Here we are, on the 2^nd day! This is so much fun!

In the song, 12 Days of Christmas, we are looking at each verse and explaining what each item named represents! So for today, we are looking at the second verse…

As we have already discussed, we are the ones singing it, telling what our true love – God – gave to us. The partridge in a pear tree represented Christ.

For the second verse, the two turtle doves represent the Old and New Testament, which together make up the Word God gave to us to teach us how to live our lives in a way that pleases him!

So, onto the giveaway – for the second day on Book Ponderings 12 Days of Christmas we are giving away a copy of The Crossroad by Beverly Lewis! :-) Want a chance at winning this? Follow the guidelines below to find out how to enter!

With violent crime on the rise and the political climate changing throughout certain parts of Mexico, the opportunity for open Christian witness - particularly in some areas of Chiapas State - is rapidly decreasing.

Despite increasing difficulty and persecution, Hector Rodriguez carries Bibles deep into Mexico, where those with Mayan beliefs grow more hostile as 2012 approaches. While Hector lives and pastors a small church on the outskirts of tourist-popular border town Tijuana, his mother, Virginia, lives in the village of San Juan Chamula, in the heart of the Mayan hostilities. She uses the Scriptures to teach reading to the families who are open to it - until she disappears.

Hector must decide if he will continue his work despite his worries about protecting his wife and children and his search for Virginia.l His young Protege from California, Marty, wants to help Hector expand his ministry, but wonders if he and his future family can bear the persecution they, too, will likely face.

KATY'S REVIEW:

Romance:

Violence:

Fear/Horror:

Overall Impression:

1) Sarah has wanted to birth a baby ever since she married her husband, Daniel. Many of her friends in the community have been able to conceive and bear a child, but she has not been able to. Having had a miscarriage the Christmas before, Sarah is already having a hard time moving on and waiting until God's timing this Christmas -- and when a pregnant woman and her husband show up on Sarah's doorstep and stay through the storm, it becomes increasingly hard for Sarah to be content. What's harder is that the woman doesn't know of the hurt she is inflicting on Sarah when she oohs and awws over her unborn little one.
Have you ever wanted to do something really badly but are unable to, though everyone else you know is? How does it feel when people you know talk about how great the experience was -- making you feel like you missed something amazing?
Ok this is something I can really relate to. Having moved a few months ago from the place I call home, it's been rough for me to miss out on special occasions that I miss because of the move -- and since I'm still involved in the same social sites and visit often, it is very hard to see/hear the stories of great times and all that I missed. It's not so much the fact that I missed the event, but that I wasn't there to enjoy it with them; to see the smiles, hear the laughter, tell the stories, and enjoy the moment. :(
But, as this is all a part of something known as life, something that is often times very hard to grasp, and it has made me enjoy the moments I do have with them even more.
2) When staying with Sarah and David, their expecting stranger, Kate, goes into labor. David and Jason, Kate's husband, are desperate to find help, but are unable to because of the snow storm. Have you ever been in somewhat of a crisis and been unable to help? How does it feel to be so NOT in control of something?
Well, I've never been in a situation quite like this, but I did have a close friend of mine get kicked by a horse and have her spleen ruptured earlier this year. It was said that it was only centimeters off from hitting an artery, causing her to bleed to death before they could even think about getting her to a hospital. Talk about scary! But anyway -- during the time that she was first in the hospital when they were unsure of what was going to happen to her, all of her close friends were there for her...except me. I was unable to go and be there for her -- unable to be there for the family who was scared out of their wits. It was really hard to have to sit at home and know that one of my best friends was laying on a gurney in a hospital in immense pain that the doctor's were not being able to lessen and I was at home. Unable to be there for her. I did what I could from home though. When Josh told me what had happened, I spread the word to my Church, everyone I know, and I prayed. I prayed. And prayed. And prayed. Can't say I got a lot of sleep that night.
Well after several days, I did finally manage to get over to the hospital. She was doing a lot better and was I was able to see her.
And just in case you were wondering, she's completely recovered now, though it took more than 6 months.
Ok sorry for the huge, long story. But it was the perfect example for me of someone I know and love being in trouble and I being unable to do anything. I had to set the problem in God's hands and let Him take care of her, as I knew He would. "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."

For today's ponderin', I decided to use the book The Healer's Apprentice, by Melanie Dickerson. Kait mentioned that we haven't pondered much on medieval times here on our Ponderin' the Past posts, so I'm going to take a stab at it! What will I talk about? Why, medicine, of course! ;-)


Well, that's it for today! Hope you enjoyed reading about early medieval knowledge on medicine. Glad they eventually improved!! ;-) lol


~ Katy

Seth has returned from his rumspringe after an accident that scarred him for life. No longer having full use of his leg as it heals, Seth realizes that outward beauty means little. His attraction toward Miriam begins to grow, but can Miriam ever forgive him and realize that he loves her for her; not the way she looks?


A Choice To Forgive follows Miriam’s story but takes place with her sister, Lydia. When her childhood sweetheart, Daniel, disappeared suddenly leaving nothing but a note behind as explanation, Lydia built a life with his brother, Elam. Now widowed after her husband’s unexpected death, Lydia is shocked when Daniel returns in pursuit of her forgiveness. Lydia wants to forgive Daniel, but the pain from the past is making the action harder to do than she thought. Daniel carries with him a secret that could ruin his chances at befriending Lydia again…but keeping it hidden could cause more damage than exposing the truth, hurtful as it may be. Can both of them pick up where they left off and learn to love each other once more?


In One Child, Miriam and Lydia’s friend and nearby neighbor, Sarah, and Sarah’s husband, David, are coming up on the anniversary of the miscarriage of their child. Sarah strongly desires to have a child of her own, just one child, but so far she has been unlucky. David is trying to help his wife move on and have faith that God knows what He’s doing. When a freak snow storm overtakes Lancaster County, David and Sarah are met by an Englisch couple seeking shelter. Being stranded in the house of Sarah and David with only two weeks until the Englisch couple expect the birth of their baby, they are anxious about being isolated in fear of no medical care with the time for the birth comes. During the time, both couples learn great life lessons about God’s timing and the acceptance of His greater plan for their life.


And last but not least, the extra in the expanded edition is Christmas Cradle which is about Anna. When Anna travels a few hours to fill in for the local midwife and spend time with her family, she is awoken in the night to deliver a child. This is the first of the many deliveries she makes that night and the next morning. Luckily, she has her faithful driver, Asa. Though Anna has always loved quilts, she never realized how much a quilt could help her through her deliveries on that night, or how Asa could make his way into her heart on that one, snowy night.


This is a very good collection of Amish novels; all of them linked to one another in some way and taking place near Christmas. They were very clean, as most Amish books are, and only had some romance in them. If you enjoy Amish novels that have a sweet story and take place in this joyous season, then you’ll enjoy An Amish Christmas(Expanded Edition).

---

1) Miriam has lived with the hurtful words of Seth from childhood and it has lowered her self confidence, though it was only spoken from a young boys teasing mouth. Has someone ever said something to you that lowered your self confidence; even if they only meant it in jest?
Oh goodness, I can't name the many times this has happened. Of course I, we, have to realize that we can't be overly sensitive and also that not everyone is out to hurt your feelings -- specially your friends and family. Sometimes it is obvious that the words they spoke they spoke in earnest and were just mean, and in those times we must throw an insult back at them. Ok just kidding. :-P We must do the opposite; we must get over what hurtful things they say and live on.  Don't let it hinder you being their friend still, either. If you know they meant it in jest but it still hurt you, just let it slide. There's no point in holding a grudge. :-)

2) Seth is trying to be forgiven of the past of move on to a better future, but Miriam is the only one refusing to let go. Have you ever committed a sin or hurt some one's feelings in the past and had someone hold a grudge against you? How did it feel?
Umm...I'm really trying to think here...I honestly can't remember a time that this has ever happened to me. But I do know that it would be very difficult for me if it did happen. I have a strong sense of guilt when I feel guilty about anything, so if I knew someone was holding a grudge against me it would really weigh heavily on my conscience.

3) Lydia is shocked when her old sweetheart Daniel shows up on her doorstep after abandoning her when they were teenagers. Daniel asks for forgiveness, and Lydia says she will forgive him -- but Lydia is finding it is harder to forgive him than she thought. Almost from Miriam's point of view in the last story, have you ever found it hard to forgive someone for past wrongs?
Of course this is a natural thing to do -- especially when it was a very heart-breaking happening. I have never really had as strong of a lack of forgiveness as Lydia did, as I have never been hurt that bad. But I hope I would be strong enough to follow Ephesians 4:32 - "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." - and forgive the offender, as God has gracefully and mercifully forgiven me.


Well there's part one! Tune in Wednesday for part two!