Gravel Road Musings

8 Biblical Keys to Resolve Conflict and Preserve Unity "Preserving unity is not just about seeing ourselves in the right light - captive and called as peacemakers - as important as that is. It also has a great deal to do with the way we navigate relationships in the church - redolent with love and grace." And that is a great theme of this book: relationships, which in reality is what peace making involves. But it's more than just that. Curtis dedicates a chapter to intercepting conflict before it occurs, so dealing with maintaining good relationships rather than waiting until they deteriorate. He also stresses the virtues that are necessary for being a good peace maker: all humility, gentleness, patience, forbearance, and eagerness One thing that I think makes this book really good, actually two things. The first is his emphasis on Scripture. I feel like he uses a lot of Scripture verses to make his points. He's not just pulling ideas from the air. He also u...

  Last year I had a goal of sewing many, many quilts. That got derailed a bit because of running a home bakery last summer, but I still managed to sew quite a few. But this year, I recognized from the beginning that quantity wasn't going to be a focus this year: there's just the plan to have too much going on this year.  Mom makes a quilt for each of her grandchildren when they turn ten and she really wants to get those finished this year, just to have them done. There are four left to do and the above picture is an example of the one I sewed on already this year. It's not a true example because I couldn't get my sample block to send via email so I could post it. So that one is about half-sewed and the next one is started. Today, we hope to finish cutting the last one and I hope to have them all sewed up by the middle of February, my part at least. Mom often sews them together and always puts the borders on. Let's say that laying out a quilt at my house with a...

Taking hold of Hope, Beauty, and Life in a Hurting World "Ignoring reality does not breed joy. Pretending that what is true does not exist is not holy defiance. The seeds of joy can only be firmly planted in the pungent soil of the here and now while at the same time being tethered to eternity. Joy is fully rooted in truth. Joy embraces all the senses and is fully awake to the laughter, the wonder and the beauty present in the moment as well as the sorrow, the angst, and the fear. Joy says, 'Even, so, I have a reason to celebrate.'" That quote was in the first few pages of the book and it reeled me in. It has so much food for thought, I don't even know that I have come close to fully grasping all that it means. This is not the first book by Stasi that I have read though it has been a long time since I read anything by her, but I was not disappointed. This book was good. I need the reminder that joy is not dependent on circumstances, joy comes in spite of the...

One Missionary's First Year in the Jungles of Ecuador This is the story I have never heard much about, the story of Elisabeth Elliot's first year in the jungle, before she was married, parts of it even before she really knew if marriage to Jim was an option. This is the story of her year San Miguel de los Colorados, her work of trying to come up with a written language for the Colorado Indians and the disappointments and struggles she had to work through when it seemed that God had let her down. It's not a big book, I read it in about two days. It's an easy read that pulls you into the story. She has a fun way of saying things like, "Dorothy was large of heart as well as of body..."  I mean I love that description!!  It's so kindly put.  Or this: "Our sanctification was rigorously tried as we sought to tenderize our meat or beans in this civilized pot [pressure cooker]..." And then it exploded one day or the safety valve went flying through...

How can it be five years already? It's too long, it's too short, where did the time go? Five years since we saw your little tiny face, clutched your tiny hands and let you go. Well, we didn't really let you go, you were already gone, but we faced the loss that you left in our hearts and lives and rejoiced with the knowing that you were much happier and safer in Jesus' arms than you could ever be in ours. But it hurt and there's still a hole in our hearts. It's not as painful as it used to be, but it's there. Right now, while I'm writing this, the tears are streaming. I think and wonder what you would be like. I can only imagine you would be high energy, a fireball, and a fighter like your brother and sister. Would reading and looking at books be your favorite past time too? And really, it's hard for me to picture you in our lives and that hurts too. But it's reality. It would be either you or Amber, not both of you and I can'...

This is the second book in a series called Line Of Duty. It follows a police chief, Tess O'Rourke in the small town of Rogue's Hollow. She sees more action that a small town chief should see with an increasing drug problem and now pot farms. Someone has a price on her head and what exactly will happen? You know what happens, it's that kind of book, but it does keep you guessing by adding in more and more characters and a few unexpected things throughout. The best part of this book in terms of what can I get out of it, is Tess' relationship with God. She has been angry with God, she thinks, for years, ever since her dad took a bullet on her 16th birthday and died. She wants nothing to do with faith or God since. But she's good friends with a pastor, a pastor whose wife was killed in the first book of this series, so she is constantly confronted with God and faith and she values the pastor's insight and friendship. This comes to a head because the pastor m...

So how many make New Year's Resolutions? How many keep them? I don't make resolutions, at least that's not what I call them. I make goals, generally a long, long list of lofty goals that I'm fully prepared to keep, but then kind of forget about them except for the occasional glimpse I get now and then at the list. But this year, this year will be different. Of course, it will be. That's what everyone says every year. I do actually have a bit of a better plan in place this year. For one, I tried not to go all out like I have some years. I tried to keep the goals a bit smaller because I know this year could be really busy, but I'm also trying to keep much closer tabs on my goals and setting smaller ones that will add up to the big ones, if that makes sense. For instance, in my reading life, I want to read 8 classics or otherwise scary titles that seem lofty and above me, I want to read 12 books I already own or have borrowed, 12 Newberry Award or honor boo...

A Guide to Better Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual Wellness The timing for this book was excellent. It's January, 2019 and everyone is thinking about goals and resolutions for the new year. This book offers a four month challenge to anyone truly wanting to revolutionize their lives. Physically, this book emphasizes exercise, healthy eating, and lots of water, etc. Spiritually, this book talks about a relationship with God and also with the local church. They said something in this book that really stuck out to me. I hear people talking about how being a member of a church isn't that important or necessary, etc. "Being a member of a local church family is part of God's process for developing you into the new you. It is part of his process for growing you. Sometimes the idea of becoming a church member can be a little intimidating. But really, the concept of membership is everywhere in our culture." And they go on to explain that you have gym membe...

I am going to try to be very objective in this book review. The last fiction novel I read was amazing and I knew it would be hard to get any to compare. And so I am trying very hard to do this book justice. I believe this is the third book I have read by Laura Frantz and possibly the best. I also liked The Lacemaker as I recall, but wasn't as fond of Moonbow Night. The first thing I liked about this book is how every chapter started with a quote from somebody like Jane Austen, Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and some that I didn't know of as well. These quotes allowed you a bit of an idea of what the chapter might be about, plus they reminded me of the importance of capturing and writing down great quotes that I come across. That is one thing I really want to do better at, that thing of really seeing the written word and not just getting the gist of the story and moving on. This book is set in the 1700s before the American Revolution and as stated on the back of the bo...

A Study of Matthew 5-10 I will say right at the beginning, I have not read the whole book, but it's going to take me awhile to get through it and I wanted to get a review posted before another couple months go by. D. A. Carson takes these chapters from Matthew section by section, sometimes verse by verse and really expounds on them and what he thinks they mean.  He has some really good things to say. I really liked what he had to say on the Beatitudes and how they build on each other. We need to first be poor in spirit before any of the other Beatitudes will even be able to be applied to us. I haven't agreed with everything I have read in this book. As a person of Anabaptist faith, some of our principles don't jive with his, let's put it like that. However, that being said, I was reading yesterday his explanation of Matthew 6:1 and it was so good. It's the verse that says, in the KJV, "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men to be seen of them.....

January February: the morning of Dave's Mom's funeral: the worst week of the year. Death is hard, sudden death is really hard and what seemed to us to be human negligence in proper care of the deceased and the death becomes brutal and even more of an emotional roller coaster than it already was. But God is faithful. We saw that so much through that week and even after we returned home in the care that was given to us. To all who cared, thank you. And to the one who contributed to our house rent, thank you from the bottom of our hearts!! My little bobble head. It's hard to believe now that he was once a bit scrawny. I was so worried about his lack of growth. Now? He eats as much or more than his sister most days.  Amber's "melting" snowman. It kept leaning precariously the longer it was standing. Her birthday party was in March, a month late. We were all in New Jersey the month before.  April May: get a load of those baby blues ...

This is my first book review of the year and I'm not sure if I should read any more this year or not. I'm not sure I will find a book that will compete with this debut novel by Erin. Set during the Civil War, the 1960's riot in Detroit and the current day, this is the story of three women who  needed to face up to their racial prejudice and see who they really are. In a day when there is so much talk about race and acceptance and all such things, Erin shines a light on some issues. She started this book before the string of highly publicized deaths of African-Americans by police officers and this book was "born out of my own struggle to comprehend the scope, understand the roots, and empathize with the victims of racism in America. It was an attempt to reckon with something that cannot be reconciled." Erin was also aware of the dangers of writing for a person of color as a white woman and she sought advice and critique from her African American friends and has...