Tag Archives: Review

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The Summit Contest Winner!

The SummitCongratulations to Jami who is the winner of our contest to give away a copy of Eric Alexander’s The Summit.

Jami will recieve a free copy of The Summit.  New Leaf Press will handle the mailing of the book after Jami completes an online form that I will send to her.

Congratulations, Jami!

Note: The winner was determined by using Random.org’s generator. I entered the total number of legitimate comments and it gave me a random number to determine the winner.

Looking for more info about The Summit?
Read my review of the book.
Check out Eric’s website at www.highersummits.com.

If you are interested in reading The Summit, you can purchase it at Amazon.com.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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The American Patriots’ Almanac – by William J. Bennett & John T.E. Cribb

The American Patriot's AlmanacOne of my favorite subjects is history, especially American history. I love learning about the people who were a part of the foundations of our nation, and the people who have made a difference throughout our nation’s history.

The American Patriot’s Almanac just made getting my history fix a whole lot easier. Composed of short, concise readings about significant events, known and unknown, in American history, the Almanac allows you to read a little piece of history each day. Of course, you could gorge yourself, and read it all at once, also.

This fascinating Almanac will make a great additional resource for our homeschool history classes. And the stories told aren’t found in most other history books, so our kids are pretty intrigued.

The American Patriot’s Almanac provides the opportunity to learn about the history, heroes, and achievements that compose our great nation.

I loved initially paging through the book, as well as a second, more in-depth, reading.

If you are a history buff, then this one is for you! Check it out today.

If you are interested in reading The American Patriot’s Almanac, you can purchase it at Amazon.com.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze blogger review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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A Blueprint For Personal Growth

Leaders are committed to continual growth. Without a consistent habit of learning, a leader cannot expect to stay in that position for very long. The simple truth is this: people unwilling to change will never reach their potential. And there is nothing more effective when it comes to reaching potential than a solid commitment to personal growth.

Blueprints

There are several things that you can do to help develop you into a person dedicated to personal growth. These are not hard and fast rules, but they are principles that you can use and apply to your specific life situation.

Make a choice to grow.
Leaders are committed to the continual process of self-improvement. Make the choice to grow. Studies indicate that an overwhelming majority of people never read another book once they have completed schooling, at whatever level. Continual growth doesn’t necessarily mean more school, it could come in the form of books. In order to improve yourself, you have to choose to grow.

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Book Review – Primal by Mark Batterson

PrimalI read Mark Batterson’s Primal while at CIY Wilderness last week. All I can say is “Wow!”

Primal was a very interesting read. The concept is simple: The Great Commandment tells us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. But how do we do that? What does that look like?

Batterson describes those four areas as developing a heart of compassion, a soul filled with wonder, a curious mind, and energetic strength.

Each of these four areas has a section of the book dedicated to its discussion. And it’s a very interesting discussion indeed. Batterson sheds light on each of these four areas in manners and ways I’ve never thought of before.

For example, he starts the discussion of heart with the little known medical fact that heart transplant recipients often experience new cravings and feelings. This is called cellular memory, and is commonplace in the field of cardiology, as well as other fields.

Interesting idea. We have been given a new heart. Our heart has been replaced with the heart of Christ. Should we not start loving our world and the people in it the same way that Christ does?

Batterson makes you think. And he does this in all four sections.

Primal is definitely worth reading.

If you are interested in reading Primal, A Quest For The Lost Soul Of Christianity by Mark Batterson, you can purchase it at Amazon in print or for Kindle.
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The Principle Of The Path by Andy Stanley – Extended Review Part 5

This is the final part of my series of reviews about Andy Stanley’s new book The Principle Of The Path. If you haven’t read the previous parts of this series, check them out here:

Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers Review
Extended Review – Part 1
Extended Review – Part 2 – The Heart Of The Matter
Extended Review – Part 3 – My Italian Job
Extended Review – Part 4 – The Story You Will Tell

In this last post, I will take a closer look at another one of the chapters that spoke to me the most.

The Principle Of The PathChapter 8: A Little Help From Our Friends

This chapter was perhaps the most inspiring (read: challenging) chapter in the book for me. This is the chapter that tells me to stop, look around, and get help.

Andy Stanley makes a very strong case here for the invaluable help from others for us to reach our desired destination. We can’t do it alone. We need the assistance of wise mentors; people who have been where we are, and have traveled further along the road to where we want to go.

The key to being successful isn’t to be smart, although that can help. Most successful people attribute their success to the collective wisdom and insight that they’ve received from others along the course of their path. Successful people are successful not because they know all of the answers. They are successful because they were willing to pay attention and apply the lessons learned from others.

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The Principle Of The Path by Andy Stanley – Extended Review Part 4

This is the next part of my series of reviews about Andy Stanley’s new book The Principle Of The Path. If you haven’t read the previous parts of this series, check them out here:

Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers Review
Extended Review – Part 1
Extended Review – Part 2 – The Heart Of The Matter
Extended Review – Part 3 – My Italian Job

In these next few posts, I will take a closer look at a few of the chapters that spoke to me the most.

The Principle Of The PathChapter 7: The Story You Will Tell

What legacy will I leave for my children and others to follow? The path I choose by the decisions I make will contribute much more than we realize to that legacy.

Life is full of decisions that must be made in emotionally charged environments. And emotionally charged environments make it almost impossible to gain the perspective we need to make the decisions that keep us on the best paths to lead us to where we want to go.

When we make decisions under the weight of an emotionally charged circumstance, we make decisions that are “me-centered” rather than God-centered. We simply don’t have the clarity to make the best decisions to keep us on the path.

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The Principle Of The Path by Andy Stanley – Extended Review Part 3

This is the next part of my series of reviews about Andy Stanley’s new book The Principle Of The Path. If you haven’t read the previous parts of this series, check them out here:

Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers Review
Extended Review – Part 1
Extended Review – Part 2 – The Heart Of The Matter

In these next few posts, I will take a closer look at a few of the chapters that spoke to me the most.

The Principle Of The PathChapter 6: My Italian Job

The challenging aspect about picking the right paths is that the choices are now. The outcomes are later. The decisions you make today have ramifications down the road.

The choices we make are like a rock thrown into a pond. Once the initial splash has happened, the pond changes. There are ripples. Those ripples keep going. And going. And going. Those ripples affect every part of that pond; some areas it affects right away, some areas it affects later.

Our choices in life make a splash. But that splash leaves ripples that have an effect much more far-reaching than we know at the time.

So how do we learn how to make those choices? Good intentions aren’t enough. Good information helps, but again, it’s not enough. So what else is there? What are we missing?