When God Calls a Writer (Deanne Welsh) Book Review

2018 Reading Challenge

6. When God Calls a Writer by Deanne Welsh

Synopsis:
Is God calling you to write? Do you have a burning desire to write books and use words to inspire people and change the world?
When God Calls A Writer is a book about knowing that your desire to write is both a gift and a calling from God.
In When God Calls A Writer Deanne Welsh weaves the story of Moses with the story of a writer. Do you wonder if God is calling you to write, but you feel unqualified? What are the signs that God is calling you? Do you struggle to hear God's voice and guidance about your writing career? Are you eager for a powerful transformation in your faith and your writing?
Learn simple and strategic ways to allow God to connect with God, hear Him and allow Him to direct your writing journey.
Author Deanne Welsh shares her own story of insecurity and self-doubt and what it took for her to walk, first with doubt and then with confidence, into God's call for her to write. She gives you practical steps for listening to God and hearing His guidance, as well as the most important questions to ask as you begin your ministry-career of ideas, words, and stories.
By the end of this book you will have practical strategies to keep you focused, the specific questions to catapult your writing career forward, and the traits to develop and pay attention to for unstoppable writing success.
Your "yes" changes everything.

My Review:
I was interested in this book because I believe writing is one of my God-given talents.

This is a book aimed at Christian writers who believe that they are called to write. It gives encouragement if you don't believe you're suited for the job. The whole idea is to look to God to get through insecurities and any obstacles that stand in the way. With belief and faith in God, anything is possible. The book offers advice, tips, and exercises to find that faith in God and writing with Him will enable you to accomplish your call to write. It is short, but can be invaluable by writing with God, instead of without Him.

Happy Reading and Keep on Writing!

~Meg~

Photo Credit:
https://medium.com/@deannewelsh/free-book-when-god-calls-a-writer-446fb8a9b589

Daniel (Robin Merrill) Book Review

2017 Reading Challenge

16. Daniel by Robin Merrill

Synopsis:

Open Door Church has served as a homeless shelter for more than a decade, but when their pastor dies unexpectedly, those who remain struggle to take up the reins to keep the ministry going. And then there’s young Daniel, who seems to be working miracles in their midst, which of course, isn’t possible. Or is it?

My Review:

When a pastor started up a church, he also opened it up as a homeless shelter. Everything was going well for quite awhile, but it's thrown into disarray after the pastor dies suddenly and unexpectedly. Then it becomes a story of survival as there was no one left in charge in the event of his passing. I believe that those who took in the church for shelter had to attend the services, in addition to pitching in around the church as well. Since there was no protocol, they decide to sort of vote on who gets to lead them and it's someone who has been a crucial help to the church, although not homeless. While some good-hearted parishioners attempt to follow in the footsteps of the former pastor, there's a group of men who believe that they are supposed to be in charge and wants to ruin all the hard work put into the church and shelter by turning it into everything that it's not supposed to be.

At the heart of this novel (as it's aptly named after him) is Daniel, a little boy who can perform miracles by healing people. But only those he's supposed to heal. While his mom tries to keep it hidden, his secret comes out and all of a sudden he's supposed to heal everyone. Daniel doesn't know why he has this ability, but he also has a strong faith in God. Since he's only a kid, he can't put up with the pressure. And he's in further deep water when his taking about God and his faith gets them thrown out. Daniel was my favorite character because even though he has this special gift, he's just a sweet kid. He's one of the few people who believe that that church and shelter will go back to what it was supposed to be.

Daniel was definitely a page-turner. I enjoyed getting to know the families and parishioners of the church and shelter. There will be ones you love and ones you just love to hate. 

Happy Reading and Keep on Writing!

~Meg~

The 7 Habits That Will Change Your Life Forever (Adam Houge) Book Review

2016 Reading Challenge

48. The 7 Habits That Will Change Your Life Forever by Adam Houge
      Theme/Topic: self-improvement book

Synopsis:

Becoming a highly spiritual Christian needs to be the goal of every believer. Love in itself is an action and should be practiced habitually by everyone. We through love should be fervently seeking the Lord, and cherishing one another. We must be constantly portraying the heart of God toward one another on a habitual basis.

In this book we will distill the best habits down to the seven most productive ones. If practiced properly, they will carry over into every other category of life and drive you to become a highly spiritual Christian.

My Review:

As you can see from above, I chose this book as a self-improvement book. It seemed to have a great concept, but honestly, I was let down. The whole idea about this book is the best seven ways to become a better Christian. I have nothing against that as I was born and raised Catholic and Catholicism is a form of Christianity. While the seven habits are practical, the author made it sound like a lecture. It felt that most of the information was being forced on to me, making the book drag on in the process. In doing so, it lessened the effectiveness of what he was trying to say, the points he wanted to make. It didn't help that there was a lot of repetition of certain things throughout the whole book. Not to mention that some points he was trying to make contradicted each other. 

The Seven Habits are:

1. Love

2. Self-awareness

3. Pursuit of wisdom

4. Pursuit of truth

5. Avid listener

6. Tasteful tongue

7. Committed to a life of good

Once again, all seven habits are good concepts. It was just the way they were explained and broken down that was the problem.

Happy Reading and Keep on Writing!

❤Meg❤

Out of a Dream (Rosemary Hines) Book Review

2016 Reading Challenge

22. Out of a Dream by Rosemary Hines

Synopsis:

Michelle Baron should be reveling in her new life in Sandy Cove, Oregon. From the outside, it all looks idyllic. A newlywed settling into a quaint coastal town, her husband establishing himself as a junior partner in a law firm—what more could she want? But a series of disturbing nightmares haunts Michelle. Her quest to understand these dreams leads her to the New World bookstore, where she begins a spiritual journey that will challenge her Christian heritage as well as her marriage.

My Review:
For starters, it took me quite awhile to get into this book. And I wasn't sure how I was going to get through it, let alone the other books in the series. I didn't really like the writing style. It dragged along for quite a bit, making the progression of the story to be slow. I decided to stick it out though. It picked up near the end, especially as far as suspense goes, wanting me to read more.

The main theme going on throughout the story was new age beliefs. Michelle had been experiencing disturbing dreams. At the suggestion of a friend, she starts to look into dream interpretations. The more she got into that, the more she got into other New Age religion practices in her search for answers. For instance, tarot card readings, palm readings, astrology, divination and spiritual transformation. As she starts her way down a dangerous path, so to say (you'll have to read the book to understand), her grandparents keep praying that she'll come around. Michelle's grandparents are devout Christians. Michelle's parents let her and her brother choose their own path.

The other theme brought up (that's not really talked about in society) was suicide. Michelle's father, John, had been accused of embezzlement from the company he works at. He believes he's been set up, but can't prove it. As the investigation goes on, John gets go his breaking point, figuring that there's nothing that can be done to prove he's innocent. He decides the only way out is by committing suicide so that his wife and family don't get dragged into the situation (like him going through a trial and most likely being in prison for awhile). John attempts suicide and as his life hangs in the balance, the first book in this series comes to an end.

I can say that the other books in this series are really good. But it helps to read them in order. I will be posting those reviews in the next couple of weeks.

Happy Reading and Keep on Writing!

♥Meg♥

Live Original Book Review

2016 Reading Challenge

6. Live Original by Sadie Robertson

Synopsis:
Seventeen-year-old Sadie Robertson-star of A&E’s Duck Dynasty and daughter of Willie and Korie Robertson-shares her outlook on life as she opens up about herself and the values that make her family what it is. Sadie Robertson represents everything that a well-adjusted teenager should be, even while growing up in the spotlight on Duck Dynasty. She exhibits poise, respect for her family and friends, and a faith that influences her choices. Everyone wants to know how a family as eclectic as the Robertsons are raising such confident, fun, family-loving kids. With this book, Sadie sheds light on the values instilled by her family that make her the person she is. Sadie lives by a simple list of principles that lead her to personal and spiritual growth and allow the relationships she has with her friends and family to flourish. These values include think happy, be happy; dream big; shake the hate; do something; and many more.

My Review:
I want to start out by saying that I'm not a fan of Duck Dynasty. I've seen a few episodes and it just isn't to my liking - nothing to do with their Christian lifestyle by the way. I got to know Sadie when she danced with Mark Ballas on Season 19 of Dancing With the Stars and ended up liking her because of her personality and staying true to her values.

In a time when being a Christian/Catholic is not easy, it amazes me to know that some people stay true to their faith and values despite the adversity they face, just like Sadie does. Sadie does a good job at sharing how her faith in God helps guide her through her teenage years. The teen years can be pretty rough, especially for girls. Sadie does give some great advice for getting through those challenging times. It didn't come across as being over preachy, but in some situations, it went over the top just a little.

Some of the things mentioned were repeated in different ways throughout the book and it was just using simple and basic language. Since Sadie is only a teen, there are still lots of challenges that she has yet to face. The only thing that I didn't like was that it came across as in Sadie believing that all teens are raised like she was most of her life. And unfortunately, that's not quite true. Yes, there are a lot of devout Christian families out there, kids included, who live exceptional lives as to God's lifestyle, so to say. I have no problems with that, but at the same time, you have to take into consideration and show compassion to the way others have grown up. It does sometimes takes people a while to put God first in their life and you have to be respectful of that as well.

Sadie said over and over again how she chooses to be happy regardless of what's going on, even through the tough times. That certainly isn't easy. While I agree that choosing to be happy (or hiding the fact that you're going through a hard time) is necessary in a way, it is also okay to have those bad days. Being sad and upset (this doesn't mean anger) it's normal to show those emotions as well. She does give advice to keeping emotions in check, like anger and jealousy, because people tend to say the wrong thing or do the wrong thing when they feel that way.

This is a great book for tweens and teens alike. I appreciated the scripture quotes throughout the story. It just underwhelmed me a little bit as a whole. What I liked the most about this book was that it encourages you to be you, so live original.

Happy Reading and Keep on Writing!

Meg