Blue Shoes and Happiness

Blue Shoes and Happiness is the latest in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series.

It does not take any time at all and you step right into Africa, smelling the aroma of pumpkin cooking, see the wide open sky, and feel the warmth of the sun make your skin brown.

It is another great read featuring Mma Ramotswe with her traditional build and little white van.  She insightfully solves the mysteries of day to day events in the lives of other Botswanians as she also relates to those who make her life meaningful. 

Here is a little exchange that gives you a taste of what you get with Blue Shoes and Happpiness: ...

On the way she remarked to Mma Makutsi that she was not wearing her new blue shoes that day.  "Was she giving them a rest? One should rotate one’s shoes, said Mma Ramatswe, that is well known."

Mma Makusi smiled, she was embarrassed, but in the warm intimacy of the truck, at such a moment, after the emotionally cathartic showdown they had all just witnessed, she felt that she could speak freely of shoes,’ ’they are a bit small for me Maa, she confessed.  I think you were right, but I felt great happiness when I wore them, and I shall always remember that.  They are such beautiful shoes.”

Maa Ramotswe laughed. “”Well, that is the important thing, isn’t it Mma? To feel happiness and then to remember it.” 

Blue Shoes and Happiness

author: Alexander McCall Smith

227 pg hard back
2006

The Gospel According to John

The Gospel of John has many fascinating themes running through it. This time I was not sure just what topic I would focus on but as I began to read it through it in the NIV 1984 translation, “truth” kept popping out at me. John starts off his account of the life and ministry of Jesus by saying, “the Word become flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. Then John records over 2 dozen specific accounts of Jesus saying “I tell you the truth…” In reflecting on the truth that Jesus is proclaiming, I feel one can get a better understanding of the important things Jesus told those around him. And now through John’s writing all who read throughout the generations are able to glimpse with a little more clarity into those key things as well. I will list the “I tell you the truth…” of Jesus as I discovered them from chapter 1 on through to chapter 21.

#1 John 1:51 He then added, “I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
#2 John 3:3 In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. ”

#3 John 3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
#4 John 3:11 I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony.

#5 John 5:19 Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

#6 John 5:24 “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.
#7 John 5:2 I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.

#8 John 6:26 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.

#9 John 6:32 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.
#10 John 6:47 I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life.

#11 John 6:53 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.

#12 John 8:34 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
#13 John 8:51 I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.”

#14 John 10:1 “I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber.
#15 John 10:7 Therefore Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.

#16 John 12:24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.

#17 John 13:16 I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.
#18 John 13:19 I tell you the truth, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me.”

#19 John 13:21After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me.”
# 20 John 13:38 Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!

#21 John 14:12 I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

#22 John 16:7 But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
#23 John 16:20 I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.

#24 John 16:23 In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.

#25 John 21:18 I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”

The Gospel According to John
Author: John
46 pages printed out in large font

Rich Mullins; An Arrow Pointing to Heaven

A very interestingly written book of the life and beliefs of Rich Mullins complied of many quotes by Rich and friends and wise people that have followed after God throughout history.  The 10 chapter book uses each chapter to give a different aspect of Rich's life from childhood to death and chooses one of his songs as the key focal point of the chapter. So, if you are familiar and enjoy Rich Mullin's music, the book is all the more meaningful. I really liked the last chapter the best as Rich lived life with a very real view of death.
this quote, "Live like you'll die tomorrow, Die knowing you'll live forever" sums his thoughts up wonderfully.  It is great to get to read a book that comes highly recommended and that is how this book came into my hands... from a friend and colleague working in Burma who loves to sing the songs of Rich Mullins and desires to also be an arrow pointing to heaven for his family and those he serves in a land that is much need.  

Rich Mullins; an Arrow Pointing to Heaven
author: James Bryan Smith
223 pages; hardback (with study guide and cd)
2002

Why are You Angry?

Such a sweet story of one pig's insightful ways of helping his farmyard friends... and in the end they all help out little Fatty too...i won't give it away :)

My friend Bap is author and she wrote the book in Thai and asked me to help her with the English...what a fun project. A great read for young and old alike!

Why are You Angry?
author: Bap
22 pages; paperback
2010

The Magical Beans

a colorful little story about valuing the treasure that comes your way.  Bap does a great job in using repetition to help teach without loosing the reader's interest in the story. This little story is told in both Thai and English and has a happy ending.  





The Magical Beans
author: Bap
23 pages; paperback
2010

No Wonder They Call Him the Savior

I was at our monthly dinner/discussion group and the article we were reviewing focused on what in Norway is called "Jesus Meditation", basically a type of imaginative reading of the Bible where you put yourself in the scene and try to picture it with all of your senses. You seek to see the scene with your inner eye while praying to and worshiping Jesus as if you were one of those involved.  When we were leaving, I asked the group if there is an author that is good at writing in this way, and Max Lucado was recommended.      


Max Lucado, author of several books, writes No Wonder They Call Him The Savior and then for 164 pages he gives 33 short, creative examples of how the Savior is who he is and what that means to a world that is in need of such a Savior. He divides the book in thirds with parts called the cross:its words, the cross:its witnesses, the cross:its wisdom.

  

My favorite bit was called: God’s Testimony. Max Lucado brings the reader along on a trip to the out woods of Rio de Janeiro for a day in God’s creation away from the bustling city. He talked with a 70-plus year old farmer and suggests getting out of the libraries, lay down our pens and step into creation to experience a fresh miracles that happen all around us.  He wrote that the time with the farmer reminds us, “there is a certain understanding of God on the cross that comes only with witnessing his daily testimony.”  The last vignette was also very meaningful. The night that Jesus returns to the locked upper room is imaginatively described and what I liked best was the outcome of that incredible encounter with the risen Lord Jesus. (This one was called The Roar).    

As the short stories do not build on one another and each has their own theme, I suggest reading them one at a time to savor the meaning, maybe over the course of a month.  The book was written in 1986 and some stories and use of language is dated to that time period, but most show forth timeless truths that inspire. 

No Wonder They Call Him the Savior
by Max Lucado
164 pages; paperback
2009

the gospel according to Luke

Luke, one of the authors of the Gospel accounts of Jesus, wrote his testimony primarily to a non-Jewish audience so that they could further understand the life of Jesus, who he was and what he taught. Luke wrote this in about A.D. 70.

There are two areas of interest for me this time that I read through the Gospel of Luke…one is the issue of fear/afraid and the other is the personal ways in which Luke includes names in his account. So I will take it from the beginning and introduce us to each person for the first time that they appear in action (I will not list here names of those from the past or names of people who are off-stage but the main actors.) Then I’ll list the passages where fear comes into play. Here we go…

Theophilus (this is who Luke wrote the book for)
Zechariah- a priest
Elizabeth- wife of Zechariah
Gabriel- angel of the Lord
Mary- virgin pledge to be married to Joseph
The Holy Spirit- he over-shadowed Mary so she conceived a son
John- the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth
Joseph- pledged to be married to Mary, hometown Bethlehem
Jesus- Christ the Lord
Simeon- righteous and devout man in the temple
Anna- prophetess in the temple
Herod- locked up John in prison
God- in a voice from heaven said to Jesus at his baptism, you are my Son whom I love…
the devil, later in the book called Satan- tempting Jesus in the desert
Simon- also called Simon-Peter, a fisherman …Jesus went to his house and healed Simon’s mother-in-law
James and John- the son’s of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.
Levi- tax collector who followed Jesus
Jesus’ 12 apostles (some have been listed already):
Simon
Andrew- Simon’s brother
James
John
Philip
Bartholomew
Matthew
Thomas
James-the son of Alphaeus
Simon the Zealot
Judas the son of James
Judas Iscariot-became a traitor
Simon- a Pharisee that invited Jesus to dinner the night expensive perfume was poured on Jesus’ feet
3 women who helped to support Jesus:
Mary- called Magdalene had 7 demons come out of her
Joanna-the wife of Cruz, the manager of Herod’s household
Susanna
Legion- the name of a powerful demon that Jesus cast into a herd of pigs
Jairus- ruler of the synagogue whose 12 year old girl was dying
Moses and Elijah- met up with Jesus to talk about his departure
Martha- she opened her home to Jesus
Mary- Martha’s sister (she chose what was better)
Zacchaeus—a rich tax collector that now has salvation
Pilate- finally gave Jesus to the people for crucifixion, even tho he tried 3 times not to
Barabbas- a criminal that was released rather than Jesus
Joseph of Arimathea- a member of the Council that was waiting for the King of God and he wrapped Jesus’ body and lay him in a tomb.
Mary the mother of James-she was wth the other women at the empty tomb of Jesus.
Cleopas—one on the road to Emmaus and Jesus met with him


Fear and afraid in Luke
1:12-13 Zechariah was gripped with fear but the angel said, “do not be afraid”…
1:30 the angel said, “do not be afraid Mary, you have found favor with God.”
2:10 angel said to the shepherds “do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy…
5:10 Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.”
8:25 when the boat was about to go down and Jesus speaks to the storm and it is calm the disciples “in fear and amazement ask each other, “who is this?”
8:50 someone came from the house of Jairus saying his daughter had died. Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, “don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.”
9:44-45 Jesus was telling his 12 about his betrayal …and they were afraid to ask him about it.
19:21 “I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man.” Part of a parable that Jesus told of a king and some minas.
20:19 “The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people.” After Jesus told the parable of the vineyard and the owner sending his son who he loved and the tenants killed him.
21:9 Jesus told his disciples “when you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened.
21:11… there will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.
21:26 …Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.
22:2..it was Passover time “and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people.
23:40…but the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God, “ he said…
24:5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “ why do you look for the living among the dead?
24:37… the disciples were in a room talking together saying Jesus had risen when he stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” They were started and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost.

The Gospel According to Luke
Author: Luke (who later wrote Acts)
46 page in large leather Bible