Bold As Love by Bob Roberts, Jr.

“Bold As Love. What can happen when we see people the way God does.” That’s just the question I was hoping to have answered and sparked within me as I was reading this book.

    First, I must say, Bob Roberts, Jr. did a fantastic job! Truly led by the Spirit in his journey to see others as Christ does. Plus a vast knowledge of the Dallas/Fort Worth Texas area. I am blown away by the vast population and different religious practices there! :)

    With chapters such as ‘Bold loving all my neighbors’, ‘Confronting all my fears,’ ‘Using all my faith to get out on the edge,’ ‘Serving others with all my might,’ ‘Requiring All my Truth,’ ‘Living our faith with all our faiths present,’ ‘Challenging all my tribe,’ and ‘Forgiving with all my heart,’ how could you not WANT to read this book?

Jesus calls us to love one another and this book can be a step forward in the right direction of doing so. Spend some time truly living your life through the eyes of God and “seeing” as God sees, it will change your life and challenge you as well.

Well done, Bob Roberts Jr!

Stuck Dvd based study

Jennie Allen’s Stuck (DVD based study kit) is a great resource. It’s a great resource for an individual or a group. It comes complete with: A DVD with eight sessions, a copy of the study guide (you’d have to buy more copies of the study guide if more than one person is involved), a copy of the leader’s guide and a set of conversation cards. There are seven different lessons included in this study: broken, mad, discontent, scared, overwhelmed, sad and unstuck.

I love that this type of kit is available in order to assist in a small group or in a personal setting. It addresses the situations that keep us stuck from God, from getting closer to God. Every day life can bind us and having more and more tools to help us get closer to God, I find is very helpful.

This study focuses on numerous areas, but a chord was struck with me when seeing this scripture listed: “ He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” Psalm: I47:3. God is longing for a relationship with us and we should seek comfort in him.

I would recommend this kit, it’s great.

*I received this book for free in exchange for my unbiased review through the Thomas Nelson BookSneeze Program.

NYC--the love of my life (among others) :)

Happy November.

Since I've been off work due to my ACL injury, I've had mucho time to sit around and do a whole lotta' nothin'. AKA-watching lots of TV. I've recently delved back into my reality TV fix. I used to hate reality television, especially while I was in college. Since I spent hours studying the form of television, story lines, locations, production, history.....it was a transition.... your regular favorite series on television to reality television, which, let's face it.....some reality television shows are very heavily scripted and very rarely raw with raw footage.

Nonetheless, since college, reality television has come a long way and is primarily what is on television today and I have to say, I kinda love it. Don't get me wrong, I'm still obsessed with 30 Rock, Saturday Night Live and Ugly Betty, but I find humor and fascination in watching how other people live & what they do.

Enter Bethenny Frankel, my favorite comedienne. She's also a very successful author and businesswoman and a mommy. I've been watching reruns of "Bethenny Ever After" and have been cracking up ever since. She is hilarious.

Watching all of this reminds me of New York. The point of this post today. I have only been to New York twice. The first time to visit, the second time for an interview. The first time I was only there for about two days and slept for about 14 hours straight afterwards because it was non-stop. I loved it. The second trip I was only there for about 5-6 hours. I literally flew from Indy to NYC, traveled from LaGuardia to 30 Rockefeller Center, 30 Rock to LaGuardia, LaGuardia to Indy. (Where I paid $12.00 for a "value meal" at the LaGuardia Burger King.)

Short trip, yes, but I loved it. I stepped out in my black suit and hot pink heels and acted like I owned the city.

Watching all of my favorite reality TV shows (Project Runway, Bethenny Getting Married?, Bethenny Ever After, The Real Housewives of New York......) makes me miss New York. I know it's all in God's glorious plan....whether I'm meant to live there or not. If not, there are several items on my bucket list that must be fulfilled:

1.) Go shopping in NYC around Christmastime ...the snow....the trees...the lights..the people...skating @ 30 Rock.... (c'mon ACL...we gotta heal these knees!)

and 2.) Be in NYC during Thanksgiving for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

and 3.) Be in NYC during New Year's Eve..... yes, the place where the most pick pocketing in one night goes on. Note to self: carry no moola.

List of places to visit: Serendipity, Madame Tussaud's New York, Top of The Rock, Empire State Building, NYC Double Decker Bus, MOBIA, The Met, Dead Sea Scrolls Life and Faith in Biblical Times, Radio City Music Hall, On-Set Tours, Walkin' Broadway, Tiffany's, Every Single Broadway Show imaginable, B&H Photo and Video, Pop Burger, Pinkberry and Tasti-D-Lite. Among many many many many others.

(By the way, in case you were wondering.... yes I have seen some of the most historic & important NYC landmarks.... Ellis Island, Statue of Liberty, Ground Zero, etc.) I would like to visit them again of course.

That's enough ranting about my favorite city in the world at the moment. I highly suggest you visit if you have not done so.

Until we meet again New York..........xoxo

Blown away!

I recently reviewed Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back, by Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent.

I was completely BLOWN AWAY by this book. It is hands down, one of the greatest books I have ever read. The book is about a small child that gets very ill (has a near death experience) and visits heaven while having surgery. His father, a pastor, has an angry conversation with God about why this was happening to his little boy and all the while, God is working miracles in all of their lives. The book definitely puts into perspective that life is a gift and it should not be wasted.

As I stated before, I was blown away by this book. The writing is fantastic. With each sentence I can picture small Colton and the reaction he was having that moment upon responding to a question. As so many have wondered ‘What is heaven really like?’ (myself included), this book gives a great view from a child’s perspective. We get into the spirit and innocence of a child by reading this book, which was really exciting to me because as we all know “God loooves children!”

I would absolutely recommend this book to everyone. It’s a short read (read it in one sitting) and it has a wonderful message. It will make you laugh and cry and be inspired by God..at least it made me that way, which I couldn’t be happier about!

*I received this book for free in exchange for my unbiased review through the Thomas Nelson BookSneeze Program.

A Homerun!

I recently read “Lessons Learned as a Bridesmaid, what every single woman should know before becoming a bride” by Larissa Dayana Jean. Wow! What a great read. As a single woman, I found this book to be a home run. It encourages women to accept God’s timing. Even when all your friends are married, all your siblings are married, everyone around you seems to be married but YOU, God knows the timetable he has set for you and it will happen on his time.

I think at times we’re eager for life’s situations to happen on our time, but that’s not the case. As women, we often seek the approval of a man, when we really should be seeking God’s approval and remember that ‘our value comes from God, not from the attention of a guy.’ Although I already knew this, this book reiterated to me that God has a plan for each one of us and not to believe the lie of the enemy- (that God is blessing everyone but me in the marriage department... liar!) I know God has a marriage plan for me and I will continue to celebrate with those who celebrate and cry with those who cry and do what the Lord has created me to do. This book made me realize that time spent waiting, is not time wasted. It is time spent living the life God has planned.

In order to move forward in life, we must adhere to God’s plan and believe that he has every intention to make us complete and whole and that if we follow him, we shall be saved. Way to go Larissa! This book rocks!

*I received this book for free in exchange for my unbiased review through the Thomas Nelson BookSneeze Program.

Close Enough To Hear God Breathe...

I recently read a portion of “Close Enough To Hear God Breathe,” The Great Story of Divine Intimacy, by Greg Paul. The title really caught my attention. I have been working on studying scriptures and drawing closer to God, so I thought this book would be a good compliment to assist in my journey. I sadly didn’t really enjoy this book. I was only able to read about a quarter of it before putting it down. I found it to be a lot about Paul’s family and stories about their family life. which is great, but not exactly what I was looking for.

With that said, a few of the stories were touching. I did enjoy the story of Paul teaching his son how to use a hammer and nail. He speaks about building a house and teaching his son how to use a hammer and nail, all the while, during the time he is working, his son nails pieces of wood to the floor that he later tried to kick aside, but found the little boy had nailed them to the floor and he has to pry from the floor. He speaks about God in a sense stating that “when I do become aware of my own insufficiency-when the hammer is too heavy for me and slips off the nail- he does not sniff and say, You are a broken and pathetic thing, but I might choose to fix you anyway. His arm is around me, his hand supporting mine on the shaft of a wayward hammer, and I do not sense frustration, disappointment, or anger. I can hear a smile and the quiet delight in his voice.” That to me is a powerful statement showing that God is always directing that hammer and if we slip and fall, he will be there to catch us.

*I received this book for free in exchange for my unbiased review through the Thomas Nelson BookSneeze Program.

A changed life.

My life has been changed. September 17th will go down in history as the greatest day of my life thus far. I publicly committed my life to Christ through baptism. Not much was going through my head during the actual baptism because it lasted about four or five minutes, but before and after were memorable moments.

I became very emotional before the baptism ceremony started because my family came to support me and they played one of my favorite songs and I think I was a little nervous about the logistics of the "dunk." (Don't fall, don't fall, don't fall...bend your knees, plug your nose... yeah forgot about that last part and held back the coughing as I hugged one of the pastors after pulling me from the water.) Afterwards, I felt clean. Physically clean, mentally clean, emotionally clean....it was very freeing and encouraging. The shames and guilt of my past are gone and I am committed to living my life each day to please God. Of course we all sin, but from that day forward will be a marker. I wasn't at all expecting to get any type of card or gift. I got a very special card from a friend, cards from family, special voice mails and text messages, books (one from Grandma and one from my sweet and fellow Christian neighbors that have been married for 30+ years), lunch with my mom and brothers and a beautiful cross for my house. These are all items that I will look at continuously and remember my special day.

An unexpected family crisis happened that day and the day following. I committed my life to Christ and that does not make Satan happy. It was pointed out to me that Satan knows exactly where to hit us and make it hurt...make it hurt hard. Well, he can stay down there where he's at..and I told him that! I've decided nothing is going to take away from my special day. What happened was a piece of the day, a piece I will never forget, but most importantly, it will be known as the day I committed my life to Christ and that I am forever his.