Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

Lisa

Better together

I’m an introvert. Perhaps I’ve mentioned that a time or two. I’m learning more and more what that means, but for many years I thought that being an introvert meant I wanted–and needed–to go it alone. As a first-born child, I also have an independent streak, and though I haven’t always been confident about my abilities, I have often preferred to do something myself, without asking for help, even if I was already overwhelmed.

Introvert or not, maybe you can relate?

I don’t go out of my way to let other people into my life. There’s a variety of reasons, some involving insecurity and fear of rejections, but mostly I think, I’ve got this. I can handle it all on my own.

Except for the times when I can’t.

I’m learning about asking for help, though it still isn’t easy. But even asking for help isn’t always the same as letting people in.

You can read the rest over at Putting on the New, where I post on the 12th of each month.

A gift of words: Review of Faithgirlz Bible

I still have the first Bible I ever received, a Precious Moments edition with some cute illustrations to accompany the NKJV translation of the words. It wasn’t until high school, though, that I had in my hands a Bible I wanted to read (and could).

faithgirlz bibleAs our household has grown, so has our collection of Bibles and Bible storybooks. When our daughter started reading and needed a Bible regularly in her Sunday School class, I gave her the one I’d grown up with because it was the most kid-friendly complete Bible we had in the house. It soon became clear that the NKJV was not the best translation for an elementary school girl, and I really wanted her to have her own Bible.

When I saw the NIV Faithgirlz Bible available from Zondervan, I thought I’d get it for her. (Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the Bible in exchange for my review, through the Booklook Bloggers program.) Billed as a Bible for tween girls, around ages 8-12, some of the features are a little too grown-up for my 7-year-old, but she can grow into it.

What has been fun is seeing her embrace it as her own. She takes it to church. Looks through it and reads it at night, sometimes, and during Advent, she has been reading selected passages after dinner during our Advent devotions. The NIV has been much easier for her to read and understand. That’s what she likes about it.

As she grows, we’ll explore some of the other features in this Bible, like the quizzes and telling the Bible stories in her own words.

I know there is some criticism of the themed and topical Bibles, but as a parent of an elementary school girl, I’m excited to see how my daughter connects with the Bible on a level she is ready for.