Grace Unplugged and Own It Book reviews (Flyby Blog Promotions)

I reviewed Grace Unplugged by Melody Carson for Flyby Blog Promotions. I also reviewed Own It by Michael and Hayley DiMarco. The post contains Amazon affiliate links and images.

I am behind with this review. I thought it was due next week. I went through a few 100 emails and found the reminder. I am late.

First, Grace Unplugged is a fiction novel. The main character is Grace Trey, an 18 year old singer, who is waiting for her big break. Her big break may cause her to shift from her Christian faith. Will Grace fall to temptation or hold fast to her beliefs. The movie is being released October 4, 2013. I have seen the previews all last week on television. The movie will star AJ Michalka and Kevin Pollack. The movie also features music by Chris Tomlin and Jamie Grace.

Next, Own it, discover your faith in God is a non-fiction book, which discusses owning your faith. When you own something, you take more responsibility for it. You take better care of it than something you are renting or borrowing. People need to own their faith. Be accountable for their beliefs and values.

Some passages, which stood out included:

Your faith isn't so much about what you have done or not done, but what God has done and how much he has loved you. The most awful thing about faltering faith isn't the human relationships, which suffer......but it is the fact that you are missing out on the love and acceptance God has waiting for you (p. 3). 

When you own your faith, you are a changed human being. You are a safe, human being. you don't rely on others to affirm you or accept you, but you are still able to accept and love them. You are able to love unconditionally and any rejection others may offer is no longer something you take personally. (p.3). 

Those passages stood out  and made me want to read more of Own It. I grew up in the Christian faith. I always knew Jesus existed. He died on the cross for our sins, but I'm not sure if I have ever owned my faith. I sometimes still want others to accept me. I hate rejection. The book said I may have faked my faith. On page 7, it states:

Ownership can also apply to a state of heart, a way of living whereby you make what you say and what you do agree. As in when you own your actions, rather than faking your way through life, living a double life, pretending to be something that you aren't in order to please those you love. 

There are a lot of people faking their faith instead of owning it. Recently in Sunday School, a female said that there is a difference between being a fan and a follower of Christ. I have been a fan. I have faked my faith. Just because I believe in Christ, does not make me a owner of the faith. It does not make me devoted. I have to change my behavior, my thoughts, to reflect Christ. I have a lot to work on. like praying more, reading the bible more, stop cussing, and a lot of other things. Just being mostly good isn't good enough. Doing the right things does not make you have ownership of your faith, as well. Having faith in myself and in man, will lead/has led to disappointment.

Own it is a great book to add to your book collection. I wish there was a workbook or study guide for the book. I have read another one of Hayley and Michael DiMarco's books, Cupidity. I got it from Tyndale Rewards. The DiMarco's have a great writing style and I have learned a lot from their books.

Finding the good in grief by John F. Baggett (Kregel Blog Tours)

I read Finding the Good in Grief, in exchange for honest review from Kregel Blog Tours. I wanted to read this book because at the time, I was thinking about my former miscarriages. I received a paperback version of the book. I never really grieved over anyone close to me dying, except the unknown babies. My great grandma died in  May, 2000. Could not grieve. I was two months pregnant with a new job, and my job would not let me off work to attend the funeral. One of the reasons I was moved from a temp to a new hire was because of the pregnancy. My inspector from my former department recommended me because I was pregnant. I was a new hire and had not acquired vacation days yet. She died a few days before orientation. I needed the insurance because it was one of those 100% hospitalization plans. I was divided but my grandma and family was visiting the following week.

My grandma died in 2000 as well. She died on November 8th, the day before Brad was born. I did not find out she died until after I had the baby. I thought she died on 9th for the longest until I saw the obituary years later. I had no time to grieve because I was busy with Brad.

I really felt grief after the second miscarry. The first miscarry didn't cause too much grief. I was in pain. Immeasurable pain for the longest. I did not tell anyone. What took me 5 minutes to walk to the bus stop to get to school at that time, now took me 30 to 40 minutes because of the pain I was in. Everything from the back, legs, and feminine areas was in pain. Not to mention the fibroids was acting up, plus back to back Herpes outbreaks. The second miscarry made me question everything: men, relationships, and sex. This one lead me to celibacy, very slowly

Anyway, back to the book:

Dr.Baggett discussed how he lost his son, not to death, but to schizophrenia. I never thought about grief from that standpoint-losing a child, even a parent, or someone close to mental illness. I noticed my kids had mental disorders early.

The book is a short book, consisting of 5 chapters or steps:


Step 1: Trust God and Rely on Others
Step 2: Choose reality instead of illustion
Step 3: Resist the temptation to get stuck
Step 4: Recognize moments of grace
Step 5: Discover new meaning and purpose

Each step also discusses a few sub-steps of grieving. For example. Step 1 discusses shock, while step 2 discusses denial, escape, and victimization. Step 3 discusses questioning, anger, and depression. Step 4 discusses acceptance. Step 5 discusses calling and affirmation. 

I also liked how each chapter ended in discussion questions, with some room to write your answers. This book is great for personal or small group bible study. 

To give you an idea of the first chapter, here are some of the things I highlighted:

1. Grief is universal. Everyone will experience emotional pain. 
2. Grief is a social experience. When something bad happens, it affects more than one person. 
3. Grief is normal. It is not a sign of weakness. 
4. Grief helps emotional and physical healing. 
5. Grief can help us draw closer 
6. Acceptance helps us heal and move on with life. 

This was a great read. I highlighted a lot of passages throughout the book.