I love used book stores. There is a great used book store one town over from me called McKay’s and I go about once a month, usually on a Saturday, with a list of books I want to read. My goal on these trips is to just find books that are already on my list, not pick new books that aren’t currently on my list. I’m a failure. I never leave empty-handed and rarely find books on my list. I come home every single time with 4 or 5 books not on my list, and in February, I found some great gems.
In my last blog Why Revival Tarries, I mentioned that I don’t read a lot of female authors. But, this month, I have picked out 3 books to recommend to you that I have thoroughly enjoyed reading and highly recommend, all by female authors.
1. Holy in the Moment by Ginger Harrington
The first book that I would recommend you read is called Holy in the Moment by Ginger Harrington. In full disclosure, Ginger is a personal friend. We have done life together. Our husbands are both retired Marines and our children graduated from the same high school. We also go to the same church in Woodbridge, VA. In March 2013, we traveled to Israel together for 2 weeks, along with our husbands and 11 other couples. It was an amazing time of fellowship and Bible study and I won’t soon forget that Ginger and I were both baptized in the Jordan River.
Ginger, who is an amazing Bible study teacher and blogger, wrote this book in 2018.
Ginger’s message is that we can practice holiness in everyday life. We can practice holiness in our parenting, in our marriages, in our friendships, and in our difficult circumstances.
We are never going to be perfect and shouldn’t fall victim to the pressure of being perfect. However, we can find “simple ways to love God and enjoy our lives.” I am proud to call Ginger my friend and to recommend her book to you.
2. Leaving Ordinary by Donna Gaines
I do not know Donna Gaines like I know Ginger, but I am familiar with her. You see, she is the pastor’s wife at the church where my son and daughter-in-law attend. She is my daughter-in-law’s Bible study teacher. She pours biblical teaching into my sweet Kendall every week. Not only that, her daughter Bethany has mentored Kendall since high school and continues to be a friend and mentor to her. Although they don’t know this, I am profoundly grateful for the impact they have had on my family. Not to mention, my kids sit under the Godly, biblical teaching every Sunday of Dr. Steve Gaines.
So, as I perused the bookshelf at McKay’s. I saw a book by Donna Gaines called Leaving Ordinary – Encounter God Through Extraordinary Prayer and snatched it up. What a blessing. This book explores the Old Testament tabernacle and the pieces that took up residence inside the tabernacle and how they can be a guide in our prayer life today. I don’t know about you, but I have a yearning to know God and know Him more deeply. I am an Old Testament gal. You will probably get tired of me saying that! Ha! I love how Donna makes the story of God meeting with His people in the wilderness come alive and how I can use that to enhance and grow in my own prayer life. This book could be used as a personal Bible study, as well as a group Bible study because it is filled with Scripture to explore and has pointed questions at the end of each chapter.
3. Can’t Make This Stuff Up! by Susannah Lewis
Lastly, on that same trip, I saw another book that I didn’t have on my list (shocker), but I had heard of it and so I picked it up. I don’t know if you are familiar with Susannah B. Lewis, but she is a humorist and the creator of the blog, Whoa Susannah. I have followed Susannah’s blog for a few years, but had never purchased any of her books. I decided to get it, but in all honesty, I thought, “Well…this will be some light reading to counter the fact that I am currently trudging through the Institutes of Religion by John Calvin. Which, by the way, is 145,764 pages long (I am being dramatic – mostly – but it’s massive in pages and content.)
I might recommend it when I’m done, but that won’t be until September! So, back to my original thought, I might “enjoy” Susannah’s book, but was not under any delusion that it would be a deep theological exposition. Boy howdy, was I wrong. Now, Susannah will be the first to tell you, she is not a theologian, apologist, Bible study teacher, or any of that! She is a humorist and calls herself a humorist. But, I want you to know that her raw and candid look into her life, her stories, and her heartaches was refreshing.
The way she weaves truth from God’s Word into them and how God’s Word came alive to her in those circumstances is humbling. One minute I would be laughing out loud and then the next paragraph would have me “ugly crying.” I mean tears, snot, and all of the things. Then, immediately laughing so hard that my stomach hurt. It was an emotional rollercoaster, but I didn’t want to get off because I knew toward the end of each chapter Susannah was going to point us right back to God’s Word and Jesus. I want to formally apologize to Susannah for “my light reading comment.” It was anything but that, and I highly recommend you read this book.
I would like to stress that these are my personal opinions on these books. If I don’t like a book or think it’s worth your time, I would not recommend it to you. I happen to love all three of these books and think they are a great addition to anyone’s library.
