Frost Bible review

Frost Bible.

This is a very cute Bible for little girls or for anyone who is a fan of Frozen, or winter, or snowflakes. It comes with a cute little tote bag too. The cover is raised and has a coarse feeling to it, which can make it uncomfortable to hold and read for long periods of time. The print in the Bible is a good size and font for long reading and doesn't seem to hurt my eyes after reading for awhile. I love the colorful time line at the beginning of the Bible. There are also several pages through out the Bible that have topics such as "How do I know Jesus loves Me?" and "How do I pray?" The translation that is used, The International Children's Bible is a very easy to read translation, making it easy to read and for my kids to understand a little bit better.

My daughter really loves this Bible so far. She was very excited when I opened it and showed her, since she is a big fan of Frozen. This would be a great gift for any little girl. I can't wait for my daughter to be able to read better so that she can read from this herself, but I will enjoy reading to her from it.

Book Description

Beautiful 'Frost' design in a Bible kids can read and understand.

What little girl who has seen the incredibly popular animated wintery movie doesn't want to be transported to a fabulous crystal ice palace? The beauty of shimmering snowflake scenes is captured in our newest Bible design for little girls (and big girls too!). The cover is a sparkling blue hardcover frosted with holographic foil and beautiful frosty design elements. The interior is the full International Children's Bible®, the first translation created especially for kids. Inside are 24 pages of full-color Bible study helps that encourage girls to be loving, strong, caring, forgiving, helpful, adventurous, loyal, faithful, and most of all, beautiful young girls growing in God's shimmering light!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.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.”

Wicked Women of the Bible

When you think of the word "wicked", what comes to mind most? Do you only think of the 'bad' and 'evil'that comes from the word? What about 'wicked' meaning 'good'? Well in Wicked Women of the Bible, Ann Spangler gives a great snap shot of the women of the Bible, good and bad.

Ann gives us some insight into many of the well-known women in the Bible like Eve, Delilah, and Bathsheba, and maybe even a few that aren't that popular, like the Medium of Endor, who is found 1 Samuel 28. 

Each chapter has a part about the "wicked" woman herself, and what she did, then there is a section called The Times, which gives some context about what is going on in the world during the time that the wicked gal's story takes place. And each chapter ends with The Takeaway, asking questions to try to dive deeper into the woman's story and what is going on around her. 

It's great to be able to read more about some of the women in the Bible, to find out what they may have been thinking when she ate the fruit, or when she cuts the hair of her beau, or when she wipes the feet of Jesus with her tears. Ann gives us a chance to know more about these great and maybe not so great women so that we can see that they were all as real as we are and that there may have been more to them than just being knows as 'wicked'. 

Book Description

What can Jezebel, the Bible’s wickedest queen, reveal about God’s holiness and power and even about his sense of humor? What about the Woman at the Well—the one with five husbands and a live-in lover? And what of the prostitute whose tears bathe the feet of Jesus in front of people who despise her?

There are also “wicked good” women like Deborah, Ruth, Hannah, Abigail, Esther, Mary, and more. What do their lives tell us about God’s invincible love and his determined plan to save us?

In Wicked Women of the Bible Ann Spangler tells the stories of twenty wicked and “wicked good” women in greater detail. At the end of each story, Ann provides a brief section including additional historical and cultural background as well as a brief Bible study in order to enhance the book’s appeal to both individuals and groups.

The stories of these women of the Bible reveal a God who is not above it all but who stoops down to meet us where we are in order to extend his love and mercy.

About the Author

Ann Spangler is an award-winning writer and the author of many bestselling books, including Praying the Names of God, Praying the Names of Jesus, and The One Year Devotions for Women. She is also coauthor of Women of the Bible and Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus and the general editor of the Names of God Bible. Ann’s fascination with and love of Scripture have resulted in books that have opened the Bible to a wide range of readers. She and her two daughters live in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Website: http://www.annspangler.com/

Blog: http://www.annspangler.com/category/blog/

Do you need to find some Nourishment?

Nourished. That sounds like an awesome word to describe the state of your self, right? I know I could use a feeling of that in my life. Becky Johnson and Rachel Randolph, a mother and daughter pair, wrote a great book to help you feel that way in almost every part of your life. Their book, Nourished: A Search for Health, Happiness, and a Full Night's Sleep, is just what you might need to lead you on your way to feeling that way.

They break their book down into 5 different parts. Nourished 911 talks about the stressors that can come up in life and talking about ways to get started with finding some balance. Part 2 is Nourished spaces and routines, to help with getting your home and chores in order :) . A great section. Part 3 is Nourished bodies, Nourished Selves, going into taking care of your body, eating healthy, and figuring out a fitness plan. Part 4, Nourished Relationships discusses bringing your relationships into order and finding ways to nourish them. And Part 5, Nourished Spirits. talks about bringing nourishment to your mind, brain and your spiritual life.

My favorite chapter was chapter 7, At Home in Our Own Skin. I have a hard time dealing with my physical apperance and the few extra pounds that I have, but how Becky and Rachel lay it out in that chapter made me feel a little better and I know that I wont always be like this, it's just a very stressful season, but that I can learn how to feel better about myself. :)

Check out Nourished, it may help with you learn some ways to bring some peace to your life.

Book Description

Authors and bloggers Becky Johnson and Rachel Randolph address the common daily stressors of women with humorous stories, trial-and-error plans, and practical take-away insights.

Order-loving Rachel Randolph and her laid-back mother Becky Johnson might be opposites in some ways, but there’s one thing they both want to figure out: why is life so hectic and draining? Through interviews with friends and lots of research, they determine the most common stressors that mess with a woman’s mind. Together, they cook up a plan to live a less depleted and more nourished life.

The wise and witty co-authors of the heartwarming We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook, Becky and Rachel share their successes and failures as they make peace with their imperfect bodies, create living spaces they love, get wiser in their relationships, tame jam-packed schedules, settle into God’s love, and more. In short, they stumble and journey together toward a life that better nourishes them—body, mind, soul, and spirit.

With humor, honesty, and faith, this mother-daughter duo offers a breath of fresh air for readers of all generations and life-stages who find themselves drained, discontent, or discouraged—and know there has to be a healthier alternative.

About the Author

Becky Johnson is the author, coauthor, or collaborator of more than forty books. She's a natural storyteller who has inspired and entertained audiences for years. Most recently, she co-authored We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook along with a blog by the same name with her daughter, Rachel Randolph. She and her husband Greg, live in Denver, Colorado where they love spending time with their adult children and grandkids. Website/Blog: www.laughcrycook.com

Rachel Randolph writes and speaks about parenting a toddler, young married life, and her and her husband’s unlikely journey to a plant-based diet with humor and honesty. She co-authored We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook(Zondervan 2013) with her mom Becky Johnson. Rachel is married to Jared, a high school football and baseball coach. They live near Dallas, Texas with their son Jackson

Review- For the Love by Jen Hatmaker

How many times do you get to laugh when you read a book that is about serious stuff? If you need a laugh, you should check out For the Love: Fighting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards. Jen has such a great way of just making almost any topic into something funny or at least adding her personal little touch to it.

 She has a chapter on fashion types and she lays it out for you, in the truthful way a girlfriend would tell you something. Leggings as pants is a no-no she states, and I concur, and seeing as it's turning fall around me, every time I see leggings I can think of Jen. It's wonderful :)
She has chapters on just about anything that happens in our daily life, such as surviving school with kids (spending 400 million dollars and needing the next year to recover from back to school), on turning forty, I'm not there yet, but I can totally relate to what she is talking about (You're body wants yoga pants and your husband's stretched out T-shirts, and it will have them. p.12). She also helps you to remember that what you are doing is important (in chapters On Calling and Haitian Moms and Hope for Spicy Families).

If you need some encouragement and a good laugh, check out For the Love. I still just love the title, I know I say "for the love of...." so many times a day around here.

Book Description

The popular writer, blogger, and television personality reveals with humor and style how Jesus' extravagant grace is the key to dealing with life's biggest challenge: people.

The majority of our joys, struggles, thrills, and heartbreaks relate to people, beginning first with ourselves and then the people we came from, married, birthed, live by, live for, go to church with, don't like, don't understand, fear, struggle with, compare ourselves to, and judge. People are the best and worst thing about the human life.

Jen Hatmaker knows this all too well, and so she reveals how to practice kindness, grace, truthfulness, vision, and love to ourselves and those around us. By doing this, For the Love leads our generation to reimagine Jesus' grace as a way of life, and it does it in a funny yet profound manner that Christian readers will love. Along the way, Hatmaker shows readers how to reclaim their prophetic voices and become Good News again to a hurting, polarized world.

It's too early for this

So for some reason my silly little 2 year old Princess A only wants to watch Christmas movies, mainly anything with Mickey Mouse. And let me tell ya, it's really getting old. I love Christmas movies as much as the next person, maybe, but I love Halloween. And there are plenty of cute little Halloween shows on Netflix that Miss A could watch. Not many that are Mickey, which seems to be her favorite, but still.

So what's your favorite holiday movie/show? Any Holiday counts :)

Change? Not a fan of it. Review of Girl Meets Change, Truths to carry you through life's transitions by Kristen Strong.

Kristen Strong, a Military spouse who's been through just enough change to make a person crazy, has a new book (baby as she calls it) called Girl Meets Change. And I think it's totally fantastic. If you have ever had to experience change in any way, this would be a great book for you to read.

I love Kristin's raw honesty about how change can affect our lives. she writes to the reader as a girlfriend who is there for you helping you get through those twists and turns that life throws. she roots her points in Scripture in such a powerful way that really brings you to the chance to really see God in the midst of all the mess that comes with change and with life.

I've been through a lot of change in my life; moves, new family members, mother moving in, etc. Change doesn't get easy, but you can get through it. Kristen offers great support and tells her story well. She uses many stories from the Bible about people who went though changes, like Abraham, Joseph, the Isralities, and many more. 

A story that really hit with me was about Kristen's daughter and the change that she had to deal with when she wasn't able to continue something that she really enjoyed. How strong her daughter showed herself to be is such an inspiration to anyone dealing with change. 

I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher for my personal opinion. My opinion is my own. 

Anything - Review

Could you pray to God and tell Him, "God, we will do anything. Anything!"? Jennie Allen and her husband and family did and that's where she came up with her book Anything. It has been reissued with a Bible study at the end. And it's still just as fantastic as before.

I love when Jennie says that her daughter was listing off her friends and her son said that God should be her first friend, her daughter's response was, "We just met. I am just getting to know Him." 

Jennie has such a great way of presenting the path that her and her family life has taken since they told God they would do anything. She has a great way of engaging you and bringing you in to her life and her story. She tells about wanting to find the kind of life that you only find when you lose normal, simple and sane. 

I was provided a copy of this book from BookLook blogger. My review is my own. 

The Perfect Love by Ruth Myers

I loved the title of this book, it was one of the reasons that I decided to check it out. 

She has chapters about how we are perfect in His Love through various different ways, such as: truly alive, secure, truly free and others. 

One of my favorite things that came from the book was that "The Lord can meet our every need because He is the God of perfect, overflowing love that has no limits." in chapter 2. 

Another quote from the book "If we want real love, ideal love, perfect love, God's heart is where to find it. It's the only love big enough to meet the God-sized needs of your life and mine.

I think that this book will come in handy as I walk on my journey and hope to gain more and more from it as the years go on.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher for my honest review. 

Walk in Faith?

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to walk in faith?? I know that it's something that I've been trying to learn how to do since I came back to my faith. I spent a long time away from God, even though I have always loved Him. The last 4 years have been an amazing experience learning all the things that I should have learned (or remembered) from when I was young. 

I'm so excited to be able to read so many awesome books by so many amazing writers, Like Lysa TerKeurst and Beth Moore. They have such great stories to tell and make me want to learn more about God, and my faith. 

The past few weeks I've been working my way through Lysa's book "What Happens When Women Walk In Faith". And it's fantastic. She outlines 5 stages that we can go through on our walk. I had experienced so many of the things that are associated with the stages that she goes through (Leaving, Famine, Believing, Death, Resurrection). Currently I feel like I am in a Famine stage while I wait for things to start to improve in certain parts of my life. But I also feel like I'm in a Believing stage because I don't think I would be able to deal with some of the things that are going on in my day to day without knowing that God is there for me and that He is guiding me through this. 

If you need a boost in your faith, I would totally pick up Lysa's book and learn what it means to Walk in faith!!!!! 

Keep It Shut- Review

Karen Ehman's book "Keep It Shut; What to Say, How to Say it, and When to Say Nothing at All" is something that anyone and everyone should read.

Have you ever wondered what gossip is and isn't? Karen lays it out in a chapter called, " But I'm just Sharing a Prayer Request." with a checklist that state that gossip involves things like: when we share a secret when we were asked not to, we tell a story that hasn't been verified, or when we start a story with " You know, they say....".

Using tons of great Scriptures to get to the point of how we need to tame our tongues and to use them for good. Also great chapters on learning to listen (Stop Filling the Gap), controlling your digital tongue (Behind the Screen), and How to talk to God before you talk to Others (Zip it and Pray, which is a favorite chapter of mine).

If you have problems with your words, or even if you don't, Keep It Shut it a great book to help you learn great ways to use our words to help build up others and not tear them down, and to know when we should use our words, or to keep our mouths shut.

Move On- When Mercy Meets Your Mess Review

Move On. Oh how I've heard that. Going through a bad time? Just move on. Or as Hubs now says, "Just go frozen with it!" Aka Let It Go. But it can be hard. But it doesn't have to be, with God's help. God can meet us with mercy and help us deal with our trial, our problem, our failure, and learn from it and finally move on from it.

Vicki Courtney has a great book, well written, on this topic of trying to move on from something happening in our lives. In Move On: When Mercy Meets Your Mess, Vicki goes into topics like US and THEM, which was a favorite chapter of mine, that dealt with how we can seperate ourselves from others because; They don't need Jesus- we all need Jesus. They are not sinners. WE all are sinners. Sin is not a behavior- it is a condition. If we can process that, then there doesn't have to be an Us and Them.

Chapter titles in Move On include: Cleanup on Aisle One! Santized for Your Protection. Unclaimed Baggage. Law and Disorder and others. The end of each chapter involves a "Coming Clean" section, coming back to review what was discussed in the chapter and taking a deeper look at what we can get from God and having Him help us to move on from our messes, our problems and getting to the other side of the desert. 

Book Description

Life is often messy. God makes provision to help us move beyond our messes but often our first instinct is to hide, deny, ignore, or run from them. Yet it is in the middle of our mess where mercy shows up and offers a safe place to process our struggles, imperfections, doubts, and fears. Then with mercy by our side, we are able to move on and experience the grace and freedom God intended.
In Move On best-selling author Vicki Courtney helps readers come clean with their muddy messes, revealing the deeper issues they must face, including:

• Christian snobbery
• struggles and broken dreams
• the past
• shame
• legalism
• the need for approval
• idols
• fickle faith

Once we face our messes, God, with his sweet mercy, can help us to get real, deal, and truly move on.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers 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  : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”