No, I did not read this book in 4 days or however long it has been since I lasted posted a book review. I have actually been working on this one since February or March. Not that it is a hard book to read, but I have picked it up, put it down, picked it up, put it down. But now I am really finished reading it. But am I done with it? Never! I'm sure this will be a source book I go back to over and over again.
Earlier this year we went to Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage conference at church, led by Mark Gungor. We did indeed laugh all weekend, but we also learned a lot too. One of the things he talked about the Flag Page, which is NOT a personality test, but instead focuses on our motivations -- what we truly love about life. With this computer guided test, that takes about 5 minutes, you can learn all about what you love in life, which then translates into which "country" you live in, thus which "flag" represents you. (As in, the flag for that country.) Ok, the metaphors are heavy, but this has opened my eyes to more things in my life as it is right now than any other book or test I have done.
Long story short, here is a summary of me:
I live in Peace Country, which makes me just want everyone to get along. I am happiest when my environment is tranquil, calm and secure.
My adopted country (a close second!) is Perfect Country, because I have a high need for organization and I need to pursue new and improved ways to doing things.
I am a Balanced person when it comes to soft and hard traits, but interestingly enough I do lean more on the hard side. That means I am less of a relational person and more of a worker bee.
So far as my talents (things I ranked highest) I am 47% Task Talents and 30% Creation Talents. The other percents are made up of People Talents, Leading Talents, and Showman Talents.
But the most important part of the Flag Page is the Flag itself. In order of importance to me of things I love:
1. Optimistic
2. Perfectionist
3. Avoids Conflict
4. Dry Sense of Humor
5. Neat
Once you learn all this about yourself, reading the book helps you understand more about how these traits can be used for good and how they can be used for bad. It will also help you learn how you can express these to your family (especially your spouse!) and thus have better communication, thus making everything better. [Yes, I was a communications major in college and I still firmly believe communication done right is the BEST thing for any relationship!]
I cannot begin to tell you how this book opened my mind to so many issues in relationships I have been challenged by! It has been for the better, but there are still things I just look at and say, "Well, God, what should we do about this?"
Highly, highly, highly recommend this for anyone!!!
The Flag Page is an incredible program designed to help you discover
who you are and more importantly....who God created you to be. If you
are looking to discover the great things God has in store for you, you
will want to create your own Flag Page.
In his book Discovering Your Heart with the Flag Page, national
marriage speaker Mark Gungor explains how to interpret and understand
the colorful printout that is the Flag Page. He shows the reader how to
understand why they act and react the way they do, and what important
needs they have in their life that are the keys to their success and
happiness. By using the Flag Page, Mark has helped thousands of people
discover and understand not only who they are and who God made them to
be, but also understand the people closest to them. (picture and description from amazon)
O:)
Melissa
Ok, so this book was either a donation to our church library or my mom gave it to me, I can't remember which. It has been sitting on the bedside table for a while now. The other day I was trying to clear some more stuff off the table and add the books to my wish list on my Paperwhite and found this one. I picked it up again and brought it downstairs where it laid on the kitchen table for awhile before I picked it up.
Being a storyteller (love to hear them, love to tell them) and a lover of foreign missions and missionaries, I'm not sure why I haven't picked it up yet. But over the last two days I have read all the amazing stories of these eight martyrs who chose to go in war-torn countries, riddled with Islam/Muslim, terrorists and the like, because their call to go was so great, the burden so heavy, they had no choice BUT to go.
Some of these people had been in the lands for many years, some had been there less than 3 weeks before they were tragically killed. But through each death, as senseless as it seemed at the time, the LORD was glorified even more. In their death, HE was made strong in Yemen, in Iraq, in the Philippines.
Even though the cover looks rather dated and may not entice those just glancing at it, I highly recommend picking it up! It will leave you with a new sense of mission and passion ... and a desire to seek the Lord with all your hear to see what His mission is for you!
Immediately following the deaths of Southern Baptist workers in Yemen,
Iraq, and other places, the International Mission Board received an
outpouring of support and consolation. But it did not take long for the
questions to come. “Why do missionaries go to dangerous places?” “How
can the IMB be so irresponsible to send missionaries to places where
their lives will be endangered?”
There were demands to bring the
missionaries home. Some reflected that this loss of life was such a
waste and could have been avoided. Apparently the top priority in the
minds of many was the safety of missionaries.
Yet, those who died
gave their lives as a witness to their faith and testimony to their
obedience and devotion to their Lord. They died because they were
willing to be in a place where their lives were vulnerable—because
offering eternal life to others was more important than maintaining
their own earthly lives.
These were individuals whose lives were given, not taken. (picture and description from amazon)
Happy Reading!!
Melissa
My second book on the Paperwhite!! I'm really getting into this, but I still want to rotate between ebooks and "real" books because I can't forget my first love!!
This is the book we chose for Book Club for June and it was a real delight. We were curious how it would go since Irene Hannon usually writes involved, police, mystery type books and this one looked like fluff for her. But I must admit I was pleasantly surprised. There was some meat to it, and it really made me think a lot about adults who were adopted as children, and how that carries over well into adulthood.
Claire Summers is a determined, independent single mother who is doing
her best to make lemonade out of the lemons life has handed her. Keith
Watson is a results-oriented workaholic with no time for a social life.
As the executive assistant to a local philanthropic businessman, he's
used to fielding requests for donations. But when a letter from Claire's
eleven-year-old daughter reaches his desk, everything changes. The girl
isn't asking for money, but for help finding the long-lost son of an
elderly neighbor.
As Keith digs reluctantly into this complicated
assignment, he has no idea how intertwined his life and Claire's will
become--nor how one little girl's kindhearted request will touch so many
lives and reap so many blessings.
Through compelling characters
and surprising plot twists, Irene Hannon offers readers this
tenderhearted story of family connections that demonstrates how life is
like lilacs--the biggest blooms often come only after the harshest
winters. (description and picture from amazon.com)
O:)
Melissa
Ok, she made me read it. See, Rebecca and her friends are SO STOKED about going to see this movie Saturday and I told them I would take them. I had seen the previews and read the first chapter or two, but she made it mandatory I read it before I go. Now I am mad at her.
See, the book takes all kinds of twists and turns you would never expect. And now, I don't even want to see the movie. (Not exactly true, I do love going to the movies, but I already know what is going to happen!!!) Reading through all the bad language that is somewhat situational and somewhat unnecessary and all the un-Christian views on eternity and life after death was frustrating, but it really did open my eyes to a world I do not know. A world where kids are sick and sometimes get better and sometimes never do. Some are just a "grenade" ticking, while others actually do find a miracle and are cured for life. Some kids DO make a difference in their world in their short life, and others end just a name on a list. It will be interesting to see how true the movie follows the book, or if they change it drastically to fit in the allotted 2 hours.
Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few
years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter
inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus
Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is
about to be completely rewritten.
Insightful, bold, irreverent,
and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning-author John Green’s
most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the
funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love. (picture and description at amazon)
O:)
Melissa
