Links Worth a Look...Hope!

(Jonquils, planted by my grandmother when she lived in this house over 20 years ago, poking their heads through the ground again.  They haven't been tended or cared for in years, and have survived storms and abuse of all kinds...and yet they continue to pop up every year!  A beautiful reminder of hope and new life!)


Recent news and discussions of the "health care reform bill" expected to be signed into law today have been enough to breed intense anxiety if I give it even the tiniest bit of opportunity.  It's easy to get bogged down in the mire of the known *and* unknown pitfalls this bill brings.  I feel my blood pressure begin to rise, and realize that this is one of those times I'm glad my dad is *not* still here...I can hear exactly what he would be saying, in a not-so-quiet tone of voice, and see his face getting red as he said it!  (That would be where I inherit the "blood pressure rising" part...:))

While I am convinced that we need to do whatever we can to turn the tide (including sending home each and every Legislator who voted for this bill, and electing people of integrity and wisdom to replace them),  I also keep having to remind myself that no matter *how* disturbing the whole situation is, it *isn't* the end of the world, and there are...hard as it is to remember sometimes...more pressing issues than even our leap off the cliff into socialized healthcare.  Our focus cannot, must not, be on the current events swirling around us...it must stay, at this time as any other, on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.

I've been so encouraged by the messages of hope I've been seeing over the last few days...some specifically referencing or directed toward the current political situation, and others far removed from it.  I thought I would share some in today's "Links Worth a Look" post...

1. I love Sally Clarkson!  "Do Not Fear" at I Take Joy  


I especially love this quote, "We will never make a decision to quit when we are in the midst of a rain storm."   Excellent, excellent post. 


2.  Short, but powerful.  Focusing on Christ Amidst Swirling Changes by Barbara Rainey and Susan Yates.


I so related to Barbara's comments in the beginning about living as if  "If I could just do..." then "I could take a deep breath...and everything would be okay."  2x4 between the eyes, anyone??  Eek.


3.  We know the end of the book!  Hope in Discouraging Times by Randy Alcorn.


Alcorn's specific response to questions about the passage of the Health Care Reform Bill...what a great reminder that unlike human leaders, Jesus never gives false hope.  He is always faithful to fulfill His promises!


4.  A little lighter...  The Streak 


A fun father-daughter bonding story and a challenge to this "hit-and-miss-read-alouds" mom!


5.  And even lighter... except on the calories!!  Murphy's Hot Hamburger from the Pioneer Woman.
It certainly won't change the world, but it will make my husband very happy when I add this to the weekend's menu! :)


5.  Talk about Hope!!  This video is incredible!  Thanks to my friend Annette for sharing it!







6.  Not a link, but... this verse just keeps coming to mind this week.  Our trust is not in a president, or Congress, or a healthcare system (thank goodness!), but in the name of the Lord our God.  I so need to memorize this verse and quote it every time I feel my stomach start to knot and my blood pressure start to rise...

Some trust in and boast of chariots and some of horses, but we will trust in and boast of the name of the Lord our God.

Psalm 20:7 (AMP)

What has encouraged you this week?  I'd love to hear about it in the comments!

Btw...I have tried in vain multiple times to fix the spacing on this post.  I'm not sure what the problem is, other than it is apparently one of those "Blogger Hates Me" days.  :)   My apologies for the weirdness...someday maybe Blogger and I will be friends again and I'll figure out how to fix it!

Booking Through Thursday...

I thought this week's Booking Through Thursday question was interesting...

Here’s the question:

Some people read one book at a time. Some people have a number of them on the go at any given time, perhaps a reading in bed book, a breakfast table book, a bathroom book, and so on, which leads me to…

1. Are you currently reading more than one book?
2. If so, how many books are you currently reading?
3. Is this normal for you?
4. Where do you keep your current reads?

As I've mentioned before, I tend to read my non-fiction in "stacks".   Here are my answers:

1. Yes.

2. One fiction, and a whole stack of non-fiction.  

3. Yes.   I always seem to have a stack of non-fiction I'm working my way through, and at least one fiction book.   The fiction book is almost always bedtime reading.  Usually I breeze through them in a few days at most; the odd thing about my current reading is that I have been trying to finish my fiction book (The Edge of Recall, by Kristen Heitzman) for *weeks*.    It's slow going when you keep falling asleep after a page and a half!  

4. Current fiction book is on my nightstand.  Current non-fiction is *supposed* to be on a shelf on my desk.  However, my desk is presently a sea of chaos, and my "stack" at this point has outgrown my desk. ;-)   Oh...and I almost always have a book or two in my bag...in the words of one of my favorite "Pieces of Flair" on Facebook, "Always carry a book...you never know when you will need it."  There is nothing worse than being stuck in a drive-thru, or waiting for someone in the van, and having nothing to read! :)

Here's my current non-fiction "stack":

Do you read more than one book at a time?  What are you reading right now?  I'd love to hear...leave me a comment!  To see more, visit the Booking Through Thursday site.  

Booking Through Thursday...Goldilocks

I happened upon this week's *Booking Through Thursday* question, and although I've never participated before, I decided I had to participate in this one...it made me laugh. :-D The question from the BTT site is this:

"Okay, so the other day, a friend was commenting on my monthly reading list and asked when I found the time to read. In the ensuing discussion, she described herself as a “goldilocks” when it comes to reading–she needs to have everything juuuuuust right to be able to focus. This caught my attention because, first, I thought that was a charming way of describing the condition, but, two, while we’ve talked about our reading habits, this is an interesting wrinkle. I’d never really thought about it that way.

So, this is my question to you–are you a Goldilocks kind of reader?

Do you need the light just right, the background noise just so loud but not too loud, the chair just right, the distractions at a minimum?

Or can you open a book at any time and dip right in, whether it’s for twenty seconds, while waiting for the kettle to boil, or indefinitely, like while waiting interminably at the hospital–as long as the book is open in front of your nose, you’re happy to read?"

I am *definitely* the latter. My parents used to laugh because I would walk around the house with my book in front of my nose, reading as I walked down the hall. I was devastated when I had sinus surgery in the summer between my 3rd and 4th grade years and for some reason was never able to read in the car again without getting carsick. To this day, I will keep a book in the van to read in case I get stuck in traffic or have to wait in a drive through line. I read while waiting for things to boil on the stove, while drying my hair, and if I'm on hold on the phone. And I guess it is a good thing...these days, if I were a *Goldilocks Reader*, I probably wouldn't ever get anything read. :)

What about you? Are you a *Goldilocks Reader*? Or a *Have book, will travel* reader?

Show and Tell Friday

Is there anything more exciting than a box full of books?? Last night when I picked up the kids at J's house, she sent home a box of books her children had outgrown. This morning has been like Christmas...the kids have been exclaiming over first one book and then another:
"Oh, wow, look, Mom!"
"Check this out!"
"Oh, I can't wait to read this!" (heard several times from my sometimes reluctant reader :))
*I* can't wait to read them, either...I'm having trouble deciding what to read first. I'm just really glad we had already planned an extra-long reading session this morning!



See what others are excited about today at There's No Place Like Home .