Dwell on These Things Inspiration Cards: 31 Thoughts to Align Your Heart with God's Truth by John Stange

There is so much negativity in our world today, that I am trying to put more positive things into my mind and heart.  These cards are a great way to do just that.  There are 31 cards, one for each day of the month, with an encouraging message for each day.  The messages are hopeful and uplifting, just what I need to re-direct my mindset.  The front of each card has a short thought that paraphrases a Bible verse and the back has a longer message (2-3 sentences) that expands on the front. The bonus is that this set of cards is just beautiful, something that I am happy to display in my home.  

Today's card reads: "Cast your anxiety on God instead of bearing the weight yourself."  That thought comes from I Peter 5:7 which says:  "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."  The back of the card talks about how we often try to carry our burdens alone, but that we don't need to because God has offered to carry them for us.

I am giving this set 4 stars instead of 5 because I wish that they referenced the Scripture verse that the message on each card comes from. Otherwise, it is a lovely set and I recommend them for anyone looking to guard their hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Phillipians 4:8).

Dear Grandchild, This is Me: A Gift of Stories, Wisdom, and Off-the-Record Tales

Dear Grandchild, This is Me is beautiful in every way.  First off it is a gorgeous hard cover book with a textured, almost linen-like feel that will surely stand up to many readings by young children.  The inside pages are just as lovely, even the fly leaf is a pretty print. It's a true delight to flip through them and imagine my (future) grandchildren listening to my story being read to them or discovering it for themselves when they know how to read.

The book starts off with instructions and inspiration for the grandparent.  It suggests what kinds of stories your grandchildren might be interested in, prompts ideas on what to share and even gives permission to skip any parts that you feel don't pertain to you.  Then the very first page of this invaluable gift is space for a letter to your grandchild introducing yourself (great for a long distance grandparent) or stating what prompted you to write this book for them.

After the introduction are sections about your birth, childhood, family memories and school days.  Interspersed in the pages are inspirational quotes and Scriptures passages.  Some of my favorite questions/prompts from this section are: Why was your name chosen? How would you describe your mom and dad? What is the first major world event that you remember?  For me that would be the first moon landing!  At the end of each section are spaces for photographs and an envelope for your grandchild to open when they reach a special milestone in their own life.

The sections that follow include what path you followed after school--college or career?  Military service?  Marriage? Your wedding and honeymoon, stories of when you started your family. I love the section that is a map of both the United States and the world for you to color the places you've visited.

I could go on and on, but truly this is a book you must see for yourself!  It is filled with surprises and thoughtful ways to share your own memories and wisdom with your grandchildren.  I only wish I had such a treasure from my own grandparents.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. 

Something Needs to Change: A Call to Make Your Life Count in a World of Urgent Need by David Platt

Pastor David Platt saw firsthand the need for change when he went on a week-long trek in the Himalayan Mountains. Change in his own heart and mind, change in his family, change in his church and in the Church.  In those rugged, remote mountains he encountered desperate need.  This was heart-rending need like he had never seen before: tremendous physical need, yes, but even more importantly, overwhelming spiritual need.

As you might imagine, that kind of need raised many questions for Platt.  He found himself wrestling with God over them, struggling to sense God's presence in the face of extreme poverty, suffering, and spiritual darkness. By the end of the week, he was turned inside out and he knew, without a doubt, that he had been forever changed.

Journey along with David Platt to remote villages along treacherous mountain paths.  Experience extreme cold, magnificent scenery, and new food (butter tea with yak milk anyone?).  Meet villagers who welcomed Platt and those who spat on him.  Talk with Buddhists, Christians, Tribal militants and Devil worshipers.  Hear the stories of the blind, the diseased, the abused, the trafficked. See the desperate, the yearning, the hungry. But be warned, once you hear and see, you too may be forever changed.  You too may hear God's call to use your life to bring his hope to the hopeless.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

May It Be So: Forty Days with the Lord's Prayer by Justin McRoberts & Scott Erickson

I love the concept of May It Be So, but I am not so sure about the execution.  May it be so is the meaning of the word Amen and I think that's a cool title for a book about the Lord's Prayer.  This book is a prayer guide to the Lord's Prayer from Luke 11. 

When Jesus taught his disciples (and us) to pray by giving them the Lord's Prayer, he said, "This is HOW (emphasis mine) to pray."  He didn't say this is WHAT to pray.  So, he didn't mean we must pray those exact words but use the ideas/concepts in it to pray.  May It Be So guides the reader through the phrases in the Lord's Prayer day by day.  It is intended to help him or her slow down and focus on what Jesus is intending, to really ponder and think through the prayer--very helpful in our often frantic and fast-paced world.  The guided prayers are short, just one sentence, so they are easily remembered as you go through your day. 

The book also features a longer meditation for each phrase of the prayer, designed to help the reader dig a little deeper into its meaning.  Each meditation ends with some Pause and Reflect questions, ways to apply the prayer to yourself.  For example, in the section on the phrase, "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors", author Justin McRoberts poses these questions: "What does forgiveness look like?"  "Have you offered it?" "What would need to happen in order for you to do so?"  Good stuff there.

The part of the book that I didn't care as much for is the contemplative imagery by Scott Erickson.  Now, there is nothing wrong with his art.  It's very good, a million times better than anything I could do.  It's not offensive or theologically erroneous.  I'm sure it will speak to many, but not much to me.  I just don't really get it.  I'm not very artistic, I guess. 

If you're looking to dive deeper into the Lord's Prayer and especially if imagery moves you, this is the perfect devotional for you.    I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. 

Shades of Light by Sharon Garlough Brown

I am a huge fan of Sharon Garlough Brown.  I devoured her Sensible Shoes series, loving the fact that they are novels, yet contain such rich spiritual truths.  They stretched me and grew me in wonderful ways.  So it was with great anticipation that I joined the launch team for Sharon's newest book, Shades of Light. Because I am part of the launch team, I received an advance copy of the book  from the publisher in return for my honest review.


Shades of Light is not part of the Sensible Shoes series, yet some of the characters from that series appear in the book, much to my delight. This book is more topical than Sharon's other books.  This book deals with mental illness, specifically depression and anxiety.  A heavy topic to be sure, but one that most surely touches the life of virtually every reader in one shape or form.

Sharon Garlough Brown is a deep thinker and really brings her characters to life, getting inside their heads and hearts.   The two main characters in Shades of Light are Wren, a young woman who deals with both depression and anxiety, and Jamie, Wren's mother who has the difficult task of loving someone who is mentally ill.  Sharon helps the reader see the world through the eyes of both daughter and mother.  I am quite certain that you will be able to identify with one or the other or perhaps both.

If you love someone who struggles with mental illness, you will grow through experiencing life with Wren, who wants to be well but is not.  Who wants to trust and believe that God can heal her but has not yet done so.  Who wants to be an independent, healthy person but who often needs help from others in order to function.

I personally identified most with the mother, Jamie.  Jamie struggles with how to best love and support her daughter without enabling her or smothering her.  She most definitely does not always understand Wren, but she longs to.  Jamie also wrestles with her own guilt: should I have made different choices while raising her?  Are her problems my fault?  How do I balance helping her while not neglecting the rest of my family? And perhaps the biggest question of all: Why God?

Wren is inspired by the art and writings of Vincent VanGogh, so learning about his life was new and fascinating for me.  Van Gogh suffered from depression for years, yet he created beauty in his art that has endured the test of time. It was very emotional to view life through his eyes and from Wren's.  Mental illness is often misunderstood by the Christian community.  That was certainly true in VanGoh's day and sadly is still true today.

This book teaches much about suffering and the importance of finding community in suffering.   God never wants us to suffer alone, he is always with us, yet he also loves to see us surrounded by others who will walk alongside us in suffering.  And that is a beautiful thing, the body of Christ as it is intended to be.

I have much to process yet about this book and look forward to reading it again when the book is released to the public and I receive my pre-ordered copy. I highly recommend getting one for yourself as well!

Core 52: A Fifteen-Minute Daily Guide to Build Your Bible IQ in a Year by Mark E. Moore

Pastor and Bible teacher, Mark Moore, has written a great tool for all Christians, new and mature.  Core 52 is a year-long guide to the Bible.  It enables a new Christian to get a good grasp and overview of the Bible and the mature Christian to grow deeper in their understanding of the Bible.  For all Christians it is a one-stop-shop for memorizing key Scripture passages and a practical daily devotional. 

Core 52 is divided into, you guessed it, 52 weeks.  Each week starts out with a question such as Why am I here or Who do you say Jesus is or How can I reduce worry?  Great questions!  Then Moore proceeds to answer that week's question with solid Biblical essay (teaching), about 5-6 pages long.  He ends each essay with several Key Points to summarize it and help the reader remember it.

Day 2 of each week is memorizing a Bible verse that is a core text for that week's topic.  Day 3 is reading another passage from the Bible that helps illustrate that week's text.  Day 4 is meditating on (thinking about) 3 more Bible passages that connect to the first.  Day 5 is a call to action, a step to take to put that week's lesson into action. Finally, Pastor Mark gives an "Overachiever Challenge" for those who want to take it even further, with an additional Scripture to memorize and a "Bonus Read" in the form of helpful book to read by another author. His intent is that each day would take about 15 minutes.

Each lesson builds on the previous and takes the reader all the way through the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation.  If he or she is faithful to complete the entire year, they would have a great overview of the Scriptures and a wonderful framework for understanding God's Word.  I obviously did not go through every lesson yet, but as I skimmed through the book and read several of them, I especially enjoyed  "Election and Predestination", "Baptism" and "Overwhelming Worry".

I received an uncorrected proof of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

The Jesus Who Surprises: Opening Our Eyes to His Presence in All of Life and Scripture

The Jesus Who Surprises is a wonderfully complete Bible study .  It includes not only 6 weeks of Bible study, with lessons for 5 days each week but also lots of supplemental material.  Each week's lesson begins with a teaching from the author, Bible teacher Dee Brestin.  There is also an optional video testimony on Dee's website for each week as well as a suggested sermons on YouTube from well-known pastors such as Tim Keller and R.C. Sproul for those who want to take an even deeper dive into the material. 

Dee starts the book off with a chapter on how to use the book and study and even includes an optional Get-Acquainted study for groups who want to schedule that before they jump right into the study.  She ends the book with more extra material for leaders or group facilitators. Brestin even gives different ideas for a group prayer time each week. Really, this book includes both a leader's and member's manual right in one handy package.

But all that is just pretty packaging if the study isn't solid.  No fear with that here!  This is good stuff!  I love the topic: opening our eyes to the presence of Jesus in all of life and Scripture.  I'll talk about the Scripture aspect first.  The main passage for this study is from Luke 24, where Jesus appears on the Emmaus Road after his resurrection to 2 disciples.  They don't recognize him at first so he breaks down the Old Testament to them, showing them passage by passage how he is the Messiah. Dee also takes us through the Bible, passage by passage, showing us Jesus.  First in the first 5 books of the Bible, then in the Psalms and Isaiah. 

At the same time, Brestin teaches us to look for Jesus in all of our own lives with a method called God Hunt, intentionally looking for signs of Jesus in our everyday lives. This is a concept I learned and practiced years ago through a Bible study by Karen Mains.  It was a gift to me then and I'm certain would be a blessing again.

I have not yet done this study with a group, but am excited to do so.  There is some wonderful, substantial Biblical teaching here that I am certain would enrich the lives of those who commit to the study.  I did receive an Advanced Readers Copy of this book from the publisher in return for my honest review.