Mama Made the Difference.  

Like many other women, lots of them, I'm guessing, I deal with the perpetual struggle of needing more income and not knowing what to do.  Even though my kids are in school, I like being here at home in case they need me.  I have worked on and off during the years, but I have carried guilt with both staying home and working.  Maybe it's because I don't think I'm good at dividing my time evenly.  Maybe it's because I know life is sooooo short, and my kids are growing up.  They won't be living with me forever, and I feel that I need to be there as much as I can while they are.

He says on page 3, "You see, I've witnessed a growing apathy toward motherhood.  With all of our many advances in technology and corporate culture, women are now expected to excel in the boardroom as well as the kitchen.  The woman who doesn't wish to work outside her home is often looked down upon as being old-fashioned or incapable of the immense juggling act that her sisters enact around her."  And a little further down, he states, "Women should not have to apologize for being mothers." 

Thank you, Bishop Jakes!

I love being a mother.  It's the greatest thing that has ever happened to me in my life.  I may not be perfect, but God doesn't chose perfect women to be mothers.  He chooses us because we are the best fit for the children He gives us.  He believes that we can do it!


We have had our share of problems, well, maybe I should call them "opportunities," with our children lately.  I have started to wonder whether God knew what He was doing when He gave them to me.  I don't have the answers sometimes.  Sometimes, I cry because I'm so frustrated that I just don't know what to do. Sometimes, I hear a voice in my ear that tells me I am a failure.  Most of the time, I choose not to believe it, but there are sometimes when I am not feeling well, emotionally or physically, that I start to lean towards believing it.  I hate that!


But I know this!  Mothers are important! 

I will write more as I get through this book.  So far, I think it's great and encouraging.

"He Still Moves Stones"

This HAS to be my very favorite Max Lucado book.  I remember the first time I read it.  My husband and I were driving to my home town.  It was a short trip, but I get car sick, so my husband was reading to me in the car.  We had just been through a very rough patch in our marriage, and had recently gotten back together after a separation.  We were so thankful for all that God had done in our lives, and the words of this book moved us to tears almost immediately.

This book encourages us that we are important to God, and even with our deepest problems and trials we face, they are not too big for God.  He has everything under control. He Still Moves Stones.

Bullying Isn't Okay!

Have you ever read the book, "Life Strategies for Dealing With Bullies?"
If you know anyone who is dealing with this issue, it is a good book to read.  My mother bought this book to read it because my son has been bullied consistently for the last three years.  After she read it, she gave it to us, and I read it.
I would definitely suggest it for anyone who is going through it.

Shaking Up Your World

Many years ago, I began reading Stormie Omartian's book, "The Power of a Praying Wife."  There are 30 chapters in this book...one for each day of the month.

Sometimes, I don't know about you, but we might feel that our prayers are the same old thing... "God, thank you for this day, and please bless...." I know He hears us when we pray, but this book brings up subjects in a man's life that, quite frankly, I had never considered.  The first chapter calls for you to pray for his wife, YOU.  "Lord, help me to be a good wife."  That is the first sentence of the first prayer in the first chapter.

Sometimes, we are on the lookout for something that might help our husbands change.  And I found it very interesting that the first chapter focuses on women being the wives they are called to be..not trying to change your husband into the man he's supposed to be.  This book helps you rely more on God to do the changing.

The other chapters are about things that are important to men... things they struggle with...work, finances, sexuality, affection, temptations, his mind, fears, purpose, choices, health, protection, trials, integrity, reputation, priorities, relatioships, fatherhood, his past, attitude, marriage, emotions, his walk, talk, repentance, deliverance, obedience, self-image, his faith, and his future.

It is exciting to be a part of praying for your husband in all of these areas of his life and to watch God do miraculous things.  I know my husband had a mid-life crisis in the middle of my praying this book over his life in 2001.  But God changed some things in his life.  And then, I started praying it again in 2009, and God really allowed the rest of what he had been holding onto over his lifetime come to the surface, and in those circumstances, we believe he was healed.

So, if you love your husband, and if you want to learn about praying for him, try this book.  You won't be sorry because you will learn a lot about him.  Men have to shoulder things in life that I had really never thought of.  It made me see my husband in a whole new way.

Start Reading!

I have to confess... I love to read, and I am a book-a-holic.  I love books and magazines!  If I have extra time, I read.  If I have extra money, I look for new books.  If I'm standing in the line to check out at the store, I read every cover (that looks interesting) on the magazines in the rack.

I consider being able to read a huge blessing.  I know that I was able to read at a young age, and I remember my mom buying me books from Scholastic when I was in elementary school.  Pippi Longstocking, The Trumpet of the Swan, Charlotte's Web... just to name a few.  And when I had kids of my own, I bought them books from the same place.  And I bought them some of the same books.  It's really been great!

There have been several books which have made an impact on me as an adult.  I am going to be talking about those books here on my blog.  I hope reading about them makes you want to read them!

http://www.amazon.com/ has great book reviews, and you can usually get a great deal on books.