Tag: Read good books

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BOOK REVIEW :: Change Your Words Change Your Life by Joyce Meyer

Change Your Words Change Your Life: 

Understanding the Power of Every Word You Speak 

by

@JoyceMeyer

Over the years I have read multiple books by Joyce Meyer. If you’ve been following my blog you know the profound impact her ministry has had on my life.

The message of this particular book is one of Joyce’s foundational teachings and is one I’m sure she will continue teaching as long as she has breath. Why is it she continues to pound away at us about our words? Because our brains are extremely stubborn and don’t given up bad habits easily!

Joyce has written several books and preached countless messages about the mouth. But I believe Change Your Words Change Your Life is her most user friendly to date. She gives us a dictionary of Scriptures divided up by topics to help us quickly in our time of need. Through good times and bad, complaining, encouraging, and opinions… she doesn’t miss a beat. And what I love most about Joyce is that she keeps it real by sharing her own areas of weakness and growth!

I have personal experience that this principle works, so I highly recommend Change Your Words Change Your Life by Joyce Meyer!

If you can’t see the video screen below CLICK HERE for a wonderful conversation between @JoyceMeyer and @JohnCMaxwell on the power of our words.

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BOOK REVIEW :: Girls with Swords by Lisa Bevere

Girls with Swords: 

How to Carry Your Cross Like A Hero

by

@LisaBevere

I had a wonderful summer book study with my newest daughter-in-law, Alicia, who chose Girls with Swords for us to read. Although, I’ve seen Lisa Bevere multiple times on television this is the first time I’ve read one of her books. Not unlike her TV appearances, Lisa has a powerful message to share.

Today many of the popular video games and comic book adventures depict women as heroes. But that certainly has’t been the norm of our social culture. Having not seen strong women modeled for us, many of us girls find it difficult to step into the role of warrior princess.

In Girls with Swords Lisa does a wonderful job using fencing metaphors to teach us the power we have available through The Sword of God’s Word. But before we can learn how to weald our sword we must first be aware of the battle set before us. Once we learn our battleground the task of becoming a warrior begins. We learn how to forge our sword, walk through the battle toward our harvest, armed with the Light, songs of praise and even times of silence.

Lisa carefully teaches us that as God’s children we are chosen but we must be trained and armed before God will commission us to our individual battles. We may be chosen it’s up to us to attend boot camp. Only there will we get the preparation necessary for the battlefield of life.

If you are looking for a book to study this Fall I highly recommend Girls with Swords! Also, you might want to check out the Girls with Swords Fencing Manual which goes beautifully with the book. It’s perfect for individual study or small groups.

If you cannot see the video screen below Click Here  for a message from Lisa Bevere.

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BOOK REVIEW :: Making Good Habits Breaking Bad Habits by Joyce Meyer

MAKING GOOD HABITS 

BREAKING BAD HABITS:

14 New Behaviors That Will Energize Your Life

by 

@JoyceMeyer


Making Good Habits Breaking Bad Habits is up there with Joyce’s best and most practical books. I love the way Joyce writes. She sweetly imparts her wisdom from personal experience of dealing with consequences of her own bad habits that ultimately motivated her to create healthier habits.

Joyce takes us through a series of behaviors that when combined, provide a beautiful recipe for successfully changing habits. She recommends rather than focusing our energy on removing the bad habits we should implement positive habits which will eventually drive out the bad habits.

I have been a huge fan of Joyce Meyer for years and have read many of her books. She has impacted my life in immeasurable ways. I can honestly say I wouldn’t be the person I am today if it wasn’t for her.

If you are struggling with some bad habits, and who isn’t, I encourage you to get Making Good Habits Breaking Bad Habits. I personally have purchased an audio copy and look forward to listening to it so I can further cement these principles in my brain. Thanks Joyce! 

If you can’t see the screen below CLICK HERE to watch Joyce Meyer discuss Making Good Habits. 

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BOOK REVIEW :: Daring Greatly by Brené Brown

DARING GREATLY:

How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead


by 


@BrenéBrown



“WHERE WAS THIS BOOK WHEN I WAS RAISING MY KIDS 30 YEARS AGO?”


Oh my gosh! I think this may be one of the most important books I will ever read! And I don’t say that lightly. Those of you who know me or have followed my blog for a while, know I’m a voracious reader. And when I find a book of this magnitude I’m going to shout it from the house top.

Daring Greatly is critical to living an emotionally healthy life!

This book is a voice of reason, understanding and explanation from a woman who has spent more than a decade listening to painful stories of lived experiences in order to put a theory into words. And not just research words to complete a degree, but words that will make a difference, words that can bring a sense of meaning to the struggles we all have in common.

Every person on the planet needs to read Daring Greatly!

No doubt about it, this book is a tough read. Not because Dr. Brown is a researcher who writes sentences that are five lines long (which she does not) but because her material hits me right where I live inside and outside my brain.

Do yourself and everyone in your life a favor… read Daring Greatly! 

I’ve just finished reading Daring Greatly and taking notes all over the book’s pages. Now I have to read it again. This time I’m getting out my spiral notebook and stepping into the Vulnerability classroom with Dr. Brené Brown as my professor.

Thanks Dr. Brené Brown! I look forward to reading much more of your work!

If you can’t see the video screen below Click here to watch Brené Brown’s ground breaking TEDx talk that has garnered more than 9 million views thus far!

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BOOK REVIEW :: Our Favorite Sins ~ The Sins We Commit and How We Can Quit by Todd D. Hunter


Our Favorite Sins:

The Sins We Commit and How We Can Quit


by

Todd D. Hunter

During Lent I was privileged to see Bishop Todd Hunter speak when he came to our home church in the Dallas area. Until that time, I was unfamiliar with his books and really knew nothing about him as a minister. But not long into his talk, I became a fan. As a result I purchased and soon scarfed down this book.

Bishop Todd Hunter is an unusual minister in that he has only been in the Anglican denomination for a few years and not too long ago became a bishop. I believe this gives him great credibility in the way he tackles sin and temptation.

In Our Favorite Sins, with a Barna survey to back up the needed topics of discussion, Todd teaches us how to recognize our areas of weakness. Then step by gentle step, he leads us through time honored Christian practices, with a new perspective on scripture, prayer and sacraments that can bring healing and strength in times of temptation.

You may be unfamiliar with the Anglican traditions of prayer and liturgy, but don’t let that keep you from reading Todd’s book. I found his approach of using the Book of Common Prayer along with other ancient writings and practices extremely powerful and very refreshing.

I hope you will consider reading Our Favorite Sins by Todd Hunter. It has deepened my commitment to pray through various prayer books that I own, to meditate more fully on scripture and be even more intentional to giving all my desires over to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

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BOOK REVIEW ~ Storyline: Finding Your Subplot in God’s Story by Donald Miller

Is your life floating by meaninglessly with no purpose or passion? 

Do you long for goals and ambitions that will make a difference in the lives of others? Then this is the book for you!


Storyline: 

Finding Your Subplot in God’s Story

by 

@DonaldMiller













I was introduced to Donald Miller’s writing about four years ago through Thomas Nelson’s Booksneeze program, when I reviewed Searching for God Knows What. Since then I’ve read a few more of his books all of which I like very much. I’ve found Donald’s writing style to be fresh, friendly, fast paced and fun. And Storyline is no exception. 

As a writer I’ve been working on my autobiography for a few years. So when I learned about Donald’s new project I thought it might help with my story writing skills. Reading Storyline can help me write a better story about my life, but most importantly it will help me live a better story every day. 

These days I’m working on being intentional and committed to the activities and people in my life. Reading Storyline couldn’t have come at a better time to help me be more intentional and more committed to the roles, goals and climactic scenes I want to see in my future.

Storyline is a fun and engaging workbook that goes along with the Storyline conference. But it can also be used for small groups or individual study.  No matter your age, gender or season of life, you will benefit from reading Storyline by Donald Miller. 

I’m excited to put what I’ve learned from Storyline into practice. It has already given me a better vision for my life and a clearer focus on that vision. I believe my story will be much improved because I read this book. 

I hope you will get a copy of Storyline. I highly recommend it!


Click here to watch an introductory video about Storyline.



What is Storyline? from Donald Miller on Vimeo.

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Book Review: MADE TO CRAVE by Lysa TerKeurst

MADE TO CRAVE


by @LysaTerKeurst

Zondervan 2010

218 pp



Last December, while searching for books to review, I stumbled upon Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst.  I was unfamiliar with the author but found many books by her with raving reviews and as a seasoned Amazon shopper that means BUY =D 

With obesity rates rising, it’s no secret that food is a big problem in our world today. Though this isn’t my specific area of weakness, sex and food addiction are closely related, so I decided it would be a great selection to review. Little did I know God had a different reason for me to read this book.

On a seemingly normal Saturday afternoon, I was reading along when all of a sudden God snuck up and healed a deep emotional wound from my childhood! Just like that. Out of the clear blue. Healing came through Chapter 14 ironically titled Emotional Emptiness.

To process her own childhood emotional wounds, Lysa used Philippians 4:8:

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.”

So as I read how Lysa processed her painful memories, I processed my own unmet nurturing needs. Here are excerpts from my journal:

What is true about my childhood? It is true that by father was emotionally unavailable, an alcoholic, sex addict and womanizer. It is true that my older brother was born handicapped and my mother wasn’t able to give me the nurturing I needed because she had to care for my siblings. It’s true momma did the best she could. She didn’t reject me on purpose, she was just running on her own strength and didn’t have enough to go around.

What is right about my childhood? It is right that my mother did all she could to care for my brother. God just whispered to me –  if our roles had been reversed – if I had been in the wheel chair, my mother would have done the same for me! 

What is pure, lovely, admirable and praiseworthy in my childhood? What if I change my perspective on this emptiness and feeling of lack? What if I look back at this memory and see it as a sacrifice of love for my brother so that he could have the care that he needed most? Jesus doesn’t see His wounds as a victim but as a sacrifice of love. I mustn’t see the empty places as lack for me but as a gift to my brother and sister. By doing this my perspective changes to purity of heart, loveliness for my brother, my sister, and my mother. Seeing the positive vs. the negative allows my pain to become something admirable and praiseworthy.

Needless to say, I wasn’t expecting a surprise healing that day. One thing I know, is that my burden is gone. I am free from that empty pain of lack! 

Our cravings may come in different packages but the bottom line is still the same: we’re all trying to fill our spiritual emptiness, to moisten our dried up hearts with pleasures found in the world. It won’t work no matter how hard we try. It seems the harder we try the deeper the hole gets, and the less satisfaction comes until we are so numbed that we can’t feel our brains think any more.

Whatever your weakness: food, sex, gambling, shopping, media… You will find help in this book.  Where the word food shows up just fill in your particular weakness. That’s what I did and it worked for me! 

I highly recommend Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst. It’s an easy read, with touching personal stories sure to reach a spot in your heart. There are study guide questions at the end of each chapter that make it perfect for small groups to work together. 

Click here to watch a MADE TO CRAVE video by Lysa TerKeurst.


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BOOK Pre~VIEW :: The Power of Pause by Terry Hershey

The Power of Pause: Becoming More by Doing Less


by

@Terry_Hershey

Loyola Press
235 pp

My best girlfriend turned me on to this book not long ago. And because The Power of Pause is designed like a devotional I haven’t read much of it yet… thus the preview vs. review. However, so far I am quite impressed with Terry Hershey and his book. With our daily schedules getting out of hand, we need all the help we can get to slow down!

Rather than go on about how good I think this book is going to be, I will let the author tell us himself.

Click here for The Power of Pause book trailer with Terry Hershey.  Blessings…

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BOOK Pre-VIEW: The Purpose Driven Life ~ What on Earth am I Here for? by Rick Warren

This isn’t a typical book review but a preview because I haven’t read the book yet.  

Because The Purpose Driven Life: What On Earth Am I Here For? is designed as a 40-day study, my husband and I have chosen to study it through Lent this year. I hope you will take this opportunity to prayerfully consider what you will do during this upcoming season to prepare your heart for Easter. Blessings…

The Purpose Driven Life: 

What On Earth Am I Here For?

by 

@RickWarren

10 years ago, Rick Warren wrote The Purpose Driven Life, which became the bestselling hardback nonfiction book in history, and the second most-translated book in the world, after the Bible. Without a doubt it has inspired and changed countless lives.

Now, Rick has updated and expanded the book with new chapters to help give our life even greater purpose. One thing I find very exciting about this new version, is the QR codes at the beginning of each chapter that link to a video introduction, an audio message and notes for deeper study.

I’m really looking forward to reading The Purpose Driven Life: What On Earth Am I Here For?

Here’s a short video introduction by Pastor Rick Warren… http://youtu.be/rjD7PGBAwxc

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BOOK REVIEW :: The Resolution for Women by Pricilla Shirer


The Resolution for Women

by

@PriscillaShirer

B & H Books 

288 pp

What a perfect book to start the new year with! Although I’ve seen Priscilla Shirer speak in person, I’ve not read any of her books before now. If you enjoy watching Priscilla teach you will like this book. Like most good authors you can hear their speaking voice in their written word, and this was no exception.

The Resolution for Women was written in partnership with the movie Courageous which is calling men to be stronger spiritual leaders. Priscilla’s book is essentially that same message to women.

While all the resolutions are excellent, you may find some challenging to walk out. Certainly, they will cause you to think about some areas in life where you may have gotten lazy.

This book is quick read with fast moving chapters that aren’t full of fluff like many of today’s commercial writers. It is thought provoking with encouragement to put the resolutions in practice.

I highly recommend The Resolution for Women. It’s great for a small group study or just to share with a friend over coffee. Either way, I think you will enjoy it!

Check out the Book Trailer for The Resolution for Women: http://youtu.be/k-iOlcbXNUg