Little Bird

I have noticed over and over and over that it is impossible to truly understand the impact and challenges of living with food allergies unless you or a loved one are exposed to the struggle daily. When Bennett had his reaction last fall to the new nut butter we tried my anxiety went into overdrive mode and it is just coming down now  (mostly due to therapy). Even though his reactions in the fall ended with hives and did not affect his breathing at all, I have spent the past few months in a panic about Bennett and his allergies.  When I am at the children's museum, or the park, or church, and a child has a peanut butter sandwich, or peanuts are served, I want to explain to people how hard and stressful it is to live with a food allergy. If you haven't been exposed to food allergies, or lived in close proximity to people with food allergies, it's hard to understand how frightening it is to see a parent pull a peanut butter sandwich out of a lunch bag. And Bennett isn&#

Assimilate or Go Home: Notes from a Failed Missionary on Rediscovering Faith  by D. L. Mayfield is a well timed book that every evangelical Christian who is interested in reaching beyond the church should read. Mayfield grew up wanting to be a missionary so when she has the opportunity to use her hometown, Portland Oregon, as a missions ground she is excited. But as Mayfield lives and works with Somali refugees in Portland she realizes being a missionary and loving her neighbor is more difficult and complex than she expected. Mayfield's refreshingly honest stories about her struggles with helping others, particularly refugees, was enjoyable and written in a an easy to read style. I appreciated Mayfield's willingness to confront her failures and how she learned and grew from her missteps and mistakes. I recommend Assimilate or Go Home  for anyone who is seeking to learn how to help with the refugees who are pouring into American cities. As I read Mayfield's book I rea

Bekah Pogue's book  Choosing Real  is an invitation to learn how to cope and enjoy the journey when life doesn't go as planned. Pogue encourages readers to lean on God and let go of striving for perfection when life goes sideways. She uses her own life experiences, particularly the loss of her father, to explore what it means to truly 'enjoy the journey.' I appreciated Pogue's honesty and encouragement as she wrote about her experiences as a mother and learning how to be content with her place in life. There are a lot of books out on this topic right now, because our world has changed so dramatically, and we are living so much of our lives online, but Pogue does an excellent job of bringing every topic she explores back to God and how living closely with him can help us let go of the idolatry of striving and comparing. I enjoyed this book and I think you will too! Thanks to the Blythe Daniel Agency I have a copy to give away! Leave a comment and I'