Spring Reading Thingy 2012

Here's the list of books that I plan to read this spring. I'm sure I'll be adding more as the time goes by :).

- A Perfect Pet for Peyton (picture book) by Rick Osborne & Gary Chapman
- The 5 Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman and Ross Campbell
- Miracle for Jen by Linda Barrick with John Perry
- Great Day Every Day by Max Lucado
- Unveiling the Kings of Israel by David Down
- Living Close to God by Gene Edwards
- Living by Faith by David Venable
- Love at Last Sight by Kerry & Chris Shook

Friday's Fave Five #58

It's time for another Friday's Fave Five (hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story).

My Fave Five this week:-
1. CHRISTmas: Celebrating CHRIST's birth with family. I also loved the candlelight service at church. The feast, fellowship, and fun were fabulous, too :). Giving and serving others always bring me joy. I also like seeing my loved ones being happy and surprised by the gifts I pick out  for them.

2. My kids helped bake cookies for our annual Christmas give-away goodies. We enjoyed delivering them (plus my homemade bookmarks) and visiting with our neighbors.

3. My husband has had last Friday and this whole week off. We love having him home with us!

4. Our Top Ten Highlights from 2011 (which includes the slideshow I made that sums up our year in pictures)

5. Relaxing and reading. You can check out my Top Ten Reads of 2011 here.

"Long after the angels disappear into the heavens, the shepherds return to their flocks, the magi journey home, and the great star sets, JESUS remains.
The Child in whom we rediscover God's great love for humanity becomes the adult Redeemer who challenges us to imitate His selflessness and compassion in order that we might transform our world in love. 
May we allow the miracle of CHRISTmas to continue long after the holiday trappings have been packed away. 
May we welcome the adult Messiah and His challenging Gospel to recreate our lives--making the peace, justice, and hope of this holy season a reality in every season of the new year." 
(~Author Unknown)

Have a blessed & Christ-centered New Year, everyone!

Reading Plan--May2011

The books I've recently finished reading included True Courage by Steve Farrar, The Fitting Room by Kelly Minter, Love & War Devotional for Couples by John & Stasi Eldredge.

Here is the list of books I am reading or plan to read in the near future:-

• Lead Serve Love by Gregory E. Lang
• The Defender's Guide for Life's Toughest Questions by Ray Comfort
• We Shall See God (Charles Spurgeon's Classic Devotional Thoughts on Heaven) by Randy Alcorn
• Pressing into Thin Places (Encouraging the Heart toward God) by Margaret Harrell Wills

*I'd like to ask you all for a favor. Would you please click here to go rate my book review of Primal by Mark Batterson (a great book about the Greatest Commandment)? You'll need to verify your email address once for the vote to count. That means you have to click the link they email you after you rank my review. The top ranked review for this month will win a netbook. Thanks so much ♥!

Reading Plan--April 2011

The books I've recently finished reading included Max on Life by Max Lucado and Revise Us Again by Frank Viola.

Here is the list of books I am reading or plan to read in the near future:-

• True Courage by Steve Farrar
• Lead Serve Love by Gregory E. Lang
• The Defender's Guide for Life's Toughest Questions by Ray Comfort
• The Fitting Room by Kelly Minter

Have fun reading :)!

Pick-Your-Book Giveaway

I love to read and I enjoy doing book reviews. However, I have too many books, not enough shelves :). So I'm hosting a book giveaway. The winner (randomly chosen) will get to pick a book of his/her choice from the list below. Some of these are brand new (extra copies) while others are like new. You can click on the titles that are linked to read my reviews of those books. This giveaway is open only to U.S. residents. It ends on 3/13 at midnight (Pacific time).

- Outlive Your Life by Max Lucado (Christian Life $24.99)
- Trusting God to Get You Through by Jason Crabb (Christian Life/Inspirational $14.99)
- Blue Like Play Dough by Tricia Goyer (Christian Living/Spiritual Growth/Women $13.99)
- Green Like God by Jonathan Merritt (Christian living $16.99....Disclaimer: I have not read this book yet so I have no idea if it's good or not :).)
- Jump: Into a Life of Further and Higher by Efrem Smith (Christian life $14.99)
- The 7 Minute Life Daily Planner ($14.99)
- Finding Inner Peace During Troubled Times by William Moss
- Finding Jeena by Miralee Ferrell (Christian Fiction)
- Never Blame the Umpire by Gene Fehler (Juvenile Fiction $12.99)
- The Dragon and the Turtle Go on Safari by Donita K. Paul and Evangeline Denmark, Illustrated by Vincent Nguyen (Picture Book $11.99)

To Enter (required): Visit http://www.purex.com/MXTQEPZOXYOMU620AXODMQMFIYLHZ and come back here to let me know one thing you learn about Purex Complete Crystals Softener.

For Extra Entries: 1. Post about this giveaway and link to this post on your blog.
                               2. Post the link to this giveaway on your Facebook page or tweet it. Please also leave your Facebook link or twitter link in your comment.
                               3. Rate my review of Life, In Spite of Me here, then come back to let me know you've done so (you don't need to tell me what rating you give me :)).
                               4. Rate my daughter's review of Radical here, then come back to let me know you've done so (you don't need to tell me what rating you give her).

My Top 10 Reads of 2010

Here are my top 10 reads of 2010 (besides the Bible, of course :)).

10. Start Here by Alex and Brett Harris
9.   Dug Down Deep by Joshua Harris
8.   Follow: A Simple and Profound Call to Live Like Jesus by Floyd McClung
7.   Reborn To Be Wild (Reviving Our Radical Pursuit of Jesus) by Ed Underwood
6.   One Million Arrows by Julie Ferwerda
5.   To Those Who Suffer by Sean Nolan
4.   Costly Grace (A Contemporary View of Bonhoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship) by Jon Walker
3.   True Religion by Palmer Chinchen
2.   Life without Limits by Nick Vujicic
1.   Outlive Your Life by Max Lucado

You can click on the titles to read my reviews or to get more information about the books. There were many more great books that I read this year; it was really difficult for me to pick only the top ten :).  What was your favorite read of 2010?  Please share.

Fall Into Reading 2010

I am late in joining Fall Into Reading 2010 hosted at Callapidder Days.  But I love to read and I would like to share good books with others so here is my list of books I hope to read/finish reading this fall.
- Follow: A Simple and Profound Call to Live Like Jesus by Floyd McClung
- The Sixty Minute Family by Rob Parsons
- I'm Outnumbered! One Mom's Lessons in the Lively Art of Raising Boys by Laura Lee Groves
- An Army of Ordinary People (Stories of Real-Life Men and Women Simply Being the Church) by Felicity Dale
- Costly Grace (A Contemporary View of Bonhoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship) by Joh Walker
- A Million Ways to Die (The Only Way to Live) by Rick James
- No Greater Joy by Jerry Wiles

To see what other participants are reading, visit here.

Friday's Fave Five #18

It's time for another Friday's Fave Five (hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story).

My fave five this week include:
1. Our Annual Father's Day Weekend Cookout.  We always have tons of fun there.

2. Croquet.  My new-found sport that I really enjoy :).

3. My favorite Father of All is God, our Heavenly Father.  My next favorite father is my dear husband.

4. My spring reading's total count was 12 1/2 books.  I enjoyed discovering great books.

5. My two posts on Faithful Feet this week: Filtering Incoming Information and Filtering Outgoing Information.

Spring Reading Thing 2010 Wrap-Up

This spring, I managed to read 12 1/2 books as follows (you can read my review of each book by clicking on the titles):-

- On Guard (Defending Your Faith with Reason and Precision) by William Lane Craig
  
- Storylines (Your Map to Understanding the Bible) by Andy Croft and Mike Pilavachi

- 52 Things Kids Need from a Dad (What Fathers Can Do to Make a Lifelong Difference) by Jay Payleitner
  
- This Little Prayer of Mine by Anthony DeStefano, illustrated by Mark Elliot. 

- The Secret Holocaust Diaries (The untold story of Nonna Bannister) by Nonna Bannister with Denise George and Carolyn Tomlin

- Real World Parents (Christian Parenting for Families Living in the Real World) by Mark Matlock

- Fear to Freedom: Victim to Victory by Rosemary Trible (This is the one book that I started but have not finished.)

- Just Like You (celebrations of life from every continent) written by Marla Stewart Konrad, illustrated by Lin Wang

- Rooms by James L. Rubart

- Let's Have a Daddy Day by Karen Kingsbury

- The Overseer by Conlan Brown

- Reborn To Be Wild (Reviving Our Radical Pursuit of Jesus) by Ed Underwood

- True Religion by Palmer Chinchen
  
Out of all the books on the list above, my favorites are the last two.  I'm not a fiction fan, but surprisingly, I did enjoy Rooms and The Overseer.

To see other participants' wrap-up posts, visit Katrina at Callapidder Days for the links.

Spring Reading Thing 2010

 

I enjoy reading, especially non-fiction (it will be obvious in my list :)).  I'm also a book reviewer for several publishers; therefore, most (if not all) of the following books will have my review of them eventually (I'll link the titles to my review posts when each one is ready).  Here is the list of books I plan to read this spring:

- On Guard (Defending Your Faith with Reason and Precision) by William Lane Craig
   Besides the Bible, apologetics books rank up there among my favorites :).

- What He Must Be (...if he wants to marry my daughter) by Voddie Baucham Jr.
   I'm reading this one with (to) my husband.

- Storylines (Your Map to Understanding the Bible) by Andy Croft and Mike Pilavachi

- 52 Things Kids Need from a Dad (What Fathers Can Do to Make a Lifelong Difference) by Jay Payleitner
   I'm a mom, but I'll be sharing the info. with my husband who is a dad.  My husband is too busy to read :).

- This Little Prayer of Mine by Anthony DeStefano, illustrated by Mark Elliot.  A picture book I'll be reading to my boys.

- The Secret Holocaust Diaries (The untold story of Nonna Bannister) by Nonna Bannister with Denise George and Carolyn Tomlin

- Real World Parents (Christian Parenting for Families Living in the Real World) by Mark Matlock

- The Value of Values by Ed Gagnon

- Fear to Freedom: Victim to Victory by Rosemary Trible

- Just Like You (celebrations of life from every continent) written by Marla Stewart Konrad, illustrated by Lin Wang
  This is a picture book for children ages 4-7.  I'll be reading it to my kids.
  
- Restoration Road by Mitch Kruse with Derek Williams

- A Woman's Walk in Grace by Catherine Martin

- Let's Have a Daddy Day by Karen Kingsbury
   This is another children's book.

- Way Back in the Country Garden by Kay Moore

I'm sure I'll be adding more to this list as time goes on.  If you would like to see what others are reading, visit Katrina at Callapidder Days and 5MinutesforBooks. Have fun reading!

My Top Ten Reads of 2009

I am playing along with Amydeanne at The 160 Acrewoods.  Here are my top 10 reads of 2009 (besides the Bible, of course :)).

10. Blue Like Play Dough by Tricia Goyer
9. Reflections of God's Holy Land by Eva Marie Everson and Miriam Feinberg
8. In the Footsteps of Paul by Ken Duncan
7. Treasured by Leigh McLeroy
6. Pearl Girls (compiled by Margaret McSweeney)
5. O2 Breathing New Life into Faith by Richard Dahlstrom
4. 40 Loaves by C.D.Baker
3. Fearless by Max Lucado
2. Primal by Mark Batterson
1. If God Is Good by Randy Alcorn

You can click on the titles to read my reviews.  What was your favorite read of 2009?  I'm looking forward to reading more good books in 2010 :).

Thankful Thursday #13

 
This week...
1. I am thankful that I can pray to God anytime, anywhere, and about anything.  I'm so glad that He never gets tired of listening to our prayers.  I love the fact that our line of communication with Him is always open/available...24/7!  "Pray continually." 1 Thessalonians 5:17  "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16

2. I am thankful for rest...for sleep.  I am thankful that I hardly ever have trouble falling asleep.  I am very grateful that I can lay all my burdens at the feet of Jesus and rest in Him.  "Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28  "Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens." Psalm 68:19

3. I am thankful that all my children enjoy reading.  I think once children learn how to read and acquire a love of reading, they can pretty much learn about anything they are interested in. 

4. I am thankful for soldiers and police officers who work tirelessly and sacrifice courageously to protect us.  Let's remember to pray for their safety and for their families.

5. I am thankful for God's protection (physical, emotional, mental, spiritual).  Whenever I look back at my past, I am so grateful to still be alive today :).  I fell into a manhole when I was little.  I desperately begged my mom to stop choking my neck/suffocating me (she was distraught about her failed marriage and temporarily was not in her right mind).  I almost drowned once.  I was close to getting run over by a vehicle several times (if you ever try to cross the streets in Bangkok, Thailand, you will understand why).  In Thailand, I traveled to school by bus and it's always crowded on buses; therefore, I usually ended up standing on the bus' steps (sometimes with one of my feet and/or part of my body hanging out into the traffic).  I had a high fever of 107 degrees F; my husband took me to the emergency room and the doctor there misdiagnosed me...(thinking that the fever was caused by heat exhaustion but I actually had a kidney infection).  I am sure there have been many more incidents that the Lord has protected me (even without my knowledge).  Regarding spiritual warfare, I am thankful that the battle belongs to the Lord, that He is on our side, and that He has given us the full armor for our protection.

"Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.  Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Ephesians 6:11-17

P.S. I'm hosting a giveaway (4 free movie tickets) on my HSB blog. The deadline is this Saturday. Hope you will stop by and enter :)!