Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Stepping Heavenward

"Stepping Heavenward" by Elizabeth Prentiss

I bought this for my Kindle, it is only $1. It is a book, a journal really, of a woman's journey with God. It starts when she is young all the way till she is old. It is a wonderful account of the ups and downs and it is filled with truth and honesty over her struggles and the hard things that come her way. Here are some passages that stood out to me.
-"'I do wish I could make you love to pray, my darling child,'" mother went on. "If only you knew the strength, and the light, and the joy you might have for the simple asking. God attaches no conditions to His gifts. He only says, 'Ask!'"
-"God notices the most trivial act, accepts the poorest, most threadbare little service, listens to the coldest, feeblest petition, and gathers up with parental fondness all our fragmentary desires and attempts at good works. Oh, if we could only begin to conceive how He loves us, what different creatures we should be!"
-"The truth is, the journey heavenward is all up hill. I have to force myself to keep on."
-"But He often deals far differently with His disciples. He lets them grope their way in the dark until they fully learn how blind they are, how helpless, how absolutely in need of Him."
-"And let me assure you that as you penetrate the labyrinth of life in pursuit of Christian duty, you will often be surprised and charmed by meeting your Master Himself amid its windings and turnings, and receive His soul-inspiring smile. Or, I should rather say, you will always meet Him wherever you go."
-"We only know ourselves and what we really are, when the force of circumstances bring us out." -"What I am, that I must be, except as God changes me into His own image."
-"Nothing but prayer stands between my soul and the best gifts of God."

Ella A Life Unaborted

"Ella A Life Unaborted"

I was given this book by my friend and the author is her friend. It is an unbelievable story about a little girl who's life is nothing other than a complete miracle. The authors water broke at 18 weeks and Ella was born at 29 weeks. No doctor thought she would make it but God told Jennifer, the mother, that He was with her and to have peace. This is an amazing journey of peace in a world of unknowns, where death is at her daughters door trying desperately to get in. You won't soon forget this mother and her courage or this little girl and God's hand on her life. This story renewed my faith in a God of miracles, a God who cares and hears our every prayer, a God who works all for good. "I have said ever since I was a kid that if God hasn't taken us right up to heaven after we're saved, there must be a reason that He has us on this earth; I believe it's so that we can lead others to Him. That is the one and only reason I can logically think of that God would leave us here in this harsh world and not take us up to be in His awesome presence." And this is what the author lives by, through her trials her first thought is how can I use this to show others Christ. Read this book and be encouraged.

The Dead Don't Dance

"The Dead Don't Dance" by Charles Martin

I picked this book up at the Salvation Army for a couple of bucks. The title and cover caught my eye and I can't lie, the tragedy within the pages. I just can't pass up a tragedy, I tell myself it is because I like to see how people overcome (at least I hope that is why). I also love discovering new authors and I like this one. It is a story about love and a baby about to be born when tragedy hits. It tells about how and who and why we must rise above but also how hard it is to move on. It is about treasuring all we have, every second, every breath. It's a journey of despair but of finding the light of hope. "When you boil it down, all we got left, all anybody's got, is faith...and hope...and love. And we all gonna make it. All three of us." Those are the three things all of us have, if we choose them, and all three of them are the things that are going to last, going to get us through when we think we can't. "Cause you need to hear that there are folks in this world who got lives just as bad as yours. Life ain't fair, and welcome to earth." Sometimes self pity takes over and we think we are the only ones going through this or have trouble and we are oh so very wrong. "If God is who He says He is, then He's big enough to handle my ranting and raving. And all my questions." And I think sometimes that is just what we need to do, He understands, He hears and He loves us all the same. "I had played my best, Maggie would be proud, but I felt empty, not full. I guess that's because playing your drum only has meaning when you share it with someone else." "We scar, but in the end, we heal." We don't forget what we have been through and a lot of it leaves scars but we heal, we move on with God's grace. I loved how the character in this story found hope in the most unlikely of places and I love that hope won.