I have seen some documentaries and read articles that try to explain God and the Bible scientifically. Prove God is real. I think they are all very interesting and love learning new things, facts and discoveries. But in the end it still comes down to faith. I’m not saying they are doing a bad job. They’re doing great. But in the end, we as humans can’t prove much about this Great, Majestic, Awesome God that we can call ours!
I can’t physically show Him to you. Pull Him out of the closet where I keep Him in a box. I can’t show you the ark of Noah and prove it’s that, and be a 100% sure. I can’t show you a sneak peak of heaven and watch God creating a human being in the Garden of Eden, out of dirt. I can’t go and do that with you.
And in a way, I think that’s quite logical. Why should I, a tiny little human being, like a half drop in the ocean, be able to explain God to you? If He’s really the all knowing, Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End, Awesome God I […]
I grew up in a Christian family. I’m grateful for this, because I heard the gospel from a very young age. However, you could say that the downside of this is that it becomes something you think is normal, and you don’t really let it change your life. To me, Christianity was more about religion (following the bible rulebook), than having a relationship with God.
Then, as I started growing older, I started to make friends outside of Sunday?school. And they all seemed to think God was lame!! Here is the thing about my story? I never doubted God. I knew?He was there. I knew this in my mind but also in my heart, soul and emotions. I just doubted whether I wanted to follow Him because it was not a cool thing to do.
So for a couple years I lived the double life. Being the good Christian at home, while at school I would just avoid talking about anything that had to do with God. I didn’t act like I had any morals, either. I still believed God was real, and felt guilty about this, but in the end I never did anything about it.
Around […]
Today’s guest post is by Herlinde de Vriese. Herlinde and her husband work with the?Center for Pastoral Counseling. Besides the work she does as a social worker she teaches in several pastoral topics. Jef and Herlinde have two grown daughters and live in Heverlee, Belgium.
I grew up in a large family. I am the fourth in a family of 6 children. Traditions gave a fixed spot to everything, and my life was very normal.
When I was a teenager I started, as if often the case, to ask questions about the reason of everything. Raised in a catholic home, religion was mixed with every aspect of life. I searched in the bible, read the gospel of John and was fascinated with the story of Jesus. During a study in Leuven, somebody explained the Gospel in a way I had never heard before. Because Jesus died for me, personally, I stood before a choice: do I believe that Jesus died for me to make me free of sin?
I had to think about that. What did that mean for me? Was I truly guilty? It didn’t feel guilty… I knew in my head that Jesus takes away all […]
Pain Redeemed by Natasha MetzlerIt seemed ironic to be reading a book about infertility while sitting beside my crying baby. I was tired, hot, my hair needed to be washed and I was frustrated with Gabri?l for whining instead of just falling asleep like a sensible baby.
Reading Pain Redeemed is taking a journey with Natasha.How God heals her from being broken, depressed, hopeless and alone to being new, whole and fully alive in Him. This isn’t some victorious account of someone who went through it, crossed the finish line of the struggle, and now tells about it. (although those kind of stories can also be a big encouragement to read!)
?”…I know that place.I’ve lived there. I came out of there. And I still slide back there far too often.”
– Natasha Metzler in Pain Redeemed –
You can overcome a struggle while still struggling. You have to come back again and again to His feet. Surrender. Let Him use you for His glory. Because it is all about Him and not about us.
Although Natasha’s story is one of infertility, this book is incredibly touching for anyone dealing with pain in their journey.
Because its about the heart […]
Book reviews are finally here! See the other post I wrote on these books here.
The Tinker’s Daughter: A Story Based on the Life of Mary Bunyan
John?Bunyan?is well known, but did you know the story of his daughter? ?Although she was born blind, she does not let it stop her.When her father, who she is very close to, is imprisoned, she help her stepmother with the younger children and carries food to her father in jail.
In the market she meets a gypsy family and befriends their daughter, Sofia. Together with her grandmother, Sofia helps Mary deal with her father being in prison. They show her what trust and faith is through stories and?symbolism. The story of salvation is explained by Timoz, Sofia’s father, in a sweet and simple way.
Mary wants to have everything under control and save her family.??Slowly, with her father’s and?friend’s?help, she learns she cannot do it through her own?strength. She needs Jesus. I love the way her journey in all of this is told as she tells her sister Bets, her best friend, what she is feeling and learning and thinking. How she learns to go to her Heavenly Father instead […]
One of my favorite series is the Daughters of the faith series by Wendy Lawton.
They are like the Heroes of the faith series, but for young girls about young girls. Unlike the “Heroes of the Faith”, these are not biographies, but more like fictional stories, inspired by the life of these girls. In each epilogue there are some facts about the main character, as well as what happened when they grew up. I love the way?Wendy?Lawton wove stories about the life of these real and inspiring girls.
It is written for ages 8-12, but some 23 year-olds still love them. They are short and easy to read, ideal for younger girls.?Still, I re-and-re-and-re-read these lovely books of girls that really lived and were so plucky, faithful,?courageous.
There are not many books I recommend for everybody and that I cannot find anything inappropriate in, but these are. Innocent and uplifting, we see the character’s faith and personal relationship with God unfolding and deepening.
A big bonus is all the historical information you get. I am always so inspired, my curiosity piqued, that I look up all I can find ?on whichever book I just read. These books would […]
I loved this short story by Amy Jane.?A very refreshing read, the story is about trust and forgiveness with a sweet touch of romance mixed in.
Felicity, the main character, is learning how to forgive some people in her life, and needs the courage and faith to trust again.?Too many people who were supposed to always be there for her, left her instead and throughout the story we see her dealing with this.
I loved the wholesomeness of this story, and the sweet gestures that make Felicity a lady are truly inspiring. The way it is a given to help an elderly?neighbor?move boxes, and the way her?neighbor?sits besides her and shares about his life were heart warming. At some points I got a?whiff?of Pollyanna, which is never a bad thing in my opinion. Felicity is a lot deeper than the always-happy-and-smiling Pollyanna and thus more?relate-able.
I also love the relationship Felicity has with her brother. Caring and kind, a real friendship exists between them. No sibling hatred here!
The length of the book is 23 pages.
I am excited to have Amy here for a visit:
1. Tell us a bit about yourself, Amy!
I’m the type of person […]
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