Faith, hope, and love: three very important factors in a Christian's life

Faith, hope and love are at the center of Christian’s life, at least they should be. They are the drive and motivation behind everything we do. At the end of what is known as the Love Chapter, Paul writes that faith, hope and love are what remains (or lasts) and the greatest of these three is love (1 Corinthians 13:13). These words are often found on home décor, to be displayed in one’s house but does one truly understand that they mean? What is faith? What is hope? What is love? We may know the basic definitions of these terms but what about them makes them so important.

Faith is defined as “complete trust or confidence in someone or something.” In the New International Version (NIV) Bible, faith is used 270 times. The basics of faith is trust and commitment to God. Faith can be shown in three basic ways. First, personal belief, mental acceptance and acknowledgment of God’s existence. In John 20:29 Jesus says to Thomas, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Many people have come to believe and have faith in Christ but have not seen him. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says “We live by faith, not by sight.” Faith is belief in things that are unseen. Second, conduct inspired faith. In Matthew 9:2, Jesus healed a man because of his faith. Faith allows us to believe in the unbelievable and one day, believers will be rewarded for their faith by seeing that was once unseen. St Augustine once said, “Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.” Third, a trust or trustworthiness inspires our faith. Thomas Aquinas wrote “To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To no without faith, no explanation is possible.”

Hope is defined as “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.” Hope is used 129 times in 121 verses in the NIV Bible. Hope is essential because “hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life” (Proverbs 13:12). However, hope is not like having a lottery ticket and hoping you win. Hope in the Bible is linked to salvation by grace and faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus is our hope. Hope for eternity. Hope because God is in control of everything around us. It is a hope of certainty, a divine hope while a human hope is a hope of uncertainty. Human hope is merely wishful thinking. Hope in Jesus helps us live now. Sometimes we still use hope as wishful thinking “I hope it all works out” but you never know. However, there is hope in our salvation and the promises that Jesus gives us in the gospels that we can rely on with certainty. In Philippians 3:13-14, Paul writes, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Lastly, love. Everyone knows love and it is a word that many people use carelessly. Love is used 681 in the NIV Bible. 1 Corinthians 13 describes what love is. Love is patient, kind, protects, trusts, hopes, perseveres and rejoices with the truth (verses 4 and 6). It also describes what love is not. Love is not boastful, jealous, proud, rude, or easily angered (verses 4 and 5). Love does not keep any record of wrongs, self-seeking, or delight in evil (verses 5 and 6). Love never fails (verse 8). Love is the greatest of all human qualities because it involves unselfish service to others. It is the most durable and real evidence that you care. "Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). Laying down one’s life is putting another’s needs ahead of your own and it is the ultimate sacrifice of giving one’s life for another as Jesus did on the cross. Love is attributed to God himself. John 3:16 states “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

In conclusion, faith, hope and love are important in a Christian life. Faith is the foundation and content of God’s message. From faith, hope and love are built. Hope is the attitude and focus. Love is both in action. All three on interconnected. Love without faith or hope is hallow. While faith and hope without love will fail. Faith, hope and love are the things that will last forever. When everything else falls away, these three things will remain. Faith, hope and love are the things we should be pursuing in our lives and should be the motivations behind all we do in the name of Jesus.

In the Field of Grace: a great love story

In the Field of Grace by Tessa Afshar is the romantic retelling of the story of Ruth and Boaz. Their story appears in the small but powerful Bible book of Ruth. Ruth is a Moabite who is the youngest and forgotten daughter when she befriends Naomi and catches the eye of her son, Mahlon. The two marry and set up house with Naomi, his older brother Chilion and his young bride, Orpah. The small family is very happy until suddenly Mahlon and Chilion become ill and die. Naomi is left with one option, to return to her home in Bethlehem. Ruth is determined to follow her beloved mother in law to the ends of the earth if she had to and refuses to return to her parents even after Naomi pleads with her. When the two arrive in Bethlehem, they have very little to their name. Naomi tells Ruth about gleaning in the fields. Gleaning is when the poor pick up the shafts of wheat and barley that the harvesters drop. In order to keep them from starvation, Ruth decides to join the gleaners in the fields. The one she chooses belongs to Boaz, a distant cousin of Naomi, a kind and gentle man who all he can to help the less fortunate. He is immediately drawn to Ruth and finds himself making sure Ruth and Naomi have all they need to survive. He tells himself that his interest in Ruth is nothing more than repaying her love and kindness to his cousin, but will he open himself up to the truth? Will he and Ruth surrender to God’s will and plan for their lives?

I have always loved the book of Ruth. I love the love story between Ruth and Boaz. A woman from a nation who was a hated enemy of Israel and a man with a strong stance in the community. God brings them together and from their son, Obed, comes King David and from David’s line is the Messiah, Jesus. Ms. Afshar once again brings a simple but magical story on its own and fills it with even more wonderful. In In the Field of Grace, the human sides of Ruth and Boaz become more real. Readers can see them as we are today, filled with doubts, pain, grief and uncertainty. Often you read a Bible story and it seems so obvious that the people in these stories would follow God and rewarded. But we do not realize that Ruth and Boaz had their own doubts, insecurities about their self-worth and God’s love for them. Ms. Afshar’s story opens the human side to these Biblical figures in a powerful way. I highly recommend In the Field of Grace.

In the Field of Grace

is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Before and After: a nice companion to Before We Were Yours

Before and After: The Incredible Real-Life Stories of Orphans Who Survived the Tennessee Children's Home Society by Judy Christie and Lisa Wingate is a follow-up to Ms. Wingate’s bestselling book, Before We were Yours which I reviewed two years ago (a link for that review is posted below). Ms. Christie, a journalist, and Ms. Wingate present the real stories of individuals who were stolen from their parents, from their homes and placed in illegal adoptions. As well as documented the outpouring of support for Before We Were Yours as many do not know these painful events which occurred in Memphis, Tennessee from roughly 1923 to 1950 when the scandal broke. Each story was heartbreaking as many of the victims were torn between being angry that they were taken from their families and loving the families they grew up in. Before and After helps put the physical names and faces to the events readers see in Before We Were Yours.

Some of the stories were harder to read then others. Some stories the children were stolen from very loving homes and placed in not so loving homes. Stories of uneducated, but loving parents being tricked into signing away their children. Even the adopted parents were doped by Ms. Tann as there are many stories of Jewish parents asking, and being told they were getting, a Jewish baby, only to find out years later, their baby isn’t Jewish. There was one part of the story I had to laugh, and it isn’t related to the victim’s stories. Ms. Christie was recounting a story that her older brother helped name her that she quipped “Who lets a 7-year-old name their child?” Well, my husband and I let our 6-year-old have a say in the names that were considered for our youngest daughter. It was a name we ultimately chose too. If you have read Before We were Yours, I highly recommend reading Before and After. If you haven’t read Before We were Yours, I highly recommend reading it and following up with Before and After.

Before and After

is available in hardcover and eBook

My review of Before We Were Yours

https://observationsfromasimplelife.blogspot.com/2017/07/before-we-were-yours-excellent-story.html

Bread of Angels: the story of Lydia, the seller of purple

Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar is the story of Lydia, the seller of purple who is briefly mentioned in Acts 16:14. The story begins with Lydia as a young girl learning her father’s secret formula for the richest purple dye. After tragedy strikes, Lydia is forced to leave her ancestral home and head to Philippi. In Philippi, she establishes herself as a seller of purple and gained a reputation as an honest and generous businesswoman despite the attempts of sabotage by those who wish to see her fail. One such act of sabotage seems to be her ruin. Until one day, a chance meeting with Paul and his companions, she turns her life over to God. As she learns more about God and opening her heart to him, individuals from her past come to Philippi and threaten to destroy everything she has worked so hard to build. Her newly found faith will be tested and she must decide to stand up and fight for herself or turn and hide.

One of the things I love about Tessa Afshar’s writing is that she can take a simple and relatively minor person from the Bible and make her come alive. She did it here in Bread of Angels. Lydia is mentioned briefly during Paul’s mission trips in Acts, but her story is very significant. From the opening page to the closing chapter, I was captivated by Lydia’s story and how seemingly insignificant encounters brought her to a place of prestige and influence. I also love how Tessa Afshar works the meaning of the title very subtly in the story and seems to come from nowhere. While some details about these characters and the times in which they lived are fictionalized and altered for a modern reader, Ms. Afshar keeps the integrity of the main character, Lydia, and opened my eyes to her story in a new way. I highly recommend Bread of Angels.

Bread of Angels

is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook

Here's to pizza!

Pizza. A savory Italian dish of a round flattened base of leavened dough. In Italy, a formal restaurant setting, a pizza would be eaten with a knife and fork. In a causal setting, it is cut into wedges and eaten by hand, which is the way most of us usually eat it. A favorite food among many people around the world. It enjoys a wide variety of crust and toppings depending on regions. October is National Pizza Month. Started by Gerry Durnell, publisher of Pizza Today magazine in 1984, October has become a month to celebrate this delicious food from its humble origins to the crazy debates about which region has the better pizza and even what toppings are acceptable.

There have been foods like the pizza found throughout the Ancient World. In the 6^th century BCE, Persian soldiers of the Achaemenid Empire, during the rule of King Darius I, baked flatbreads with cheese and dates on top of their shields. Ancient Greeks would use oil, herbs and cheese on their flatbreads. The term, pizza, was first recorded in a 10^th century in a Latin manuscript from southern Italy. According to legend, the modern pizza was invented in Naples in the 18^th to early 19^th century. The popular story goes, in 1889, the Royal Palace of Capodimonte commissioned the Neapolitan pizzaiolo (pizza maker) Raffaele Esposito to create a pizza in honor of the visiting Queen Margherita (1851-1926). He created three pizzas and the queen preferred the pizza which represented the Italian flag: red (tomatoes), green (basil) and white (mozzarella) which became the pizza Margherita. Pizza was brought to the US by Italian immigrants in the late 19^th century. The first US pizzeria, Lombardi’s, was opened in New York City in 1905 and it is still open today. The demand for pizza would skyrocket after World War II when servicemen were returning home from the Italian front and asked for this dish.

There are many variations of pizza. In Italy, the pizza napolitana remains a popular style which contains San Marzano and mozzarella di bufala.  Pizza is extremely popular in the United States in which 13% of American eat pizza on any given day. There are regional pizzas which developed in the US. Everyone is familiar with the New York style which is a hand tossed crust with a light layer of tomato sauce with mozzarella cheese and toppings such as pepperoni. New York pizzas usually measure between 18-24 inches in diameter and cut into eight large pieces. You may also be familiar with the popular Chicago style deep dish pizza. However, were you familiar with the other regional styles. First, the California style which is a thin crust and topping which unusual toppings such as chicken and goat cheese. This style was popularized by California chefs, Wolfgang Puck and Ed LaDou. Second, the Detroit style is a rectangular pizza with a thick crisp crust topped with sauce, cheese, pepperoni and mushrooms. Lastly, the St Louis pizza, which is a very thin, cracker like crust commonly topped with Provel cheese, which is made with cheddar, Swiss, and provolone cheeses, and cut into squares instead of wedges.

The world record for the largest pizza was in Rome in December 2012 which measured 1,261 square meters (approximately 13,570 square feet)! And the world record for the longest pizza was in Fontana, California in 2017 which measured 1,930.39 meters (approximately 6,333.3 feet)! That’s almost a mile and a quarter long! Of course, with the popularity of pizza, there are many debates which occur. New York will always claim their pizza is better than other regions. While style of pizza is dependent on region and personal taste, one topic sparks a large and louder debate: toppings. More specific: is pineapple an acceptable pizza topping? Most people will state that pineapple does not belong on a pizza because it is not an Italian ingredient. However, this argument is week as many different styles use toppings which are not Italian. I personally love a pizza with pineapple and Canadian bacon. However, that is the only combination I will use with pineapple. Pineapple does not belong on a pizza with pepperoni or other toppings. According to Debate.org, 59% of respondents said yes, pineapple is an acceptable topping while 41% said no. And the debate goes on.

In conclusion, pizza is as simple or as complex as consumers wants. Regardless how you enjoy your pizza, it is a food which has had a long and successful history. From early forms in the Ancient world to the legendary beginnings in Italy, pizza will continue to be favorite around the US and around the world. So next time you enjoy your favorite pizza, remember its humble beginnings to its worldwide success. May even try a type of pizza you have never had before. You never know, you may find a new favorite. Here’s to pizza!

The Grumble Free Year: One family's journey to help others be grumble free

The Grumble Free Year: Twelve months, eleven family members and one impossible goal by Tricia Goyer is her family’s journey to attempt to grumble less and praise more. Before they set off on this seemingly impossible journey, Tricia and her husband, John, promise their kids that if they can achieve this goal, the family will go on a cruise. Their ten children agree to give it a try. The book is twenty chapters, separating into three parts: Gearing Up, The Challenge Begins, and Winding Down, Tricia Goyer details their planning, their successes as well as their failures and where the ideas need to be thrown out, added new ideas or improved upon original ones. At the end of each chapter, there are three Reflection Questions in which the reader can reflect on the topics discussed in each chapter and find the areas that need more attention or improvement. There is also a My Turn section in which the reader can apply the Grumble Free technique to their own journey. Using personal stories and well as relevant Bible verses, Tricia Goyer guides the reader to a grumble free year and beyond.

I was invited to become a member of the Grumble Free Year Launch team. Since I review books on a regular basis, I joined even though I was unfamiliar with Ms. Goyer’s work. I was curious about what this journey would be about. As I began, I was intrigued by her story as her younger children come to their family through adoption and the challenges they faced as the children were older adoptees. At the end of each chapter, I would thoughtfully answer the Reflection Questions and I begin to see where I could change my grumbly ways. Some of the challenges and methods do not apply to me…yet as my children are only 7 years old and 13 months. However, I now have a tool at my disposal in order to face those future grumble years by getting to the root of the grumbles. The Grumble Free Year is a wonderful book with heartfelt, personal and honest stories that shows that the goal of being grumble free isn’t easy, but it is rewarding. This book helped me realize where I am already working on my grumbling and the areas where I still need work. It is a book I will be visiting again and again as I need it. I highly recommend The Grumble Free Year.

The Grumble Free Year:

Twelve months, eleven family members, and one impossible goal

will be available November 5, 2019

in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Harvest of Gold: Darius and Sarah's story continues

Harvest of Gold by Tessa Afshar is the sequel to Harvest of Rubies. Sarah is still adjusting to life married to a Persian aristocrat. She has wealth, property, honor and power and yet the one thing she desperately wants seems impossible to get: her husband’s love. What she doesn’t realize is that Darius is battling within himself. He finds himself drawn to her, at the edge of falling in love with her, yet he always seems to find an excuse to pull himself back, to close himself off. When a plot against the king is discover, Darius is sent on a mission to expose the plotters before it is too late. At the same time, Sarah’s cousin, Nehemiah, hears God’s call to return to Jerusalem and rebuild its walls. Nehemiah’s journey to Jerusalem and Darius’ mission soon combine, and Darius finds himself being pulled by his mother’s God. Will Darius discover who is behind the plot against the king? Will he finally surrender to his love for Sarah? Will he stop running away from God and surrender to his call?

Harvest of Gold starts soon after Harvest of Rubies ends, and Darius and Sarah can’t seem to find a peaceful life before they are caught up in another plot to unravel. This book didn’t have the same intensity as the first book and it’s drama seemed to be drawn out. The story was separated into three parts. The third part is where the real emotions and drama happens although it seems rushed in order to finish the book. Overall, I enjoyed Darius and Sarah’s continued story and the challenges Nehemiah faced as he rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. If you enjoyed Harvest of Rubies, you will enjoy Harvest of Gold, although it doesn’t exact live up to its predecessor.

Harvest of Gold

is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook

Harvest of Rubies: a love story set in the Ancient Persian court

Harvest of Rubies by Tessa Afshar is the story of Sarah, a young Jewish woman with the ability to learn multiple languages, is trained to be a scribe. Her talents lead her to the employment of Queen Damaspia, wife of Atraxerxes, the king of Persia. She quickly finds herself trying to untangle an accusation made by the queen mother, Amestris, against Queen Damaspia. When Sarah unravels the lies and helps avert disaster, she wins the heart and favor of the queen. Her reward is to be married to one of Atraxerxes’ valued subjects. Darius isn’t thrilled by the prospect of marriage just as Sarah tries to get out of it. But they realize that they have no choice. As their marriage finds a rocky start, Sarah tries to make the most of her new role and life and she again finds herself uncovering an evil scheme against Darius’ estate. The schemer soon reveals that he has dangerous intentions. Can she uncover enough evidence to convince Darius of the evil scheme? Will Darius learn to trust her enough to follow the evidence? Will she trust the Lord enough to guide her through?

I loved Harvest of Rubies. Right from the start, I was drawn to Sarah and her intelligence and her modest opinion of herself. She feels that her only redeeming quality, her only value is being a scribe. When that is taken away from her, she is at a lost as her value. Ms. Afshar paints a detailed description of Persian court life and the societal structure of the time. I enjoyed Darius, a man of pride who finds himself drawn to his new bride despite his desire to keep his distance. As Darius and Sarah investigate the scheme, they learn that their first impressions weren’t the truth. Their love story felt very realistic as explanations and apologies don’t automatically result in trust and love. Darius and Sarah’s interactions with each are electrifying and by the end I smiled and laughed at their antics with each other. Their story continues in Harvest of Gold, which I will be reviewing soon. I highly recommend Harvest of Rubies.

Harvest of Rubies

is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook

Its National Cookie Month!

Everyone loves cookies! October is National Cookie Month! The word, “cookie,” derives from the Dutch word koekje meaning “small or little cake.” Cookies are sweet, small cakes which take various forms around the world. There go by many names around the world too. In America, they are cookies. In Britain and Australia, they are biscuits. In German, they are keks, or plzchen (Christmas cookie). In Spain and other Spanish-speaking nations, they are galletas. Let’s dive into the origins of cookies, the different types enjoyed around the world as well as a few of my favorite cookies.

According to culinary historians, cookies were originally testers. A small amount of cake batter was baked to test the oven temperature (What’s Cooking America). The earliest cookies date to 7^th century CE Persia (now Iran), one of the first countries to cultivate sugar. By the end of the 14^th century, Renaissance cookies had many cookie recipes. English, Scottish and Dutch immigrants were the first to bring cookies to America. Some cookies are made for everyday enjoyment, others are made for specific occasions. Christmas is a time where tons of cookies are made and passed along as gifts to friends and loved ones. In Australia, special biscuits are made for ANZAC Day on April 25. Anzac biscuits were originally used by the Australian army during World War I for their long shelf life. Today, these cookies are often used by veteran’s organizations for raise money for the care of war veterans (What’s Cooking America). 

Cookies are made throughout the world in various shapes, flavors and for various occasions. In India, nankhatai are a buttery shortbread cookie which is made traditionally during Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights (Smith, 2018). France is known for macarons, these delicious yet technically difficult cookies are often featured in cooking and baking competitions to test the competitors’ skills. One of Italy’s most popular cookie is the biscotti which can be enjoyed alone or dipped in coffee. In Iran, the reshteh khoshkar is a rice flour-based cookie which is deep fried and drenched in syrup. It is the traditional cookie for Ramadan (Smith, 2018). In China, a popular cookie is the almond ginger cookie (Bandurski). In Mexico, a cinnamon cookie known as Reganadas are made during Día de los Muertos. Tradition states the cookies represent the tormented souls of people and animals in purgatory as they wait to be allowed into paradise. In Argentina, alfajores are a breakfast cookie. A sandwich cookie made with shortbread filled with dulce de leche and rolled in coconut (Smith, 2018). And of course, in the United States, the chocolate chip cookie is a common favorite. Invented by Ruth Graves Wakefield (1905-1977) of Whitman, Massachusetts in 1937 while she ran the Toll House Restaurant (What’s Cooking America).

My first favorite cookie is the snickerdoodle. A type of sugar cookie which is rolled in cinnamon sugar and has a cracked surface when baked. It can be crisp or soft depending on the ingredients used. I prefer them soft and chewy. My second favorite cookie is shortbread, specifically Scottish shortbread. Shortbread cookies are made worldwide; however, the Scottish shortbread is one of the best known. The traditional Scottish biscuit made with sugar, butter and oat flour baked at a low temperature to prevent browning. They are usually poked with a fork or tool to create its design and can be cut into various shapes. Walkers Shortbread is Scotland’s largest food exporter of shortbread biscuits. My third favorite cookie is the peanut butter cookie. Especially my maternal grandmother’s recipe. It is simple, only four ingredients, easy to make and fun to decorate the criss cross design with the back of a fork. It was one of the first cookie recipes I learned to make, and it was the first I taught my daughter.

In conclusion, cookies have ancient beginnings and have developed throughout the known world and enjoyed throughout the world daily and on special occasions. Cookies with different ingredients, different shapes, different flavors, even different functions but all have special meanings to those who make and enjoy them. Enjoy National Cookie Month with your favorite cookie! Or take this opportunity to try and enjoy cookies from other countries. What are some of your favorite cookies?

References

Bandurski, Katie. The Best Cookies from Around the World. Taste of Home. https://www.tasteofhome.com/collection/cookies-around-the-world/. Retrieved September 28, 2019.

Smith, Nasha. 10 cookies from around the world that you'll want to try immediately. Insider. https://www.insider.com/cookies-around-the-world-2018-8. August 27, 2018.

What’s Cooking America. History of Cookies. https://whatscookingamerica.net/History/CookieHistory.htm. Retrieved September 28, 2019.

Cilka's Journey: one woman's life after surviving Auschwitz

Cilka’s Journey by Heather Morris is the harrowing story of Cecilia “Cilka” Klein who spent three years in Auschwitz before being liberated by the Russian army in 1945. However, once she thought she would be free to return home, the Russian authorities learn what she was at the camp and accused her of being a spy for the enemy. She is sentenced to 15 years hard labor at the Vorkuta Gulag in Siberia. Once again, she is given a number and forced to work in horrible conditions in the coal mines. Through a series of events, she finds herself removed from the mines and trained as a nurse in the hospital. There she learns the horrors that the other prisoners do not get to see. As she does her time, she has recurring nightmares and memories of her time in Auschwitz. Will Cilka survive her time in the prison? Will she ever be released and sent home?

Cilka’s Journey is a continuation of Ms. Morris’ bestselling book, The Tattooist of Auschwitz. I was unaware of this connection when I picked up Cilka’s Journey. However, you do not need to read The Tattooist in order to follow Cilka’s Journey. Given the subject matter, I thought the book would be difficult to read, so I wanted to pace myself. However, once I got into the story, I couldn’t put it down. I needed to know if Cilka’s survives and if she does, is she released? Does she escape? After reading Cilka’s Journey, I want to go back and get The Tattooist of Auschwitz. There are scenes and descriptions that are hard to read due to the subject matter, but the Vorkuta Gulag was very real and some of the events Ms. Morris depicts in this book really happened, which makes the horrors Cilka sees even more terrifying. I recommend Cilka’s Journey as a look into a part of history many people do not know or do not discuss.

Cilka’s Journey

is available in hardcover, eBook and audiobook