I love reading but I can’t say that there are too many books
that I would say “changed my life” but off the top of my head I can think of
three in recent years that changed my life.
The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein
https://www.amazon.com/Art-Racing-Rain-Novel/dp/0061537969/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500512657&sr=8-1&keywords=the+art+of+racing+in+the+rain+by+garth+stein
1000 gifts by Ann Voskamp
Present over Perfect by Shauna Niequiest
I love each book and their life changing ability. The Art of Racing in the Rain taught me about
perspective. When someone asks for a
book recommendation, this book is my “go to”.
I read it on my Kindle (but I gave my Kindle away) so I recently just
picked up another copy to read this summer in my time of rest. I read it in three days. I laughed, I cried,
and I will never look at chicken nuggets the same again.
1000 gifts taught me to find thankfulness in the mundane of
life. It taught me that thankfulness
precedes the miracle, and that in order to be open to God’s every day miracles,
we need to have a heart of thankfulness.
I find more to be thankful for than I ever knew possible. I have the
Audible, the book, the study. I didn’t
want to miss anything with this book. I
even gave it as Christmas presents and I am not sure anyone actually read it.
I made a joke in this new season of my life, I better get a
book because I have no idea how to rest.
Insert “Present over Perfect”.
This book has changed the way I think, the way I feel. While I like to
call this season “Rest”, I feel like it might be a time of big change, that the
lessons I’ve learned in the first half of my life will both make me happy and
to use that wisdom, and as I rest and really evaluate the good and the bad and
the really ugly, there will be things that I will hate to admit but know that
it is part of my story, and God will restore the ugliest parts of my life to
beautiful. This book as made me really
examine myself, my life, my motives. I’ve
asked myself tough questions and dug deep for real answers. It’s reminded me of what’s important and what’s
less important.
In this time of thinking and doing what I love (and what I
don’t), I’ve remembered how much I love writing and how when I slow down I can
actually hear the thoughts in my head.
It’s been so great for me, some things make it to the blog and some
things stay written in a notebook, I may or may not share at some point.
This time of rest has given me so many gifts (like 1000 of
them! HA!) and I thought I’d hate it, but once I gave up the struggle, I found
myself with a peace I’ve never had before.
What a blessing.
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