Healing Sands by Nancy Rue & Stephen Arterburn

I just finished reading Healing Sands by Nancy Rue & Stephen Arterburn. This is in the Sullivan Crisp series. It tells of the struggle that photojournalist Ryan Coe is going through now that she is divorced and her 2 boys have chosen to live with their dad. She moves to New Mexico to be near them, and has a difficult time controlling her anger. While at an accident scene for work, she finds her son being arrested for a crime that she is sure he didn't commit. She knows she needs helps for her anger and goes to Dr. Sullivan Crisp, a well-known Christian counselor, who himself is dealing with pain from his wife's death over a decade ago. Ryan wants to solve the case on her own, and wants to be in control of the whole situation. She is frustrated with her son, her ex-husband, the legal system, and her own actions. While in counseling Ryan learns about herself and begins to build friendships with other Christian moms that help her through this time. This is a mystery novel, but also something of a counseling one as well. I at first thought I wouldn't like it, but the authors slowly reeled me in, and I found I needed to know how the mystery was solved. Although, set in the southwest, in places I have never heard of nor can imagine, I liked the court "scenes" and also the in-depth dialogue between counselor and patient. The author added the characters thoughts as well as what they said. The characters came to life and it made me feel like I really knew Ryan and her family personally. An excellent story of surrender and learning how to let God have control of your life!

The Story of Christmas by Gwen Ellis, Illustrated by Steve Smallman

The Story of Christmas is a children's book that tells the complete Christmas story for young children around the ages of 4-10. It begins with an angel coming to both Elizabeth and Mary, continues on to Jesus's birth, and ends with visits from the shepherds and wisemen before Mary and Joseph return home to Nazareth. The author has written the story well, and has broken the book down into 10 mini-stories. So for preschool age children you could read one story each night leading up to Christmas, without overwhelming them all at once with the whole story. Each mini-story has the Scripture reference of where it is taken from in the Bible, and there is a question for thought at the conclusion of each mini-story that a school age child could answer. At the end of the book, there are "snapshot" scenes taken from the stories for your children to put in order and retell the story to you. Every page has a bright and colorful picture. Also included is a 17 minute DVD of the life of Jesus, told in 6 different stories. The first 3 stories are from the Christmas story, and the remaining 3 are about Jesus being tempted by Satan, his miracles, and how Jesus loves all children. They are narrated clearly and kept my child's attention. However, I didn't care for how the DVD portrayed Satan. He was pictured in a long brown cape with a black cloth covered face, much like the Grim Reaper. My children didn't know who he was, and therefore really didn't understand the story of Jesus being tempted by Satan. That particular story seemed to be too mature for them, and didn't go along with the other stories on the DVD. I would recommend the The Story of Christmas to anyone who wants their children to have an illustrated book of the true meaning of Christmas!

The Tallest of Smalls by Max Lucado illustrated by Maria Monescillo

The Tallest of Smalls is the latest children's book by Max Lucado. Written much like a Dr. Suess book in a rhyming/singsong way, Lucado reminds children that they are created by God and therefore neither small nor insignificant. This book, suited for elementary school-age children, tells of a boy who feels unimportant and desires to be one of the "cool" people in his village. It shows children that only God's opinion really matters. The illustrations are bright and colorful, and even humorous in some places. My 6, 8, and 10 year old followed the story closely and could summarize at the end what it was about. So I feel like Max Lucado was able to get his point across to children that they are precious just the way they are. I would recommend this book to any parent with young children. A book like this can open up conversations of how to treat others and what being "popular" and "cool" really means. What a way to raise a child's self-esteem when they hear that they belong to God and that He loves them always!

Plain Promise by Beth Wiseman

I just finished reading Plain Promise by Beth Wiseman. Set in Paradise, PA this is an excellent story of a young Amish widow, Sadie who takes in a non-Amish boarder. Kade is a wealthy man who is trying to escape his life. He finds peace in the Amish community and sees something in Sadie's life that he feels he is lacking. To add to his stress, he becomes the sole caretaker of his young autistic son, Tyler. In a community that is like "life in a fishbowl", Sadie is confused as to how much time she should spend in their company. She wants to help Kade, and especially his son, but knows the bishop is always watching. She has always believed in God's promises but is unsure of her future now that her husband is dead. When a blizzard hits, with help from Tyler, Sadie and Kade learn from each other about God's will for their lives. Beth Wiseman does a wonderful job in showing life with an autistic child and what life is like for the Amish that you feel like you are living in this town too. The book stirred my emotions and left me wanting to read a sequel. I finished the book in about 24 hours...very hard to put down!

A Man of His Word by Kathleen Fuller

I just finished reading A Man of His Word by Kathleen Fuller and I would recommend it to anyone, especially those interested in the Amish way of life. The story is set in an Amish community in Northeast Ohio. Newlywed Moriah has been abandoned by her husband who had grown weary of all the Amish rules and thought life "was greener on the other side". His twin brother is left to pick up the pieces, while trying to hide his true feelings of love for Moriah. The story moves along quickly and brings in sub-plots of additional characters as they deal with relationships in the community. Moriah deals with feelings of insecurity and self-worth, and learns that God's love is ever-present. This is the first book in the Hearts of Middlefield series and I eagerly anticipate the next book coming out next spring!

What's He Really Thinking

Can we ever really know what is in a man's mind? Author Paula Rinehart helps us better understand the men in our lives in her book What's He Really Thinking? In Part One, she highlights 7 different personality types and what drives them. She is scientific in how she desribes the male brain, and how God wired them differently right from birth. She pointed out that men are shaped by how they related to their fathers and how they can have hurts. I liked how she said that men are not going to sit down over a cup of coffee and just pour out their feelings. Men may not be able to express that in words. Rinehart goes on in Part Two of the book to talk about how women can effectively communicate with men. Men have different expectations and needs than women do. I especially liked the chapter on Respect; it made me really reflect on how I speak to my husband. This is an excellent book, a must read for anyone going through pre-martial counseling. Even for those that have been married awhile you can still learn much from this book. In the back, Rinehart has discussion questions, so this book could be used at a ladies Bible Study. Plus, there are great "conversation starters" at the end for those women that seek to explore all there is to know about the man in their life!