Read-a-thon

I am participating in Dewey's read-a-thon! Check out their site here http://24hourreadathon.com/
I am reading from Dawsonville, GA, about 50 miles northeast of Atlanta.
At the moment I have 5 books in my to be read pile- the Red Gloves series by Karen Kingsbury, and the Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
I would like to finish at least two of the books.
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The Search for God and Guinness

The Search for God and Guinness, by Stephen Mansfield, is a very interesting, however brief history of the Guinness beer company and its founding family. It highlights the magnanimity of the founding fathers of Guinness, especially in the ways that they cared for their employees in an era and place where such things were unheard of. It shows how some people with money choose to use it to help their fellow man. It also shows the various things that have sprung from the Guinness brand, including the Guinness book of world records, which was created at first to give pubs and bars as a promotional item. I found especially interesting the history not just of Guinness, but of beer itself, which dates at least to the Sumerians.
The Guinness family has also produced several great ministers, who were as well-known as Charles Spurgeon and others. In several generations the eldest son and heir chose instead to devote himself to the work of God, leaving the family business in the hands of their siblings. This is testament to the piety and devotion of the founder of the company, Arthur Guinness, who created the beer in part to relieve Ireland from the scourge of alcoholism caused by whiskey. It did, and it also elevated the lives of all who worked there; they were given medical care by an on-staff doctor, and also opportunities for education and recreation. Dublin, which was once one of the filthiest cities in Europe, was transformed.
This book reminded me once again of what is truly important in life. That which the Guinness family achieved with their fortune should be an inspiration and example to us all, as should their forward thinking attitude and their striving to always produce the best product possible.In the end, though their beer and factory is large, productive and successful, what is remembered by many about them is their devotion to their faith, their generosity with the wealth they had been given, and how they always strived to better the lives of their employees and their families. This is an interesting book which would be enjoyed by history buffs and also those who love Guinness stout.
DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: http://cmp.ly/3

Musings

For the past 2 or 3 years I have been able to read the average of a book a day--that is 365 books a year or better. This year, due to laziness, illnesses like sinus problems and migraines, or the busyness of life I have not as yet been able to reach that goal. I have been beating myself up about it mentally for the last couple of weeks. I think I may have to be a little more forgiving of myself. I sometimes expect the impossible from myself, things I maybe would never expect from another person. I cannot predict whether or not I will reach my desired total this year, but I hope to not beat myself up about it if I do.
Another thing I beat myself up about is my inability sometimes to exercise the way I would like to and feel I should. I would like to be able to do the 3-Day walk, but again, illness primarily has kept me from it. I was doing well a while back but was sidetracked by a bout of bronchitis. Last winter I had a serious UTI. Again, I hold myself to impossibly hard standards.

Kyria Blog: Twenty-One Things the World Will Say About Christians

Kyria Blog: Twenty-One Things the World Will Say About Christians

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Musings

This past week I realized that I exgaggerate things, especially worries, in my mind, making them far more serious than they really are. The examples that truly made me see this were: there was a rat in my room, and I blew it up in my mind, thinking that the rat would never leave. It, of course, left my room after a couple of days. Another was the power going out and me immediately thinking that it wouldn't be on for hours; it came back on in about 15 minutes or so.
On a car trip with my mother I noticed again how different we are. She responds with anger almost consistently where I would respond with a crying outburst. What made me notice this was we were having a discussion; I got upset and started to/wanted to cry, whereas she just got angry. We react to almost everything differently, and even see the world differently. It illustrates once more how much the Lord and His Word can change a person's way of thinking.

Ladies, run out and buy this book

Marcus Buckingham has appeared on Oprah and conducted career workshops with her, and now he has written Find Your Strongest Life. This book, aimed specifically at women, is designed to help ladies find out which part of their lives strengthens them, as well as learning which parts weaken them.
Buckingham describes nine roles that women fill, and through taking the Strongest Life test at stronglifetest.com
the reader is able to determine which of those roles is their strongest role, as well as learning their secondary role. The roles are: Advisor, Caretaker, Creator, Equalizer, Influencer, Motivator, Pioneer, Teacher, and Weaver. (My lead role is advisor, and my secondary is teacher.) Once the reader has taken the test, Buckingham goes on to demonstrate, through practical tips and personal stories of other clients, how to live so that we are doing more of what strengthens us, and maybe less of the things that we are capable and even competent about, that we do not enjoy or even hate doing. He stresses that just because we CAN do something, and we're good at doing something, doesn't mean that we should choose that as a career. Instead we should find those activities we do that strengthen us, and work to recreate those moments. We should not aim for a balanced life, but should have an imbalanced life that is filled with those activities that strengthen us.
Also Buckingham points out that we, in this country especially, look for our weaknesses and the weaknesses in others. By so doing, we amplify those weaknesses, until they may become truly crippling problems. However, when we look for our strengths and play to those, those weaknesses disappear.
This is a great book for all women, but especially those of us who are struggling to find ourselves and what our true purpose in life is. It is filled with helpful advice and concrete tips on how we can truly do those things that strengthen us, which leads to life strengthening us instead of draining and depressing us, as it does for so many women. I would recommend this book to all, most especially those who are stuck in a career they don't feel fulfilled in, and those who are doing things because they feel they have to. This would be a great gift to most anyone, as we all long to know our true purpose and highlight those areas that are truly our strengths.

Green

I thoroughly enjoy all of Ted Dekker's work, and Green is no exception. This is book zero in The Circle series, which also consists of Black, Red and White, and also ties into the Paradise novels: Saint, Sinner and Showdown. This book is the beginning and the end of the series. In these novels, a man named Thomas Hunter is able to, for reasons unknown to him, move between the present time and 2,000 years in the future. In the future, however, all spiritual realities are visible, including God, Satan, angels, and demons. The only bridge between these two realities is Thomas' blood; using this bridge, several others are able to switch realities.
In both times, the world is on the brink of disaster, thanks to the forces of evil. However, the situation is more dire in the future. Those faithful to God, a number which represents the church, are arguing amongst themselves, despairing of God's very existence, and lusting for battle with the forces of evil, namely the Horde. In these stories, the reality of sin is represented by a skin disease similar to scabies. The faithful are cured of this by diving into their holy pools, which represents coming to faith in Christ. There are also half-breeds--those who are not Horde, who believe in God, but have not believed in Christ. The half-breeds and the believers join together to battle the Horde, in the ultimate showdown between good and evil, which also includes angels and devils. As the battle comes to a head, the arrogance of evil is evident, but they are proven wrong and defeated. The book ends with what is the beginning of the series, the beginning of the book Black.
This is a wonderful book, a very clear parable/fantasy world which illustrates the true end of all things, as predicted by the Bible. Anyone who enjoyed the Narnia Chronicles would appreciate this entire series greatly.