Ahh... Harry Potter

I started reading the Harry Potter books because I had to know what it was that drew 3rd graders to read a book that's 750 pages long. And so began another book addiction...

Enter the movies, which some will squabble about the "true to the book" issue, I just like them. I like the original stories, and I like seeing them come alive on screen.

And now book six is coming to theaters November 21.
Get a glimpse at coolness...



(To give credit where credit is due, my friend T-Rev posted this video first, and I thought it was such a great idea that I'm doing it, too!)

Can we say TELECOMMUTE?

So, as if being on vacation isn't enough to make someone question the necessity of working (at least until you have to pay bills while on vacation), we here at the beach are all figuring out ways that we could telecommute for our jobs, of course with the concession that we OCCASIONALLY reappear in real life in person.

Blending of artistic talent

This is such an amazing and unique combination of music and visual art...
Song by Andrew Peterson. Drawing by Trevor Little.

"Family Man" from Trevor Little on Vimeo.

Why, God?

"Why does God let bad things happen to good people?"
"Why am I even here?"
"What difference do I make?"

Have you ever heard these questions? Or maybe you've asked them yourself?
In a conversation yesterday, I got a glimpse into some possible answers.

Maybe bad things are simply an opportunity to be shown the blessings God surrounds us with everyday.

(Names are changed.)

Shelli's brother-in-law, Charles, has been diagnosed with a cancer that's causing site loss. He is a husband and a father of two adorable little girls. In a few weeks, he'll undergo surgery to treat the cancer. Bad things happen to good people.

In the days since his diagnosis, people have come out of the woodwork to offer anything and everything in ways of helping. As one example, he made the comment that he would never need to cut another blade of grass for the rest of his life for all the people who have said they'd mow his lawn. It's a humbling experience to have people poor themselves out for you. Charles is a humble guy that spends all his energy pouring into others. Now is a time for him to receive the return blessing in the midst of his awful circumstances. Good things happen in bad circumstances.

So that's great. He's one of "those guys," but I'm not "that" guy.
What difference do I make?
Well, here's the kicker.

Charles and his family go to my church.

They go to this church because Shelli invited them to come to the place that has had an impact on her life.

Shelli comes to the church because she was invited by one of her dental patients, Liz.

My sweet friend, Liz.
What if she had just sat there quietly in the dental chair and not gotten to know Shelli?
Never mentioned her church?
What if Shelli had kept it to herself?
Where would Charles and his family be now?

IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE.

All Things Shopping

To many it makes me shallow... A typical girl...

...but I REALLY like to shop. Certainly clothes and SHOES are high on my list, and books are a great love of my life, but as it turns out, well-rounded 21st century woman that I am, I enjoy it just as much if it's tools or appliances.

Does that make me odd? Or just "unique" in the world of women? Or am I in fact normal?

Reconcilling your "old" self...

Scripture tells us that as Christians in our lives post-acceptance of God's Greatest Gift, we "lay aside [our] old self" (Eph. 4:22) or "take off [our] old self" (Col. 3:9) or even that "our old self was crucified with Him" (Rom. 6:6). This concept is a great relief to many new Christians... To shed the skin of old habits and vices. [Note: C.S. Lewis has an amazing story picture of this in his Chronicles of Narnia book, Voyage of the Dawn Treader when Eustace is a dragon.]

Have you ever considered that at some point in our lives we might have to reconcile our "new self" with the old? Can we truly understand what stands in the way of being Christlike until we account for, accept, and apply the lessons of why we were the way we were?

It has to be deeper than "that was just my sinful nature" because those selfish and self-serving tendencies still creep into the new.


Just enough deep thoughts to get you going. More to come...

Silly People Behind Silly Songs!

Crazy Texan Rabbit!

Seriously?

New Book Hookup

So, one of the fantabulous new friends I made in Texas has the coolest hookup... a book publisher sends him books to review on his blog. He gets two copies of each book--one to read and one to give to a friend to read. How cool is that? And the best part? well, for me, at least, I got to read and write a review for one by one of my favorite authors!

Here you go!
[Be kind, this is my first attempt at this kind of writing (at least since school book reports)!]

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Love as a Way of Life
Gary Chapman

It's amazing how the simplest concepts can revolutionize the way you look at life. As an avid fan of Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages I couldn't help but chomp at the bit to read his new book. The principles he unfolds have the potential be life-changing in understanding oneself. I am a firm believer in the idea that the better we know and truly understand ourselves, the more we are able to care for, care about, work with, be in relationship with, and love others. Just when I think I reached a new plateau in relating to others, I'm reintroduce to Chapman's eloquent, yet elementary, ideas that remind me of my narcissism in life choices.

Because he's a great story-teller who weaves the concepts he is trying to convey through stories, it's very easy to find myself going from chapter to chapter without stopping. Once I got into the meat of the book, I found that I could have spent a week in each chapter looking for ways to unpack that trait and still had more work to do. There was so much there to digest! These "simple" concepts of kindness, patience, forgiveness, courtesy, humility, generosity, and honesty hit home for me in evaluating my own life and putting me in check on judging others. As much as I can easily point out the failings of these traits in others, I realize how truly lacking they are in their truest form in the heart of my own life.

Yet again, Gary Chapman has given new insights to understand and accept and therefore love one another to the core of who we are—relational people. One of the greatest challenges in loving people is to understand them and accept them as who you understand them to be and to love them more the better you understand them. Chapman introduces the reality of tools that should be basic principles in our character arsenal. To love well is a life-long endeavor that goes hand in hand with being loved. This will become a new favorite gift book from me to folks who desire to love and be loved.

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Trevor's Thoughts (My Supplier)

I'm going to agree with Laura. This is a great book. Well structured. Easy to read. Memorable stories and quotes. One of the best parts of the book is the way he fleshes out the ideas into actually go-and-do practical application throughout each chapter. It's definitely a book you interact with, not just give a simple read through. In fact I'm throwing it back up on my To Read shelf, in an effort to carve out more time with it.

Honestly, this is well worth the read. Go buy a copy. I'd give you a free one, but I already distributed it.