Hands down, October's one of my favorite months.
This month-in-review post is all about the daily joy and power and radiance of the written word. This wasn't planned, it's just the way it unfolded.
Where would we be without reading and writing and all the encouragement that can pour forth and spill out from wise words shared with kindness?
A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.
Proverbs 25:11
the bookbag
Two brand new releases have graced my night table in recent weeks ... Tessa Afshar's Bread of Angels, a fictionalized story of the biblical Lydia, and Jan Karon's latest novel, To Be Where You Are.
Tessa is a talented weaver of biblical stories and cultural details, and while the dialogue sometimes comes across as a bit stilted, her books never disappoint. I loved seeing Lydia's saga unfold as she courageously braved the challenges of patriarchal Roman culture and appreciated the imagined conversations with the Apostle Paul and friends when he was in Philippi {Acts 16}.
Set in the month of October, Jan's Mitford Series lives on with the next generation taking center stage. The adventures of veterinarian Dooley and artist Lace unfold, even as old favorite characters still leave you smiling and shaking your head. The author's trademark attention to detail make this charming, relaxing volume read like 'old home week.'
the journaling
'I'm asking for and agreeing to whatever is Your will. I have no easy answers, just some opinions. But I also know that Your ways are much higher than ours and those are the ways I want.
I want to stand awestruck at the way You open doors, the way You unfold the future ... I don't want to be the author or the designer, I want to be the listener, the observer, the one clapping on the sidelines. I want You to wield the glue, the gold, the hammer and nails, the chisel, the clay.
There's great relief in not thinking I must have all the answers, knowing You do ... and to be in the place to offer safety and quiet, listening and discernment. I take the pressure off myself to be the fixer-in-chief and hand it all over to you.
That's where I want to be ...'
the memorization
My husband and I are s l o w l y memorizing Psalm 103 together ... in the King James version no less. Looks like we're finishing up verse 4 and headed into 5. Sometimes we recite it together, other times one quietly prays it aloud in the morning when waking or whispers it late at night while the other is drifting off to sleep.
After 41 years, I do believe this is a first!
the kindness
I've often said that readers' comments are often better than the post itself. Like this one so laden with lovely grace from Barbara after reading the Unraveled guest post over at Lesley's place ...
'Isn't it hard when that last drop falls into your cup, breaks whatever surface tension you've maintained for who knows how long, and life spills out all over the place: disappointments, anger, anxieties, misunderstandings, and all those affronts we'd thought we'd forgiven - but obviously did not. It's a cleansing of sorts, not especially pleasant for those around us, but we're probably all better for it in the end. Love is acceptance and the good grace to understand what we need, when we need it. What gifts to receive. You've captured this very human time so well, reminding us of who we are and how we so often experience life in similar ways.'
the recommendations
Click right here {and be sure to bookmark!} for online reads I think are worthy of your time. Frequently updated, you never know what you're going to find. Promise.
This month's five star read? Debby Hudson's Alcohol and the Church.
the emotions
Coming soon ... a little series about emotional health. Springing forth from the infamous Unraveled saga, we'll be looking at how we can clearly identify and name our emotions. Figure out what they're trying to tell us and learn to express them well.
What do we need to do to keep them from defining who we are? And where's God in all this? Stuff like that.
I have no clear cut map of where we're going to go with this, but I do believe that the Lord has something for us. If there's some specific emotion / topic you want to see addressed, please let me know in the comments ... or grab my attention at lindastoll@juno.com. I'd love to go there with you.
And be sure you subscribe before you run off so you won't miss out on the discussion!
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sharing October with
