Gravel Road Musings

Wow 2016 is nearly history. It feels like it flew by rather quickly, but it was a good year. However, I love new years. They feel so clean and fresh and like a new sheet of paper just waiting to be written on. For those of you who are wondering about the rest of the pics for the month of December? It didn't happen. Ha Ha. I nixed the idea of trying it for a year. That felt like a wildly overrated goal. But now that it is the last day in 2016, I reorganized, got rid of last year's things and got out next year's things. That, along with this post, might also have been procrastination. Procrastinating against studying my Sunday School lesson. I have to teach tomorrow and I feel woefully unprepared to connect. It hasn't been that long since I was a youth, but forgive me if any of you youth girls read this, but they seem so much younger than we were at that age. I am sure we were more mature, more advanced, more everything at their age. HA HA HA HA!!!!!!!!! ...

This is a sweet story of love, forgiveness, redemption, and second chances.  The story begins with Summer breaking an engagement and discovering that her dear Grandma, her last relative, is dying. Her Grandma had a great faith in God that she passed on to Summer. Before she dies, her Grandma gives her a list she wants Summer to accomplish. The first thing on the list is to fine her old friend, Martin. Need I say anymore about where that goes? You already can guess. But when she enters Martin's life, there are few thorns in the way, namely his brothers who resent Martin. The humility and forgiveness that Martin extended to his brother's could only have been as a result of God's love. There is reconciliation, even with their father who had, along with their mother, left them and gone to Europe with no communication for many years. Okay, I don't want to give away more of the story. I really, really liked the story as long as the Grandma was alive, but once the Gran...

Day 20: Faces of Loved Ones  I'm only mildly prejudiced here that that little girl is the cutest in town. She was celebrated 22 months on this day. The only problem was neither she nor her mom remembered until the next day.  Day 19: PJ's As you can see, she wasn't that interested in posing or she was doing her lay on the floor pose.  Day 21: Wrapped presents Day 22: A mug with a hot drink And yummy biscotti thanks to a wonderful sister-in-law

Words of Hope and Happiness Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. That's what I have to say about this book. This is a children's hardcover board book of the Lord's Prayer. Each page has a phrase from the prayer combined with a small explanation and a thank you prayer. For example, "Give us this day our daily bread. God has promised to take care of all my needs, so I will trust him and not worry. Thank you, God, for your gifts!" The illustration is a little girl feeding the birds. As far as the ages of children who might enjoy this book, that's a little hard for me to gauge. Because it is a board book, very young children could page through it, but is decent size. I would say 2-5 years maybe would enjoy the book. My daughter is almost two and I am thinking I might make it a last minute add-on to her Christmas gift or will save it for her birthday in two months. The explanations were very simply and child-friendly. The pictures are nicely done. While the exp...

Rediscovering your marriage in the midst of motherhood I am not sure what it is with me and challenges lately or what God is trying to show me, but I didn't realize this book was set up as a 21-day challenge when I requested it. I didn't read it like that. I actually read it through in less than 24 hours, so it's a pretty quick read, but there are some good things in there. I really like the advice Becky gets from her dad which is the premise of the whole book. Wake up each morning and act like it is the first day of your marriage. You know how you listened better, loved better, delighted to do things for your spouse back then? Act like you are back there and be amazed. She has 21 different things to focus on, for 21 days, of course. Here's the list: - Greet Lovingly - Speak Kindly - Touch Him Purposefully - Listen Intently - Thank Him Frequently - Pray Continually - Forgive Immediately - Expect Gracefully - Serve Joyfully - Reach out Intentionally - F...

Day 14: A candy cane.  And the picture is very bad. Day 15: Stockings Since we don't have any big stockings, I decided to grab a pic of Amber with her socks. Socks are a pretty big deal to her. As is putting chairs on a chair apparently. Day 16: Baking This is not baked actually, but it is so good. I have much to learn about food photography, but I would rather know how to make this stuff than take a pretty picture of it. Though it might be better for my waistline if I just took pictures of food. I have been into making Christmas goodies this year. So far I have made Molasses Cookies, Chocolate Peppermint Blossoms with Candy Cane Kisses, Butter Toffee Popcorn, Peanut Brittle, these  Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel Pretzels, and Killer Crunch Brownies. I have another five things I want to make. Yes, I have no idea what I'm doing this year, but I have this storage room that is freezer temperature right now and so everything goes straight in there and seem to...

Thirty days to Improve any Relationship If you don't want to be convicted about improving your kindness quotient, don't read this book. There are three elements to this challenge. Number one, you may not say anything negative to or about the person you are doing the challenge for. Number two, you need to say something positive to the person you trying to be kind to and to someone else about that person. Number three, you need to do one kind act a day for that person. Reading through this book, I have been made aware of how critical and negative I can be and how much I can feel the need to correct things that I view as "wrong". It has challenged me to think, think, think before I speak. I am convinced if more of us would do this kindness challenge, the world would be a better place and there would be better relationships all around. Shaunti has done extensive research and surveys on this and a huge majority have stated the difference it has made in themselves, i...

by Troy Schmidt If you are looking for encouragement, then this is the book for you. Filled with 100 verses and small devotionals for each one, this book is meant to give you courage to face the journey. Be it a terminal illness, loss of a loved one, financial disaster, or something else, this book will point you to the One who is able to bear you up and sustain you through your difficulty. There are the common verses that you would expect like Hebrews 4:15: For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses....." , Philippians 4:7: And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.", and Proverbs 3:5-6: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;...." Then there are some unusual ones that you don't think of when you think of encouraging Bible verses, but which are very good as well. Verses like: Genesis 21:6 "And Sarah said, ...

Day 7: Wrapping Paper Day 8: Favorite Christmas Decoration This is a sign from KLH Design Shop on Etsy and it was given by Cheryl Burkholder Day 9: Something that brings you joy I love watching Dave and Amber interact together Day 12: A cozy blanket This is Amber's night-night blanket. Why is she on the floor? I have no idea, but lately whenever I say I want to take a picture she lays on the floor like that. I think she's seen too many Bible School pictures Day 10: Christmas lights Yep, I have the days switched and it doesn't appear that I have Day 11 which was supposed to be a lit candle. We were going to go look at Bentleyville in Duluth, but it was cold, so we went out to eat and then Dave and Amber had a snack when we got home. Day 13: Favorite Christmas ornament This was a new discovery this year, that we have a little shelf above our stairs and it is just right for putting a few decorations on it. It makes me smile. ...

with Mike Yorkey An NFL wife's story of concussions, loss, and the faith that saw her through. This is the story of Grant Feasel, who played center for the Seattle Seahawks for most of his career and his downfall into alcohol and prescription painkiller addictions after he retired from playing football. This is a great story to raise awareness of the dangers of head injuries incurred by playing contact sports. Injuries to the brain can cause CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a "progressive degenerative disease of the brain found mainly in athletes with a history of repetitive brain trauma, including concussions and concussive hits to the head." Because Grant played center, he was hit on pretty much every play. He was also a long snapper which resulted in hits even on special teams. This led to the development of CTE. He also had multiple aches and pains and was an old man before his time. After a lot of games, if not all, he would come home with a baggie of ...

Okay, due to extreme frustration on the part of getting my computer to upload pictures, I am suspending the picture a day for the month of December on my blog. I may post them on Instagram if you are interested. If sometime I can get my computer and this blog to cooperate, I may post some of them later. I apologize if anyone was greatly looking forward to seeing any of them.

Pursuing God's Blessings through The Beatitudes Okay, I know I exclaimed over the last book I reviewed too, but this book, this book is worth reading. It's fairly small, but very compact. Colin describes the Beatitudes as being rings the we must pass through in order to get to the other side. Think of it at those monkey bars at a playground where you swing across with your arms to get to the other side. The first ring is the first Beatitude: poor in spirit. It's when we recognize that we are nothing without God and can do nothing on our own is when we can start to recognize our sin and mourn it. Then we are able to submit to God, to each His will and to each other. From there we hunger and thirst after His Word which leads to forgiveness, pursuing one thing wholeheartedly and living at peace. Because of our commitment to God we can expect to suffer for being a Christian. Almost every chapter lists steps that help in becoming more Christ-like. I could go on and on ...

And in my dreams, it would be a beautiful white brick fireplace, but until then, this nice little candle will suffice. Plus there is so little maintenance here.

Day 4: Book You are Reading I am actually done with this book now, but it was worth reading. All those little tags you can just faintly see sticking out of the sides of the book? Those were to mark those quotes that stuck out to me. There were just a few of them. Day 5: A Hug So I'm not that much into taking pics of hugs and posting them on the world wide web, so I substituted with these cute little guys.

Rescued from the Life I Always Wanted This book was a fast quick read. Why? Because Shannan's way of writing kept you coming back for more. She will challenge your thinking, make you wonder if you should be moving to the inner city, whether you should empty your savings account, or how to create community with the most unlikely people. I really enjoyed this book. I want the thoughts to stick with me and challenge me and cause me to rethink how I do life. No, maybe I won't move to town, but I do go to  town, generally at least once a week or more, so how can I reach out to the people I see? I'm not going to say a lot more. I will let a few quotes from the book speak for itself. Tomorrow, I will probably post a picture of my book and you will be able to see all my sticky notes sticking out from between the pages. "In a world where we possess the power to distract or buy our way out of most discomfort, can we ever really mean it when say God is all we need?.... ...

I'm not very likely to post videos of Amber on social media, though I enjoy seeing videos of other people's kids, but I've been wanting to get a video of her excitement when her dad comes home. The other night I heard him before she did and so I was able to capture her in her finest moments, better than some nights.  It makes me smile to see her so excited about seeing her Dad. And I suppose I could wax all eloquent and make a spiritual application, but I'll let each of you ponder and draw your own conclusions.

Well-Worn and Well-Loved Ah, what comfort slippers seem to embody. To me, they seem to tell of warmth and home and even a bit of cheer on a dark dreary day.

So today's photo is to be of a favorite holiday movie. Well, about the only holiday movie I can remember seeing is Elf. I am hoping to change that this year and so I decided I would go with my favorite song. Now I did cheat for today's picture and I'm going to post it off the web, but beings that will require me taking a little time to do it, I am going to consider it an intentional picture. And when Amber gets up, we will take some time to watch the YouTube clip of it again. Christmas Shoes Welcome to Our World And then for a fun Christmas Song  The Drummer Boy So yup, that's three songs instead of one. Christmas shoes makes me cry about every time I hear it and really listen to the words, especially if I watch the music video with it. It's so much what Christmas should be about, thinking of others and giving to them. Children can be such a good example of this. So what are your favorite movies or songs?

Finding the Spirit of Sabbath in a Busy World For those who are feeling overwhelmed and burdened by life, who feel like they go 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and never have a break, this book is for you. Shelly is big on finding a rhythm of rest that is a part of your life. It doesn't matter how busy you are, take a day or start with an hour or two, plan it into your schedule, prep your meals in advance and take the time to rest. Rest can be different for all of us. For some crafting is rest, for others it's a drudgery. For some cooking is restful, for some it's a necessary evil. For some reading would be rejuvenating, for other it would be a job to plod through. Take the time, be still, let your mind rest and just soak up Sabbath and God and what He is telling you. I'm not sure if I agree with everything she shared in the book, but I find the theme and the various components of it so necessary. Our bodies need rejuvenation, our souls need rest and worship and if...

Happy Birthday Cheryl and Dad. I started this post a few weeks ago now. It was one I had thought about writing, but wasn't sure if I should or not. It's one of those not-so-pretty posts, one that delves into sadness and tears and such like. I was prompted to start it after reading my friend Jennie's  post  on Cheryl's upcoming birthday. I had forgotten Cheryl's birthday was coming and that in itself made me sad. But just reading her post and then reading the comments, I was struck all over again with the reality that Cheryl is really, really gone and there is nothing I can do to change that fact. In my heart I know she is so much better off, the grief is still there. I still want to go back to those days of stopping off at J and Cheryl's house to hang out. Having another couple that both you and your husband relate to is not something to be taken for granted. It's more rare than you would think. It just feels like there are so many special people in ...

December is just around the corner and the busyness of the holidays can take away from the meaning of the season. I found a photo challenge that I am going to try to do for the month of December and I am inviting you all to join me. I have a list that I downloaded from some printables I bought that I will post and each day you need to take a photo of that item. Now if you don't have a photo of that item, which I don't of all of them, then you can post a picture of something else. The goal of this is to take the time to stop, look, and capture the feeling of the season. I want to enjoy each day and sometimes I can get so caught up in my list of to-do's that I forget to stop and pause, so this photo a day challenge is to make me stop and pause. And, I am going to endeavor to post my picture on a daily basis, possibly with some thought that stuck out to me during the day, if my brain computed anything worth sharing. I'm not sure if you can do this or not, I will have t...

By Dr. Kevin Leman and Jeff Nesbit The Worthington Destiny This is the third book in the series and I think some things would have made more sense if I had read the first two. The book was still very good and very well-written, but just would have made more sense if I had read the first two first. It's the story of the rise of the first female President, which I find a bit ironic considering our recent election. I'm guessing some of that played into the story line for the authors as well beings the book is brand-new. The book is classified as contemporary fiction. I am not sure that it is Christian. God is never mentioned. The Bible is a time or two, but the principles the Worthingtons lived by seemed to be Bible-based. It was a paraphrase from Luke 12:48 and it was this, "To those who are given much, much is required." There is also a theme of forgiveness and doing the right thing no matter what that runs through the book. In some ways the book has stronger...

I think I must be getting older. Yes, I know that's a given. I'd like to say I'm getting more mature too, but I can only hope on that one. But the reason I said I must be getting older is this, we are nearing the end of 2016, about 35 more days to go and I find myself evaluating my year, looking at my life, considering what I want to change in 2017. I find myself almost struck with a frantic feeling of both there's so much I want to do in 2016 yet and there's so much I want to change about myself in 2017. I can almost feel overwhelmed with the thought of it all. In 2016 yet, there are Christmas gifts to DIY, fun food to make, some bucket list things I'd like to do for Christmas, some traditions that I'd like to think up and start making a pattern in our family. One of them has been established in our family, but then we moved up here and it became very difficult. Since the first year we were married, I believe, we have gotten take out or gone out to eat ...

I haven't posted a book review in over two weeks, I must be lazing off!!! Actually, I had two books going at once and also read a non-review book in between. Not that I think anyone missed me or anything. But just to be clear, I am back and have about six books to review in the next few weeks. Okay, "All the Pretty Things". When I started this book, I loved it. I thought it was an amazing story and it is. Edie was born to an alcoholic father. She rarely saw him sober, but she loved him and enabled him until his dying day. She missed that father figure in her life and attempted to salve that wound by working hard at everything she put her hand to except her marriage. She was raised in rather extreme poverty. Her parents divorced and both remarried, but divorced again. She was abused as a child, though it became a repressed memory that came out through recurring nightmares. She was introduced to Jesus and would often respond to altar calls to make sure she was saved. Sh...

I'm not sure what to write here. This is a story of gangs and a big cartel against law enforcement. Add to that a few moles in the law enforcement and you have the makings for some plans to go seriously awry.  It is definitely suspenseful, but it's not really my kind of story. Which is a little hard to believe since I read the book in 2 days. But this is not the kind of book I would want a steady diet of. I find myself looking behind doors and freaking out of the dark and imagining the worst after I read stories like this. Nancy did a good job of writing. It was interesting, just not really my style. There are a few things that I want to take away from the book.  One is your past can go with you and affect who you are today. Mercy, the heroine of the story, had a father who left her mother for another woman. Her mom turned into an alcoholic, dependent, whiny person. This caused Mercy to lean on no one and open up to no one, especially God. Faced with losing those she loved...

With Simple Childlike Faith, Amazing Things Can Happen Written by Riley Banks-Snyder with Lisa Velthouse This is an amazing story. It feels so much unlike my teen years that I can almost find it hard to believe and yet it is inspiring and impressive because it all began with a 13 year-old girl and her dream to go to Kenya. And for five years in a row they went bringing school supplies, hygiene kits, etc. to those who needed them. They helped establish a school and were working on buying property to establish a safe house and maybe teaching classes. The building was equipped with an apartment that Riley hopes to make her home someday with her husband Graham. At 14 years old, Riley and her family established a non-profit organization called Generation Next. They established this basically so they could get donations from department stores who wouldn't donate without being able to write it off for a deduction. The non-profit grew into more than they ever expected. In the m...

This book is full of some of my favorite verses. Liz takes apart each verse word by word or phrase by phrase so that it is easy to understand. Each verse  is printed in the NIV version, but she quotes numerous versions throughout the chapter which give different word pictures to help better understand the verse. This is fairly small book that can be quickly read, however I do recommend taking the time to memorize the verses, at least a few of them, I don't know if I will memorize them all, but I want to write them out, at least parts of the verse, so that I can have it on display to think about. Like I said, there are a lot of favorites in here that I have memorized already. Just a few examples of verses: "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9 "Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus....

I've been working on reading through the Bible in year. I've done this before possibly from front to back, but also with a little Old Testament, a little New Testament, and a little Psalms and Proverbs mixed in. This year it was front to back. I have to be honest, the Old Testament prophets got a little much. I apparently did not inherit my dad's love for these books of the Bible. That makes me a little sad. I'm sure I could cultivate that love though. There were definitely nuggets of gold that I found throughout these books, but I am enjoying the New Testament now. So we all know the story, a rich man comes to Jesus and wants to know what to do to have eternal life. Now here's the first thing I see and I actually didn't even notice this until right now when I'm hammering out this post. He came running to see Jesus. He was excited. We run when we are either scared or excited. Yes, I know people run for the sheer pleasure of running, but I can hardly be fri...

Eight Women who Refused to Give Up. Evangeline Booth Fannie Crosby Virginia Asher Emma Dryer Mary McLeod Bethune Nettie McCormick Sarah Dunn Clark Amanda Berry Smith Eight ladies, few names I recognized when I started the book, but each totally committed to God and sold out for His purpose. Did they make mistakes? Yes. Did their families and marriages suffer? For some of them yes and that can bring up a different dilemma that I won't discuss here. Did they make a difference in the world around them? Absolutely. We all know Fannie Crosby, the blind hymnwriter who wrote many, many songs in her lifetime. Emma Dryer was influential in helping to get the Moody Bible Institute started. Nettie McCormick was a wealthy good friend of Emma's who contributed financially to many, many good causes in her lifetime. Sarah Dunn Clark and her husband started Pacific Gospel Mission, a place I visited when in Chicago helping with street meetings. Amanda Berry Smith helped a...

I have liked Lynn's books, so I was happy to get this one.  At first I thought I was going to be a bit disappointed as the book felt a little disjointed as it hopped back and forth between two people, both of which were written in first-person and then also one person's younger years. So it felt like three stories going on together. But in the end, it turned out to be one of the best fiction books I've read in awhile. I like a good chick flick, but sometimes I feel almost silly writing about them because I can feel shallow and silly for spending my time reading things like that. But I still read them because sometimes it's nice to just escape for awhile and get lost in a story that you know is all going to turn out good in the end. And yes, there is a whole line of thought about the horrors of reading what's called romance novels. Anyway that doesn't have anything to do with this book. This book is good. This is not your happily ever after story. It does hav...

The story is familiar, but short. A man who's tired and weary with the constant vigilance required to keep his son safe and alive. "Imagine the pain of the father. Other dads could watch their children grow and mature; he could only watch his suffer. While others were teaching their sons an occupation, he was just trying to keep his son alive.... "He was desperate and tired, and his prayer reflects both. "'If you can do anything for him, please have pity on us and help us.' Listen to that prayer. Does it sound courageous? Confident? Strong? Hardly." -Max Lucado from He Still Moves Stones I needed this story this morning. The other day I was discussing this thing called faith with a friend. What is faith? I know the Hebrews definition, "substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.". That sounds good, but how does it convert down to practicality in the hearts that have been struggling, the prayers that have seemingl...

Text and illustrations from Scandinavia Publishing House This is a beautiful glossy hardback board book. Each double page has a few sentences telling the story of the birth of Jesus in very simple form on one side. The rest of that page contains pictures of objects you are supposed to find on the other side of the double page spread. I hope that makes sense. It basically is a spot the object book, with the birth of Jesus as the story. Okay, before I make you all more confused than ever, let me just move on from the explanation. The book is beautiful. The pages have tabs that stick out featuring main characters of the story. Amber immediately wanted to look at the book. The book is geared to young readers and I would agree. Upon looking at the book, I thought it would be perfect for Amber, it's a board book, sturdy, and a nice small size. But the objects can be pretty hard to find. Things like a bag or a rake or a water pitcher, etc. take a little looking. She can find some ...

So I was thinking sometime I am going to do this nice little post of random things in my life complete with pictures and snappy little captions and everything. Well it turns out I really don't like taking pictures off my camera nor am I big fan of uploading pictures to my blog. It takes time and patience and the pictures don't always cooperate on here like I like them to, so that post will continue its meanderings through the endless maze of brainwaves until either it dies a sad, forgotten death or it comes to life beneath my fingertips. Which will it be? It's unknown at this point. Beings I really do need to upload my pictures to my computer, having small child and taking lots of pictures and things, there's a chance it may happen. But until then.... I am signing of for today. My brain space is at an all time low. It's been taken over by thoughts on mothering and friends and why we need mom friends and other things from the book study this morning.

I'm not sure what size I was expecting, but this is a pretty good size heavy Bible. While I realized my daughter was too young for it yet, I was imagining a Bible that she could maybe start taking to church in the next year or so. This Bible is too big for that. I would say she will need to be closer to 4 or 5 before she will be ready to take this to church. The back of the Bible does say for kids 6-10 and I would find that age to be very appropriate. This is nice hardcover Bible, but it is pretty thick and of pretty good size. Like I said in the title, this is the King James Version. That is what our church uses for the majority of Scripture reading in church so that is why I chose this version. The pictures are nice, though as you can tell from the front cover, not very realistic at all. The font is of a decent size, but I will be honest. When I opened it up, it struck me immediately as being hard to read. It's not actually hard to read, but I think it's the font an...