Books I Read In March

After three months of 2023, I honestly thought I would have read more books by now. I feel like I've read a lot and studied a lot, but maybe I'm moving at a slower pace so I can absorb it.

My word of the year is grace, and it's probably time to give myself some.

At some point in mid-March I realized that I'd read many Bible study books and nonfiction, but I'd completely ignored my shelves of fiction. I know, right? Slap my hand for that one. So I pulled out one of my favorite sets, one study book I've had for a while and one brand-new study book.

Here are my favorite passages from each.

Woven: Understanding the Bible as One Seamless Story by Angie Smith. "I want to scream when I think about it. I want to scream and fight to get to him, same as I would if he were a child of mine. But that's not where the thread of God's story was leading - to a last-second rescue, to a deathless redemption. The spotless, righteous Lamb of God must suffer. Like this. And die. Like this. Our job is not to get in between God and his timeless plan for our salvation."

If You Will Ask: Reflections on the Power of Prayer by Oswald Chambers. "Is it not time we paid more attention to what it cost God to make it possible for us to live a holy life? We talk about the difficulty of living a holy life, but there is the absolute simple ease of Almighty God in living a holy life because it cost Him so much to make it possible."

A Place Called Home by Lori Wick. "When we start to feel that some fear will overwhelm us, we should immediately pray and keep praying until we've given that fear to God and can rest in Him."

A Song for Silas by Lori Wick. "You're wrong, Bev, so wrong. God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for the dirty, the wrong, the sinful. If we were able to cleanse ourselves before coming to Him, we wouldn't need Him. Listen to me, Bev. I may not have taken money from anyone, but without the saving knowledge of Christ I would still be headed to hell."

The Long Road Home by Lori Wick. "There are a few things Joseph and I have in common, and one is that God never left his side as He never left mine. Daily He urged me to surrender my bitterness and hurt, and I fought Him., But lovingly, in a way only God can master, He tenderly broke through my wall of pain, and with the confession of my sins I have full fellowship again."

A Gathering of Memories by Lori Wick. "'Did You really die for everyone, God - for me too?' These words came on a sob and Mandy's tears fell on the grass beneath her. She told God everything through those tears, her doubts and fears, her pride and stubbornness, but mostly how much she wanted to know Him and how afraid she was that He would turn her away. She sat up when she had finished praying and stared up at the sky. She wasn't sure why but she suddenly knew that God would never reject her."

What books did you read last month? 

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