Darren Whitehead and Jon Tyson set out to examine the declining religious nature of the American public and attempt to enlighten the reader with a more thoughtful, insightful experience with their faith. The premise is that the Christian of today is drastically removed in faith and devotion from the first believers in the church that we have lost our way. They set down guidelines they believe will be both life-changing and motivational, but fall flat. Perhaps it's simply that in this point in my Christian walk I'm not "in this place", so to speak, but I felt it generally oversimplified the faith of today. As a Catholic, I feel that the rich tradition of the Church has continued though the Liturgy. Maybe a Protestant viewpoint may differ, but I feel just as strongly that any believer of today can be just as passionate for the Lord as those in his time. The idea of lukewarm Christianity being a new idea, unique to America and this time, is somewhat lacking and historically inaccurate to boot. I think that this book seems to capitalize on the idea some have that the faith of those around them isn't as strong as their own. It seems jaded at least. I was looking for something less agenda-driven and something more personal, so this book, while having some interesting ideas, lacked any depth for me.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Book Review: God's Love Letters to you
The book God's Love Letters to you is a 40 day devotional piece by Dr. Larry Crabb portrayed as an inspirational quick read. The intent is to give you a snippet of scripture with a dose of prose and prayer and send you on your proverbial way. The entire text can be read in under a minute. Truthfully, I think more insight could be garnered from simply taking the citations and reading them straight from the Bible, rather than the lukewarm look Dr. Crabb gives. I found the book a little too simplistic and not always connected to the scripture passages it contained. I prefer something a little more thought provoking and insightful and I feel this was lacking in both categories. Also, in regard to the inspirational nature and the "...chance to completely change the way you think about love" (taken from back cover), this one definitely falls short. I would possibly gift it to someone learning about faith and Christianity, or to an older child or teen. But as for someone looking for a devotional that could truly deepen your faith experience, I would look elsewhere.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Monday, June 20, 2011
Summer is in full swing...
Ahhh...can you feel it? Warm, balmy breezes and sunshine...glorious sunshine! Finally, summer has arrived. And boy, did we desperately need it! After the humdrum existence that was this spring, a little light and warmth was just what the doctor ordered :)
Things have been good on the family front. C is officially done with graduate school on Friday! He'll take his certification exam some time in August, but for all intents and purposes we have a full-fledged OT in the family. An accomplishment, for certain. As for AJ, he's successfully avoided all the summer school work I planned on him doing. He just returned from a trip to DC with C's family and is heading to Ohiopyle to go camping on Thursday. I wish I had his social life! Hopefully things will settle down after this next week and we'll get back on our school schedule. It's not essential that he be working right now, but I worry that a break will put us way behind in math and language arts. He struggles a little in both, and he's right in the middle of learning multiplication and division. Those are tricky enough without too long in between lessons. That said, the kid did well this year and deserves a break.
Diva is well...she's got her big girl britches on and is testing my patience with potty training. She is physically ready to be certain, but less than interested in the whole process. If I could slow her down for five minutes, I'd be set!
Things have been good on the family front. C is officially done with graduate school on Friday! He'll take his certification exam some time in August, but for all intents and purposes we have a full-fledged OT in the family. An accomplishment, for certain. As for AJ, he's successfully avoided all the summer school work I planned on him doing. He just returned from a trip to DC with C's family and is heading to Ohiopyle to go camping on Thursday. I wish I had his social life! Hopefully things will settle down after this next week and we'll get back on our school schedule. It's not essential that he be working right now, but I worry that a break will put us way behind in math and language arts. He struggles a little in both, and he's right in the middle of learning multiplication and division. Those are tricky enough without too long in between lessons. That said, the kid did well this year and deserves a break.
Diva is well...she's got her big girl britches on and is testing my patience with potty training. She is physically ready to be certain, but less than interested in the whole process. If I could slow her down for five minutes, I'd be set!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Cookies and movies...
A good evening tonight...Chas surprised us with cookies this evening and we rewatched Toy Story 3, again :) Fun was had by all. Now we're going to snuggle down and watch some movies. This makes for a good day, I must say.
Strep sick and yuck...
I have the world's most annoying rash. Apparently, I've been attacked by the strep bug. I don't actually feel terrible, but very tired and run down. Hopefully, the meds I got yesterday will kick in and make things clear up, but as of 24 hours post medication, there is little change. I'm hoping day 2 will improve things.
On other matters, I am already tiring of Toy Story 3. I love the stories, but I am tiring of hearing it as much as I did with Barney. It's a great story, but watched 17 times a day, anything can sour you. Oh well...I'm sure she'll be on to something new next week. She is being really good this morning, so what can I complain about?
AJ is doing really well finishing up his schoolwork and working on his blog. He's interested in work again, which is great to see. I really think a less traditional approach to schooling works best for him. I think that's how we are going to work things next year. He is doing so well this way that I'm going to manipulate the K12 to make it work more to our advantage. He is still going to have to get the basics down, but I'm willing to open up and explore more next year. I'm thinking that engaging him with books and stories is going to do far more for him learning-wise than what I have been doing. Plus, this will hopefully make him more inclined to creative thinking and writing and more imaginative work. He is afraid to think outside of the box...I think that's the Aspie in him. He has so much imaginative potential, but he seems intimidated and afraid to be wrong. I could kill PS for that. The first grade teacher truly made him afraid of "wrong", so he hesitates to think independently. More independent work is going to be an item on our agenda next year!
On other matters, I am already tiring of Toy Story 3. I love the stories, but I am tiring of hearing it as much as I did with Barney. It's a great story, but watched 17 times a day, anything can sour you. Oh well...I'm sure she'll be on to something new next week. She is being really good this morning, so what can I complain about?
AJ is doing really well finishing up his schoolwork and working on his blog. He's interested in work again, which is great to see. I really think a less traditional approach to schooling works best for him. I think that's how we are going to work things next year. He is doing so well this way that I'm going to manipulate the K12 to make it work more to our advantage. He is still going to have to get the basics down, but I'm willing to open up and explore more next year. I'm thinking that engaging him with books and stories is going to do far more for him learning-wise than what I have been doing. Plus, this will hopefully make him more inclined to creative thinking and writing and more imaginative work. He is afraid to think outside of the box...I think that's the Aspie in him. He has so much imaginative potential, but he seems intimidated and afraid to be wrong. I could kill PS for that. The first grade teacher truly made him afraid of "wrong", so he hesitates to think independently. More independent work is going to be an item on our agenda next year!
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