Rain, Rain, Go away!

So to combat the dreary, overcast, rainy day going on outside my patio door, I've decided to focus on a warmer, sunnier time. You know, just about six months ago? ;)

Ahhhh, good memories :) Sunshine, warm, beaches, walks outside....

C'mon SPRING! :) I'm so ready to be outside again!

Meghan

A New Chapter in Life, or Why I Decided to Rename My Blog

I started this blog as a way to capture some of my adventures at the Focus Leadership Institute out in Colorado and I am so glad I did. It's been a great outlet for writing but now, as I've entered a new chapter in life, I feel like my blog needs to change with me some. And one of the ways of doing that is by changing the name of my blog (if it's available, the URL will change to match). Koinonia is a great name, don't get me wrong, and I still want to drive to experience it in my life but I've also grown since then and much has happened. I figured the name of the blog should reflect that. :) Besides, I figured I should probably chose something that was in English instead of Greek, along with trying to match the URL to my blog's name.

So here are some of my ideas for a new name (all pending availability)...

*Looks, Books and Cooks (you know...photos, good reads and yummy food from our adventure)
*Our (More or Less) Epic Adventure
*The Middle Places
*The Clark Chronicle (what I named our Christmas letter this year)
*Dreams, Schemes and other Themes
*Small Apartment in the Medium Suburbs
*setoN s'nahgeM (Reflecting on my life...because hindsight is 20/20)
*My Front Porch Looking In (based on the country song by Lonestar)
*Faith for Wings ("...those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles...")
*My Grandmother's China (Because we all pass something on to those that come after us...)

I would love your input as I ponder this issue. Do you like any of the names above? Have any others to suggest that you think would be better? I'm all ears! :)

Soli Deo Gloria,
Meghan

Hope

"The hope of the righteous brings joy..." ~Proverbs 10:28a (English Standard Version)

"Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." ~ 1 Corinthians 13:7 (English Standard Version)

"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." ~Romans 5:3-5 (English Standard Version)

"For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience." ~Romans 8:24-25 (English Standard Version)

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) has, of course, multiple definitions for hope (noun, verb, phrases, etc.), but the main definitions are similar and center around this: "Expectation of something desired; desire combined with expectation". Today is a day filled with lots of hope and prayers. And, yeah, that last verse about waiting with patience? Definitely not my strong suit! I cling to the God of Hope as I lay my requests, expectations, desires and anticipation in His all-powerful hands.

Whatever you are hoping for today, I pray that you will lay it at the feet of our Eternal Hope in expectation of His gracious and mighty plan. Then let His joy and peace flood you with comfort and contentedness, whatever the course ahead.

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." ~Romans 15:13 (English Standard Version)

Soli Deo Gloria,
Meghan

New book! New book! :D

I must admit...I LOVE BookSneeze! :) You may even be sick of me saying it so much on this blog. But seriously, I don't think you can beat getting books for free just for giving your honest opinion of them. I have enjoyed all the materials I've received from them and eagerly check each week to see what new materials they post. If you have a blog and would love to get free books, please go sign up at www.BookSneeze.com! I am loving the whole setup...which, of course, means I have selected my next book!

Drum roll, please!!

"The Band That Played On: The Extraordinary Story of the 8 Musicians Who Went Down with the Titanic" 

by Steve Turner

For anyone who didn't know me when I was younger, I'm a huge fan of most things Titanic. I read fiction novels, non-fiction, did reports on it for school. The only reason I went to see the movie was because of the historical events surrounding the Titanic itself, not for some actor. :p So I was excited to see this book posted on BookSneeze. It contains a biography of each of the eight musicians that made up the band on the Titanic. Below you can view a trailer of the book from YouTube. I'm looking forward to reading this and sharing my review with you in the future. Enjoy and Happy Reading to you all!

Soli Deo Gloria,
Meghan

BookSneeze.com Valentine's Review: Couples Who Pray

This book is part of a Valentine's promotion by BookSneeze.com.
Standard Disclaimer: I'm a book review blogger with Booksneeze, an affiliate of Thomas Nelson. This book was a complimentary gift in exchange for an honest review. If you'd like to get free books in exchange for an honest review on your blog and a major retailer's website, check out www.booksneeze.com.

*****

The most intimate act between a man and a woman is praying together and the benefits are numerous. "Couples Who Pray" by S'Quire Rushnell and Louise DuArt is a quick, very readable book with a long-lasting impact. Using not only the results of studies, but also test couples who committed to pray together for at least five minutes every day for 40 days, the authors walk through what this time of prayer can do for your marriage.

I really enjoyed this book and have already passed it along to my husband for him to read. It is not a theological tome or an extensive scientific study on prayer, marriage or the benefits of such so please do not expect it to be such. What it is is a challenge to set aside time to connect with God and your spouse through prayer. It includes numerous testimonials from couples that took the 40-day challenge to set aside at least 5 minutes to pray aloud with their spouses along with instructions on how to do the 40-day challenge yourself. After reading the book, I look forward to starting our own 40 days when my husband is done reading it. The book really made me think about how this time of prayer was not just beneficial to my own spiritual walk with God but also to my relationship and communication with my husband. I learn so much more about him when we pray together and I look forward to connecting with him even more.

I would definitely recommend this book to all my married friends. It's a light read but very practical!