Raising the Dead by Chauncey W. Crandall, MD - book review

Imagine yourself lying very sick in a hospital bed, your doctor walks in and instead of "How are you feeling?" you hear him ask you "How is your spiritual life?" Doctors are not as concerned about your spiritual well being instead preferring to care for your body.

In Raising the Dead Chauncy W. Crandall, MD explains both are just as important for he believes both illness and disease battles within our bodies are caused not only by the normal everyday wear and tear of living but also by the forces of darkness.

In this book Dr. Crandall will tell you about his own battles with the forces of evil as he fought for the life of his own son. Although he eventually loses this battle he gains a remarkable ability to use God's word as a healing tool.

Whilst some readers might be skeptical, most of us will remember "our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms". (Ephesians 6:12)

Therefore it is not surprising when Dr. Crandall goes on to describe tremendous miracles throughout the world, reminding us that medicine combined with prayers can overcome illness. God is Good, God is Great and it is His ultimate promise we can be healed, we can be saved.

Raising the Dead is not just a collection of stories about miracles, it is the journey of a doctor who no longer keeps his faith and his profession separated.

This is great material to involve the whole family in discussions about illness, life and the power behind prayers. A good addition to your Christian library, this book rates a resounding 4 stars!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Hachette Publishers as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Deer family and photos worth any words

Our little island is blessed with lots of deer albeit I wish their enthusiasm for our flowers would be a tad more restraint! Despite fences (a special netting "guaranteed" to keep them out...) we are always on the lookout for some offender or other.

This little family seem to have adopted us and is unusual as Dad, Mum and the kiddies are all browsing nearby.
I am guilty of feeding them carrots and apples of course so it is no wonder they like it here!

This doe in fact should receive the Motherhood Doe Award! She is incredibly patient with her fawns and remarkably so even when we feed them. Other doe would snap at their off springs but not this one!

And yes, the flowers in the window boxes are silk...I learned the first year we moved on the island real plants was not such a good idea at nose level...

To all our friends and family overseas and on the mainland, life is good on the island and we are blessed!

City On Our Knees By TobyMac, Book Review

City On Our Knees written by TobyMac is one of these books I guarantee will make you think!

Because of my limited (financial) resources I find myself not always able to help out others as much as I would love to. Like all of us, I need sometime to be shown the light!

In his book, TobyMac reminds us about those many people across the world who do not just give financially but also time, talents, love and compassion, even experiences, all that God in His infinite wisdom has bestowed upon us.

There is no doubt TobyMac's lyrics are uplifting so using his music, biblical passage and quotes of Christians past and present, he shows us how to meet the needs of those around us. In fact he uses incredible examples of how people serve God everywhere and how even the youngest amongst us can do His mighty work!

City on our knees is an inspiring tome well written and warmly documented. Anytime you believe you are not doing enough for His Kingdom you will find within its pages just enough fuel to light up your fires and do God's work. I was glad of the opportunity to read this book and my family and I rated it 4 1/2 stars!

If you gotta start somewhere why not here
If you gotta start sometime why not now
If we gotta start somewhere I say here
If we gotta start sometime I say now

(From City On Our Knees lyrics by TobyMac)

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Way Home, DVD Review

When I received the opportunity to preview The Way Home I was absolutely thrilled. This is my kind of movie, not just based on actual facts but a compelling true story!
There is a fine line between providing for and finding time to commit to your family.

Randy Simpkins is such a father and preoccupied by work demands, he fails to notice 2 year old Joe is no longer playing in the driveway whilst the car is being loaded for holiday. As the movie unfold, Randy and his wife Christal search for their missing son alongside their family, members of their community and their church.

This is a wonderful story of of a spiritual journey back to God's love, faith and understanding of the priorities in a father's life.
This movie was produced with the cooperation of the whole Simpkins' family and actually filmed at their home. The actors were carefully chosen for their beliefs as well as their acting. Dean Cain's performance was at its best!

This is a powerful movie all parents should see and I will gladly recommend it to anyone! I gave it a 5 stars!


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Review: Pursuit of Justice by DiAnn Mills

Like everyone else I am sure, I check the cover and resume before I decide to read a book. In this instance I must admit I was intrigued by both as I had not heard of the author but the resume started with the following: "For centuries, the legend of the Spider Rock treasure has lured people to West Texas with promises of unimaginable wealth. And it just claimed three more victims."

Pursuit of Justice promised to be a thriller, filled with all sorts of twists with faith and romance to boot. I was hooked! Special Agent Bella Jordan is called to investigate the murders on High Butte ranch near Ballinger, Texas. Carr Sullivan the rancher, is in fact a suspect because he threatened the men who wanted to dig on his land. Carr wants to run a ranch for troubled teens and murders could ruin his plans.

According to the legend of Spider Rock Spanish gold is believed to be buried there and someone in Bella's past she has tried very hard to forget might just resurface.

This is a story about treasure, the men who are obsessed with a legend that will make them rich. It is also the story of a young woman who finds the strength to face her past with a father who actually sold her to his partner, a man on the FBI Wanted list, and ultimately will discover love and faith.

Pursuit of Justice is the kind of suspense novel you just want to pass on to family and friends. This is also a story about love and faith the whole family will enjoy reading!
This Christian novel has many twists and characters you just cannot quite figure out. Deception, redemption, suspense, inspiration and excitement in a fast paced action packed novel yet also a story of faith that will climax and leave you breathless.

This is my first DiAnn Mills novel and it definitively will not be my last! I give it a resounding 5 stars!



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Tyndale Publishers as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Cool weather, books and scones

Cool weather in our house means baking time (lots and lots) and what better time than mid afternoon for tea scones? My favourite scones recipe hails from Ireland and just in case you have not tried these, let me say they are not only traditional but they also turn out perfect no matter your culinary expertise (or lack of as in my case...).

Irish scones ingredients:

• 1/2 stick/50g butter
• 2 cups /225g all-purpose flour
• 3 tsps baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 pint / 150 ml milk
• 1 egg beaten with a little milk

To prepare:

Heat the oven to 450F/230C/Gas 8

• Grease and flour a baking sheet.
• Rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
• Make a well in the center and stir in enough milk to make a soft dough.
• Turn the mixture on to a floured board and knead lightly, roll out to 2/cm / 3/4 inch thick.
• Cut into triangles with a sharp knife.
• Place on the baking tray and bake near the top of the hot oven for 8 - 10 minutes until golden brown and well risen.
• Cool on a wire rack.
• Split and fill with ham or cream and voila.
  

Enjoy!

The evening is here and of course, this is the best time to peruse the bookshelves for a new book or just continue with the next chapter of a well loved classic.

Until the next time...

Ocean colours, earth tone and balance

Colours, ideas and budget all becomes part of any remodeling/redecorating projects. I often check out the new schemes offered by various decorators just to see what is offered these days...Yes, just dreaming...

I like colours which reminds me of the ocean...light, airy and a part of my Nordic upbringing I suppose.
At the opposite, my (very British) husband leans towards the earth, natural colours. When thinking of his taste, I always visualize cozy rooms, endless book shelves, red walls with English country scenes, a few brass ornaments, well worn chintz covered armchairs occupied by the family cat and the smell of leather accessories...

In fact along the years as we moved, we always seemed to decorate our living room in such a fashion although we only recently added a cat to our little family!

Moving to the island we found our new home's interior walls painted white, with wall to wall light beige carpeting...The exterior was an ugly beige yellow with green trimmings, the first to go albeit it took 3 years to convince my family! It is now in different shades of blue with white trim.

It took 4 years to paint our (brown) kitchen cabinets the colour of the sky, our bathroom a warm aqua and our bedroom a lovely shade of lavender.
All this meant patience and careful consideration but the results was well worth waiting for! Our budget only called for a fresh coat of paint but how refreshing!

So this year I came back from overseas with a treasure of white sheers from the haberdashery and patiently anticipated the next phase in my ever dream scheme: painting our living room/dining room area.
Deciding on the perfect colour was easy: a neighbour and close friend was redecorating his bedroom and came up with a sample we could both agree on: we chose Antique copper.
And with three quarter of a gallon later we thought we would go ahead and start on the hallway...
I discovered Blue Cloud, a colour I can live with for the vestibule and trim and voila!

With the raining season here soon to be followed by winter, it remains for us to decide on a pattern for curtains and perhaps a few accessories such as pillows for the living room and even a new chandelier for our dining room.

I came to the conclusion ocean colours compliments earth tone wonderfully thus allowing both of us to have our ways yet feel comfortable in our home even after 35 years of marriage. Compromise, such a little thing and yet not always easy to balance.

As to the finished product, well we still have a few pictures to hang and decide how many bookshelves we will share, the best place to put the cat tree, our corgi's basket...Continuity, another vital ingredient in the balance.