You'll Get Through This review

How many times have I heard, "You'll get through this, just wait and good thing will come" or the like. How about you? I'm sure it's been a few times (or in my case many times). Max Lucado's book "You'll Get Through This" is about how Joseph, who's life was full of so many bad things, was able to get through it because of God.

There is such an amazing story to be read by Joseph and how God worked good through him, and even through Job, and Lucado uses their stories as well to show that even when things are bleak, God works things for good. A quote from the book that I really enjoyed was this:

"These days are a vapor, a passing breeze. This will eventually pass. God will make something good out of this. I will work hard, stay faithful, and trust Him no matter what." (chapter 2)

If you want some assurances that things will get better, look to scripture and to God. Lucado offers some help in Joseph's story that things wont be painless, but you will get through it. 

Book Description

You’ll get through this.
It won’t be painless.
It won’t be quick.
But God will use this mess for good.
Don’t be foolish or naïve.
But don’t despair either.
With God’s help, you’ll get through this.
You fear you won't make it through. We all do. We fear that the depression will never lift, the yelling will never stop, the pain will never leave. In the pits, surrounded by steep walls and aching reminders, we wonder: Will this gray sky ever brighten? This load ever lighten?
In You'll Get Through This, pastor and New York Times best-selling author, Max Lucado offers sweet assurance. "Deliverance is to the Bible what jazz music is to Mardi Gras: bold, brassy, and everywhere." Max reminds readers God doesn't promise that getting through trials will be quick or painless. It wasn't for Joseph--tossed in a pit by his brothers, sold into slavery, wrongfully imprisoned, forgotten and dismissed--but his Old Testament story is in the Bible for this reason: to teach us to trust God to trump evil.
With the compassion of a pastor, the heart of a storyteller, and the joy of one who has seen what God can do, Max explores the story of Joseph and the truth of Genesis 50:20. What Satan intends for evil, God redeems for good.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com® <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Real Me- A confident heart post

Well as I read through A Confident Heart by Renee Swope, I've been learning to deal with doubt. And boy, do I have a lot of doubt to deal with. This week we are going through Chapter 8, When Doubt Whispers, "I Don't Have Anything Special to Offer.", which includes figuring out your personality type and Spiritual gifts. I have so many times in my life where I feel like I don't have anything to offer when I see what others around me and what they can do. I am still new on my journey (or at least I still feel that way), so I'm bound to have these feelings, right?

I have taken a couple of Spiritual Gift assessments before. My top one always seems to come out mercy/compassion. Which I guess is a good thing since I have a degree in psychology and love helping people. But some times I don't feel like I'm helping people all that much or all that well. Then out of the blue, someone will tell me how wonderful I was the day that we had a chat, or a phone call etc. Just a simple little conversation has been said to help a few people in my life, even though I didn't think I said/did anything profound. Amazing how God works in ways that we don't even know.

This time I took the test, I had 3 different things tied for my 2nd top gift, which I think in the past has only be one thing (I'm searching for my test lol). Helps/Serving/Minstering, Teaching and Wisdom all came in second (score of 12). I guess the helps/serving one could fall right along with mercy because both are important to each other. But the teaching and wisdom ones kind of surprised me. As I was going through the test this time, I could tell that some of my answers had changed from a previous test. I guess now that I'm on my spiritual journey more and trying to grow more in my faith and closer to God, that my gifts would also grow and change more. I still have soooooo much further to go in my faith, but that's ok, I know God gives me grace as I travel towards Him instead of away from Him.

Do I know the "REAL ME" after this test? No, well maybe a little bit more, but I still am unsure of who I might be, but I know a little better now about what I have to offer to others. I still have a lot of work to do, I was coming from a dark place 7 years ago, and have had some amazing and wonderful things happen over the last few years, and I'm a changed (and for the better) person, who is learning to know God (or at least wants to know Him) and to work towards sharing my faith and my gifts with others. Hopefully by the end of this study, I will have the confident heart that I am trying to seek and will be able to share better with others.

Thanks for reading :)

Want to read Women Living Well by Courtney Joseph?? I've got a giveaway for that

That's right! I've not done a giveaway in awhile, so I have a copy of Women Living Well by Courtney Joseph and I would love to share it with someone! I think that the book is amazing, (you can read my posts from here and here) and I know that I took a lot away from it and hope that others would too. So what does it take to win this book?? Well here's some options that you have.

1. Tell me one thing that would hope to improve upon in your life now or in the coming year in the comment section.

2. Follow my blog, you can over on the side.

3. Like my Facebook page here- if you haven't already :)

4. Follow me on Twitter, if you haven't done that already as well.

Leave a comment for each thing that you do and I'll use random.org to select a winner. I need to learn how to use raflcopter, maybe for my next giveaway :)

Love and Respect- this time the family edition

So not long after we got married and hubs was in Cali for the first year of our marriage, he went to a chaplain to get some resources for us, and the Love and Respect book was on there. I got it and started reading it and hoped that it would help our marriage. Now, the same author, Dr. Emerson Eggerichs has come out with a book about Love and Respect for the family, hoping to help families with the problems they face communicating with children who need to be loved and the parents needs to be respected.

The book is broken down into three parts:

The Family Crazy Cycle
The Family Energizing Cycle
The Family Rewarded Cycle

Each part focuses on ways to help both kids and parents get through the tough stuff and come up with ways to grow as a family and get needs met for both parties. Dr. Eggerichs uses biblical teachings through out to help get the points across. I love that in the middle of the book he added pictures of his family, to show that he is real and that he hopes that some of his insights can help families who are in need of working on creating harmony.

Book Description

Children need love. Parents need respect.
It is as simple and complex as that!
When frustrated with an unresponsive child, a parent doesn’t declare, “You don’t love me.” Instead the parent asserts, “You are being disrespectful right now.” A parent needs to feel respected, especially during conflicts. When upset a child does not whine, “You don’t respect me.” Instead, a child pouts, “You don’t love me.” A child needs to feel loved, especially during disputes.
But here’s the rub: An unloved child (or teen) negatively reacts in a way that feels disrespectful to a parent. A disrespected parent negatively reacts in a way that feels unloving to the child. This dynamic gives birth to the FAMILY CRAZY CYCLE.
So how is one to break out of this cycle? Best-selling author Emerson Eggerichs has studied the family dynamic for more than 30 years, having his Ph.D. in Child and Family Ecology. As a senior pastor for nearly two decades, Eggerichs builds on a foundation of strong biblical principles, walking the reader through an entirely new way to approach the family dynamic. For instance, God reveals ways to defuse the craziness with our children from preschooler to teen, plus how to motivate them to obey and how to deal with them when they don’t. In the Bible, God has spoken specifically to parents on how to parent. This book is about that revelation.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com® <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Want to be a Woman Living Well??? There's a book for that lol

There are so many great things that I can say about this book by Courtney Joseph, blogger at womenlivingwell.org. I've been reading and re-reading many parts and doing tons of highlighting and marking. The book is broken down into 4 parts: Your walk with the King, Your marriage, your parenting and your homemaking. In the section about marriage there is a 10 day challenge to do to for you husband called the "completing him" marriage challenge. I can't wait to try that out with hubs when he gets home. One of my favorite chapters was the Never Walk Alone (chapter 5) because I'm still newish to my faith and I'm always looking for ways to get stronger in that area, and Courtney lists many great ways to do that. I also like that she uses the kids' time outs as time to study Scripture. I think that will be something that I start to try with D. I was shocked to find out that her parents' didn't let her watch movies above a G rating, but was in awe of that fact, I forget that not everyone has the same upbringing. I'm working my way through the companion study guide that she offered on her blog to help me get through this book. I think that any one of faith would benefit from reading the sections that pertain to her life.

 

Book Description

Women desire to live well. However, living well in this modern world is a challenge. The pace of life, along with the new front porch of social media, has changed the landscape of our lives. Women have been told for far too long that being on the go and accumulating more things will make their lives full. As a result, we grasp for the wrong things in life and come up empty.
God created us to walk with him; to know him and to be loved by him. He is our living well and when we drink from the water he continually provides, it will change us. Our marriages, our parenting, and our homemaking will be transformed.
Mommy-blogger Courtney Joseph is a cheerful realist. She tackles the challenge of holding onto vintage values in a modern world, starting with the keys to protecting our walk with God. No subject is off-limits as she moves on to marriage, parenting, and household management.
Rooted in the Bible, her practical approach includes tons of tips that are perfect for busy moms, including:

• Simple Solutions for Studying God’s Word
• How to Handle Marriage, Parenting, and Homemaking in a Digital Age
• 10 Steps to Completing Your Husband
• Dealing With Disappointed Expectations in Motherhood
• Creating Routines that Bring Rest
• Pursuing the Discipline and Diligence of the Proverbs 31 Woman

There is nothing more important than fostering your faith, building your marriage, training your children, and creating a haven for your family. Women Living Well is a clear and personal guide to making the most of these precious responsibilities.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com® <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”