Pressing Pause: 100 Quiet Moments for Moms to Meet with Jesus is a devotional book for busy moms in desperate need of some quiet reset moments with God. Written by Karen Ehman and Ruth Schwenk Pressing Pause is full of poignant, peace-bringing words. As they say in their introduction, they hope this devotional will serve as brief daily retreats from the busyness of life— and it absolutely does! While the devotions are not sectioned off into themes or categories, each topic touches on some aspect of daily life as a mom. The words from Karen and Ruth are refreshing, Life-giving and encouraging. We all know that a frazzled mom makes for a frenzied family and the best way to remedy the crazy is to spend moments alone with God. While my devotional and personal quiet time is not as in-depth or as long as I would like it to be in this season of my life, that doesn’t give me an excuse to ignore God altogether. Even just a few minutes a day with Jesus have been attitude- and heart- changing for me. When life gets busy, the first thing I examine is the amount of time I am spending with God. Pressing Pause has been a much-welcomed reprieve in the year-end busyness that always comes before summer brings her lazy days. 

Each devotional reading begins with a verse, followed by a personal story from either Ruth or Karen. It wraps up with a written prayers as well as several application and action questions. There is even room to journal a little bit about the topic or to answer the questions. Every single one of these devotions has hit home for me. There is not a single page in this book that I didn’t identify with. So in a world where there are so many choices for what devotional to read next, the answer is simple: if you are a mom, this book is for you! If a break from the busyness of life is what you need, you can purchase this book HERE on Amazon. 

Thanks to BookLook bloggers for giving me the opportunity to honestly review this book!

*UPDATE* Giveaway is closed. Congratulations Kristin Goodson, you are the winner! I've emailed you for your address so I can get the book in the mail to you.







As I’ve mentioned before (and will probably mention again before the month is over), I love Christmas. I am always looking for new books to read, devotionals to study and new songs to listen to that will put me in the Christmas spirit. And while its true that there is nothing new under the sun, and it never gets better than reading the Biblical accounts of Jesus’ impending first coming, I do like to expound my reading with other sources. The Christmas Story in 40 Days by Chris Loehmer Kincaid is a short 40 day book with- you guessed it- 40 devotional readings that will take you right up to Christmas. In fact, if you start the book on November 15, you will finish it on Christmas Eve. For the purpose of completing this review, I jumped the gun a bit and read the whole book so I could share my thoughts and give one of these books away to YOU so that you can read it this Christmas season! (See below for giveaway.)

Each day of the 40 day journey begins with a scripture from The Message version of the Bible. This is an easy to read, contemporary parable of the Scriptures, though not a literal translation of biblical texts. For that reason, I would encourage readers to dig a little deeper and look up each day’s scripture in a different version of the Bible as well. I think that reading scriptures in multiple versions can help make a text more dimensional— you can get a better sense of the original meaning by reading several translations. Following each day’s scripture reading is a very brief paragraph from the author, expounding on what was just read. That is then followed by a paragraph or so of application. The questions bring each day’s reading and each part of the Christmas story to a modern-day application. I really like the way that this devotion book helps reflect on the past and look forward to the future by applying the truths and joys of Christ’s birth to our everyday lives.

 This book is super easy to read- no Seminary degree is required to read it! While certainly applicable to adults of all ages, I would even say that older children would be challenged and could learn a lot from this book. If you are interested in purchasing this book, you can buy it HERE.

Though I received a complimentary copy of this book to review, all thoughts and opinions related to this book are mine.

And now for the fun giveaway part!! I am giving away this book to one lucky reader! Just follow the prompts in the Rafflecopter form below! In order for you to receive this book by November 14, I am only going to have the Giveaway open until Monday, November 9th. Hopefully that will give me time to get it in the mail to you so you can have it to start your 40 Days to Christmas!

Lysa TerKeurst's Unglued Devotional was exactly what I needed to read at this season in my life.  Though not written exclusively for moms, I found each of the short 2 or 3 page devotions to be uplifting and encouraging, often hitting on exactly what I was struggling with at that moment.  This book has a series of 60 devotions, applicable and relevant to women of all ages and life stages.  In a few paragraphs each day, she shares honestly her struggles, achievements and spiritual lessons that are sure to benefit every reader-- myself included!  There is a phrase Lysa uses over and over in this devotional-- imperfect progress.  She writes, 

As a recovering perfectionist, this phrase resonates with me so beautifully and has changed my outlook on the continual task of seeking a Christ-like heart.  I don't always get it right.  I don't always live up to my own expectations, let alone the expectations of those around me.  But what I must strive for is progress... even if it is imperfect.  Lysa goes on to write in that same devotion (day 2), "Imperfect changes are slow steps of progress wrapped in grace... imperfect progress."  How beautiful and freeing it is to grab hold of that concept!  

Each daily devotion can easily be read in a matter of 5 minutes or less.  But I found myself searching my heart for a much longer period of time after reading each devotion.  Some days, I would read three, four or more devotions at a time.  Other days I just barely squeezed one in during naptime and cleaning up messes.  Regardless of the time I spent reading and reflecting one thing was certain: Lysa's writings spoke freshness and life into my soul when I needed it the most.  The Holy Spirit's lead is evident in her writing, as it is very Gospel-centered. 

I know I am not the only woman who struggles with keeping her reactions and responses under God's control.  Afterall, as women, we are at the very core of our being created to be responders.  We see that from the very beginning with Adam & Eve.  God put it in our DNA to respond to those around us.  And by responding in a way that reflects the character of God, we are showing Him to the world around us.  I know all of this, the eternal implications of my responses, and yet sometimes, it is still difficult to bring them under the reign of Christ.  That's why I particularly appreciated this little bit from Day 23 of Unglued Devotional: 

This devotional was wonderfully challenging and encouraging at the same time.  It urged me to look at the depths of my heart, evaluate my evil desires, and submit my tendency to come unglued to Christ.  As Lysa say, it won't always be perfect.  But it can be imperfect progress.  I would highly recommend this devotional book to any woman of any age!  You can read more about Lysa TerKeurst on her website.  You can purchase this book HERE.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255