Book Reviews

Christian Book Review: Before Amen by Max Lucado

June 30, 2022 by Joi Leave a Comment

Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer (Amazon link)

One of my GREAT passions is books… in fact, it’d be safe to say I’m obsessed with them. I collect my favorite authors and genres and consider my book collections to be great treasures. Not on par with my family or cats, mind you… but I do cherish them a great deal.

Max Lucado is one of my favorite authors and one of the ones I collect. He’s a brilliant writer and his books are so inspiring, encouraging, informative, and uplifting that I read and reread them. One of the most recent books I added to my collection is pictured here, Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer and it is one of my all-time favorites.

While recently reading another Christian book review about yet another Max Lucado book, I read something I have often thought myself the past few years – Max Lucado, while always an extraordinary author, seems to be getting even better. He has always had a wonderful sense of humor but, somewhere along the way, he has gone from making me smile ear to ear to making me laugh out loud (something that always makes my cats stare – they’re used to most of my shenanigans but laughing at a book is where they draw the line).

Max Lucado’s humor, love for God, and unique way of reaching out to his readers come through every single word he writes. I love how informal his books always feel. They’re like sitting and talking to a fellow Christian about the wonders of God, the beauty of all He does for us, and the unmeasurable love He has for us.

In spite of us.

While there are many wonderful Christian authors, Max Lucado in unique (in my opinion) in the way he draws the reader IN and makes you feel like you’re part of the conversation. He doesn’t simply tell you how to enrich your Spiritual life, for example, he prods your brain and awakens your heart and, in essence, guides you to the answer yourself.

I also love how “fast” his books read. They’re written in deliciously short chapters, meaning you will always finish one before closing the book. No searching for where you left off with the bookmark that looks as bewildered as you! His books are always so concise – there’s never any extra chapters or wasted words.

To be honest, he has an absolute genius for this and, as an avid book reader, I wish more shared his gift!

Before Amen Review Continued Below…

Before Amen by Max Lucado

While I am far from perfect (in spite of what my cats and daughters may tell you), I managed to get this right: I spend a great, great deal of time in prayer. In fact, I keep a running conversation with Him like one I keep with my girls. My three daughters and I are always talking through DMs on Twitter. One of us will pop up and either pick up where we left off or we’ll start a whole new avenue of conversation or nonsense (we’re all outrageous when it comes to gifs and memes, so one never knows what we’ll get into!).

We love one another’s company and “visit” continually.

When I whispered a prayer to God a few months ago about a young man I saw in Starbucks, it occurred to me…. I keep a continual, “running” conversation going with God. Somewhere along the way, in my walk as a Christian, I allowed the words, “Pray continually” to become part of who I am and it’s one of the smartest things I’ve ever done.

As a Prayer Warrior, I often seek out books to encourage, inspire, and inform me about the WONDERFUL privilege of prayer. As soon as I saw that Max Lucado had a new book titled “Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer,” I ordered it immediately.

Book Description from Amazon:

We all pray. . . some. But wouldn’t we like to pray better? Stronger? With more fire, faith and fervency?

We aren’t the first to struggle with prayer. The first followers of Jesus needed prayer guidance too. In fact, prayer is the only tutorial they ever requested. In Before Amen, New York Times bestselling author Max Lucado helps readers discover the very heart of biblical prayer, offering hope for doubters and confidence for both prayer beginners and experts.

In this book, Max will help you:

Distill prayers in the Bible down to one pocket-sized prayer.
Remember that the Good Shepherd has authority over your life.
Learn that prayer is simply a heartfelt conversation between God and his child.

Don’t be bogged down by crafting elegant words or apologizing for incoherent sentences. Climb into God’s lap and tell him everything on your heart. Today is the day to let the conversation begin.

“If you’ve never read one of Max’s books, read this one. I promise, you will be inspired.” ~ George Strait

I hope you’ll grab a copy of Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer (Amazon link) right away, if not sooner. Like all of Max Lucado’s books, it is exceptional – in fact, it stands out as being one of my absolute favorites. The world needs more Christians on their knees in prayer than ever – people with great, great needs are all around us and they need God more than ever. I hope you’ll take the first step in making your prayer life the best it can be. ~ Joi (“Joy”)

The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson (One of my All-Time Favorite Books)

November 20, 2021 by Joi Leave a Comment

One of my favorite authors is Mark Batterson (link to his Amazon profile page where you can find all of his wonderful books.. you can also find them all on my bookshelves, but that’s another story). As a prayer warrior and as someone who proactively seeks to walk daily with God, his books have been absolutely invaluable to me, so it’s my honor to share book reviews of his extraordinary books with you, my extraordinary reader friends!

This particular book, The Circle Maker (Amazon link) was actually the first Mark Batterson book I ever read. Before I was even halfway through the book, I had already gone to Amazon to by my NEXT Mark Batterson book (as well as the prayer journal available for this one… Amazon link).

This fascinating book is full of inspiration and information (impossible to beat a book like that) and, best of all, it will help you take your prayer life to the next level. In a world where we see people with needs all around us, it has never in our lifetimes been more important to pray meaningful, effective, and life-changing prayers. Obviously, we have our own needs we want to be able to pray for effectively as well!

From the Back Cover of The Circle Maker:

From the Back Cover of The Circle Maker

If you aren’t familiar with Mark Batterson’s writing, you will not believe just how humorous and fun his writing is. It’s like sitting down for coffee with the funniest, most energetic, and optimistic friend in your life. This is the type of author you want to read and re-read because (like a favorite old movie) it seems to be EVEN better each time.

I hope you’ll grab a copy of this amazing book and begin your amazing, revived prayer journey right away. With Christmas right around the corner, it would also make an excellent Christmas gift for anyone in your life… the best kind of gift – the one that could benefit your loved one for their entire life.

Find The Circle Maker (Amazon link) on Amazon!

About the Author, Mark Batterson:

Mark Batterson is the lead pastor of National Community Church in Washington, DC. One church with multiple locations, NCC owns and operates Ebenezers Coffeehouse, the Miracle Theatre, and the DC Dream Center. NCC is currently developing a city block into the Capital Turnaround; the 100,000-square-foot space will include an event venue, a child development center, a mixed-use marketplace, and a coworking space. Mark holds a doctor of ministry degree from Regent University and is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty books including The Circle Maker, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day, Wild Goose Chase, Play the Man, Whisper, and recently released Win the Day. Mark and his wife, Lora, have three children and live on Capitol Hill.

One Can Make a Difference: How You Can BE the Change You Want to See in the World

October 30, 2021 by Joi 7 Comments

The review below is for one of the most inspiring and wonderful books I’ve read and reviewed over the years. I am editing it a bit and republishing it today. Why? Because, frankly, I believe we need bold, brazened, on-fire for the right reasons people more than ever before and if reading these stories lights a fire under even just one person, it will be more than worth it.

After all… well… One Can Make a Difference. ~ Joi (“Joy”)

I want to tell you about an inspiring book I know you’ll love as much as I do. It’s pictured on the right and linked to several times below. It may sound flowery (fortunately I love flowers, so that won’t slow me down) – but I believe this book will, in some way, touch every single one of my tomorrows. I’d love to see millions of tomorrows similarly touched, because I believe the result would be a better world for everyone and everything.

So, you find yourself on the fringe of a post telling you why you HAVE to read this book.

One Can Make a Difference: Original stories by the Dali Lama, Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Dennis Kucinch, Russel Simmons, Bridgitte Bardot, Martina … Dozens of Other Extraordinary Individuals is a remarkable book, filled with information, inspiration, and motivation. In its pages, you’ll read about real life heroes and heroines. People who weren’t born remarkable, but through determination and compassion did their part in changing the world.

Everyday people just like you and me who put their mind to doing extraordinary things.

A Few of the Stories That Touched Me the Most:

Carol Buckley cofounded The Elephant Sanctuary in 1995. The acres and acres of land in Tennessee are home to elephants who had been in circuses or zoos. Elephants.com has pictures of these beautiful elephants, as well as a web cam, a gift shop, opportunities for support, and addictively interesting stories about each of the elephants – with pictures to help you fall even more in love with each. In One Can Make a Difference, Carol Buckley tells about one of her elephants that loved to make Orange Juice. She also details the very special elephant that led to this amazing sanctuary.
Kevin Bacon tells how, at first, he didn’t know what to think about the game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. When he realized that it was, in fact, flattering to have a game named after you, he realized something else: With a heart full of genuine care for the world around him, he wanted very much to do his part to make a difference. Thanks to this game, he now had an “angle” or as he calls it a “brand,” to launch a charitable organization and website called Six Degrees.org. This very talented actor and family man details how this all came about.
Reverend Al Sharpton’s essay was also fascinating. I especially loved his words of motivation: The only person you ever have to conquer in life is not your enemy, it’s yourself. And once you conquer yourself, your ego, your vanity, your misplaced overestimation – once you conquer yourself, then you can fight for a higher purpose and conquer what it is you’re supposed to conquer and realize that’s what your purpose is.

We define success by what we have, not by what we did. But the only success in life is what you did. Because whatever you have, you could lose, and whatever you have, somebody else could have more. But nobody can take from you what you did. – Al Sharpton

Rebecca Hosking tells of the unbelievable impact plastic has on the environment. I read her essay twice to make sure I was getting the full impact. PlanetArk.com helps educate people about keeping our environment healthy, clean, beautiful and, frankly, about what we can to do keep from turning our earth into one big giant dump.
Oliver Stone’s essay was another one that was spellbinding. He, like every single essayist in the book, had me putting pen to paper – I put the words onto paper as they put the words in my heart. Oliver Stone tells how he has been led by ghosts, how they encourage him to make a difference. Interestingly enough, he was also one of the first people to sign a petition asking NASA to stop sending monkeys into space.
Petra Nemcova tells of her horrible ordeal after the tsunami struck Thailand (she lost the love of her life and suffered a broken pelvis). The experience made her better rather than bitter and a lot of LOVE, literally came from the devastation. She now focuses her life on helping children who have suffered loss and pain from hardships all over the world. She’s a classic example of being as beautiful inside as she is outside – and that’s saying something in her case!
Martina Navratilova talks about fair play, Russell Simmons talks about respect, and Willie Nelson addresses the subject of self-reliance.

There are far too many individuals and even more subjects to even think about covering in one post. I guarantee that they’ll be mentioned in future posts, however. Their stories have become a part of me. I’ve always fancied myself one of the overly zealous “We can change the world” crowd… but now? Ready to take the ills of the world with a toothbrush!

One Final Thought:

It’s wrong that, very often, people who are trying to make the world a better place are looked upon as eccentrics. Believing (rightfully so) that helpless animals shouldn’t be abused doesn’t make an individual crazy, it makes them compassionate. The author of the book, Ingrid E. Newkirk, is also the founder and president of PETA. So, she knows a thing or two about controversy.

I admit that when people are on the front lines doing battle for what they believe in, they sometimes seem to go “too far.” But I’d rather they go too far than to not go at all! The next time a PETA ad generates a snicker or two, challenge yourself to think about all of the animals that have been saved because of this organization…. of all the needless suffering and pain PETA has brought to an end. If your own pet were being abused, wouldn’t you want PETA to ride in to its rescue?

I certainly would!

This book is one of the best books you’ll ever read. So what are you waiting for?! Order it today and, within a week, you will have opened a whole new world! When you click through to the book on Amazon, you’ll find several options for buying the book. There are many available “used,” which is one of my favorite ways to buy books!

One Can Make a Difference: (Amazon link) Original stories by the Dali Lama, Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Dennis Kucinch, Russel Simmons, Bridgitte Bardot, Martina … Dozens of Other Extraordinary Individual

Strength for Life (Review of a Great Book!)

September 3, 2019 by Joi Leave a Comment

“Eventually, there comes a point in every life where you can no longer ignore the enormous and expanding gap between the life you could be living and the life you’ve settled for…. Every day of your life that you’re not actively engaged in staying fit, eating well, and strengthening your body the gap grows.” – Strength for Life, by Shawn Phillips, page 10

I recently finished reading Strength for Life and, quite frankly, I’m filled with two emotions:

I’m angry at myself. Why didn’t I start, in my 20’s, eating right and exercising every day. By now I could be Wonder Blogger! I’d never have to worry the trauma room (for my male readers, this would be the dressing room), I’d have all the energy I need for anything life throws me or for anything I want to throw it, and I’d be setting a golden opportunity for my three daughters.
I’m excited! It’s never to late to do what you should have done. There aren’t any NO U TURNS signs along life’s highway, so I can start today (actually the day I opened the book) getting my butt in shape – as well as the rest of me.

I knew the author, Shawn Phillips, and I would hit it off right from the start. You see, while I’m a typical girly girl, I’m also a huge sports fan. My favorite teams are the UK Wildcats, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Denver Broncos. At the end of chapter 1, Shawn quoted my all-time favorite QB, John Elway, and referred to him as “a friend.”

So, I settled back with the book to see what an author with impeccable taste had to say.

A Wake-Up Call

Do you realize how out of control obesity is in America? According to the National Center for Health Statistics, about 30 percent of U.S. adults 20 and older are obese and 65 percent are either overweight or obese. 65 percent!

Even more disturbing, to me, is the following statistic: In the kid’s group, one out of five ages 12 to 19 is now considered obese. That absolutely breaks my heart.

Not only does being overweight keep you from living the life you should be living, it’ll end your life much sooner than it should end. It’s not just about being able to keep up on the playground or tennis court, it’s not just about how those Levi’s look, and it’s not just about leaving the trauma room with your head high as opposed to buried in your hands – it’s about being around for your loved ones as long as you possibly can!

What Strength for Life Can Mean for You

I’m certain I’ve pointed out before how difficult it can be to write a book review. Especially when it’s for a book that you’re dying for your readers to read. On one hand, I want to tell you all that I learned from the book. For someone with the gift for gab like me, it’s particularly hard NOT to give everything away. The problem with that, of course, is that you’d have no reason to buy the book. Not a very fair thing to do to an author who put their heart and soul into the publication.

Let me try to Bullet Point the reasons you should read Strength For Life as soon as you possibly can (bullet points usually keep my gift… that would be the gift of gab… within reason):

The author, Shawn Phillips, is a fitness expert in every sense of the word. He’s been in the business for over 20 years and has helped not just thousands, but tens of thousands of people live better, healthier, and stronger lives.
Strength for Life includes an eating plan that gives you more energy than you’ll remember ever having. The nutrition tips are golden (I laughed out loud at his description of pop and will never look at one the same again!) He points out how berries will protect you from the damages of free radicals, why water is more important to drink than we even realize, why apples are the perfect fruit, and a lot more. You feel better AND look better when you eat the way you should – Strength for Life lays it all out for you and even gives sample daily meal plans. There are over 25 pages devoted entirely to educating the reader about nutrition. As a web publisher who spends 50 percent of her day reading about health, food, and nutrition, I was amazed at just how much I learned.
Illustrated, simple exercises make it easy to follow along. They’re accompanied by step by step instructions that are (Thank you, Shawn!) clear and precise. I hate it when an exercise book just shows a picture and tells you something like, Do 3 sets. 3 sets of what?! The exercises in Strength for Life are fun, highly doable, and effective. The entire workout plan can be done a little over 30 minutes. Personally, I like to do them while Andy Griffith’s on. I get started a little before the whistling starts, and I’m usually through by the time Andy has gotten Barney out of his recent scrape. Mayberry makes a perfect soundtrack and I know the shows by heart, so I don’t have to look up from my book or “focal point” to know what’s going on.
Get this – there’s a boot camp in this book! The book refers to it as Base Camp, but my body’s convinced it’s boot camp. And I love it. Section 2 is called “Base Camp: 12 Days That Will Recharge Your Body and Mind.” I’m certain that recharging your body and mind appeal to you as much as they do to me!
Goal setting and achieving exercises provide the motivation you need to make all of your fitness dreams come true.

What’s So Great About Shawn Phillips?!

Shawn Phillips is one of the most motivating and inspiring authors I’ve ever read (and you know me, I read – therefore I am). Even when the book is CLOSED and you’re making your food choices in the store or the kitchen, you feel like Shawn is there with you – saying, “I think there’s a better solution…here, let’s try this instead,” “Look at the ingredients – corn syrup, you know what that means..,” or “Are you completely out of your mind?! Put that back.”

You also feel like he’s there when you’re walking or exercising – coaching you and WILLING for you to make it. He’d actually make a wonderful trainer on a show like The Biggest Loser because, while he’s filled with information, he has an even more important trait: He honestly cares about the health, fitness, well-being, and happiness of his readers. You can tell it in his words. I read so much that authors can’t even begin to fool me – I know sincerity when I see it.

Now It’s Up to You

I strongly urge you to buy this book as soon as possible – the sooner, the better, because the minute you start reading is the minute you turn your life around. As a bonus, if you’re a parent like me, you begin setting a golden example to your children. They’ll even get on board with you! A few days ago, I asked my oldest daughter what sounded good for lunch. Instead of the typical Fries and a Burger answer, she said “a grilled chicken salad.” I couldn’t make it for her fast enough!

I hope that TODAY you’ll think about “the gap” that began this post. I hope you’ll get a good, clear picture of the life you could be living – the one you’d spell out for a genie. Then I hope you’ll realize that the first step you should take (to make your wishes come true) is to get a copy of Strength for Life as soon as you possibly can.

Nah, sooner.

As the greatest quarterback to ever play (I believe his name was John Elway) once said, “If you’re going to set a goal, aim high!”

Make each moment count double,

~ Joi

I Create My World: Perfect Book to Help Build a Child’s Confidence

August 5, 2019 by Joi 3 Comments

I’m in love with this little book – more to the point, I’m in love with the concept of providing children with positive affirmations, self confidence, and self worth. I Create My World is a wonderful book for children that I wish I could put in every child in the world’s precious little hands.

I don’t have to tell you how important self worth is, nor do I need to remind you how important it is to our happiness and even health to realize that we are…

important
special
wonderful
worthy of love, happiness, and all things good!

What I might need to remind a lot of people of is this: People need to be grounded in these truths very, very, very early in life. The first years of development are more important than most people realize. A lot of the beliefs, feelings, and thoughts we develop as very young children stay with us throughout our lives. The impressions we form of ourselves in the early years of life stay with us, for better or worse.

That’s why the thought of a loving adult sitting down with a child and reading a book like this, together, fills my heart with warm hope.

Picture it: A parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, older sibling, or other family member sitting with a precious child reading a bright, beautiful book that’s all bout THEM! Kids are their own favorite topic of conversation, after all – and this is a book reminding them.. reinforcing in them… that they are…

special
talented
loved
gifted
wonderful
the artist who’ll paint their life’s picture

I read to my daughters (Emily, Brittany, and Stephany) from the moment they were old enough to listen. The time spent together was sweeter than any cupcake could ever hope to be. I found that it was often the words shared between us… between pages.. that were the most powerful. The same would be true with this delightful and colorful book. Think of the wonderful opportunities you’d have to instill positive life affirmations! Having a book as a “tool” helps immensely. The author’s words can guide your words, while the picture holds the child’s attention.

I’m reminded almost daily just how strong children’s memories are. My daughters often bring up things that happened so long ago that my mind had nearly misplaced the entire scenario. They remember books we checked out at the library and read as soon as we got home, they remember lessons from our home school – all the way back to when they were 5 and 6. A few months ago, one of my girls brought up a story I’d made up when they were all younger than 8. They remembered the “moral” and even the illustrations I drew to go along with it!

What a child experiences early in life helps mold and form them into the person they’ll become. It’s as though we provide them (when they’re very small) with the colors they’ll use to paint their life’s picture.

I Create My World is a beautiful palette of colors you can use to your child’s advantage!

Click through any of the links or images to learn more.

~ Joi (“Joy”)