Signs in Life: Finding Direction in Our Travels with God by Deanna Nowadnick

Genre: Christian, Inspirational
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:

SIGNS IN LIFE begins with a late night encounter with law enforcement. In the harsh glare of a flashlight, author DEANNA NOWADNICK learns the consequences of speeding through a stop sign. Other incidents follow. All are linked to the divine signs she's encountered in that bigger journey through life.

Join Deanna as she shares humorous anecdotes and inspirational lessons from her travels with God. See the signs in life. She might be speeding through a stop sign--yet again!--while you're carefully navigating a busy street, but together we're all part of a bigger journey, a greater purpose. We're all part of God's great story.

My Thoughts:

What an inspirational book.  I found myself reading along thinking, Yeah, I’ve missed that sign.  Deanna’s look at her life direction through the use of signs she’s missed in her life will have anyone reading her book wondering what signs they have missed.  I found myself identifying with her situations in so many ways.  I often find myself asking God to help me, only to say to him, “here let me show you how.”  At the end of each chapter she has a set of simple questions to ask yourself.  I can guarantee you that if you read this book there is no way you will not be changed. If forces you to take a good hard look at your life  and to look at those sign we often speed through trying to do things our way.  This is a book that I think will benefit anyone and one I highly recommend.

THE BEST PENCIL SHARPENER YOU WILL EVER USE

 Recently I was on Pinterest looking at classroom supplies when I came across the strangest looking pencil sharpener.  Fascinated by its looks and curious as to why it looked that way I clicked on the link for Classroom Friendly Supplies.  I watched a video that showed how to use the pencil sharpener.  That video explained why the pencil sharpener looked so strange. The front pulls out. There are two knobs on the top. When you squeeze the knobs together you open the first hole where you stick the pencil through. The pencil then goes into the hole in the sharpener. The first hole has tiny teeth that hold the pencil in place.  Why is this important? Simply because that leaves the pencil holding hand free.  You can place your free hand on top of the pencil sharpener or you can use the small bar that allows you to attach it to the edge of any surface. The magic happens when you sharpen the pencil. One thing I've always hated about electric pencil sharpeners is that students often stand there shoving the pencil in, removing it, looking at it, then  repeating that step over and over again.  With this pencil sharpener you begin to sharpen the pencil and watch the part you had pulled out in the front, slowly move in as the pencil sharpened.  You can't over-sharpen the pencil. That is where the magic comes in. The hand crank will begin to turn super easy when the pencil is sharpened enough.

My husband hates when I sit down to write because I interrupt him, (his desk is opposite mine), by constantly sharpening  my pencils with our electric sharpener. I can't write if the pencils are not real sharp. I prefer writing with pencils over pens. I just love the feel of the graphite grabbing the paper. I feel I have more control.  So, it wasn't enough for me to use this wonderful tool. I needed to test it out with some kids.  My grandson Jacob and granddaughter Haylee spent the night with us and I had Haylee try it out. She's going into fourth grade and has her own desk in her room. I was thinking this would be an awesome gift for her. She cranked away and then got her pencils out of her writing portfolio she keeps at my house and sharpened every single one.  Jacob wanted to try it. He is almost 5.  So, I demonstrated it for him and then told him what to do step by step.  He sharpened the rest of my pencils. It was easy and he thought it was fun.  My son came the next weekend and I showed it to him.  As a former draftsman he knows the importance of sharp pencils. He had so much fun, he called his wife in to see this wonder. He kept breaking pencil leads so he could sharpen them. Then he broke two more and had his wife sharpen  them. You know it is a cool item when your grown children tell you they want them for their children for Christmas.  I plan on spending quite a bit of money buying several of them this year. I will definitely need one in my house to replace the electric pencil sharpener I will place in my husbands work shed. I think they will make great gifts to the 3 new teachers in my department this year.

You have got to go to www.classroomfriendlysupplies.com and check them out.
Read through her site.  This pencil sharpener was created by a teacher. Watch the videos she has. Part of every sale goes to several different charities. Please check out that page as well. I guarantee you that you won't find a better pencil sharpener for your classroom or office.

Weed and Water: Bringing the Resources of God to a Teenager by Ian Dexter Palmer

Genre: Adult, Young Adult, Christian, Inspirational

Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:

A mysterious stranger helps a teenage boy called Ethan rescue his mentor, an elderly father-figure, from drowning when their canoe capsizes in a flooding river. A star athlete, Ethan later gets involved in unsafe sex, which leads to drugs, and gets him blackballed by jealous and gossiping team-mates. The boy is going down, and at times hates himself for it and for hurting his mom who is a caring, loving, and beautiful woman.

After another disastrous episode, where Ethan might have died, the river-stranger turns up again to confront him about his life choices. However, even after rehab, the boy’s condition is marked by a yo-yo attitude which causes massive emotional heartache for his mom.

The river-stranger, after sharing his own amazing history, suggests taking the fight to another level which draws on the resources of God. This begins a new and fascinating sequence of events, including a tornado, which get Ethan’s attention.

The book is a captivating story, packed with adventure in the desert Southwest and in the rivers and lakes of the Midwest USA. But it is also a goldmine of spiritual wisdom for teenagers. The mystery that permeates the story is compelling, and the thrilling ending may call for a tissue or two.

My Thoughts:

This is a book I definitely want to put on my shelves at school.  This book is as real as it gets for a fiction book.  Ethan is a young high teenager who is headed down the wrong path in life.  Lucky for him, his single parent mother and a good friend of the family’s they call Popper are there to help him.  I absolutely loved the way the author took real life events, added stories from the Bible and lessons from life in general and put it all together in this one book.  About the time I thought Ethan was cracking and was finally on the right track, something else would happen to him. I became distressed because I saw him harden his heart each time.  I know that God won’t win them all because we have free choice.  I saw how hard Satan was fighting to draw Ethan away from God.  He was willing to take Ethan’s life if that was the only way he could keep Ethan.  But God is victorious.  I love that this book can be enjoyed by Christian and Non-Christian alike. I found the advice offered by the different characters in the book could be applied to so many teens today.  Anyone who reads this book will find themselves in this book somewhere along the line.  I’m not sure there are enough stars in the heaven to give to this book.

About the Author

Ian Palmer lives near the mountains in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He has a PhD in physics from Adelaide University, Australia. By profession, he is a petroleum engineer, who consults all over the world. As a Christian, Ian has always been fascinated by the interface between faith and science. Of special interest to him are the powerful concepts of grace, forgiveness, and insights from God. In his local church, he has taught Sunday school classes on a wide range of inspirational but practical topics.

Ian’s six grandchildren are a source of joy when he plays tennis or basketball or goes skiing or hiking with them. His hobbies include hiking, dancing, tennis, eating out, and stimulating conversation. After a dinner of cheese enchiladas with green chiles, Ian can sometimes be found two-stepping in the local country-and-western dancehall.