Wrapping Up May

Apparently my kids are not the only ones whose brains shut down when school ended on Friday.

I realized this morning that I neglected to draw a winner for the books from my 100th post last evening. Yesterday my "get up and go" definitely got up and went! We did take care of a couple of errands to get some additional equipment and clothing for the upcoming 2 week Scout camping and backpacking trek my son and husband are leaving on next weekend. But that was about all I was good for all day. It's funny how our bodies can sense when the frenzied pace of activity has finally subsided and all our energy drains out in a whoosh like the air leaving a balloon.

But I do indeed want to gift these books to 2 of you who commented on my milestone post. So before I went to church this morning the computer chose the following:

Here are your random numbers: 4, 12
Timestamp: 2008-06-01 13:56:23 UTC

Congrats to Chris and skoots1mom! Please send me your addresses, ladies, and I'll get your books to you!

Before the summer gets in full swing, a couple of things to catch up on. . . . .

I received a couple of books as a Mother's Day gift from one of the publishers that I review books for that I'd like to tell you about.

Rattled by Trish Berg
This is a great book for new moms. The subtitle is Surviving Your Baby's First Year Without Losing Your Cool. This book is full of anecdotes and advice, and sprinkled throughout each chapter are practical tidbits, prayers, and questions & thoughts to ponder as well as an appendix containing a plethora of resources. . Trish hilariously recounts her own crazed moments of motherhood, and deliciously celebrates sweet moments with the babies that will grow up all too soon.

Never Say Diet by Chantel Hobbs
Chantel Hobbs, a mother of four, recounts her struggles with obesity, body image and health in Never Say Diet. Realizing that choosing to live well was one of the best gifts she could give her family, Chantel is so excited to encourage YOU to take the small but meaningful steps towards a healthier life. Ditch the diet! Buy some new skinny jeans! And don’t forget to read the five tips to get your family fit this spring. This woman lost 200 pounds, so the concepts she stresses bear some weight (pun intended!).

A couple of you noticed that I had The Shack on my Spring Reading List and wondered how I liked it. To be honest, I was a bit mixed. The book was interesting to read, and it had some excellent and scripturally-grounded statements about God and faith. But although I will readily admit that I prefer realism to allegories, I must say that the aspect of how the book portrayed God bothered me. There is a difference between God meeting us at the point of our need and God changing Himself to be what we want Him to be.

I am also concerned that those who elevate this book on a theological pedestal are those who focus on the message of God's love and acceptance to the exclusion of the concept of God's holiness in regard to sin. Particularly in today's society of "feel-good religion," we frequently hear folks cite examples of how accepting and non-condemning Jesus was when He lived on this earth, reaching out to "sinners" when others would judge and stone. Yet they frequently ignore the aspect of "go and sin no more" and the fact that each of those individuals (such as Zaccheus, the woman caught in adultery, the woman at the well, etc.) repented and had a changed life. It was not an "anything goes" relationship.

The book has much to ponder. But God has already revealed Himself to humanity, and that is recorded in a divinely inspired Book. I pray that books like The Shack will point folks to those Scriptures, not become their theology in and of itself.

And my opinion is worth about what you paid for it! Have a great day!