Lisa notes

My reading list for April 2014

By LisaNotes March 25, 2014 Books I Recommend 18 Comments

Here are books I’ll be reading in April and brief reviews of the books I finished in March. Every 4th Tuesday we share our reading lists at 5 Minutes for Books.

JUST STARTED

Spiritual Misfit
A Memoir of Uneasy Faith
by Michelle DeRusha

My review here

If you’ve ever had spiritual doubts, you’ll relate to Michelle. She’s as honest and vulnerable about her faith (and lack thereof) in her book as she is on her blog (which I’ve read for years; I consider Michelle a friend). I’m enjoying this review copy and look forward to sharing more of it with you when the book is released, April 15.

Unfollowers
Unlikely Lessons on Faith from Those who Doubted Jesus
by Ed Cyzewski and Derek Cooper

My review here

Not only can we learn how to have better faith by looking at those who did, but also by looking at those who didn’t. Ed Cyzewski is one of my favorite authors (and another blogging friend who I love to read), so I’m excited to be reading this newly-released book with Derek Cooper on the “unfollowers” in the Bible.

The Shack Revisited
There Is More Going on Here than You Ever Dared to Dream
by C. Baxter Kruger

This is the non-fiction follow-up to William P. Young’s fiction book, The Shack. Kruger, a friend of Young’s who endorses this book, elaborates here on the relationship and theology of the trinity to expound on questions raised in the novel and to explore more fully our own relationship with the trinity.

The War of Art
Break through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles
by Steven Pressfield

My review here

I’ve heard online for awhile to read this book, read this book. So I’m finally reading this book (originally published in 2002). It’s about how to defeat Resistance against whatever endeavors you undertake. It’s one of those small artsy books with lots of white space on each page, so I’m enjoying it for its look and feel as much as for its the words.

My Man Jeeves
by P. G. Wodehouse

My review here

I chose this for the “20th Century Classic” category of the Back to the Classic Challenge. It’s very British and very delightful so far. I didn’t realize it’s a series of short stories about the main characters rather than one long story, but just as well. It’s my first book written by Wodehouse but maybe it won’t be my last. I got it free online so I’ll recommend it also to Jeff (who now has his own Kindle—I didn’t see that coming!).

STILL READING

Orthodoxy
by G. K. Chesterton

My review here

Whew. This one is a little tougher. I don’t always follow (or stay interested) in some parts, but then Chesterton will zing me with some profound spiritual insight to keep me reading. I’m in too deep to turn around now, 3/4 finished, so I’ll keep mining for gold until I’m done. Chesterton is an author I’ve always wanted to read so he’s a perfect fit for the “A Classic by an Author You Haven’t Read” category of the book challenge.

FINISHED FROM FEBRUARY’S NIGHTSTAND

The Precipice
When Everything We Know Ends
by TC Avey

My review here

Coming soon, this book by another blogging friend and very good writer is one that will make you think twice not only about your spiritual life, but also about how the things you hear in the press can affect (or reveal) your spiritual life. The book contains 3 fiction stories plus lots of links to related real-life happenings. Look for it on Amazon on April 7. My full review coming then.

Stuff
The Secret Lives of Everyday Things
by John C. Ryan

Early on this book warns you that reading too much of it at one time can be overwhelming or depressing. Agreed. But in spurts, it’s fascinating to see how many resources it takes to make even “simple” products like a cup of coffee or a pair of shoes. At the end of each section the authors offer tips to help control our consumerism. And it’s not always what you think. For example,

“Using a low-flow showerhead is a good way to save water, but eating less beef—thereby saving the water used to grow cattle feed—would cut deepest of all into the 375 gallons of water consumed per person per day in the United States. Nationwide, farms use about three times as much water for irrigation as homes use for all purposes.”

The Scarlet Pimpernel
by Emmuska Orczy

I recommend this classic for a fun read. Originally published in 1905, it’s set even further back in the late 1700s of the French Revolution. It was a little hard to follow at first as I tried to get the characters in place, but after the first few chapters, it flows very easily and quickly. The Scarlet Pimpernel is a mysterious figure introduced early in the book as a Robin Hood in reverse: he rescues the aristocrats from the guillotine from the hands of the newly-in-charge masses in France. I found I didn’t necessarily side with the people I thought I would at the beginning, the mark of a skilled author. This is my pick for the “Classic about War” category of the Back to the Classic Challenge.

“‘I am only conscious of one hope, citoyen.’ ‘And that is?’ ‘That Satan, your master, will have need of you elsewhere, before the sun rises to-day.’ ‘You flatter me, citoyenne.'”

The Explicit Gospel
by Matthew Chandler

My review here

This is what you’d think: a book about the importance and beauty of pure gospel. Chandler wrote it after being unpleasantly surprised that even people who’d been in church their whole lives couldn’t necessarily articulate what the gospel is.

The Power of Now
by Eckhart Tolle

My review here

This will probably make my “Favorite Books Read in 2014” list at the end of the year, which is a little odd because there were some parts I didn’t like at all. But what I did like, I liked very much, mainly Tolle’s emphasis on focusing most (but not all) of our attention in the present moment.

Fresh Air
What Happens When You Discover the Powerful Secrets of a God-Breathed Life
by Chris Hodges

My review here

A healthy mix of scripture, modern testimonies, and personal experiences rounds out this book on the work of the Holy Spirit by Chris Hodges of Church of the Highlands. It doesn’t contain anything mind-shatteringly new, but it is a refreshing reminder to be aware of what the Holy Spirit is about and longs to do in each of our lives.

* * *

What’s a good book you are reading or want to read this month? Please share here.

My books on Goodreads
Previous reading lists

What? No plan?

By LisaNotes March 24, 2014 Trust 46 Comments

I’m a planner. I like the known. Map it out and work it through.

But God won’t always cooperate. He makes his own plans and doesn’t always fill me in.

So I had to do it it his way again last week. Just show up. Totally unplanned.

I received a call to make a call. I didn’t want to. I knew it could splinter a hundred different directions. But for once I didn’t overthink it and I just dialed the number.

The response was immediate: “Can you come over for a few hours?”

Because God knows me well, he’d already planned it out so I’d have no excuses. I had to go.

And to pray all the way, “Lord, I’m only showing up. That’s it. Anything else you need, bring your own power to get it done.”

I arrived to a messy situation. Tensions were high. Relationships were straining. So the plan is . . . ? Who’s got the plan???

We had to wing it. Let the plan unfold with another phone call here, a text there. Another drive and then another.

One step at a time. No end game in sight.

Just show up—put my body in the space—and let God take it from there.

And God did. Because he does have the plan. Always. He knows it and he works it. He can do it with or without our help, but he’d prefer our cooperation for our own good.

The circumstances I found myself in stayed messy all night, even though we worked out a plan a piece at a time. When I finally returned home, I still had questions about it—maybe even more than when I started. But I didn’t have doubts that God had had a plan, even when I hadn’t.

We don’t have to know the plan. Or have the skills or the confidence to carry it out.

Or even the courage. Just the presence. With a dash of faith, God will do the rest.

If we’ll just show up. Even when we have no plan.

* * *

Do you like well-laid plans, too? Or do you work better spontaneously?

Where do you need to show up this week? Please share in the comments.

Memorizing Isaiah 55:10

By LisaNotes March 23, 2014 Miscellaneous 2 Comments

Monday, March 24, begins week 10 of memorizing Isaiah 55.

This week’s verse (Mar 24-Mar 30):

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
Isaiah 55:10 (ESV)

Practice with first letters:

F a t r a t s c d f h
a d n r t b w t e,
m i b f a s,
g s t t s a b t t e,

From The Message:

Just as rain and snow descend from the skies
and don’t go back until they’ve watered the earth,
Doing their work of making things grow and blossom,
producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry,

* * *

More tips on memorizing this verse at Do Not Depart.

What does this verse mean to you? Please share.

Fresh Air–Book review

By LisaNotes March 22, 2014 Book reviews 9 Comments

“If I’ve learned anything in my thirty-four years of relationship with God, it’s the importance of not holding back, of going all in.”
– Chris Hodges, Fresh Air

Things I like about Chris Hodges:

he loves Jesus and the scriptures
he preaches the gospel in practical ways
he shares openly about his life
he believes the Spirit still moves

And oh yeah, he’s funny.

So I enjoyed reading his book because you get all those things in Fresh Air, just like you get in person when you listen to him preach at Church of the Highlands.

This book is about being more than doing, although the being will greatly influence your doing. And about how to stay alert to the Spirit of God blowing through you to keep your eyes on the eternal, your attitudes properly adjusted, and your outward actions motivated from your inward beliefs.

Here are some favorite passages:

“I’m all for living a disciplined life, but there’s a better way. Temptation is a test of your relationship, not your self-control. Whether or not you pray does not depend on your self-control. It does, however, reveal your relationship with God. Do you really want to talk to God?”

“Paul was focusing on what was happening in him, not to him. Likewise, we can be sure that when something is happening to us, God is doing something in us—something that will shape us for eternity.”

“Instead of being fearful of all the mean, nasty, selfish people out in the world, you can show them the love of God because you know that he is big enough to handle their issues. You don’t have to do God’s job for him and monitor the gates to his Kingdom.”

“When you let go of judging, condemning, and policing other people and their behavior, you’ll discover that you have a lot more energy to devote to your real purpose: loving them and loving God.”

“An old Zambian proverb sums it up well: ‘When you run alone, you run fast. But when you run together, you run far.'”

“Remember that the Holy Spirit is God. . . . So if you ever hear someone say, ‘Watch out for that Holy Spirit church over there!’ keep in mind that they’re actually saying, ‘Watch out for that God church over there!'”

“We must realize that the Holy Spirit is an actual person and not an ‘it.'”

“You may not be surprised by my big reveal here: the source of the blast of life-breath in us is the Holy Spirit of God.”

* * *

5 ways to stay in the now

By LisaNotes March 20, 2014 Book reviews, Trust 19 Comments

“The only thing that is ultimately real about your journey is the step that you are taking at this moment. That’s all there ever is.”
– Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now

My mind doesn’t power down. I think it’s normal. I hope it is.

I remember something said yesterday. I plan for needs of tomorrow.

It’s okay to think of past and future. Even necessary. Some of the time.

But most of the time, I need to stay in the now. Isn’t that what Jesus said to do?

“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”
Matthew 6:34 (The Message)

But I don’t do it well. I drift naturally toward keeping my head in the future, so staying predominantly centered in the now is a struggle.

To pay attention to God in THIS day
To be aware of him in THIS situation
To focus on what he’s put in from of me in THIS moment

So here’s what’s helping lately.

It’s thoughts from Eckhart Tolle in his book, The Power of Now. Not everything in the book is useful to me (and some seem downright wacky, to me anyway), but these items below strike me as true to what Jesus teaches. And truth is truth wherever it’s found.

1. Work with, not against

“Accept — then act. Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it. Always work with it, not against it. Make it your friend and ally, not your enemy.”

2. Say “yes” to the present

“Whereas before you dwelt in time and paid brief visits to the Now, have your dwelling place in the Now and pay brief visits to past and future when required to deal with the practical aspects of your life situation. Always say ‘yes’ to the present moment.”

3. Remember grace is now

“Psychological fear is always of something that might happen, not of something that is happening now. You are in the here and now, while your mind is in the future. This creates an anxiety gap. . . . You can always cope with the present moment, but you cannot cope with something that is only a mind projection.”

4. Know God works here

“If you find your here and now intolerable and it makes you unhappy, you have three options: remove yourself from the situation, change it, or accept it totally. If you want to take responsibility for your life, you must choose one of those three options, and you must choose now. Then accept the consequences. No excuses. No negativity.”

5. Surrender in the moment
“Surrender is not weakness. There is great strength in it. Only a surrendered person has spiritual power. . . . Die to the past every moment. You don’t need it. Only refer to it when it is absolutely relevant to the present. Feel the power of this moment and the fullness of Being.”

God has proven faithful in the past, and he will be faithful in the future. God in this moment is all we need to be concerned about. It is enough.

This space is where he dwells. He is, after all, I AM. He’ll always be here.

Stay in the now.

* * *

Do you tend to think more about the past, the future, or this present moment? (I extend too far into the future.) Please share in the comments.

Another interesting book on time: The Time Paradox

A “chance” encounter?

By LisaNotes March 19, 2014 Community, My stories 22 Comments

Is this just me, or you, too?

You round the bread aisle at Publix and see someone slightly familiar, but you’re not sure. You avoid eye contact again until you figure it out.

By the milk row, you’ve remembered: it’s a guy from high school you’d rather not bump into again. So you take a sharp right into frozen foods to avoid him. Until he ends up behind you in the checkout, at which point you become all friendly, “Oh, hi! It’s so good to see you again!”

I used to think they were chance encounters. Until I realized they were divine ones instead.

After meeting Walter Baby Love a couple years ago at Outdoor Church, I looked forward to more opportunities to see him. And I did. For awhile. I printed a picture of him singing so I could give it to him the next time I saw him.

But there wasn’t a next time. I didn’t see him at Manna House during the weekly openings or at Outdoor Church at all. I assumed he’d either gotten sick or moved away. I stopped bringing the photo with me.

So the morning of the King’s Banquet, he was not on my mind. I was circling the table where we’d soon be serving homeless men and women, praying over those who would fill the chairs. My head was down, until someone came up behind me and I turned around.

It was Walter Baby Love! He smiled; I squealed; we both hugged.

I listened to his story of where he’d been (he’s still close by after all), and introduced him to my friends. He was as delightful as ever and as eager to sing as before.

We worked out arrangements for him to sing one of his favorites songs to the dinner guests; he delivered.

As he was leaving, we hugged again, not knowing when we’d next see each other. But assured that when God wants it to happen, it will.

Maybe when we expect it; maybe when we don’t.

Unexpected encounters are only unexpected to us. God already knows. He coordinates them. They’re holy ground. And as such they need to be treasured and appreciated and lingered over.

Do I still avoid people at the grocery store? Sometimes (especially on those ballcap and sweatpants mornings), but not as often as I once would have.

I’m learning to cherish the “chance” encounters as God-encounters instead, learning to be grateful for how he moves people around me.

Because when God moves us around for encounters, there’s no “chance” about it. He’s extraordinarily intentional. May I give them extraordinary attention, too.

* * *

Other things I’ve learned from Walter Baby Love:

Not just another day in church (plus video)
Are you quiet enough to listen?
Who are you avoiding?

When have you had a chance encounter that was really a divine one?
Please share in the comments.