What Good is God?

What Good Is God?: In Search of a Faith That Matters by Philip Yancey
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I've never read any of Philip Yancey's books but came across this one in the library.

It was an up & down read for me. It came to points where I was thoroughly interested, but then it would go to just streams of boredom to me. Some wonderful stories of faith that people have had in awful times, & then stories that seemed to not even connect & left me confused.

The book talks about some of the tragedies that has happened lately & how it causes people to question where God is in difficult situations & if God cares. While some of the stories talks about people holding onto faith & how good can be worked out of bad situations, I'm not sure the book ever gets around to the main point of what I thought the book was to be about.

I'll never say its not worth reading a book that can draw you closer to God.... I'm just not this was the best read, for me anyways.

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The Witch Must Burn

The Witch Must Burn by Danielle Paige
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A little teaser to hold me over.... the next book in the "Dorothy Must Die" series comes out in the end of March. I am so in love with these books! & I love that the author puts out these little novellas to at least keep you involved in the mixed up world that Oz has become.
Good has become bad... bad has become good... everyone has changed...
COME ON MARCH!!!!

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What I know for Sure

What I Know For Sure by Oprah Winfrey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found this in the library & it intrigued me.

I am leery about Oprah... I enjoy her insight on some things, but am uncomfortable on what her views are on spirituality. I still was intrigued about the book & I did happily enjoy this book. I did run into parts that made me sort of made a funny face, but for the most part, the things Oprah talked about as things that held truth, I had to laugh & agree on a lot of them. Things like friendships, money, finding time for yourself, direction for your life.

It really was inspiring & made me think of the things I know to be true in my life... & the things I NEED to change to make my life more fulfilling. I am glad I took the time to check this one out.

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My Big Bottom Blessing

My Big Bottom Blessing by Teasi Cannon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I ran across this book in the library - never even heard of it before... but so glad I did.

It's the story of a woman who suffers with her weight & felt like it was the source of her worth. The things she learned about God as she learned to love herself & how she saw God loved her, regardless of her weight, this is what the book is about.

I really enjoyed this book because parts of it, its like Teasi was reading my mind.

It's full of scripture, full of real thoughts, full of Godly wisdom, full of laughs.

I am so glad I stumbled across this & really feel like women who struggle with their weight will find some Biblical wisdom in these pages...

I really have left this book feeling a little bit better about myself & am reassured that God has made me for a reason, God loves me regardless of any number & in all my own struggles, God can teach me things about myself & Him throughout it.

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I remember you

I Remember You by Cathleen Davitt Bell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Can love cross time?

Juliet keeps noticing Lucas, the hockey player jock in school, looking at her. He soon is talking with her, trying to spend time with her, easing his way into making her care about him. It's then he lets her know what he's going through & what has drawn him to her... they've been here before.

The story is a mix of YA romance, sci-fi, star-crossed lovers sort of thing. Lucas has come back through time to his seventeen yr old self to see Juliet one more time, to let her know how he really feels about her. Does she believe him? She starts to when the things he predicts will happen starts to really occur. But the fact that he's going to join the marines when he turns 18 just will lead to the path that will ultimately put Lucas in harm, where his life will be in jeopardy, causing this change in time....

Can Juliet convince Lucas not to join the marines as his 17 yr old self & avoid the life risks he will be put in?

I really got caught up in the story, anxious to see how it all turned out. & I have to say, I really like when a book surprises me in the ending. This one did just that. I had no idea how this was going to end up. I was sad to see it end.

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Freeing Yourself from Anxiety

Freeing Yourself from Anxiety: 4 Simple Steps to Overcome Worry and Create the Life You Want by Tamar E. Chansky
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Being someone who really is trying to get a hold on anxiety, I was anxious to get into this book.

I will say, it was more delightful & informative then I thought it would be... but of course, it did have those moments of complete boredom.

I did get some really good insight though.
* Don't change the thought - change the reaction.
* Just because worry took the wheel, it doesn't mean it knows the way.
* STAY IN THE PRESENT!! (This was huge for me)
* Opposite of 'negative thinking' isn't positive thinking - its POSSIBLE thinking.
* Just because I can vision something doesn't mean it will cause it to happen.
* BREATH - you're intentional breathing can be a sign of a new beginning with each breath.
* Fight ALL OR NOTHING thinking
* Facts Vs. Feelings
* Turn statements into question that are open to interpretation.

All of this really helped me as I waited for test results I was a nervous wreck about.

For that reason, I had to check that I liked this...

I'm not usually a 'self help' book reading person, but for this one, I'm glad I picked it up.

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The Hiding Place

The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A much talked about book...

I was anxious to get around to it. It definitely feels like a book that you need to like. I will say, this isn't my style of book. I do enjoy a biography, though I don't like books that war-driven, or even books that make me so uncomfortable. Granted, I know this book is real life & sometimes we need to feel uncomfortable looking at history.

What I did love about the book is of course the attitude of the ten Boom family. The faith that they have in trying to hide people from horrible things, only to be put in the same position because of their actions. How Betsy kept her faith & her conviction even in the worst of times & treatment, always reminding her sister how powerful their God was & how they could tell others about Jesus in the misery that were experiencing... hope...

I think I could go through & 'like' every quote that is written from the book. Powerful words.

Honestly, I wasn't sure how to rate the book. I don't like it... I don't like the treatment of people during the Holocaust ... I don't like feeling that nauseated tingle in my stomach.... but I did love the wise words that were given - the encouragement I received that in the worst of times, you can hang onto the promises of God & reflect it to others. Giving hope that, as flowers, a time will come when things will bloom again.

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10% Happier

10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works by Dan Harris
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I really am interested in mediation & the health benefits that it can give your mind & body...

For me, prayer can be a form of meditation. I guess what really turned me against this book is the fact that it seems to be really against Christianity.... I was very disappointed in the views of a belief system & how this is book strickly entails it as a Buddhism method.

More so, the book isnt really that much about meditation as it is Dan Harris's journey & almost biography with drugs, anxiety, & his path to meditation.... & he ultimately is a confessed athiest who believes in the practices of Buddhism as well. Again, to each his own, but when I read words from other mediation gurus that call God "the dead white guy", I'm sorry - I'm instantly sickened by the book & am done with it.

& the advice on actual meditation was just basically a 3 step process ... something I can find on Pinterest.

I did give it 2 stars only because I always do enjoy a biography of someone's life... thats the only reason it got anything.

Now, I'll search Google for real ideas on mediation :)

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It was me all along

It Was Me All Along by Andie Mitchell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I always am interested in the story of people's lives, especially when it comes to people that struggle with the same things I do. In this case, it is weight. The story of a girl who grew up over weight & after getting in college, turned her life around.

The first part of the book really sets the issues that seems to cause Andie to overeat & start her path down the road of being obsese. An alcoholic father cause such turmoil & tragedy in her life. It was a very sad story & one no child should grow up in. The only comfort in the midst of arguments & fear was food.

We then get to see Andie as she goes through high school & then into college. The roller coaster of weight piling on & the unhappiness that came with that. Andie comes home from college during the summer &decides to make a change... & change she did. We see the roller coaster start the decent... the weight coming off.

But life isn't always as happy as you think it would be once you get weight off. Other issues & obsessions begin, like the fear of gaining the weight back or the obsession of exercise.

If anyone has ever lost weight or dealt with food addictions, you could relate with so much of the story.

I will say, the beginning of the book was very slow to me. It was a LOTof talking & describing of food... a LOT. It did pick up for me & I did enjoy reading the journey she was on to make a change in her life.... but the whole story was just OK to me.

Andie became a blog writer after trying out other jobs &really, this is what the book felt like - a big blog post. Nothing wrong with that. I just had a hard time connecting 100% with her... so I could take it or leave it. It wasnt a life changing book, but it also wasnt a full boring read either....


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