Jesus Listens | January Book Club

JESUS LISTENS

Life is never (ever) the easy-peasy joy ride we think it’s going to be when we’re young. Life is more cyclical than that, like the seasons. Our planet would dry up and blow away if it hovered perpetually in the heat and sun of summertime. We need winter, and the transitional seasons too.

Life is like that as well, and if you find yourself experiencing some wintery moments, anxious and overwhelmed, Jesus will provide shelter from the storm.

My book club pick for January is a new 365-day devotional prayer book, Jesus Listens, by Sarah Young, author of Jesus Calling, chosen to begin the new year with the best advice I can give to anyone; turn to God in all circumstances.

Whether the practice of daily devotionals is something you embraced long ago, or are brand new to, Jesus Listens empowers you to pray daily. Maybe it will be the only (conscious) conversation you have with God that day, or perhaps it will serve as an “ice-breaker” allowing you to begin a new relationship.

Jesus Listens is ideal for those who . . . 

• are going through difficult times and looking for rest and hope

• are busy from life’s demands, but want to grow their prayer life

• are not sure how to pray

• have been praying for years but want a closer relationship with God

The biblical basis for each prayer in Jesus Listens is given at the end of each entry so you can continually return to God's promises in Scripture. 

Jesus Listens, 365 short, heartfelt prayers based on Scripture, is a beautiful gift to give yourself or anyone you know who has, or seeks, a relationship with God.

It’s a helpful and appreciated aid to establishing a more consistent practice of talking to and trusting in Jesus, in the midst of life’s harshest storms, and whilst rejoicing in the sunshine of a moment.

“By praying Scripture through this daily devotional prayer book, you'll experience how intentional prayer connects you to God, changes your heart, and can even move mountains.”

Find your way to Jesus Listens HERE.

Her Mother’s Hope & Her Daughter’s Dream | May Book Club

For the month of May, I have a special treat for my book club readers, a hefty pair of books, well-researched and rich in history and content, tracing four generations of women; Her Mother’s Hope & Her Daughter’s Dream, by Francine Rivers.

Born in Switzerland at the turn of the century, matriarch Marta Schneider Waltert is strong, capable, and fiercely independent (perhaps to her detriment at times). Her story begins at the hearthside of her family of origin with a kind, but sickly and subservient mother, a handsome older brother, and a beautiful but incapable younger sister. The lion’s share of work—as well as the scorn and abuse of her domineering and drunken father—often falls to middle child, plain Marta.

You’ll want to come along on the journey that takes Marta first to Germany, then France, and on to London before an ocean voyage deposits her as a lone female emigrant on Canada’s shores just before the first World War. And as she, her husband, and three small children, travel to the farming epicenter of California’s Central Valley, where this band of outsiders build their forever lives. Her struggles help to shape her into a wise and resilient woman, but no one would describe her as a tender mother, least of all her own middle child, Hildemara (Hildie).

Her Mother’s Hope, the first of the two books, ends with Marta, older and widowed, recognizing that she has been unduly harsh on Hildie, which she’s justified because she believed a terrible fate might have befallen her frail daughter if tough love weren’t employed early and often.

Her Daughter’s Dream picks up where the first story leaves off. . . Hildie is married with two children of her own and unwittingly repeating some of the same parenting patterns that left her wondering if she was ever loved by her mother. Her daughter, Carolyn, suffers abuse by a neighbor when she’s a young girl, and fear and shame cause her to keep the dark secret. We feel the years pass, and the rifts between generations widen.

The Vietnam War exacts its toll on this family as they lose a son to the conflict and Carolyn to her inner demons. Returning home from the stupors of Haight-Ashbury and months of homelessness, her parents are first relieved, then pained anew when Carolyn realizes she’s pregnant. Her baby, May Flower Dawn, is a salvation, but Hildie and Carolyn are locked in a battle for the little girl’s affections from the beginning, each misunderstanding the other just as Hildemara and Marta had.

One might wonder if history is indeed doomed to repeat itself despite everyone’s best effort, until Dawn herself is poised to become a mother. Bringing her child into the world isn’t her only mission; she’s determined to open up the old wounds in her family so that this time they may heal properly.

Through it all, the years, the experiences, the hopes and hardships, it is faith to which these women tether their stars, and it is He who guides them to truth and understanding.

From the publisher: This is a story about the foundational and often-challenging relationships between mothers, daughters, and grandchildren, and the best gifts we hope to leave behind. It is a story that will resonate across generations of readers who will likely recognize a piece of themselves in one of the four women. Marta’s legacy is one of faith and love passed down by a woman who heard from her own mother about God’s good plans for her future. Her story—and one that also becomes her daughter’s, granddaughter’s, and great-granddaughter’s—is a legacy of resilience: of moving past physical and emotional abuse, of overcoming loss and achieving prosperity, and of surviving in the face of war and cultural upheaval. It is an encouragement to mothers and daughters to never give up on the effort to love each other. It is also about the tenacious love of family and the hope that God can be trusted with our lives in every generation.

Many of us have a little more time on our hands than usual these days, and I wasn’t exaggerating when I said these are hefty books. They are not a light or simple read, but hearty in prose and not lacking in meaningful details and descriptions so exquisite, it’s easy to close your eyes for a moment and be transported to the Swiss Alps, the Royal Kew Gardens, the boughs of an almond tree in full bloom . . .

Take a long and lovely journey without ever leaving your home in Her Mother’s Hope and Her Daughter’s Dream; perfect Mother’s Day gifts as well!

Order Both Today!

Her Mother’s Hope Her Daughter’s Dream

I Can Only Imagine | March Book Club

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I Can Only Imagine, a Friendship with Jesus Now and Forever, by Bart Millard, founding member of the award-winning musical group, MercyMe, is my March Book Club pick!

First a hit song, then a book, a child's version of the book (this one!), and now a major motion picture in theaters March 16, I Can Only Imagine was inspired by Bart's personal loss; his father died of cancer when Bart was just 18.

The song not only topped the Christian music charts but was a cross-over hit to Top 40 and Billboards Adult Hot Contemporary, which illustrates the popularity of it's universal theme.

Do you have a child or grandchild you would like to share God's love with? (You know I have several!!!) Do you ever feel mystified in your response to their questions about heaven, or where Jesus lives?

Encourage their sense of wonder and faith with I Can Only Imagine, a beautiful picture book inspired by the hit song by MercyMe. 

I Can Only Imagine asks questions a child might ask and invites families to wonder together: What is heaven like? What does God do? What would it be like to spend a day with Jesus? Children will see that although experiencing the glory of heaven may be far off, we can enjoy a friendship with Jesus every day - right here on earth. Whimsical, playful illustrations and thought-provoking questions make this a book that families will cherish.

I love the adorable, fun and vibrant illustrations by Sumiti Colina. Friendly, playful, and vivid, the visual will help your children see that God can be found everywhere, every day. 

ORDER YOUR COPY

Make sure you sign up for my Weekly Newsletter, where I'll be giving directions later this month on how you could receive a free copy of this wonderful book!

Box of Butterflies | February Book Club

OK, OK, it doesn't come out until March, but I wanted to give you all a heads up on this beautiful book, by my beautiful friend, Roma Downey.

Do you feel something special when you see a butterfly? Roma does. These graceful winged creatures, with their intricate patterns and delicate flutter reminder her of God's presence, which is all around us.

Box of Butterflies is meant to do just that, remind us all that God is here, with us, each and every moment. It's a collection of inspiring thoughts, poems, scripture and art work that will serve as a metaphorical butterfly on the days you most need one.

Just a moment or two with her book during those times will give you the little lift, the little reminder, that you are never alone. In the best and the worst of times, God is there, loving you fiercely throughout your life.

Box of Butterflies is the absolute perfect gift to tuck into an Easter basket or wrap up for Mother's Day. Actually, it's the absolute perfect gift to give ANY day.

Pre-Order your Box of Butterflies

I think Box of Butterflies is such a lovely thing to own, I'm going to give several of them away.

Would you like one? Write to me and tell me why at D@Delilah.com.

Same Kind of Different as Me | October Book Club

October Book Club | Same Kind of Different As Me
by Ron Hall & Denver Moore

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On February 1, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln approved the Joint Resolution of Congress submitting the proposed 13th amendment, which formally abolished slavery in the United States, to the state legislatures.

Astonishingly, entire families were held virtual captive in rural areas of the south, made to pick cotton, clean houses, take punishments and abuse, and live in squalid conditions for a nearly a century more; in rare cases up until the 1960’s!

In Same Kind of Different As Me, you’ll meet Denver, a man raised under this type of plantation-style slavery in Louisiana in the 1960s. He escaped, but what does a man unused to the modern world, and bitter to the soul do with his new-found freedom? He wandered, homeless, angry, and hostile, for 18 years in Dallas, Texas. 

You’ll also meet Ron, and international arts dealer, who’s lived a life so completely opposite that of Denver, that it’s difficult to mention them in the same breath.

And then there is Deborah, Ron’s wife, who is currently being held by a different hostage-taker, cancer.

How they all come together is, of course, a God thing. Deborah believed in the power of prayer, and listened intently for direction from God. She obeyed what she believe He was telling her to do, and charges her husband to rescue a dangerous homeless man… Thus an unlikely trio was formed.

Same Kind of Different As Me is the emotional tale of their story: a telling of pain and laughter, doubt and tears, a story of how one woman’s faith and trust in GOD saved a life.

Now an inspirational film with the all-star cast of Greg Kinnear, Renee Zellweger, Djimon Hounsou, and Jon Voight, you can pick up the book at any booksellers, and find the movie in theaters on Oct 20th. 
 

WATCH THE TRAILER