God’s Great Plan by Melissa Cutrera and illustrated by Matthew Sample II (Review)

God’s Great Plan

By Melissa Cutrera and illustrated by Matthew Sample II

(I received this book for review purposes.)

Genre- Religion / Christian / Juvenile

Published by- Shepherd Press

Copyrighted- 2013

Number of pages- 27

Age Group- Juvenile (young children)

Description of book- hardback (ISBN: 978-1-936908-813, $16.95)

Are you in need of a book which will teach young children about God and the plan he made to save us?

God’s Great Plan, by Melissa Cutrera and illustrated by Matthew Sample II, is about the story of Creation, Fall, and Redemption.  This book contains concise rhyming and discusses the creation, fall, redemption, sanctification, and glorification.

The children looking at the illustrations will see the truths being taught to the two children in the book by their grandfather.

Link to the video.

About the author- Melissa Cutrera currently lives with her husband and two children in Utah.  She has many interests and has been a nursery director, public school teacher, and a French teacher to homeschool students.

My thoughts- God’s Great Plan, by Melissa Cutrera and illustrated by Matthew Sample II, was a great book to illustrate what God has done for us.  I thought it was great to have two children who are being shown by their grandfather what God did for us.  To me, that shows children who read the book or have it read to them how people can tell other people about God’s story.

This book was short and to the point, which made a lot more sense to me than having a longer story which may not have said so much.  To me, the most important part of this book was the illustrations, because they were able to say so much more than the text did.  I could really understand the point of the story by looking at the illustrations. 

This book would have been perfect if there had been a list of questions in the back of the book for parents to discuss with their children.

My eight-year-old daughter said, “I liked the illustrations.  I liked reading the book.  It would be good for children younger and older than me.”

My almost ten-year-old son said, “I liked the picture of God forming Adam.  I think this book would be good for children my age.”  

I highly recommend this book.

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received God’s Great Plan, by Melissa Cutrera and illustrated by Matthew Sample II, for free through Cross Focused Reviews.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own or my family.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.  All links were current when posted.

Awakening Faith: Daily Devotions from the Early Church by James Stuart Bell with Patrick J. Kelly

Awakening Faith: Daily Devotions from the Early Church

By James Stuart Bell with Patrick J. Kelly

(I received this book for review purposes.)

Genre- Religion / Christian Church / Leadership

Published by- Zondervan

Copyrighted- 2013

Number of pages- 176

Age Group- Adult

Description of book- hardback (ISBN: 978-0-310-49450-8, $18.99)

Are you looking for a new devotional for yourself or someone you know?  Awakening Faith, by James Stuart Bell, along with Patrick J. Kelly might be what you are looking for.

Awakening Faith contains 366 Scripture readings and devotions from some of the earliest Christian Church Fathers.  Bell and Kelly have updated the language to make the language easier to understand. 

Some of the Church Fathers include Patrick, Tatian, Ambrose, and Hippolytus.  In the back of the book is a list of the Scriptures and short biographies of the Church Fathers.

About the authors-

James Stuart Bell currently lives with his family near Chicago.  He has written, edited, or compiled more that 140 books.  He has worked at Doubleday and Moody Publishing.  He currently owns Whitestone Communications, Inc., a literary development agency.

Patrick J. Kelly currently lives near Chicago and has degrees in English, philosophy, and systematic theology.

My thoughts- I thought Awakening Faith, by James Stuart Bell and Patrick J. Kelly was an excellent resource and daily devotional.

I really liked that I could study the works of the Church Fathers from the first eight centuries.  I was especially appreciative of the fact that Bell and Kelly took the time to modernize the language.  I do have a degree in English with an emphasis in Old English, but the language has always been hard for me to understand easily.  The modern English language made the devotions a joy to study and I felt that I really began to understand how the Church Father’s thought and what their lives were like.

At the top of each page it listed the topic of the devotion.  I would have liked to see a list of those topics in the back of the book with the corresponding devotions.  I enjoyed reading the biographies of the Church Fathers.  I would have liked the section in the front though, so I could have learned about them before I read their writings.

Awakening Faith was an excellent book.  I highly recommend it to everyone who is looking for a new devotional.

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Awakening Faith: Daily Devotions from the Early Church, by James Stuart Bell with Patrick J. Kelly, for free through Cross Focused Reviews.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.  All links were current when posted.

Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret by Larry Osborne (Review)

Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret: Why Serial Innovators Succeed Where Others Fail

By Larry Osborne

(I received this book for review purposes.)

Genre- Religion / Christian Church / Leadership

Published by- Zondervan

Copyrighted- 2013

Number of pages- 176

Age Group- Adult

Description of book- hardback (ISBN: 978-0-310-49450-8, $18.99)

Are you a leader in your church or business?  Do you want to learn more about being a leader when innovation is involved?  Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret, by Larry Osborne might be just the book for you.

This book is packed with a lots of valuable information on how to make your innovations work and what to do when they fail.  Some of the topics are:

• How to have an exit strategy.
• How to begin and accelerate your innovation.
• The importance of a vision and what to do when plans are not working as you wanted them to.

Link to the Video.

About the author-

Larry Osborne currently lives with his wife in California.  He is the senior pastor at North Coast Church.  Osborne is a consultant to different leaders and speaks about leadership and spiritual formation.

My thoughts- I thought Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret, by Larry Osborne, was an excellent resource for all leaders and those who want to be leaders.  I have been a leader in various clubs and at work.  I think that if I had been able to read this book before I took those leadership positions, I would have been a more effective leader.

I enjoyed reading and learning from this book, because Osborne used an easy writing style.  The writing style did not detract from the all of the important information that he needed to give, it made it easier to understand and remember.  I thought the setup of the book was very good.  It was helpful to have the book divided into different parts, so that at a later point in time I can go back to the section of the book that I need.

Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret is a very important book.  I know that all leaders will learn a lot of information and it will help them succeed where previously they may have failed.  Please buy a copy today.

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Innovation’s Dirty Little Secret: Why Serial Innovators Succeed Where Others Fail, by Larry Osborne, for free through Cross Focused Reviews.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.  All links were current when posted.

Severed Trust by Margaret Daley (Review)

Severed Trust (Book 4 of Men of the Texas Rangers Series)

by Margaret Daley

(I received this book for review purposes.)

Genre- Christian / Fiction / Suspense 
Published by- Abingdon Press 
Copyrighted- 2013
Number of pages- 320
Age Group- Adult
Description of book- paperback, listed price- $14.99, ISBN: 978-1-4267-6186-7

Severed Trust, by Margaret Daley, is Book Four of the Men of the Texas Rangers Series.  In this book, Texas Ranger Ethan Stone is investigating the mysterious death of a high school student.

Sadie Thomson, a teacher at the high school, becomes involved with Ranger Stone and discovers that there is a lot of prescription drug abuse in the high school and the community.  Ethan’s niece, Lexie, is drugged and now everyone thinks that she is a drug abuser.  Then Lexie’s friend commits suicide.  Lexie, Sadie, and Ethan are determined to find out what has happened.  Will they be able to find out what happened?  Will they be able to keep Lexie safe?

About the Author- Margaret Daley currently lives in Oklahoma.  She has written more than sixty-five books and mentors other authors.

My Thoughts- I liked Severed Trust, by Margaret Daley, because it discussed a subject that many of us may not know a lot about, prescription drug abuse.  I didn’t know a lot about drug abuse before I read the book.  Now I realize how easy it is for everyone to have access to prescription drugs.  People really need to keep track of their prescriptions, because other people can be taking them.

I enjoyed the characters in this novel.  Sadie Thompson, Texas Ranger Ethan Stone, and Lexie Alexander were strong characters and dedicated to solving the mystery of the mysterious deaths of Jared Montgomery and Kelly Winston.  There were also other strong characters, but they were the ones who had done the crimes. 

I would recommend this book to both men and women.  There is a lot to learn about prescription drug abuse and what may happen when teens abuse the drugs.   

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Severed Trust, by Margaret Daley, for free from Abingdon Press.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.  All links were current when posted.

Ephesians: Discovering Your Identity and Purpose in Christ (A Discover Together Bible Study) by Sue Edwards- Lesson 9: Sit Down to Stand

Ephesians: Discovering Your Identity and Purpose in Christ (A Discover Together Bible Study)

by Sue Edwards

(I received this book for review purposes.)

I’m excited to bring to you a Bible study that I am participating in by Sue Edwards.  I participated in her 1 Peter Bible study.  It was rewarding.  I worked on the Ephesians Bible study this past week with Lesson 9: “Sit Down to Stand.”  I’m excited to share my thoughts with you.

This week’s focus was standing with Christ, by putting on the full armor of God and this is our last week of lessons.  I read Ephesians 6:10-24.  The memory verse was Ephesians 6:11-12.

“Your Source of Strength”

• The command in verse ten is be strong in the Lord.  Many people look for power in their jobs or with their wealth.
• God is our source of strength.  A woman who looks to the Lord for strength and power is a Proverbs 31 woman.
• To be strong and stand firm we need to put on God’s armor.  Jesus is our armor.

“Your Vicious Enemy”

• My enemy is Satan.  Satan is always behind our difficulties.  He is in the unseen world.
• I think that if you know that Satan is behind other peoples negative actions, that we can forgive and help those people more easily.

“Your Armor”

• I think we should always be on the offensive, because we need to be proactive in our actions against evil.
• Take a look at Ephesians 6:14-17 and identify the character quality or spiritual resource for the armor.  There is the belt, breastplate, shoes, shield, helmet, and sword.  There are more verses about how Christ is our armor in other verses of the New Testament, like Ephesians 2:14 and Revelation 19: 11 and 13.
• When we put on the armor of God we need to pray consistently, be thankful, ask God for wisdom, and we should not stifle the Holy Spirit.
• When we have Christ as our armor we have nothing to fear.

“Battle Prayer”

• We need to pray for others and be a prayer warrior. 

“Parting Words”

• Paul’s closing and opening of his letter to the Ephesians had repetition, because those were some of his most important thoughts.

“Conclusion and Endings”

• Standing is being firm and not moving from what you believe you.  You have to learn to be with God and work with others in God, then you can stand firm with your armor on.
• In five years, I will remember to talk well, live in the light, how to treat one another, the Lord is here for us, and Don’t Fear

Genre- Bible Study 
Published by- Kregel Publications 
Copyrighted- 2012
Number of pages- 128
Age Group- Adult
Description of book- Paperback, listed price- $12.99, ISBN 978-0-8254-4309-1

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Ephesians by Sue Edwards for free from Open Book Promotions and Kregel for this Bible Study.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.  All links were current when posted.

Seasons of the Heart compiled by Donna Kelderman (Review)

Seasons of the Heart: A Year of Devotions from One Generation of Women to Another

compiled by Donna Kelderman

(I received this book for review purposes.)

Genre- Religion / Christian Life / Devotional

Published by- Reformation Heritage Books

Copyrighted- 2013

Number of pages- 416

Age Group- Adult (women)

Description of book- hardback (ISBN: 978-1-60178-272-4, $20.00)

Women, are you looking for a new devotional for this next year?  Men, is there a special woman in your life who needs a new devotional?  Seasons of the Heart, compiled by Donna Kelderman, might be what you are looking for.  

This book is filled spiritual insights from twelve women from Great Britain and America who lived from the sixteenth to the twentieth centuries.  Some of the women were published authors, some were not, they wrote in journals and letters.  These women included Ruth Bryan, Isabella Graham, Susan Huntington, and Anne Steele. 

The back of this book includes biographical sketches and scripture index.

About the author-

Donna Kelderman currently lives with her family in Michigan.  Her husband is dean of students and spiritual formation at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary.  Kelderman works with the seminary’s Ministry Wives Institute.

My thoughts-

I thought Seasons of the Heart, by Donna Kelderman, had a lot of good spiritual advice that is as important now as it was hundreds of years ago.

Kelderman had a great idea when she decided to compile this information from all of these wonderful women.  It was helpful for me to have this advise in short pieces, because some of their dialogue was difficult for me to understand.  When it is hard for me to understand something I have to spend a lot of time going through each sentence, so shorter pieces don’t take a lot of time in my hectic life and still allow me to learn a lot.

The only thing I would have done different in this book, would be to place the biographies in the front of the book.  I would have liked to learn about the women before I started reading what they wrote.

I’m glad that there were 365 days of devotions.  It can give me time to get to know these women better.  I think that many women can learn a lot about these women and themselves from studying these devotions.  I recommend this book.

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Seasons of the Heart: A Year of Devotions from One Generation of Women to Another, by Donna Kelderman, for free through Cross Focused Reviews.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.  All links were current when posted.

For Love or Loyalty by Jennifer Hudson Taylor (Review)

For Love or Loyalty (The MacGregor Quest Series, Book 1)

by Jennifer Hudson Taylor

(I received this book for review purposes.)

Genre- Christian / Fiction / Historical 
Published by- Abingdon Press 
Copyrighted- 2013
Number of pages- 352
Age Group- Adult
Description of book- paperback, listed price- $14.99, ISBN: 978-1-4267-1469-6

It is the MacGregors against the Campbells.  The Campbells have sold Malcolm McGregor’s mother and sister into servitude in the United States.  The ship has already left Scotland, so he takes a drastic move, by taking Lauren Campbell.  They go on one of the next ships to the United States.

Lauren doesn’t realize it, but she is going to be the one that is traded for his mother.  Lauren stays strong in her faith in God, the God Malcolm’s mother taught her.  Malcolm begins to trust and love her on the ship ride.  What is he going to do when they get to the United States?

About the Author- Jennifer Hudson Taylor graduated from Elon University with a B.A. in Journalism.  She writes historical and inspirational fiction.  Her website is www.jenniferhudsontaylor.com

My Thoughts- Jennifer Hudson Taylor is one of my favorite authors.  I really enjoyed For Love or Loyalty.

This book starts with the Campbells fighting the MacGregors and it ends with fighting.  The epilogue will please you though.

The details in this book were very good.  I felt like I was on the ship with Lauren and Malcolm.  I also felt like I was with Lauren, when she was an indentured servant.  Taylor must do a lot of research to be able to include such great details in this book.  Based on all of the details in For Love or Loyalty, I can’t wait to read the second book in the series.

If you like adventure, history, and romance, then this book is for you.  Make sure you buy a copy today.

Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Love or Loyalty, by Jennifer Hudson Taylor, for free from Abingdon Press and the Early Reader Program.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions I have expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.  All links were current when posted.