The Saturday Six

One.

Last Sunday at church, our interim minister preached about the dangers of gossip. It was a refreshing, simple, basic sermon that probably every person on planet earth needed to hear. Sometimes simple truths are the ones we need the most, but we miss out on them because everyone wants to present something much more complex. This post on kindness is similar to the sermon in that it's stuff you know, but stuff you might need to hear again today. Maybe a return to basics is a great way to begin this list today!

Two.

I know. It's still August. (For a few more days.) But if you're thinking ahead to Christmas, as I already am, this might be a fun way to come up with gift ideas for your husband!

Three.

Berry ice cream floats? Intriguing!! (And surely a serving of fruit, right?)

Four.

Did you see this story? These poor homeowners!!

Five.

Looks like I'm a few months behind in finding this video, so maybe you already saw it. The (singing) voices of Aladdin and Jasmine, 23 years later, singing A Whole New World. Even though Beauty and the Beast was my favorite movie, Aladdin was in my top 3, and I loved this song! I used to belt it out in the car.

Six.

Source

I wasn't sure I'd get through my book for this week because it was 484 pages long. That's  a lot of pages! And then I started the book on Monday night and finished it on Wednesday afternoon, so that should tell you it was definitely a good read.

My college roommate, Jenny, introduced me to Francine Rivers probably close to twenty years ago now. (WHAT?) Also, when I say she introduced me to Francine, I mean she introduced me to Francine's words, not the author herself. I started with A Voice in the Wind and have read most of what she's written in the years since! (Including, oh yes, the beloved Redeeming Love.) For my birthday, Jenny gave me her brand new book, The Masterpiece.

I knew it would be good, but...wow. This book is set in present times (important to note since Francine has written a lot of biblical fiction) and is a powerful story that not only captivated me in the story line, but it taught me so much about walks of life I've never known personally.

The Masterpiece tells the story of Roman Velasco, a somewhat newly discovered (but extremely successful) California artist. Though his work is highly sought after, his personal life is somewhat of a disaster. He spent the first part of his childhood with a mother caught up in drug addiction and prostitution and then found himself shuffled all around the foster care system. Now in his thirties, Roman isn't quite sure who he is or what he wants out of life, and all the financial success he enjoys can't compensate for the rest.

Grace Moore shows up on Roman's doorstep, sent by a temp agency to serve as his personal assistant. Though she desperately needs this job to try to help her get back on her feet, she's not sure she can handle Roman's belligerent attitude. Even so, she feels she has no choice - a byproduct of a series of poor choices this once-good-girl has made in the last few years.

Francine tells the stories of both characters by allowing readers to peek back into years gone by, uncovering the moments that went on to make them both who they became as adults, and though I was just as captivated by those parts of the story, those were also the parts where I really learned. She captured all the blends of human nature so well, and it helped open my eyes to see what it might have been like to live in a world very different from the one in which I grew up.

As always, with her books, there is a clear and fearless thread of faith and the unmistakable plan of salvation presented. Also in this book, she presents the reality of spiritual warfare, not sugar coated in any way. In full disclosure, there are a couple (literally only saw two) unsavory words, but given the atmosphere in which Roman grew up and continued to live, there certainly could have been thousands incorporated, so I felt she handled that part graciously throughout the book.

As much as I have loved everything she's ever written, this one just earned "Favorite Francine" book on my shelf. I'll read it more than once and love it just as much each time, I'm sure.

Thanks, Jenny, for gifting this to me! :) And thanks for opening my eyes to Francine's books 20 years ago! :)