For the first Monday since September, I woke up this morning with nothing to do. Well, ok. Not nothing, but a different kind of nothing than I’ve experienced in months.
Last week, my Tuesday morning Bible study gals and I finally closed the book on our Names of God study. I’m both elated and depressed that it’s over. It was a challenge for me to teach each week – to finish strong and see the thing all the way through – and now that it’s over, I want it back.
I’m a girl, after all. This is what we do.
I have plans to reopen the pages in order to write it out in study form, but for now it will rest. And so will I.
So, here I sit.
This is my office, better know as the kitchen table. And yes. That’s our trash can. In a chair. Our lab happens to be obsessed with eating things. Beside eating socks, this trash can is his favorite target. So, in order to maintain my sanity and protect his life, the trash can sits here. Welcome to my home.
A few months ago, I asked Facebook friends to give me some reading suggestions. Boy did they deliver! Here’s what I’ve been reading lately.
From the bottom:
NUDGE: Awakening Each Other to the God Who’s Already There, by Leonard Sweet.
” … this groundbreaking book dares to ask: Instead of bringing people to Jesus, how about joining Jesus in what he is already doing.” Yes!!
“Author Leonard Sweet challenges you to use all five senses to interact with God and others. Nudge will remind you that for God to do something through us, God must be doing something in us.”
CLOUT: Discover and Unleash Your God-Given Influence, by Jenni Catron
“We all long for significance, even as we fear we will never be good enough. We listen for God, but hear only voices of doubt and practicality. Listen again. There is a call that only you can answer. … With scripture and stories from her own life, Jenni Catron maps out the pitfalls and clear paths on the way toward discovering and unleashing your very own clout.”
PILGRIMAGE OF A SOUL: Contemplative Spirituality for the Active Life, by Phileena Heuertz
“You can only go so far for so long before you find the limits of yourself. … Tracing seven movements from a kind of sleepfulness to a kind of wakefulness, Phileena shows us that life is a journey that repeats itself as Christ leads us deeper and deeper into our true selves and a truer knowledge of God.”
DANCING ON MY ASHES: Learning to Love the One Who Gives and Takes Away, by Heather Gilion and Holly Snell
Based on a true story – “When tragedy strikes, we often discover that we have been living with a false sense of who God is. … Dancing On My Ashes is a call to stop living wounded and accept the presence of God’s hand in our lives.”
ANONYOUS: Jesus’ Hidden Years and Yours, by Alicia Britt Chole
Yes! I’m reading this book again! I have some friends reading it and couldn’t resist. It’s just that good.
“Using Jesus’ hidden years as inspiration, this gifted writer memorably demonstrates how to resist temptation, experience deep growth and repurpose your own hidden years so that you will be ready to resolutely live out God’s dreams for you with integrity and confidence.”
I don’t know about you, but if I want to be consistent in the Word, I also need to be working through some kind of Bible study. Here’s the one I’m doing right now:
I have certainly lived through far too many seasons with my Bible collecting dusk next to my bed. It’s easy for me to get out of the habit of being in the Word, so I use studies like this to keep me accountable. Whether I’m going through it with a group or not, I’m always IN a study.
Speaking of the Word, this verse is my heart right now.
Shane and Shane have a song based on this verse, Be Near …
Enjoy. (For email subscribers, you may have to click the link to listen)
Oh God, may we never tire of seeking Your presence,
and may we never lose wonder in the fact that You choose to be near.
Your nearness is most certainly our good!
So, what have you been up to lately? Any new books I should read? How about an idea to keep my dog out of the trash can? I’m all ears!!
Love Priscilla Shirer! Just got her book, "God is Able" 🙂
~Katrina
I love her too Katrina. I'd love to hear about the book when you're done. It sounds great.
So far it's great!!! I actually went and heard her speak not that long ago and it was so encouraging! She's coming to speak again in Plano at preston wood Baptist sometime in October of this year…look out for details 🙂 It should be a free event.