Review: Lucado Treasury of Bedtime Prayers by Max Lucado and Denalyn Lucado

Lucado Treasury of Bedtime Prayers: Prayers for Bedtime and Every Time of Day!
Authors: Max Lucado, Denalyn Lucado
Release Date: January 27, 2015
Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Description:

Parents can do so many things for their children. We can tie their shoes so they don’t trip and fall. We can make sure they have warm clothes and full tummies. We can even help them tackle some of the mysteries of higher math.

But the most important thing we can do is teach them to pray. Childhood is the best window for learning prayer. We can teach them to talk to God about everything, anything, anytime, and all the time. We can’t promise an easy life, but we can equip them to face life. We can’t be with them always, but God can.

Written for playtime and bedtime, happy times and fearful times, and all times in between, the Lucado Treasury of Bedtime Prayers is a wonderful collection of classic
children’s prayers and new prayers by best-selling author Max Lucado and his wife, Denalyn. These prayers will help your child see that God is always there for them,
ready to listen, guide, comfort, and love.

Because you can’t stop every scrape, heal every broken heart, or banish every bully, but you can teach your child to pray.  

Lucado Treasury of Bedtime Prayers is a beautiful book that children of all ages will enjoy. It's full of prayers for all kinds of situations and circumstances - from bedtime to playtime, happy or sad, or just normal days. Each prayer has a definitive rhyme scheme, so it makes them easier for kids to memorize and repeat back later. The book is also full of beautiful illustrations on each page. They're full of color and will definitely catch the attention of all children - especially the smaller ones who can't read yet. In my opinion, this book can be used for children of all ages. When they're really small, they will enjoy looking at the gorgeous pictures while you read the prayers aloud to them. Over time, as they begin to learn how to read on their own, this would be a great resource on practicing reading skills - with the rhyme scheme of the prayers, it will be easier for the child to use the new abilities they are learning as well as finding a good learning system that's unique to them. With older children, they will be able to practice by reading the book to others. With such wonderful prayers - which could also be described as poems - and the incredibly beautiful artwork, this book is sure to be a huge hit with kids and adults alike. It would also make a great gift for a baby shower or a child's birthday. Very highly recommended!!

* Disclosure: I received a copy of the book from the publisher through the Book Look Bloggers Program in exchange for an honest review. *

Review: You'll Get Through This by Max Lucado

You'll Get Through This: Hope and Help for Your Turbulent Times 
Author: Max Lucado
Genre: Nonfiction/Inspirational
Release Date: September 3, 2013
Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Description:

"You'll get through this."

"It won't be painless."

"It won't be quick."

"But God will use this mess for good."

"Don't be foolish or naive."

"But don't despair either."

"With God's help, you'll get through this."

You fear you won't make it through. We all do. We fear that the depression will never lift, the yelling will never stop, the pain will never leave. In the pits, surrounded by steep walls and aching reminders, we wonder: Will this gray sky ever brighten? This load ever lighten?

In" You'll Get Through This," pastor and" New York Times" best-selling author, Max Lucado offers sweet assurance. "Deliverance is to the Bible what jazz music is to Mardi Gras: bold, brassy, and everywhere." Max reminds readers God doesn't promise that getting through trials will be quick or painless. It wasn't for Joseph--tossed in a pit by his brothers, sold into slavery, wrongfully imprisoned, forgotten and dismissed--but his Old Testament story is in the Bible for this reason: to teach us to trust God to trump evil.

With the compassion of a pastor, the heart of a storyteller, and the joy of one who has seen what God can do, Max explores the story of Joseph and the truth of Genesis 50:20. What Satan intends for evil, God redeems for good.  

You'll Get Through This: Hope and Help for Your Turbulent Times is a truly inspirational book that everyone can benefit from at some point in life. Whether you have depression, are grieving a loss, or if everything seems hopeless, this book has answers for it all. Lucado is a renowned author of Christian inspirational and self-help books, and his immense experience and talent are evident on every page in this book. Using scripture mixed with anecdotes, the author gives the reader hope and shines some light into the darkness they're currently experiencing. The book is written in a conversational tone, so it feels like the author is speaking directly to you. The way he presents situations and problems - and how he speaks as though he knows exactly how the reader is feeling, what they may be experiencing, and goes about addressing those fears, questions, and doubts. The chapters were written so that each had its own theme, which makes it easy for those who want help and advice for a certain problem or situation to find exactly what they need without having to dig for it. For those readers who elect to read the entire book, it's a fast read because of the accessibility and conversational writing style. The author has amazing talent with inspirational speaking and it shows greatly throughout the book. I read the entire book and I know I'll be re-reading it for many years to come. I personally found the book to be exactly what it advertised to be and then some. I loved all the elements used in the book - they came together to create a refreshing and reassuring narrative. Very highly recommended for everyone - whether you suffer from mental illness, are grieving, or are just experiencing a rough patch - this book is like a calming and soothing balm to help you see things in a better light.

*A big thanks to the people at Thomas Nelson for sending me a copy of the book for review!*

Book Review: Beyond Heaven's Door by Max Lucado

Beyond Heaven's Door

Author: Max Lucado
Genre: Christian Nonfiction
Release Date: February 12, 2013
Publisher: Thomas Nelson 

Description:

Thoughts of heaven can be unsettling. Life with no end? Space with no bounds? Are we supposed to feel good about these things?

Bestselling author Max Lucado assures us that we can. There is much about heaven that we don't yet understand. And while thoughts on our final destiny may stir questions, they needn't stir our fears.

In "Beyond Heaven's Door" Max takes us on a journey from finding certainty in our destination to God's great promises of the hereafter. Open the door and catch a glimpse of the joy that awaits you in heaven--and find hope for today in the process.

Beyond Heaven's Door is a gift book that details what Christians can expect when they enter the afterlife. The book is short and easily read in under an hour. It contains beautiful images with quotes taken from the text as well as scriptures. The author focuses on several different questions that people have about Heaven and what happens when we die. The book quotes several passages of scripture that deal with the nature of Jesus, what Heaven will be like, and what our new bodies will look and be like after resurrection. The author tells anecdotes throughout the book to help the reader understand the passages of scripture and also to show the reader what is meant by the text. Overall, this was an uplifting book that Christians will enjoy reading more than once and the images and quotes throughout are beautiful and definitely add to the book's appeal. It would make a wonderful gift to those who are questioning death and Heaven as well as to those who have recently lost a loved one.

Max Lucado has touched millions with his signature storytelling writing style. Awards and accolades follow Max with each book he writes. Max is the first author to win the Gold Medallion Christian Book of the Year three times—1999 for Just Like Jesus, 1997 for In the Grip of Grace and 1995 for When God Whispers Your Name. In 2005, Reader’s Digest dubbed him “America’s Best Preacher.” In addition, he has been an ECPA Gold Medallion finalist with more titles than any other author in the industry.

In 1994, he became the only author to have 11 of his twelve books in print simultaneously appear on paperback, hardcover and children's CBA bestseller lists. Lucado set a new industry record by concurrently placing nine different Word Publishing titles on the CBA Hardcover Bestseller List in both March and April 1997. Max Lucado is a fixture on the national bestseller lists – a Max Lucado title has appeared on the CBA hardcover bestseller list every month for the past dozen years. He has appeared on the Publishers Weekly, USA Today and New York Times bestseller lists. He has won eight ECPA Gold Medallion awards.

In addition to his nonfiction books, Lucado has authored several award-winning children's titles including, Just In Case You Ever Wonder, The Crippled Lamb, Alabaster's Song and the award-winning You Are Special. Max is also the author of Hermie: A Common Caterpillar, and the Max Lucado’s Hermie and Friends collection of books and DVD’s are quickly becoming a fixture on bestseller lists. He also served as the general editor for the best-selling Lucado Study Bible and God's Inspirational Promise Book.

In the Fall of 2006, he released Facing Your Giants, followed by Every Day Deserves a Chance in April of the 2007.

For over twenty years, Max has served as the Senior Pastor of the Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas. But he says his greatest accomplishment is finding a one-in-a-million wife in Denalyn and having three unbelievable daughters: Jenna, Andrea, and Sara.

Author Links:
Website