The Perfect Father's Day Gift - Note to Self - And a Giveaway!

If your husband is a reader - this is the perfect gift for him! If your husband is not a reader - this is the perfect gift for him!  And when he's done reading it - you should read it too!!!  I'll tell you why in just a second but first let me back up 18 years!

18 years ago, I was a nervous freshman from Ohio, at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago.  Being the social butterfly that I am, I quickly made friends with a girl named Jen from Germany (who later became my roommate) and a group of guys from our "brother" floor - whose ring leader was named Joe Thorn (the author of the book I'm about to share with you).  Now stick with me here - cause I'm trying to give you 4 years of history in 15 seconds! 

Joe is to the left of Jen in the green.  I'm on the far right. 

This group of guys was intriguing - all they wanted to do was debate theology  - or - laugh (2 of my favorite things to do)!  We went from very serious deep conversations to laughter about the most light hearted things in 2 seconds flat.  While my classes at Moody taught me many new things - it was my talks with Joe and his friends that introduced me to Martin Luther, John Calvin and Puritan Paperbacks.  Over lunch and dinner in the school cafeteria, they taught me how to handle God's word correctly as they challenged all of my preconceived notions of scripture. 

Let me put it bluntly - Joe Thorn made me squirm...he made me run to my dorm room and flip through my Bible trying to prove him wrong.  He made me read books by RC Sproul, listen to radio programs by Michael Horton and James Boice and go to my commentaries and concordances trying understand these deeper concepts of God that he spoke about. 

So to make a long story short, my roommate Jen fell in love with Joe and here I am in their wedding!

And it is no surprise to me that now Joe Thorn sits across the table from people like John Piper

Joe is on the far left - John Piper is on the far right.

Or Justin Taylor

Joe Thorn Interview V. 1 from Crossway on Vimeo.

Joe is now a church planter in Chicago where his wife homeschools their four children.  His newly published book is a must read!  And I'm giving one away today!

Note to Self is a rich theological and practical guide to life.  While we need our pastors to preach to us on Sunday mornings - we need to be preaching to ourselves on Mondays through Saturdays!  In one hundred and thirty seven pages (this is short and an easy read for readers and non-readers!) and 48 short chapters, he takes us through all facets of life and applies the gospel.

Joe has a unique ability to pack a powerful punch with just a few words.  Let me give you a few examples:

"Let's be honest, the reason you do not experience the joy you read about in Scripture is because your heart is divided, and your interests are spread thin."

"You should see everything in your life as grace that accompanies your salvation.  For such things do not come from a Judge, but your Dad."

"Take note - your view of Jesus tends to shrink over time...This is probably why the church is shrinking in North America - because small Jesus does not inspire awe, command respect, lead to worship, or compel us to talk of him (much less suffer for him)."

"The more robust, the more detailed your theology, the more humble you should become. Why? Because you did not figure God out; he revealed himself to you."

"Sin, your sin in particular, should make you recoil.  Yet, because you are so familiar and comfortable with your sin, you hardly even blush at most of it.  Revulsion will only come when you see the holy, just, and good character of God in contrast to yourself."

"It's as if amassing feelings of guilt becomes a perverted kind of penance in which you pay for your transgression by making yourself feel bad - as if your guilt is a means of getting clean."

"This is grace that God has given us a clear and understandable word."

Joe Thorn's book Note To Self, which is priced at around $10, would make the perfect Father's Day gift!  It has a verse for mediation that starts each chapter that makes it a perfect daily devotional.  It's a quick life-changing read that I hope you have the joy to experience!

And I have the opportunity to give one away here!!! 

To enter to win simply leave a comment below!  For extra entries Facebook or tweet the link to this giveaway!!!  This giveaway will run through Saturday, June 11th at 9pm.

Walk with the King!

5 eBook Giveaway of Warrior Prayers



Have you heard of this eBook, Warrior Prayers by Brooke McGlothlin?  It's been buzzing around on twitter and the blogosphere and I HAD to get my hands on it! 

Let me be honest, this eBook knocked my socks off!  I LOVE it!  Why you may ask?  Because not only is the writing open and transparent but the prayers - the prayers are exactly what I need. 

It's specifically the powerful, God-breathed prayers that make me want to shout out loud - "if you have $5.97 get this eBook!" (-and no I'm not being paid to say this! lol! I honestly believe it!) 

I find it so easy for me to get lazy in my prayer life.  I find myself just praying a list of wants to God.  This eBook has been transforming my morning prayers not just for my son but for my entire family.

 Warrior Prayers has over 220 scriptures (yes, I counted them all myself because I was blown away at what an amazing resource this really is!) written out that we can pray over our boys (and family as I have been doing!)

Let me give you an example from page 14 on the topic of Obedience:

Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, may____________(fill in your child's name) obey the LORD our God so that it will go well with him (Jeremiah 42:6).

May _______________obey his parents in the Lord, for this is right (Ephesians 6:1).

May ________________obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29).

May ________________show his love for Christ by obeying His commands (John 14:15).

Or the topic of love:



May _______________not love the world or the things in the world (I John 2:15).

May the Lord make ____________increase and abound in love (I Thessalonians 3:12)

May ____________ not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth (I John 3:18).

May ____________love the LORD his God with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might (Deuteronomy 6:5).

This is just a small taste of the 220+ verses that can be prayed over our boys.  Brooke takes you through many scripture passages on the topics of integrity, anger, pride, purity, honor, love, joy, peace, patience, and kindness - just to name a few!

In the Conclusion Brooke writes:

"Prayer?  The desperate cry of a mama whose life has taught her she has so little control.

I cannot hold my children tightly enough to protect them from all harm, cannot force these brothers to love each other well, cannot control their actions, cannot keep them from losing the people they love, cannot ensure that they will turn out to be the men I dream they will be, cannot make them love the Lord.

I cannot change their hearts of stone to hearts of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26).

Prayer is the coming to the end of myself, the letting go, and placing my hope in the God who CAN." 

Are you praying for your children?  I suggest that you pray scripture over them if you are not already doing so and this is a great tool to help you.

I am giving away 5 copies of the Warrior Prayers eBook!!!  To win simply leave a comment below before Saturday at 9pm!For extra entries:  Facebook or tweet this link for the giveaway!  I'll be giving away the 2nd edition in PDF format (which includes study questions and is newly available on Kindle here. It will be available on Nook soon.)

Walk with the King!

Reshaping It All and a Giveaway

Over Christmas, I began reading Reshaping It All: Motivation for Physical and Spiritual Fitness written by Candace Cameron Bure (formerly known as DJ from Full House) and Darlene Schacht who blogs over at Time Warp Wives.

Not only have I been reading it, I have been applying it!! So let me share with you a few of the principles I have learned from the book.

1. "This outer shell is simply an envelop for my spirit. The contents are precious, eternal and costly, bought with a price, and the envelop has been fashioned by the world's greatest designer, the Creator Himself." pg. 66 It is tempting to put too much focus on our outer "envelope"...but it is the precious contents - my spirit and soul that God has redeemed and that will live forever. But we must remember that God did choose to give us this "envelope" and he designed it as he pleased. (Psalm 139:13-16)

2. "God loves you, just the shape you are and there isn't a single number on the scale that could ever change that." pg. 67

3. "Each year, each week, each day, and each hour we are offered choices. Should I grab water or a soda pop, a bag of chips or an apple?...take the stairs or the elevator? The reason we fail to consider these choices as carefully as we should is because the value we place on them is so low." pg. 83 This is SO true about learning any discipline in life. It's the small battles won day in and day out that show a life transformed. It's saying no to our flesh over and over and over and over that over time show a life of victory.

4. "When we resist temptation, it eventually flees." (James 4:7) pg.83 This is so very true. For a fleeting few minutes we may face temptation when everyone is eating dessert. But when the dessert time has ended, the temptation also ends and we learn indeed we can survive without dessert!

5. "Self-disciplines when applied to our life not only bring self-respect; they also bring the respect from others around us." pg 100 The Proverbs 31 woman led a life of discipline and as a result both her husband and children praised her. People who seek out the quick fixes are less remarkable and usually return to their old ways. But those who are diligent to lead a disciplined life - often demand the attention of others - they are remarkable!

6. Prosperity gives us the option for gluttony, a sin the Bible warns against. But many of us aren't sure where pleasure ends and gluttony begins...Proverbs 23:20-21 speaks against a gluttonous lifestyle...in Latin gluttire means "to gulp down or swallow"...In Hebrew it means "to have in excess." The modern definition of the word gluttony is to habitually eat to excess." pg. 111 This is a hard truth to swallow...isn't it *{blush}


What is fun about this book is not only does it give you great principles to live by but it also includes Candace's testimony, solid scripture references, realistic tips to apply and even recipes!!!

This week I whipped up for my family three of Candace's dishes! I made her Orange Chicken Fajitas, Oven Roasted Broccoli with Lemon Baked Salmon (not pictured), and her Turkey Meatloaf (ignore the butter on the potatoes - I know it's not healthy lol! I'm a work in progress okay? hehe!). And I plan to make a few more of her recipes this week!

This gives you a great intro to this book. I highly recommend it. I honestly could write 5 posts on this book - but let me leave you with this one staggering truth! I have been applying it THIS week and I lost 3 pounds - now mind you - I'm coming off the holiday sugar rush...but I still see how this book is transforming my thinking and helping me to think clearly about what and why I eat. It feels good to be practicing self-control again in this area of my life.

Darlene has provided an extra copy of Reshaping It All for me to give away to one of you! To enter to win, simply leave a comment in the comment section. I will choose a winner this Thursday! Join me tomorrow for more on this topic!


Walk with the King!

GREAT NEWS! So many of you are entering, that I just got word from Darlene she is adding two more books to this giveaway! So I will be giving away 3 books on Thursday!!!

I am linking up to: Making Your Home Sing Monday, Hip Homeschool Hop, Raising Homemakers, and Works For Me Wednesday.

Bible Studies I've Led and I Recommend

For years I have transferred this quote onto the first page of every prayer journal:


"Observed duties maintain our credit, but secret duties maintain our life." (John Flavel 17th Century Clergyman)


There are duties that we do, that others see but then there are duties we do, that no one will ever see. It's the secret duties - the duty of studying God's word and praying daily - that maintain our lives.


How are you doing with your secret duties? Did you make a new year resolution to read your Bible daily, to memorize some new verses, or to start a prayer journal? Often times the busyness of life squelches out time even though the desire is still there. But if you've gotten off course - do not despair!!! God is not a legalistic God - he loves you so.


Here's what Elizabeth George says about discipline:
"You do it because it is what you need to do and are supposed to do and because it is the right thing to do... somehow... the duty of the discipline turns into sheer delight and we reap the blessings of a priceless, tender relationship with the Lord a thousandfold."


This has rang true in my life. I do not always enthusiastically open God's word - yet I always need a word from God no matter how busy I am.


Over the years I have led a few Bible studies - let me share with you the ones I have led and recommend.


These three are all Beth Moore Bible studies. I adore her! These all had a video series that accompanied the workbooks. The homework for these studies took about 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. My favorite is Jesus, the One and Only - I've led it twice in a large group and once one-on-one with a friend. Breaking Free is AMAZING! It was a challenge to lead but I learned things I still am applying today in my life - and I led it 9 years ago! A Woman's Heart God's Dwelling Place is also a tie for my favorite Beth Moore study. The entire study is about the tabernacle - it's fascinating - I've led it twice.

These two studies are also Beth Moore studies. To Live is Christ is the study of the life and ministry of Paul. It was my first Beth Moore study to lead 13 years ago. Those poor ladies I led in this study were quite patient with me - I was a nervous wreck! lol! A Heart Like His is the study of David's heart - it is glorious also.

These next few studies are by Elizabeth George - she is another favorite author and Bible teacher of mine. I have read many more of her books than what is pictured here. This workbook study is titled A Woman's Heart God's Dwelling Place and I had a CD and DVD to go with the workbook.

These books are also by Elizabeth George. This study has the same name as above (A Woman After God's Own Heart) but it spoon feeds you all the info and it is very simple. You read the book and then use the handbook to answer questions. I have used this study with a large group of women (25) and in a one-on-one discipleship. This is a great starter book for a new believer. The second book here I LOVE - it's Life Management for Busy Women. I've read this book 3 times through and have led it once in a large group.


The next book is by Linda Dillow titled Creative Counterpart. My Good Morning Girls group used this as a summer study/book club. In the back of the book, questions are included for discussion. The other two books are by Stormie Omartian titled The Power of a Praying Parent. The book and handbook are an excellent guide to praying for your children and really was a fun book to use for a small group study (my group wasn't small though...it was popular at sign-ups! Don't we all want to pray more for our children?)

Tomorrow I will share with you more studies I have completed and want to recommend and Thursday I will unveil a study that you can do with me on-line starting January 17th.

But first let me share with you some couples studies my husband and I have led in our home. We had an amazing group of 8 couples that were very consistent for 3 years straight coming to our home. (we had co-leaders who also helped us lead these studies - Kory and Clare):


When the couples arrived we would fellowship for the first half hour around food. Then we divided the men and women into different rooms and I led the women through Stormie Omartian's The Power of a Praying Wife and my husband led the men through The Power of Praying Husband. We will never master praying for our spouses - this is a great book to do time and time again. I had led it two other times previously with groups of women.

Another study where we divided the men from the women was Jim George's study A Man After God's Own Heart and Elizabeth George's A Woman After God's Own Heart. Again - can't say enough good things about these authors.
There was a time when the group felt the desire to emphasize evangelism so we used Bill Hybel's book, handbook and DVD titled Just Walk Across the Room. It really helped to motivate us all to share our faith.

After the Just Walk Across the Room study we thought that this book by Josh McDowell titled Evidence Demands a Verdict might help us with evangelism too. Warning - this book is not a written in a Bible study format. It is a great resource. We assigned different pages for reading and then discussed our reading each week. If you want to know better how to defend your faith - this book needs to be on your shelf! I read this book for the first time in high school and I used it heavily to defend my faith in my public school.

This next book is a parenting book. It's by Tedd Tripp and it is titled Shepherding a Child's Heart. It also comes with a handbook. This is a book that can be read again and again as a resource. It's great to have on the shelf.

And last but not least - my favorite marriage book by Dr. Emerson Eggerich titled Love and Respect. It also has a handbook that we used. This book was the hardest for our group to swallow. One wife told me later that she went home, read the first chapter and threw the book in the trash! Ouch! It can be hard to swallow but it is exactly what marriages today need to hear! My husband and I think so highly of this book that we purchased 20 copies of it and handed them out to our group, another couples study in our church, plus a few couples who came through our home who needed encouragement in their marriages. This book has helped our marriage immensely.

Do you remember the story of Enoch? Genesis 5:24 says, "Enoch walked with God and then he was no more because God took him away." Hebrews 11:5 tells us why he was taken away - "By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken he was commended as one who pleased God."


Why should we maintain our secret duties in our walk with God? Because it pleases God.

Do you have a favorite Bible study you can recommend - share it in the comment section.

Let's start the new year right and Walk with the King!

I am linking up to: Motivation Monday, Hip Homeschool Hop, Finer Things Friday, Raising Homemakers, Making My H0me Sing Monday , and Works For Me Wednesday. Please check out these blogs for more great links.

Putting God Back In The Holidays and A Giveaway

Last week I began a fabulous book titled "Putting God Back In The Holidays" by Bill and Penny Thrasher (Bill is a Professor at my Alma mater - Moody Bible Institute). This book has rattled me a bit because it challenges me to rest in the midst of the busyness that comes with holidays.

This book covers all the holidays, from New Years to Easter to Mother's Day and Labor Day, and it is filled with practical and spiritual ideas to make each holiday special. But when I received the book, I flipped straight to Christmas because Christmas is coming and I want a handle on it!

Thrasher says this is how we will know if we had a "successful" Christmas : "If you have a better relationship with the Lord at the end of the holiday celebrations, you have had a very successful holiday."

When my to-do list multiplies ten-fold for the holidays, I find it extremely difficult to have quiet time with the Lord. How can my relationship with God be better at the end of the holidays? To be honest, much of what goes into making the holidays special is up to the women - from cooking, to decorating, shopping to baking, writing out Christmas cards and opening our homes - we are pressed to our max financially and with our time.

Feeling closer to God at the end of the holidays is a challenge for us. And so, a December Challenge has been born via this book and will be coming soon to Women Living Well. They will be very simple and they will focus on you and your relationship with God in the midst of the holidays. I will be quoting some more of Thrasher's thoughts and giving you some practical ways to rest in the midst of your to-do list.

On page 138, Thrasher reminds us to be on guard against vanity during the holidays. He says "God knows the emptiness and pressure of living independently of Himself. If we take life into our own hands for the holidays, it is up to us to carry our burdens on our own shoulders and to figure out what is best apart from the wisdom of God. Christ came to deliver us out of this vain way of life and to bring us into a relationship with God."

Isn't it true that often we take on too much for the holidays. We take on things that God is not asking us to take on. They can leave us feeling empty because we have taken on burdens God never meant for us to take on.

I will write more in the following weeks on this topic, but until then let me share with you one of the practical ideas Thrasher offers in his book for reaching out in your neighborhood.

"One year, this family set up a prayer mailbox on their covered porch. They sent a note to their neighbors expressing their love and care for them. In it, they told them about the prayer mailbox. If someone was hurting or needed prayer, they could put their request in the box - anonymously if they wished - and the family would be sure to pray for them."

This book is packed with ways to honor God during the holidays and practical tips to live it out. I highly recommend it!

Moody Publishers has generously given me two extra copies of this book to giveaway to two of my readers!!! Hooray! All you have to do to enter to win is leave a comment below before Thursday, November 18th at 9pm! I read all of my comments - so if you'd like to add any thoughts or struggles you have regarding Christmas stress in your comment - I will try to address a few of the common concerns in this upcoming series of posts.

Walk with the King!

My Summer Book List

Here are the books I am working my way through this summer(and I made a HUGE mistake with this picture and FORGOT TO INCLUDE MY BIBLE ugh! The Bible would be at the top of the stack as I daily read in it first!~). I am not recommending any of these books as I have not finished many of them yet. But for those who wonder - this is what I'm reading! Here are the categories and titles:

My Walk with God:
Just Give Me Jesus by Anne Graham Lotz (I'm 100 pages in and it is excellent! I am doing this with a group of girls from my church! Fun!)

My Marriage:

Intimacy Ignited by Linda Dillow and Lorraine Pintus (Their book Intimate Issues is EXCELLENT and I highly recommend it)

My Parenting:
The Family by RJ Miller
Raising Maidens of Virtue by Stacey McDonald (Her book Passionate Housewives Desperate for God was an inspiring read)
Financial Peace Jr. by Dave Ramsey (for teaching our children how to manager their money - my husband will be leading the family through this)


My Homemaking:
Sink Reflections by The Flylady (This one is finished - I got it at the library. It was a good read!)

My Friendships:

Friendships for Grown-Ups by Lisa Whelchel

My Finances:
More Than Enough by Dave Ramsey


My Ministry:
Purple Cow by Seth Godin (I got it at the library and I have finished it. This is not a Christian book - it's a book that has been recommended by some of the big time bloggers so I thought I'd see what the fuss was all about.)

A book that is not in the picture but I just finished reading is "Grace Is For Sinners" by Serena Woods. Serena writes "The purpose of this book is to reach out to those who have fallen in their walk of faith and give insight to those who have watched somebody fall."


So what's on your summer reading list? Have you read any of the above - what are your thoughts on them?

Walk with the King!

Book Review: They Almost Always Come Home

At the foundation of each relationship resides the need to know love can survive even when feelings fade. In Cynthia Ruchti’s debut novel, They Almost Always Come Home, readers feel the desperation of this foundational yearning in a marriage clearly pulling loose from its moorings. Compounded by other issues—an unrewarding career and mismatched dreams—it’s enough to drive a man into the arms of the Canadian wilderness. When Greg Holden doesn’t return home from a wilderness canoe trip, his wife Libby wrestles with survivor guilt, a new layer of grief, and the belief that she was supposed to know how to fix her marriage. She planned to leave him—but how can she leave a man who’s no longer there? He was supposed to go fishing, not missing.

Libby has to find him before she can discover how their marriage ends. She plunges into the wilderness on an adventurous and risky manhunt, unsure what she will do if she finds him…or if she doesn’t. She expects to meet hardship, discomfort, and danger in the wilderness. She doesn’t expect to face the stark reality of her spiritual longing and a faint, but steady pulse that promises hope for reviving her marriage. If Greg’s still alive.

They Almost Always Come Home provides a glimpse into common, however uncomfortable, marital conflicts. Cynthia weaves a page-turning story, suspense building scene by scene. Her characters mirror ordinary people, living real-to-life situations, allowing readers to relate and sort through a myriad of emotions and life decisions. If fiction can contain adventure, riveting self-awareness, and romance all between the same covers, this is the book!


Cynthia Ruchti writes stories of “hope that glows in the dark.” She writes and produces The Heartbeat of the Home, a syndicated drama/devotional radio broadcast, and is editor for the ministry’s Backyard Friends magazine. She also serves as current president of American Christian Fiction Writers. Cynthia married her childhood sweetheart, who tells his own tales of wilderness adventures.

If you are looking for a summer adventure novel that will also encourage you in your marriage - this would be the book for you.

Walk with the King!

*Thank you KathyCarltonWillis.com for providing me with this complimentary copy to review.

Book Review: ReChurch by Stephen Mansfield

Have you been wounded by the mean girl at church? Has the Pastor alienated you or your family? Have the teens in your church rejected your teen and now the entire family has dropped out of church? Are you afraid to get involved in a new church for fear of being hurt AGAIN? Then the book ReChurch: Healing Your Way Back To the People Of God is for you!

The New Testament name for the church is ekklesia meaning "the called out ones" -a people drawn from darkness to God and to one another. "To be a part of a church, when it is right and good, is to plug into a loving power grid of possibilities and meaning and joy."pg.42

I think one reason it hurts terribly bad to be hurt by a Christian is that church is the one place where you expect to be safe from harm. But Mansfield says "To be surprised that human nature would rear its ugly head - in the very place where it is under the greatest pressure to change, where the stakes are high and the devil strikes hard - is simply biblical ignorance and a failure to live in any sort of connection to the real world."


He reminds the reader that those we meet at church and in homes for cell groups bear the image of God but also the scars of evil. We must not gloss over our world and believe that Christians are perfect or we will suffer in our naivete.


We all dream of that day of reckoning when those who wronged us come forward and say they were wrong and we were right. But the reality is people move on. People forget. And we are left to pick up the pieces. Mansfield says "Much that distinguishes maturity form immaturity - and happiness from misery - is how you respond to the offenses that life insists on dealing out to us all."pg. 89


What does it take to heal and reconnect with the church? Forgiveness. This was my favorite section of the book so I'll sum up what I learned from pages 102 to 108.

Forgiveness in the Greek has 3 meanings:
1. Aphiemi means to send away or to set free. On the day of atonement a scapegoat was chosen and carried to a solitary place and released into the desert, carrying with it all the sins of the people. Jesus is our scapegoat. To forgive is to place the sins and wrongs done to us on Jesus and send those sins away. The hurt needs somewhere to go and we won't feel differently about the person who wronged us until we place that hurt somewhere else - that is on Jesus.

2. Alphesis means to release, as from prison. We need to release those who have wronged us from the prison of our mind. We hold them there in captivity judging them time and again - growing angrier by the day. We rehearse what we'd say to them if we could and how we'd explain ourselves. But to forgive is to release them from this prison of our mind.

3. Charisomai means to bestow a favor or extend mercy. Often we assume that those who hurt us were intentional. One key to forgiveness is to find the compassionate narrative behind their hurtful actions. We must enter the story of those who have wronged us to see why they behaved the way they did. After entering their story, we are more likely to extend mercy and forgiveness.

Do not give up on the body of believers we call the church. Darkness presses at the edge of light. We must overcome the darkness and cling to the light. If you are in a place of struggling to overcome past pain and hurt caused by the church, this book may be what you need to help you through. Mansfield's real life pain, trials, rejection and finally triumphs will soothe your weary soul.

Walk with the King!

*Thank you Tyndale for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book to review.

Book Review: Sleep It Does A Family Good by Dr. Hart

I have always believed that sleep deprivation plays a large role in kid's misbehavior, marital issues, and even my own "misbehavior"!!! This book Sleep It Does A Family Good addresses all those points and more. Some of the issues were more technically dealt with than what interested me BUT there were so many truths through out the book that sunk in, that I already see a difference in my own sleep habits!

Here's a few things I learned from the book:

1. No two families have the same sleep patterns, habits or problems. The issues my family may be dealing with such as night terrors, snoring or staying up too late on the computer may be completely different than yours such as a neighbors dog, room temperature, or a new born baby. There are a ton of different factors that affect our family's sleep habits including how our spouse was raised. So this is a more complex issue than it first appears on the surface.

2."God has designed sleep into us as a fundamental need, as fundamental as eating food and breathing air." In our culture we treat sleep as optional. The average person sleeps 6.7 hours a night, compared to 1960 when the average night was 8 hours. If we miss one hour of sleep every night - then by the end of the week we are 7 hours into a sleep deficit - an entire nights sleep!

3. Lack of sleep produces more stress not less stress. For those of us who think that staying up late to get our work done is a way to relieve ourselves of stress - think again! The ability for us to think clearly, creatively and productively is reduced when we are sleep deprived. Hence, we take longer to complete tasks and only increase our stress levels with sleep deprivation. We would do ourselves a big favor to go to bed early and wake well rested to work hard during the day.

4. Sleepy teens is an epidemic due to text messaging, twitter, video games and late night television. It's our job as parents to monitor our children and be sure they are getting the correct amount of sleep for their age. Animals sleep based on instinct - but children must be taught or they literally will not sleep! Studies have even shown that 4 year olds are no longer getting their naps and night time sleep that they need in our fast paced, on the go culture, and it is affecting their learning and listening abilities.

5. There is a natural universal drive toward an early afternoon mini-sleep in all cultures. Some actually embrace it but in America we equate napping with being a waste of time, self-indulgent or a physical weakness. Our sleep intervals at night are on 1 1/2 hour cycles - so an hour and a half nap can be quite invigorating - 2 hours could make you drowsy! And he did recommend short 20 minute power naps, which I smiled at because those are my favorite type of naps - doable and they work!

6. You have 7 days to make up for a sleep deficit and after that you can never make up for sleep lost. Weekend naps are healthy and essential make-up times - so allow yourself to take a nap on weekends. If you lose sleep one night, try to make it up the next night or by the end of the week. Sleep can be made up within one week from when it's lost - but after that the effects are irreversible.

Do you want to improve your quality of life? Go to bed early tonight, tomorrow night and the next night - then let me know how you feel! I have a feeling GREAT will be the answer!

"The family that sleeps well, lives well!"

Walk with the King!

Book Review: This Little Prayer of Mine by Anthony DeStefano

I was very excited to get my hands on "This Little Prayer of Mine" by Anthony DeStefano because he was featured on Fox News. He talked about how children are less into prayer and more into texting and facebooking these days. This book was written to remind parents to teach their children to say bedtime prayers.

Many parents read lots of books to their children about many different topics but are we remembering to teach them the fundamental of prayer? When the light goes out at night, as our child lays alone in bed, they need to know that God is there with them. This book reminds them that they can speak to God about anything, including apologizing for things they did wrong that day and thanking God for the good things he did that day.

Regis Philbin also held this book up on his show, Regis and Kelly, and said he was giving it to one of his grandchildren. This book seems to have struck a cord with main stream America...is prayer dying in the lives of the next generation?

I will admit that after reading the book, the children liked it but we have so many other wonderful books on the same topic, that it just added to our selection rather than standing out in our selection.

So I recommend this book if you do not have any books like this in your home library. It has beautiful illustrations and is heart warming.

Walk with the King!

*Thank you Random House for providing me with a free copy of this book to review.

Book Review: Full by Kendal Privette

Every Tuesday I post a recipe for Tasty Tuesday - but today I am veering off from my norm to post a review that is not typically the type of book I would read. The book is titled Full and it came to me via the author herself, Kendal Privette. This book enters the mind of a woman struggling with "ed", short for an "Eating Disorder". Ed speaks to her over and over telling her she must not eat, she must exercise, and she is too fat.

When I received the book in the mail many weeks ago, I sat down in my kitchen and read the book cover to cover. Then, late one night I read pieces of the book out loud to my husband. Why you ask? I found it strange that I identified with the mind of an anorexic! I felt compelled to discuss this with him and being the amazing listener that he is, he completely engaged the conversation.

Let me try to explain how I identified - (and no I am not even close to having an eating disorder - this chick LOVES food!).

Here's how page 1 reads:

ED Speaks

127 (number on the scale)

It's too much.

Ed speaks.

I didn't know listening was a pact.

Page 2

127

ed sidles up,

hissing in my ear.

sweet talking,

two pounds,

he whispers...

Page 4

Psalm 139:14

126

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made

Your works are wonderful I know that full well

total crap

I am ugly

I have a lumpy waist

stringy hair

uneven complexion

beady eyes

I am a mistake

And on and on the book goes, as we watch this 127 pound mother of two, spiral down to 98 pounds. How in the world do I relate?

Oddly enough - I weigh 127 (I'm 5'2"). That caught my attention. Secondly, I have never weighed 127 and not been pregnant - so lately things are snug - and some of her thoughts and whispers she hears, I've heard. I must admit the delete button is screaming for me to use it and not let these feelings be known to all of you - but I feel compelled to humbly admit this - if only it can help one other woman out there. This is not my first time to mention my mind battle with weight. But I digress and this post is not about me - it's about the book Full.

Take 5 minutes to listen to this narrative taken from her book: Full.



Full shows the ugly side of dieting, the obsessive side of exercise and the lies Satan whispers in women's ears. But then it shows the beautiful side of victory and freedom only found in sweet Jesus!

We must believe: Psalm 139:14 "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. I know that full well."

In the end Kendal says "I believe this today."

Do you believe this? Are you struggling to believe this? You are not alone - this world is masterful at feeding women lies about ourselves...and it does start in the mind. We must be walking daily with the King, saturating ourselves with the truth of his word and praying over every trial and temptation. Then and only then, can we have freedom in Christ Jesus.

To purchase this book go to Lulu or to Kendal's blog here.


Walk with the King!

Book Review: The Daniel Fast by Susan Gregory

Fasting is a Christian discipline that is rarely talked about in the Christian church, so I found the book, The Daniel Fast by Susan Gregory, to be refreshing and enlightening. America has been plagued by an epidemic of obesity - we love our food -and for some they love their food more than they love their God! Fasting was a part of the Jewish culture and great men and women of God through out the Bible, participated in fasting and prayer. Our ultimate example is Jesus our Savior, who went into the wilderness for 40 days to fast and pray.

Have you ever gone on a fast? In the last few years I have begun to practice this spiritual discipline. Sometimes it's been with my Good Morning Girls group, often it's with my husband and once with an old friend from high school who now lives in Texas! The support through out the day of emails, texts and prayers has gotten me through some rough days of fasting - (I do love my Diet Coke! I know for others giving up coffee is a struggle!)

What is so great about this book is it provides a step by step plan - including how to prepare, some recipes that follow the restrictions and daily devotions for doing a 21 day Daniel Fast. I have not done a fast that included food so this sparked my interest - maybe I can do this!

Susan Gregory says in The Daniel Fast, "The definition of a biblical fast is to restrict food for a spiritual purpose." Susan explains there are three types of fasts - an absolute fast, a normal fast, and a partial fast. The Daniel Fast is a partial fast - abstaining from some foods but not all. Daniel abstained from all foods except foods from the seed and water. So this book explains how to follow his example.

Do you wish you had the deep faith of Daniel? One that could lock the jaws of lions in a den? I think we all wish we could have that type of walk with God and yet are we willing to do what Daniel did in order to have what Daniel had? Fasting is not so you can impress God with your "super" Christian ways - but it is for you. It is done to draw us nearer to God and without the aspect of extra prayer and time in the word - it is just a diet.

Fasting was created by God as a tool to bring us into closer relationship with Him. If you are interested in doing a 1 day, 3 day, 7 day, 10 day or 21 day fast - go to Susan Gregory's website to learn more about the Daniel Fast here. You can also read a past post I wrote on fasting here.

"Sometimes you are so hungry, the only way to be fed is to fast."Susan Gregory

Walk with the King!