book review | anne of green gables, my daughter, and me

While I'm definitely not as into Anne of Green Gables as Lorilee Craker, it is a neat story with a lot more insights than I ever realized before reading this book. It also serves as a really unique way to tell her story of being adopted as well as that of her daughter. The interweaving of her life, her daughter's life, and Anne's life work together to build a book different than any other I've ever read.

I really enjoyed reading Anne of Green Gables, My Daughter, and Me as a diversion from my typical literature fare, and especially appreciated the times when she really got serious - asking thought-provoking questions about my life - my relationships, my attitudes, my identity. For example, one of my favorite quotes is found on page 125. While I'm not sure L.M. Montgomery ever intended for this much meaning to be extracted from Anne's relationship with Rachel Lynde, it was a really relevant thought for my life right now. Lorilee Craker writes, "In Scripture, the apostle Paul talks about winning people over - the neighbor, the husband who doesn't believe, the weak, the lawless. When we are insulted and defensive, how can we turn things upside down as Anne did?How can we, swayed by love, win our foes over? Mrs. Rachel acted abominably, but Anne also behaved badly. Yet in this messy situation, grace, love, and creative apology were the victors. See how everyone was changed by the encounter?" I wish there was more of those types of quotes in this book, but the few that there are are well-written and well-placed. Adopted or not, this is a book that everyone can relate to.

However, some of the more entertaining parts were a little bit overdone, I felt like. Like I said, I'm not quite as obsessed with Anne as she is, and there were sections where I started to feel like it would be better if I would just pick up L.M. Montgomery's writings for myself - lots of paraphrasing and maybe somewhat unnecessary commentary.

Overall, this is a very creatively written memoir and it did make me want to read the Anne of Green Gables books again - perusing them for special wisdom and advice about life and people. There is so much to learn from the different characters.

Tyndale House Publishers has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes.

book review | apartment therapy: complete and happy home

It's not how a house looks that makes it truly complete and happy, but remodeling and redecorating is a hobby that Grant and I share and this book was so fun to look through together! It actually contains a lot of really helpful basic house information that I would have loved to have read through before starting to buy houses (now that we have bought and sold several...) Those were probably the sections of the book that I found the most beneficial.

The actual pictures were not super inspirational for me, except to remind me that it is, indeed, ok for our house to look like "us" - there aren't a lot of limiting guidelines out there governing what is and isn't appropriate house decorating anymore. It's pretty much - if it works for you, go for it! It was fun to get that extra reassurance that it is ok to go ahead and paint my kitchen/dining/living room blue, green, and red...

This is a really fun "coffee table" book and also a great resource for anyone starting into a home buying or remodeling project. Other than the fact that the average person doesn't have quite the funding to make their houses look like these, it is decently practical and relevant.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

book review | 9 thoughts that can change your marrriage

This book was really refreshing. Organized into nine different "thoughts", as the title implies, it combats common misconceptions about marriage and husbands, pointing out mistaken thinking patterns we've all fallen into at times. But it doesn't stop there - throughout the book there are plenty of "action steps" and practical suggestions for how to implement change in areas where the marriage needs work. It was a great mix of personal experiences, life lessons, and spiritual teachings (many of which apply not just to marriage but also to other relationships in our lives). Many of the things discussed by author Sheila Wray Gregoire are things that were not brand new to me, but to have them all in one book - and to have her thoughts and spiritual insight on them - was very valuable.

The last "thought" in the book focuses on being careful not to drift apart, and I think that was the most relevant and eye-opening to my life right now. If Grant and I do not take time to make our marriage a priority, our natural tendency is to drift apart. As in the rest of the book, this chapter was equal parts "warning" and "encouragement" and I felt like it was very timely for me to read it as I launch into a part-time job.

One of my favorite quotes in the whole book actually really didn't have anything to do with marriage at all, but about building community. Found on page 199, it's actually quoting someone else who is an inner-city church planter, but it says, "true community comes only when you can waste time together". For me, it was good affirmation to realize that the time Grant and I spend at the end of the day catching up, when it seems like responsibly we should be sleeping, is actually one of the best ways we can use that time. But it was also a helpful perspective on other areas of life and relationships.

Overall the book is insightful and yet easy to read. I read it in short quick segments here and there and never felt like I had a hard time getting back into it. Perfect for a young wife and mom. :)

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review

unbelief

Two verses I've read recently talk about the Israelites' unbelief:

"they could not enter in because of unbelief" (Hebrews 3:19)

"I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord having saved the people out of the land of Egypt afterward destroyed them that believed not." (Jude, verse 5)

It wasn't until I read in Jude today that I realized their unbelief wasn't really reflective of their thoughts on the existence of God but rather of their trust in His ability to provide. There have been many times I've pretty much just jumped over verses like that thinking - I believe in God! I've given my life to Him. No destruction for me!

But lately I've felt my trust and my thankfulness and my contentment falter (because those do all go together) and I realized that actually - those verses are just as much for me as they are for the unbeliever. If I cannot trust God to provide everything I need, and realize that He has already provided manna and has never failed me - I will not reap the blessings either. I will not enter into the Promised Land if I do not believe.

"And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." (Mark 9:24)

Well I was doubling over the load on my shoulders
Was a weight I carried with me everyday
Crossing miles of frustrations and rivers a raging
Picking up stones I found along the way
I staggered and I stumbled down
Pathways of trouble
I was hauling those souvenirs of misery
And with each step taken my back was breaking
'Til I found the One who took it all from me

Down by the riverside
(Down by the riverside)
I laid my burdens down,
Now I'm traveling light
My spirit lifted high
(I found my freedom now)
I found my freedom now
And I'm traveling light

Through the darkest alleys and loneliest valleys
I was dragging those heavy chains of doubt and fear
Then with the one word spoken the locks were broken
Now He's leading me to places
Where there are no tears

Down by the riverside
(Down by the riverside)
I laid my burdens down,
Now I'm traveling light
My spirit lifted high
(I found my freedom now)
I found my freedom now
And I'm traveling light

Down by the riverside
I laid my burdens down,
Now I'm traveling light
My spirit lifted high
I found my freedom now
And I'm traveling light

Down by the riverside
(Down by the riverside)
I laid my burdens down,
Now I'm traveling light
My spirit lifted high
(I found my freedom now)
I found my freedom now
And I'm traveling light

- Traveling Light, Sarah Groves and Joel Hanson

on being broken

Throughout the past few weeks as I've been working through the past, bitterness, and forgiveness, I've been reading Joanna Weaver's "Having a Mary Spirit". And I've found some of her thoughts very profound and helpful.

"Meekness: strength under control" (pg. 173)

"Confound me for as long as it takes to make me entirely yours." (p. 174)

"Most of us fear being broken [...] because of our natural instinct for self-preservation, we fight hard to stay intact. Brokenness usually involves pain, and we will do almost anything to avoid that. But the very thing we resist most is the place where humility must begin: with receiving rebuke. With being willing to admit to God, "I am a sinner. I made a mistake." And to others. "You were right. I was wrong. Please forgive me." (p. 177)

"Though it hurts, I'm glad the Lord deals with my pride. And I've learned it's a lot easier when I actually choose to be broken. Jesus alluded to that reality when He warned, "He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed" (Matthew 21:44). When I willingly fall on the Rock and stay there, the Holy Spirit begins adjusting my hidden life so that my outer life lines up with God's Word. The process is uncomfortable and requires patience. But as each area of my life pops into its rightful place, I find relief... and victory. Victory over the need to be perfect. Victory over the need to always be right. For there is a thrill of victory that only comes when we're willing to face the agony of defeat." (p. 176)

"Because while change is costly, the price of not changing is even higher. It is the difference between lying helplessly hogtied to our cherished sins and walking victoriously free from hindering habits. Once again, holiness is all about choices. One choice after another. Saying yes to God and saying no to Satan." (p. 187)

The author described an amazing accomplishment by her developmentally delayed son. And then went on to say, "He belongs to me. That's why God rejoices over our every little step. That's why He tirelessly spends time exercising our faith and stretching us in order to expand our limits. That's why, when we fall, He helps us, picks us up, and encourages us to try again. [...] "Did you see that?" He asks, turning to the angels and pointing to earth. Pointing to you and me. "That's my girl". (p. 198)

walking after the Spirit

God promised me Psalm 72:6 ("He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth") this morning... but to be honest I had a hard time believing Him. I've been struggling spiritually lately to move beyond past hurts and people, and I've been praying for that rain but it hasn't come.

The Conference was a turning point for me, for sure. God knew that every topic, every speaker, every word would be for my heart alone... that all of what was said was surely Spirit-inspired and so timely for my life. faith. trust. chastisement. reconciliation. peace.

But it's possible to be filled to overflowing with spiritual teaching and still refuse to apply it to my own life. And as I sat in the sanctuary yesterday, I still had to admit that I, too, have been in the wrong. Justifying myself by comparing myself to others is so much easier than just repenting for where I've failed. I've spent a long time letting bitterness settle in because I was just too prideful to stop talking about what others have done and start thinking about how I have failed my Father so many times.

It isn't a natural thing to do. But "to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace" (Romans 8:6). So if there is going to be peace in my life, it's going to have to be un-natural... brought about only by trusting my heart and life completely to the Lord. It isn't going to make sense. But we were reminded yesterday that God loves faith more than he loves clarity. Hebrews 11 tell us that without faith, it is impossible to please my Father. I can't sit here and wait things to fall into something more orderly. It's never going to happen.

Sitting isn't very productive anyway. All day yesterday we talked about walking with Christ. And walking is an action - it's taking steps forward. It requires energy. It requires a sacrifice. It requires a cost. It's less exhausting, though, if I can find the grace to lay aside the weights (Hebrews 12). I need to lay aside the hurt, anger, self-justification, feelings of unfairness, frustration, and fighting.

And when I do...
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Romans 8:1)