Episodi

  • 1st & 2nd Chronicles

    1st & 2nd Chronicles
    Jan 27 2026

    Greetings dear readers! Welcome to episode 212 as we recap 1 and 2 Chronicles.


    We learn about the prophet Samuel and King Saul and David, boy and king in 1 Chronicles. It Retells 1 & 2 Samuel and gives the genealogies all the way back to Adam!

    2 Chronicles retells 1 and 2 Kings, giving details of each kings' reign and Jerusalem’s fall along with the destruction of the temple. Elijah and Elisha are the prophets during these turbulent times. We see a lot of turmoil with most kings doing evil in the sight of the Lord, albeit some do stay true to God. God is always faithful and patient through it all, seeking a relationship with His wayward people.

    Why do people think they know better than God? Doesn’t it come down to humility? The more humble we are the more we will trust Him and seek to follow His Word. Please join us for a flash back to the past as Babylonians destroy the temple and lead many away into captivity. Yes, it is a cliff hanger for sure and gives us much to learn! Remember as we read; connect to reflect with each book you select! Blessings!

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    44 min
  • Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

    Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
    Aug 26 2025

    Greetings Readers! Kate and Sheila recap the impactful middle grade novel, Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech.. We meet 13 year old Sal who is traveling with her grandparents to Idaho to see her mother who left the family months ago. During the trip, Sal tells them the story of her friend Phoebe Winterbottom who thinks her mom was kidnapped.

    The Winterbottom family has been receiving inspirational quotes on their doorstep, such as:

    Everyone has their own agenda.

    In the course of a lifetime, what does it matter?

    You can’t keep the birds of sadness from flying over your head, but you can keep them from nesting in your hair,

    Do you like duel story lines and mystery? This 1994 Newbery winner might be just the book for you! Blessings!
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    26 min
  • Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger

    Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
    May 7 2024
    Let’s look back to a simpler time, when kids played outside until dark and phones were attached to the walls. Have you seen the movie Secretariat where the father says to his sons, “Get your devices off the table,?” The devices were their toy airplanes, that always cracks me up but it also is a reminder of how much things have changed. Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger reminds us of a less hurried time. He wrote from his hear masterfully weaving together a novel of historical fiction, matters of grief, coming of age (bildungsroman), and mystery. The story is told from Frank Drum’s viewpoint as he, now a grown man, looks back to the summer when he was an unsettled kid of thirteen grappling with what manhood was all about in his mixed-up world. His younger brother, Jake, has a stuttering problem. He also has deep insight. He didn’t fake things, he was the real deal. Ariel, their talented older sister, was soon to be on her way to Juliard. Their father, Nathan Drum, pastors 3 churches, ministers to his war buddy,Gus, and pours into the whole community. “My father and his great embracing heart.” On the other end of the caring spectrum we meet Ruth Drum, distant mom and wife, being a preacher’s wife is not what she signed up for. Kruegar shows the after effects of WWII. “I think that it wasn’t so much the war as what we took into the war. Whatever cracks were already there the war forced apart, and what we might otherwise have kept inside came spilling out.” The novel starts with an accidental death of a small boy then the boys find a homeless man who died of natural causes. Next, there’s a suicide attempt and a murder! Not a book for youngsters, the content is heavy and the language is like that of sailors, but for readers that are ready it is a gift. We are shown the different ways people work through grief. “Hope was what my father held to. My mother chose despair.” “I (Frank)felt ______’s death had shoved me through a doorway into a world where I was a stranger.” Jake said, “If we put everything in Gods’ hands, maybe we won't have to be afraid anymore.” Please join Kate and Sheila as they dive into the 1960s. Blessings to you, dear readers!
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    26 min
  • The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

    The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
    Aug 29 2023

    Is your life so busy you barely take time to breathe let alone pray without ceasing? We think this nugget of truths can help us to focus on God no matter what we’re doing. Brother Lawrence was not a monk. He was a wounded soldier, failed footman, and finally a cook and dishwasher and cobbler who lived centuries ago. How can he help us today? Brother Lawrence was known to be ‘sensible of his faults but not discouraged by them.’ People wrote him letters seeking his advice.

    His responses were short lessons such as “One does not become holy all at once” and

    “Our only business was to love and delight ourselves in God…”

    Brother Lawrence said it was a great delusion to think that times of prayer were different from other times. God is always with us! We are never alone! Before working he prayed:

    “ O my God, since Thou are with me and I must now, in obedience to Thy commands, apply my mind to these outward things, I beseech Thee to grant me the grace to continue in Thy presence, and to this end do Thou prosper me with Thy assistance, receive all my works, and possess all my affections.”

    I love that his book is called The Practice of the Presence of God because we must practice and practice and practice to form this amazing ‘holy habit’.Christ followers are not perfect but we should be different. We should be working wholeheartedly because we are serving our heavenly Father no matter what we are endeavoring to accomplish. Mowing a lawn, cooking a meal, washing laundry, bandaging a wound, teaching a child the list is endless but the drive and determination to do our best should be consistent.

    1 Corinthians 10:31 is the focus scripture in the movie Remember the Goal. The coach put it on T-shirts for her team to help them remember, “...whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.” Brother Lawrence and the cross-country coach share the same mindset.

    There were many powerful lines in this book but my favorite was pithy and packed a punch,

    “Let us think often that our only business in this life is to please God.”
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    37 min
  • Books That Schooled Us

    Books That Schooled Us
    Aug 22 2023
    It’s time to head back to school and find a learning routine groove. What books have caused you to change your life? Join us as we discuss books that schooled us and caused a significant shift in our lives. “It strengthens thy heart to do a hard thing” is a powerful quote from A Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli. A cripple boy learns how to survive despite his hardships in this unique novel, includes lessons for kids and adults alike! Jennifer L. Scott’s books: Lessons from Madame Chic, At Home with Madame Chic, and Polish Your Poise with Madame Chic describe what the author learned living abroad with a family in France. She also has a TedTalk on the 10 item capsule wardrobe. Loads of lessons on living with intentionality. The Count of Monte Cristo provided countless lessons: patience, wisdom, grit, learning how to read people, asking the right questions and, of course, stamina. This book illustrates over and over that people were and still are perplexing no matter what century or country we are in. Anna Karenina was a confidence booster! Our first Russian novel will long be remembered. What an intriguing opening! “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” People Fuel had a plethora of lessons such as: Be Present, Convey the Good, Provide Reality, and Call to Action. We need people but we need to set boundaries to deal with them effectively, the author explains asking clarifying questions. The book, Boundaries, packs a punch in this area as well. We are limited, so we must set limits and uphold them in order to thrive. What a mindset changer Unoffendable by Brant Hansen was! We learned how to practice overlooking an offense by giving grace. It totally reframed our thinking, kind of like swimming upstream. Living for God not for self was also the theme in Goliath Must Fall. We learned we aren’t David in the story, Jesus is, He is our conqueror. The Tech-Wise Family was a recent read that gave many suggestions to help families be present and live creatively. By making a simple change you can make an upgrade! We are image-bearers to a God that is the ultimate creator, we need creative outlets. We should never consume more than we create. The Gift of Failure explained how learning that comes with challenge is stored more effectively! We should parent for tomorrow, not just for today. The Last Green Valley was an unbelievable journey back to WW2. Times were so hard they were forced to eat grass! The protagonist’s wonderful line can help us all. “I used to think life happened to me but now I know life happened for me.” Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth taught us to stick with hard things and never quit on a bad day. Mindset by Carol Dweck pairs well with Grit. When readers see the fixed and growth mindsets playing out it is easy to choose wisely. We have to rethink our vocabulary, switching out “You’re so smart” for a much more beneficial “Great effort” “Way to keep trying even when it is hard, it gets a bit easier every time”. The Five Love Languages of Children included a wellhouse of information in filling the love tanks of our children. A simple questionnaire is included to guide parents in discovering their child’s love language. Kids with a full love tank are less likely to act out and in turn will make better choices. Last but not least, The Read-Aloud Handbook by: Jim Trelease is a wonderful resource for parents that want to have a nightly read-aloud time with their kids, not all good books make great read-alouds. It is a huge help in creating a treasured memories in the lives of your children. A Door in the Wall , The Count of Monte Cristo Part 1, Part 2 Anna Karenina People Fuel Unoffendable Goliath Must Fall The Tech-Wise Family The Last Green Valley Grit The Five Love Languages of Children Massie Dobbs Unbroken *Some of the links are affiliate links to books and brands we think you will love.
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    31 min
  • My Brain's Not Broken by Tamara Rosier

    My Brain's Not Broken by Tamara Rosier
    Aug 15 2023

    My Brain’s Not Broken (Strategies for Navigating Your Emotions and Life with ADHD)

    By: Tamara Rosier, PhD

    “Where’s my phone?”

    “ What did I do with my keys?”

    “Was that due today?”

    “ Wow! That took a lot longer than I thought it would!”

    “Where did the time go?”

    “I am sooooooo tired.”

    This author has ADHD along with 3 of her 4 kids and her husband, so the girl knows well the crazy unpredictable journey that many of us fellow- strugglers are on which may be a bit of a challenge for our neuro-typical friends to understand.

    ADHD has many faces along with many misconceptions. The author has her clients come up with metaphors to express their ADHD. Some were like Lucille Ball at the candy factory (where Ethyl and Lucy are trying to wrap the candy coming on the conveyor belt but simply cannot keep up) , dirty babies (even after washing, they’re dirty again), elves moving things around, monsters of many shapes, sizes, and strengths.

    Although very different, most ADHD peeps are passionate, strong-willed, extra extra curious with possibility brains. Most struggle with being patient, completing mundane monotonous tasks, and balancing time (time blindness is a real thing). Usually ADHD folks veer toward divergent creative thinking instead of convergent.

    The author’s daughter described her ADHD as being a misfit toy from the classic Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer cartoon that had a part on the Island of Misfit Toys. Many think ADHD is a struggle that only affects kids that cannot pay attention. In fact, Many adults are affected and many are hyper focused (completely immersed in whatever intrigues them).

    Her suggestions to help navigate successfully include, The Solve-It Grid.

    Set a timer for 20 minutes to complete mundane tasks (homework, housework, paying bills, proofreading…) in increments when working in the yellow quadrant. (Gradually depletes battery)

    When the yellow tasks pile up and turn urgent, they turn red! (Kinda like cooking on high heat).

    Stressful fight, flight, or freeze becomes the choices in this quadrant which is exhausting and can cause burn-out. Red quadrant may feel energizing but spending too much time here quickly depletes our batteries.

    Blue quadrant is our comfort zone default, it’s as hard to get out of as the Molasses Swamp in Candyland.(playing games on our phones, binge watching shows, scrolling Twitter…) We need some time in the blue quadrant but like everything else balance is a challenge. Blue time slowly recharges but too much sends us into the red quadrant (because of things in the yellow quadrant left undone).

    Green is the Happy Place quadrant, it is where we are reminded of what we value. This is the fastest way to be rested, restored, and recentered. The Green requires little (having a meal with family, going for a walk, watching a sunset…) but gives much. Some avoid this quadrant thinking they are too tired but in reality, green gives the most energy!

    “He who fears he shall suffer, already suffers what he fears.”

    Michel de Montaigne

    Don’t fear the unknown or assume you know all there is to know about ADHD. Let’s embrace strategies as we strive to conquer our quest for balance and help others do likewise.
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    37 min
  • The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli

    The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli
    Jun 28 2022
    This 1949 classic Newbery Award winner is a must read! Set in medieval times, a 10 year old boy is stricken with an illness that leaves his legs paralyzed. With help from a monk and a minstrel Robin learns lessons in kindness, grit, skill, and patience. Come along as we dive into this uplifting story of finding a door in the wall.
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    1 ora e 2 min
  • And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

    And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
    Jun 21 2022
    The Queen of mystery, Agatha Christie takes us for a ride in this 1940 novel that she described as her most difficult book to write. This novel was so creatively crafted and entertaining to read. With over 100 million copies sold, this book is the world’s bestselling mystery novels of all time. So, buckle up and hang on as we dive into this exciting read!
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    22 min