Tuesday's Top Ten Plus Ten [Favorite Book Quotes]

Today Melany and I are sharing some of our favorite book quotes. My list was a difficult one to narrow down. Since Melany is a lot like me I know this list could be exhaustive, but I honestly can't speak for Melany so be sure to check out her blog today!

1. "I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book! -- When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library." - Jane Austen in Pride and Prejudice 

How perfectly fitting that quote is to my own life and I have an excellent, forever growing library.

2. "More and more the distinction between prayer and the rest of life seemed to be vanishing for Betsie." (Corrie Ten Boom, The Hiding Place, p. 197)

It was that quote that made me want to be like Betsie. I admire the way that woman handled adversity. This story is one worth reading, not just because Corrie related the story of what they faced in a Nazi Concentration Camp, but because of how they endured these horrors. Absolutely amazing.

3. 

Homer Hickam, October Sky, p.232 

Homer Hickman's science teacher, Miss Riley, gave him a book about rockets. It was this book that helped Homer and his friends reach an unprecedented level of understanding in rocketry, physics, mathematics, &etc. Every teacher yearns for that type of courage from every student in his/her classroom.

4.

I could have 1,000's of quotes from The Valley of Vision! So I simply opened the book and picked the first one I had highlighted. This is a must have prayer book for every Christian. 

5. "It does not matter how small the sins are, provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and into the Nothing. Murder is no better than cards if cards can do the trick. Indeed, the safest road to Hell is the gradual one - the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts." - C.S. Lewis in Screwtape Letters

Although fiction, it was this book that helped me understand the war against sin. It also gave me a different perspective on demons and Satan. I didn't find it scary. A tad creepy? Um, yes. But C.S. Lewis offers insight over and over again into the truth behind our sinful nature. This quote was one way he did that.

6. Another book where I could have 1,000's of quotes from is Milton Vincent's A Gospel Primer. This quote (which was one of thousands) blew.me.away.

7. "I don't know why, but the Bible always seems to come to me in my time of need, even with the exact words." - Rochunga Pudaite in The Dime that Lasted Forever

Rochunga's story of unwavering faith was inspiring. Everyone should read his story and come to the same place of trust in God's ability to provide in all circumstances, no matter what.

8. "Grown-ups are always thinking of uninteresting explanations," said Digory" in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Haha, this one just cracked me up, but also made me realize that I need to have more fun.

9. "I used to think that when people fell in love, they just landed where they landed, and they had no choice in the matter afterward. And maybe that's true of beginnings, but it's not true of this, now.I fell in love with him. But I don't just stay with him by default as if there's no one else available to me. I stay with him because I choose to, every day that I wake up, every day that we fight or lie to each other or disappoint each other. I choose him over and over again, and he chooses me." (Veronica Roth, Allegiant, p.372)

This is such an amazing description of love. (From a fictional, high school love story to boot!) Love is a choice. And you must make it multiple times in the course of a day, week, month, year, lifetime. 

10. "Because God is good, we have an infinite number of reasons to praise him in our homes." (Gloria Furman, Glimpses of Grace, p. 18)

Truth. We deserve nothing from Him. The fact that I have a cup overflowing is enough to praise Him. Heck, the fact that I have a cup at all is amazing! 

And one more just for the sake of sharing a perfect reading quote...

... besides, every favorite book quote list needs some Dr. Seuss! 

2013: A Few BecKyle Highlights!

After spending a couple hours looking back at this year, I feel so blessed with all that God has given us and with how much I have grown in Him. I am not the same person I was a year ago -- my mission is to know Him and to make Him known -- and the more I know Him, the more I change as a result. I'm excited to see what 2014 has in store!

January 2013: Brielle was a whole 4 months old and Marley decided Quigley could stay.

February 2013: This month marked 6 years for Kyle and I!

2007

2013

March 2013: Bean turned 6 months old!

April 2013: Brielle got her first tooth and she went swimming for the first time (she did not enjoy it).

May 2013: We had a family snow day on May Day, celebrated my mom's 50th birthday in Glenwood Springs, CO, and I got spoiled on my first Mother's Day!

June 2013: We enjoyed a dinner theatre production by the community theatre group and won free tickets to their next production! We celebrated Kyle's mom's 50th birthday with a wonderfully relaxing time at their house, enjoying a day in the pool.

A highlight of the year was welcoming little Braylon into our family!

July 2013: We spent the majority of this month praying for my little nephew Braylon who spent quite a bit of time in the hospital with a high fever. We thank God every day that He answered our prayers! I spent a week in Colorado helping my brother and his wife and enjoyed the visit from my sister Mandy and her hubby David. 

My mom scored free VIP tickets to Kool and the Gang and we had a blast! To top of a crazy month Kyle and I celebrated our four year wedding anniversary.

August 2013: Kyle and I enjoyed our first of twelve date nights at the Hiway 92 Raceway. 

September 2013: Our baby Briella Bean turned 1 and the night before her birthday, she took her first steps, she's been walking (ahem, running) ever since! We shared a birthday party with one very special friend.

October 2013: We took Brielle to a pumpkin patch with Kyle's family and she loved every minute of it! 

It was the month that closed off a summer full of showers, showers, and more showers: A Giraffe and a Half Baby Shower. October was also the month I finished the book A Gospel Primer by Milton Vincent -- it left such an impact on my life that it's one I will always keep close at hand. I went with a friend to a small zoo and Brielle loved the experience, we will definitely visit it again. For Halloween Brielle dressed up as a Love Bug and Minnie Mouse, she was absolutely adorable in her little costumes!

November 2013: My 29th birthday. Ah... my last year in the 20's... besides that, Kyle spoiled the heck out of me by taking me shopping. I came home with new slippers and black boots, this girl was on cloud nine! Another highlight of the year: The day before Thanksgiving my sister Mandy and her hubby added little Abigail into our family! We were so excited! Bean got the chicken pox, poor girl! This was also the month I began a head to head battle with an ugly green monster.

December 2013: And this was the month I was finally able to truly give it to Him and whole heartedly trust in His sovereign plan, which began a new, exciting direction in this blog: encouraging other mommy's by sharing birth stories. December was crazy between more sickness, scary moments (like my sister-in-law and my nephew were in a car accident) and answered prayers, Abigail being admitted into the hospital for a high fever and answered prayers. Despite some hard moments of learning to trust in God, December offered priceless moments with our daughter as we decorated for Christmas day, or watched her thrive from the attention of her family -- grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, or enjoyed the laughter and joy she brings daily.... 

These highlights alone give reason to praise God with all my heart! Thank you Lord for this year and all the years to come....

From our family to yours, HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Tuesday's Top Ten (Why Mommy's Should Memorize Scripture)

Part of the women's discipleship process in our church (that is highly encouraged) is scripture memorization. Here's 10 reasons why this is a vital aspect of women's time together: 

1. "For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." (Matthew 12:34) These are Jesus' Words exactly. He rebuked the Pharisees who (after Jesus healed a demon-oppressed man) said, "It is only by Beezebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons." (vs.26) and Jesus (knowing their heart) told them otherwise (that "A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand." In other words, if he was a demon, why would he cast out demons?) Jesus goes on to explain how to know their heart, "...the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. ... I tell you, on the day of judgement people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." (Ch.12:33-37) Therefore, if I say anything at all, if I offer my children any Biblical encouragement, I want it to be HIS Words, because mine are utterly worthless. If I don't spend time in God's Word, how would I know what He says? And if I don't know what He says then I find myself speaking about nothing worthwhile, and then I'm in danger of that last verse: of standing before God on the day that I meet Him, being held accountable for every word that came out of my mouth. The fear of that alone forces me to take this seriously.

2. "As we focus our minds and hearts to understand the Word of God, the Holy Spirit will continue to illumine it and write it indelibly on our hearts." (Furman, G. Glimpses of Grace, p.170) Gloria Furman tells us that we will gain tremendous benefits from "persisting in prayerful meditation on passages of Scripture." By saying a verse, chapter, or book (yes, book) over and over again we are meditating on His Word and allowing it to seep into our very innermost being. Not only that, but the Holy Spirit will constantly bring it to mind, especially when we need it.

3. "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer." - Psalm 19:14 The Israelites sang this Psalm of David and those aren't the only words that we should emulate, "More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter than honey and drippings of the honeycomb." (vs.10) They = God's Word. We should desire God's Word above ALL else, through his perfect Word we will be transformed into His image because God's Word is all about HIM.

4. Memorization is Observation. There are 4 key ingredients to studying Scripture: Observation (Author, Audience, Purpose, sentences, word meanings, historical context, etc.), Interpretation (Am I interpreting it correctly?), Correlation (Does my interpretation match up with the rest of Scripture?) and Application (After all that, how does this apply to me?). Observation is the piece that takes the most work and the piece that women struggle with the most. It's our brain. We were designed to connect everything to everything. In studying the Bible that can be a curse and a blessing. A curse because while we should be observing the text, we skip to correlation and sometimes we "correlate" incorrectly. Skipping steps is a big no-no if you want to make sure that you're INTERPRETING Scripture correctly. Which God does not take lightly. It's HIS Word and it was written for a very specific purpose. We often miss apply Scripture because we can't wait to get to verse 10 when we should be meditating on verse 1. By memorizing verse by verse we are in essence forcing our correlating brain to slooooooow down and meditate, which is so difficult for us multi-tasking, thinking-of-100-things-at-once, Mommy brains.

5. Keep  Your Way Pure. "How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes! With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth. In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word." - Psalm 119:9-16 (Underlining is mine.) This Psalm does not need much explanation, but there are a few things you should know about it: it's an acrostic poem that we lose in translation from Hebrew to English :( and the theme is "The Word of God." Psalm 119 sums up our whole purpose for existence: to know God and glorify Him. There is no other way to know Him than through His Word. The Israelite's memorized this Psalm (alphabetic poems make that easier) so they would always remember that their hope is in His Word (vs.81, 114) and that "it's a light to my path" (vs.105) and and and and... Psalm 119 is one of my favorites and it's worth reading and knowing. In order to keep your life from sin, and to help your children do the same, do as this Psalm suggests: store up His Word in your heart.

6.  "Scripture that is read or recited from memory is the purest form of biblical encouragement. As you use the Bible to encourage your children, you are relying on the Holy Spirit to direct your words and God's Word to them. ... If you ask the Holy Spirit to give you something to say to your children, He will. It doesn't matter if your message is ten words or ten thousand. If you offer it in the power of the Spirit, it will be effective." (Clarkson, C. Heartfelt Discipline, p.111) By relying on the Holy Spirit to speak through you, you will emulate the qualities of the Holy Spirit which are love, patience, kindness, selflessness, self-control, gentleness... all qualities that are impossible to have within you all the time because you're an imperfect, sinful human being. By making God's Word the Word of your heart, those are the words you will speak to everyone, and most importantly your children.

7. Memorization is for Multitaskers! For busy mommy's it is nearly impossible to find a time to sit down and actually study God's Word without interruption; you can memorize and do dishes at the same time!

8. There will be battles and we need to be prepared. You may not always have your Bible. So when you need to say something, pray that the Holy Spirit will give you the words to say. Then trust that He will bring it to mind when it's needed. 

9. There are two things God values most: His Word and His Name. "... you have exalted above all things your name and your word." (Psalm 138:2) So if those are the two things He has exalted above EVERYTHING, I want to make sure I pay attention to it and teach my children what God has exalted above all else.

10. The Words are like medicine. And every mommy needs soul medicine, because there will be tough days and if you focus on the hope found in God's Word, those loooong days will seem like milliseconds in eternity. By feasting on the Word and making it your obsession, you will seriously need nothing else.

I always think of the movie, The Book of Eli when I think of memorization. He knew the entire book and the book wasn't lost as a result. It's one of my all time favorites...

The Holy Spirit can and will use His Words, make them the Words of your heart for all those reasons and more.

--------------------

After writing this I Googled "Memorize Scripture" and found this website that offers 10 more reasons to memorize His Word: Rooted Families. I thought it was worth sharing because the reasons are phenomenal!

30 Day Photo Challenge: Gratitude [Day 7-9]

This weekend was not a fun weekend. I ended up with a stomach bug that forced me to lie in the fetal position all day Saturday. This weekend I was grateful for one thing: my amazing husband who selflessly took care of me and his daughter allowing me to spend my time on the couch or the toilet. (TMI? Sorry...)

Due to that fact I did not participate in this challenge over the weekend. I'm picking it up today with Day 10: Nature. I did participate all week up to Day 9 so I'll share those with you!

Day 7: Something Funny
This might only be funny to me (typically that's how it goes in my world), but I couldn't resist sharing my Halloween socks, googly eyes and all. On the back of these adorable polka-dot socks were fuzz ball lady bugs, complete with antenna's, googly eyes, and a cute little button nose. It went perfectly with my lady bug costume that I wore in conjunction with my daughter's love bug costume. (You want me to share? How can I resist?!)

Isn't my little love bug the cutest love bug ever? (Yes, I'm biased, but seriously...)

Day 8: Favorite Color
I do not have a favorite color. So I took a picture of some leaves I've gathered when I'm outside with Briella Bean for a Pinterest Project. I picked them because I like the colors! It seemed appropriate. Color is one of the reasons I enjoy fall so much.

Day 9: Inspiring Person
I've engrossed myself in Milton Vincent's book "A Gospel Primer," it's this 97 page book that I'll probably read a portion of every day. Seriously. He has inspired me to make the gospel message the central focus of my day-to-day life - from the moment I get up until it's time to lay my head down at night. Heck, I hope to dream gospel! By doing that task (I refuse to call it simple, because it just isn't) my life has changed in so many ways starting with TRUE thankfulness, peace, a new eternal perspective, etc. etc. I'm beyond thankful that Milton Vincent shared how preaching the gospel to himself daily changed his life, because it has most definitely changed mine as well.

Doing this gratitude photo challenge has added a new dimension to my thankful journal I've been doing with my sisters for almost a year now. I not only encourage you to jump on this photo challenge bandwagon, but I encourage you to begin a thankful journal as well. You'll find that instead of being thankful for the "surface level" -things- in your life, you'll be thankful for everything BIG and small, which will ultimately change the way you think in such a positive way. Trust me, being thankful in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18) will change your life.

"A Gospel Primer" by Milton Vincent [Book Review]

This book is only 97 pages long, but it is thick. It took me months to read because each section forced me to stop and think, reflect, pray, and deal with conviction of the Holy Spirit. This book is not merely a "book" ... it is a resource, a "read-again" (and again and again and again), a book for your "tool" box. You don't read why Vincent wrote this book until the last six pages, but his reasoning and his story of being a Christian would fit most Christians today! "I was a believer in Christ. In fact, a number of times throughout my life I had prayed to God, putting my trust in Christ and asking Him to save me. ... My problem was that I couldn't seem to figure out how to stay in the good favor of the God who had saved me." (p. 91)

Don't we all struggle with that? We see Christianity as a process of "what can I DO to keep GOD happy?" Vincent goes into SCRIPTURAL DETAIL on why it is nothing we do, but what GOD did/does instead.

The gospel message is FREEING. Vincent describes the utter joy he felt when he began to "preach" the gospel message to himself daily and in 31 sections described how it changed his perspective on life. By making the gospel his obsession he was able to love deeper, rest in the power of God, trust in God whole heartily, be free from sin, embrace righteousness, let go of pride, study God's Word and become obedient to it, joyfully face trials, pray openly, worship with a full heart, enthusiastically work hard for the sake of the gospel,  rest in the promise of heaven,  give up earthly desires and fix  his eyes fully on God's kingdom,  thank God for all His blessings and glorify Him in all that he says and does. There is absolutely nothing in that list that does not appeal to me and my walk with Jesus. Vincent has inspired me to take Scripture and make it my obsession, because it is living, breathing, and life changing. (2 Timothy 3:16)

As I was reading and reflecting on this book I wrote about it many times because each section forced me to reflect on my life as a Christian. God used this book to help me grow in my relationship with Him and I highly suggest reading it because if you too are a believer, you too will be forever changed.

I truly don't think I could pick a favorite part to share, so I'll simply share my RnR's with you:

• Self Love
• Trials are My Friends?!
• Good Works
• Hope