Book Review: Growing Up Duggar

Despite the varying opinions on the Duggars, even among my own friends and acquaintances, their family has been a reliable source of entertainment and encouragement to me. When I got Growing Up Duggar for Christmas, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew from other reviews that it wasn’t an autobiographical account of growing up in the reality TV “mega-family.” It turns out, the book is a lot more practical. I was impressed, encouraged, and challenged by the perspectives and suggestions the oldest four Duggar girls shared for the various relationships in a Christian girl’s life. They covered relationship with ourselves, our parents, our siblings, guys, the culture, our country, and the world. Their advice is grounded in Scripture, backed up personal experience, and presented in a clear manner.

That said, other reviewers mentioned buying it for tween/young teen girls and assuming it would be perfectly safe for younger readers because “the Duggars wrote it.” These buyers were surprised to find the girls spoke about some more mature topics like late-term abortion and the dangers of the internet. The book is aimed towards an older teen audience anyway, and I found the subjects to be handled tastefully, but if a younger person wants to read it, I’d suggest having a parent skim through it first.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone curious about the Duggar family or/or anyone who is looking for encouragement and is willing to be challenged. This book is written to girls, but other readers (especially parents) could enjoy and benefit from Growing Up Duggar as well. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

November 14, 2014November 14, 2014

Book Review: God’s Smuggler

God’s Smuggler was one of my favorite books of 2013. We’re now nearing the end of 2014, and I realized I never posted my review of this Brother Andrew classic. Oops! But, actually, that’s a good thing, because I didn’t have a chance to finish a book this week, so I’m happy to have such a good book to tell you about! Before I share my review, though, I’ll let the book talk for itself. God’s Smuggler has some fantastic quotes.

Whenever, wherever, however You want me, I’ll go. And I’ll begin this very minute. Lord, as I stand up from this place, and as I take my first step forward, will You consider this is a step toward complete obedience to You? I’ll call it the step of yes.

The enemy is fierce and he would like for you to think that he has on. Don’t believe his lie.

Why are we worried!” Rolf said suddenly. “This is God’s work. He’ll make a way for us.

Persecution is an enemy the Church has met and mastered many times. Indifference could prove to be a far more dangerous foe.

I have heard about this book for most of my life and, while I didn’t doubt the quality of the content, I expected it to be hard to read. After deciding to tackle it, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was easy to read and extremely engaging. Funny stories throughout the book made me laugh and people’s poignant desire for God’s word brought tears to my eyes on several occasions. Written in a style similar to The Hiding Place, I highly recommend this powerful story of a life of service, adventure and faith.

Have you read God’s Smuggler? If not, do you plan on adding it to your to-read list now? You should!

November 8, 2014

Book Review: Sacred Singleness

Being single is not something I personally struggle with. At this season of my life, I’m thankful God has blessed me with contentment for where He has me and willingness to wait and see what He has next. However, like most people my age, I have occasional questions about what God wants me to use this time for. I also have plenty of friends who struggle with singleness more than I do.

This book has been sitting on a shelf in our house for almost a year. I’d forgotten about it. But last week I read a blog post by a young woman serving as a foster mom to eleven special needs orphans in India. She expressed that one of the hardest things about being a foster mother was still being single. As I read the post, I thought to myself that I wished I had a book to recommend to friends and acquaintances struggling with being single. So I dug up this book by Leslie Ludy and started reading.

Sacred Singleness lays out the power and beauty of single years that are surrendered to Christ. It points out that while popular “wisdom” tells us to make ourselves available and “help God out” by seeking and attracting the attention of potential marriage partners, God tells us to be single-minded in His service and to wait for His timing. I loved the way Leslie casts a vision for being fully satisfied in our relationship with Christ and putting Him above all else.

Announcements!

Check out the final stop on the Counted Worthy blog tour. Lisbeth of Dancing in His Reign wrote a delightful Counted Worthy Book Review.

Also, don’t forget to RSVP for the Counted Worthy Facebook launch party! We’ll be having a bunch of giveaways, including a “grand prize” set of books that includes Counted Worthy, Do Hard Things, and Start Here!

October 31, 2014

Praise for Counted Worthy

Only three days left until the Counted Worthy release date! Last night I ordered copies for everyone who contributed to the Kickstarter campaign, and I’ve been working on some author interviews for the blog tour. Speaking of the blog tour, Christian Bookshelf Review featured an author interview and book giveaway.

It’s been exciting to share Counted Worthy with some beta readers over the past few weeks and get their feedback. Here’s what they’ve had to say.

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Every generation must discover its own storyweavers. Leah Good is one of ours and we are fortunate. Counted Worthy is a thrilling work of inspirational fiction that perfectly complements the message of Do Hard Things. Grab a copy for yourself, grab a copy for a friend, and help spread the word about this phenomenal debut. Counted Worthy belongs in the hands of every Christian teen and story lover in the country. It’s that good. –Brett Harris, bestselling author of Do Hard Things

This is a timely novel during a year that international persecution of Christians has regularly made headlines. –Woody Robertson, co-founder of CollegePlus

Page-turning, tersely written dystopia about the power of words and the ultimate power of THE Word. A great first novel from an author I hope we’ll see more of. —Rachel Starr Thomson, author of The Oneness Cycle, The Seventh World Trilogy, and other novels

Counted Worthy is quite possibly the best contemporary Christian fiction I’ve ever read. The strong, beautiful message is clearly conveyed without the slightest bit of preaching; something exceedingly rare in today’s Christian market. The premise, both unique and familiar, shines like a candle in the dark, forcing you to re-evaluate just how far you’d go with your faith. Ultimately, it instills a desire to follow God to the end of this world. Eagerly awaiting Miss Good’s next novel! –Catsi E, reader

Radical. Intense. Compelling. Leah Good’s dystopian novel, Counted Worthy, powerfully embodies the message that today’s young people need to hear: the Reason we have to die to self, pursue the impossible, and when all else fails, to stand. This is the message that has the potential to turn a generation of complacency into a generation of inspiration. –Melody van Achterberg, reader

Intense. Even if you’re not religious, you can still find appreciation, inspiration, and will wait in anticipation reading this novel. –R. Stars, reader

August 29, 2014

Book Review: The Chocolate Soldier

God’s summons today is to the young men and women of Great Britain and America and Christendom, who call themselves by the name of Christ.

The Chocolate Soldier is rather different from the books I normally review on this blog. It’s not a story, is only an estimated 17 pages in length. More of along essay than a book. However, I’m sure some of you, like me, appreciate a quick read sometimes. The Chocolate Soldier would be perfect for an extended devotional time.

I first heard C.T. Studd’s name five years ago when Eric Ludy came to speak at a homeschool conference. Mr. Ludy is a great admirer of C.T. Studd’s. Because of that endorsement, I quickly downloaded this short book when I found it for free on Amazon.

Studd wastes no time in getting to his point. He defines a “Chocolate Soldier” as a Christian who shrinks from the nitty-gritty of Christianity.

They are chocolate soldiers who merely go to see battles, and cooly urge others to fight them. They had better save their journey money and use it to send out real fighters instead.

Studd exhorts Christians to revive the heroism and determination exhibited by faithful men and women in the Bible.

Real Christians revel in desperate ventures for Christ, expecting from God great things and attempting the same with exhilaration.

Studd’s thought process and wording confused me a few times, but for the most part I enjoyed his whirlwind tour through heroes of the Bible. And the reminder not to be lukewarm is always beneficial. I think the message in The Chocolate Soldier would find a receptive and appreciative audience among many of you who read this blog.

Let me know if you check it out!

August 4, 2014August 4, 2014

Counted Worthy on Kickstarter!

Good morning, everyone! Lord willing the weekly Guess a Quote will go up tomorrow. Today I want to share the launch of a Kickstarter campaign designed to raise the money needed to prepare Counted Worthy for publication. It’s also your first opportunity to reserve a copy of the book. If you’re following this blog, you probably enjoy reading. I’d really appreciate your support of this particular book!

Visit the Campaign!

How to Support Counted Worthy

Visit the Kickstarter campaign and pledge your support. Kickstarter uses an all-or-nothing model for fundraising. If the campaign does not reach the $1,000 pledge goal, no money will exchange hands. Consequently, it’s really important to reach that goal. It’s especially important to act quickly because the campaign is only 10 days long. Any and all support will be greatly appreciated.
Tell other people about the campaign! Please tell your friends. Share on Facebook, tweet on Twitter, and pin on Pinterest. You could also just talk to your friends about it. You know. Good old fashioned face-to-face social networking. 😉 If you do any of the above, please let me know. I’ll be awarding Story Shop points quite liberally for help with promotion.
BONUS! If any blog followers pledge to the Kickstarter campaign, you’ll get a free sneak peak of the Counted Worthy cover image. Just make sure you tell me you pledged. This also counts if someone follows the blog after pledging to the campaign.

Tweeting Made Easy

Counted Worthy equals fiction with a mission. Support this book by pledging to the Kickstarter campaign. Click to Tweet

Love fiction with a Christian worldview? Show your support by funding #CountedWorthy. Click to Tweet

I’m really excited about this project, and I hope you are to. Thanks for supporting it! I can’t wait to share the final product with you.

July 4, 2014June 5, 2020

Witnessing on the 4th

Happy Independence Day, everyone! In place of our normal Friday book review, I wanted to share this video with you. Grace Mally is a young lady with a real heart for evangelism. Through her encouragement, my brother, friends, and I have been challenged to stretch ourselves by handing out the Price of Liberty tracts before fireworks the past few years. It’s definitely a little scary, but often favorite memories are made when we step outside our comfort zones. I encourage you to give it a try!

Our normal Friday book review will be posted on Monday. If you can’t wait till then for a book review, check out this review of Grace Mally’s book.

Are we as Christians truly being the bright lights, the strong voices of truth, that we should be? The solution for this world’s confusion is not to fix all the surface problems, however devastating and shocking they may be. Neither is the answer found in political or social improvements. The answer is for individual people to be brought to Jesus Christ and discipled. This means that individual Christians–each of us–need to be faithfully sharing the gospel, teaching others what God has taught us, and encouraging our friends to do the same.

Visit Book Review: Will Our Generation Speak to read more.

June 20, 2014

3 Books on Godly Masculinity: A List for Guys

I’ve been mentioning for the past few weeks that I hoped to get my brother to do a review for the guys. Well, that hasn’t quite happened. But he did give me the titles of his favorite books in between projects. So I thought I’d share those with you today. The first two books are the ones he gave me and the bottom one I tacked on for good measure. If any of you girls have brothers who don’t follow this blog, you might want to pass the list on to them. These books teach guys how to be gentlemen, and who doesn’t want a gentlemanly brother?

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God’s Gift to Women: Discovering the Lost Greatness of Masculinity:
My brother laughed just reading the author’s note at the front of this book. Mr. Ludy kicks everything off by saying,

I wonder how many people will pick up this book, turn it over and look at my face, and mutter, “If that is God’s gift to women, then I feel sorry for femininity.”

But he goes on to also explain the true purpose of this book,

We live in a generation of burpin’-and-scratchin’ male mediocrity. Most modern-day examples of manhood are self-serving, perverted, and depraved. And we are accepting this second-rate version of masculinity into our marriages, our families, and our lives. I believe we need a new standard of masculinity–a standard that is not shaped by our culture, but by the very person of Jesus Christ. That standard is the core of this book’s message.

Stepping Up: A Call to Courageous Manhood:
This book was lent to my brother by a friend. Apparently it was a good recommendation. According to the Goodreads blurb,

In Dennis Rainey’s newest book, Stepping Up, he tackles head-on the call to living, breathing manhood, offering a simple yet powerful vision for what it means to be a man who truly conquers and wins.Insights include: Six nonnegotiables for training teenage young men; the temptation men face to step down; three qualities of men who finish well.

The Mark of a Man:
Amazon blurb,

In a world where men and women are encouraged to reject traditional gender roles, Elisabeth Elliot candidly reminds men why the genders are not equal and interchangeable. Written as personal advice to her nephew, The Mark of a Man reveals the glory and purpose of true masculinity. With Christ as the example of the ultimate man, this classic take on understanding a man’s role in life and relationships, romantic or otherwise, helps men define their own masculinity in a positive way.