I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately. Books to better myself really. This whole reading frenzy started a few weeks ago when the book “Boundaries” by Cloud and Townsend was recommended to me by a friend. It’s a really great read about setting limits and who having limits doesn’t make you a bad person or un-Christian.

Saying no is something I’ve had trouble with for…. well my whole life really. Honestly I think it’s something many of us woman do – we are the nurturers and care-givers. I’m the type of person who gives and gives, who constantly puts others before myself. But I’ve slowly been realizing I can’t sustain that kind of life. Something eventually will give – whether that’s my health, my happiness, my sanity, my relationships, etc. I can’t be everything to everyone. Reading the book helped me step back a little. (Sometimes it’s hard to see what’s going wrong because we’re too busy pushing forward.) It helped me to see some of my short comings, like my tendency to put everything ahead of my own needs. It helped me to realize I need more friends… I need more ways to get out and meet people and do things and that I might have to get out of my comfort zone a little to do that. But the biggest thing this book has helped me with is realizing it’s okay for me to have boundaries – things that I won’t do, things that aren’t me – and that I can say no and still be a good Christian woman. In fact, having limits will help me to be a better Christian woman.

So if you have trouble with saying no or giving too much – I’d definitely recommend this book. It’s great for daughters, parents, friends, spouses, you name it – they cover issues that can arise and how to improve them! 🙂

Once I finished that book, I started a book that I bought months ago at Target called “One Thousand Gifts.” To be honest I loved the description and the cover. I really had no idea what to expect when I opened it up and began to read. The first couple chapters were thick and heavy! I honestly didn’t know if I was going to be able to read all of it. The writing is more stilted – like the ramblings of thoughts as they pass through the mind. And those first two chapters really talk about dark things like the authors little sister getting run over by a truck when she was a toddler and her brother-in-law losing his first two sons within 18 months of each other (neither child more than a couple years old). Not pleasant reading topics.

But I pushed through because I needed to see where she was going with all this, and boy am I glad I did! Eucharisteo – Thanksgiving – is the core message in this book. That giving thanks – for the little things, the beauty around us, and even the unpleasant and ugly things – is the key to our salvation. That pausing to note and thank God for the beauty in the way the light bounces off the bubbles as you wash dishes in the sink makes for a more joy-filled and full life. I know the ideas aren’t revolutionary or anything really new, but the pictures she paints with her words and the way she shares her thoughts… I don’t know… there’s something about it that just hits home for me.

The journey for her start with writing down, making a list, of things she was thankful for. Whenever she’d see something or feel something beautiful and perfect, something she was thankful for she’d add it to the list. And her list grew to be over 1,000 gifts long! It makes you think thought doesn’t it? How we just rush through life, hurrying to get from one event to the next, to make sure the kids are at practice on time or that we aren’t late for that doctors appointment. How often do you see people with their heads buried into their phones or laptops… I know I’m guilty of this too. What if we all just slowed down… Took a breathe… Opened our eyes and looked around us! What would happen? What would we see? How would we change?

It’s why I love living in the country. I look out my window (any window) and I see God everywhere! In the gorgeous painted skies, in the little buds growing in the fields, in the beautifully colored landscapes. All I have to do is pause, breathe, and open my eyes and I’m reminded of how very small I am and how much bigger and grander God’s plans are for all of us.

Well I hope you all are having a fantastic Friday! I will see you all here on Monday!

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