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I was asked to review the book Boy-sterous Living by Jean Blackmer. But, as much as I am SO excited to read the book, I still have not had time with the flurry to pack for our trip to China. SO - I am going to give you info on the book that looks absolutely wonderful and then, when I read it, I will blog a review on it.

About the book: Raising boys isn't easy. Life with them is loud. If it's quiet, they're probably up to something. Boys are messy, competitive, fearless, and proud. Living with them pretty much guarantees that you're in for an adventure.

In Boy-sterous Living, Jean shares a few of the priceless stories and laugh-out-loud lessons that she and her boys have experienced over the years. With humorous insight and practical advice, she offers encouragement and ideas to help both mothers and fathers impact and shape the lives of their sons. From understanding their love of sports to overcoming the superman complex, Jean shows moms how to find joy and contentment in everyday life by celebrating the laughter, passion, noise, and endless energy boys bring to our lives.

About the author: Jean is currently the Publishing Manager for MOPS International and she's been free-lance writing for 16 years. She has been published in a variety of local and national publications, including: Guideposts, MomSense, Today's Christian Woman, Christian Parenting Today, American Girl, Proverbs 31 Woman, Chicken Soup for the Mother and Son Soul, Chicken Soup Cookbook for the Busy Mom's Soul, Focus on the Family's Teen Phases, Guideposts Miracle Series, and others.

She also co-authored her first book, Where Women Walked: Powerful True Stories of Women's Perseverance and God's Provision. (Tyndale/Focus on the Family, 2004) This book was nominated for a Gold Medallion Award.

Jean graduated from the University of Colorado in Boulder with a Bachelor's (1987) and a Master's (1992) degree in Journalism. She lives in Boulder with her husband Zane; three boys, Josh, Jordan, and Jake.

Can't wait to read it!!! With three boys of my own - it sounds "right up my alley"!!

I was sent a copy of Peter Lundell's new book, Prayer Power, and asked to join the blog tour - I must say - IT IS A PRIVILEGE!! I was totally challenged by this book and am excited to share it with others. Lundell has set up his book so that you can read a portion everyday for a month - I like that - everyone has time for that! And it is packed with meat - I love some of the whole new twists Lundell puts on prayer. This book came at a good time for me - I want to grow my prayer life - and he has some great suggestions on how to do that. For me, it wasn't all information I had heard before - it was new, fresh, and full of practicality.

Here is what the publisher says:

Prayer. It's one of the most talked about subjects in religious circles. We have books, blogs and organizations focused on teaching Christ followers the correct way to communicate with God. In Prayer Power, author Peter Lundell shares his own personal struggle with communicating with God and provides insight from examples in Psalms and the gospels for Christians to examine to bulk up their prayer life. Lundell ends each chapter with growth gauges and suggested prayer activities to encourage and establish routine prayer time. You'll find his honest approach to prayer refreshing, his transparency encouraging and his instruction helpful and practical.

Interview Questions

1. Many Christians don't talk about hardships with prayer. Why do you open up about the struggles you have had drawing close to God in prayer?

My first draft of the book read like an instruction manual of all the things you ought to do to be spiritual like me. I realized that the more spiritual I tried to sound, the less honest I was being. I was hiding behind my words. No reader should have to put up with all that. And besides, it was boring.

So I determined to be totally honest. I rewrote the book and openly shared my doubts, struggles, and failures, because everybody goes through the same things. And if I’m not honest with readers, how can I expect readers to be honest with others or even themselves?

I take sort of an “I mess up and you mess up, but God loves us anyway, so let’s connect with him” approach. Readers often tell me how much they identify with that. And when they read about how God still worked amazing things in my life and in others’, it gives them hope.

I’ve discovered two things: First, honesty is liberating, and I don’t want to live any other way. Second, when we stick with prayer and don’t give up, answers and victories rise from our struggles. Answers and victory never rise from pretending.

I hope to connect with readers so that they’ll in turn connect with me and the victories I’ve experienced—so that they will experience their own victories.

2. What are some of the things God has taught you about prayer over the years - especially from the perspective of your leadership roles?

It’s good to listen before I talk. If I always dive into prayer and never spend time listening, I only dump my own “give-me list” on God. But his word says in 1 John 5:14–15 that when I seek and pray according to his will, my prayer will be answered. So the key is to first get in sync with God.

We’ve got to have a hunger, or thirst, for God. Without hunger, no program or technique or anything we learn will go anywhere. But with hunger for God, we could know almost nothing and still have a great prayer life. Hunger is singularly important—which is why it’s the first chapter.

When I pray with faith and don’t get what I ask for, God will soon show me why. There is always something to learn in unanswered prayer.

3. What do you mean by "praying boldly" and how can Christians learn to do that?

Praying boldly is the opposite of excessively polite prayer and of—I’ll just say it—wimpy prayer. Praying boldly is praying without intimidation, not caring what other people think, expressing ourselves to God without concern for being appropriate or religiously correct but rather with a passion from our guts that pours out, unashamedly. Bold prayer is not arrogant. It’s humble and faithful, because of its self-abandoned focus on God and expectation of what God will do.

People often assume they must be polite or solemn before God. Nowhere does the Bible teach this. Two thirds of the Psalms are complaints, and they are not polite. Most prayers in both Old and New Testaments are bold, expectant, and to the point. When Jesus teaches on prayer in Luke 11:5–10, he talks about an obnoxious guy who bangs on his friend’s door at midnight. Then he says we should bug him the same way by continually asking, seeking, and knocking. I often wonder if God gets tired of diplomatic prayers. Why else would he actually tell us to be bold and persistent—and use examples that, if we were on the receiving end, most of us would say are obnoxious.

There’s no real method to doing this. It’s a mindset that chooses to free itself from previous assumptions and uses the Bible as a model of how to pray.

4. How can we practice the presence of God and include him in everyday tasks?

Practicing the presence of God primarily has to do with developing an attitude, a continual awareness that God is always with us, and that in turn, we always incline our attention toward him.

The first thing most of us need to do is to slow down or cut unnecessary activities from our calendar. Busyness is an enemy to practicing the presence of God. Jesus repeatedly blew off other people’s agendas for him and continually focused on his purpose for being here. Pastors who do the same are always happier, closer to God, and more effective. And when we practice the presence of God, we increase our ability to be intimate with him when times do get busy.

Here are some practices that may help develop that attitude: My last thought before I sleep and my first thought when I wake up is centered on God. When I get mad or stressed, I try to see things from God’s perspective. When I am waiting for someone, I use that time to pray. I do menial tasks with an awareness and love of God. I often have a praise song on my mind as I go through the day.

5. You're a proponent for creating a place of prayer and establishing a time of prayer. Why are these important elements for prayer?

These two disciplines are the most important external helps for maintaining a strong prayer life. Without them, our good intentions eventually drown under the assaults of busyness and distractions.

A place of prayer helps us concentrate in the face of distractions. That place could be the church sanctuary, an empty room in the house, a spot in the back yard, or even a rug laid out on the floor, on which the only thing we do is pray. The physical surroundings of a location devoted to prayer tell our brains, “Focus on God.” And if we ever feel bored or in a rut of over-familiarity with a place, a change of location can be stimulating.

Establishing a set prayer time engrains a habit of prayer into our minds, such that if we miss it, we feel anxious because something is missing or wrong—and it is! A set prayer time is not to force ourselves to pray as much as to create a boundary of protection from busyness. That boundary of time is like a protective fence around a garden, where we give ourselves freedom from intrusions to spend unhindered time with God. Preferably we’ll do this as early as possible in the morning, so we can lay the whole day before the Lord. And unlike a prayer place, I have never found benefit in changing my prayer time, so I highly recommend keeping it sacred, especially if we’re travelling or really busy. Whether short or long, this protective fence of a set time must be intentional, because no one else can do it for us.

6. What advice would you give to people who struggle with God when they pray?

True men and women of prayer will sometimes struggle in prayer, as did many figures in the Bible, like Jacob’s symbolic wrestling with the angel and Jesus’ wrestling over his fate in Gethsemane.

Like anyone else, I struggle with unanswered prayer or major decisions to do something by faith, when tragedy strikes, problems of injustice, and healings that take a lot longer than I’d like. The key is to keep struggling—don’t give up and too quickly assume something is God’s will before you know for sure. The angel commended Jacob for not giving up until he got a blessing. God the Father actually sent an angel to help Jesus wrestle in Gethsemane. Sometimes wrestling in prayer is God’s will for us.

Wrestling in prayer is actually a good thing. It draws us closer to God. And it changes us in the process. And that’s what most of us hope for!

GRAND PRIZE BUNDLE INCLUDES:

(leave a comment for an opportunity to win this great package)

Prayer Power by Peter Lundell

When God Turned off the Lights by Cecil Murphey (Cec is one of Peter's mentors)

Committed but Flawed by Cecil Murphey

So I may not be the most “qualified” to review this book, besides the fact that I read it. I’m not middle aged, at least I don’t think I am, I suppose I’m even part of the “gimme” generation that the author writes about, though I often feel as if I belong in the middle aged category! My pants and wallet are tight, a baby is on the way, and I’ll be caring for my mother before I know it! Family Squeeze: Tales of Hope and Hilarity for a Sandwiched Generation, written by Phil Callaway was perfect for me, even though I’m only almost 25, rather than almost 45. :-)

The book contains, on a Christian platform, 38 different stories, anecdotes, and tips for surviving this “sandwich” generation of middle age, broken down into chapters. My favorite is chapter 18: I Proposed in a Chain Letter. You’ll have to actually read the book the find out why, but it was so funny! There are also all kinds of quotes, cartoons, and a great introduction that tie in great with the chapters. I laughed so hard while reading this book, but it also makes great points. It may be funny, but there is a seriousness to the whole concept and one that will help me as a “youth” to grow into my own middle age gracefully.

If you are a parent on the verge of taking care of both your children and your own parents or even if you are on the younger side, as I am, you should definitely read this book. It’s a lot of fun and has a great message, all written with our Lord in mind. It really is a heartwarming, lovely book.

Labor Day is Monday September 3, 2007. And of course it's another great day to read. If you're looking for books to read with your kids, head to the library or your own shelves and find something that fits the occasion. Need ideas? See this list: Horn Book's Recommended Reading for Labor Day.

I'd add CLICK, CLACK, MOO--COWS THAT TYPE, by Cronin and Lewin (Simon & Schuster, 2003) to the list of picture books.

And IQBAL, by Francesco D'Adamo (Simon & Schuster, 2003) for mid-grade and YA.