REJUVENATE: Reading for Pleasure

October 15, 2017 Dawn Klinge

REJUVENATE: week 4

Reading for Pleasure

To rejuvenate your mind and body, sometimes you just need to relax with a great book! Even if you love to read, like I do, you might need a little push and some encouragement to take a break from your work. That’s what I’m here for today. Go read a book!

Your productivity will improve with regular times of rest and relaxation.

“Rest time is not waste time. It is economy to gather fresh strength. It is wisdom to take occasional furlough. In the long run, we shall do more by sometimes doing less.” –Charles Spurgeon

I love to read, and sometimes it feels like I’m always reading- but most of my reading is best classified as study, and it’s related to the writing I do. I have to give myself a push every now and then, asking myself, when is the last time you read a book purely for pleasure?

That, my friends, is the question I want you to ask of yourself today. What was the last book you read for pleasure? If you can’t remember, it has been too long!

Scientific Benefits of Reading

1. Reading helps relax you.

A 2009 study at the University of Sussex showed that reading was the most effective way to overcome stress (compared to other traditional relaxing activities such as t.v viewing, taking a walk, etc.). This was evaluated using heart rate and muscle tension.

2. It helps keep your mind sharp

According to the journal, Neurology, a study with 294 participants found that those who died at an average age of 89 and engaged in mentally stimulating activities such a reading experienced slower memory decline than those who didn’t.

3. It may help you sleep better

Many sleep experts recommend a good book with a dim bedside light over the bright lights of a laptop.

4. Reading fiction can make you more empathetic

This is according to self-reported empathic skills of a group of fiction readers in a study reported in the journal PLOS ONE

Information adapted from the Huff Post article, 6 Science Backed Reasons to Go Read a Book Right Now, by Laura Schocker

· Public libraries usually have online catalogues where you can reserve the books you want. You’ll get a notice when they’re in and then you can pick them up.

· You can often get used books on Amazon for a penny + 3.99 shipping.

· Amazon wish lists are a great way to keep track of the books people recommend to you.

· Pinterest has a wealth of pins that are book lists, for any genre

· A reading journal is a fun way to keep track of the books you’ve read so you can recommend them to others, remember which authors you enjoy, and feel a sense of accomplishment as you add titles.

Start a Book Club!

A book club is a wonderful excuse to get together with friends and enjoy some reading time.

My book club was just three ladies. We all had young kids at the time. It was our way of assuring that we’d get some time to spend together. Our monthly book club was a regular date on the calendar that I always looked forward to.

We met at coffee shops and we took turns choosing the books. Our meetings usually lasted for hours but the book discussions were only a small part. Truthfully, there were some times when we never even got around to discussing the book! We were happy to just have time to chat and have a break away from our responsibilities.

Some of my favorite books were ones that my friends picked out, titles that might have never chosen myself.

All books listed below use Amazon Smile links which benefit Compassion International. This means, at no extra cost to you, a small portion of each sale will go to children in need.

Fiction:

Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown

The Star Shine Bright (and any of the Raleigh Harmon series) by Sibella Giorello

The Mitford Series by Jan Karon

Unbroken, By Laura Hilldebrand

Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson

Lilac Girls, by Martha Hall Kelly

What Alice Forgot, by Liane Moriarty

Redeeming Love, by Francine Rivers

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Annie Barrows

Where’d You Go, Bernadette, by Maria Semple

Coffee Table Books:

Elements of Style, by Erin Gates

Domino: The Book of Decorating, by Deborah Needleman

The Nesting Place, by Myquillyn Smith

Paris Street Style, by Isabelle Thomas

Paris in Color, by Nichole Robertson

Humans of New York, by Brandon Stanton

Vogue Living: Houses, Gardens, People, by Hamish Bowles

Apples for Jam: A Colorful Cookbook, by Tessa Kiros

Eloise: The Ultimate Edition, by Kay Thompson

Steve McCurry: The Iconic Photographs, by Steve McCurry

Non-Fiction:

The Power of a Praying Woman, by Stormie Omartian

The Circle Maker, by Mark Batterson

The Gifts of Imperfection, by Brene Brown

The Jesus I Never Knew, by Philip Yancey

Undaunted Courage, by Stephen E. Ambrose

The Broken Way, by Ann Voskamp

The Magnolia Story, by Chip and Joanna Gaines

Simply Tuesday, by Emily P. Freeman

Love Does, by Bob Goff

Encounters with Jesus, by Timothy Keller

Today's PDF, HERE

In the comments, let's talk books! Tell us your recommendations.

CREATE: Flower Arranging

October 15, 2017 Dawn Klinge

Here are five commonly acknowledged benefits of fresh flowers:

1. They make you home smell better

2. Flowers can spark creativity

3. They promote relaxation

4. Flowers improve your décor

5. They boost your mood

Bringing fresh flowers into your home is one of the easiest and most effective ways to instantly elevate the environment into a space that inspires and calms an anxious mind. They’re a wonderful gift from God, a reminder of the grace and artistry of our Creator.

I love to arrange flowers into pretty arrangements for my home and to give as gifts. The process of putting them together is a fun way to exercise my creativity and the end result is always gratifying. It’s hard to go wrong with flower arranging. It’s really up to personal preference. However, there are a few tips and tricks that are helpful so I’ve made the video, below, showing how I made three different kinds of arrangements.

Some useful items to help you with arranging flowers are: a variety of bowls and vases, both tall and short, glass beads or marbles, floral frogs, floral foam, tape, sharp scissors clippers, floral food (usually comes with flowers), and your imagination!

Hint: thrift shops are a great place to stock up on vases. When you haven’t spent a lot of money on them, they’re easy to give away!

To help your flowers last longer: remove any leaves that will be in the water, cut stems at an angle, and change the water in the vase every couple of days. Also, keep the arrangement away from heating vents and direct sunlight.

Pinterest is my favorite place to find ideas for floral arrangements. I have a board for this purpose that you’re welcome to check out.

“Arranging a bowl of flowers in the morning can give a sense of quiet in a crowded day - like writing a poem or saying a prayer.” –Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Here are the flower arrangements that are included in the video:

You might notice in the video, when I first put this arrangement together, the roses were still closed tightly. This picture was taken a day later. The roses opened up and filled out the arrangement. A little extra time and the use of warm water in the bowl were both helpful towards coaxing these roses to open up.

More tips...

· When hosting a party, some areas to think about adding fresh flowers to are: the living room and/or entry, the dining room, and the bathroom.

· Try buying 3-4 varieties of flowers and have fun playing around with different textures and colors. Costco and farmer’s markets are my favorite places to shop for lower priced flowers.

· Add large, heavy flowers first and fill in with smaller, lighter blooms.

· Use flowers with various shapes and stem lengths. An opposite approach, that’s quite elegant, is to make a tightly packed, uniform arrangement using one type of flower.

· Make your bouquet taller than its container by about one and a half times. Also, make the width balance the height.

Don’t wait for someone else to buy you flowers. Treat yourself! Surround yourself with beauty and enjoy the gifts that God has so graciously given.

If you want to share pictures of the pretty flower arrangements you make, how about posting it to Instagram, using the hasthtag: #renewflowers. It will be fun to see what you create!

For today's PDF, click HERE

What are your favorite flowers? Can you think of someone who could use a little encouragement? Maybe some flowers would make their day! Let's talk about anything you like today in the comments.

CONNECT: Hospitality

October 15, 2017 Dawn Klinge

“And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27

Over the past few weeks we’ve discussed ways to connect with other people and welcome them into our homes and lives. These efforts will often be rewarding, strengthening community bonds and inviting new friendships. Those are wonderful blessings, good for your heart, mind, and soul, but as Christians, there’s another, more important reason behind our desire to love our neighbors.

Jesus asked us to.

It’s that simple. A heart of hospitality honors God through obedience.

Here’s the other thing. Loving our neighbor is something that needs to happen even when it isn’t personally rewarding. Sometimes hospitality it will be downright hard (and sometimes it will be a lot of fun). Some people are easier than others to love. Love them all.

Inviting people into our homes is one form of hospitality, and one way to love our neighbors, but it’s not the only way. Hospitality is more of an attitude of the heart than anything else. I’ve heard it said that hospitality is when someone feels at home in your presence. You don’t have to be at home to make someone feel that way.

How can we make people feel at home when they’re around us? It takes practice and an intentional effort to anticipate the needs of others. I’m still working on it. There have been many times when I’ve spent time with someone, left, and only later did a thought on how I could have helped come to mind! If that happens to you, too, be gentle on yourself. We’re not perfect. It’s the heart that counts.

I find that when an idea comes to mind, on how I can help someone, it’s best to write it down before I forget.

Hospitality is God’s love acting itself out in tangible ways. Let’s be on the lookout for ways to be of service to our neighbors.

Here’s one of my favorite verses on the topic,

“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,” – Matthew 25:35

Below I’ve listed some practical ways we can love our neighbors. I hope the list inspires you and prompts even more ideas.

Below you’ll find an interview from a dear lady who has a passionate heart for hospitality, Sue Moore Donaldson. She has a lot of wisdom to offer on this topic so I’m so pleased to welcome her…

For today's PDF click HERE

What are some of your goals towards hospitality in the coming year? Let's talk about that in the comments!

SABBATH: Worship

October 15, 2017 Dawn Klinge

Here we are at the end Renew, our final day. I pray that this experience has blessed you and has offered practical guidance to help you to feel renewed in your mind, body, and spirit.

Ending our time together with a focus on worship seems particularly fitting. Worshipping God is what we made for. God is worthy of all praise and there is nothing of greater importance than having our hearts turned to him in worship.

“For when we cease to worship God, we do not worship nothing, we worship anything.”

–Jonathan Edwards

Life is busy and it’s easy to lose focus of what’s most important. When you start to feel pulled in many directions and when your spirit is not at rest, it’s helpful to do is a self-analysis of where you are placing your primary affections. If God is not first in your life, what is it that has become an idol? Even good things can become idols.

“Worship is pulling our affections off our idols and putting them on God.”

-Timothy Keller

Worship is an attitude of the heart, and it can express itself in many ways. Music can be a powerful expression of worship. I can’t wait to hear the music in heaven. It’s going to be incredible! What a sweet joy it is to let go of everything else and to worship God through song. These are the times when heaven seems to come closest to earth, when our hearts are set upon God and our love for him.

“The best, most beautiful, and most perfect way that we have of expressing a sweet concord of mind to each other is by music.”

-Jonathan Edwards

Your Sabbath rest needs to include worship, time that’s set apart for God, as you soak in the goodness of who he is. Whether you are at church, singing along during the worship portion, or at home, listening to music that honors God, these are times that are a sacred. Worship God and he will bring renewal to your spirit.

Below, you will find a playlist of some beautiful worship songs. You’ll also find the final interview of our Sabbath series, from the lovely Alisa Nicaud, of Flourishing Today.

I want to say thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for taking part in this online retreat. I believe that God had a hand in bringing us together and I trust that he will continue the good work that he has started in all of us. God bless you.

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” –Romans 12:1-2