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47. Face to Face: Praying the Scriptures for Intimate Worship
 I am so behind in my reviews. I always forget to add this little gem into my reading every year. It is a lovely little prayer book with Scripture for each day of a three month cycle. I have use it regularly so go through the whole thing at least once a year. :) I just found it on Kindle this last round. Now I don't have to take my book with me on my walks anymore!

46. The Black Moon by Winston Graham

- July 29, 2017 The writing is still superb! I wish I would have read this much sooner. It has been delightful to read it over the summer months. My husband is reading them at the same time. So it has been so fun to discuss them!

45. Warleggan by Winston Graham
 He is a more modern day author (even though he has passed away), but he captivates me like an Austen or a Dickens. Some people were just born to write. I don't want to give anything away. I suggest the whole series.

44. The Good and Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith
 I really loved this book. It is simply about falling in love with God. Each chapter deals with a characteristic of God and the false narratives that we believe about Him and what is true through the life of Jesus. I loved the soul-training exercises at the end. If someone says "Meh" about it (as I read one review), I wonder more about that person than the book. I think this would be especially good for someone with a poor concept of God based on their parental picture.

43. Jeremy Poldark by Winston Graham

- July 18, 2017 I continue to be so impressed by this author. He rates pretty high up there in my book. I get totally lost in his stories!
The new television adaptation follows the books much more closely than the 70's version.
It is interesting to hear that Caroline is the one who is tall with red hair in the books! So different from both television versions.


42. Soul Keeping: Caring for the Most Important Part of You by John Ortberg

- July 15, 2017 I have read two other John Ortberg books (well three, if you count Living in Christ's Presence which is a transcript of a conference he did with Dallas Willard), and I always enjoy them. He has a very casual and easy writing style. This is a foundational book if one wants to understand the care of the soul. It is also very sweet because it is somewhat of an ode to his mentor, Dallas Willard. It chronicles their relationship over the years until Dallas' death in 2013.

We often joke that John Ortberg is "Dallas for Dummies" as sometimes Dallas is difficult for people to understand. (But so worth the investment of time to get to understanding.)  Much of this book is a simpler version of book #41 on my 2017 reading list, The Renovation of the Heart. I adored that book, and I adore this book as well. They are both worth an investment of time with this book perhaps being a good place to start as it is more accessible. I also highly recommend, The Good and Beautiful God whi…

41. Renovation of the Heart by Dallas Willard

- July 12, 2017 This might just be my favorite book by Dallas Willard. I suppose Living in Christ's Presence is really my favorite, but that is a transcript from a conference, and they made a book out of it. So it is a little different.

This is The Divine Conspiracy with feet on it. It is about spiritual transformation. It is lovely in every way, and I highly recommend it.

I listened to the audiobook, and it is a treat because it is actually Dallas Willard reading the book in his peaceful and calm voice.


40. Demelza: A Novel of Cornwal,l 1788-1790 (The Poldark Saga #2)

- July 05, 2017 I wanted to listen to the audiobook of this so I waited and waited while I had it on hold. That meant almost a three month break between books. I wish I had just started to read the hardcopy that my husband had picked up for me back in April.
Still waiting for the audiobook, I finally started reading that hard copy (yes, he kept renewing the checkout) last weekend, and I could not put it down! THEN, my audiobook came in while I was about 1/4 of the way through, and I finished it quickly. Needless to say, I am NOT going to wait for the audiobook of the third book (they did not have it so I had a purchase request that they fulfilled, but there were two people in front of me) and go pick up the hard copy that is waiting at the library.

The story is so compelling. Graham is a superb writer. This narration was not as good as the first one which was narrated by a man. This one was by a woman, and I just did not like how she portrayed Ross Poldark's voice. But many of the other voices wer…

IndepenDANCE Day Freewrite 2017

- July 04, 2017 Yes, I know how to spell Independence, but I misspelled it in my journal today, and God whispered that "Independence makes you DANCE!" :)

I feel a little freer this morning after some pointed conversation with God. Stemming from 2 Chronicles 15:17 in Face to Face: Praying the Scriptures for Intimate Worship

"May I remove the places of idolatry from my life, and like King Asa, let my heart be fully committed (blameless) to You all my days."
I sensed that "still, small voice" say, "Your #1 place of idolatry is people."
Yes, people, their inclusion and somewhat their approval. Dallas Willard quoted George Mueller (Dallas and George are both literary mentors for me) in the book I am reading. I learned this quote in the early 80's, and it used to be on my wall:
"There was a day when I died: - Died to George Mueller: to his tastes, his opinions, his preferences and his will - Died to the world - its approval or censure. - Died to the approval or b…

39. The Global Refugee Crisis: How Should We Respond?
 A fascinating pro/con look at the refugee crisis with the transcript of the debate and pre-debate interviews of the four participants. I learned quite a bit. They poll the audience before and after and the difference is quite substantial with one side winning the audience over with their argument. They certainly helped me decide!

