The PEACEGIVER ~ Review

I finished this some time ago and just realized that I never put up the review.

As I have stated before I enjoyed this book a lot more than the first time I tried to read it. The first two chapters are really what killed it for me the first time and almost put the stop on me reading it this time. They start out with the Rick, our main character, complaining about his relationship with his wife, how their troubles are her doing and how she needs to change. Then we go on to read about how his Grandfather and Grandmother had he same relationship. 

Ugh!! Such a sour way to start a book.

The book reads pretty different from others. Instead of being a fictional story with a bit of religion to guide the characters or help us as the reader get a better insight as to what motivates them, it read more as a gospel book with fictional characters added to help keep out attention and not read so much like a lesson or a talk.

While a lot of points that the author Ferrell shared with us were great it seemed more like he was sharing his 'eureka' moments with us that he came accross while doing his own personal scripture study. Some points applied to me, some did not, and some seemed to be a bit of a stretch. 

I'm not saying it wasn't good but it won't be included in my study material. It was a fun, and easy read that gave me something to think about.

Tell me what you thought....

The Remarkable Soul of a Woman

I just finished the book over the weekend. Really, it is not that heavy or thick of a book but I wanted to be able to take my time with it and I love Elder Uchtdorf so I wanted to really hear what he had to say in his book. It is a nice cute little book about some wonderful thoughts and insights to the soul of a women. If you are ever in the need of a pick me up, I would definitely suggest taking a half hour, sit in the corner of your sofa and spend some time reading this book. Don't worry about speed reading it, take the time with it and realize that he is talking about every single one of us.

I have a simple faith. I believe as you are faithful and
diligent in keeping the commandments of God,
as you draw closer to Him in faith, hope, and charity,
things will work together for your good.

The Remarkable Soul of a Woman

This is the new book that came out around Conference this spring. I love listening to President Uchtdorf and if you had a chance to listen to his talk at the Young Women's Conference, you know what I mean. ~ Read ~ Listen ~ I am so grateful that I had to opportunity to take my Sister-in-Law with me to the conference. It has been just like being back on my mission. Being able to share the gospel with someone that I love. With family that I will be with for all time. But more than that, it has been a wonderful blessing to see the gospel grow in someone who did not have it before. There is no greater joy than to be an instrument in the hand of the LORD to bring his children back to him. Alma 29:9

His book is just as sweet. He always has such wonderful things to say about his wife. How do we deal with a fast passed life? What is the greatest kind of happiness possible? We all have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

We are not alone and the LORD is always with us. As he addresses all these questions and ideas I have felt a deep love by my Heavenly Father, I know I am not alone and am so grateful for the gospel in my life.

....Trust and rely on the Spirit.
As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life
and create something of beauty and helpfulness,
you improve not only the world around you
but also the world within you....

I have read the first half of the book and will post again when I finish the book. It's a small one so it should not take too long it is just a matter of making the time available to finish it.

The Peacegiver: Preface

"Nothing is more important
than understanding not just that the Lord's
atonement is the answer to our daily, painful predicaments,
but how it is the answer."

I was expecting something more along the lines of a book that would delve into some deep gospel principle. Instead, the book is written as a 'husband and wife whose marriage is in trouble.' The author tells us that the intentions of the book are to explore how the atonement of Christ can bring us peace into our lives. I'm interested to see how the story unfolds and how the author will share gospel principles with us through a fictional story or a husband and wife.

Skeptical, Weary, Intrigued

Feel free to read along with me and leave comments. It would be great to discuss with you.

Hurry up........and Wait

I just finished Mary, Martha & Me. The last chapter was about understanding that we need to wait on the timing of the Lord. We can't force him into doing stuff because we think we are ready or we do not want to wait.

"For the people of the Lord are they who wait for him...."
-2 Nephi 6:13

One instance that is mentioned is Mary and her brother Lazarus. I love this story. My niece used to always ask me tell her Jesus stories. One time I told her this story and later she repeated the story to be about a brother and sister who loved each other. With a quick review of the history of the time it becomes clear why Jesus waited to come to Lazarus. Olsen states that "...these believers were required to wait to finally understand what Jesus meant."

This was a great way to end the book. Understanding that when we put God first and find the 'needful thing.' He will not ask us to do anything save He will provide the way, the Savior will make us equal to the tasks that are before us. This life will be worth it but we can not push the Lord into what we want. Be patient and wait for his perfect timing so I can have the life that he has planned for me.

"Mary and Martha have both chosen 'that good part' (Luke 10:42)-that is, they put Christ first in their lives while being true to their God-given gifts." (122) We do not need to become the perfect this or that. Be true to who you are and the gifts God gave us.

Who Is Doing Better.....?

My husband was working as an usher for the Time Out For Women seminar once. There were tables set up of the books they were selling from the Authors who were speaking at the Seminar. So he got me that book Mary, Martha & Me. I started it back in September but did not get very far before school picked up and I had to put the book down.

Recently I have decided to give it another try. Every night for about 20 minutes I take some time to myself and pull it out. I do not know how many of you out there have ever caught yourself looking at what you have done and comparing it to another or if you have noticed someone always trying to compare their works to yours. The thing I have noticed about gospel literature is that even though we have read the scriptures over and over again and tried to apply them to our lives, sometimes it just makes more sense when we someone else spells it out for us. This has been a great book to remind me that I need to choose the better part and do those things that the Lord has set for me to do.

"We must be willing to get rid
of the life we've Planned so as to have
the life that is Waiting for us."

-J. Campbell

There are three weekends in Utah that Time Out for Women is planned. If we can get a group of 5 or more to go then we can each get $10 off for the full weekend but we need to register by August 19th for Logan, or in October for the St. George or SLC location. Leave a comment if anyone is interested.

Logan, UT - September 18-19, 2009
St. George, UT - November 06-07, 2009
SLC, UT - November 13-14, 2oo9