Title Tuesday: The Greatest Story ABC

Welcome to  Title Tuesday, my favorite day of the week! This day is dedicated to book suggestions, news, cartoons, and reviews. I write this portion of my blog because I am a big believer in the motivational speaker Charlie Jones' quote which says, "You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.” I try to meet as many new people as possible and to read everything I can. This is my way of sharing that information with you. You can see a visual summary of the books I have reviewed for both adults and children over on my Facebook page. If you are interested in understanding my rating system for books you can read my Book Review Explanation here and What I Believe here. If you want to check out what I am currently reading or what I want to read next, friend me on Goodreads!

As I mentioned last week, we here at The Forgiven Former Feminist are starting to branch out into children's books to help offer good options for parent's looking to build or strengthen their children's walks with God. 

Today is our very first Title Tuesday for Kids and we are going to take a look at The Greatest Story ABC book by  Kevin DeYoung (author) and Don Clark (Illustrator). I bought this book to be a "devotional" type book for my boys' quiet time. I wanted something simple, but theologically sound for them to learn and take to heart. 

So how did we use it? 
Each morning during our devotional time we go through this text after a boys devotional but before we do our memory verse work and song of the month.  We started out reading it exactly for the boys. Now we let them recite it to us as we turn each page. You can check out how we do this in the video below. 

So how long did it take for my boys to memorize the themes of this book? 

I bought The Greatest Story ABC in December of 2017, and we started reading it January 1 of 2018. This video was recorded on February 1, 2018. So, in just 31 short days my 3 year old son had memorized almost the ENTIRE text. My almost 2 year old has memorized the major phrases that he likes or finds interesting, but he doesn't have it down word for word yet.

Why do I like it?  
This is not another kids book that chops out the fun and easy stories for Sunday school coloring pages. This text covers the metanarrative of the Bible. The Greatest Story ABC uses a letter of the alphabet to teach the overarching story of God's incredible love for humanity. The illustrations are captivating and very detailed. I LOVE the fact that it isn't cartoon-ish! 

Overall, I would have to rate The Greatest Story ABC a solid A+ for children. It is a fabulous tool for teaching more than just Bible stories, but for teaching a deeper understanding of how the stories all fit together to show God's incredible love for humanity. I would strongly recommend this to anyone with young children (ages 2-5 is what is recommended), Sunday school teachers, homeschoolers, and private school teachers. It is a fun and beautiful way to teach the story of God to young children. 

Title Tuesday: Women of the Word

Welcome to  Title Tuesday, my favorite day of the week! This day is dedicated to book suggestions, news, cartoons, and reviews. I write this portion of my blog because I am a big believer in the motivational speaker Charlie Jones' quote which says, "You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.” I try to meet as many new people as possible and to read everything I can. This is my way of sharing that information with you. If you are interested in understanding my rating system for books you can read my Book Review Explanation here and What I Believe here. If you want to check out what I am currently reading or what I want to read next, friend me on Goodreads!

We all know the

Max Lucaso said, "The purpose of the Bible is simply to proclaim God's plan to save His children". How can you call yourself a Bible believing Christian and not  want to know everything that you can about His word? But here is a question. How do you go about learning to study God's word effectively? 

Let me introduce you to Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin. I first stumbled across this fabulous author and teacher by accident. When we were moving from Fort Bragg, North Carolina to San Diego California I needed something to listen to while we made the seven day trip across the lower half of the country. I didn't know much about audiobooks at this point, so I started looking into podcasts. One of the podcasts about motherhood mentioned this fabulous study she was doing through another podcast. That is how I found Jen Wilkin. After listening to every single podcast that she has ever put out, I decided that I wanted to read her books. Women of the Word is the first of her books that I read and I have to say, it has revolutionized how I look at the Word of God.  

In Women of the Word, Jen clearly and succinctly explains why all Christians (not just pastors and teachers) should study the Word of God. On page 45 she writes, 

Both false teachers and secular humanist rely on biblical ignorance for their messages to take root, and the modern church has proven fertile ground for those messages.

I could not agree more! She goes on to explain how to go about studying the Word in a way that is effective and practical. Wilkin teaches how to study God's Word with purpose, perspective,  patience, process, and prayer. She gives a detailed description (including pictures!) of how she writes and marks so that the reader has a good understanding of it. I also LOVE the fact that Jen doesn't claim that everyone in the church is a teacher. She reminds readers that teachers will be held to a higher standard (James 3:1) and that we need to ensure that we are making disciples of the Word not fans of the teacher. 

Overall, I would give Women of the Word by Jen Wilkin a solid A+. I think that every women's Bible study group should read through this book before anything else to ensure that they really are learning the Word with their hearts and minds equally. I also think that this book would be a great resource for a spiritually young believer. I wouldn't recommend it for a brand new believer but someone that is ready to learn and grow on their own could greatly benefit from this methodology.

  

Christmas Gift Guide: Teachers

Welcome to the Forgiven Former Feminist Gift Guide. As I mentioned in the INTRO, I will be posting gift ideas for different people throughout the month of December.  Last week, we focused on gift guides for family members. This week we are going to focus on important people in our lives! You can find my other gift guides here. Just so you know, all the links on this list are amazon affiliate links which means that if you purchase something from the links The Forgiven Former Feminist gets a small commission. Thank you for all of your support. With that being said, lets check out today's gift guide!

I owe a large part of who I am to Mrs. Gonzales, Mrs. Reid, and Dr. Quam. Each one of these women made a big impact on me while I was growing up. Saying thank you to a teacher can be difficult, but remembering them on Christmas can be a great way to say "thanks for all you do!" Today I want to talk about great gifts for teachers. 

Every single teacher that I know drinks coffee by the gallon. It doesn't seem to matter if they teach preschool or 12th grade, coffee is a requirement. This mug is so precious and I think the saying is incredibly true!  

I think this math wall clock would be a great gift for a math teacher! 

I know when I was teaching kindergarten there was never a time when I couldn't use an extra tote bag. This one is super cute and I LOVE the leather detail. I also really like this bag and all the pretty colors! 

I know that a lot of teachers have to adhere to a pretty strict dress-code, but socks often times aren't regulated too closely. These socks could be a super sweet gift to the teacher in your life. 

This 101 Blessings for Teachers would be a sweet way to start the conversation about Christ with your child's teacher!

I adore this personalized wall art for a teacher's classroom! I think it would be such a neat addition to any classroom. 

What do you think? Is there anything major that didn't make the list? If I left anything off please shoot me an email at theforgivenformerfeminist@gmail.com and let me know. You can also find me on facebook, twitter, and goodreads and I would LOVE to hear your thoughts!

Title Tuesday: Parenting in the Pew

Welcome to  Title Tuesday, my favorite day of the week! This day is dedicated to book suggestions and reviews. I write this portion of my blog because I am a big believer in the motivational speaker Charlie Jones' quote which says, "You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.” I try to meet as many new people as possible and to read everything I can. This is my way of sharing that information with you. If you are interested in understanding my rating system for books you can read my Book Review Explanation here and What I Believe here.

Today I want to tell you about a book that made me want to stand up and cheer. I mean it! Reading through Parenting in the Pew nearly brought me to tears on more than one occasion, and here is why. My entire experience in the church as a parent has been wrought with strife. I felt constantly at odds with my surroundings. I was uncomfortable with the nursing room, the ugly glances from people in the service if my child made a sound, and the idea of strangers (even well intention-ed) caring for my sons. I have spent the last two years (literally since the first Sunday after William was born!) trying to nail down this feeling, trying to be able to explain it to other people and I just didn't have the words. 

Enter, Robbie Castleman and her book Parenting in the Pew.

Mrs. Castleman uses wisdom, wit, and the Word of God to give a solid argument to what I have been feeling for years.  I believe that children deserve more than being separated from the rest of the body of Christ. Robbie nails this one on the head with her argument of how will you grow if you are only surrounded by people your own age? Castleman explains why children should be in the pew, and how to do it well. She is cheerful and clear in her writing which provides focus for parents that may be struggling with the issue of "children's church".  

I think we have a lot we can learn from our children and I think we do them a disservice to say you aren't mature enough to worship God. Castleman does an excellent job of encouraging and equipping parents to bring thier children out of the vegetable laden world of children's church and into the presence of God. I give  Parenting in the Pew a solid A+ and I strongly recommend anyone with children to go read it immediately! 

Motherhood Monday: Can I Be This Grateful?

Welcome to another Motherhood Monday! Motherhood is an incredible blessing. But it is also a huge challenge. Anyone that has experienced motherhood will tell you, there is an incredible shift in your very being when you become a mother. This is the day dedicated to all things "mommy" related. Check here each Monday for a new post.

I absolutely adore this picture, and let me tell you why. This is my very serious oldest child, William. He is my clean-it-up, don't-make-a-mess, time-to-do-work, child. 

In this picture he had just finished being outside for four hours while I coached twelve ladies in our garage gym ministry. 

He was hot, he was sweaty, and he was hungry. 

When we came inside he asked for a snack and I wanted to give him something to help him cool off, so I gave him some frozen grapes. He immediately took one out of the bag and popped it in his mouth. I told him to stop and that we needed to thank God for these grapes. William looked up to heaven and said, "God thank you, grapes"

One of the ladies in the gym was standing there and took this picture. It will forever make me think of how much gratitude my son has, for little bitty grapes. 

It makes me think, can I be this grateful? Do I look up to heaven with my heart open thanking my heavenly father for all that He has given me? During mealtime prayers, am I authentic in praising and thanking for the food before me or has it become just a habit that I do? Do I have William's level of gratitude when God lovingly calls me out and reminds me to be faithful? 

1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." My new goal for myself is to be grateful like William, in all circumstances. I want to teach my boys what authentic gratitude is and why God is SO deserving of it. So I am going to start today! 

Today I am grateful for my sweet William that reminds me daily of how very loved we are by God and how much we have to be grateful for each and every day. Today I am grateful for the reminder of how much God has provided for us and how He molds and teaches us in unusual ways, even using our children to teach us new things. 

Talent

Talent has been written about throughout history. Napolean Bonaparte is credited with saying, “Let the path be open to talent”. Maya Aneglou believes that “every person is born with talent”.  Louisa May Alcott wrote that, “You have a good many little gifts and virtues, but there is no need of parading them, for conceit spoils the finest genius. There is not much danger that real talent or goodness will be overlooked long, and the great charm of all power is modesty”. The list goes on and on. All of these names are people that had a talent and used it. Harnessing a talent is one of the greatest things a person can do, especially when they use it for the glory of God.  

1 Peter 4:10 (NIV) commands us, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace”. Could that be any clearer? God gave us gifts and talents…. USE THEM! So why am I writing about this? I have a gift that I have been trying to squish and hide for years.

I am a reasonably smart young woman. In college the feminist movement really got ahold of me. I bought into the angry man hating ways more than you can imagine. Thoughts like these took root in my mind, “I am smart, so that means that I am meant for better things than being a housewife…. Right? If I am not going to get married, I must have to give up kids too.” Because of this I began to squash the person that God made me to be and instead I worked in the opposite direction. A flashy internship where I wore beautiful clothes and met with important people kept me pretty busy. But, at the end of the day when I crawled into bed I ached for more.

Then I became a teacher.

I am made to serve. That is where I feel all the pieces fall into place. Yes, I am a teacher by profession but the reason that I love teaching? I love being able to help children reach their full potential, even if they don’t see it yet. My teaching is more advocacy than anything else. Yes, I teach numbers and letters, phonics and addition. More importantly I teach strength of mind, heart, and character. I push each child to take the next step even when they think that have nothing left. This week one of my kids had a huge break through. He met several of his developmental milestones for the very first time. My heart swelled with pride, thankfulness, joy, admiration, and love at seeing the smile on his face when he got to hand his report to his dad.

I have no idea what each child faces when they go home. Some of them have wonderful families, some of them have difficult families. As a teacher I am: educator, provider, protector, friend, confidant, and advocate.  While I may not be allowed to witness outright, I can do other things. I can be a smiling face, a shoulder to cry on and the arms that comfort them. No, these kids may not remember my name when they graduate high school but each and every single one of them was loved while they were in my class.

Romans 12: 6-8 says, “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness”. What is your gift? Are you using it, or is something holding you back? Finding that spot, where you can make a difference is incredible and I encourage you today to think about what makes your heart sing. What is God calling you to do with what he has given you? 

Totally Worth It!

I promised to write more in the new year and yet I haven't hardly written at all. I have a good reason, I promise. My reason is? I am a teacher! We are finally out of the holiday rut and we are able to actually function as a class. It has been wonderful getting to know my kids and I am falling in love with them.

The one downside to this class has been... the classroom.

When I walked in to my new classroom I was shocked at the condition of the room. The tables were pushed up against one side of the room, there were no decoration on the walls, the toys/games were strewn all over the classroom and the books were shoved in any nook or cranny in which they would fit. It was a mess. I jumped in with both feet and made a list of everything I could see that needed to be done. As I went along I discovered more things that needed to be done and for a while there I was adding things faster than I could get things done. After two solid weeks of work my classroom is clean, organized and ready to go. I wish I had thought to take before pictures but sadly I did not, so you will have to deal with just the after pictures.

Computer and Games Center

I found and alphabetized all the books!

Bulletin Board Outside the Classroom 

Our Word Wall 

Left of my desk

Right of my desk

Parent Info

My Classroom

Yes, this was difficult and frustrating and I was overwhelmed on more than one occasion. But then last week I asked my kids to draw their favorite part of school... and this is what I found:

It is all worth it. 

Teaching in Texas

Thank you to everyone who sent encouraging emails last week!

For those of you new to The Forgiven Former Feminist, I have been pursuing a teaching certification here in the great state of Texas. My test was last Sunday and I was really nervous about it.

It was such a blessing the day of the test to find emails in my inbox wishing me luck and letting me know that I was in your prayers.

I am happy to report that I passed the test and I am officially ready to begin applying for teaching positions!