Love and War by John Eldredge

By now you know what the book is about so I will not go into that information. What I will say is that this is a very practical book. I don't care how long you've been married or how hopeless or great you think your marriage is, you can learn from this book.

John and Stasi Eldredge are very down to earth people. They tell it like it is and I appreciate the fact they share the stories from each of their viewpoints. It has opened my eyes as to how my husband might be reacting to a situation much differently from how I react just by reading John's take on what he and Stasi have dealt with. And I so appeciate their honesty!!

This book will not lead you to a perfect marriage, but it will definitely give you encouragement and hope if you indeed think your spouse will never change. God is a God of Hope and He is also a God of Endurance. Thank you, John and Stasi for this encouraging book!

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Nearing Home by Billy Graham

This is actually the first book I have read by Billy Graham. Yes, I know he is a famous evangelist and I have seen him on TV numerous times during his televised crusades. So I was indeed looking forward to reading his book on Nearing Home mainly because I am getting closer to this stage of life myself. The subtitle is ‘Life, faith, and finishing well’ and I certainly want to finish well!!

I loved the chapter on ‘Don’t retire from life’. Billy Graham gives examples of those who retired and went on to other ministries. He also told of those who retired and didn’t plan for their future and practically gave up on life. Billy also talks of the Golden Years but his theme is not in the amount of ‘gold’ you own, but in the treasure of gold you are building above. Throughout his book the theme is definitely God centered and how our years should be valued as God values them and not as the world does. In a nutshell, he writes as he preached……..very basic, down to earth, Gospel truth!

As I started reading I thought of people I thought this book would be an encouragement to. I have a relative who is young in life, but has just been told she has an aggressive form of cancer. As the book is titled, she is ‘Nearing Home’. I believe this book would be an inspiration to her and others who may be ‘nearing home’ sooner than expected. For those who are able to live beyond the 65 mark, this book is a reminder and encouragement of what is really important in life.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

The Christmas Singing

Cindy Woodsmall has written another romantic novel from the heart of Amish country. The Christmas Singing is about Mattie, an Amish girl who has started her own cake decorating business after being 'ditched' by her boyfriend, Gideon, for an Englisher girlfriend. She moves to a different town to start her business and start a new life and has no problem starting a new relationship. Or does she?

A twist in her circumstances brings the 2 men into her life at the same time and now she must wrestle with her feelings and sort out which ones are true and which are the ones she wants to be true.

I truly enjoyed the simplicity of this book, the romance it brought without being mushy, and just going into a community where life is really not that much different from those of us who are Englishers. I look forward to reading more novels from Cindy Woodsmall.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.