Sunday Salon: Week In Review (November 22 - 28)

This week

I finished 1 Chronicles in the ESV Study Bible.

I read 2 Chronicles 1-25 in the ESV Study Bible.

I read Isaiah 11-20 in the 1599 Geneva Bible.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday Salon: Week In Review (November 15-21)

This week

I finished 2 Kings in the ESV Study Bible.

I read 1 Chronicles 1-18 in the ESV Study Bible.

I read Isaiah 1-10 in the 1599 Geneva Bible.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Biblical Fiction Challenge 2010

The Twiga Blog is hosting the Biblical Fiction reading challenge for all of 2010. The goal is to read SIX books. (6 fiction books based on stories or characters from the Bible)

I don't know which six I'll be reading *for sure*. But this is what I'm considering:

Gods and Kings by Lynn Austin (#1 in Chronicles of the Kings)

Song of Redemption by Lynn Austin (#2 in Chronicles of the Kings)

The Strength of His Hands by Lynn Austin (#3 in Chronicles of the Kings)

Faith of My Fathers by Lynn Austin (#4 in the Chronicles of the Kings)

Among the Gods by Lynn Austin (#5 in the Chronicles of the Kings)

A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers (#1 in the Mark of the Lion)

An Echo in the Darkness by Francine Rivers (#2 in the Mark of the Lion)

As Sure As The Dawn by Francine Rivers (#3 in the Mark of the Lion)

The Priest by Francine Rivers (#1 in Sons of Encouragement)

The Warrior by Francine Rivers (#2 in Sons of Encouragement)

The Prince by Francine Rivers (#3 in Sons of Encouragement)

The Prophet by Francine Rivers (#4 in Sons of Encouragement)

The Scribe by Francine Rivers (#5 in Sons of Encouragement)

Unveiled by Francine Rivers (#1 in The Lineage of Grace Series)

Unashamed by Francine Rivers (#2 in The Lineage of Grace)

Unshaken by Francine Rivers (#3 in The Lineage of Grace)

Unspoken by Francine Rivers (#4 in The Lineage of Grace)

Unafraid by Francine Rivers (#5 in The Lineage of Grace)

The Gate of Heaven by Gilbert Morris (#3 in Lions of Judah Series)

Till Shiloh Comes by Gilbert Morris (#4 in the Lions of Judah)

By Way of the Wilderness by Gilbert Morris (#5 in the Lions of Judah)

Daughter of Deliverance by Gilbert Morris (#6 in the Lions of Judah)

Abigail by Jill Eileen Smith (#2 The Wives of King David)

It will depend on what I can find at my library for some of these. But I'll keep my eyes open for other titles/authors as well.

The six I read:

1. Abigail by Jill Eileen Smith

2. The Centurion's Wife. Davis Bunn. Janette Oke.

3. Ruth: Under the Wings of God. John Piper.

4. Simon's Crossing. Charles William Asher. Dennis Patrick Slattery.

5. Magdalene. Angela Hunt

6.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

2010 100+ Reading Challenge

J. Kaye is hosting the 100+ Reading Challenge again for 2010. Though I failed to meet that goal in 2009--well, unless something miraculous happens between now and New Year's Eve--I want to try to meet it in 2010.

1. The Crippled Lamb by Max Lucado

2. The Oak Inside the Acorn by Max Ludado

3. The Apothecary's Daughter by Julie Klassen

4. The Silent Governess by Julie Klassen

5. A Lady Like Sarah by Margaret Brownley

6. The Gospel in Genesis by Martyn Lloyd Jones

7. the Moment Between by Nicole Baart

8. A Small Child's Book of Prayers. Illustrated by Cyndy Szekeres

9. Sunday Is For God. By Michael McGowan.

10. Anything But Normal by Melody Carlson

11. Your God Is Too Small. By J.B. Phillips.

12. A Sweet and Bitter Providence: Sex, Race, and The Sovereignty of God. John Piper.

13. We're All In The Same Boat by Zachary Shapiro

14. Noah's Bark. Stephen Krensky.

15. Abigail by Jill Eileen Smith

16. Out with the In Crowd by Stephanie Morrill

17. The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

18. Somewhere to Belong by Judith Miller

19. The Secret Providence of God by John Calvin

20. Hearts Awakening by Delia Parr

21. The Centurion's Wife. Davis Bunn. Janette Oke.

22. A Distant Melody by Sarah Sundin.

23. The Jesus Storybook Bible: Deluxe Edition. Sally Lloyd-Jones.

24. Ruth: Under the Wings of God. John Piper.

25. Here Burns My Candle. Liz Curtis Higgs.

26. Heart of Stone. Jill Marie Landis

27. All Things Bright and Beautiful by Ashley Bryan

28. Love Finds You in Homestead, Iowa by Melanie Dobson

29. Be Still My Soul edited by Nancy Guthrie

30. God's Little Princess Devotional Bible by Sheila Walsh

31. As Young As We Feel by Melody Carlson

32. My First Read-Aloud Bible. Retold by Mary Batchelor & Penny Boshoff.

33. She Walks In Beauty by Siri Mitchell

34. Sixteen Brides by Stephanie Grace Whitson

35. Raised With Christ by Adrian Warnock

36. What Does God Want Of Us Anyway? by Mark Dever

37. Dig Deeper: Tools for Understanding God's Word. By Nigel Beynon and Andrew Sach.

38. Scandalous: The Cross and Resurrection of Jesus by D.A. Carson

39. The Bookends of the Christian Life. Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington. 2009. March 2009. Crossway Publishers. 160 pages.

40. Scarlet Letter. Nathaniel Hawthorne

41. Mighty Acts of God: A Family Bible Story Book. Written by Starr Meade.

42. Crossing Oceans by Gina Holmes.

43. Rise and Shine. Illustrated by Tim Warnes.

44. Jesus. Illustrated by Gennady Spirin.

45. Life, In Spite of Me: Extraordinary Hope After A Fatal Choice. Kristen Jane Anderson. Tricia Goyer.

46. Christian Encounters: Jane Austen. Peter Leithart.

47. The Last Christian. David Gregory.

48. A Matter of Character. Robin Lee Hatcher.

49. The Sword. Bryan M. Litfin

50. A Hopeful Heart. Kim Vogel Sawyer.

51. Purity: A Godly Woman's Adornment. Lydia Brownback.

52. Love Finds You in Homestead, Iowa by Lena Nelson Dooley

53. A Tailor Made Bride by Karen Witemeyer

54. Unburdened: The Secret to Letting God Carry The Things That Weigh You Down. Chris Tiegreen.

55. Maid to Match. Deeanne Gist.

56. What is the Gospel? by Greg Gilbert

57. Simon's Crossing. Charles William Asher. Dennis Patrick Slattery.

58. Magdalene. Angela Hunt

59. All God's Creatures. Karen Hill.

60. A Morning Like This by Deborah Bedford

61. When You Believe. Deborah Bedford

62. Perfectly Dateless: A Universally Misunderstood Novel. Kristin Billerbeck.

63. Touching the Clouds. Bonnie Leon.

64. The Sister Wife. Diane Noble

65. The Church History ABCs: Augustine and Twenty-Five Other Heroes of the Faith. Stephen J. Nichols

66. Courting Morrow Little by Laura Frantz

67. Fancy Pants. Cathy Marie Hake.

68. The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment. Tim Challies.

69. Masquerade by Nancy Moser.

70. George Whitefield: God's Anointed Servant in the Great Revival of the Eighteenth Century. Arnold A. Dallimore.

71. The Devil in Pew Number Seven: A True Story. Rebecca Nichols Alonzo with Bob DeMoss.

72. The Vigilante's Bride. Yvonne Harris.

73. Choosing to SEE: A Journey of Struggle and Hope. Mary Beth Chapman. With Ellen Vaughn.

74. Wildflowers of Terezin. Robert Elmer.

75. The Thorn. Beverly Lewis.

76. More Than Words by Judith Miller.

77. In Every Heartbeat. Kim Vogel Sawyer.

78. Love's First Bloom. Delia Parr.

79. A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman

80. A Girl Named Mister by Nikki Grimes

81. God's Mighty Acts in Creation by Starr Meade.

82. God's Mighty Acts in Salvation. Starr Meade. 

83. Dark Sons. Nikki Grimes. 

84. The Road to Paris. Nikki Grimes.

85. I Will Rejoice. Karma Wilson.

86. Mortimer's Christmas Manger. Karma Wilson.

87. Mortimer's First Garden. Karma Wilson

88. Embers of Love (Striking a Match #1) Tracie Peterson.

89. The Evangelicals: What They Believe, Where They Are, And Their Politics. Christopher Catherwood

90. While We're Far Apart. Lynn Austin.

91. Snow Day. Billy Coffey.

92. Cottonwood Whispers. Jennifer Erin Valent.

93. The First Christmas: A Changing-Picture Book. Illustrated by Sophy Williams

94. Fahrenheit 451. Ray Bradbury.

95. Story of Christmas. Vivian French.

96. We Believe in Christmas. Karen Kingsbury.

97. Silent Night: A Christmas Carol is Born. Maureen Brett Hooper.

98. Music From Our Lord's Holy Heaven. Gathered and Sung by Gloria Jean Pinkney.

99. A Baby Born in Bethlehem. Martha Whitmore Hickman.

100. This Is The Stable. Cynthia Cotten.
101. One Wintry Night. Ruth Bell Graham.
102. What Good is God? In Search of A Faith That Matters. Philip Yancey.

103.  The Mystery of the Holy Spirit by R.C. Sproul 

104. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
105. To Whom the Angel Spoke: A Story of the Christmas. Terry Kay.
106. Miracle of Christmas: God With Us. John MacArthur.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Book Review: Thirsty

Thirsty. Tracey Bateman. 2009. Waterbrook Press. 376 pages.

Thick bass blared through amped-up speakers and drew Markus from his slumber.

Meet Nina Parker. She'd be the first to admit her mistakes. Her life has been full of mistakes. And it's cost her. Her husband has divorced her. He has full custody of both of her children. Her daughter, Meg, doesn't want anything to do with her. She's been arrested several times. She doesn't have a job or a place to live. At the start, anyway. But Nina Parker is being given a second chance. She's moving in with her sister (who is a sheriff) and returning to her hometown of Abbey Hills, a small town in the Ozarks. She'll be waitressing at Barney's, the local diner. And for this first week back, she'll have her daughter, Meg, with her. Can this week start the two on a new path. Can this relationship begin to heal? Can they learn from each other and begin to understand one another?

Unfortunately, this week isn't going to be easy on either of them. In fact, they may not survive the week. You see, there's a murderer on the loose in Abbey Hills. And victims (both human and animal) are being discovered: their bodies drained of blood, their hearts cut out. Who is the murderer, the monster, in their midst?

Thirsty--in case you couldn't tell by the cover alone--is a vampire novel. A so-called Christian vampire novel. You can read an interview with Tracey Bateman here.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Book Review: Touched By A Vampire

Touched by a Vampire: Discovering the Hidden Messages in the Twilight Saga by Beth Felker Jones. 2009. Multnomah. 180 pages.

Have you read Twilight by Stephenie Meyer? Have you read all the Twilight books? (New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn) What did you think of them? Beth Felker offers a critical analysis of all four books in Touched By A Vampire. What messages (if any) are biblical? And which messages (if any) contradict christian values?

The purpose of the book isn't to stop people from reading the books. It isn't a strong impassioned plea to ban the books or any such nonsense. What Jones does is argue that the book has strengths and weaknesses. That the books may not be as harmless as they first appear. That there may just be messages about gender, romance, family, etc. that are at odds with the christian faith.

For example, one of the issues Jones addresses is that of romance and gender. Is Edward and Bella's love healthy? Is this a good relationship model? Should girls be encouraged to be more Bella-like? This is something that has bothered me about the books. How her whole entire world becomes centered on Edward. How he is her everything. How she is nothing without him. How lost she is in him. How much of a person is she? It's only, always, ever Edward.

Jones also mentions how she feels this relationship meets all the guidelines for an abusive one, an unhealthy one. And looking at her list of key signs of an abusive relationship--except for one or two--he does show all the signs. He's possessive and jealous. He does try to control what Bella does, who she sees, who she talks to, where she goes, etc. He does tend to isolate her from her family and friends. (Part of this is on Bella. Once Edward is in her life, she begins closing out everyone else.) He does constantly try to check up on her, wanting to know where she is every moment of the day. And both Bella and Edward become suicidal without each other. Overall, if you take away the fact that he's a vampire, if you were to look at him as being a guy minus all the super powers and minus the perfect oh-so-dreamy looks, he's weird and creepy. He sneaks into his girlfriend's house and watches her sleep.

The book is written to help readers think critically about the popular fiction they're reading.

Each chapter has discussion questions. And the book is designed to be used by groups. Again the goal isn't to stop readers from picking up Meyer's books. The goal seems to be to encourage them to think about what they're reading.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday Salon: Week In Review (November 8-14)

This week

I finished Job in the 1599 Geneva Bible.

I read 2 Kings 3-16 in the ESV Study Bible.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible