Stories are my favorite things

Tell Me a Story: The Life-Shaping Power of Our Stories by Daniel Taylor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I will let the author speak for me:

"Stories tell me not only who I am but also who you are, and what we are together. In fact, without you and your story I cannot know myself and my story. no one's story exists alone. Each is tangled up in countless others. Pull a thread in my story and feel the tremor half a world and two millennia away."

"It is crucial . . . that we surround children, and ourselves, with healthy stories. These stories should be filled with mentors, models, and heroes who do the kinds of things, physically and spiritually, that we ourselves wish to do. If I cannot imagine myself doing something, I am unlikely even to attempt it. Stories multiply our possibilities."

"Stories can . . . literally give us courage. The child who hears of another child outwitting a giant in a fairy tale is better equipped to conquer the equally fearsome giants in his or her own life. . . this is one of many reasons to reject the flippant response "It's just a story" . . . Stories are more real and more determinative in our lives than the vast majority of things that go on in the merely physical world. Stories form our minds and spirits, the way we perceive ourselves and others, and how we act in the world. Strip the world of story and it becomes more a simple mechanism--and therefore less real."

"Storytellers should be aware that they are dealing with dangerous materials. Life and death flow to us through stories. Words have almost unlimited power to destroy and to heal. Nothing is more false than the implication of the phrase 'words, words, words--nothing but words.' More lives have been destroyed by words than by bullets, and more lives redeemed and made whole."

"In his Nobel Lecture, Solzhenitsyn reflects on the role of stories, and art generally, in the modern world, and identifies four things literature can do to help heal a violent, fragmented, alienated world. First, it preserves memory, without which we forget who we are. In addition, it helps us to see ourselves accurately, diluting our human tendency to self-delusion. Further, it gives us a vehicle for overcoming our radical separateness and the relativism of values, offering something for common contemplation that shows us our potential for agreement and community. Lastly, as we have seen, art and stories can vanquish lies, including the lies that provide the needed cover for violence and oppression."

Tonia, you have it right when you say, "Fight Evil, Read Books".

I really liked this book, and when I think of my life as story, and my friends as characters in my book, I don't know, it just adds something to my life.
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Coming to the Table

We had the nicest sermon on taking communion a few Sundays ago. The scripture was from 1 Corinthians 11:17-34. For me, it was a beautiful reminder that you and I are always welcome at the Lord's table.

It is only when we come to supper with the Lord that we can receive His Power and His Grace. It is here we can be washed clean and rest in God's presence. The blessing is that we can come just as we are. . . no, you do not need to be perfect and without sin - an impossibility that it seems I, at least, am ever striving to attain. I think that I am often tempted to judge myself and other people, as to whether they are worthy to partake. I'm not sure if this is something that I grew up with in the Church, or something that I picked up from the world, but the thing is - I don't get to decide. The Lord has invited everyone to come to the table. Everyone means just that, everyone - the blatent sinner, the unbeliever, you, and me. Some of the sermon highlights:

• When we prohibit people from coming to the Lord's table they cannot receive the power of Jesus. When we come to the Table of the Lord we let Jesus show Himself to us.
• While there, we need to enjoy the feast for all it's worth.
• Unusual prayer is fitting at the Lord's table.This is the place to bring your most outrageous and impossible requests.
• Jesus can flow His wholeness into any part of my life (or yours) that is broken. It is here that we receive God's cleansing.

Isn't this all such a mystery and such a great picture of how outrageous and upside down it is to be a Christian. We can't reflect God's glory if we are not nourished by His body and blood. We must turn the other cheek and forgive seventy times seven, we must go and tell this strange and unbelievable message to people that don't know Him. We must follow His creed of loving our neighbor as ourselves. Not just the neighbor that we find it easy to like, but also the neighbor that we find reprehensible and unlikeable. Who else follows a religion like this?

I'm reading an interesting book: Take This Bread by Sara Miles. Sara's ancestors were Christians on both her mother and father's sides. Her mom and dad however, rejected the faith. Sara had no interest in the Christian lifestyle. Until . . . one day for reasons unknown to her she stopped by a church and took communion. She knew nothing about God, she just sort of followed the routine of the people in the church, but taking the bread and wine changed her. I'm still learning about her journey, but am struck by her stories of the people in the church who we might turn out, and who are actually the sort of people that Jesus hung out with. I'm struck anew by the fact that it's not my job to judge, but rather to love. How to love without judging? How to speak to the wrong without alienating the wrongdoer, and is that even my role? Do we only point the way to Love and leave the rest to the Holy Spirit?

These are the sorts of questions rolling around in my brain. I'm thankful that I can be nourished by God's body every day, and that His Holy Spirit is accessible to me every day, not just at communion. I'm thankful that I'm not the Judge, and that, even though I don't know the answers to my questions, that I can count on the One who knows all the answers to lead me down the right paths as long as I entrust myself to Him.

If you are a Christian, and love Jesus, then you know He's called us to be the light of the world. I've been thinking about this a lot lately, partly because we're focusing on World Missions in Church, and partly because that's always a part of my thought process in my life as a Christian. Since we've been focusing on World Missions, we're seeing and learning a lot about the amazing work God is doing in countries where they don't have the gospel, or not allowed to share the gospel. Learning about people who are putting their lives on the line so that others can hear and share in the Good News.

This always makes me feel a little inadequate--I haven't gone to Africa, or India, or anywhere really, except to my desk at work every day. I believe that God uses me where I am, but somehow it doesn't seem like it measures up to the Great Commission. I'm trying to think differently about it, because I know God uses me, and I know I have some things He's wanting me to do right where I am that I'm really not too crazy about doing. Heart things that could make a difference in how hearts view Him. Do you think it counts if you do the heart things, but don't FEEL the heart things? (This is really a rhetorical question, I know the answer is YES, but wouldn't it be better and more honoring if my heart could do those things joyfully rather than reluctantly and with much groaning?)

If you haven't seen the "A Thousand Questions" video by Willow Creek you should take 10 minutes to view it. I think the ending in particular, clearly shows that we are called to help in the world, certainly, but also, the world isn't just far away places, but it's right here, right now, right where you are. There are school kids that need our help, people in nursing homes, homeless people right here in our own backyards, and yes the people we work and live with every day.

Perhaps some day I will go to a persecuted country and share the good news. Perhaps not. Maybe I'll always be sharing the good news in my own small way in my own small corner of Holland, Michigan. For me, the greater victory will be when "I will [not merely walk, but] run the way of Your commandments, when You give me a heart that is willing" Psalm 119:32 Amplified

In the meantime, I will remember the words of William Booth, and show God's mercy where I am.

"Not called" did you say? "Not heard the call" I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters not to come there. Then look Christ in the face--whose mercy you have professed to obey--and tell Him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish His mercy to the World. (my italics)

"Crispin": Junior Fiction Worth Reading

Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Crispin is set in the 14th century. It's the story of a boy who is known only as Asta's son, and discovers his true name after a series of sometimes cruel and sometimes strange events. He is pursued on every side for reasons that are not clear to him. In all his 13 years he has never been treated with kindness, but only with contempt or dismissal. In the beginning the language seemed a little stilted to me, and some of it put me off, in that 14th century language isn't that smooth I guess. Before long though, I was wondering what misadventure was going to happen next, and how the story would be resolved. I strove mightily not to read the end before finishing the book, but alas, I can rarely resist that temptation. It never ruins the story for me though, and I just picked up where I left off and read through to the end. I'm thinking this has something to do with my impatient nature, which is sometimes an advantage, and sometimes not. One thing that struck me was the picture of people as souls. Rather than saying "150 people can fill this building" the book would say "150 souls can fill this building. I like that. I think we should have kept that language, because when I think of you as a soul, I value you so much more.
Crispin: At the Edge of the World by Avi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The day after I finished Crispin: The Cross of Lead I went to the library to get this book. I wanted to know what was going to happen! I enjoyed this book as much as the first. Crispin has grown in his sense of daring and right and wrong. His loyalty to his friend Bear is strong. His curiosity though, seems to get him into a little bit of trouble. I'm disappointed that the 3rd part of this trilogy is not out yet. Now I'm left hanging until it's published!

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Have You Read "The Help" Yet?

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
It's 1962 in Mississipi, and a majority of white women have a black maid to help them at home. They trust this maid to comfort and feed their children, make their meals, do their ironing, but they don't want them to use their bathrooms. This is just a tiny example of the many little prejudices that black people in the South have learned to put up with. White people may treat their maids as family, or they may treat them as non-persons. Someone who treats them as fully human, may themselves face repercussions from their community.

The Help really brought home to me how dysfunctional this society was. The children would treat the black women that cared for them as if they were their mothers. They would play with white children, and love them. Until, that is, they reach a certain stage. I have no concept of what it meant to be black in that society, or in this society now. I think white people in general have no idea of the small or large inconveniences that are purposefully put on black people. We have no idea of the very real courage they had to have to fight their way to freedom, and that so many of them did that with dignity and grace deserves our applause.

The story is told in 3 unique voices: Aibileen, Minny, and Miss Skeeter, who is white. Each character is unique, and each character struggles with who they can become, and taking the courage necessary to become that woman.

The author, Kathryn Stockett, had a black maid in her childhood, so the story has authenticity. The book jacket tells us:

Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and thir times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.

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If You Like Old Literature Try This

The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book was copyrighted in 1925, and it's actually sort of between 3 and 4 stars. I was intrigued to read it when I saw clips for the film version of it. It's about a woman who married a man she didn't love, and is foolishly in love with a married man. Her husband discovers this love affair, and gives her an ultimatum - either file for divorce and name your lover, or come with me to Mei-tan-fu, which is ridden with cholera. Her lover doesn't want to marry her, as her husband well knew, and so she goes to Mei-tan-fu. I was expecting her to fall in love with Charlie (her husband), while there, but she does not. Eventually she finds a purpose in helping with the children, and a sort of satisfaction in the woman she becomes. I can't give away anymore without spoiling the story. To understand the story as a whole, you will need to look up "Elegy" by Goldsmith, unless you are already familiar with it.

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Am I Living a Life of Adventure?

The Crime Of Living Cautiously: Hearing God's Call To Adventure by Luci Shaw

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I read this book because I feel like I DO live my life cautiously, and wanted to see what Luci Shaw had to say. It didn't hurt that she is one of the featured speakers at Festival of Faith and Writing at Calvin College this year. I liked how each chapter began with a quote and ended with reflective questions. In Chapter 7 (The Risky Adventure of the Unknown) she quotes poet Mary Oliver: "Listen, are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?" Doesn't that just give you pause? Is this what I'm doing, cheating God of a life fully surrendered to Him because I'm a chicken? This paragraph ends with this thought:

"We need God to confound us with a mission larger than we are, so that we can call on Him for what we need and don't have."

I liked that. I need to listen more for God's call to adventure and listen to Him. I loved the ending thought from the last chapter:

"The cliff edge of our anxiety about the future may indicate that God is calling us to a new and different level of faith. When we walk, praying for guidance, to the edge of all the light we have and breathlessly take that first step into the foggy mystery of the unknown, we must believe that one of two things will happen: either God will provide us with something rock-solid to land on and stand on, or He will teach us how to fly."

Here's to flying!

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The White House and Capitol Buildings

Do you know that verse in the Bible where it says that God has prepared good deeds for us to perform ahead of time? I felt like I was the recipient of those good deeds on Wednesday when the car died on me. Ron was in the condo napping with his phone turned off, and I was stranded in the parking lot of Big Giant. I walked over to Auto Advantage and they lugged their battery tester over to Big Giant and tested the battery – which was good, but low on charge. Then they lugged over a battery to charge it up but that didn’t do anything. The gentleman that was helping thought it was the starter – so now what!!? I asked if he knew of a place that did good work but was reasonable and he immediately dialed Woody at Don’s Sunoco. They towed the car over (dropping me off at the condo on the way) and told me it would be done by the morning for sure, pretty iffy for getting done that afternoon. I called Rep. Hoekstra’s office where they graciously changed our tour to Thursday. Probably no more than an hour later Don’s called and they had the car done! They drove over to the condo to drop off the car and we drove Woody back to Don’s. Everything worked out so nicely. We had decided to just be lazy so I read “The Help” (very good), Ron napped, and then we went to dinner at Brio’s in Tyson’s corner (one of the 11 largest malls in US). Very good food and service, and I totally enjoyed my Crème Brulee Trio and Ron enjoyed one of the biggest pieces of chocolate cake ever!

Thursday morning we headed out to Old Ebbitt Grill in downtown DC. Ebbitt’s has been there 100+ years, and we thoroughly enjoyed our breakfasts (Egg Strata and Frittata) and yes, then we fell for dessert at breakfast (pecan pie a la mode and Chocolate Brownie Cappucino which was HUGE). Ebbitt’s is a beautiful old building and I thank my sister and Daniela from Pete Hoekstra’s office for recommending it.

After breakfast we headed out to the White House. First we stopped at the Visitor’s Center, which was okay, but I think we both felt we could have skipped it. Then we joined the other tourists to view the South view (Rose Garden and where Air Force One lands). Of course, we are barred out. I bet when Washington lived there you could have walked right up and knocked on the door. It doesn’t seem right to me that the House we help pay for doesn’t allow you in. We walked around and viewed the front as well. There were a few protester’s, but mostly just us tourists. From the White House we metro’d to the Rayborn Building to pick up our Capitol tour tickets from Pete Hoekstra’s Office. While I was removing my belt (I was tired of removing this by the end of the day, but it kept setting off the alarm), I noticed a sign for DIBELS pointing to the left. Somehow I had not expected to run into that while in DC – no protesters that I could see though.

The capitol tour was interesting. Our guide was very knowledgeable and took us through the history of the paintings and statues. Our government sure likes to spend a lot of money on these buildings and statues. We’re talking big bucks with marble floors, bronze statues, chandeliers, etc. Given this economy and the trouble our country is in I have to wonder about the wisdom of it. The Library of Congress was in the millions of dollars and they built that during the depression. It seems like the dollars we spend on these buildings could be better invested in people. I love seeing them, and seeing the history of the country, but I wonder if these monuments are just to make us feel important and show our success to other people/countries. Maybe we need to be more humble and frugal, and use these dollars to build up people instead of monuments.

After touring the capitol we sat in the House Gallery for a while. They were voting while we were there. It was driving Ron crazy because it just looked so chaotic and disorganized down there. Everyone was chatting people up in between the votes, and when the chairman would say what they were voting for and how long they would vote people just kept talking. Ron thought it was disrespectful, and he was disappointed we didn’t get to see a debate. After the house we went over to the Senate side. Hmmm. . . no-one was there. Eventually a few of the Senator’s walked in. This was actually fun for me because there were some young people (high school, college freshman?) there. When the Senator’s walked in they got so excited. Look! Is that Joe Biden?! (It wasn’t) We did get to see Joe Lieberman, John McCain, John Kerry, Debbie Stabenaw, Carl Levin and others. The kids were a riot. Ron hated to leave because it seemed like things were going to start happening, but we were meeting our niece for dinner so we had to go.

We enjoyed delicious pizza at Matchbox Pizza (Capitol Hill location) – Chicken Pesto and Sausage with sun dried tomatoes, and molten cake for dessert. We do love our desserts! Then off to view the monuments at night which was very nice.

We’re on our way home right now (I’m typing this in the car). We’ve decided you have to spend like a month in DC to see everything. I didn’t even get into any art museums and I had hoped to see some original Whistler’s art. Didn’t get to view the Smithsonian Castle, Spy Museum. I guess we’ll have to come back some day!

Library of Congress and Arlington

Today we toured the Library of Congress and visited Arlington National Cemetary. The Library of Congress is an absolutely beautiful building. The government spent millions of dollars on it. I'm not sure what I think of that. All these memorials and buildings, built with millions of dollars . . . seems like perhaps it would have been more beneficial to us as a nation to have those dollars invested in people. Libraries are important though - I myself couldn't live without one. There is a quote from Jefferson saying "I could not live without books", and I must say I can relate to that. It is ironic that we started the tour with a very nice video that stressed over and over again that this was OUR library, and then we couldn't even go in the reading room, which was a deep disappointment to me. Evidently over the years, those that were using the room for research were disturbed by the presence of the tours. However, times are achanging, and now most people get their research from the Library via the internet. There were only 2 people in there while we were touring so I think they need to change the rule! You can go in if you get a pass, which takes about 15 minutes, but you have to be prepared to say what you will research. Once inside you get assigned to a table and then your research is brought to you. I just wanted to sit in there for maybe 5 minutes and absorb the ambiance. I mean, you couldn't even take pictures and had to view the room through a glass enclosure!

Arlington Cemetary and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Arlington Cemetery is so vast. You know going in that it is big, but it's hard to comprehend the size of it once you're there. It is a beautiful and peaceful place. The birds that hang out there have a beautiful song. So many lives sacrificed. One thing I didn't know was that wives can be buried with their husbands at Arlington. I don't know if I would want my son or daughter buried there. I know they would be in heaven, but I think I would want to be able to visit the gravesite. We had beautiful weather for our visit, sunny and high 60s or low 70s. We also visited the Robert E. Lee memorial which is on the hill above the cemetery. He is the only person who fought against the United States for whom a memorial has been given. The house (memorial) actually belonged to Curtis Washington and was captured during the war by Lee and his soldiers.

We shared the viewing of the changing of the guard with veterans from World War II. They all wore caps saying John Hancock Memorial Flight. Their hats had pins on them with a picture of Elizabeth Dole's brother. One of the volunteers traveling with them told us that Elizabeth sponsored the trip. Their presence made the changing of the guard more meaningful for us.

The Monuments of Washington DC

Well, we began our day by figuring out the Metro system with the help of the very nice station attendants. I tell you what, I really felt like a country bumpkin. When you live in a small town, even the metro is an adventure. We now have our smart pass, and one day under our belt, so perhaps we'll become more cosmopolitan - who knows! The weather was sunny and clear for our first day in the city. The wind, however, was quite cold. Fortunately it became more tolerable after noon.

Upon exiting the metro the first thing we saw was the Washington Monument. It really is an elegant piece of architecture. This is a great time to be here because we didn't have a crowd of people. We walked right up to get tickets for the ride without waiting in line, although we did have to come back at 1:30 for the ride to the top. It was nice to just meander around the monument without being jostled or feeling like you keeping other people from getting their chance to enjoy the view.


We then went to the World War II memorial. It is also so striking. When you think of the men and women who gave their lives it gives you pause. War is a terrible thing, but having gone from the memorials of our founding fathers to the Holocaust Memorial in the afternoon . . . let's just say it is difficult to comprehend such evil, and we can be thankful for the men and women who fought against it.



The Lincoln Memorial was next. What a time in our history that was. Family members fighting against each other. Each side thinking they were in the right. Having such passion about a circumstance or a cause to turn you against the people you love--how can I understand that? I always wonder if Lincoln was a lonely man, I think I would be if I was him. I would be agonizing about my decisions, and wondering who I could really trust and count on to be my friend. Yet he stayed to the course that he considered right and true. He was a true man of integrity.


Korean War Memorial next. I was struck here especially by how quiet and respectful people were in this area. I really felt like people were treating it like a sacred place. The way the statues are positioned, half in the shadows, half in the sun, made me feel the tentativeness the soliders might have felt as they walked through the war zone.


Vietnam Wall. What a long wall, and ever so many names. I was brought to tears by a woman and man taking a rubbing of the name of someone they loved from the wall. This is all they have left - a name on a wall. I don't think I can understand the depth of their sorrow and regret.


Holocaust Museum. This is out of the depth of my understanding. How did this little man, who I think looked just like a crazy man while he talked, rise to such power? How did people, who I'm sure must have been people just like you and me, become messengers of evil? It should scare us half to death, because that same capacity for evil is in you and me. The same self-preservation that made them turn their eyes away is in us. Don't we just need good people in the world? People of integrity and who want to shine the light on the darkness. We need to do what is right from the smallest things to the biggest things. I was amazed at the end, first of all at the survival of the human body - skeletons were walking clothed with the most minimum amount of human skin. Second, one of the films showed all these really healthy looking children walking out of a camp, and I couldn't understand it. These were the twins that were used for experimentation. Healthy bodies, but who knows how their spirits were crushed. But then third, that there were rescuers! Brave men and women who did what they could to save the jews, some dying for their efforts. But it just lifted my spirits to see these good people, and I hope that I would have been one of them.

We arrived at our condo in Falls Church,VA today. This is the 3rd time we have have used Vacation Rental by Owner. We've been pretty pleased with the results. We're paying $100 a night, plus a cleaning fee, and have all the amenities, including a washer and dryer in our unit. We can catch a bus to the metro just around the corner, or drive to the metro station within 5 minutes - we are very close to DC. I'm looking forward to getting into the city tomorrow and viewing the monuments. This will be even more fun since I just finished "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown, and will hopefully be able to separate fact from fiction! I am not a huge Dan Brown fan, but really liked this book. His theology leaves a little to be desired, but I cannot write anymore without spoiling your reading pleasure!

The Risk of Relinquishment

It's a good title isn't it? I wish I could take credit for it, but, the credit goes to Luci Shaw, the author of The Crime of Living Cautiously: Hearing God's Call to Adventure. Relinquishment is the theme of a chapter of the book. It's been rolling around in my head for a while, due to this excerpt:

Emptying the Vessel:

I have learned from New Testament Greek studies that "to empty oneself," as used in this passage, has the sense not merely of a vessel being poured out but of a waterfall that continually spills itself over a cliff edge. Jesus continues to pour himself out for us in love, day by day. His once-in-a-lifetime act of dying for us, a historical event, is being reenacted in a different form, in an ongoing relationship of giving and loving.

When I first read this I just felt tired. I don't think I am alone in feeling like all I do is pour myself out for others every day. Don't think I don't know how whiney and selfish that sounds. However, I think that women, especially, are always pouring themselves out for friends, family and coworkers in all sorts of ways. It just gets tiring sometimes, doesn't it? To think of pouring yourself out like a waterfall, well, that's just plain exhausting. And, excuse me, when is it my turn to be poured out for? (I am most tempted to take out this whole paragraph because in print it sounds even more whiney and selfish!)

This passage has stuck with me, and as I've been reflecting on it, the picture it makes has become more and more beautiful to me. Picture a waterfall in your mind. It doesn't matter whether it's a big or small one, the principal is the same. Whether it's a forceful flow, or a steady drip, the waterfall influences the ground on which it lands. It takes a landscape, and turns it into something else. It breaks down stone, it washes away dirt, it makes a curve where it was straight, or a drop where it was level. These changes don't happen instantly, but over time, the waterfall keeps up it's persistent presence. Even the sound of a waterfall is always there, whether it's a roar, or a plop, plop, plop--it's constant.

Now picture love as that waterfall. You have to stop and really think about this--what happens when you choose love, constantly. When you choose to serve when you feel like being selfish, when you choose to love even when you're feeling angry, when you choose to love, even when you don't feel love. Love has the same power as a waterfall. Love makes a hard heart soft, love makes the unwelcome feel welcome, love restores what was broken, love sets free what was bound. Like the waterfall, persistent love has the power to change a person, a circumstance, a heart. God's love in us, (which is thankfully powered by the Holy Spirit) makes us like the waterfall. It's impossible for me to express constant love without Him.

You know, I make so many mistakes every day. I don't choose not to show love, but something ugly just pops out of me. It comforts me to know that even though that happens, I can still go back and choose love. I can say, I'm so sorry, that's not how I want to be. It's encouraging to know that over time, love will still do it's work.

My son had a sign on his computer for the longest time: Love Wins. I like that. Love Wins.

What Does Your Face Say?

If you are a fan of Jeff Berryman's book "Leaving Ruin", you will know why I like his blog. I recommend you read his entry on "The Yes Face".

Gives one pause - it's a face I'd like to have more often!

It's Still Summer in Michigan

It may say September on the calendar, but today is too lovely to be called fall. I am so lucky to be able to walk to the state park from my house, and I always enjoy it so on days like these when families take advantage of the summery weather. Today I saw a man painting in long white pants, short sleeve shirt and a straw hat with an easel set up by Lake Mac. He could have been a scene in a book, or a painting from long ago times. Another curious thing I saw was a little dog being "walked" in a stroller. I have to say this seems a bit cruel and unusual for a dog who looked to be perfectly healthy. Don't folks know dogs like to run about? But the best part is coming up to the channel just prior to entering the beach area. I love the little toddlers with their diapered bubble butts poking out of their shorts, and their little bare chests and toes as they run through the sand. This one was following a "doggie, doggie, doggie", all the while pointing at the doggie and running as best he could in the sand. I love seeing the families with the little towheads eating their hot dogs and drinking their pop at the picnic tables along the channel (we do live in Holland, so they really are mostly tow-heads). Lovers of all ages, newly in love couples strolling with their blankets and picnic supplies to watch the sunset, grandmothers and grandfathers sitting on their chairs either with their children and grandchildren, or without. Middle age couples reading in their camp chairs or grilling with friends. There is a relaxed ambiance about it all that is charming to me. Some nights when I walk, the older folks are sitting in their chairs and listening to the Tigers on the radio, enjoying the last days of the beach and baseball.

Fishermen/women of all ages are out as well. Some walking with their poles to the end of the pier, some along the channel, and one lucky fellow caught a big one while chugging through the channel to the big lake. There were cheers all around for him. In these lazy summer days everyone is warmly welcoming to those that cross their paths.

Sailboats on the lake, people on ski-doos, and a few die hard families still sitting on shore with their blankets and umbrellas, determined to soak it all in before fall blows in.

I enjoyed some time on a lookout just soaking in the sun, listening to my music, and thinking how serene it all is. It seems surreal that I get to enjoy this, and that others in the world are enduring war, poverty, illness and death. I need to be a lot more grateful for what I have.

When I turned to leave, I heard the wind rustling in the Aspens, and discovered, they not only sound like rain, but also an awful lot like when we turn the pages of our sermon taking notes in church! I passed a couple that had been reading and restrained myself from accosting a perfect stranger to see if he liked The Shack. As I sat on a boulder and emptied the sand from my sandals, the sun glinted off the beach grass and it looked for all the world like the grass that we put in Easter baskets.

It won't be long and this beach scene will change. The clouds will be dark and low, and the sun will turn the cloud edges shades of gold. The leaves will be golden as well, and will gently float to the ground. A friend once told me about a poem with these lines "Margaret are you grieving over golden grove unleaving" (Gerard Manley Hopkins) I always think of this poem in the fall. But for now, it is still summer in Michigan :-)

Leelanau and Andrew Peterson

So, what do Leelanau and Andrew Peterson have in common? Nothing really, I just happened to hear some of his songs while we were driving home, which led to me looking them up on itunes and downloading an entire album, something I don't usually do!

First, Leelanau - we had a great weekend. I read Jodi Picoult's book Handle with Care (see previous post), relaxed in the sun, ate at Boone's, Freshwater Lodge, and had ice cream with the cows. Have you been to Moomer's? Good Morning America voted it as having the "best" ice cream, I just for some strange reason like going and eating my ice cream while watching the cows. Boone's, of course, is always good, and they have some affiliates in Grand Rapids and Muskegon. If you have eaten at any of these places, let me know how they were: The Omelette Shoppe, Bagel Beanery, Sundance Grill, Bear Lake Tavern, and Alleyway Bar and Grill. Ron and I are always up for a good meal! Freshwater Lodge is in Traverse City, there are lots of dead fish and other animals hanging up if you like that sort of thing :-).

Now, for Andrew Peterson. I heard his "All Things New" on the way home, and immediately looked it up in itunes. I listened to the little clip you get with each song and decided I needed them all. If you don't know Andrew Peterson, he's kind of folksy, guitary, mellow singer. I love so many of the words in the songs - in All Things New:

"Come broken and weary, come battered and bruised, my Jesus makes all things new.

In All You'll Ever Need:

"The blood of Jesus, it is like the widow’s oil: it’s enough to pay the price to set you free. It can fill up every jar and every heart that ever beat. When it’s all you have it’s all you’ll ever need."

From Love is a Good Thing

"Love is a good thing. It’ll follow you down to the ruin of your great divide, and open the wounds that you tried to hide. And there in the rubble of the heart that died you’ll find a good thing. Love is a good thing."

My favorite from the Album is The Good Confession: I Believe

"All I know is that I was blind but now I see that though I kick and scream, Love is leading me. And every step of the way his grace is making me; with every breath I breathe, he is saving me. And I believe. So when my body’s weak and the day is long, when I feel my faith is all but gone, I’ll remember when I sing this song that I believe. I believe he is the Christ, Son of the living God, my Lord, my Savior."

(Tonia, when I hear this song I just feel joy and think of your daughter dancing!)

I also discovered I liked his Lay Me Down from the Far Country Album:

I’ll open up my eyes on the skies I’ve never known
In the place where I belong
And I’ll realize His love is just another word for Home

I believe in the holy shores of uncreated light
I believe there is power in the blood
And all of the death that ever was,
If you set it next to life
I believe it would barely fill a cup
‘Cause I believe there’s power in the blood

When you lay me down to die
So long, boys, so long, girls
Lay me down and let me say goodbye to this world
You can lay me anywhere
But just remember this
When you lay me down to die
You lay me down to live

The words are even better with the music. The only song I ever knew from him before was some goofy song about cartoons. I think he may become a new favorite.

"Handle With Care" by Jodi Picoult

Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Disturbing but good, thought provoking like most of Picoult's books. I loved how she took recipes and used that terminology to relate to life. For example:

"Tempering: to heat slowly and gradually. Most of the time when we talk about a temper, we mean a qwuickness to anger. In cooking, though, tempering is about making something stronger by taking your time. You temper eggs by adding a hot liquid in small increments. The idea is to raise their temperature without causing them to curdle. The result is a stirred custard that can be used as a dessert sauce or incorporated into a complex dessert. Here's something interesting: the consistency of the finished product has nothing to do with the type of liquid used to heat it. The more eggs you use, the thicker and richer the final product will be. Or in other words, it's the substance you've got when you start that determines the outcome."

I like also how she wordsmithed the first chapter -

"Things break all the time. Glass, and dishes, and fingernails. Cars and contracts and potato chips. You can break a record, a horse, a dollar. You can break the ice. There are coffee breaks and lunch breaks and prison breaks. Day breaks, waves break, voices break. Chains can be broken. So can silence, and fever."I don't believe I've ever thought of the word breaks in all those different waves.

I've told you a little about the book without really telling you anything. It is a story about choices, and how those choices affect our lives and the lives of others. About priorities, and are yours and mine in the right places. If you read it, call me up so we can talk about it!

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While Away Your Day with a Book

The House at Riverton by Kate Morton


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book captured and kept my interest, and was a great way to while away a Saturday and Sunday. A fascinating story from the past is being made into a film, an elderly lady who was on the periphery of the story is still alive, and knows the secret behind the story. The book weaves back and forth between her memories and her present life. I feel like this book was more a tale than a story. Webster's says a tale is: a report of a private or confidential matter; a usually imaginative narrative of an event. That's what this book felt like to me.

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A Walk on the Beach

I meandered to the beach tonight. It was such beautiful weather, and who knows how long it will last. My plan was to sit on the swing and watch the sunset, but the swing was too tight, and my legs were too long, so it wasn't very comfortable. Instead, I perched on a picnic table on a small hill by the side of the channel. I was surrounded by a stand of Aspens. As the light breeze blew through the Aspens you heard a sound like a light rain on your rooftop. It was so relaxing. The sun was low in the sky and it looked so pretty through a screen of beach grass. I would have liked to have placed my bed there for the night, it was such a perfect setting. There were no clouds, so the sunset was basically a line of pink above the water, but soon, when real Fall hits, and the clouds are hanging low in the sky they will be lit with shades of gold. One of my favorite times of year. So funny, watched the sunset, and walked home with the moon which was shining very brightly from the sun's light. About halfway home I started to hear the tree toads. I love the sound of tree toads, which is kind of weird cuz some of them sound like squeaky tennis shoes on the gym floor, and some of them sound like two sticks rubbing or tapping together. Here and there you would hear the techy sound of a cricket, and sometimes the chirping that a cricket makes. Throw in the sound of a dog barking here and there and it sounded suspiciously like music!

Leadership Summit Reflections #2

I forgot to mention two other ponderings I've been having. In the round table discussion, probably my least favorite session, (Bill Hybels, Henry Cloud, Patrick Lencioni, David Ireland and Carly Fiorina [I do love her]), were talking about the hiring process, and the importance of getting it right. One thought they put out there was that we don't take the time we should take when hiring people. We're often in a hurry to fill the position, and so don't dig deeper, looking not just at education, but competency and story--what is the story of the person you're hiring. Sometimes story can tell you more than resumes can. Because we don't dig deeper, we sometimes hire the wrong person, but, rather than admit that, and rather than hold accountability (using clarity and care), our brains make the person hired into the person we want them to be. This has been rolling around in my head for a while for several reasons - 1) I think it is true, I think organizations everywhere do that, and 2) isn't this what we do with relationships? We make the person we're with into the person we want them to be rather than accepting and loving them for who they are, or, in the case of a bad relationship, getting out. . . and, do we talk to those people with clarity and care so that they can understand us and we can understand them?

Then, how could I forget Jessica Jackley, the co-founder of Kiva.org? I've written about Kiva in this blog before - the world's first peer to peer online microlending website. For as little as $25 you can sponsor an entrepreneur in a third world country, or, even here in the US. Jessica and her team have created an elegant mission statement for Kiva: to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty. She's done everything right with the mission statement, short, sweet, easy to remember, and it is the heart of what they do. I am most impressed with their integrity. She shared that organizations have offered to give millions to Kiva, but they have turned them down. Why? The heart of the mission is connecting people through lending.The humanity piece is very important to them and if you can't connect the dollars with humanity, then it doesn't fit with their organization. It's lovely to know that there are still people with that type of integrity out there.

Leadership Summit Reflections

Leadership Summit was kind of like "Hole in the Gospel"-- you learn so much you are convicted to lead a more practical life for God.

Bill Hybels

• Live out the first century dream (Acts 2) in the 21st century. Do we still believe the local church is the hope of the world?
• The beauty, power and potential of the church lies in trust, love, the generosity of friends, church and colleagues.
• We need to step up and be generous with God's blessings.
• We need to walk by faith, not sight.
• Remember, in a crisis, cash is not king, but Christ is King. The crisis isn't about money, it's about time. (Isn't this a good thing to remember at home as well, and in our lives. We need to be wise with our cash reserves so that when we do have a crisis, we can take the time to talk to God and figure out the next step. The wonderful thing about God is that He rescues us even when we don't take those precautions.)
• In times of financial stress, people will give to a white hot kingdom vision.God wants people who are totally yielded to Him--whose hearts are fully His.
• Live the Romans 8:6 life - living in sync with the Holy Spirit leads to life and peace (who doesn't want that!?)

Regarding management--three statements that stuck out to me: 1) the kindest form of management is the truth; 2) it demotivates top performers to let poor performers continue and 3) job descriptions should not just include skills, but competency. Some questions to ask yourself:

• What do your colleagues and followers see when they look at you today?
• What do other people thing of you?

Gary Hamel (The Future of Management)
Unprecedented changes = unprecedented opportunities requires unprecedented strategies.
Our problem is inertia (am I going forwards or backwards)
Are we crisis driven or opportunity driven?

1. Overcome the temptation to take refuge in denial: a) Face the facts, don't pretend there's an easy conversation; b) question your beliefs (humility); c) listen to renegades/dissidents. Question: Do we welcome dissent or stifle it?
2. Generate more strategic options (more new things): a) we clutch at the familiar--make change seem more exciting than standing pat; b) we must choose open, participatory conversations on change.
3. Deconstruct what you already believe. What hasn't changed for 3 to 4 years and why? Is it good, or just a habit? Learn to be contrarians (I have some friends that are very good at this). We must be visionary, yet practical, confident, but humble.

Look at our structure today, and consider the early church. The early church was spiritually powerful, but institutionally weak. Lives won't change till churches change. The new model = mobilize/connect/support.

Tim Kellar (The Prodigal God)
I'll write more when I finish the book. Suffice it to say that his writing reminds me of C.S. Lewis, in that I feel my brain being peeled back to absorb new understanding. Basically, whether we strive to be obedient, or we choose to live a pleasure seeking and disobedient life, either way, we miss the mark. Do you know that one of the meanings of prodigal is recklessly extravagant - rather than the connotation we give to the story of the prodigal son, it is the story of our recklessly extravagant God. I loved that this middle aged gentleman's church is filled with mostly 20 something people. Young people are hungry for Truth and he delivers it.

Dave Gibbons (The Monkey and the Fish)
I'm sure you'll hear more about this once I've read the book. Once again we hear about the need to be contrarian. Look at our churches today. Are the people in your church more like you than not? Churches need to be contrarian - it's easy to like people who are like you, the world doesn't see anything special there - "the world will stop and see something beautiful when we love what is different from us". The church must adapt and love, learn and serve in any culture (third culture).

1. The third culture leader is focused on the fringe: a) the misfit, not the masses; b) the margins lead the movements. He gave the example of a housewife with a website (I thought he said it was deuce.com but can't seem to find it on the web) who has thousands of followers - an example of someone on the fringe who is influencing the masses.
2. We have to have a different set of metrics: a) failure is success to God - it's your platform to humanity--He allows you to have these failures to touch the humanity in this world; b) look at human resources--gifts + tests + story (for an employer). For all of us - do you have time to listen to people's stories? Do you really see people?; c) weakness guides us more than our strength.
3. Vision. Pretty simple really - Love God. Love your neighbor. Relationships trump vision. Jesus did what He saw His Father do. We need relationaries, not visionaries (I loved this). Maybe what happens outside the building, is more important that what happens inside the building (speaking of church). The church's main task is to model equipping leaders, the best discipleship is life on life. Here he referenced the Medici Effect - another book that sounds interesting.
4. Obedience is more important than passion: a) deeper collaboration; b) communal living; c) prayer (here he said the church doesn't believe in the power of the Holy Spirit); d) radical sacrifice for the outsiders.

You can probably see why I wanted to read the book.

David Gergen (Eyewitness to Power)
This was an entertaining segment. One thing that all the pastors learned is that you lose people after 25 minutes - most usually to sexual fantasy. That brought a big laugh.

• Don't confuse motion with progress
• Go after big goals tenaciously
• Look back at a 6 week period - what did you hope to accomplish, what did I do right and what did I do wrong--don't fool yourself.
• Be willing to wrestle (with the questions)
• Someone who can look farther back can look farther ahead
• People may not be able to conquer flaws...how do you live with them
• Good speeches contain 4 parts: Ethos (who you are); Emotion; Reason (include humor); and Emotion again (get up and get moving -- call to action).

Chip and Dan Heath (Made to Stick and Switch [not yet published])
This session was about why some ideas survive and others die.

• Ideas can start out with hope (we can), and then most usually take a dive (which they called the valley of insight), and then end with confidence (we did it). Forewarn people on your team working towards the implementation of an idea, that this can happen.
• Tolerance for failure is a necessary step for success, especially in a time of change.
• Failure can possibly be an early warning sign of success.
• There's always resistance to the journey for equality
• Change your thinking - for example, instead of standing against poverty, take a stand for poverty (effecting change).

Wes Stafford
Mr. Stafford is the president and CEO of Compassion International. He shared the story of his youth, when as a child of missionary parents, he spent the school year in a boarding school. The boarding school was staffed by adults who didn't quite make the missionary cut, and so were put in charge of the school. He shared the story of himself and 50 of his classmates who were physically beaten, some sexually abused, not allowed to even have pictures of his parents anywhere in the room. It grieves me to hear of people who claim to follow God and follow Satan's teachings in the name of God. He finally told his mom, but just prior to boarding the plane, seconds before he said, and so he still went. His parents were going by boat and it took a month for them to get there. As a result, when he got to the boarding school he was forced to stand in a chair, holding a candle that was burning at each end. He was 10 years old. The man who forced him to do this told his classmates that because of him Africans would not get to know Jesus, because he TOLD, his parents would not save souls. Something came over this little boy, and he decided he was going to win this time, and held the candle in his fingers even though they began blistering. In fact, he was watching this in an "out of body" experience as often happens to abused children, until a classmate couldn't stand it any longer and knocked it out of his fingers. He spoke about this horrific experience, and the need to forgive. The forgiveness is most important for the victim, or else the bitterness and anger grows like a cancer inside of you. This was an emotionally draining session, it just hurts your heart so much.

Bono
This was different than I thought. We didn't get to see that much of Bono I didn't think, but it was still interesting.

• When Bono was first invited to Summit, some 10 years or so ago, he blasted the church for standing on the sidelines when it came to justice, poverty and aids. I take it this caught the church by surprise, and they were offended, but also forced to look at themselves.
• The church took action, and Bono said, that he knew the church was a sleeping giant, but he didn't know the church could move so fast. Now the church is in the forefront of this work.
• Bono has a thing for the Man in the Moon story. He just loves the story of how man walked on the moon. I don't know all the details behind it. Hybels asked him if he ever felt like giving up, and Bono told this great story. He was walking in the park in Manhatten, he was feeling discouraged, and feeling like maybe he would just give up the group, retire, etc. A man was sitting on a bench - he looked like he was homeless, and he was talking crazy. But, he said hey to Bono, and asked if he would like to buy a newspaper (he had a bagful of newspapers at his feet). Bono said, what do you have--he pulled out a newspaper with the headline "Man Walks on the Moon". Every newspaper in the bag was "Man Walks on the Moon". He bought them all.

This is the longest post I've ever done! Whew. . . please excuse any typos/grammar . . .

A Mighty Long Way: My Journey to Justice at Little Rock Central High School by Carlotta Walls Lanier

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book was about the Little Rock 9, and the racial upheaval that took place during the desegregation of Central High. I am sad to confess my ignorance of history. I was not aware that the school was closed for a whole school year to both black and white students. This first person account was factual and interesting. The hurt to the heart is expressed in this sentiment: "Some days I was so mentally exhausted that I didn't have the energy to guard my heart. In those low moments, when the troublemakers hurled their insults, they smashed my spirit like bricks."

This would be a great book for teens I think. It made me want to learn more and I wanted to see pictures. The story of how one of the teens, Elizabeth Eckford ended up going alone on the first day they were allowed in (isn't that crazy, to have to be allowed in to a school), and how the mob treated her blows my mind. I think the part that gets to you is, how do I know I wouldn't act like that? When you see the pictures (look online), and the absolute hatred in people's faces it seems unbelievable - and it really is, isn't it? Who can believe human beings would treat others that same way. Carlotta says: "when I was suffering in those hallowed halls, they (white students and teachers) turned away. They did nothing. They said nothing. They chose not to see". It makes you stand up and take notice of what you are doing or not doing for people that are different than you today. . .

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Waiting for Columbus

Waiting for Columbus by Thomas Trofimuk is a kind of sensuous novel I think. I certainly would like to meet the Columbus from this book who loved wine, women and adventure. I'm pretty sure he didn't look like the real Columbus in the picture to the left. The great things about books is you can kindof make them look like they want. I'm pretty sure my Columbus would be handsome!

A man is brought to an institution, he truly believes he is Christopher Columbus. He tells wonderful stories with a charisma that draws people to him. He tells stories of his desire to find the new world, stories of women he has made love to and how that loving feels, stories of his doubts. Are the stories real and true, or are they false? To tell more would ruin your own chance to be drawn into the world of Waiting for Columbus!

Saints in Limbo

It was the kind of day when even the lost believed. When possibilities were larger than reason, when potential was grander than circumstance, when the long dark days of doubt were suddenly cast off and laid to rest. Brushed away with a smile and a certainty. And in this moment, from this place, you knew the real magic could happen.

Okay, I started this at around 11:30 last night (my husband was snoring), and ended up staying up till 2 am to finish it. If you were as attracted to this very first paragraph in the book as I was, you will want to run to the library and get Saints in Limbo by River Jordan. This is the first book I've read by her, but am eager to read more from this wonderful storyteller. I did not know this book was christian fiction--it is definitely the good variety of christian fiction. I didn't think it was smarmy at all. I truly dislike smarmy christian ficiton! She uses wonderful language as well, something that is often missing from many genres of books. For example:

The firstborn leaves of March had sprouted into the tiniest sea of baby green. The world was breathing in and out, moving everything in its path slightly, and on due course, with a gentle, four-edges-of-the-earth kiss.

Isnt' that great? I'm not going to return this book to the library for a while, it's worth a re-read.

A Quote to Ponder

A quote from Dallas Willard (The Spirit of the Disciplines) to ponder:

The world can no longer be left to mere diplomats, politicians and business leaders. They have done the best they could, no doubt. But this is an age for spiritual heroes--a time for men and women to be heroic in their faith and in spiritual character and power. The greatest danger to the Christian church today is that of pitching it's message too low.

Quotes like this really tempt me to buy books (who can read this and not want to read the book!). I'm guessing it's sinful to keep satisfying that lust!

Somehow this makes me think of the battle scene in Lord of the Rings, the one where they really don't think there is any remote chance that they will win or survive, then "light" (Gandolf) parts the way and brings hope. This may seem a little weird to some of you . . .

Wierd Dreams

There are a lot of things I won't miss about my cycle when (and if) I ever do get finished with the darn thing, but one thing I will miss is weird dreams. I don't always have this happen, but this time I did. So okay, I'm driving a semi truck, and I don't even know how to drive a semi truck. I'm coming up to some hills covered with water, and I don't know how to stop or slow down. To make matters worse, there's a cow walking really slowly in the water on the road in front of me. I don't know how I manage it, but I do slow down, and manage to avoid the cow and an accident. Then, somehow, I'm at a house, and there's a woman there in a wedding dress. But where did the wedding dress come from - all I really know about this is I know it's not hers because her's has gold thread through the ruffles at the top. So this is all really strange, but even stranger is, running through the dream there is a song kind of humming through me, I know the tune, but the only words that I know are Jesus, He's all you need. This is an actual song, but I just can't bring it to mind right now. The cool thing about this is, as it's humming through me, and I'm thinking about the Bible verse about how you will always have trials, and that you should meet these trials with joy, I'm realizing, it's not joy, laugh laugh joy, but joy, deep contentment humming through you, because, after all, Jesus, He's all you need. Very strange, but good in that strange weird dream sort of way!

Sister Support Needed!

I've recently learned of two non-profits that could benefit from our support. The first, The Colour Sisterhood: The sisterhood seeks to champion the cause of the orphan child and widow, to come alongside women (near and far) who are facing challenge, and it ultimately seeks to influence nations with goodness and answers that are to be found in God (from their website)

The second, Kiva, allows you to loan money to an entrepreneur, many of whom are from third world countires. You choose the person/enterprise you want to support and loan them the money through an online service. They have 9 months to pay you back. You can do this for as little as $25. You can help men and women begin their own business and become self-supporting. How cool is that!

Heaven on Earth

I'm reading an absolutely wonderful book called The Hole in the Gospel by Richard Stearns, the CEO of World Vision. I am on fire to read more, and I implore all my friends to read this book so that we can talk about it together, and better yet, be the people God created us to be. Richard Stearns lived in a 10 bedroom fieldstone farmhouse on 5 acres of land, he drove a company provided Jaguar to work, he was the CEO of Lenox China making boocoo bucks. He left it all to serve God as the CEO of World Vision. Part of the reason I like it so much is that he really didn't want to, but, although extremely reluctant, and although he ignored the really strong hints God put in his way, he still answered God's call. I think I can be a lot like that! I don't even know where to start with everything that is speaking to me . . . consider the following quotes:

• ... as Christians, are we really given the options of turning away from the world's problems? Does God permit that?
• . . . Jesus asked a great deal of those who followeed Hiim. He expected much more from them than just believing He was God's Son. He challenged them to embrace radically different standards, to love their neighbors and their enemies, to forgive thos who wronged them, to lift up the poor and downtrodden, to share what they had with those who had little, and to live lives of sacrifice. Then he likened their effect on the world around them to that which light has on darkness.
• . . .the good news was meant to change the world. Belief is not enough. Worship is not enough. Personal morality is not enough. And Christian community is not enough. God has always demanded more. When we committed ourselves to following Christ, we also committed to living our lives in such a way that a watchingworld would catch a glimpse of God's charager--His love, justice, and mercy--through our words, actions, and behavior. . . Living out our faith privately was never meant to be an option.
• What if two billion people embraced this vision of God transforming ou world--through them. Imagine it. Indeed, what if even two thousand people took their faith to the next level--what might God do? Two thousand years ago the world was changed forever by just twelve. It can happen again.

And this is just the introduction to the book! Here is the last paragraph of the forward:

The word gospel literally means "good news." Jesus declared that He had come to "preach good news to the poor". (Luke 4:18) . . . What "good news" have God's people brought to the world's three billion poor? What "gospel" have millions of Africa's AIDS orphans seen? What gospel have most of us embraced in the twenty-first centruy? The answer is found in the title of this book: a gospel with a hole in it.

A Great Summer Read!

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton is a must read book. It didn't keep me quite as spell bound as The Thirteenth Tale, but all during the day I would be wondering what would come next, and look forward to coming home and beginning to read again.

It's a little bit The Secret Garden, a little bit The Thirteenth Tale, a little bit Charles Dickens and a little bit The Fairy Tales Grimm! I had some trouble in the beginning as the skips between eras didn't seem smooth to me, but it wasn't long before I was drawn into the story (I even resisted mightily the impulse to skip to the end and find out what was going on). I wanted to savor the wondering I had as I read and tried to figure out what would happen next.

A little girl on a ship is abandoned and adopted by a sailor and his wife. A family living in poverty is being followed by a sinister man. A young girl finds out she's adopted on her coming of age birthday. A granddaughter discovers she has inherited a cottage in England. An impish girl makes up stories to entice the neighborhood children. What weaves these circumstances together? You'll have to read it to find out!

Gossip and Dictionaries

I'm reading a book my mom gave me: Open Secrets: A Spiritual Journey Through A Country Church. I get a kick out of how the author pokes a little fun at himself--he has a PhD in Theology and comes to a little country church for his first call. He thinks rather highly of himself. His father points out that a 28 all he's done is go to school, he's never worked, he's married and has a child coming--yet, he's not accepting the call from this little church in New Cana, IL- it's time to get to it! Richard (the 28 year old in question) doesn't want to come right out and say that he's waiting for something better, yet that's what it is. Anyway, he does end up in New Cana, and for all his book learning, he learns much more about his own inadequacies, and about you know, real people, than you can learn from reading a book and being in class. What does this have to do with gossip? Well, he has a chapter called "Gossiping the Gospel":

"The word gossip originally implied a spiritual relationship. A gossip was a sponsor at a baptism, one who spoke on behalf of the child and who would provide spiritual guidance to the child as it grew in years. A gossip was your godmother or godfather. Gossiping was speech within the community of the baptized. . .Gossip is the community's way of conducting moral discourse and, in an oddly indirect way, of forgiving old offenses. In our town all desires were known, no secrets were hid, and every heart was an open book. Every life was gossiped by all, and all were gossips."

Isn't that just fascinating? I had to look it up in the dictionary to make sure he was really telling the truth! It's almost as this definition has disappeared from our culture.

I recently had a conversation with a friend who was excited about how her students were using their dictionaries, and how excited they were to consider words and their meanings. Wouldn't it be great if we got back to that sort of rich language, in our writing and in our vocabulary. The only time I really use a dictionary is during Bible study. Almost every time the definition takes me deeper into the passage I'm studying. I need to do more of this in my recreational reading. Usually, I'm in a hurry to absorb the story, and don't want to take the time. I need to learn to slow down--perhaps I'll find the story will have more depth and meaning for me if I do.

The Middle Place by Kelly Corrigan

This is our Book Club book for June. It is a great story about life, finding yourself, falling in love, dealing with cancer, and family--not necessarily in that order. If you go to her website, , and listen to the trailer, you will get a real sense of her voice. What is "The Middle Place"? It's about being a parent and a child at the same time. It's a place we will (God willing) be for an extended time in our lives. I can't imagine anyone not liking this book. Also watch her video "Transcending", it may bring tears to your eyes!

I have been so lucky in the books I'm reading lately--hopefully this will continue!

The Writing On My Forehead

What a good book. The Writing On My Forehead by Nafisa Haji is the story of an Indo-Pakistani girl living in the United States. The main character, Saira is an inquisitive child, the kind who gets into trouble because of her curiosity. The story is about being that kind of person, in a world that is structured by cultural expectations, including arranged marriages. It involves her growing into herself as an independent American and a daughter of an Indo-Pakistani family. She is the kind of woman you root for, and the ending of the story was a surprise to me, I didn't get that "aha" moment till the very last pages. I highly recommend it and give it a 5!

Child Witch Hunts in Africa

Have you seen this story (http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=7658899)?
Be warned, it is sad and horrible. It distresses me that this is going on in the name of Jesus. It amazes me that a country has laws about witchcraft. It hurts me what they are doing to children.

The Earth Hums in B Flat

The author of The Earth Hums in B Flat is 62 years old, this is her first novel. I love that! Gwenni can fly -- she flies over her village, and hears the Earth's music,but also discovers secrets. Will the secrets hurt or help her and her family. I love Gwenni's voice, and how her "oddness" that her mom finds so disturbing is considered quaint by her neighbors. Gwenni wants to be a detective, but the police officer tells her:

"Detecting isn't a suitable job for a woman, Gwenni" he says. But he won't' tell me why it isn't. Maybe he doesn't know.

That made me laugh. So many things aren't suitable in life, but who's to say why they're not. We always act as though suitable is so desirable, don't we!?

Gwenni flies at night, but is always striving to fly while she's wide awake. I had a dream once that I was flying. It was so real that I'm not convinced that it wasn't real! It was though I had no burdens, nothing to weigh me down--such a sense of contentment and well being. I am always wishing I can repeat that dream.

Gwenni's flying doesn't always bring her a sense of well being, sometimes it scares her, but still, she doesn't want to lose it. She says:

"Up here, far away from everybody, the night is peaceful; there's no sound except the hum of the Earth. . . Mr. Hughes Music said it was B flat . . . But he doesn't know how the Earth's deep, never-ending note clothes me in rainbow colours, fills my head with all the books ever written, and feeds me with the smell of Mrs. Sargent's famous vanilla biscuits . . ."

A Book to Make Friends With

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a 5 in my view. What a great book. I would take just about every character in this book as a friend in my real world. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is the name of a book club that was created to protect its members from arrest by the Germans. As a result, people who were not readers were "forced" to begin to read books and talk about them with their neighbors. The main character, Juliet, finds out about this club through a correspondence she begins with one of it's members. It is an engaging and charming book, the kind that you savor as you read it, and, for me anyway, one that is worth re-reading. These non-readers meet authors that they learn from, and some begin on a journey of reading that was never part of their life before. In her correspondance Juliet says "That's what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It's all geometrically progressive--all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than enjoyment." I couldn't have said it better myself. Isola, a member of the society says: "I didn't like Wuthering Heights at first, but the minute that specter, Cathy, scrabbled her bony fingers on the window glass--I was grasped by the throat and could not let go." I'm so glad that I wasn't an adult when I first was "grabbed by the throat" by a book. As Juliet carries on her correspondence with the society, each one shares with her the book they read, and their thoughts on it. In this way you feel you get to know them intimately, and long to know more about them. Their thoughts about their island home being occupied by Germans provoke you to consider how you treat all people, not just the ones you like. Even in hard situations, even when a whole people seems evil, there are some that stand out as decent human beings. In short, I find nothing not to like in this book. It would be a great present for a friend, or an addition to a library.

Do You Think Elizabeth Bennet Didn't Like Making Love to Darcy?

I mean who can really believe that! Yet, in Colleen McCullough's new book "The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet", that is what she leads us to believe. Although this book is about the youngest sister, Mary, I picked it up to see what the author did with Elizabeth and Darcy. This is really a silly romance novel disguised to entice us by the title and our curiosity about Darcy and Elizabeth. I can't really say that I read this book, but I did skim it really fast so I could see what she did with the characters. It was disappointing. I mean, who can believe that Elizabeth would be disappointed in her marriage, and that the servants all don't like Darcy because he's cold and stern. I mean, come on, in Pride and Prejudice we learned the servants said he was one of the kindest, most generous people they knew. (On a side note here, how disappointing that when I went to pick up the link at BN the first page and a half was all movies, not even the actual book!) The story itself is a little fantastic, Mary was plain, now she's beautiful. Although beautiful, and more intelligent than in Pride and Prejudice, she isn't very smart in a practical sense. Then of course she does fall in love and into bed with her future husband before they get married, just like in any sordid romance novel. Fortunately, things do work out better for Elizabeth and Darcy, now he understands that he just needed to take his time and coax her into enjoying the intimacy of marriage. Ugh. I just really don't recommend this book. On another side note, Lara - I just can't believe you've never read Pride and Prejudice, THAT book, I highly recommend. This book, I can only rate as a 1.

Advance Review Library Book Results

I did pretty good! Not one book was smarmy, my word for predictable romantic fiction, avoidable at all costs. Here are my ratings, one being bad and 5 being excellent.

A Flickering Light by Jane Kirkpatrick: 3
I really like Jane Kirkpatrick, so this book was a little disappointing to me. I really liked her Love to Water my Soul, A Gathering of Finches and Mystic Sweet Communion. This story, about a girl from the 1900's with a love of photography and an attraction to her married male employer just didn't quite do it for me. Her A Simple Gift of Comfort: Healing Words for Difficult Times is a lovely gift for someone who is struggling in life.

Drawing in the Dust by Zoe Klein: 5
This books was so good. I loved that the author is a woman rabbi and knows her Bible so well. She took her Bible knowledge, used her imagination and created an intriguing story. Page, an american archeologist uncovers the bones of the prophet Jeremiah under the haunted home of an Arab couple. Jeremiah's bones are not alone however, they are wrapped around the bones of the mysterious Anatiya who has written a scroll about her parallel journey with Jeremiah. Naturally Page is on a journey of her own. She is always looking for Elijah in the bones that she uncovers as an archeologist, so she misses the story of the bones. Her colleague, Mortechai, says "it is sad for the bones you find. That they are trying to tell you their story, and you are mad at them for obeying God's order. They still have magic Page. You only have to be open to meeting them on their terms. . . Bones are intimate. Even your lover never touches them. They are an ivory relief of an actual life, a physical record of journeys braved, wars fought, loves entangled."

Healing Waters by Nancy Rue and Stephen Arterburn: 3
This is a christian fiction book, which is better than average. It's the story of a beautiful woman in charge of a Christian ministry where they trust God to heal everything. She becomes tragically burned and at first believes God will heal her, and expects those around her to believe that as well. Her sister, who has struggles of her own, comes to care for her in the process learns to take care of herself. Her faith increases, while her burned and scarred sister's decreases.

The Horse Boy: A Father's Quest to Heal His Son by Rupert Isaacson: 5
This book was so interesting. Can an autistic boy be healed by Shamans and horses? This family's journey into Mongolia to visit the healing shamans results in some big changes in their young son's behaviours. It's a fantastic journey - fantastic in the travels they made, and fantastic in the choices they made. Their young son has an affinity for horses, or at least, horses have an affinity for them, and this is how the journey begins. This is true, which makes it all the more fascinating.

Lace Makers of Glenmara by Heather Barbieri: 2
Did not like this story. I never really like stories where women sleep with men on their first meeting, and then wonder if it's love. . .