Choosing Gratitude

Quiet time.  Devotions. Time with God.  A very important and special part of the day.

What do you use in your devotions?  Do you have a favorite book that you go back to all the time?  Is there a special book in the Bible that you love to study?

The girls of Altogether Seperate will be writing reviews on books that we are currently reading in our devotions.  Will it be a book of the Bible we are studying or a devotional that we use using or a book that we are reading through during our devotional time?  Well, that will depend on the authoress for that blog post =)

I chose to do a review on a book that I am reading through during my devotional time.  This book was truly a God-send as I had been looking for books on gratitude, but had yet to find one that I was sure would be doctrinally sound.  I've been casually looking for the past couple months at different ones and then I came across a giveaway of the book "Choosing Gratitude" by Nancy Leigh DeMoss.   I've read a few of her books/devotionals and really enjoyed them so I thought I would enter just for fun as there were several entries.  Well, it was the one God wanted me to be reading, as I ended up winning the book!!  I've only gotten into it a few chapters, but it has been so convicting and yet encouraging as well - after all, it is a book on gratitude, which brings to mind things to be thankful for.

So, here is the review:

Choosing Gratitude: Your Journey to Joy

By Nancy Leigh DeMoss

    Gratitude is not a distinctive Christian character quality.  Although we live in a culture that is rampant with ingratitude, you will find that amongst most families, the words "thank you" are among the first words learned by a young child.  It is not uncommon to hear an unsaved person express the words "thank you" when they find a parking space in an overflowing parking lot, or when a family member comes out of surgery successfully.

However, when these people say "thank you" the "you" means nothing to them.  To us Christians, that little word "You" should mean everything.  When each of us realized our need of a Savior and asked the Lord into our hearts, our lives radically changed.  No longer are we bound by the chains of our sins, living for ourselves (or in reality, serving Satan), living without a purpose and headed for an eternity in hell without our Lord.  That gift of Salvation we accepted did not bring a life of ease without pain, suffering and trials, but rather, it brought the God of the universe, who loves us more than we can imagine, right to our side to guide and help us through each step along the way.  It brought purpose to our life and assurance that our future would not be spent in hell, but rather in heaven with our Lord for eternity!!

The gift of Salvation is free for all who would receive it.  However, someone had to pay for it and that is where our gratitude starts.  Remembering who sacrificed EVERYTHING for you and me.

Here are some excerpts from the book:

"Undeniable guilt, plus undeserved grace, should equal unbridled gratitude."

"Being humbly thankful to God for our salvation - the most undeserved transaction in our personal history - is the starting point for the purest form of gratitude: God-ward, Christ-centered gratitude.  True gratitude, Christian gratitude, doesn't exist in a vacum; it has an object."

And that is what this book is about.  Choosing Christian gratitude.

"Where does gratitude rank on your list of Christian virtues?

In an arsenal that's supposed to include things like mountain-moving faith, radical obedience, patient long-suffering, and second-mile self denial, for many, gratitude feels like an optional add-on."

"The issue of gratitude is far more significant than its lightweight reputation would suggest......Try, for example, to sustain persevering faith - without gratitude - and your faith will eventually forget the whole point of its faithfulness, hardening into a practice of religion that's hollow and ineffective.

Try being a person who exudes and exhibits Christian love - without gratitude - and over time your love will crash hard on the sharp rocks of disappointment and disillusionment.

Try being a person who sacrificially gives of yourself - without the offering being accompanied by gratitude - and you'll find every ounce of joy drained by a martyr complex......gratitude has a big job to do in us and in our hearts.  And it is one of the chief ways that God infuses joy and resilience into the daily struggle of life."

There is no limit to the amount of grace, love, forgiveness etc. that God gives us. 

"Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.  Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; your judgements are like the great deep" Psalm 36:5-6

"His grace super-abounding from the far reaches of His dominion, filling the depths of our needy lives."

"The beauty of Christian gratitude is that one little act of thanks  - giving on our part - when directed toward or inspired by its rightful Recipient - can abound and rebound from one end of the kingdom to the other, not only blessing God, not only benefiting us, but even lodging itself in places and in people where God's love might never have been received any other way."

"Gratitude is a lifestyle.  A hard-fought, grace infused, biblical lifestyle."

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I've only gotten into the first few chapters, but there is so much to chew on in those first few!

I enthusiastically recommend this book!  It's pages are filled with life-changing material on how to draw from the limitless amount of grace God has given us and use it to share with others in our gratitude.

Life Purpose Planning

College?
Online College?

CLEP Studies?

No College?
Do I need a college degree to fulfill God's desire for my life?
What is God's desire for my life?
Am I pursuing God's desire's or the worlds?
What is my God given life purpose?
Am I living a vibrant, set-on-fire for Christ life?
What in my innermost being do I love so much that I want to spend the rest of my life doing?
Do I have plans and goals set in place to accomplish and fulfill my life purpose?
...................................................................................

When you read the above questions, did they fill you with dread because the answers are elusive to you, or did they fill you with excitement because you could answer them?

As the time for my graduation drew near these questions (and so many others) were flying and whizzing around in my head constantly and I didn't have an answer to any of them.

As I look back over four years since that day of graduation, I can see how God has taught me many things and I'm glad that I waited on Him for direction rather that plowing ahead in my impatience and fustration at not knowing what to do.  As I mentioned above, I didn't have the answers to all the questions when I graduated.  I wanted to have them, but they weren't there.  I learned that sometimes God just needs us to prepare our fields (lives) in faith, trusting that He will bring the rain (purpose).  And He did, just not in ways I would ever have expected.

If I could give one piece of advice to each young person preparing for graduation or planning their future, I would tell them to seek God and His direction and to ask yourselves, "Am I planning or pursuing something because God desires it of me or am I doing it because the world expects me to?"

I would also suggest a very special tool that I wish I had known about earlier in life.  This tool helps you to find your life purpose and helps you prepare for your journey to fulfilling it.

The Tool:  "Life Purpose Planning Workbook" by Dewey Novotny.

If you have never heard of this book I would highly recommend visiting their website http://www.lifepurposeplanning.org/  Our family listened to two seminars by Mr. Novotny on Embassy Institute  (I wrote about Embassy on my personal blog) about a month and a half ago and soon after ordered the book.  We have just recently started working on it, but it has bee great!

The book encourages you to get your focus on God and find out what gifts, interests, traits, personality and circumstances He has given you to fulfill the purpose He made you for.

It helps teaches you how to become a better:
1. Person (a disciple)  "Living in uninterrupted fellowship with God and showing genuine love to others."
2. Provider (a servant) "Combining skill and vision to meet the needs of those whom God has called me to serve."
3. Proclaimer (a communicator) "Communicating Biblical truth to fulfill the Great Commission and live out a vital life message."
4. Partner (a teamate) "Honoring the marriage covenant in all my relationships."
5. Parent (a discipler) " Training those God entrusts to my care and rasing up many Godly generations."

For most of us the Partner and Parent title doesn't apply to us, but if we view those roles from the perspective of teamate and discipler then they do apply. 

This book helps you to find out what people group(s) God designed you to serve.  What ministries He can use you mightily in and so much more.

As I said above, our family just recently found this book and started working on it, (It's key that your parents be involved with this planning) and it's going on four years since I've graduated! So this book is fantastic for any age - even my parents want to do if for themselves =)

Finding the purpose to why God created you is key to unlocking the door to a vibrant, God filled, future.  There may be many doors in the future that you will have to find the right key to get through, but having a peace in knowing your life purpose will point you in the right direction.

Is this book a fix-all, find-all? No, the book itself will not point you in the right direction, but much prayer, direction from God and wisdom from your parents will help you find that special and unique key to your life purpose

Grace for the Good Girl

I was born a Good Girl. I was raised in a Christian household, the oldest child, academically inclined, a dedicated Christian, never went through that "teenage rebellion" stage, worked with the family, getting a college education--that's me. I'm always striving for perfection, to do everything "right". What does "right" mean, exactly? It means the absolute best I can do, and more than that. All my life I've gone through a punishing cycle of longing to be good enough and then failing my own wildly outrageous expectations. If my essay is given a grade of 97% I tend to think, what about the other 3%? If I pray for 5 minutes I tend to think, shouldn't I pray for 10? My life is dominated by ratios and statistics and scores and rates. I'm not really negative, just driven. And I always thought that was a good thing.

Are you like a Good Girl?

Emily P. Freeman, author of Grace for the Good Girl, opened my eyes to a world where I don't have to strive for Jesus' approval, or my family's and friends' approval, or my own approval. I am a Good Girl because of Christ's redeeming blood, not because I earn high grades, or pray a lot, or witness to thousands, or always wear a smile. I am a daughter of the King because of who He is, not because of who I am.

It's such a simple concept--one that I've heard in a variety of contexts for years--but Emily brings it all home with stories and examples from her own life and the lives of other women that make me cry tears of identification and beautiful relief. I'm not alone! I'm not the only girl who's longed to be good enough and can never, never, never be good enough. I'm only halfway through Grace for the Good Girl right now, but I'm consuming every page with avid eagerness, waiting to discover more secrets about myself that I never guessed (and there are many), learning from the mistakes and heartaches of women who have walked the path I'm walking to its bitter, galling end.

It's a book that might very well change my life.

The life of a Good Girl is all about her Mask: the thing that hides all of her insecurities and guilt and substitutes a lovely facade which everyone looks at and says, "Wow, what a beautiful girl!" We love our Masks because they protect us, but they scare us because we know what will happen if they drop away--everyone will see us for what we truly are. 

There are many different flavors of Good Girl. Maybe you don't strive for academic perfection, but your Mask is a good reputation that you would do anything to protect. Are you always hiding behind the "I'm fine" response, constantly wearing a smile and hoping that no one realizes that you're being ripped apart inside? Perhaps you're like the biblical Martha, hiding behind your acts of service, working and working and working for acceptance. Perhaps you're a rule follower who hides behind spiritual disciplines, doing all the right things in the right order and coming up empty from the well of eternal life. Do you hide behind a Mask of strength and responsibility? Perhaps you would do anything to please the people you love--even deny yourself an opinion and personality of your own--or you might identify with the older brother in the story of the prodigal son (that's me!) and feel sharp, grating anger when you don't get rewarded for your hard work and the undeserving get their socks blessed off.

These are just a few symptoms of "Good Girl-ness". They will eventually lead you and me to a place of self-sufficient hardness, pride, ingratitude, and crushing inadequacy. Can it be cured? Emily is teaching me how to receive, remain, respond, and remember the amazing grace of Christ. He does have grace--even for Good Girls. 

I can't wait to finish this book, and I hope that if you see any resemblance to yourself in the descriptions above that you will snap it up as soon as possible (it's $11.19 on Amazon). Watch the video below and hear from other women who have realized the pitfalls of their Good Girl-ness...and lived to tell about it.

For a more complete review, see parchmentgirl.com

My name is Abigail Rogers, and I'm a good girl.

Just Jane: {a book review}

{via}

Recently, I borrowed a book from my friend's dear library

called Just Jane: A Novel of Jane Austen's Life by the talented Nancy Moser. 

{To learn more about the author's books visit her website, here!}

::Summary::

Jane Austen lives simply in the English countryside with her beloved family, entertaining them with her stories and seeking romance.  She never ventures far from her own corner of the world and struggles to find her place in it.  Growing up in a clergyman's home gives Jane opportunities to observe human nature at its best--and worst.

Vivid and delightful characters pour from her pen--Elizabeth Bennet, Fitzwilliam Darcy, Emma Woodhouse, Fanny Price, John Willoughby...Jane dreams of publishing her stories and sharing them with the world, but she's just Jane from Steventon, isn't she?  Will anyone ever read her novels?

{click here to read an excerpt from the first chapter.}

::My thoughts::

With rich characters and an intriguing story you will immediately be drawn into the world of Jane and the everyday happenings of her life {what a pleasure this is!}.  The thing that inspired me most about Jane was her firm trust in the Lord throughout her trials--as well as her love for writing!  She never gave up hope that her works would become published someday. 

My rating of this book = 5 out of 5 stars.

::Favorite quotes from Just Jane::

Cassandra {Jane's devoted sister} to Jane:  "Instincts are given to us by God to guide us. It takes a strong woman to listen to those instincts and ignore what the world says to do."

Jane:  "I opened the trunk and gazed upon the work of my life; pages and pages of words carefully chosen, drawing images of people who were as real to me as flesh and blood, who lived lives that had been put on hold while I muddled through my own struggles and disappointments."

Jane: "I do not wish to write a story where all is completely as it should be.  At least not without a good bit of trials, travails, and travels along the way."

  

Jane:  "All things happen for a reason--but that does not mean all things succeed as we hope."

Jane:  "Now that my writing has its own solid place within the moments of my life, I am free to enjoy all the moments more fully." 

<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3

I am always intrigued by anything having to do with Jane Austen, so this book has been splendid to read!  Have you read Just Jane? 

{If not, please add it to your wishlist--I hope you will fall in love with it as much as I did.  *winks*} 

If so, what were your thoughts about it?   

<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3

Also, for those of you who are Jane Austen fans,

I encourage you to join these fun blog events here & here!

Blessings,

Les Miserables

I went back and forth for quite awhile on what to write for my review. So finally, staring up at my bookshelf (it's a very pretty bookshelf, if I can just brag on my daddy and my book-collecting ability for a moment), I decided I'd just write about a recent book I read and really loved, Les Miserables.

Les Mis is one of those huge books that people are afraid of--and for good reason, I have to admit. The copy I read was over 1200 pages long, full of weighty discourses on religion, philosophy, politics, and the nature of man. It's not an easy, fluffy sort of read that you just curl up with and heartily enjoy in an few weeks. It took me over a month to read, and that's saying something since usually I can blow through books in a matter of days, even relatively long books (as a point of comparison, I read Brisingr in a little under a week and book 7 of the Harry Potter series in three days). Hence, Les Mis was a book I went into with some trepidation, just because it really is so huge and has a reputation for being rather dry.

I did find parts of it dull. Hugo's retelling of the Battle of Waterloo is notoriously, ramblingly boring by times, despite the occasionally important details contained within it. Some of his inward discourses on religion and the reasons thereof also got to be a bit too much, but were enjoyable nonetheless.

And so, despite the many cons that could be lodged against this book, I heartily enjoyed it. The characters were beautifully engaging, even Cosette, who occasionally felt too much like a Mary Sue to my writer's mind. Fantine's story is so beautifully sad, so utterly moving on such a primal way--and I have to confess something. I wish she had lived, because she and Jean Valjean would have gotten married and been very happy. Perhaps that's not what would have happened, you say. But you are wrong, and I am right, and don't you disturb my "shipper's" heart.

Marius is easily one of my favorite male characters of all time. He ranks just slightly lower than Mr. Bingley, actually, who's a close second to Mr. Knightley, who just scrapes below Aragorn who's about five slots below Mr. Darcy, who's pretty much perfection. Don't judge me. I have lots of favorites. Anyway, even though Marius occasionally seems like a rather weak sort of fellow (for instance--what sort of man determines to kill himself because his girl is moving away?), he's still adorably sweet and his general state of distraction is so hilarious to read.

And then there's Jean Valjean himself, the central thread that binds Les Mis together into one cohesive whole. At times, I found him frightening. I found some of his actions detestable. I thought him the worst sort. But then, as the reader was taken into his mind and shown the torture and yet beautiful simplicity of his soul, you came to realize that he's really one of the most amazing people to ever walk the planet. His intentions pure, albeit twisted occasionally, he always ends up doing the right thing, even when it is difficult and you wonder why he did it. In the end, I believe he is possibly one of the most human (complicated, contradictory, yet beautiful) characters I've ever gotten to know.

These characters are put into a world of such beautiful complexity. I've read French literature, or literature set in France, before--The Three Musketeers, The Scarlet Pimpernel, things like that--but never one like Les Mis. Les Mis isn't afraid to deal with the most dark, horrible bits of humanity. Prostitution, murder, revenge, greed, all of these have a place within the story. Hugo takes a long, hard look at it what is darkest and most reprehensible in human nature. And then into that he weaves redemption: love, honor, order, honesty.

And so he wove one of the most amazing stories ever.

Wives And Daughters: A Review



Molly Gibson with her Father

When I first stumbled upon this classic story, I fell in love with it right away.

The beauty, purity, and issues presented captivated my heart.

"Wives and Daughters", written by Elizabeth Gaskell in the 1800's, is both a wonderful book and an enchanting movie{ by BBC in 1999}.It tells the story of a young lady {Molly Gibson} who lives with her dear father in a small town in England. Her mother died while she was young, and therefore her relationship with her father was highly prized and cherished. Her father was a loving man and was devoted to his daughter....

Mr. Gibson decides to marry later on in Molly's life, and the woman he chooses is one who is, simply put, a tool to help add to Molly's virtue of patience. With a new mother comes a new step-sister named Cynthia, Molly has a completely different life before her. Molly and Cynthia become very good friends, though Cynthia's past tangles up in Molly's life and Cynthia captures the heart of a young man that Molly cherishes...  as the story unfolds, you will continually see Molly's truthful, pure, selfless, and humble character beautifully portrayed, even though others begin to judge her otherwise. She remains steadfast under severe trails, and her virtuous character always prevails.


Thoughts that filled my mind as I watched this movie were the blessings of purity {as she displays with her relationship with the Hamley's.}and the joy that follows when a daughter cherishes her relationship with her father.

Molly's selfless character is a pleasant joy to revisit time and time again, and her Godly virtues are to be applicable in every young ladies' life...

A book worth reading a hundred times... a movie that you will immediately fall in love with... "Wives and Daughters" is a wonderful story and will captivate your heart!

Blessings,

Do What's Right

We (the authors) have decided that for the next few weeks will be posting different reviews on movies, books, blogs, websites, etc, or we will be posting on why we love being homeschooled - which would also be a review =}

As I thought about what I wanted to give a review on, the first thing that came to mind was a movie that impacted my life.  I kept trying to think of other things to write about, but this one kept coming back so it must be the one God wants me to write!

I have never written a review before so hopefully you'll enjoy this.  (I'm apologize ahead of time if you find it  boring.) So......here we go.

The following is a dialog between the main character and his father.


Caleb - "The issue is, how do you know when a babies life first begins?"

Mr. Hogan - "That's not a biology question you know?"

Caleb - "No, actually I didn't know that."

Mr. Hogan - "No, biology has nothing to do with it.  In fact it is so simple a ten year old can understand it.  He doesn't know the first thing about biology.     Pick a time when you know the baby is alive. Just pick any time when you know the baby is alive."

Caleb - "The day he is born."

Mr. Hogan - "Allright, what about the day before that? Is the baby alive the day before that?"

Caleb - "Of course."

Mr. Hogan - "And how about the day before that?"

Caleb - "Sure."

Mr. Hogan - "Okay then, there you have it."

Caleb - "What do you mean?"

Mr. Hogan - "Life doesn't begin incrementally. It's..it's not like the baby is any more alive today then he was the day before.  It's ah... it's radical.  It's an event.  And it only happens once in a humans existence."

Caleb - "At conception!"

Mr. Hogan - "No other explanation makes sense. And it is so simple anyone can understand it."

Caleb - "But why don't they get it?"

Mr. Hogan - "It's not that people don't get it. They don't want to hear it...."

Have you guessed what the movie is yet?  drum roll .................................................

"Come What May", a film production put out by Advent Film Group, and filmed on the campus of Patrick Henry College.  I love this movie!

It is about a young man entering his first semester at Patrick Henry College and the decisions he has to make throughout his time there. 

The young man's name is Caleb Hogan and he is assigned to a girl named Rachel as his debate partner to compete at Nationals.  The case they are working on together is the Parental Notification Case.  Rachel wants to overturn Roe v. Wade and show the court how wrong the decision they made concerning the rights of the child was. She wants to fight for principles that are quickly being lost

Caleb agrees with Rachel that Roe v. Wade should be overturned, but he wants to focus on what he believes is a "winning argument" that would "leave Roe and make one tiny exception."  His desire to win runs deeper than Rachel is aware of and therein lies his problem.  He doesn't want to lose because his mom is paying his tuition and will pay for the next year as well, as long as he wins nationals.  If he doesn't win, then he won't be able to attend PHC the next year.

Caleb has to make a decision to do the right thing despite the chance he might lose, or take the path of least resistance and possibly win.

Here is a trailer of the movie.  Enjoy!

This movie is wonderful.  If I was to give it a rating I would give it an A+ because:

1. It's a clean movie. No language, inappropriate clothing or anything that brings your attention to ungodly things.

2. The storyline is fantastic.  As the story unfolds, you end up following 3 plots. a.) Caleb's decision to do the right thing or not, b.) Mrs. Hogan's decision to fight a real case in court that supports Roe v. Wade, and c.) Rachel and Caleb's relationship.

3. You are learning while being entertained.  I learned a lot about the court and Roe v. Wade while enjoying a good movie.

4. Good triumphed over evil (which is a rarity in todays culture) and there was no compromising in the process.

You can check out the website here.

As I said at the top of this post, 'This movie has impacted my life.' How so, you may ask. Well..... as you watched Caleb make his decison to "do the right thing, come what may" it convicted me.  That phrase applies to so many areas of our life.  Our faith, relationships, the stances we take on social issues, and so much more.  I want to make a difference in our country and this movie renews that desire every time I watch it!  The key is doing the right thing no mater what happens, no matter the opposition, come what may.
 I hope it brings as many blessings to you and your family as it has to mine.

In His Steps,