2011 - Books I Read This Year

I have over 50 book titles on my Kindle Fire right now but I start a book and then move on to another one before I finish it - gleaning what I need to and then moving on to another provocative title. I've really tried to change my ways and finish ever book that I start but...I just keep reading 50 books at once. My Kindle makes that such an easy habit to cultivate. {sigh} I created the list below first and now I am adding this introduction because actually I was afraid I wouldn't be able to make a very long list because of my habit of reading so many books at once. I'm happy with this short list and it has inspired me to reach new goals in 2012. I'd love to hear about the books that inspired you this year and what you'll be reading next year. On some of the descriptions below I borrowed the words from the publisher because it described the details of the book better than I wanted to take the time to do on my own. However, where I talk about how the the message of book made me feel or how I grew because of the content...that's all me baby.

1. The Healing Code: 6 Minutes to Heal the Source of Your Health, Success, or Relationship Issue
   By Alex Loyd, Phd, ND, Ben Johnson, MD, NO, NMD / Grand Central, Life & Style
   
   This book really changed my thinking about a lot of things related to the health of my soul - mind, will and emotions - and how my thoughts, emotions and imaginations are blocking the health and wholeness of my body and success in life. I would buy this book for everyone I know if I think they might read it.
   


2. Rite of Passage Parenting: Four Essential Experiences to Equip Your Kids for Life
   By Walker Moore / Thomas Nelson
   
   I was really amazed at this authors claim that our society invented the term "adolescence" to delay the time when our children took on adult responsibilities. There is no clear cut "rite of passage" in our American culture that transfers our children to responsible adults. The author, Walker Moore, gave insight on how this affects our children now and in generations to come. He shares practical ideas on how to bring your own children through a rite of passage that prepares them to move into responsible  adulthood as caring and productive individuals in our homes, communities and culture. I read this book because of a college class I was in this last year on child development. I wanted a Christian perspective on the transition from childhood to adulthood. I was very pleased when I found this book. Read it in an afternoon. I have 3 teenagers...very relevant information for my life right now.


3. The Bondage Breaker, New Edition
   By Neil T. Anderson / Harvest House Publishers
   I've read through this book once before but went through it again with a wonderful young woman in my churches youth group. The refresher was really good. Sometimes I just loose track of the things that once had me in such bondage and the enemy tries to slip those chains on again. That is why the scripture says in Hebrews 2:1 (Amp), " Since all this is true, we ought to pay much closer attention than ever to the truths that we have heard, lest in any way we drift past [them] and slip away."


4. Becoming a Man of Unwavering Faith
   By John Osteen / FaithWords
   
   A powerful guidebook from a man who spent a lifetime testing the limits of faith! Drawn from Osteen's sermons, this collection offers practical advice for the moments of struggle and temptation every man faces.This book was rich with principles of faith that can be put in practice by anyone that desires to "walk by faith". It's a very easy read but also very powerful as a faith builder.
   
   I love the Osteen family. When I was 14 years old we were traveling the country and my step-dad was preaching in various churches. We stopped at John Osteen's church and stayed on his property with our travel trailer. I even had lunch with Joel, who was home from college. We were having lunch in the churches cafeteria and my friend, Linda, got us a seat with Joel. We talked about the book of Isaiah.
   


5. So Long, Insecurity: You've Been a Bad Friend to Us, Hardcover
   By Beth Moore / Tyndale House
   
   Beth' s passion to see God free women from their insecurities and fears evolved into an online survey of more than 950 women and 150 men that ultimately resulted in the publication of this book, So Long, Insecurity. Partly autobiographical in nature, Beth Moore uses stories, prayers, and practical ideas to nudge women out of insecurity and into knowledge of their God-given dignity. No matter your age or status, you can learn to battle insecurity with God's truth.
   
   I really loved this book. Beth Moore is so authentic that the message of this book feel like she's been reading my mind. I am still reaping fruit in growth from the reading of this book. In fact, my dearest, bestest friend bought it for me on cd so that I could listen to it.
   
   
6. Bought with Blood: The Divine Exchange at the Cross
   By Derek Prince / Chosen
   
   This book was powerful for me. Derek Prince brought greater insight on what Jesus Christ paid to be mine by born again inheritance. Our Christian culture lives like we're orphans when we have access to the greatest inheritance - it's like making the sacrifice of God's son of no effect in our lives. What a waste when it cost him so much. In gratitude I want to experience all that Christ paid for on Calvary.
   
   At the cross Christ endured all the evil due you and in turn made available to you all the good due Him. In this provocative, Scripture-rich book, acclaimed author Prince explores the nine "divine exchanges" of the atonement. In place of punishment, wounding, death, poverty, shame and rejection, Christ freely offers forgiveness, healing, life, abundance, glory and acceptance. In addition, Prince gives biblical grounding for five areas of deliverance that Jesus makes available through the cross: deliverance from this present evil age, from the law, from self, from the flesh and from the world.
   
   Because it is not enough simply to know about the atonement, Prince presents the means by which you can make it true in your personal experience: repentance, faith and a relationship with the Holy Spirit. This new edition of a life-changing book includes a mini-study course at the end of each chapter, perfect for individual or small group study.
   

I started many other but for whatever reason haven't finished them. I am committed to getting through more books in 2012. My life was enriched and I reclaimed more territory that was once tied up in bondage.

"I will keep him in perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on me"
Isaiah 26:3

My other love is listening to some audio version of ministry while I multi-task. I'll create another list of the ministry that I listen to this last year. There are some speakers that I can listen to their messages over and over hundreds of times. I know that sounds crazy but I catch something new every time I listen. Managing my  thoughts and re-engineering my life through what I watch, and listen to has become a way of life that suits me well - very well. God has done much to preserve me and heal me through some painful times.

For many of the struggles I am "on the other side" experiencing victory that I never would have thought possible. In fact I can see that my careful management of my thoughts and thought habits were the key to my victory. I am so glad I chose the thoughts that God gave me rather than those natural to the pain that I was in  at the time.

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Here's a great suggestion for next years reading...

Life, in Spite of Me: Extraordinary Hope After a Fatal Choice By Kristen Jane Anderson / Multnomah Kristen Anderson wanted to die---but God had other plans. Recounting her miraculous survival of a suicide attempt in which a train severed her legs, Kristen shares how her newfound faith in God helped her overcome severe depression and shame, as well as the challenges of permanent physical disability. Discover how she found fulfillment serving God!

Bold and unashamed for the gospel of Jesus Christ because we KNOW who we have believed.

SOMEONE LOVES YOU. UNCONDITIONALLY. UNSHAKABLE, UNFAILINGLY.
That Someone is God Himself. But how can that be possible? Why would God love you so? Because He has fashioned an unbreakable covenant between Himself and you. And He always keeps His promises. “Everything God does,” says Kay Arthur, “is based on His covenant.” And when you understand how thoroughly the dynamic concept of covenant permeates everything God says in His Word, and everything He does in our lives, you’ll come to experience one of the most stabilizing, most freeing truths you’ll ever know. Kay Arthur, Our Covenant God: Living in the Security of His Unfailing Love.

Our Covenant God: Living in the Security of His Unfailing Love - eBook By Kay Arthur / WaterBrook Press

 My very first Precept Upon Precept Bible Study was the study of Covenant. I fell in love with God all over again. As a grown woman who has been "saved" for more than 30 years - there were things that I had never even heard of or knew about God's Covenant with me. Through this study His Love captured my heart anew. That was 10 years ago. My heart is still filled with fresh love for my God, my redeemer, the Lover of My Soul.

Today is the last day of 2011. I am strongly impressed that THIS is the year I am called to act on the mandate that God has given to me. Now is the time to step out in Faith and know Him deeper and proclaim His Goodness. This new year is the year that I stop putting off God's call in my life until "someday."

God's Mandate - To know Him and make Him known.
God is calling me, calling us to a deeper, richer, more fulfilling "knowing" of Himself. He has done much to demonstrate His boundless love towards us. God shares the intimacy of His many powerful names as descriptions of His character and identity. Through this insights into himself, He makes Himself available as Healer, Provider, Almighty, and Ever-Present Help in time of need.

In September of 2010, the associate pastor's wife at Conrad Mission Church, introduced the women to a study by Beth Moore called "Believing God". This was another pivotal and life changing Bible Study for me.

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Believing God By Beth Moore / B & H Publishing Group If God is who he says he is and can indeed do what he says he can do, why are so many Christians living mediocre lives? Beth Moore thinks that there is a simple answer to this question: unbelief. Therefore, in Believing God she challenges us to take God at his word, believe his promises and, as a result, live fuller lives. Don't be afraid to set aside your unbelief and experience the great blessings of God's promises.

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In this study, Beth Moore builds the lessons on this 5 part statement of Faith:

1. God is who He says He is.
2. God can do what He says He can do.
3. I am who God says I am.
4. I can do all things through Christ.
5. God's Word is alive and Active in me.

Every day since that study I have had the call of God in my heart to really know each of those 5 statements with clarity and practical use in my every day life. It's is time to take this message from my heart to my world - to ignite a fire in the hearts of other believers to know and understand the God we believe in.

Paul states in the II Timothy 1:12, "For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day." Bold and unashamed for the gospel of Jesus Christ because we KNOW who we have believed.

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Believing God: Leader Kit DVD By Lifeway Based on Isaiah 43:10, Believing God: Experiencing a Fresh Explosion of Faith explores what it means to believe God. Through studying the lives of Abraham, Moses, and others from Hebrews 11 as examples of persons who believed in God, Beth encourages women to deepen their own trust in God and receive a fresh word from Him. Join Beth for 10 life-changing weeks and learn to believe God! This Leader Kit includes ten video sessions on six DVDs, a Leader Guide, and one Member book.

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I'm Believing God

‎"Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution,how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? ...Hebrews 2:1-3a

I heard a quote that many come to Christ saying the sinners prayer like the "I agree" button when signing up at a website - never reading the terms and conditions. They struggle and suffer throughout their life never knowing the riches that are theirs in Christ Jesus. This is one covenant I want to know in depth!

Last fall I participated in a Beth Moore Bible Study, Believing God, that compelled me to dig deeper.

Beth uses a 5 point statement of faith as the premise of the entire study. I will reiterate it here:

• God is who He says He is
• God can do what He says He can do
• I am who God says I am
• I can do all things through Christ
• The Word of God is alive & active in me

These five statements have stayed with me for the more than two months since I finished the Bible Study. The questions that persist because of these statements are

• Exactly, specifically who does God say that He is - and what does it mean to me?
• Exactly, specifically what does God say that He can do - and...what does it mean to me?
• Exactly, specifically who does God say that I am - not who do I think I am?
• What does "I can do all things through Christ" REALLY mean?
• What evidence is there in my life that God's Word is alive & active in my and my life - that it is more than just positive thinking?

I must know the answer to these questions - The Almighty God through His Word has taken great effort to reveal Himself to human kind - yet what have I done to discover this grand revelation? And why, what benefit does knowing & understanding this revelation have to do with my life's responsibilities?

This morning in my quiet time with the Lord I realized what a difference it would make to my day if I purposely chose to spend some time viewing my day with these statements in mind.

Ah Lord Jehovah! behold, thou hast made the heavens and the earth by thy great power and by thine outstretched arm; there is nothing too hard for thee, who showest lovingkindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them; the great, the mighty God, Jehovah of hosts is his name; great in counsel, and mighty in work; whose eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of men, to give every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings: (Jeremiah 32:17-19)

As Creator of the heavens & earth - by his great power and out stretched arm - there is NOTHING too hard for God. And yet in all that infinite power he shows lovingkindness unto thousands. As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we have access to both this unbounded power and his lovingkindness.

I don't know about you, but this strengthens me for my day.

(art by Antifan-Real)

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Believing God By Beth Moore / B & H Publishing Group If God is who he says he is and can indeed do what he says he can do, why are so many Christians living mediocre lives? Beth Moore thinks that there is a simple answer to this question: unbelief. Therefore, in Believing God she challenges us to take God at his word, believe his promises and, as a result, live fuller lives. Don't be afraid to set aside your unbelief and experience the great blessings of God's promises.