My Faith Looks Up to Thee

My faith looks up to thee,
thou Lamb of Calvary,
Savior divine:
now hear me while I pray,
take all my guilt away,
O let me from this day
be wholly thine.

May thy rich grace impart
strength to my fainting heart,
my zeal inspire;
as thou hast died for me,
O may my love to thee
pure, warm, and changeless be,
a living fire.

While life's dark maze I tread,
and griefs around me spread,
be thou my guide;
bid darkness turn to day,
wipe sorrow's tears away,
nor let me ever stray
from thee aside.

When ends life's transient dream,
when death's cold, sullen stream
shall o'er me roll,
blest Savior, then, in love,
fear and distrust remove;
O bear me safe above,
a ransomed soul.

- by Ray Palmer

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Favorite Love Stories

In honor of Valentine's Day, here are some of my favorite love stories.

Anne Elliot and Captain Frederick Wentworth (Jane Austen)

Valancy and Barney (L. M. Montgomery)

Anne and Gilbert (L. M. Montgomery)

Beatrice and Benedick (Shakespeare)

Elizabeth Bennett and Fitzwilliam Darcy (Jane Austen)

Betsy and Joe (Maud Hart Lovelace)

Beren and Luthien (J. R. R. Tolkien)

Arwen and Aragorn (J. R. R. Tolkien)


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Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity by Nabeel Qureshi

I recently finished reading Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity by Nabeel Qureshi.
While I really enjoyed the entire book, these quotes in particular stood out to me.

"There are simply too many barriers for Muslim immigrants to understand Christians and the West by sheer circumstance. Only the exceptional blend of love, humility, hospitality, and persistence can overcome these barriers, and not enough people make the effort."
(Kindle edition, location 1281)

"That explains why our families fight hard to keep us from becoming “Americanized.” The term had nothing to do with nationality; it had everything to do with their perception of the culture. To be Americanized was to be disobedient to your elders, to dress less conservatively, and to spend more time with your friends than your family. Cursing, drinking, and dating were simply unfathomable."
(Kindle edition, location 1283)

"What, then, does it mean to be Muslim in the West? It can mean anything. If you really want to know what someone is like and what they believe, you have to get to know them and ask them personally. But the best we can do before getting to know someone is to determine whether he is an immigrant or a second-generation Muslim. This one factor often makes a huge difference."
(Kindle edition, location 1319)

"Unfortunately, I have found that many Christians think of evangelism the same way, foisting Christian beliefs on strangers in chance encounters. The problem with this approach is that the gospel requires a radical life change, and not many people are about to listen to strangers telling them to change the way they live. What do they know about others’ lives?"
(Kindle edition, location 1897)

"Effective evangelism requires relationships. There are very few exceptions."
(Kindle edition, location 1902)

"The words do matter, but they matter because they constitute a message. The message is paramount. That’s why the Bible can be translated. If the inspiration were tied to words themselves as opposed to their message, then we could never translate the Bible, and if we could never translate it, how could it be a book for all people?"
(Kindle edition, location 2111)

"But was it really blind? The professor was teaching rarefied science, describing the subatomic world. At that level, things happen that make no sense to those of us who conceptualize the world at only a human level. Even the apparently simple idea of atoms is baffling when we think about it. It means that the chair I am sitting on is not actually a solid object, innocently supporting my weight. It is almost entirely empty space, occupied only in small part by particles moving at incomprehensible speeds. When we think about it, it seems wrong, but it’s just the way things are in our universe. There’s no use arguing about it. I turned my glance away from the other students, concluding they had not blindly accepted a nonsensical concept. They had just realized before I did that there are truths about our universe that do not fit easily into our minds."
(Kindle edition, location 3183)


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Spine Labels - Set 53

spine labels
noun (plural) - a collection of odds and ends that are as random as reading spine labels in a bookstore

Literary Tourism: Edinburgh

What the Size of Your Book Collection Says About You

Books Reading Ink Pen Clear Transparent Stamp Set

25 Jane Austen Gifts

Personalized Fine Leather Moleskine Wallet Brown Leather

Little Women cross-stitch pattern

All Natural NH Honey

Hand-thrown Ceramic Travel Mug in Midnight Glaze

Apple Blossom Flower Hair Clip for Women with Aqua/Green Beads

Strawberry Washi Tape


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Take My Life, and Let It Be

Take my life and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days;
let them flow in endless praise.

Take my hands and let them move
at the impulse of thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
swift and beautiful for thee.

Take my voice and let me sing
always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
filled with messages from thee.

Take my silver and my gold;
not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
every power as thou shalt choose.

Take my will and make it thine;
it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is thine own;
it shall be thy royal throne.

Take my love; my Lord, I pour
at thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee.

- by Frances Ridley Havergal

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2021 Reading Challenges

While my overall reading goal in 2021 is to read 100 books, I've decided to also participate in a couple of reading challenges this year.

Last year I participated in the challenges listed below:

The Backlist Challenge 2020
I read 13 books that fit into this category.

Beat the Backlist 2020
I read 14 books that fit into this category.

The Color Coded Challenge
I completed this challenge.

Cruisin' Thru The Cozies Reading Challenge 2020
I was aiming for Level two (Investigator): read 20 cozy mysteries of your choice, and I read 25 total.

European Reading Challenge 2020
I was planning on participating at the "Honeymooner" level, which means I planned to read at least 4 books from Europe, and I completed this challenge.

For the Love of EBooks
My goal was to reach Phase 5 (40+ books). I read a total of 115 books for this category.

Library Love Challenge 2020
I was planning on taking on the "Library Card on Fire" level, which means I planned to read at 60 books that I borrow from my library. I read a total of 66 books for this category.

Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks 2020
I read a total of 124 books, so mission accomplished!

Read It Again, Sam
I was planning on tackling the "A Trip Down Memory Lane" level, which means I planned to reread at least 12 books in 2020 that I've read previously. I only read 9 books in this category.

2020 Modern Mrs. Darcy Challenge
I managed to finish all but one category for this challenge.

Reading Women Challenge
I finished 8 of these categories.

2020 Swords & Stars Reading Challenge
I finished 8 of these categories.

20 for 2020 Reading Challenge
I finished 6 of these categories.

Book Bingo 2020
I finished 12 of these categories.


So, what's up for 2021? Last year I felt a little overwhelmed by the amount of challenges I had picked, so for 2021, I'm going to scale back a bit. Here are the challenges I'm hoping to tackle.

Cruisin' Thru The Cozies Reading Challenge 2021
I'm aiming for Level two (Investigator): read 20 cozy mysteries of your choice.

European Reading Challenge 2021
The idea is to read books by European authors or books set in European countries (no matter where the author comes from). The books can be anything – novels, short stories, memoirs, travel guides, cookbooks, biography, poetry, or any other genre. You can participate at different levels, but each book must be by a different author and set in a different country – it's supposed to be a tour. I'm planning on participating at the "Honeymooner" level, which means I plan to read at least 4 books from Europe.

For the Love of EBooks
The person who hosted this challenge in the past is no longer hosting it, but I'm still going to try to read 40+ ebooks this year.

Library Love Challenge 2021
I'm planning on taking on the "Library Card on Fire" level, which means I plan to read at 60 books that I borrow from my library.

2021 Modern Mrs. Darcy Challenge
This year's challenge is a "choose your own adventure" format. Here are the twelve categories I've chosen for this year:
- A book by an author of a different race, ethnicity, or religion than your own
- A book by a local author
- A book about books or reading
- A re-read
- A book recommended by a source you trust
- A book you own but have never read
- A book in translation
- A book published before you were born
- A book about a topic or subject you already love
- A Pulitzer Prize or National Book Award winner
- A book by an author who is new to you
- Three books by the same author


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