Nurturing Great Kids Devotional Review

The Nurturing Great Kids Devotional is a one-a-day reflection for parents. It contains 365 practical insights for moms and dads alike. It is written by Dan Seaborn. Dan is the Director of the Marriage and Family Network for the Association of Christian Counselors. He often speaks at Family and Marriage conferences.

I like the idea of having a short reflection to read each day. Above the reflection is a bible quote. After the reflection a “Parenting Principle” is stated. Then there are three questions or points for parents to ponder. Each one would probably take less than 5 minutes to read. The pondering…obviously a little longer.

Then reflections deal with subjects such as siblings, rules,listening, discipline. to name a few. Many of these were very practical ideas that would fit most family situations. A few I found to be a little too “preachy” and conservative for my taste. 

I would recommend this book to any parent wanting some short and easy to read reflections on how to build relationships with their children. The reflections nclude some words of wisdom on how to be a good role model for your children. They also include ways to build a stronger relationship with their kids and God.

(I was given this book to review by HarperCollins Christian Publishing. All opinions are my own.)

Great Gift for a Young Girl

I am reviewing Just Sayin’ by Carol McAdams Moore. This is a journal-like book of 90 devotions designed for girls. I would say girls ages 10-13 would like this book. I have a granddaughter in fifth grade that I think would really enjoy this book. 

Each devotion starts out with a Bible verse. Then there is a question to get them thinking about how this could relate to their own life. It usually gives them some examples to choose from. Then there is an activity such as making a list, taping in photos and most of the time they are asked to “Doodle” a response. I also like that some of the devotions include a short prayer. 

These devotions can be read and the activities done in any order. The fonts and page lay-outs have a “cool” and “hip’ look to them.  Even the cover is pink with a funky-looking dog on the front. 

I think any girl that enjoys artistic activities would really enjoy this book. It’s an easy to read format and its size (and because it’s a paperback) makes it easy to take along in a backpack or in the car. It would work with pretty much all Christian Faiths. The responses would be good for family discussions—if the child wanted to share. (Since it’s like a journal they may not want to.) This would make a really nice gift for any young girl that you know, especially with Christmas coming up.

From Camera to Pen, a Review

I just finished reading Framing Faith by Matt Knisely. Matt is an award-winning photojournalist and author. Since I am a photographer too I was excited to read this book.

Matt does a good job of taking aspects of photography and using them as a starting point to get his message of needing a personal relationship with the Lord across. Each chapter deals with one aspect (such as Focus or Perspective) and he discusses all of his ideas using photographical terms. He also uses a lot of stories and images from his own personal experiences with photojournalism to get his message across.

I found the book to be interesting but not really anything new. Knisely tells us that we need to know who we are, that we live in an information loaded world and because we are so distracted we often miss God’s voice. It’s a message we’ve all heard before just reframed using his photography background.

I read a review by Jeff Goins, the author of The In-Between. He said like a good photograph, the more you look at it, the more you find. He feels this is true about Knisely’s book.  Perhaps in a second reading one might find more but I’m not motivated by this book to read it again.

(I was given this book to review by HarperCollins Christian Publishing. All opinions are my own.)

Clout by Jenni Catron review

Clout, written by Jenni Catron is a book about discovering and using your God-given influence. Ms Catron is the executive director of Cross Point Church in Nashville, Tennessee. She uses her “ Clout” to lead the staff of Cross Point. 

In her book Ms. Catron defines Clout as “the influence that God has given to you and no one else.”She says that we all have God-given influence inside of us that makes us long to make a difference. Catron writes that we are designed to impact the world like no one else can. She says that we each have Clout but may not have discovered it yet. 

The first few chapters list “The Clout Killers” that challenge us. These are fear, comparison, jealousy, scarcity, insecurity, pride and control. She explains how each one impacts our influence on others. She does this through story-telling, Bible passages and sharing moments from her own journey to leadership. At the end of each chapter are some exercises for you to complete. 

The next chapters list ”The Cloud Cultivators”. These chapters are meant to have you do some soul searching. Discovering your own identity, developing confidence, coming up with a personal mission statement and goals and figuring out where your passion is are the focus of these chapters. Catron gives examples from her own life and offers Discovery Steps to help you. 

The first few chapters didn’t seem to hit home with me. Had I read this book years earlier when I was considering a leadership role they would have been more meaningful. However, the last few chapters were filled with more down to earth, practical information that could apply to almost any life situation. I think at any point in our life it’s good to take an inventory and see if we are still on track with our life goals. 

I’d recommend this book for anyone in a leadership position or anyone involved with influencing others. Catron gives good advice along with Bible quotes that fit the topic of each chapter. It’s a good read to help keep in mind that God calls us all to shine.

(I was given this book to review by HarperCollins Christian Publishing. All opinions are my own.)

Goodnight,Angels Review

The book Goodnight, Angels by melody Carlson is a cute read.  It is a 12 page “board book” designed for little ones. There are two lines of rhyming text on every other page.  The illustrations are by Sophie Allsopp.  They are simple but yet, realistic.

In the story a young boy says goodbye to his friends at the playground and heads home with his mom and dad. He wishes the friends  a Good Night. Then he continues to wish things Good Night such as his wagon (that he took to the playground), his pets, his bedtime snack, his rubber duckie and toothbrush.

Once in bed the little boy says Good Night to his dad but asks for a bedtime story. He says Good Night to his mom and asks her to tuck him in. He says Good Night to God and finally to the angels watching over him.

It’s a pleasant enough book that would make a good bedtime read. There are a couple of changes that I think would make the book better.  Since it is a board book it will probably be read to little ones. The boy in the story looks to be older. It might have been more fun to make him younger.  Also I don’t like that the author refers to God as Father God. ( I don’t like to think of God as a gender.) The price on the back of the book is $7.99. I thought this was a little steep for a board book.  I’ve seen some good hard cover books for this price.

 


The book Goodnight, Angels by melody Carlson is a cute read. It is a 12 page “board book” designed for little ones. There are two lines of rhyming text on every other page. The illustrations are by Sophie Allsopp. They are simple but yet, realistic. 

In the story a young boy says goodbye to his friends at the playground and heads home with his mom and dad. He wishes the friends a Good Night. Then he continues to wish things Good Night such as his wagon (that he took to the playground), his pets, his bedtime snack, his rubber duckie and toothbrush. 

Once in bed the little boy says Good Night to his dad but asks for a bedtime story. He says Good Night to his mom and asks her to tuck him in. He says Good Night to God and finally to the angels watching over him.

 It’s a pleasant enough book that would make a good bedtime read. There are a couple of changes that I think would make the book better. Since it is a board book it will probably be read to little ones. The boy in the story looks to be older. It might have been more fun to make him younger. Also I don’t like that the author refers to God as Father God. ( I don’t like to think of God as a gender.) The price on the back of the book is $7.99. I thought this was a little steep for a board book. I’ve seen some good hard cover books for this price.

(I was given this book to review by HarperCollins Christian Publishing. All opinions are my own.)