Book Review: An Invitation to a Supernatural Life

There is a world beyond the mundane, beyond the work, the pain, the suffering and sheer difficulty of life. Its the world of God---located in the spirit and wholy supernatural. He invites us all:  To accept His invitation is to take a dive into a deeper walk with Him and bring the reality of heaven down to a hurting world.

                                             

I truly enjoyed this book. Michele Perry has written a wisdom filled and down to earth portrayal of the supernatural life. Her casual and personable style of writing will make you feel like a friend. There are even prayers at the end of each chapter that she has written specifically for the reader to engage more fully in what she has presented. The book is an enjoyable web of her personal encounters, guidance and wisdom; she details her first encounters with God as a child and details her journey now as a missionary and the many provisions God has made for her as she undertakes the difficult role of being a "mama" to over 100 children in the bush of South Sudan. This is quite inspiring, especially since she is a "one-legged artistically inclined city girl" as she so humorously describes herself.

Yet she does not merely focus on her own encounters but also offers practical exercises and discussion question at the end of each chapter to help you foster your own encounters with God and mature in the particular area presented. Because of the questions it may take more than one reading to mine through all the riches; you can either read through the chapters quickly and do the questions later or you can go slowly through it while doing the questions. Its worth the time commitment. She has several great insights throughout it but I found her chapter entitled "When it all Goes Silent" to be especially helpful; she addresses a side of the supernatural life that you don't often hear about until you have experienced it: the dry spells. Her perspective has really helped me to accept the wilderness times in my life and embrace my hunger for God as a gift, a chance to increase my capacity for Him. My hunger allows "Papa to reach down and enlarge my heart to contain more of His" as Michele so eloquently says.

Overall this is a wonderful introduction, most suited  for those who have never had supernatural encounters of their own but would like to have them or for those who are simply curious about the supernatural life.But  it can also teach those who are already familiar with the supernatural (particularly in When it all Goes Silent ) and encourage all to journey deeper and use their encounters to help others as well as for personal growth.

There are a few small things she mention that I am not entirely sure about; however, as she encourages, I am taking my concerns to the Lord and searching the scriptures as a "Berean".

 Still, I recommend it.

*I received a free copy of this book from Chosen Books in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: Love in Disguise

Book Review: Love in Disguise

                                                             

My Review

There is fiction dull enough to cure insomnia. And there is fiction that captures your attention with unfolding drama and riveting characters. Love in Disguise by Carol Cox is of the latter. The story begins in Chicago during the late 19th century. Ellie Moore is the wardrobe assistant of the haughty actress Magdalena. But when the leading lady leaves for her new career in Paris, Ellie is left to face the bitter Chicago winters with no job and no family. Help comes when Ellie overhears the workers of detective agency “The Pinkertons”, mention a need for a female operative to go to Arizona and help solve a string of silver thefts; although she has no experience, adventurous Ellie applies for the position and reluctantly the men send her on the case . She quickly established herself in the town of Pickford as an elderly widow named Lavina but when the need arises she transforms into beautiful Jessie Monroe, Lavina’s niece. While on the case Ellie falls in love with handsome mine owner Steven. She must solve the case before the thieves discover her true identity but with her inexperience and heart to contend with, it is much more difficult than she first thought.

I enjoyed this book, though the story lagged as Ellie transitioned from Chicago to life in Pickford; however, once she arrived in Arizona the story takes on a pleasant pace.  The romance between Ellie and Steven is sweet and it is unique in that Steven never directly interacts with Ellie, rather he only sees her as either Lavina or Jessie. He ends up falling for Jessie but in the end it is Ellie who is must love. There were many scenes with Lavina and Steven  together but I did wish he and Jessie could have interacted more, seeing as a romance is nearly impossible with Lavina. Moreover I found the book to be edifying in addition to entertaining even though the author’s approach was to have God work “behind the scenes”.  This allowed the story to take center stage and develop quickly. Still, the reader sees God’s providence in the situations of the characters, even if he is not always mentioned;  faith is an integral part of Steven’s character but Ellie grows into her faith as the book progresses. One scene was especially poignant and showed the development of Ellie and Christ’s relationship. I was impressed with the author’s ability to hold my interest through suspense. Throughout the story I turned the page with bated breath, unsure of Ellie’s fate, her case or her budding romance with Steven. There were times I questioned the plot and how Ellie would pull off her double identity. The author handles it well enough but it felt unrealistic at times. Despite those minor problems this book did exactly what a fiction book should do: it immersed me into a world other than my own, made me laugh and feel all sorts of emotions, made me care for the characters --- it made me eager to read more. I recommend it.

*I recieved a free copy of this book from Bethany House in exchange for my honest review.

Welcome to my Garden

Welcome. Here, you will find a collection of creative writing, spanning from poetry to long stories. Occasionally, there will be updates on my life, book reviews and commentary on current events. Over all, the themes will be primarily Christian and glorify God. I hope you find much to pluck from my arrangement of thoughts.