S Club Mama

Slow. That almost seems like a curse word in today's world. You ask a friend how they are and their answer is inevitably "busy." And I am, too. We have cub scout meetings, small group, Bible studies, playdates, laundry, supper. Our ancestors were busy also (laundry, cooking, butchering, farming, mending and sewing, quilting...everything took so much longer), but that word seems to be a badge of honor...or a badge of martyrdom (??). It's something we say almost with a tinge of pride (aren't you proud of how not idle I am? how productive we are?) when I don't think "busy" has ever been the ideal. We could have loads of free time and down time with all of our modern conveniences but it seems like we just naturally (selfishly, perhaps) fill that time with "busy." It's exhausting, isn't it? image via amazon.com Erin Loecher is an hgtv.com reality show star and blogger and author of "Chasing Slow." She found herself ...

I read a whole lot of books of varying genres. My favorite non-fiction books are the ones that read like fiction, like you're actually talking with the author. That is what it's like to read a book by Annie F. Downs. She's like your best friend, mentor, and big sister rolled into one. You laugh with her and cry and go "oh" at deep thoughts. Her new book, "Looking for Lovely" has not disappointed me in this aspect. I've enjoyed every second of reading through. image via Amazon There were many times in the book when I starred a paragraph or dog-eared a page or underlined a sentence or two. And not only things that resonated with me, but things I think may resonate with my loved ones. When she wrote "I grew up with a lot of shame...Satan started early with me, whispering into my ear that things were my fault, that I should be so embarrassed when I made a mistake, that I wasn't good enough or strong enough to be who everyone else thought I...

Simple Grace is a new Christian magazine designed for women and "was created from the desire to seek God's heart on a daily basis; the core of the magazine is a short, daily devotional that addresses everyday problems we all face - plus it has content that all of us can relate to including interviews with well-known personalities and a media guide." image via the Simple Grace website What I like: I love the size of this magazine/devotional. It's small like Reader's Digest so it's easily carried around in my van or purse or diaper bag. It would be great to take this along and read it before I pick my kids up from school! I haven't done that yet but it'd be a good way to get my head on straight with the Lord before the chaos of after school erupts. I like the section about social media where an author or someone asks a question on Facebook or Twitter of their fans. In the issue I read (August 2015), Karen Kingsbury asked her Facebook fans "...

I'll be honest with you all; I've been in a spiritual funk lately. Both my husband and I realized that we don't feel that close to the Lord lately - not really sure why. Even one of my best friends admitted that she'd felt the same way but was very peaceful when a song had lyrics about God "still" being there. With these thoughts in my head, I began to read "More (from messes to miracles)" by Tammie Head. Who doesn't want more? And more of the One who made "everything and everyone" (as my children pray every meal)?! Even better. image via Icon Media I felt a connection with this author, Tammie Head. I understand some of her past and she seems very authentic in her faith. She just spoke some words (wrote some words?) that pierced my heart. She spoke about how self-centered/egotistical we can become; like our lives revolve around us and only us. "We focus on ourselves, we focus on our problems we focus on our pasts, we focus ...

I saw "Fireproof" with Kirk Cameron and saw how "The Love Dare" reignited his marriage. I've heard several stories of the like that I've believed in enough to buy the book for my parents. So I had high expectations for "The Love Dare for Parents" thinking it would give me really firm ideas of how to really connect with my kids. image via Icon Media If you have a rocky relationship with your kids, your slightly older kids (elementary age and up), this is a book for you. I'm not saying there isn't value in this book if you have a good relationship with your children. I did get some great ideas for how to further connect with my kids, such as teaching them manners in reference to Romans 12:10 which says, "Give preference to one another in honor." Day 30 is "Love takes time" which focuses on turning off the media and screens to spend time with one another in reference to Ephesians 5:15-16: "Be careful how you wa...

Promise I have some fun posts coming up, but I need to write a few of these book reviews first. Up first is " The God-First Life " by Stovall Weems. I was thinking this was going to be a more in-depth, practical book of how to put God first in our lives. It was more like a beginner's book of "ok I trust Jesus, now what?" which is terrific. There needs to be more books like this because when I first trusted in Jesus/became saved, I had no idea what that kind of life should look like. Now, don't get me wrong, there isn't a one-size-fits-all lifestyle for being a Christian. But there are a few things Christians should be doing and that's growing in fruits of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control, faithfulness. I think that Weems laid out his book well to explain how we go about growing these things. Through having new priorities, a new family (God's church), a new life, and new freedom. image v...