Book Review-Biblical Minimalism By Cheryl E. Smith and Giveaway

 Today I'm pleased to post my review of Biblical Minimalism. I was so happy to be a part of Cheryl's review team and receive a copy of her book.

In her book Cheryl shares about testimony of how the Lord led her and her family to sell their home, letting go of unneeded physical things and move into a rental property. 

She talks about the difficulty of letting go of things and the Lord asking her " Do you love this more than Me?"

Her experience with moving and trying to hang on to not just physical items but also relationships that were damaging emotionally and spiritually. 

This book really made me think about our experience moving and trying to figure out what to keep and what to let go. That's the topic for a separate post.

There is so much meat in this book with lots of scriptures that I think would be good for memorizing and I highly recommend Biblical Minimalism. I'm planning on reading it again.

Now for the giveaway. It's simple if you would like to win a copy of this awesome book, just leave a comment below. The winner will be announced next Tuesday. Due to shipping costs giveaway is only open to U.S. residents.

"Cheryl Smith is the author of the book “Biblical Minimalism,” the story of her family’s journey from a life of abundance to a more abundant life. She is the author of the blogs Biblical Minimalism, where she writes about minimalism from a Biblical perspective, and Homespun Devotions, where she writes devotionals and conducts “Inner Views.” She loves to spend time with her husband and son in the mountains, sing and play Bluegrass music, and write."

Remember to Still Stay Safe

Some of you are in states that are coming out of lockdown but please remember to practice your state's social distancing rules and wear masks in public.   I know people are upset about having to wear a mask in stores that require it. I noticed here in Arizona that COVID-19 cases have risen since our  stay at home order was lifted and many people are not practicing social distancing. I noticed several other states have the same problem.

So as Sgt. Phil  Esterhaus on the tv show Hill Street Blues used to say "Let's be careful out there." You don't want to get this this terrible illness.

All Lives Matter

Black Lives Matter

White Lives Matter

Brown Lives Matter

Blue Lives Matter

Spider Lives Matter- Uh scratch that one!

Asian Lives Matter

Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red, brown, yellow, black and white, they are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.

Everything is Beautiful by Ray Stevens

https://youtu.be/0a45z_HG3WU

Dr. King Is Turning Over in His Grave

Dr. Martin Luther King would never have approved of the violent and looting protests over George Floyd's death. Never! Yes people have a right to be angry. People have a right to peaceful protests but no one and I mean no one has a right to throw a temper tantrum ( yes I called it a temper tantrum!) and damage private or property and loot stores! 

Our governor has now issued a statewide curfew from 8:00 - 5am until June 8th.  I'm angry about that but I'm not angry at our governor. I'm angry that because some protesters don't know how to behave and now the rest of us are being punished.  

 I'm angry because I keep coming across social media outlets saying " Justice for George!" even though the officer involved has arrested and the violent protests and riots continue. Yes, this officer (now former officer) should be punished for his crime and the other now former officers who allegedly stood by too.  Also if George Floyd had survived he would have been punished for his crime too.

I get dismayed at the Black Lives Matter movement.  If they really truly believe that Black Lives Matter, then try a peaceful protest in front of an abortion clinic where black babies are slaughtered violently in the womb all in the name of "pro-choice".  Do  those black lives matter? 

And how are we as Christ followers are to respond to these protests? How are we to respond to protests against stay at home orders? We respond with prayer. Prayer for the protesters and for safety of police officers that have to try to keep the peace. 

I think if I weren't a Christ follower  I'd stage my own protest against the violent murder of Sasha Krause. I believe her killer should be charged with a hate crime due to his hatred towards Mennonites and probably all Christians.  "Justice for Sasha" my signs would say! But instead I'm praying justice for her. Her name will be added to my copy of The Martyrs Mirror for  I believe she was truly martyred her faith.

 And I will be praying for peace and calm with all the protests that is going on.

Wrist Pin Cushion Directions

I'm finally posting directions on how to make a wrist pin cushion.

To make one you need:

Scrap fabric scraps of your choice 

Lid ( I'm using a canning jar ring and lid because that's all I have)

Needle and thread

Elastic or hair elastic

Trim (optional)

Not pictured glue gun and polyfill. Some sewists like fabric scraps but you have to make sure the pins will go through your finished pin cushion. 

Start by tracing a circle larger your lid. I would recommend using a saucer as I discovered while making this tutorial my original circle was too small.

Cut out your circle and sew gathering stitch around edge.

Put your polyfill in the center. 

Gently pull and as you pull your circle will start to gather.  Add as much polyfill as you need and make sure there's enough that it's  nice and round.

Gently pull and sew shut.  

Carefully hot glue your pun cushion to the inside of your  lid. I say carefully because the hot glue  is very hot and you can get burned. Ask me how I know!

Now carefully hot glue your trim around edge of lid. This can be optional if you are using a really cute lid or you just want to skip this step altogether.

Now regarding using a hair band my daughter says the elastic is better because the hair band might be too tight so use which ever you prefer.

Measure your wrist with a measuring tape and cut your elastic. Keep in mind though it will stretch so don't cut too small or too large. Make sure it fits comfortably around your wrist.

Sew or hot glue ends together and glue to bottom of your pin cushion and you're done!

I'm posting two pin cushions fails as these were the first ones I made about a month ago. The brown one is a fail because it was made a little sloppy but works really well for holding pins. The purple one is a complete fail because I used fabric scraps and the puns refused to go through. I used fabric scraps in the brown one too but for whatever reason it worked better.

Things I Learned During Lockdown

First of all thank you all for your lovely Mother's Day wishes.  They warmed my heart! Second I hope to get the wrist pin cushion tutorial up some time next week. This week got away from me somehow.

So getting back to the topic at hand on what I have learned during lockdown in our lovely state of Arizona. 

 1. God really is in control. I've known this fact ever since I became a believer.  I don't have the answers to explain why God didn't stop this pandemic.  I do know that people are fearful and are seeking answers from Christians.

2.  People can't make up their minds.  They demand the governor give a stay at home order and then they change their minds and demand he reopens the state.   I saw in the news Some here gathered in Phoenix last month to protest. Many didn't wear masks or practice social distancing. 

3. Lemon Oreos are really delicious! Now before all you original Oreo purists   get upset and hit the unsubscribe button let me explain.😊

I've always enjoyed the original Oreos. There is nothing like that yummy chocolate cookie with the vanilla cream.  We frown upon weird flavors like Tiramisu , Salted Caramel and the others out there. We do like to buy Mint Oreos occassionally. 

So about Lemon Oreo, my friend from Bible  study dropped off a care package that included Double Stuff  Oreos and Lemon Oreos. I had never heard of  this flavor but I tried them and my family tried them and now we are all hooked.

3. I really like sewing again.  I've enjoyed sewing masks and improving my sewing skills.

4. I hate sewing. I get frustrated when I keep making the same mistakes and ripping out seams. But I in reality  do enjoy sewing. ☺

5. It's okay to dress up to watch your live stream church service. I gave myself permission to wear my Sunday dresses even though I would just change when the broadcast was over. 

6. It's hard not worshipping with my  church family but it's even harder on our church leadership and I'm sure it's that way with all your pastors too.  Our shepherds long to see their flocks again. Some pastors are even getting mean emails, texts etc from impatient church members and to me that is just plain wrong.

7. I love Walmart pickup.  I had seen the funny ads on YouTube so when Walmart started limiting the amount of customers in the store we decided to give their pickup service a try. We like this service and it's so nice to have someone else do the shopping. You shop and pay online, go to pick up your groceries and they even load your car.

It's also helps prevent impulse buying.

8. YouTube has exploded with how to sew masks videos, COVID-19 song parodies and misinformation about the virus. It's funny how many of the masks videos claim to be the "easiest mask ever" to make.

 

9. I still don't understand why people were hoarding toilet paper. 

10. I'm a wimp and I can't say no to guests.  People ( though very few) were coming and going here at my house for the past several weeks so I just gave this issue to the Lord.  All are various  young people who  either have poor home lives or no local family so I am trusting  God would bless our hospitality efforts and protect us from the virus. 

Happy Mother's Day

Photo courtesy of Krystina Rogers via Unsplash.com