What I am Reading Right Now...

I have never taken the time to share about the books I am reading, mostly because I am not a "book" person most of the time. It is hard for me to sit still, calm my mind enough to focus on a book for any length of time. Sometimes it comes from reading so much for schooling our kids as well, it makes me anxious to work with my hands which seems to be almost nessasary for me to function, BUT! All that said, I thought through what I was reading recently and I guess, I am actually kind of a book person considering the list I have right now. Here is what I am reading and why.

The first is "Everyday Talk" by John Younts. i am going through this with a close mom friend that I am mentoring (although I think I learn more from her)! It, if anything, is a strong reminder of how much our everyday speech(conversations, frustrations, murmurrings, questions, discipline, etc)effects our children's world view of God. Convicting! For myself, it has helped me to take a breather before I talk without thinking first.

This book is beautifully done. It is the story of Ruth told in a poetic form from the perspective of Obed sharing with his Grandson David about the life of his great grandmother Ruth. I have been reading this to the kids when we are around the table off and on. Love love love it!

I am reading this book with Joslyn for school. Joslyn will read a few pages and then I will read a few. It is a book telling about 10 women that have changed the world. Godly examples of women who loved the Lord. Among them are women such as Isobel Kuhn, Amy Carmichael, and Corrie ten Boom(of course). Causes Josie to ask questions and begin to see the joy that comes from serving the Lord with our whole lives. There are others in this collection for girls and boys.

Desiring God is my "brain hurts" type of study but in a good way. This one I spend a good amount of time flipping back and forth through scripture with. This is one I do later at night when the house is completely quiet. It takes all my focus, and allows me to pray while I listen( I am doing this with the audio version so I can hear and read. I listen to it in the car as well. This is my challenge right now.

This is a book we are reading as a family. it is one of the books written about the life of Corrie ten Boom. I want the kids to have a real eye opening view of the holocaust and about what Jews and Christians went through during this time. Corrie ten Boom has a way of connecting with young and old and a way of applying the living Word of God to everyday life. Awesome!

And this one is my favorite and will most likely remain in my top of all time. It is another book by Corrie ten Boom called "Not Good If Detached". It is almost like a journal of hers, each chapter is a conversation or experience she had while traveling around the globe sharing the gospel after being freed from the consentration camp. This book goes everywhere with me, it is always in my purse, and I have read and reread this book multiple times. It has caused me to treasure Jesus so much more in my own life, it has so often given me clarity on situations in my own life and the scripture that applies. It is a most precious gift and get this, it was nestled and hidden away on a shelf of books in a little thrift shop up in MN that my mother in law took me to. We got stranded at this shop due to a violent storm that came through, so unlike my normal visits to thrift shops, I had time to leaf through the books. This tiny little beat up book captured my attention immediately. The title actually made me think of the verse in John 15:5

I am the vine, you are the branches, he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me, you can do nothing.

And after that thought crossed my mind , I looked down and saw "Corrie ten Boom" And I thought, well, of course. God had sent that storm just for me and had hidden that little book away just for me, knowing my heart and mind, knowing even the little details of what catches my attention -old and worn objects overlooked and overloved. I am now on a mission to track down as many copies of this book that I can so that I can give them away to friends, family, and students.

So for now, those are what is on the reading list. I will make sure to share a few more of my favorites sometime soon.

Oh parenthood-it is a bittersweet journey...

I thought I would just share a little clip from our lives this week. This happened last night and left me laughing through the frustration. It was one of those times that I thanked to Lord for soothing my troubled heart with laughter.

We have an old laptop that has been wonderful for the kids to use online. I like that it is mobile so that I can oversee what they are doing online. My dad has kept it going forever which has been a great blessing to a tight budget! Well, last night, as I was trying to work out some things on my work computer, I realized that a file I was trying to locate was actually on the old laptop because it used to be my computer. I asked one of our daughter's(who I will keep anonymous since she has felt so badly over this) to bring the laptop to me since she had used it last. She seemed a bit hesitant and it really didn't faze me at first. I opened it up and turned it on and walked away because it takes about an hour to boot up (ok I am exagerating about a minute or so;)) But, all of the sudden I heard a gasp and came out of the kitchen to see what it was about. Everyone was looking at the laptop, see the screen was all wonky, like oil moving around and if you touched the screen it would move around! I, knew right away why my daughter had been hesitant-so i turned to her and said "spill it" Although, I was not so even tempered as I wish I could have been! She went on to explain that Noah had been jumping on it! If only you could have seen my eyes-how big and lovely they were;) Ok, BIG, NOT LOVELY. Well, as you can imagine, Dad and I spent awhile gong through the rules of how to handle EXPENSIVE and important things, how to treat blessings from the Lord, how, maybe you should have let me know when Noah decided to use it as a trampoline, or maybe confess RIGHT AWAY, we talked about how money doesn't grow on trees, and probably a few other descriptive remarks.... followed by, go to bed please-NOW.


Well, Matt and I discussed it awhile longer and then retired it, but my stomach was still in knots for so many reasons. it one of those silly times that I just want it fixed NOW and i am anxious and nervous-FOR WHAT!? Well, after Matt finished preparing for Sunday School, he turned in for the night. He came out of our bedroom with a piece of paper and was chuckling. He said, take a look at this. It was a note from our dear daughter and here is what it said...

Now, here are a few things that make me soft and calm from that anger bubbling in me. First-this is not her normal nice handwriting, this is the scared, I AM REALLY IN TROUBLE version. You may not be able to read it , but it is a list of options for punishment and the first suggestion was-You can get rid of me. I think I will laugh HARD every time I write or say this . Like that is even an option-I told her this morning when I said good morning-maybe servitude for the rest of your life, but I don't think I will get rid of you. Anyways, yes, she will have consequences that her Dad and I agree on. But one thing Matt and i agree on is that this is one of those lessons that grace will hopefully b e a very lasting impression. It is not often that we get to display such a strong example of the grace that Jesus has shown us-which , in my opinion, is not measurable in human terms and something that I could never match, but am attempting to teach my children in tangible ways such as this.

That letter-it is a keeper. And it actually makes me thankful for being a parent!

AND DAD-I will be bringing the laptop when I come out this week;)