Your Money God's Way by Amie Streater

I am a huge fan of Dave Ramsey and his Financial Peace method, so I was equally excited to read another Christian author's veiwpoint on finding the right way to manage money. Amie Streater gets right to work dispelling what she calls the "7 money myths that keep Christians broke". Using biblical principles and good common sense, Streater shows how to get rid of debt and live the life free of financial worry we all dream of. Weaving in tales of individual financial problems (including her own), she shows how each money myth can keep people in debt, and then shows how biblical truths dispel those myths.

I really enjoyed the method Streater employed in this book. She put together an incredibly strong guide to freedom from financial worry, starting with her own story. I also like how she goes through all of the money myths first, then lays out a plan. This enables you to see where the root (or roots) of your problem comes from, then she offers different plans for different levels of issues. I highly recommend this book for anyone, whether you are currently experiencing money issues or not. Two thumbs up.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 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.”

Book Lover

I found out a great thing from my supervisor the other day: there are ways to get free copies of books. Since I am an avid reader of anything I can get my hands on, especially books I don't have to pay for (i.e. library, copies my family has, etc.), and I have a blog (fledgling at this point, but a blog none the less), I decided I would apply and see if the companies thought I was worthy of a chance. Apparently, they've decided I am.

I am officially a book reviewer (in blog at least) for Tyndale House Publishers and BookSneeze.com. I have two books requested, and am anxiously awaiting their arrival. I know, I know, how am I going to fit in reading and reviewing books with everything else I do? Well, I fit in reading all the time, and since I'm trying to write at least fifteen minutes a day now, writing a book review should fit in nicely. Plus, it'll give me an occasional blog post that I don't have to come up with a subject all on my own. Subjects are sometimes the hardest part for me to come up with.

So, hopefully within the next few days there will be a book (or two) arriving at my door. I can't wait! Both of the books I've requested look excellent, and I'm excited that I can then share my impression of the books with someone else. It kind of makes me feel like I'm finally going to be on Reading Rainbow. Maybe I'll have to end my reviews with, "but don't take my word for it..."

Easier Said than Done

I will gladly admit that I completely underestimated the difficulty I would have in making myself write for fifteen minutes a day. First, I began to doubt my skills. In fact, I almost decided to give up before I started. I thought that there was no way anyone would ever want to read my writing, because I'm just not that witty. I'm not that good, I don't have that many aha moments, and my life is boring.


Then I realized that it doesn't have to be about my life. It doesn't have to be a step-by-step account of my day, or inciteful all the time, or funny all the time. It can just be writing. Making the effort is the point right now. So, I sat down last night with a notebook and pen and just wrote whatever I thought of regarding a particular childhood memory. Granted, it was in an effort to get a jump on a poem I should have written a few days ago for class, but it was a good fifteen minutes of just writing. Tonight I've spent an hour and a half turning those notes into a relatively good first draft of a poem. Tomorrow I'll tweak it some more before submitting it for class review. I know it's not the best thing ever written, but my classmates and professor will help me find how to fix it, and I have to remember that it is the first time I've written poetry in years. I'm more the short-story and blog type writer, so I'll have to go back through it to make sure what I've got is an actual poem and not a story, but that's what waking up early tomorrow is for. Besides, this whole class/process is about improving my overall quality of writing, so exercising something that's not comfortable for me right now is a good thing.


It will get easier, and it will get better.

My Experiment

I'm currently taking a creative writing class. As an accountant, my days are entirely number driven. I decided I needed a creative outlet for my dramatic side. My hope is that it will allow me to become a better writer, not just for myself, but for whatever purpose God mave have for me. Since my employer pays for classes, I figured I'd take it for fun. Class just started this week, and we'll be doing poetry first. I haven't written poetry in years.

I like to blame my lack of writing on being busy. In all actuality, it's a lack of scheduling on my part. So, in the likes of Julie & Julia, I've decided to start an experiment. I'm going to write for at least fifteen minutes, five times a week. Why not every day? Well, I have to allow myself some time off for days when we've got family stuff going on or I just don't feel good.

Will everything I write be brilliant? Of course not. Will it improve as I continue to write? I certainly hope so. That was kind of the point of this blog to begin with: giving me a way to write about my daily endeavor to live as God wants me to live. Now we'll see if I can't put my thoughts on life in general down in a more effective, better written way.

Here's hoping!

Saying Goodbye

When you marry, you take on another branch of family. Maybe this isn't true for some people, but it is especially true in my case. I love my husband and therefore it only made sense that I would love his people too. He comes from a blended family: Dad had two children from his first marriage, Mom had two children from her first marriage (including dear hubby), and they had another child after they were married. A literal yours, mine and ours. Add in spouses, girlfriends and kids, and you've got your own family reunion started with just one branch of his family. Our future generations will need nametags to determine who belongs to whom. (I say that from experiences at my dad's family events: seven children on a grandparent level equals tons of relatives). DH has been really good about taking on my family too, so I guess that really made it easier for me to just accept that his family IS my family now too.

With the combined forces of our families (and I mean that in a completely good way), things are bound to happen that make you happy, make you laugh, or even make you sad. One of those things happens tonight. We'll be in attendance at a commissioning service for his older brother and family tonight. They leave later this month to go overseas and do mission work. While I praise God that they have answered His call to go do His work, I am saddened that it will take them away for a total of three years. Granted, it is only three years, but the kids are only 5 (almost) and a little over a year. It'll be weird to see the girls again after they've had three years of time to grow up, and sad that we won't get to see them as they do. It'll be sad that they won't be just 45 minutes away, even if we didn't get together that often to begin with. Holidays that once saw them there by default, will now seem to have an empty spot, because they won't be there to fill it.

I know that God has His hand on them during this transition. I know that He is taking care of them. I know that it isn't my job to worry or be sad, but to praise Him for using them to fulfill His mission. So tonight, as we say goodbye, that's what I'll be doing. Praising God for allowing my people to do His work in such a big way.

God blesses us all...