Mothers should educate their daughters about gender equality

Empowering a child can be a tricky thing. As moms, we want our children to be strong and assured of who they are, but we do not want them to make mistakes or to face problems that we may have had to deal with when we were growing up.

While raising three daughters, my husband and I have walked a tightrope, per se, to teach our girls to be strong and persistent without being bullheaded and careless. Our priority is that our daughters are strong as individuals.

Part of making sure that our daughters are strong is making sure they know who they are in God. Our faith is very much a part of who we are and a large part in how we have taught our daughters that we are all equal. Each and every one of us, black, white, yellow, red, brown, male, female, what have you, is equal. Part of being equal means that they should not ever allow anybody to disrespect them.

Our girls hold on to stories of Jesus talking to Mary and Martha freely along with the other disciples, as well as Queen Esther, who saved the Jewish people by having the courage to speak up.

Being honest and upfront with our girls allows us to use everyday examples with them as they grow and mature. As life events occur we teach them how to handle it so they know what they should expect and how they, as young women, should be treated.

One television show our daughters enjoy watching that puts women on an equal footing with men and allows them to share the spotlight with the main character is “Doctor Who”. The show is on BBC and shows equality better than any others I have seen, whether it is Donna Noble giving the tenth doctor the what for, River Song confusing everybody, or Sarah Jane, who went on to be in her own show. All three women are good examples of strong, independent women that oftentimes upstage the men in the story line.

“Doctor Who” is not the first television show to have a positive girl-power message for my daughters. When they were younger, they loved to watch “Sailor Moon,” which features female action heroes. There were five main characters with five very different personalities and different interests that became friends simply because they were teamed up to fight evil.

In using the show when they were younger, we were able to point out the traits that were good in the characters. My oldest daughter loved Sailor Venus, who was all about performing, and who also happened to be the top crime fighter in London. The middle daughter loved Sailor Mercury, who was shy, timid and a genius. Then the youngest was obsessed with Sailor MiniMoon/ChibiUsa, who was simply determined to do what she set her mind to do. Each of the characters that the girls related to had a characteristic that they themselves had while also showing independence.

It helps to have examples that kids can relate to while they come up and are molded into their best. There are women that my girls have learned about who show them they can be anything they want to be, regardless of whether that job is a stay-at-home mom, a career woman or even president of the United States.

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This article was originally published in The All State Newspaper, the Student Voice of Austin Peay State University since 1930 in the March 27th edition. And as an online grouping on March 28th.

 

Review: Lead Your Family Like Jesus: Powerful Parenting Principles from the Creator of Families

Lead Your Family Like Jesus: Powerful Parenting Principles from the Creator of Families by Ken Blanchard

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



“Lead Your Family Like Jesus” is most likely the best book I have read concerning parenting or leadership. The combination of Ken Blanchard, Phil Hodges & Tricia Goyer is a perfect blend in viewpoints covering a wide spectrum of parenting. This book really does provide powerful parenting principles from THE CREATOR of families.

This book covers the heart of the parent as it is what truly matters. If your heart is not in line with God, then your priorities become misaligned with what is important. Then there is the head which is where the parenting ultimately comes from. In order to lead your family, you must as the head of your family serve.

There is much more to the book than just being a serving leader though. The book really instills the principles that Jesus tried to show His disciples in the gospels. Leading through example. If you desire your children to have a strong work ethic, then you as a parent show them what that strong work ethic looks like. If you want your children to show love to each other, then you as a parent show love to them and others.

This is a book that I will definitely keep around for a long time and I can see myself sharing with other parents.




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Review: A Halflings Rescue

A Halflings Rescue by Heather Burch

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I love this series by Heather Burch. They are written well for the young adult genre. Halflings are half angels and half human, not necessarily an original concept but not lame either. Honestly when my husband saw I was reading it he thought it was possibly part of the D&D interest.

This book is the third, technically. There was an introduction 11:15 The Making of a Halfling, this introduced us to the series and the characters. The first full length book Halflings, and then to this short. This short really has very little to do with the story as a whole, it is more as a filler to keep or generate more interest in the series. That said, I believe it has done a good job at that.

A Halflings Rescue is where the team comes together and basically works as a crime fighting group and rescue a teen celebrity. There is drama. There is intrigue. There are 'hotties'. The writing is strong. The characters have personalities and they don't get in the way of the story. The only concern might be is if you have not read the two prior books there is reference to existing issues that might confuse the reader. This will not distract you from enjoying the entire story though.

In A Halflings Rescue the team discover important information about Mandy, a starlet that is being held hostage. With the information in hand they go to the authorities and quickly find themselves in the midst of the rescue operation. Things get complex quickly, the question is are they able to pull off a rescue without anybody getting hurt? Read the story to find out! Hey, it's FREE, why not?

One of the biggest criticisms I have read about this series is that the 'angels' are to pretty and it has tones of 'Twilight'. The issue with that is that these books are based on biblical accounts of angels and in that instant, they are beautiful. I look at it as they are attractive but not to the point that EVERYBODY is swooning over them. Other than that, this series is YA, that is teen. The series is written for entertainment.

Read this one and the other two, then get Guardian.

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Review: Forbidden

Forbidden by Ted Dekker

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I ordered this book on pre-order and could not wait for it to come in. Alas, when it did I had several other books sitting on my nightstand waiting to be read (not to mention a semester of school work). Reading Forbidden was put off until about a month or so ago.

I am unsure if my expectations were so high that the beginning chapters of Forbidden dragged a little slow or if they really did take a little work seducing me into the story. I am the first to admit that I have been insanely busy and have possessive kitties that want my time and discourage reading, so it was not completely the book’s fault.

The story is based around a new world order where a virus or genetic alteration has occurred and the only emotion left is fear. There is a “Order” that is religious in nature that everybody has to follow or the government is going to come after you. In the midst of all of this an old man is running from the Citadel guard and meets Rom. He tells Rom he knew his father and his father didn’t die but was killed and it was because of this package and he was part of this group called the Keepers. The old man tells Rom he must take the package and find somebody else. Before Rom can get much more information the guard finds them and capture the man. They kill him in front of Rom and then start chasing Rom.

From there on the story just gets better and better. There is death, life and love. Did I mention there is also a creepy evil guy that wants to be ruler of the world and he is willing to do anything to get there? Perhaps even kill his entire family?

Needless to say, even though the book is less than 400 pages and it still took me a month to read it. I highly suggest you check out Forbidden if you are a fan of Ted Dekker. Or if you like the darker side of fantasy or sci-fi. If you look for it, you can find Christian themes. That is after all, Dekker’s style. And for fans of the Circle series, there is a connection.




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Not Singing Your Own Praise

I ran across this scripture the other day. I feel led to share it merely for what it says.

Proverbs 27:2 HCSB - Let another praise you, and not your own mouth- a stranger, and not your own lips.

As a writer that is attempting to be independent, it is very easy to have egotistical thoughts and to praise myself. This can be a curse of social marketing your own brand. While the reason I found the scripture was not to keep myself grounded, it is why the Lord let me find it. I love how the Lord does that.

In my life there have been times that I have been asked why I am not published already and my reaction is dependent on how I am feeling that specific day but it falls in one of two categories: a) elated, on top of the world, head swollen, egotistical, best darn writer this side of the moon. b) I STINK, I cannot write, I am horrible, etc, etc, etc.

Fact is neither of those two categories is correct. For the fact that I can write a sentence or even a paragraph with proper grammar and minimal mistakes, I would say verifies that I am at least a notch above horrible. (Yes, you can laugh, sneer, gag, whatever.) The other side of the coin is that there is always room for improvement, which proves the other category erroneous too.

Thus, we run into balance. Yin and Yan, black and white, yes and no, good and bad, balance. Also reminds me as a writer that in order to write, I have to read. That sounds like another post.

REVIEW: Illusion by Frank Peretti

Illusion by Frank Peretti


Review by Faith Tilley Johnson


My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book overall. That said, it was not what I expected from Mr. Peretti. Mind you, I became a fan of his with "This Present Darkness", "Piercing The Darkness" and "The Oath".

Illusion is a love story. A beautiful one at that.

There is some hard reading in parts, but I believe that is more of an issue with Mr. Peretti wanting to make sure the description is "just so" or that the reader has a specific understanding. I myself like to let my imagination flow and picture things so when I get to those parts I skim if I can. (I am being honest here, and there was very little of that)

I liked the creativity of the plot line and the resolution. It made for an intriguing story that was hard to put down. I even teared up when I got to the end of the book and realized it was over.

Magician Dane Collins loses the love of his life in a horrific auto accident and barely knows which way is up after he is discharged from the hospital. He finds himself closing on the property that the couple were planning to buy in Idaho and is merely going through the motions of daily living. That is, until he meets a young woman in a shopping strip who's voice and mannerisms remind him of his precious Mandy. It is not just Dane that is trying to figure out his feelings and understand what is going on, this young woman herself is a mystery. The young woman is herself misplaced out of time from the 70s and has found herself in "present day" (2010 in the book).

As the two are drawn together and Dane can just not get past the fact that this young woman strangely resembles a young Mandy, the mystery begins to unfold as questions are asked and the story unfolds.

I do miss the entwined biblical message in the book as I have grown accustom to from Mr. Peretti, but that does not distract from the writing and story.

Mr. Peretti has spun a tale that grabs the romantic at heart and also those that love a good mystery.

Finding the Way

 "You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." Psalm 16:11(NKJV)

As my journey unfolds I tend to get overwhelmed or even distracted. I see friends that write that just in the last year wrote a novel and have begun the query process while I am in school and juggling motherhood. Then I see friends that have been writing for years and have yet to submit a single query. It can get very disheartening.

For me though, I know that my path involves getting my B.A. in writing. I have my suspicions as to why. God has this funny way of planning things out for us so that if we are in His will things work out pretty good. And I am not sharing this to be all righteous and holier than thou, its just that so many times things look hopeless and just as many times God has pulled me and my family through.

It is my belief that the Lord has me on this path that I am currently on to teach me the diligence and discipline that is needed to be a consistent writer. Does this mean I will be a best seller? Maybe. Does this mean I will get rich? I do not know. I do know is that the Lord will provide my needs.

See, ever since I was a child it has been my desire to be a writer. A published writer that is successful. God is providing me a way for that to happen and I am following that path. I believe this because the Lord gives us the desires of our heart.

"Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart." Psalm 37:4 (KJV)

For me I have to not focus on what others are doing in relation to myself. I need to focus on what God is doing in me. I know it will take time. And that is okay. The first step is to start.