The $25 Giveaway & The Book Club

Dear Friends ~

I'm kicking off my 11th year of blogging by giving away a $25 Barnes & Noble Gift Card to one book-lovin' reader!

I'm so excited about what's coming up as we continue to do community together ... a deeper emphasis on emotional health and spiritual growth with plenty of opportunity for give and take as you share your stories and wisdom in the follow-up conversations.

A 6 session weekend book club right here beginning February 2nd.

And yep, there'll still be those monthly wrap-ups, random 'aha' moments, worth-your-time resources, book reviews, fun giveaways, and maybe a series or two.  They're not going anywhere.

Read on.

If you were being hustled off to a desert island and you could only bring your Bible and one other book, what game-changer would you toss in your bag?

Don't run off to check your shelves, dig out your book journal, or spend alot of time racking your memory.  Simply sit quietly for a minute and let God bring to mind that one special book that turned your life upside down and inside out.

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For me?

Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God's Transforming Presence 
- Ruth Haley Barton
'Truth be told, it was desperation that first propelled me into solitude and silence. I wish I could say that it was for loftier reasons, pure desire for God or some such thing. But in the beginning it was desperation, plain and simple. There were things that needed fixing in my life, longings that were painfully unmet, and I had tried everything I knew to fix what was broken and to fill what was lacking, but to no avail' {page 25}.

This is the book that transformed my oft' boring quiet time, my lackadaisical attitude toward intimacy with God, my uninformed thoughts about what meditating on His Word could truly look like.  This is where 'be still and know that I am God' began to take on a whole new meaning.

Ruth's story grabbed me {oohh, you, too?} and inspired by her own spiritual journey, I began to invite God to shake me free from the tired oughts-and-shoulds of my uninspired devotional life.  And in the process, I fell head over heels into Jesus' waiting arms.  He, the Lover of my weary soul, had been patiently beckoning me closer all along ... and I finally invested in saying, 'yes.'

Thirteen years ago, this book spun my spiritual life around and impacted me in all the broken, untended, lazy places that needed God's powerful touch.  I'm in the process of reading it for the third time and I want to share this little treasure with you.

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We're going to be talking about Invitation to Solitude and Silence for 6 weeks right here beginning the weekend of February 2nd.  Mark your calendar and grab your copy of the hardcover here or your Kindle edition there.  I can't wait to sit around our virtual table, throw out a few conversation starters, and let you do your thing in the comment section.

We'll be chatting about our obsession with wordiness.   Being dangerously tired.  Our odd resistance to silence.  What rest for body, mind, soul could look like for where you find yourself.

Don't want to read the book or want to simply sit quietly with us?  No problem!  Please drop in any time to see what's going on.

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To enter the giveaway of a $25 Barnes & Noble Gift Card, leave a comment on this post by Thursday, January 18th at 9 am {eastern, US only please}.  Share your favorite book and why you'd take it to that imaginary island ... and if you've talked about it on your blog, please include the link to that post so we can all check it out!

Or simply email your comment to lindastoll@juno.com and I'll post it for you.  Email readers, click right here to come on over and join the party!

Hint to the wanna-be-winner:  Be sure your name is somehow linked to an email address that I can hunt down easily, ok?

I'm chomping at the bit to hear all about your absolute favorite pageturner.  And if you're IN on the book club, please let me know!

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The Winner * The Book Club * The Bouquet  >>

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spending time with

Anne & Holley