Sunday, June 30, 2013

Psalm 16

This week I finish up Psalm 16! This is the first Psalm I will have memorized in its entirety. It's such a beautiful Psalm.

Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust.

O my soul, you have said to the Lord,
“You are my Lord,
My goodness is nothing apart from You.”
As for the saints who are on the earth,
“They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight.”

Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god;
Their drink offerings of blood I will not offer,
Nor take up their names on my lips.

O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You maintain my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Yes, I have a good inheritance.

I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
My heart also instructs me in the night seasons.
I have set the Lord always before me;
Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will rest in hope.
For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Friday, June 28, 2013

Happy weekend!!

There's a post I am trying to write but cannot seem to find the words. I'll work on it over the weekend and try to post it on Monday.

In the meantime, have a fantastic weekend!!

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Plowing through the reading list

Time for another Nightstand post! I've been posting almost every week about what I'm currently reading so I'll just mention what I'm reading at this moment and what's coming up.


I'm still reading Through Gates of Splendor (this month's Reading to Know book). It's a really inspiring missionary story and makes me wonder if I could ever do something so brave.


My current bedtime fiction is Dumas' Twenty Years After, the sequel to The Three Musketeers. I haven't read very far but I'm already feeling a bit overwhelmed. It's been awhile since I read The Three Musketeers so I don't remember all of the characters. Hopefully they will all sort themselves out.


I am also perusing Knits Men Want in hopes of finding something my husband will let me knit him. So far I'm not having much luck but the writing is rather funny!

Next up:

Radical Homemakers


Happy July reading!!

Monday, June 24, 2013

Psalm 16 - almost complete!

This week I'm going to add Psalm 16 verses 7 and 8 to my memory work. Only three more verses after this!

I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
My heart also instructs me in the night seasons.
I have set the Lord always before me;
Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.

I think it's awesome that these verses come during a time where we are desperately seeking the Lord's counsel. I keep begging God for guidance and am not yet certain what His will is for us.

"My heart also instructs me in the night seasons." What do you think this means? That we can find guidance in our dreams? I don't usually trust my dreams as they don't always seem grounded in reality. Maybe I should be praying that God will also instruct me in the night seasons.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Prayer Request

One of my sponsored girls sent me this text last week:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6

How did she know that I'm trying to determine the Lord's will?

Recently, my husband and I have been discussing the possibility of me starting an at-home business. I'm interested and have some ideas but am not sure if this is something God wants for me right now. We could always use the money as we have a few changes going on (more on that later).

However, I tend to stretch myself too thin. I get excited about an idea but have a hard time seeing it through to fruition. Is this another hare-brained idea? Or is this something God has tasked me with? I'm not sure...

Could you pray for my husband and I, that we hear God's direction and follow it? I'd really appreciate it!

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

New books!

I'm amazed at how quickly the past few days have gone. I'm not sure exactly why as nothing out of the ordinary has happened.

I've finished all of the books from last week and am working on the Goodreads reviews for those books. This week I am reading:


The Trial grabbed my interest very quickly. I chose it because it's a Christy award winner but I didn't know much more than that. I started it on Sunday but I'm already 2/3s finished.


Through Gates of Splendor is this month's Reading to Know book club selection. I am thrilled that I am actually reading this book on schedule! Such a feat for me. I read No Name several months after the bookclub read it. Oops! I just started the book but it looks like it will be a great read.

Happy reading!

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Unnamed, unrivaled, and unorthodox

I guessed correctly when I stated that I would be finished with No Name within a week. I couldn't wait until tonight; I had to sit down this morning and finish reading the last 40 pages. If you're interested in classics, No Name was a good read. It reminded me of a female version of Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo.

The Goodreads description: Determined to regain her rightful inheritance at any cost, Magdalen uses her unconventional beauty and dramatic talent in recklessly pursuing her revenge. Aided by the audacious swindler Captain Wragge, she braves a series of trials leading up to the climactic test: can she trade herself in marriage to the man she loathes?

I'm still working through both I Became a Christian and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt and A Heart for Freedom, though I'm almost finished with the former.

Now I need to figure out what to read before bed! I meant to have a book picked out before finishing No Name but didn't get around to it. I have several Christian novels around the house but those are usually reserved for weekend reading.

Speaking of Christian novels...

I love Siri Mitchell's books and am always eager for the next publication. Normally, her books are historically well researched, contain believable character development, and tell a great story. Unrivaled is Mitchell's latest novel and it contains only one of these characteristics: research. The novel is rich in historical detail but falls short in other ways.

Goodreads description: Lucy Kendall always assumed she'd help her father in his candy-making business, creating recipes and aiding him in their shared passion. But after a year traveling in Europe, Lucy returns to 1910 St. Louis to find her father unwell and her mother planning to sell the struggling candy company. Determined to help, Lucy vows to create a candy that will reverse their fortunes.
St. Louis newcomer Charlie Clarke is determined to help his father dominate the nation's candy industry. Compromise is not an option when the prize is a father's approval, and falling in love with a business rival is a recipe for disaster when only one company can win. Will these two star-crossed lovers let a competition that turns less than friendly sour their dreams?


Doesn't it sound sweet? It's a bit too sweet and left me feeling in need of substance. You can probably guess the ending based on the description above but the novel doesn't contain enough surprises to make the telling more than a light beach read. Hopefully Mitchell returns with one of her more traditional novels!

Thank you to Bethany House for providing the novel in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

Monday, June 10, 2013

Mondays - Kitchen Day

Today was Kitchen Day. Every Monday I spent time doing tasks like cleaning out the fridge and mopping the floor. I tend to make a mess in the kitchen over the weekend and it feels good to start the week with a newly sparkling kitchen.

I also spent some time learning more about and experimenting with my VitaMix. I used the dry container to make flour out of wheat berries. Very cool!




I used the flour to make banana bread in the toaster oven. It was browning very quickly and seemed cooked all the way through so I pulled it out seven minutes early. Hopefully it turns out alright! I guess we'll know during breakfast tomorrow.


It's been a very productive day. I hope everyone else has had a great Monday!

Sunday, June 9, 2013

He delights in me. Really!

I really like memorizing a passage instead of a single verse. So far I've memorized Psalm 16:1-4. This week I'm adding verses five and six.

O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You maintain my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Yes, I have a good inheritance.

I can be mighty grumpy sometimes. I shouldn't be. The Lord truly has given me a good inheritance. I have a roof over my head, food on my table, money enough to pay the bills, a beloved husband, and most important of all, a Heavenly Father who delights in me. HE delights in ME. Such a profound thought and I forget way too often.

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

This week's reading


No Name is proving to be a very interesting story but it's really long! I'm sure that if I sat down and read straight through, I could finish it shortly. But it's my nighttime reading, right before I go to bed. I think I just passed page 300. Maybe another week?


I had no idea what to expect when I borrowed I Became a Christian and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt. I pulled it off the shelf because it sounded interesting but it took me several weeks and a renewal to start reading it. Now I'm wishing I had started earlier because I can see the value in rereading it at a slower pace. The book has made me laugh and has made me cry. I've already learned one valuable lesson that I want to share later.


A Heart for Freedom has been a bit of a choppy read but I'm looking forward to seeing how it develops. I have not progressed very far because I've been concentrating on I Became a Christian... but I will definitely focus on this book once the other is finished.

I have no idea what fiction book to tackle next! I kind of want a more modern novel but I'm not impressed with most of them. Classics take me so long to read, though, and they aren't always the best bedtime reading. Any suggestions?

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

On My Needles

I can't remember if I mentioned it, but I've started attending a knitting group on Friday mornings. It's such a wonderful break from being at home! The ladies are really nice and they are very helpful. I'm one of the newest knitters in the group and people keep volunteering to help me. Last week they encouraged me to branch out of flat knitted items so I started a hat!





This is the Welldigger pattern on Ravelry. So far it's been a lot of fun to knit! This Friday I need to buy DPNs so that I can start the crown of the hat. Fun!

Sunday, June 2, 2013

This week's memory text

Last week I memorized Psalm 16:1-2. This week I want to add verses 3 and 4.

As for the saints who are on the earth,
“They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight.”

Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god;
Their drink offerings of blood I will not offer,
Nor take up their names on my lips.

Verse four is really sad... "their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god." May I never hasten after another god. I want it to be said of me, "[she is] the excellent one, in whom is all my delight."