Nearing Home by Billy Graham

Nearing Home Life, Faith and Finishing Well by Billy Graham discusses getting your spirit ready to die.  He discusses heaven and being prepared for the end of life whether of old age like him or dying young especially unexpectedly.  There are the usual Biblical messages as only Mr Graham can give.  He speaks of growing up in a Christian family and growing old as a man who has lived the good life in the work and worship of God.  He is anticipating heaven and all of its rewards and being reunited with Ruth, his wife.  He speaks of the slow leaving of his life work in the hands of the next generation which includes his children.
This book has a different feel than the rest of his books.  It is not nearly so upbeat.  It has a "good-by" feel.  He is getting ready to leave this earth and he is wanting to make sure his work here is done.  It reads slower than the rest of his books.  I had the feeling that I was reading his very last book.  It will be sad to hear of his passing when it comes but it is good to know that he is ready to go in a way that many of this country are not.  This country will not soon have a man who can do the work of Billy Graham and there is never going to be a replacement for him.  May God continue to bless him at this part of his life.

Mine is the Night by Liz Curtis Higgs

Mine is the Night is a great Christian romance set in 18th century Scotland.  It is a story of riches and titles lost and how these 2 women and their poor cousin learn to live and love and trust again.  It is the end of the war and the jacobite cause has lost.  Marjory has lost her husband, both her sons, her title and the riches that go with it.  Most of all she has lost her beloved home and now with Elizabeth her widowed daughter in law she must go and beg to live with a poor cousin, Anne.  Anne has been ignored by her wealthy relatives but takes them in to live in her one room home.  Marjory and Elizabeth Kerr learn that when all is lost they must trust in the Lord.  They learn what true loyalty is and find friendships among those poor that had been previously rejected.  They learn who can be trusted and loved.  The three women find that love of family does not depend on monetary values but what is inside themselves.  They find strength in themselves and each other then they find the love of  a good Christian man.
I liked the way that this book tells a little of the Scottish poor of the 18th century.  So many of historical romance books tell of only the rich and though this one also tells of the rich the poor are the major focus characters.  I also liked that there was a Scottish glossary in the back of the book to help with understanding the language differences of the times and the country.  Great book.  It reads quickly and keeps the reader interested by all the turns of the story.  Not just a good romance a good story.
I recieved this book from Waterbook Multnomah Publishing for this review.

Reclaiming Lily by Patti Lacy

Reclaiming Lily is a novel about a Chinese family caught in the middle of  China's Cultural Revolution.  The family must make choices and one of them is to put their new baby girl,Lily, into an orphanage.  This baby grows becomes adopted by an American and is raised in Texas by good well meaning Christians, Andrew and Gloria Powell.  Joy, as the girl is named by her new parents, grows into a rebellious teen.  Kai is one of the 3 sisters left behind in China and she promises her mother on her deathbed that she will find her sister and give Lily her pearl necklace.  The mother is dying of a disease called Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD).  Kai as a way into America fought and won the ability to be educated as a physician and research PKD as a way to find Lily.  Through much hard work Kai has finally found Lily and meets with Andrew and Gloria.  This book is about the love that Kai, Andrew and Gloria have for Joy/Lily and working through those difficulties and getting Joy tested for PKD which is genetically transmitted.

This is a good story of no matter how well meaning and loving of a family a child grows up in sometimes the child needs more than parents can give.  If God sends that someone else into the family's life then if you trust that God knows what He is doing then swallow your pride and accept that help everyone benefits.  It tells of some of the difficulties of raising teens as during this meeting Andrew gets the call to come meet Joy at the local jail as she is being arrested for shoplifting.  It tells how no matter how much love a parent has for a daughter they make many mistakes but they can through love and hard work be the daughter can be reclaimed.

I recieved this book from Bethany House for this review.

Behind the Veils of Yemen by Audra Grace Shelby

Behind the Veils of Yemen is a book about a missionary family who leave the comforts and safety of the USA and answer the call of God to "Go Ye into the world and teach the Gosple".  After they recieve the call and start to train for their assignment they continually are tested but God continues to call them and they answer that call and go into Yemen.  Audra and her family learn that praying is not too little to do when faced with the daily life and death decisions that they must face but is the biggest thing that one can do in any crisis situation.  God still hears one still small voice.  Audra learns the language and the culture as she goes through the 3 years that this story covers.  She learns to love these people of Yemen-God's people, and to take to the women of Yemen the message of Jesus, the Messiah.  That God loves them and sent His only Son to die so that they, women of Yemen could have life and have it abundantly.  These were women who were treated as objects by their own family.  Women who most likely had been treated badly since their birth.  Women who had no chance to ever be treated well by their family ever had a God and Messiah who loved them and wanted eternity for them.  To these women and their families Audra and her family brought hope and and planted the seeds of faith into their hearts.
I really liked this book.  It helps me to see into the lives of these Moslem women and help to understand the culture that can only be learned by close relationship with them.  It told their story from a Christian's perspective but in a loving way not filled with fate as so often is heard even on the Christian media outlets.  We cannot preach of God's love with hate filled words.  Jesus taught us through example to love our enemies and we cannot improve on that.  God does not just call us to do great things.  Sometimes He calls us to do little things and He makes them great.  We must answer God's call in our lives as He asks.
I recieved this book free for this review from Bethany House Publishing.

Out of a Far Country by Christopher and Angela Yuan

Out of a Far Country is a beautifully written story of a modern day prodical son and his family.  Chris is the youngest son and the most understood by Angela, his mother.  Angela has married her true love but before the first month is even over her in-laws decide that they don't like her and so the dutiful son that is her husband following Chinese custom supports his mother over his wife.  She had a very lonely childhood and had decided before marrage that she would be always home for her children of which she has 2 sons.  The eldest is rebellious and she never sees eye to eye with him but Chris is very loving and caring.  Chris continues this way until he goes to college and she can no longer deny that Chris is homosexual.  She decides that she will make one last trip to see her son before she commits suicide and on the way meets God.  When she goes home after that disaster trip she and her husband make some major changes.  They start praying, attending Bible lessons and turning their life and that of Chris over to God.  This story tells simultaneously of her transformation into Chritianity and of Chris's downward spiral into sex parties influenced by multiple drugs.  With her husband she discovers hope in God.  They get their friends to pray along with them for Chris.
I liked the way that this book compares our modern day problems with those of Biblical days and how we have different problems but that until we turn them over to God we continue to have crisis after crisis.  I do however think that this book should be read by older children because of the subject content--maybe high school or even middle school depending on the child.  The book discusses multiple sex partners as well as various drugs and how to use them.
I recieved this book free from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing for this review.

The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn

Jonathan Rush, business tycoon is told by his pastor counselor that he needs to research his birth mother to find out why he has so much anger in his heart.  Jonathan is going through his 3rd divorce and numerous business associates because of his anger but still feels that finding out about his life won't cure it.  He was abandoned to a children's home in Fairbanks, Alaska at the age of 4 years.  Back to Alaska he goes to find out the mysteries of his childhood and his anger and in the winter no less.  Jonathan quickly is met by a reporter who wants an interview from their hometown hero.  Jonathan who usually quickly can dodge the press finds himself working with her to find out his story.  The book takes the reader simultaneously through Jonathan's and his mother, Ada's emotions of their life--Jonathan's feelings of anger and abandonment at the children's home and Ada's feeling of shame and inadequacy to be a mother. 
I really liked how the book intertwines the story of mother and son with how God loves and accepts us as we are in the moment that we are in.  I read this book in just a few hours and couldn't put it down.  Anyone who does not have a perfect life will like it.
I recieved this book from Booksneeze free for this review.

Softly and Tenderly by Sara Evans with Rachel Hauck

Jade's perfect life is falling apart and not just the fact that she can't get pregnant.  Her perfect lawyer husband, max has serious flaws.  He is self-centered and self-involved.  If that were not enough to cap all that off Jade discovers his infidelifty has produced a son and that son is now 19 monthes old.  Her husband has been secretly financially supporting him but physically and emotionally ignoring him until his mother dies.  Now Max has decided that he wants to raise the boy with Jade.  Jade is disallussioned to say the least.  As if that were not enough Jade's free spirit mother is dying.
This is a great woman's book for any married woman or woman thinking of getting married.  Jade is facing life's turns and having to deal with them as they too quickly happen all at once.  I liked the way that this book looked at marrage straight in the eye and didn't pull punches.  Sometimes life just isn't fair and the only way to get through too many problems to to drop out of life and slow down and only handle one problem at a time.  This is what Jade is doing by dealing with the one problem that can't be delayed--her mother's death.  This is a good book and I recommend reading it to anyone dealing with life and marrage.
This book was provided free for this review by Booksneeze.com.