Forever Beloved

Faith, Love & Truth

The Lord’s Prayer {Book Review}

The Lord’s Prayer
Words of Hope and Happiness
By Rick Warren
About the book:

This iconic prayer is paired with flowing illustrations by award-winning artist Richard Jesse Watson and thoughtful insights by bestselling author Rick Warren, resulting in a book that rejuvenates the familiar prayer for a younger audience. Using poetic scripture from the King James Version, The Lord’s Prayer: Words of Hope and Happiness helps familiarize children with real biblical text while also presenting contemporary illustrations and insightful words that make this beautiful prayer come alive.

I’m always so, so excited to take new books into my Sunday School class.  The little ones get so excited when I pull a new book out of my bag!

I absolutely loved this book, and so did they!  On one page, there is a verse from the Lord’s Prayer featured. On the next page, a child friendly description of what that verse means.  It was a great way to break down The Lord’s Prayer and explain it to them in a way they would understand.

The illustrations are fabulous.  Richard Jesse Watson illustrated the book and let me tell you, they are beautiful. They made more relatable to kids.  The little guys loved looking at the pictures and pointing out something new they saw in each one.

This book is definitely one I would recommend.  It would be a great asset in teaching little ones to pray!  And would be a fabulous addition to any classroom.

This book was provided to me free of charge by Book Look in return for my honest review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Next Door As It Is In Heaven {Book Review}

Next Door As It Is In Heaven:
Living Out God’s Kingdom in Your Neighborhood
By Lance Ford + Brad Brisco
About the book:

There was a time when neighbors knew each other’s names, when small children and the old and infirm alike had more than their families looking out for them. There was a time when our neighborhoods were our closest communities.

No more. Neighborhoods have become the place where nobody knows your name. Into this neighborhood crisis the words of Jesus still ring true: Second only to the command to love God is the command to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

In Next Door as It Is in Heaven, Lance Ford and Brad Brisco offer first principles and best practices to make our neighborhoods into places where compassion and care are once again part of the culture, where good news is once again more than words, and where the love of God can be once again rooted and established.

I’m fortunate to have grown up in the neighborhood that I did. I knew the names of all my neighbors, spent hours playing in their yards, were scolded by them a time or two and we all genuinely knew they cared.

I owe a lot to my neighborhood. Not only did my neighbors watch out for my welfare and tell my parents when I was up to no good {even my bus driver, and close neighbor, would call my parents and tell them if I was misbehaving}, my neighborhood had a lot to do with forming my personal identity.

What an amazing way to grow up!

In fact, I loved it so much that I’ve never left. And I’m raising my littles in the exact same neighborhood.

Sadly, many people will never get to experience a neighborhood like mine. Between privacy fences and no trespassing signs, it doesn’t leave much room for community.

The premise for Next Door As It Is in Heaven is simple: we are disconnected in our modern age of so-called connectivity, yet being a good neighbor is at the heart of what it means to follow Jesus.  This book is all about empowering you to transform your neighborhood for the glory of God. It provides motivation and Biblical reasoning on the why’s and how to’s of hospitality. 
The most exciting section of the book for me was on hospitality, the importance of eating together and the value of third spaces. The authors write: “We wrongly assume that one of the greatest needs in our lives is safety. But what we need most is connection and acceptance from other human beings” (99). This connection can be found as we share food and time with our neighbors, and especially as we seek to meet the needs of those who can’t return the dinner invitation. Our neighborliness can actually make the gospel enticing to those who aren’t part of the family of God.
It comes down to this…show them Jesus through you.

This book is full of advice for overcoming fear, time management to create more time for neighboring, creating third places and cultivating bread communities.

Even if you’re an introvert, this book will inspire and encourage you to respond to your calling to be a messenger for Jesus.

I received a complimentary copy of the book for review purposes from Tyndale House.

To Joey, With Love {Movie Review + Giveaway}

Image result for to joey with love

To Joey, With Love 
By Rory Feek

About the movie:

Husband-and-wife singing duo Joey+Rory wanted more to life … so they chose less. In preparation for the birth of their child, the couple simplified their lives by putting their music career aside and staying at home, planting roots deep in the soil of their small farm, and the community they loved.

They believed God would give them a great story … and He did.

In select theaters Tuesday, September 20—for one special night only—experience the incredible true story of Joey and Rory Feek in the poignant new film TO JOEY, WITH LOVE. Intimately filmed by the couple over two and a half years, the movie documents the stirring journey of the 2010 Academy of Country Music Top New Vocal Duo.

TO JOEY, WITH LOVE takes moviegoers from the birth of their daughter Indiana, born with Down Syndrome, through Joey’s struggle with and ultimate surrender to cancer—all amidst their never-ending hope in something far greater. God gave Joey+Rory a love story for the ages, one that is sure to inspire hope and faith in all who experience it.


I’ve begun writing this blog post numerous times, each time having to stop because the tears were clouding my vision.  I’ve finally surrendered to them, and will just brush them away as they continue to fall.

In 2008 my husband and I were obsessed with a new country show on CMT called Can You Duet.  It was like the American Idol of country music.  And from the first episode, we were hooked.  I can remember the first time I saw the man in overalls and his beautiful wife, they were instantly my favorite.  Their harmonies, oh their sweet harmonies, were so beautiful I could listen to them all day.  We anxiously watched every episode.  Though they didn’t win and came in third place (which I thought was complete rubbish) they were still my favorite.  And I quickly bought their album when it was released.

Years later, I excitedly found them on TV once again.  The Joey + Rory Show on RFDTV was amazing, and I watched every episode I could find.  Around the same time, I stumbled on Rorys blog.  As a fellow blogger, I absolutely appreciated his desire to document their lives.

I read throughout Joeys pregnancy and excitedly awaited the announcement that their little one had arrived.  Sweet little Indiana, she was beautiful.  As equally beautiful was the love you could see in her parents eyes.  Joey and Rory were head-over-heels with little Indy, every blog post poured with their love for her.

Shortly thereafter came a blog post that shook everyone to their core.  Joey had cancer.

Many days I was glued to his blog, hungrily waiting for glimpses into their life while hoping against hope that Joey’s condition would improve.

It didn’t.

The world watched, through Rory’s blog posts, Indy grow bigger and sweeter. While she grew, Joey faded. And shortly after Indiana’s second birthday, Joey passed away.

Rory had taken countless hours of video starting when they decided to take a year off and focus on their life together, right up until her death. Occasionally, through tear-filled eyes, we would get to watch some of these videos on his blog. With the help of filmmakers he assembled this footage into a documentary. It was a labor of love, a gift to his late wife, and such an incredibe tribute to Joey.

I’m not sure I even know how to describe this movie aside than overflowing with love and life. It’s not a grief story, because it’s focused on their life. I would describe it as a beautiful love story. Not just their love story, but mainly focused on their mutual love for Jesus. But more than anything, I would say it’s a beautifully done tribute to a life well lived for Him.

Their faith was woven through every word, every action and every decision.  Joey knew that her fading health and eventual death would be the biggest testimony of her life.  With the world watching, she lived every second for Him!

And what I can say is that if you have the chance to see it, jump at that chance. Yes, you’ll cry. But you’ll laugh and you’ll come away appreciating life, love, and everything that goes into it.

And I am honored to have been given a copy to give away to one of my precious readers!! Yep, you read that right. Below you will find a giveaway box, just follow the simple instructions to be entered to win your very own DVD of To Joey, With Love. Y’all, you do NOT want to miss this chance!

Special thank you to Icon Media for providing me with a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review. My review is my own personal opinion.
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