You’re Going to Be Okay

You’re Going to Be Okay – Encouraging Truth Your Heart Needs to Hear, Especially on the Hard Days
Written by Holley Gerth
Published at Revell, a Baker Publishing Group division.

About the book

If your life isn't perfect . . .
If you've ever been disappointed . . .
If you feel stressed or tired . . .

This is for you.

You really are going to be okay. And it truly is possible to live with joy, resilience, and strength no matter what life brings. Yes, there will be hurt and hard times. But God wants to help you find ways to survive, grow stronger, and even thrive--no matter what happens.
With her trademark positive encouragement and probing questions for self-reflection, bestselling author Holley Gerth encourages you to spend less of your life stressing or regretting and more of your life truly living.

My Thoughts

The title itself reminded me something my husband and I used to say often in the early years of our marriage:

Everything is gonna be all right.

We still say it every once in a while as it has become one of our saying when things are tougher.  So the title attracted me to the book along with the fact that I had reviewed her two previous titles with Revell.

Once again Holley Gerth has found a way to help women to dig out the truth in their lives be writing a jewel of a book that will encourage the reader into seeking what is best for her.   Mind you, the author not only lift up the spirit of the reader but she also pushes you to take the time to think about the true words about yourself.   Here’s the thing – most women will eventually start believing the lies that the enemy wants them to hear.  But deep down, as a child of the Living God we don’t need to take these thoughts for reality because they are false.  Thoughts like “You never do anything right.” or “Nobody wants to spend time with you.”

These thoughts are not from God himself.  With the help of the guidance provided in this book, the reader will dig, search, and discover the truth about herself.   Throughout the book the author has included places for you to ponder and write down answers to specific questions like:

What was the situation you were in when you felt insecure?

What were you afraid would happen?

Why would it matter to you if that did happen?

The questions, if you take the time to answer, is the first step toward healing and learning to hear the truth about yourself.  Also included in this book, is a Go Deeper Guide which allow you as an individual or with a group of other women to study each chapter individually and dig deeper on your own journey.  The author is very encouraging through the pages of this book and only seek that everyone have healthy thoughts about themselves.

I think this is a fabulous book for all women in life as we have a tendency of believing the lies about ourselves.   This book will allow you to regret less and live truthfully.

You’re Going to Be Okay is available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, even amazon.ca and amazon.com

 

Kindle

Disclaimer: The book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. for review purposes. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.

Asia: It’s People and History

Asia: It’s People and History
Written by Bonnie Rose Hudson
Available at

About the book

Welcome to Asia: Its People and History!  Is the land of Asia a mystery to your kids?  Do they know who lives there?  Do they know how to pray for them?  Asia is home to more than fifty countries and territories and roughly three-fifths of the world’s population.  Could you use some help introducing your family to this vast land?  This sixteen-week course presents a brief picture of six nations.  It is by no means all encompassing.  Its purpose is to introduce your students to the people of Asia, share their stories, and spark curiosity.

I pray that the course does much more than that, however. I pray that through meeting just a few of our brothers and sisters who live in cities and villages with names that are hard to pronounce that your children feel more connected with those who are suffering for their faith in Christ. Through stories and activities, we’ll meet the people of Laos, Bangladesh, Nepal, China, Iran, and Vietnam. We’ll get to know the children of these lands and hear about their experiences. Most of all, we’ll pray for them and their families. Won’t you join us?

Who is Bonnie Rose Hudson?

Bonnie Rose Hudson works with both SchoolhouseTeachers.com and The Old Schoolhouse Magazine® as a curriculum creator and editorial assistant. Her heart’s desire is for every child to feel the love of God and know how special they are to Him. She would love for you to stop by and meet the star of her children’s series at Exploring with Jake , look through the 10/40 window of the world and join others in prayer at Looking Out the 10/40 Window, or stop by her author’s blog WriteBonnieRose.com for fun printables and discover how you can write for the homeschool market.

Our Thoughts

In the midst of the February blues, the Olympics, the running around to get 2nd and 3rd opinion for orthodontic treatment for my oldest son, we sat down numerous time in our living room to learn more about Laos in the pdf version of Asia: Its People and History.    The main reason why I decided to embark on this review team is that I knew it would introduce something different to our kids during what I consider the toughest month of the year when you homeschool and we have friends who are missionaries in a country in Asia – Thailand.  

The countries you will visit with this book are Laos, Bangladesh, Nepal, China, Iran, Vietnam. Each country is divided into 2-4 weeks of study which includes stories, discussion questions, history as well as fun activities.

So what do you know about Laos?   Well, I sure didn’t know much about that country so the kids and I embarked on a journey to discover more about it.  The first week, we learned about how Jesus came to Laos and how it impacted a specific village in one of the areas.   It was a moving story about how it is illegal to own a Bible in that country and how Jesus provided for a specific need for the main character.   The following week, you learn more about Laos itself and discover its history.   During the reading of that week, we got introduced at a map of the part of Asia where Laos is located.   Well, it turns out that it is one of the northern border of Thailand (the other one being Myanmar where our friends are the closest as they live near Chiang Mai).  Realizing that Laos was so close to Thailand was interesting.  The first part of that week, was a mini history lessons and the second part of the chapter was providing more information on what life as a Christian is in Laos.  At the end of the chapter, you are directed toward two downloadable free book from Kids of Courage in which you can learn more about the people of Laos: Bold Believers of the Hmong People and Bold Believers Among the Khmu of Southeast Asia.  There is also a crossword activity included for the kids to do.

During the third week, we read another story about a family of believers who were rejected by the villagers because of their faith.   The family was split in two because a brother at stayed in fear of standing up on his faith.  Though circumstances will reunite them in the end.  Reading this story, helped the kids and I realize the struggles that believers in many countries have to face on a daily basis.  Sometimes I think that we have it easy in North America and that it would be a great way to gleaned the true believers from the flaky ones if you see what I mean…  Again discussion questions are following this chapter in order to allow you and your kids to talk about what you have read.   Finally, this past week, we learned more about who lived in Laos by discover two of the hundred people groups that can be found there.   We also read some stories of Christians living in two provinces of Laos – Laos contains sixteen provinces.   And then at the end of that week, there is a printable puzzle that you can do with the kids.

During the weeks were we read and learned more about Laos, my daughter who is six years old and is a Sparkie at Awana was working on her Wing Runner Frequent Flyer Extra Credit Cards.  She had recently completed the Book Review verses and was finishing up the TakeOff section when she entered in the Passport section of the book.   This specific section introduce the importance of sharing the Gospel in other countries and how you need a passport to travel.  Anyhow, each pages of this book contains activities in the back of them – like coloring, find the image by following numbers and so on.   Well, she came to me one day last week all excited because at the back on the first thing she had to do in the Passport section there was a map of Asia and she learned fun facts about the country of Laos – People who live in Laos speak Lao and People eat a lot of rice in Laos.   She was trilled to show me the map and pointing at the country of Laos which was marked as well.  She decided that she would color the country just because we have learned more about it.     She was so proud to have Laos mentioned in her Awana book that it was simple priceless to see her excitement.  All I can say is thank you Bonnie for writing about Laos in this book.

My only disappointment is that there isn’t more countries of Asia included in this book.  But it’s a great introduction of Asia, the people living there and the history linked to the countries.   I would also have included some recipes in order to make the experience of visiting a country via this book more interesting and introduce the kids to different flavors from Asia.   On the other hand, I guess you could expand the exploration of a country on your own if you want to do that.

Needless to say, the kids are already looking forward to explore Bangladesh the next few weeks.   February being what it is I think this book is a great way to do something different while we wait for spring to come.   We enjoyed learning more about Laos and look forward to learn more about the other countries in this book in the weeks to come.

To make the study even more interesting, the author has put together a variety of bonus content linked to the countries found in the book.  You can find them on her website at Asia It’s People and History Bonus Content.

GREAT NEWS!

Two of my readers can get the DDF copy of the book

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Asia: It’s People and History is available on  The Schoolhouse Store, SmashWords as well as Amazon.ca and Amazon.com.

  

Pointing Fingers

Pointing Fingers
From Hasbro Canada

About the game

Who's done what? You'll find out in the hilarious game of Pointing Fingers! You'll also find out how well you know your family and friends in this fast-paced question-and-answer game. Each person reads a question from one of the cards, then everyone else writes down how often they've done it on their Truth Meters. Then you point out who you think has done it the most with your funny Foam Finger! If you're right, you score. Don't miss out on the big laughs and hilarious discoveries of the Pointing Fingers game!
Pointing Fingers and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro.

Game includes 6 Foam Fingers, 6 Truth Meters, 100 cards and instructions.  For 3 to 6 players.

My Thoughts

I didn’t know what to expect about this game…. The title itself kind of throw me off as we usually have the wrong impression when you point at someone right?   Well this game use  and extra wide finger in order to point at another player but it’s only to identify the one who does something the most.

Let me explain to you how the game works.  First you select a card and one person read a question out loud.   There are three different questions on the card so you need to pick one and that’s the one that people will answer.   For example, one card will say

Have you ever….

--> Talked your way out of trouble?

--> Sleepwalked?

--> Been chased by a wild animal?

Whichever question you have selected, the players will select their truth meter and picks how often they’ve done it.

Then, everyone put their green finger and have to point to who does it the most.   You score points if you are right.

As you can see it’s a simple game that could easily be used at a party, as a ice breaker or during a youth event.    And sometimes you can have surprises in the way your friends and/or family might answer some of these questions.   Hilarious moments are expected and be aware that the truth will come out whether you like it or not.

This kind of game would be definitively more fun with a bunch of people.  I would say that six people would make the game more interesting.   I would also recommend this game for get-together with family on special holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year.   

Pointing Fingers is available at your favourite game store, even amazon.ca and amazon.com.

   

Disclaimer: Thanks to Hasbro Canada for sending me the above mentioned product for review purposes . I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.