Book Tag

Okay, I got tagged again. This time it is for The Book Game. Here is my list for books, reading and authors. I hope you enjoy!


1. Do you remember how you developed a love for reading?

I have loved reading for as long as I remember, and never went without reading as a child.

2. What are some books you read as a child?

All the Little House books, Little Women, Where the Red Fern Grows, The Outsiders, Christy, the Trixie Belden series, Anne of Green Gables – I could go on, but won’t.

3. What is your favorite genre?

Drama/suspense, Chick-Lit, historical, and some romance for fiction. Biographies, Christian Living and conservative political for non-fiction.

4. Do you have a favorite novel?

Only one?I have many “favorites” and it would be impossible to choose just one. Some would be Little Women, Where the Red Fern Grows, Message From ‘Nam, Redeeming Love, Zoya, Danger in the Shadows, Little House Series, Left Behind Series – again, I could go on…

5. Where do you usually read?

Easy chair or bedroom


6. When do you usually read?

At night, sometimes on the weekend

7. Do you usually have more than one book you are reading at a time?

Sometimes, though if I do, it’s different types of books, like fiction and non-fiction, Christian Living and political, etc.

8. Do you read nonfiction in a different way or place than you read fiction?

Not really, though occasionally I’ll start a non-fiction that doesn’t really hold my interest, so I have to force myself to finish it. Typically though, I really enjoy non-fiction.

9. Do you buy most of the books you read, or borrow them, or check them out of the library?

Buy

10. Do you keep most of the books you buy? If not, what do you do with them?

Yes, I’m a collector. It is rare that I part with a book, and I never loan them out. If I really want someone to read something I have, I’ll just buy them their own copy.

11. If you have children, what are some of the favorite books you have shared with them?

Reagan is really too young right now, but I’m really looking forward to it!

12. What are you reading now?

Flabbergasted and Me, My Country and My God

13. Do you keep a TBR (to be read) list?

Sort of mentally. Also, I tend to buy several books at once and read them one after another.

14. What’s next?

Not sure – it depends on what I grab.

15. What books would you like to reread?

Captivating

16. Who are your favorite authors?Some of them, in no particular order:

Dee Henderson, Ann Coulter, Max Lucado, Denise Hildreth, C.S. Lewis, T.D. Jakes, John Maxwell, Nicholas Sparks, Karen Kingsbury


Whew, that was hard! Okay, now I’m tagging Alison (Truthoughts) and Patty Wysong – tag Ladies, your it! :-)

Little One ~ Fiction Friday

Fiction Friday is hosted by Patty Wysong, at her blog Patterings. For more great fictional stories, by Patty and other awesome writers, or to submit your own Fiction Friday post, please click here on Patterings or click on the Fiction Friday button in the sidebar on the right.


My Dearest Little One,

If you’re getting this letter, it means I’m not coming home. I’ve asked your mommy to hold it for you until you are old enough to understand. We met once, though you don’t remember. That was the best day of my life. It’s one of the memories that helps me get through this awful time. To think that I won’t be there for you and watch you grow up breaks my heart, because I love you very much.

I know it will be difficult for you to understand why I had to leave you and your mommy. I didn’t want to, but I had to. It was my duty and my honor. You see, when you were born, our country was at war. And war is a terrible thing. But sometimes we have to go through something terrible for a greater good. It’s hard to explain what could seem to be more important than my family, but I’ll try.

Our country was built on the belief that all people should have the right to freedom in life. Many places in the world don’t have freedom. I had to go help another country try to gain their freedom, from awful men who ruled over them harshly. You see, it was important not only to them, but to us too. Those who hate freedom, hate America and everything it represents. They try to hurt our country and kill our citizens whenever they can. We couldn’t allow that to happen.

To give my life for the cause of freedom is a choice I’m honored to make. The end result is kind of like me giving my life so you can continue to live. There are worse things than dying for a good cause. Like living without honor and principles and courage.

It’s impossible to say everything I want to in a letter. How do I help you to grow up into an amazing young woman who will change the world? Unfortunately, most of that responsibility will rest on your mommy’s shoulders. But knowing her, I have no doubt that she will do a fantastic job.

In this life there are many kinds of people. There are givers and takers. Always be a giver. Give extravagantly of your time, love, friendship. Guard your heart from the takers. Stay close to Jesus, for He will always be near to you. Show kindness to others and always be courteous. Work hard and do well in school. Have goals for your life. Obey your mommy, she really does know what’s best for you and loves you very much. Walk in integrity and strength of character. Stand up for what is right. Love your country.

Have fun! Enjoy your life. Laugh a lot. It really does you good. Take time to watch the sun set and admire the beauty of God’s handiwork. Walk barefoot in the grass. Dance in the rain, as well as the sun. Admire the rainbow and remember God’s promise. Be aware of the wonder of nature. Listen to the sound of the ocean. Practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty.

Don’t fear the storms in life. They come and they go. Adversity helps us grow stronger, and the brightest of days often follow the darkest of nights. Dream big and pursue your passions. Don’t be afraid to fail, it is the only way to succeed. Be a leader of your peers, not a follower. Live your life on purpose.

One day you will meet someone very special and get married. Wait for him and keep yourself pure for your wedding night. It really will be worth it. Don’t give in to peer pressure. You are stronger than you know. Don’t settle for the frogs because you have a prince out there, who has been hand picked for you by God Himself.

Little One, knowing you has made me a better person and soldier, even if we only met once. I wish I could have come home to you. I wish I could have held you and your mommy in my arms one more time. You have every bit of my heart. Though I’m not with you in this life, I’ll be with you in eternity. One day we’ll meet face to face and we’ll never have to be apart again. I look forward to that day.

With all my love,
Your Daddy

***Author’s Note: This was a FaithWriters Challenge entry and it received a 3rd place ranking, moving me up from the intermediate level to the advanced level. It is submitted here today, to honor those who continue to fight and pay the ultimate price for the freedom we are celebrating today, the 4th of July. I hope you enjoy it and please take a moment to remember and say a prayer for all of our troops, especially those in harms way.

My First Thankful Thursday

The other night, I was lying awake in bed and thinking of all the different issues going on in my life. Normally, I take things pretty well, I emote, I deal and I move on. Right now though, it seems as if I’m getting hit from several directions, and so I found myself lying there stewing. It was during this time of stewing, that I had an epiphany of sorts. Yep, God spoke to my heart, right then and there. I understood that yes, things aren’t the easiest right now and Jeff and I are going through some stuff, but in actuality I am blessed in so many ways.

At that point, I started thinking about how I’m blessed. I looked over at my sleeping husband and realized what a huge blessing and gift he, and our marriage, is to me. And I decided it was time to start giving some thanks. So I found a new blog meme that I will be participating in. It is called Thankful Thursday. The purpose of this meme, is to remember to give thanks beyond Thanksgiving Day. I don’t know if I’ll participate every week, but I’m gonna try. I hope you enjoy my thankfulness and encourage you to pop over to the home of Thankful Thursday to read some more great thankful blogs.

So what am I thankful for? Well, I guess since it started with my wonderful hubby, I’ll give thanks for him and the fantastic marriage we have. He is my prince, my best friend and the love of my life. I know that I am a better person because he is in my life. He’s a great guy, a fantastic father and I admire him immensely.

We’ve been married for six years, and in all that time we’ve never had a serious fight. We’re keenly aware that the enemy likes nothing more than destroying families. We do disagree at times, but are committed to working it out. We respect each other, support each other and truly enjoy each other. I am so thankful, that during the times of our greatest adversities, we’ve drawn closer together (and to God), rather than drifting apart. Though we have faced some difficulties during our six years of marriage, it has been a great six years! And I am confident, that with love, respect and commitment (and maybe some help from God), this is just the beginning of a long, strong marriage. Lord, this is what I’m thankful for!

A Fruity Kind of Faithfulness

Having completed my brief visit with the Fruit of Goodness, I find that I am two-thirds of the way through my Fruit of the Spirit journey. The trip thus far has been delightful and I’m so glad I decided to take it. I’m not through yet though, and am pleased to move on to my next stop, which is at the Fruit of Faithfulness.

Faithfulness is simply the act of being faithful. But what is faithful? It is a characteristic that is to be admired. If we are known by our faithfulness, we are known to be loyal, constant, reliable, trustworthy, honest and true. And no, we are not to be considered Golden Retrievers because we carry these traits. (Though you gotta love them Golden’s!) Anyway, to be known as trustworthy, is something that all Christian’s should strive to be. Of course, Christians don’t have exclusive rights to this or any other characteristic, but as a Christian we should exemplify it because we whether we like it or not, we are modeling God to the world.

The thing that I love so much about faithfulness is that it is so closely tied to God. He is always faithful to us. His love is not conditional. He never leaves us or forsakes us. He always forgives us when we ask. When we feeling tossed about by the storms of life, he is always our life preserver. When we have God, we have peace. When we have God, we have hope. When we have God, we have someone on our side, always.

God is absolutely faithful. We are assured of this over and over in the Bible. In Psalm 86:15 it says, “But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” In Psalm 100:5 it says, “For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” And in Lamentations 3:22-23 it says, “The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.” These are such great and comforting promises that we can hold onto. And there’s many more too!

So if we are to be like God, and to grow in the characteristics of God, what then does faithfulness look like to us? It’s walking in integrity, giving our word and keeping it. It’s being loyal even when things get tough, or it’s not the easy thing to do. It’s being trustworthy, and giving no doubts to anyone about the kind of person we are. Being faithful is seeing a project of job through to completion. It’s holding on to our faith, even when times get tough.

The one person I think of most in regards to faithfulness, is my husband, Jeff. He is full of integrity, reliable as the rising and setting of the sun, unwavering in his beliefs and persistent in completing his tasks. And I admire him greatly. Because of him and the example he sets, I know I am a better person. There is a verse that I think fits him perfectly. It’s Proverbs 3:3-4, “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.”

God assures us, that if we are faithful with a little, we will be given a lot, and that is when we will hear “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” And because of His faithfulness, God also helps us resist the temptations of sin. I’ve heard it said that ‘cleanliness is next to Godliness.’ I believe though, that a more accurate statement would be, ‘faithfulness is next to Godliness!’ Wouldn’t you agree?

“This is a trustworthy saying: If we die with him, we will also live with him. If we endure hardship, we will reign with him. If we deny him, he will deny us. If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is.” ~ 2 Timothy 2:11-13


© 2008 Tracy Keck

The 4th of July ~ A Tuesday Top 10

Here it is Tuesday afternoon, and I wanted to take a little break from all I’m doing. So just for fun, I’ve decided to do my very own Tuesday Top Ten. In honor of the upcoming 4th of July holiday, here are my top 10 reasons to love this holiday. I hope you enjoy my list. Feel free to make your own list of 4th of July Top Ten and share them with your friends.


10) It’s the perfect day for hot dogs, hamburgers, pasta salad, watermelon and root beer floats.

9) I know the days are getting shorter, so it gets cooler quicker in the evenings.

8) I enjoy our annual tradition of watching “The Patriot” on DVD.

7) It’s the day we celebrate our nation’s birthday ~ 232 years old this year.

6) I love the patriotic music I hear.

5) Throughout the world, our military is celebrating, wherever they may be.

4) I love watching fireworks (though here in AZ, we watch them on TV, staying in the cool comfort of air conditioning).

3) It is another opportunity to honor our military, veterans and heroes.

2) It’s a time to reflect on and be thankful for the freedom we have in this country.

1) It is reminder that the freedom we have here in America, is merely a model of the freedom we have in the Kingdom of God.

A Fruity Kind of Goodness

Once again, I find it’s time to move on in my journey of discovering some fresh Fruit of the Spirit. Having enjoyed my time at the Fruit of Kindness, I know that the Fruit of Goodness awaits. Goodness, Mmm, it even sounds good!

When I think of the exhibition of the characteristic of goodness, one person in particular comes to mind. This person is one of my oldest and dearest friends, and is truly the embodiment of goodness. In all that she does, she tries to do good. When faced with choices in any given situation, there are a couple of acronyms that are sometimes used. For Christians, the acronym is WWJD, for What Would Jesus Do? For Republicans, the acronym is WWRD, for What Would Reagan Do? And for me, before I became a Christian it was WWLD, for What Would LaNae Do?

LaNae is one of those rare individuals who honestly walks what she talks, and she is who she is, whether she’s around others or alone. She doesn’t just quote the golden rule, she lives it. On the rare occasion she interacts with someone who isn’t very nice, or perhaps is just rude in general, she typically uses the “kill ‘em with kindness” approach. Now, before you think I’m idealizing her, I know she’s not perfect, and she’d be the first one to admit that. As with all good friends, boy could I tell stories! (Wink, wink, LaNae) But the point is, she always tries to do the right thing, shows kindness to everyone and walks in integrity. She is a genuinely good person and has always been both a true friend and a great influence to me.

Part of the reason that she is such a good person, is because though she’s not perfect, she looks to, and follows, someone who is perfect – God. He is our ultimate example of goodness. He loves us, even when we’re unlovable. He comforts us, when nothing else can. He forgives us, though we don’t deserve it. He is faithful to us, even when we aren’t faithful to Him.

God’s goodness is abounding for those who love and follow Him. Because of His goodness He blesses us, He provides for us, He heals us, He protects us and He leads us to the kind of life He has for us. There are many scriptures in the Bible that refer to the goodness of God. Psalm 31:19 says it this way, “How great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you. You lavish it on those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world.”

Even with the goodness of God, unfortunately, we still live in a fallen and broken world, and though we are His children, we still have stresses and storms in our lives that come upon us. Fortunately for us, we also still have His word to cling to. In Psalms 27:13 it says, “Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living.” Isn’t it wonderful that we have the assurance of God’s goodness, while we are still here in the land of the living?

Doing the right thing is not always the easy thing, but that is what leads us to goodness. When we come to God, through Jesus, He gives us clothes of salvation and a robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10), not because of anything we’ve done, but because of what Jesus did for us. Since we have a robe of righteousness, we are able to walk and grow in goodness by having integrity, virtue and sound morals. It is through the development of goodness, that we are able to choose to do what is right, or what is good. When we choose to walk in goodness, the goodness that God has shown and given us, we are then able to say no to gossip, slander, lying, stealing, cheating and all other types of sin. Saying no to sin may not give us an easy life, but it does help us to have a good life. So I guess you could say that goodness is very good!

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” ~ 2 Peter 1:3-4

© 2008 Tracy Keck