2011...
Like I said yesterday, I love beginnings! Today is the first day of 364 more beautiful days like it!
I also love making resolutions. Usually I don't do very well with them, but in 2010 I think I did the best I ever had! A few resolutions that I actually followed through with were reading through my Bible again, learning to knit (finger knit at least), and continuing to blog. This year I want to learn how to cook some more (I'm basically awful at it), read through my Bible with a new plan (that's still under development), and write more. We'll see how it goes!
One of the scary things of 2011 is that if you look down on my sidebar you'll see that I'm entering into my fourth year of blogging!(!!!) Unbelievable! Thank you so much to all my followers, basically Hannah and my parents, for still reading this! I love blogging, so I think I'd keep it up even if I only had one follower.
Happy New Year, everybody! It's going to be great!
By the way, treasure this as the only 1-1-11 you'll ever see!
1.01.2011
My best books in 2010
In 2010 I read a total of 91 books. A lot of them were a waste of time to read, but I wanted to share my favorites from 2010 with you, along with a little bit (a very little bit) of what I liked about them. Here we go!
* these are in no particular order; they're not listed from best to least, etc.
1. The Atonement Child by Francine Rivers - At first glance I didn't think this would be a very good, but I was surprised in the end. The author was brave in approaching the difficult subjects contained in this book, and in my opinion it was well written too.
2. The Heart-Reader by Terri Blackstock - This is the kind of book that plunges right into the middle of the story rather than giving a basis at first. In this case, that was a good thing. This book reminded me of why we're here on earth--to share of Christ and tell people of the hope He brings. I really enjoyed it!
3. Holiness by J. C. Ryle - I spent about a year trying to make my way through this book. It was really good, but it was hard to read. I ended up enjoying the last chapters better than the beginning, which was a nice surprise. It was an extremely challenging book, and I would recommend it to anybody!
4. Boy Meets Girl: Saying Hello to Courtship by Joshua Harris - This was an excellent book. I'd heard a lot of good stuff about I Kissed Dating Goodbye and ended up reading it in 2010, but was really disappointed by it. I felt like Joshua Harris didn't approach the subject of dating very well in that book, and kind of just left people wondering "Well, how else are we supposed to get to know each other?" In contrast, Boy Meets Girl was excellent. It was funny and very insightful. It had a lot of great stories about relationships throughout the book, and on the whole it was probably one of my favorite books of the entire year.
5. Passion and Purity by Elisabeth Elliot - No matter how many times I read this book, it just never gets old. I re-read it in 2010, and enjoyed it even more than I had before. Elisabeth Elliot is such a no-nonsense sort of person. She presents the facts as they are and doesn't leave any wiggle room. People like that are incredibly rare these days. Even if you've read this before, read it again!
6. The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom - This is one of those extremely popular books in the Christian community that everyone loves but that I had never read. I was thrilled to finally be able to read it in 2010, and I wasn't disappointed. Corrie ten Boom is a lot like Elisabeth Elliot in her straight forwardness and blunt nature. She was honest about the difficulties of being persecuted for helping the Jews, and the book on the whole was just amazing. Read it when you get a chance!
7. In My Father's House by Corrie ten Boom - I loved this book. I had never heard of it until 2010, but I was thrilled to be able to read it. It's a prequel to Corrie ten Boom's The Hiding Place, and tells about her life growing up. In some ways I liked it even better than The Hiding Place!
8. Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss - This is another book that everyone talks about but I'd never read. I expected this to be a book about dealing with sin and preparing for Heaven, etc.; and it was, but it was in a format that I didn't expect. Stepping Heavenward is the fictional journal of Katherine and tells of her life as a believer. An excellent book!
9. Plague Maker by Tim Downs - I really only started reading this book because I thought the front cover looked cool. Not much to go on, I know, but I was really glad I read it. Tim Downs must have had to do an amazing amount of research to write such an informative and articulate book. The ending was a bit disappointing, but the book on the whole was good.
10. The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges - My dad recommended this book to me in September of 2010, and it was one of the best books I've ever read. I'm not quite sure how to explain it, but it was just really good in that it gave techniques for fighting sin, but it focused most of all on the gospel and the freedom we have in Christ, freedom from condemnation and shame as well as freedom from sin. I really liked it!
11. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen - This book is long, but it has become my favorite book by Jane Austen. She gives you a great look into the lives of each person, and this book was funny too, unlike with Pride and Prejudice.
12. Authentic Beauty by Leslie Ludy - I'd heard a lot of good about this book, and after months of being on a waiting list I finally got it! I was not disappointed. Leslie Ludy reminded me of Elisabeth Elliot in her no-nonsense approaching to finding sin in our lives and ripping it out. I had to read it twice, and hope to read it again soon!
13. Keep a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliot - I am a champion worrier, so I really enjoyed this book that talking about resting in God, and trusting quietly in Him. I'm going to try and read it again in 2011!
14. Then Sings My Soul by Robert Morgan - I already wrote a review about this, and you can read it here. It was great!
15. Quest for Love by Elisabeth Elliot - This book is kind of a sequel to Passion and Purity, and while I didn't enjoy it as much as that book, this was good too. In it were contained a bunch of stories about relationships, and throughout the book Elisabeth Elliot challenges the reader to ask questions like "What did these people do wrong?" "Was God really at the center of their relationship from the beginning?" "Was it right for them to think that they could finally be content with each other, rather than being content in Christ first?" It was very good, and I would suggest that other people read it, but only after they've read Passion and Purity because that's just the way the books go together.
And, that's it! Throughout 2011 I hope to start posting more reviews of books. Check these ones out when you get a chance!
* these are in no particular order; they're not listed from best to least, etc.
1. The Atonement Child by Francine Rivers - At first glance I didn't think this would be a very good, but I was surprised in the end. The author was brave in approaching the difficult subjects contained in this book, and in my opinion it was well written too.
2. The Heart-Reader by Terri Blackstock - This is the kind of book that plunges right into the middle of the story rather than giving a basis at first. In this case, that was a good thing. This book reminded me of why we're here on earth--to share of Christ and tell people of the hope He brings. I really enjoyed it!
3. Holiness by J. C. Ryle - I spent about a year trying to make my way through this book. It was really good, but it was hard to read. I ended up enjoying the last chapters better than the beginning, which was a nice surprise. It was an extremely challenging book, and I would recommend it to anybody!
4. Boy Meets Girl: Saying Hello to Courtship by Joshua Harris - This was an excellent book. I'd heard a lot of good stuff about I Kissed Dating Goodbye and ended up reading it in 2010, but was really disappointed by it. I felt like Joshua Harris didn't approach the subject of dating very well in that book, and kind of just left people wondering "Well, how else are we supposed to get to know each other?" In contrast, Boy Meets Girl was excellent. It was funny and very insightful. It had a lot of great stories about relationships throughout the book, and on the whole it was probably one of my favorite books of the entire year.
5. Passion and Purity by Elisabeth Elliot - No matter how many times I read this book, it just never gets old. I re-read it in 2010, and enjoyed it even more than I had before. Elisabeth Elliot is such a no-nonsense sort of person. She presents the facts as they are and doesn't leave any wiggle room. People like that are incredibly rare these days. Even if you've read this before, read it again!
6. The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom - This is one of those extremely popular books in the Christian community that everyone loves but that I had never read. I was thrilled to finally be able to read it in 2010, and I wasn't disappointed. Corrie ten Boom is a lot like Elisabeth Elliot in her straight forwardness and blunt nature. She was honest about the difficulties of being persecuted for helping the Jews, and the book on the whole was just amazing. Read it when you get a chance!
7. In My Father's House by Corrie ten Boom - I loved this book. I had never heard of it until 2010, but I was thrilled to be able to read it. It's a prequel to Corrie ten Boom's The Hiding Place, and tells about her life growing up. In some ways I liked it even better than The Hiding Place!
8. Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss - This is another book that everyone talks about but I'd never read. I expected this to be a book about dealing with sin and preparing for Heaven, etc.; and it was, but it was in a format that I didn't expect. Stepping Heavenward is the fictional journal of Katherine and tells of her life as a believer. An excellent book!
9. Plague Maker by Tim Downs - I really only started reading this book because I thought the front cover looked cool. Not much to go on, I know, but I was really glad I read it. Tim Downs must have had to do an amazing amount of research to write such an informative and articulate book. The ending was a bit disappointing, but the book on the whole was good.
10. The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges - My dad recommended this book to me in September of 2010, and it was one of the best books I've ever read. I'm not quite sure how to explain it, but it was just really good in that it gave techniques for fighting sin, but it focused most of all on the gospel and the freedom we have in Christ, freedom from condemnation and shame as well as freedom from sin. I really liked it!
11. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen - This book is long, but it has become my favorite book by Jane Austen. She gives you a great look into the lives of each person, and this book was funny too, unlike with Pride and Prejudice.
12. Authentic Beauty by Leslie Ludy - I'd heard a lot of good about this book, and after months of being on a waiting list I finally got it! I was not disappointed. Leslie Ludy reminded me of Elisabeth Elliot in her no-nonsense approaching to finding sin in our lives and ripping it out. I had to read it twice, and hope to read it again soon!
13. Keep a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliot - I am a champion worrier, so I really enjoyed this book that talking about resting in God, and trusting quietly in Him. I'm going to try and read it again in 2011!
14. Then Sings My Soul by Robert Morgan - I already wrote a review about this, and you can read it here. It was great!
15. Quest for Love by Elisabeth Elliot - This book is kind of a sequel to Passion and Purity, and while I didn't enjoy it as much as that book, this was good too. In it were contained a bunch of stories about relationships, and throughout the book Elisabeth Elliot challenges the reader to ask questions like "What did these people do wrong?" "Was God really at the center of their relationship from the beginning?" "Was it right for them to think that they could finally be content with each other, rather than being content in Christ first?" It was very good, and I would suggest that other people read it, but only after they've read Passion and Purity because that's just the way the books go together.
And, that's it! Throughout 2011 I hope to start posting more reviews of books. Check these ones out when you get a chance!
12.31.2010
Almost 2011!
Happy almost-New Year, everybody! I love the beginning of a new year. Fresh beginnings, new opportunities...it's great! Tonight I'm going to my first New Year's party sort of thing. My youth group's having a lock-in, so it should be fun!
In light of the new year, take a look at this when you get a chance!
I found this cool idea here, to have a word that's kind of my focus for the year. The word I chose is:
So often I think I'm scared to hope for God's best, so I'm going to try this next year to hope for the best that He brings! Even if it's not what I would choose, I know it couldn't be any better. I also hope (haha) that I can share more of God's precious hope with other people this year!
So, here's hoping for a fantastic year!
In light of the new year, take a look at this when you get a chance!
I found this cool idea here, to have a word that's kind of my focus for the year. The word I chose is:
So often I think I'm scared to hope for God's best, so I'm going to try this next year to hope for the best that He brings! Even if it's not what I would choose, I know it couldn't be any better. I also hope (haha) that I can share more of God's precious hope with other people this year!
So, here's hoping for a fantastic year!
Happy New Year!
12.28.2010
Four Questions
“That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” Philippians 3:10 (NASB)
This was the second group of leaders we had trained in two weeks. The training had been going well even though many of the believers were young: some young in years and some in their faith. A couple of them were only 15 and 16 years old. Some had only been Christians for a few months.
The teaching for the morning was on baptism, and a 15-year-old girl wanted to be baptized. She had been a believer from a young age but had never been immersed.
Four questions are asked during a baptism: (1) Do you believe in Jesus? (2) Has He forgiven your sins? (3) Do you promise to walk with Him always? But there is one more question.
I watched and listened to the father, who would be performing the baptism. Calmly, and with much joy, he asked the first, second and third questions. Then I heard a surprising question. The father asked the fourth question, “When they come into our house and take us away, when they beat us and try to get us to deny Him, will you still follow Jesus?”
There before my eyes, a father was asking his daughter to be willing to be persecuted for her faith in Christ and to be willing to see him persecuted for his faith. With a sense of awe, I prayed that I might be more like them. I think they understood more clearly what the Father felt when He sent His Son to die for us.
* excerpt taken from "Voices of the Faithful" by Beth Moore, page 192
12.27.2010
WOW #5
I commit my soul to my gracious God and Saviour, who mercifully spared and preserved me, when I was an apostate, a blasphemer, and an infidel, and delivered me from that state of misery on the coast of Africa into which my obstinate wickedness had plunged me; and Who has been pleased to admit me, though most unworthy, to preach His glorious gospel. I rely with humble confidence upon the atonement, and mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ, God and Man which I have often proposed to others, as the only foundation whereupon a sinner can build his hope, trusting that He will guard and guide me through the uncertain remainder of my life, and that He will then admit me into His presence in His heavenly kingdom. -- John Newton
And the face shines bright
With a glow of light
From His presence sent
Whom she loves to meet.
Yes, the face beams bright
With an inner light
As by day so by night,
In shade as in shine,
With a beauty fine,
That she wist not of,
From some source within,
And above.
Still the face shines bright
With the glory-light
From the mountain height,
Where the resplendent sight
Of His face
Fills her view
And illumines in turn
First the few,
Then the wide race.
-- Unknown
Wherefore it is every profitable for us to have always before our eyes this sweet and comfortable sentence, and such-like, which sets out Christ truly and lively, that in our whole life, in all dangers, in the confessions of our faith before tyrants, and in the hour of death, we may boldly and with all confidence say: O law, thou hast no power over me, therefore dost thou accuse and condemn me in vain. For I believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, whom the Father sent into the world to redeem us miserable sinners oppressed with the tyranny of the law. He gave His life, He shed His blood for me. Therefore, feeling thy terrors and threatening, O law, I plunge my conscience in the wounds, blood, death, resurrection and victory of my Saviour, Christ. Besides Him I will see nothing, hear nothing. -- Martin Luther
Upon Thy Word I rest
Each pilgrim day.
This golden staff is best
For all the way.
What Jesus Christ hath spoken,
Cannot be broken!
Upon Thy Word I rest;
So strong, so sure,
So full of comfort blest,
So sweet, so pure:
The charter of salvation:
Faith’s broad foundation.
Upon Thy Word I stand:
That cannot die.
Christ seals it in my hand.
He cannot lie.
Thy Word that faileth never:
Abiding ever.
-- Frances Ridley Havergal
When there is real weakness, especially of the kind that surprises and humiliates us, it is our opportunity to learn what Paul had to learn through his “thorn”: the grace of God is all we need, for “…power comes to its full strength in weakness…” -- Elisabeth Elliot
If I am to love the Lord my God with all my mind, there will not be room in it for carnality, for pride, for anxiety, for the love of myself. How can the mind be filled with the love of the Lord and have space left over for things like that? -- Elisabeth Elliot
If I am to love the Lord my God with all my mind, there will not be room in it for carnality, for pride, for anxiety, for the love of myself. How can the mind be filled with the love of the Lord and have space left over for things like that? -- Elisabeth Elliot
To ask for the guidance of God is to make a choice, and this takes faith. It must be faith of a far higher kind than the breezy “if I like what I see I’ll take it.” It is the faith that has strength to wait for the rewards God holds, strength to believe they are worth waiting for, worth the price asked. Our prayers for guidance (or for anything else) really begin here: I trust Him. This requires abandonment. We are no longer saying, “If I trust Him, He’ll give me such and such,” but, “I trust Him. Let Him give me or withhold from me what He chooses.” -- Elisabeth Elliot
Lord, give to me a quiet heart
That does not ask to understand,
But confident steps forward in
The darkness guided by Thy hand.
-- Elisabeth Elliot
Jesus slept on a pillow in the midst of a raging storm. How could He? The terrified disciples, sure that the next wave would send them straight to the bottom, shook Him awake with rebuke. How could He be so careless of their fate?
He could because He slept in the calm assurance that His Father was in control. His was a quiet heart. We see Him move serenely through all the events of His life—when He was reviled, He did not revile in return. When He knew that He would suffer many things and be killed in Jerusalem, He never deviated from His course. He had set His face like flint. He sat at supper with one who would deny Him and another who would betray Him, yet He was able to eat with them, willing even to wash their feet. Jesus in the unbroken intimacy of His Father’s love, kept a quiet heart. -- Elisabeth Elliot
Sin and despair like the sea waves cold
Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold
Points to the refuge, the Mighty Cross.
Dark is the stain that we cannot hide.
What can avail to wash it away?
Look! there is flowing a crimson tide.
Whiter than snow you may be today.
-- Julia H. Johnston
None of us likes pain. All of us wish at times we did not need to 'go through all this stuff.' Let us settle it once and for all: we cannot know Christ and the power of His resurrection without the fellowship of His suffering. -- Elisabeth Elliot
A spirit of restlessness and resistance never waits, but one who believes he is loved with an everlasting love, and knows that underneath are the everlasting arms, will find strength and peace. -- Elisabeth Elliot
He is not all we would ask for (if we were honest), but it is precisely when we do not have what we would ask for, and only then, that we can clearly perceive His all-sufficiency. It is when the sea is moonless that the Lord has become my Light. -- Elisabeth Elliot
None of us likes pain. All of us wish at times we did not need to 'go through all this stuff.' Let us settle it once and for all: we cannot know Christ and the power of His resurrection without the fellowship of His suffering. -- Elisabeth Elliot
A spirit of restlessness and resistance never waits, but one who believes he is loved with an everlasting love, and knows that underneath are the everlasting arms, will find strength and peace. -- Elisabeth Elliot
He is not all we would ask for (if we were honest), but it is precisely when we do not have what we would ask for, and only then, that we can clearly perceive His all-sufficiency. It is when the sea is moonless that the Lord has become my Light. -- Elisabeth Elliot
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
