My 2019 Book goals

One of my goals for 2019 is to read more books.  I feel such joy when I read. Not only am I learning new things, or diving into a new story that unfolds in front of my eyes, I'm de-stressing. And this year, it's allllllll about de-stressing, simplifying, just getting rid of clutter in every area of my life. Reading takes me out of my own head, where thoughts and worries fly around like a swarm of bees. Reading puts me in a different world, or different mindset. And it's always a faithful, trusty friend. 

For 2019, my goal is 40 books. That's 3-4 books a month. OK, maybe that's too lofty of a goal, but we'll shoot for it anyway!  What that means for you is, more book reviews, or maybe just a list of books that I think you should give a try! If you're not a book type of person... well, I guess you could just skip right on over these posts. :) 

OK, today I have a couple of books that I read over the holidays. 

Redeeming How We Talk: Discover how communication fuels our growth, shapes out relationships, and changes our lives. by Ken Wytsma and A. J. Swoboda

 This book grabbed me from the first glance of the title.  Over the years, I'm slowly learning the weight of words, even your own internal dialogue.  Words are impactful.  They can lift someone up or bring them to their knees. And this book helps deal with that. Not to mention how it seems that everyone communicates electronically now. No one knows how to have a good conversation anymore! I love how the authors of this book dig out scripture to back up what they're saying: Words have power, and we need to re-learn how to use them to glorify God.  This is a book that I'll keep re-reading throughout the years. 

He is Enough, Living in the Fullness of Jesus by Asheritah Ciuciu

  Y'all, this book really hit home for me right now. There's always that little voice saying, "If this were this way, then I could do this..."  and it's simply not true! But how do we get out of that mindset? By focusing on Jesus. He is so much more than just "Enough."  This is a 6 week study on Colossians, and it focuses on Jesus, how sovereign He is. It's easy to forget that in the day to day garbage we all wade through. This study would be fantastic for anyone in any stage in life. I love how she has 2 paths, a snack on the go for when you have just a little bit of time, or a meaty option for when you can dig deep. The 6 weeks is another thing I like. Long enough to get you to re-train your brain, but short enough that it doesn't seem to require a huge chuck out of you. Love it! 

Praying God's Will for Your Life: A Prayerful Walk to Spiritual Well Being

By Stormie Omartian

Stormie Omartain is one of the few authors that I seek out regularly.  Her popular books- "The Power of a Praying..." can apply to anyone in any stage in life. This book is no different. More times than not, we all get to a point where we question our life path. And this book will teach you how to pray for God's will for your life, how to change your heart attitude, how to have an intimate relationship with God, solid foundation in God’s truth, and commitment to obedience.  If you're seeking answers, or feeling stuck in your walk with Christ, this book would be excellent for you! 

That's all for today! I'll have more books I've read lately in next week's post. What are you reading lately? Comment below! 

And I use Goodreads to keep up with my reviews, what I've read, what I want to read. You can find the link to my Goodreads profile at the top of the page- "Bookshelf". 

**I received these books complimentary from publishers, in exchange for my HONEST review. All opinions are my own.**

Praying the Promises

Book Description

Find security and hope in a broken world through the unshakable promises of God. Join bestselling author and beloved pastor Max Lucado as he leads you through 30 life-changing promises from God in Praying the Promises. You’ll experience a more intimate and effective prayer life and a deeper faith in the God who keeps every promise.

God makes His character clear throughout the Bible: He is a God who saves us, who is faithful, who sends His Comforter, and who has a good and holy purpose for our lives.

In short, He keeps His promises.

But what does that look like in a broken world? Surrounded by confusion, darkness, violence, and pain, where do we see the promises of God at work in our everyday lives?

Max Lucado invites you into a deeper understanding of the peace and security God offers His people in Praying the Promises, a beautiful book that tells stories of God’s faithfulness and offers tangible ways to implement faith into your own prayer life. Through 30 key Scripture verses, a look into the lives of biblical people of faith, reflections, and prayers, you will see a clearer picture of the promises of God and how He is the rock you can build your life upon.

Whether you are a lifelong believer or if faith is a brand-new adventure, Praying the Promises offers you access to the God who has kept His promises since the beginning of time and will continue to do so for eternity.

A great gift for all ages.

My Review: 

  Y'all, this book.... it is amazing! This is one of those books that I will keep year after year. I love how Max Lucado lays out the prayer topics in the table of contents. While he writes out the prayers word for word, he also gives you scripture to back it up and I love that! It gives you a glimpse of how he reads certain scripture and puts it into his prayer language. 

I would recommend this to everyone, but especially to new believers. 

*I received this book complimentary from Booklookbloggers.com in exchange for my HONEST opinion.

Biggest Sale of the Year!

Etsy Shop

Cyber sale week is here! This is the biggest sale of the year for my little Etsy Shop!

20% off when you spend at least $20! Valid Nov 20-Nov.25th. Use code: ETSYCYBER2018

If you've had your eye on something, now is the time! 

December 13th is the last day to order to get it by Christmas, so hurry! 

Etsy Shop

Pain takes a lot away from you. You fight it, constantly, every second of the day. Fight it from taking away your whole day; fight it from taking your mood; fight it from taking away your relationships, your personality, your sense of worth, your value to this world. 

You’re constantly fighting it from robbing you of everything you enjoy, from taking your mind, everything- it takes everything away from you.

 But praise Jesus that pain can’t take Him away from us. It can’t go near- can’t touch our faith, our God, our Savior. He is what you cling to when you feel exhausted, He will wipe away our tears. He becomes everything when we can’t fight any longer.

 Cling to Him, friends.

Help me send out armies

FindKimFlint.com

Y'all, this post is so hard to write.  A dear friend is missing his Mom. If you follow me on Facebook, you'll no doubt, recognize this flyer and or story.  I've been sharing like a mad woman, getting blocked by Facebook multiple times a day.  But this NEEDS to be in the light.  Louis D. Brandeis said, "Sunlight is the best disinfectant." Oh, how this is true. Evil cannot exist where the light, where God is.  So, let's keep this in the light, keep it in front of people's eyes, cover it with prayer.

I'm clinging to this song, knowing that each share, each prayer that people all over the US pray-- that the Alpha and Omega is sending out armies for Ms. Kim.

FindKimFlint.com

Please, keep this in the light.  Share any & every way you can. Keep up with it on the website--   FindKimFlint.com

Do you have a deadly friendship?

Mary DeMuth has blown me away, again.  My first encounter with her was when she spoke at my church. And then I bought her book- Jesus Everyday, which blew me away. I'm sure you've all heard the saying, "Pray to God like you're talking to a friend." I've always had an issue with that. I didn't know how, and if I should- He is the Almighty, does he really want me to gab on & on like I do with my friends? Yes, yes He does. In reading Jesus Everyday, I was able to experience how Mary prays, and became comfortable with the thought of that type of praying. I love it now!

So, today, Mary released The Seven Deadly Friendships- How to Heal When Painful Relationships Eat Away at Your Joy. And y'all, read this & you'll see why I say Mary blew me away, again! We all have the friendships where you give more than you get. Or the one where someone twists every single thing back to them so that they are the main attraction, always. Whatever your issues, Mary touches on a great many of them. And she speaks about how to handle them biblically. It doesn't have to be something we rehash over & over in our minds, bugging us to death. Through this book, I've been able to identify what is wrong in the friendship, and biblically process and deal with the relationship. Sometimes, it's best to roll up your sleeves and get through it, even when it's ugly, and sometimes it's just time to cut it out of your life. Mary walks readers through all of this in this wonderful book. By the time you're finished reading and dealing with your problem relationships, you walk away with  it off your shoulders, really being okay about whatever the outcome. I highly recommend this book to anyone!

Do you have a deadly friendship? How do you deal with them?

*I received this book free in exchange for my honest opinion.*

Scroll Free September

Day 1- it's 6:30 pm, and I am antsy. Who knew a day was THIS LONG?! I did break free, checking Instagram and Facebook for 20 minutes, to post that I wouldn't be posting until October. How ridiculous is that? Honestly, I rolled my eyes when our local news covered a story that more and more places were offering Social Media Addiction treatment... Y'all, I get it now. EYe-yah-yaeeee! If the Mr and I come out of this month alive, it's all God's doing! That or we will come out even more obsessed with Ginny due to us starring at her like she's our only source of entertainment...because she is! Did I mention that we're also limiting screen time to 1 hour or 30 minutes a day?! Computers- including emails, Pinterest, just looking things up like "What is vinegar made out of?" AND that also includes TV! Netflix was always playing & we were always saying "One more episode?" Completely enabling each other knowing the other would say yes. GEEZZZ, my great-grandparents would be completely embarrassed at this rotting of the brains!

Day 24- Welp, I have to be honest here, this is the longest month of my life. Couple of confessions- football games are NOT, I repeat, NOT part of Scroll Free September.  We watched my LSU Tigers, as well as Da Bears. With a game on Saturday and Sunday, that added about 7-8 hours of TV time to our weekend. Which still seems insane to say! That's a huge chunk of time to be glued to a TV! Before Scroll-Free September, we wouldn't have thought twice about it. So that's progress... right?

Books read- 3

Projects finished- 4

Rooms deep cleaned-6

  I asked my Mr. if he would continue to be Scroll-Free.  He said that he didn't miss Facebook, but I have a feeling the computer games he plays have been on his mind all month! We- or at least I- completed some projects that have been on my to-do list for months, some a year! I wanted to finish the second half of the month strong, knocking out projects left and right. But, like always, something slowed me down to a halt- enter- Upper Respiratory Infection. Yep, the germs done gone an caught meh! I was down for a solid week, on a z-pack and trying to come back to life! The Mr. gave me a pardon since I had cabin fever pretty bad, and said that if I had to do fluids & lots of rest, then Netflix was included in that. And y'all, it's startling how I feel after watching TV for hours everyday. I feel sluggish, my brain clogged with images and junk, altogether bogged down. Before, I wouldn't have a second thought about leaving the TV playing all day for background noise or watching. The difference is crazy!  

Since no Instagram, I don't feel dissatisfied with my lack of travel, with my body, with how my home isn't picture perfect 24/7. I feel CONTENT, even satisfied!

Having social media is a necessity when you have a little business like mine. Yet, I never realized how unhappy it was making me to be on social media daily! Beginning Oct. 1st, I believe I'll keep off of Netflix and social media as much as possible.  Perhaps I'll use one of the social media schedulers they have now to schedule out my posts for the week. Only checking them once a week. 

Scroll Free September countdownCountdown

Have you ever purposefully had screen free time? What are your tips?

A bundle SO big!

OK, I'm going to get real with y'all... I use to think all these marriage builders, marriage makeovers, etc. were kinda cheesy. And if I thought that, then my man-of-very-few-words husband would definitely think it! So, we never did them. And- like any marriage- events, work, health problems, get in the way. One day you wake up, not as close to your spouse as you use to or want to be.  How do you fix it? Well, if you're me, and a Research Master, you research it until it's dead, and more dead, like never even a chance of it pulling a zombie to come back and get ya, type of research dead. 

When I found The Dating Diva's website, my cheesy factor meter was tapping out. But- I wanted to feel that closeness with my Mr, so we gave a couple of things a shot. Like the 52 Dates photo album. And y'all, once you say- "Yes, it's cheesy, and yes, we have to do it, " it's pretty okay! The activities and dates we've tried put you in the mindset of focusing on each other, giving an opportunity for communication, and just let's you have fun with your spouse. When's the last time you had FUN? Silly, pointless, no to-do list kinda fun?  Yep, I thought so. It'd had been a while for us, too.

Fast forward to today, where I found out that The Dating Divas have pulled together this Marriage Bundle..... can't you hear them? the angels... HALLLLEEELLLUUUJAH! Printables, marriage courses, ebooks, the works! And just a little tip, when The Dating Divas put out a product/bundle launch, they normally do cheapest first and as the days tick by, price goes up! They also are only offering this bundle for a few days, so GOOOOOOOO!

How cool is this? So many things, all in one spot! Not to mention, one of my favorite blogger pals, Charlene, wrote something for this bundle! EK! So proud of her!

I'm not going to try to sell you on this, because that isn't what this blog is all about.  It's about being real, and truly wanting to share my life. Even all the stinky, cobweby parts. And it happens! Life happens! If you intentionally put your marriage & spouse first, then you're back on the right track, my friend.  This site has helped me & my Mr. connect better than we have in a year. 

If you give this a try, and I pray that you do, leave a comment below or email me, telling me how it goes!

Posts on this blog may contain affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I might get a tiny percentage of the purchase price, but it doesn't cost you a thing. All opinions are my own.