Book review: Pure Love, Pure Life by Elsa Kok Colopy

     The Lowdown: Wouldn't it be great to live a pure, undefiled life? In today's culture, a truly pure life is hard to find. Being pure has as much to do with the spiritual as it does the physical. In this truthful, to the point book, Elsa Kok Colopy shares her story of her deep pit of heartache, and the awesome love of God that pulled her out of it. She shares techniques on how to avoid lust, and how to maintain your purity. She uses God's love letter to us as her ultimate resource, and shows how God can restore your life if you just give it to Him.

    

I liked:That this book was a great read, it covered numerous topics. It showed how we are made to love God, and used many wonderful analogies to how Jesus is our Prince Charming. I liked her use of true stories and how emotions can lead to sin when not handled properly.

I disliked: At times, I was quite uncomfortable reading about certain topics. Nothing said was untruthful, and was, in fact, necessary.  Just a bit uncomfortable.

Overall: I would recommend this book to girls ages 16+, maybe even older depending on your specific circumstance. Pray if you aren't sure if this book is right for you.

This book was given to me for free from Zondervan for this review.

Sincerely,

Libbi H.

Book Review: Sweeter Than Birdsong by Rosslyn Elliott

Kate Winter has to learn how to talk in front of audiences if she is ever going to speak up against slavery. That will be hard to do with her socialite mother always trying to find her a husband of great wealth.

Ben Hanby wants to end slavery, and while he knows he can't do it single handedly, he hates the evil practice with his entire being.

When forced together by unforeseen circumstances, Ben and Kate make a great team. Unfortunately, tragedy strikes, and they will be forced to make decisions that change the future of those in their care.

What I liked: Everything. I honestly think this may be the best historical fiction book I have ever read. And that is saying a lot. I love it when historical fiction is based on a real family. This book certainly delivered more than I could have hoped or dreamed. It was SO accurately described, and I felt almost as if I was in the pre-Civil War era myself.

Another thing. I love historical fiction, but I have noticed that almost all historical fiction, even Christian ( I rarely read secular historical fiction) is fairly romantic. This book, while it did focus on the love story between Ben and Kate, was completely pure. And I scarcely am able to say that about books. Now, I never read fiction that I feel crosses the line of innocence, but this book made me so happy to see that there are still authors who write about chivalry and femininity so beautifully. In this book, there was not a hint of impurity, and I loved that. This book was wonderfully innocent, I feel as though my six year old sister could listen to it unscathed.

{Just a note to my readers, I will shut a book if I feel it has crossed a line of impurity, such as lustful thoughts or actions uncorrected. This is another reason I like Historical fiction. Because of the manners of the day, sexual content in Christian Historical fiction rarely goes beyond a kiss, which is why I read it. If it goes farther, I will unhesitatingly slam the book shut!}

Adding onto the above paragraph, I ADORED the use of 19th century manners. I literally was floored at how much more innocent their culture was than ours. She would feel ashamed to go on a {very short} buggy ride alone with a male under nightfall. Sounds good to me. 

I disliked: Nothing about the book. Nothing.

Overall: Buy this book. Now. You should already be buying it. Why are you still reading this? 

You will be guaranteed to get your money's worth if you buy this book! I LOVED it!

Thomas Nelson Publishers gave me this book for free in exchange for a honest review. I love them for it. 

Sincerely,

Libbi H.

Country kids {a photoshoot}

My sister is so adorable ♥

I love the country.

Book Review: Accused by Janice Cantore

After a cop involved shooting, Detective Carly Edwards is forced to work a boring desk job in juvenile, rather than working in patrol where she formerly was stationed. That is, until she is requested by a suspect in the murder of the mayor of Las Playas, the town in which Carly works. When she tries to investigate the truth behind the murder, she is cut off from all sides. Feeling the suspects are both innocent, Carly decided to investigate further. Along the way, she is growing close to her ex-husband, even though he had cheated on her after 8 years of marriage. When Carly uncovers the truth, the corruption runs deeper than anyone ever though possible.

I liked: The plot. What a great mystery. It was definitely a suspenseful read from the first chapter. I decide if I think a book is worth reading in the the first five chapters. I decided this book was worth reading in the first two. I loved the interwoven story of Carly falling in love with her husband, for the second time. I also loved her reluctance to believe in God in the beginning turning into a belief in God.

I disliked: some of the doctrine, but really, doctrine is one of those thing in the Christian belief that people will never change unless God tells them to. Otherwise, fighting over doctrine will do nothing for anyone. Also, one of the characters I liked died, but it was ok. 

Overall: Buy this book for a great, suspenseful read, full of intrigue and faith. I would recommend it to anyone who likes mysteries. It is about a murder, so it is not for young readers.  I definitely give this book a five star rating. Hope you enjoy this book!

Sincerely,

Libbi H.

This book was given to me for free for this review by Tyndale House Publishers. Thanks!

:)

Flowery sunglasses: $12
Converse key chain: $6
GPS: $99
Shiny red Volvo: Thank you Dad
Allstate insurance: Thank you Chris Lucio
  Jumper cables: $25
Celebration moose tracks ice cream: $5
Defying superstitions by getting my license on Friday the 13th: 

Priceless.

Book review: Then Sings my soul Book 3 by Roberrt Morgan

      Our faith is known for it's many hymns and songs. In this beautiful book, Robert Morgan shares the stories behind some of the most famous hymns and songs of all time. Music for the hymns is included, which makes the songs much more beautiful to understand. Robert Morgan takes you on a journey through the hymns of the Bible, the hymns of the early church, Medieval hymns, and just about every other kind of hymn you can imagine. With stunning beauty and heart-warming stories, this book is one you will definitely want to add to your reading list this year.

     I loved this book.  The instant I saw the cover I was amazed at how beautiful it was. The pages are the kind that are a bit worn at the edges {my favorite} and the whole book itself looked like a dream. I think this book would be a perfect gift for the worship leader of a church, or anyone who loves music. I loved the story he told at the beginning of the book about whales singing, and all creation singing to God. It sent shivers down my spine. Overall, I completely and totally recommend this book to you, it is definitely worth your time and effort!

THis book was given to me for free from Thomas Nelson publishers in exchange for this review :)

Sincerely,
Libbi H.

Book Review: The Essential Guide to Healing -by Bill Johnson and Randy Clark

Are Christians today living in the fullness of Salvation? Are we supposed to be walking around as sick, weak, pathetic excuses for life? I think not. In addition, so does Bill Johnson, as well as Randy Clark. They wrote this fantastic, theologically sound book as a quick-reference guide for Christians worldwide. They used multitudinous amounts of scripture in their studies, and shared the testimonies of many believers who have been healed worldwide. With healing being a fairly controversial topic  in the Christian culture today, this book is a must read for anyone unsure in their beliefs.

I thought this book was fantastic. I really enjoyed their easy to understand analogies, and likewise, their absolute reliance on the scriptures. I disagreed with some of their end-times doctrine, but the ratio of agree/disagree was  99/1. It was really the only thing I disagreed with in the book's entirety. I would recommend this book to anyone. It was one of the best books that I have read on the subject of healing. It would be a great book for those going to a seminary/Bible college. If You have some Christmas money left, you can be certain this book was be a great addition to your collection.

I got this book for free for this review from Bethany House Publishers. 

Sincerely, 

Libbi H.

The best is yet to come

{via}

2011 has come and gone. 2012 has now arrived.

I am excited for 2012, so many awesome things to come! A few of the things I am looking forward to...

• Getting my license. I should be getting it within the week.
• My 17th birthday. Because birthdays are the bomb.
• The birth of my baby brother. I can barely wait! 
• My graduation! No more school, no more books, no more teacher's dirty looks...except I am homeschooled, so scratch the last part!
• My graduation party. Cause parties are also the bomb. 
• Posting on my blog more. Cause my followers rock. 
• Getting a job at my local library {fingers crossed! Just kidding, but if you pray for me to get a job there, I would be grateful! }
• Improving my photography
• Learning to sew more complicated things.
• Running every morning. Not. 

It is going to be an awesome year!

What are you looking forward to in 2012?


Sincerely,
Libbi H.

The Truth About {Complaining}

{via}

Complaining. So easy to do.  No one will reprimand us for complaining. No one. So why do we complain?  The reasons are limitless: too cold, too hot, too lukewarm, too tired, too hyper, too full, too hungry, too bored, too busy. With so many “reasons” to complain, we should just complain all the time, right?

Wrong.

The Bible clearly states that we should not complain.

Jude 1:16

 These people are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage

 Really, when you think about it, Complaining is very prideful. Why? Because you are still focusing on yourself. Whether you are focusing on how much or how little you have, it is about YOU. 

 Anytime we complain, we are complaining against the blessings God has given us. Yes, we are going to have problems in life. It is a fallen world. Complaining doesn't do anything for anyone!

James 5:9

Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you [yourselves] may not be judged.

Have you ever complaining about your siblings being to rowdy, or your mom being to judgmental, or your friend being to talkative. Every seed you sow has a return address. Be careful what you send out.

1 Peter 4:9

Practice hospitality to one another (those of the household of faith). And [in each instance] do it ungrudgingly (cordially and graciously, without complaining but as representing Him).

This was one of the hardest things for me. I had such a difficult time with this one. I am pretty good at complaining, if you know what I mean.
 

 Now, girls, hear me out on this. *cough* PMSdoesn'tgiveyoutherighttocomplain*cough* cough* really, it doesn't. I cannot tell you how many people I know complain and complain and complain when they are "PMSing." Seriously? Girls today have been given an excuse to complain and act like brats for a week every month. That is a quarter of the year that girls are able to complain freely without taking blame for it. Let me say this; Complaining is complaining. Doesn't matter if it is that time of the month, that time of the year, or that time of your week. 


I realize that we need to vent. You need to vent, I need to vent, and my cousin's mother's friend's sister needs to vent. You know who we should vent to? God. As an awesome quote from Bill Johnson goes, " Tell God your problems, even though He already knows. It will get them off your back, and give Him a chance to show you the solution." {note: I typed this from memory, so I may be a couple words off, but it is basically the same.}


There are indeed people who genuinely have a right to complain. But they don't. Seriously.Everyone I know who has a great reason to complain, doesn't. At all. So why do we, as pretty well off Americans complain? I believe a lot of it stems from boredom, self-pity, and laziness. Overall, I believe it is our job as Christians to be a light. Let's not complain. Let's make a choice to be grateful for what we have.


I want to end this post with a scripture I feel fits the topic perfectly.

Philippians 2:14-16

Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining {against God} and questioning and doubting {among yourselves}so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation. Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.

Sincerely,
Libbi H.

Changes

I love changing up my blog, if you haven't figured that out. I really felt that I needed a simple, easy-on-the eyes background, and I really wanted a stretch background. I also wanted a blog layout where I could change it around without having to do more than a simple color change. After much experimentation, I have found a pattern, layout, and color scheme I love. I hope you will try out me new button, browse through the pages on the sidebar, and let me know how you like it! 

Also, I am going to try and post 2-3 times a week, depending on my life. I know life can get crazy, so I won't make any promises. I am so excited about making this blog a little more organized, as well as easier to access. I hope you like the new changes as much as I do! 

Sincerely,

Libbi H.