A Path of Colored Leaves

by Rachel Carr Klippenstein (2000)

Publisher: Fountain Publishing

Price: $7.25

Reviewed by: Olivia Worobec

As the title implies, this book is about the seasons of life - more specifically, the journey of Klippenstein and her husband. As they deal with a painful lost reality, the author discovers a new dream and her ultimate destiny to write.

The seasons of the year and the places that the couple settles in seem to reflect their present state of prosperity. In South Dakota, it was dry. In Florida, the sunshine was an indication of a promise about to be fulfilled. In Oregon, the rainy weather was almost a cleansing and healing of the past. As spring broke through, so did a new life.

In addition, there is reflection on Klippenstein’s college education experience and stories of the ranch.

We deal with crisis and situations in our own way and in our own time: a theme that resounds throughout the book. It is also in the most difficult times that we find ourselves.

Featured quote: “The intensity of pain corresponds to the intensity of what is loved” (30).

Fear Not!: Meditations to Overcome Fear, Worry and Discouragement

by Rand Hummel (2008)

Publisher: BJU Press

Price: $9.95

Reviewed by: Olivia Worobec

The book is broken up into manageable segments with meditations targeting a specific truth. As the back cover explains, the author gives “strategic help” through simple instructions as revealed inside: “This is what God says” / “Now think about it” / “How can it affect me?”

Part One is God’s Fear Applied to Fear, Worry, and Discouragement; Part Two is God’s Word Applies to Ten Common Fears. In the latter, there is a kind of duality between the human perspective and the fact of God. For example, “The fear of rejection vs. the fact of God’s acceptance” is one chapter that demonstrates this.

The more we focus on God and his word, the clearer our mind will be and the more happy and content we will be because we understand who God is, says Hummel.

Lest You Fall: Meditations to Fight Moral Impurity / Turn Away Wrath: Meditations to Control Anger & Bitterness

Lest You Fall: Meditations to Fight Moral Impurity

by Rand Hummel (2005)

Publisher: BJU Press

Price: $8.95

Turn Away Wrath: Meditations to Control Anger & Bitterness

by Rand Hummel (2007)

Publisher: BJU Press

Price: $9.95

Reviewed by: Leslie Richardson

When the best minds in science seek out the mysteries of the cosmos, or the quirks and quarks of subatomic particles, they look first for the answers which seem to exhibit “simplicity and grace”. In today’s ultra high-tech world, we are under an aggressive assault by media, TV, Hollywood, and the Internet. So many have fallen to immorality, and let rage run wild. People flock to the book stores and spend millions on the latest self-help trendy fad ideas, making rich the “New Age” gurus.

Rand Hummel wishes to help us in a return to simplicity and grace. He has assembled short and pertinent scriptures dealing with short temper in his book Turn Away Wrath, and moral impurity in Lest You Fall. The plan is simple: one scripture per day. He calls them meditations. I think of them as medications. Don’t miss your daily dosage! Sooner than you think, a little peace and serenity may be yours!