The Blind Side

"The Blind Side" by Michael Lewis

Most people have seen the movie and I really like the movie. I wanted to see what the book had to offer. The book had a lot more information about football, my husband is now impressed with my knowledge. But it also added more of who the person Michael Oher was. It really is an unbelievable story of a poor, homeless black teen who is brought in by a rich, Evangelical, white family. The love they show Michael and the devotion he returns is heart lifting. "God gives people money to see how you're going to handle it. And she (Leigh Anne-the white mother who adopted Michael) intended to prove she knew how to handle it." She used her money to buy Michael clothes, of which he only had one shirt and a pair of shorts. She used her money to feed him, send him to school and cover his basic needs. May we all prove we know how to handle God's money. The father, Sean, was asked how he felt about the experience. He replied, "It's ruined us. Because so far as I can see, there's no downside. We can't look at a kid who's in trouble now without asking, 'If we had him, could we turn him around?' So what do we do when he leaves? Do we do it again?" I love the heart of this family. They are so giving and willing to take a chance on someone who needs the love of Christ. This is an amazing story and inspires me to be willing to help those in need.

Rule Number Two: Lessons I Learned in a Combat Hospital

"Rule Number Two: Lessons I Learned in a Combat Hospital" by Dr. Heidi Squier Kraft

I read this book in a day. It was a book that reminded me of the sacrifices of every day people that do extraordinary things. It reminded me of the sacrifices so many people make so that I can have the freedoms I enjoy. It humbled me and made me oh so thankful. There really aren't words. It is a true story of a psychologist who gets deployed to Iraq, leaving behind her husband and twin 15 month old babies. She writes about life in Iraq and the Marines that she helps. "There are two rules of war. Rule number one is that young men die. Rule number two is that doctors can't change rule number one." This is the most frustrating thing for Heidi and she says "War damages doctors, too. They are damaged by rule number two." Doctors are meant to help and save but in the places and under the conditions they were in they couldn't and because of this they were damaged too. She was able to get a ice cold coke one hot day in Iraq and said, "Sometimes, heaven was redefined." It is the little things. "Can you believe that these sorts of absolutely insane situations face these people half our age every single day out here? Do we actually, realistically, expect them to be able to cope with this and not have any complications?" Our troops face things no one should ever have to face, ever. Yet they do. And how can we expect them to come home unchanged? We can't and we shouldn't. No amount of therapy can change what they see and have to do but at least it can make them feel like they aren't the only ones and they aren't crazy. They are true heroes and I am so grateful to them.

The Zion Chronicles

"The Gates of Zion"; "A Daughter of Zion"; The Return to Zion"; A Light in Zion" and "The Key to Zion" by Bodie Thoene

These books have been sitting on my shelf for over a year. I always had something else to read so I never got to them. And, admittedly, they didn't look that good from looking at the cover. But as they say, don't judge a book by it's cover. The books are about a few key characters in the struggle of the Jewish people after the Holocaust in the Middle East. There is a lot of sound historical information but it is wrapped around a story that captures the reader. Here are a few quotes. "We must continue to trust. That there is a purpose and a plan for everything. God is paying attention and, though we may grieve now, the whole story is not known to us yet." How hard it is to remember that this is not all there is. We have so many questions because we do not see the whole picture. "There can be no peace unless it is found in a man's heart. And that cannot be unless he first knows God and then comes to love himself and others with a love like Jesus." Peace is hard to find these days amidst the troubles of this world but God gives a peace that isn't based on what is going on around us. I really enjoyed reading these books and am looking forward to the two more series that follow them so stay tuned.

Brotherhood of Betrayal

"Brotherhood of Betrayal" by Randall Arthur

This was a very good book. I love the honesty in it. The book is about a missionary family serving in Sweden. The husband, who is the pastor, mysteriously disappears. The wife doesn't know who she can turn to and can't find any answers for her husbands disappearance. Her family and her faith get turned upside down. This book holds such truth. "Life for a Christian, no matter how out of control it might appear, is never truly out of control at all. God in His sovereignty is always holding the Christian's circumstances together in His loving and almighty grasp." Did you need to hear that? I certainly did. Sometimes I feel like life is so out of control and it isn't, God knows what is happening and He loves me. "May God somehow miraculously embrace you till you once again feel secure." I love that sentence. Sometimes we need His miraculous embrace to feel right again and I so need it. "Humans tend to pardon or condemn, based strictly on their view of a person's actions. Christians especially, because of our moral expectations, look so closely at a person's conduct that we often forget there's a life going on inside that person's heart." I do this so often and have to remind myself that I have no idea what a person has or is going through and that I can not in any way judge their actions. There is always a bigger issue, a issue of the heart and people act out of that hurt. The abandoned wife reaches a point where she has nothing left to face what may lie ahead and says, "I...I just don't have the strength...I-" A pastor says, "I would like to be your strength for you." Sometimes we just don't have it in us anymore and we need someone to lift us up, someone to be our strength for us. What an awesome picture of Christ. "Pain does not have to be wasted. If we can be taught, with the help of God and others, to review our pain and learn from it rather than to fritter away our life regretting it, we will discover that pain, like no other source, can supply our heart and soul with compassion, mercy and understanding for the hurting world around us." What a great perspective on the hard things that we go through and how to use it for good. This book touched me and I highly recommend it. I really appreciate when a book can be so honest even about some of the ugliness in our churches today.

Be Not Afraid

"Be Not Afraid" by Robert L. Wise

I really enjoyed this book! It is about an old woman whose husband has died and she is cleaning out her garage. She finds a box with old letters that she once wrote to a pilot she was in love with. She finds herself wondering whatever happened to him as her letters had gotten returned saying he was missing in action. She grieves thinking he is dead. Then she decides to find out the truth and ends up finding out he is alive. It is such a great story of love, duty, sacrifice and courage. "You better do today what needs to be done and not wait for tomorrow. What you put off only comes back to haunt you. Don't live for what somebody else thinks." Such good words to live by. I know I have put things off only to wish that I had taken care of them the first time. We do need to live for what God thinks but He is the only voice we should listen to. This book also gave lots of great info about WWII and being a prisoner of war. I appreciated the reality yet the great story of love that was intertwined throughout.

The Rats of Hamelin

"The Rats of Hamelin" by Adam McCune & Keith McCune

I am not sure why I read this book, another one that I started and wouldn't put down due to principle of finishing what I started. The story is about the pied piper. He sets out on a mission to rid Hamelin from a plague of rats. He runs into much trouble and his easy mission isn't so easy. It is a strange story, fantasy mixed with history. It got better towards the middle but it left me wondering what was the main point of the story, I really don't know. I guess if you like fantasy this is a read for you, not for me.

Political Thriller Series

"The Last Jihad"; "The Last Days"; "The Ezekiel Option"; "The Copper Scroll" and "Dead Heat" by Joel Rosenberg

I was surprised at how much I liked these books. There was a lot of political and military jargon that I don't really care for but I skipped over some of it and what did I expect from a political thriller. The books are about how the prophecy in the Bible regarding the end times playes out today. I was fascinated by all of the end time prophecy and how the author viewed what would happen. There were a lot of scripture references which made me search the Bible for the things he was talking about. I got really interested in what the Bible has to say regarding all of the happenings in the end times. I liked that there was a love story woven throughout and the books certainly kept me on the edge of my seat and wanting to keep reading. The last book was just as good as the first. The author doesn't claim to be prophetic although his books seem to come true. It is really a fascinating series that will get you thinking and reading more about the end time prophecies.