Do you love watching movies? I rarely get out to the theater to see a new release, but I love renting DVDs and enjoying some microwave popcorn and a good movie by the fire at home.

Still, it’s hard to know what’s good out there — and that’s why I love the list of movies in the back of Sharon Hinck’s newest mom-lit novel, Renovating Becky Miller.

I enjoyed reading the first book in this series, The Secret Life of Becky Miller, because Becky is so much like me — a mom struggling to find balance in her busy life as a wife, mother, and friend. All the while, she’s seeking to find out if she’s supposed to be doing Big Things for God.

Sharon’s second novel is even more adorable — full of laugh-out loud scenes, and each chapter begins with Becky slipping into a daydream where she’s starring in one of the movies she and her husband rent on date nights. There are 33 movies listed in the back, and I’ve only seen about half of them — so I’m looking forward to renting some more!

Today, I’m thrilled to host Sharon Hinck on her round-the-world Blog Tour — especially since today is the official launch party of Renovating Becky Miller in Sharon’s hometown, Minnesota.

Welcome to Mom 2 Mom Connection, Sharon!

Thank you for writing a book that highlights the importance of being a normal, permission-slip-signing MOM.

THANKS, Heather! I wanted to highlight the true ADVENTURE it is to be a wife and mom. We really are heroic characters (or in my case, sometimes just a character!).

I loved reading about all the movies in this book!

I kept my local movie store in business this past year while I was writing it. I got to watch a ton of movies and call it “research”. Ha!

In your new novel, Renovating Becky Miller, our heroine finds herself dealing with an enormous amount of stress in her life. What all does Becky have going on in this book?

She faces external pressures (her mother-in-law’s health crisis and need for care, her job stresses, her son’s behavior problems, her friend’s illness), internal pressures (feeling overwhelmed and inadequate, comparing herself to others and coming up short, confused about choices), and some fall-out from decisions she’s made that might not have been well-thought out (like thinking it would be easy to fix an run-down house).

In my life, I often find that problems come from a variety of directions and I wanted to explore a woman sorting that all out. Which are tasks God wants me to take up and persevere under? Which are self-imposed burdens that aren’t mine to bear? Which tensions have been caused by my own mistakes?

Like me, Becky wrestles with those complicated questions — and tries to keep her sense of humor along the way.

Does Becky have a place where she can unwind from all the stress? What role do her friends play?

Throughout the story, she finds grace and clarity through her prayer life, her Bible reading, and her worship life. However, it’s easiest for her to apply those blessings wrapped in the arms of her friends.

They badger her, they confront her, they cry with her, they love her. Her small group Bible study friends provide the kind of community that I think God is describing when He talks about building up a household of faith.

At one point in the book, Becky has a choice to make — will she continue to pour more hours into her career, or say no? I was amazed at her choice. Do you think women today have a hard time saying no?

In our desire to make a difference, to feel valuable, and to please others, to fix the problems we see around us singlehandedly, we often rev up into a high gear of activities. We see our friends doing the same — and some strange competitive urge stirs and we perpetuate that Supermom syndrome.

My adult son read this novel (I know…if that’s not an act of love, I don’t what is!) and said his favorite subplot was the way that Becky’s choice set an example for her very driven co-worker — and enabled Teresa to open her life to something new.

Yes, I loved that part as well. It made me see how the decisions we make have ripple effects on others — in good or bad ways. And in this case, Becky’s choice reminded her coworker of what the most important things in life really are.

The funny parts of the book center around Becky and her husband’s decision to renovate an old farmhouse. Can you tell us more about that?

My husband and I are optimistic do-it-your-selfers. We’ve done major remodels to three different homes over the years. Each time we forget that things will take three times longer and cost three times as much as we anticipate.

Our first little house gradually revealed secrets of Stephen King proportions – from the fleas infesting every square inch, to the rotting wall behind the tub surround, to the urine-soaked wood floors, to the chicken bones in the clothes dryer. (We never did figure that one out. Who puts chickens in a clothes dryer?) So I had plenty of vivid memories to draw from in the whole wild stress of renovation.

Chicken bones in the dryer? Now there’s a new one! From the title, it seems like Becky gets a little renovation work done on herself as well. What kind of “home improvements” take place in Becky’s heart?

In spite of Becky’s desire to be “Ms. Fix-it”, she learns that healing people’s wounds is a God-sized job and takes more than spackle and paint. Becky begins to learn to love and serve where she’s placed, but leave the “fixing” up to God …. well, at least some of the time.

We all need some friends we can be honest with — who can encourage us during the hard times.

Thanks so much for stopping in, Sharon! I hope your launch party goes well today.

Thanks SO much for inviting me. Yes — today a local Christian bookstore is launching the book with a party, including a guessing game (where folks will hear a snippet of Becky’s opening daydreams and try to guess which movie inspired them) and lots of Becky Miller gifts.

Here’s a picture of the Renovating Becky Miller paintbucket I created — full of the little “Becky Miller tool kits” that folks are getting at the party.

I wish I could be there — looks like a fun place for movie fans!

Sharon Hinck is a wife and mother of four children who generously provide her with material for her books. She has served as the artistic director of a Christian performing arts group, a church youth worker, and a professional choreographer. You can visit her website to learn more about her books, including her forthcoming Sword of Lyric series from NavPress.

We’ve finally made it to February: a whole month devoted to LOVE.

Our family seemed to drag through January — trying to recover from the stress of the holidays — then sliding into nearly a month of being off-and-on sick.

I’ve been almost confined to my home, wiping noses and checking thermometers — instead of relaxing with friends at church. I’ve missed my beloved women’s Bible study so much.

A friend who has also been home week after week with three sick preschoolers confided to me recently, “I hate to say this, but it’s almost like being in jail. I just can’t get out of the house!”

Yet I’m reminded by this encouraging post, It Gets Easier, that one day it will get easier! Maybe in a few years, I’ll be TEACHING a women’s Bible study — instead of straggling in worn out and late, if at all. But for now, this seems to be my writing season.

I’ve also been busy reading books lately — and you can see what I’ve had on my nightstand in this month’s CWO Book Buzz. It’s truly amazing how God ministers to me through each book I read — whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, I’m having a ball!

I learned to read fast in college. I was an English major, and I filled up my schedule with as many literature and writing classes as possible. But still, my daily routine now is nothing like in those days of being single — I have to snatch my reading in snippets here and there. I’ll confess that I’ve cut WAY down on my blog reading — and I’ve had to adjust to the feeling that I’m missing out on the “news.”

In this month’s column, I reviewed seven books — chosen from over two dozen that were sent to me. I also receive emails nearly every day from people requesting that I review their books — and I hate having to tell people “no,” but I really don’t want to waste their postage and time if I don’t think the book would be inspirational for CWO readers.

I’m already hard at work on next month’s column. Behind the scenes, I’m working on setting up an interview with a fantastic woman — I just finished reading her book, and I’m dying to ask her some questions. How fun that I get to do this and share it with so many people!

This month’s issue focuses on love, appropriately, and Darlene has a great interview with Robin Lee Hatcher, author of over 50 books.

I enjoyed reading Robin’s Christmas novel last year — I happened to leave a comment in Gina’s Novel Journey blog, which entered me in a contest to win, A Carol for Christmas. The book arrived, signed by the author, a day before my December deadline, so I flew through it. I love Robin’s writing — she’s a joy! And you can enter this month’s book draw to win one of Robin’s novels, Ribbon of Years or Firstborn.

In Darlene’s Letter from the Editor, she writes:

With all this talk about love, I couldn’t help but focus on Jesus Christ — after all, both His life and death were a gift of love. A love that brought Him to the cross so that His Father’s will would be complete. A love that, even though He was God, drew Him to lower himself to the form of a man. A love that powered this “man” to live a life without sin so that He would be the spotless sacrifice for the One True God. A love that although He prayed asking that the cup of suffering be taken from Him, led to His death. An incomparable love.

Yes, I agree. An incomparable love.

Recently, in the blogosphere, there was a discussion, a very good discussion, about whether or not meditating on scripture is “New Age.” The blog post referred to an article by Keri Wyatt Kent in the popular magazine, Today’s Christian Woman.

I read the article, Fresh Air, in the magazine when it came to my house, and I thought it was great. It encouraged me to hold on to certain words, certain phrases from the Bible and meditate on them throughout the day. This is so important for us women, especially us moms who are being watched nearly every second by the little souls God has put into our homes to disciple.

So I was surprised at some of the things that were said about this article, and especially surprised at some of the comments by bloggers who didn’t take the time to read Keri’s article to understand her full meaning.

Well, we must be careful not to use our blogs as a place to gossip. In Matthew 18:15, it says “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.”

What this means is — if you have a problem with someone, you need to go to that person individually to discuss it. In the 21st century this means if you don’t like something someone says or writes, it’s not a good idea to go blog about them and get your readers to turn against them as well. For one thing, misunderstandings ABOUND when we read words instead of seeing the speaker say them in person. (Body language and voice intonation account for a huge percentage of communication).

Keri Wyatt Kent is a fine Christian woman, a mother who has given her life to the Lord, and who uses her gifts of speaking and writing to lead women to a closer walk with Jesus. You can write her personally from her website.

She was a guest on my blog last April. I read her entire book, Listen: Finding God in the Story of Your Life and reviewed it for CWO Book Buzz here. You can read our interview here.

She is NOT a New Ager — she’s not leading people into a cult. She’s leading them into a deeper love of Scripture through meditating on God’s Word. Keri has often encouraged me as a weary mom with her inspiring articles in the magazine MOPS publishes, MomSense.

In case you didn’t click over to read the complete article, here’s what Keri says about the practice of listening:

Christians have prayed and listened to Scripture through a practice called Lectio Divina (Latin for “Sacred Word”) for centuries. You read a passage slowly several times, spending time in silence between readings, letting the words sink into your soul as you listen for the one word or phrase that touches you most deeply.

Lectio Divina is a way to meditate on Scripture by listening and then responding—breathing in God’s Word, breathing out a prayer. Traditionally, this practice includes four parts: reading, meditation, prayer, and contemplation. Deep listening to Scripture requires a focus on God’s words rather than ours. In Lectio Divina, I listen to what God wants to say just to me through the text. I’m open to listening not just to general truth that’s applicable to everyone, but for specific truth that applies to my unique circumstances.

In this practice, I read a short passage. For a month or more one summer, I kept going back to Psalm 27, reading a few verses at a time. I found myself drawn to verses 3-5, so for several days, I returned to that short section. I read it slowly, noticing how often I found myself drawn to the word “dwell.” What did it mean for me to “dwell in the house of the Lord” (vs. 4)? Did I really believe I was “safe in his dwelling”? How could I truly dwell in his presence?

These verses became a love letter from God to me, an invitation to deeper intimacy with him …

She later continues to explain the practice of “breath prayer:”

Psalm 1:2 exhorts us to meditate on God’s Word, to delight in it. Unlike Eastern meditation practices, which focus on emptying the mind, a breath prayer is a way of filling your mind—but filling it with God alone.

I ask you, is there anything unbiblical about this? David meditated on scripture throughout the psalms. If I had more time and were not taking care of sick children, I’d look up many verses in the Bible where God’s people meditated on the Word, including Jesus, who was constantly meditating on scripture.

This morning where I live, it’s cold and rainy. My voice is hoarse, and I keep coughing from this nagging cold that has swept through our whole family (three kids still sick).

My two oldest daughters were slow to get up for school, complaining about this and that. My 1st grader couldn’t find her favorite shoes, and we spent 20 minutes running around the house looking for them, until we at last found them in our downstairs bathroom.

All during this time, I had a verse in my head: “Choose you this day whom ye will serve … but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD” (Joshua 24:15). We know this is when Joshua is talking to the Israelites, giving them the choice to serve the Almighty God or to wander off and choose the false gods of the Amorites, in whose land they were settling.

My mind dwelt on the word, “CHOOSE.” Every second, I had a choice. Will I lash out in wrath at my daughter for being careless and whiny? Every part of me wanted to scream, “If you’d put your shoes in your closet where they belong, they wouldn’t be lost! Quit your whining!”

Instead, I kept my voice soft and my tones encouraging. I found another pair of shoes for her and put these on her feet tenderly while we kept up our search.

When I realized I had forgotten to pack lunches, the words came again to my mind, “Choose whom you will serve.” This means, will I live for Jesus and offer a sacrifice of praise with my lips? Or will I live for me and scream out, “OH NO! I forgot the lunches! Why can’t you kids pack your own lunches?” Blah blah blah.

The choice came. I packed their lunches quickly, without complaint. I CHOSE God’s way because I’d hidden His Word in my heart — through meditating on a single verse when I desperately needed it most.

I’m not writing all this to make myself look good — because I have the choice right now to go have fun and read some blogs or get off the computer and go wash the breakfast dishes that are stacked in the sink. Yet another choice, and guess what I know I must do? Without complaining!

I’m reading the Bible through this year chronologically, so I’m reading huge passages that make me feel like I’m reading a novel. But the Bible is not a novel. Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” MY HEART. My achy-breaky evil old heart.

This Word is living in me, breathing fire in me, helping me to slay the dragons of my emotions (anger, bitterness, depression) that have had a hold on me during my hormonally wacky child-bearing years (yes, a whole decade of feeling this way!).

As I read through the comments in a follow-up post I’m more impressed than ever with two women of God: Carol Moxley and Ann Voskamp. Their comments were written using wisely chosen words, demonstrating a love of Truth — but above all, a love of God’s people. (Oh, how I wish I had the gift of writing like these two women of faith!)

Ann has taught me so much about being thankful through her gentle, quiet spirit — and I’ve had to realize how awful my attitudes have been over the years. She has made the Bible come alive for me through her living, active faith. And I admire Carol for her ability to discern good from evil and to have the courage to stand up for what is right.

I’m not there yet — I’m still a mess, still a work in progress, making mistakes every second. But I love these women of faith, for what they continue to teach me. And I will CHOOSE today, this very second to serve the Lord. Which means getting off the computer and getting out my Windex, thanking God that I have a home to clean and a family to care for.

That’s my choice for today. What’s yours?

[Edit: Catez Stevens of AllThings2all in New Zealand has an extremely thoughtful post on this topic. In fact, she wrote Keri Wyatt Kent with her questions, and posted Keri’s reply, which clears up many misunderstandings. Please go read her post, Transcendental Meditation & Prayer: A Short Discussion with Keri Wyatt Kent.]

My kids spent the day with their grandparents, so I missed hanging out with them after school. Tonight, they were all being extremely nice to me. I thought it was maybe because they’d missed me.

My son asked for hot chocolate, so I said I’d make him some, and he said, “Well, that’s great if you can make me some, but if you can’t that’s OK too.” Then he thanked me about five times after I popped a mug filled with cocoa and milk in the microwave.

Um … you’re welcome. Really, it’s not that big of a hardship.

Later, my girls kept thanking me for little things, and then as I kissed both of them good-night they said, “Thank you for being a nice mama, Mama.”

My heart was so FULL … until my oldest daughter said, “Our chapel teacher told us to say that. Today our chapel was about contentment and they told us to stop whining so much and to tell our parents how thankful we are for them.”

OH!!!!! Did I tell you today how much I love their school? Oh, maybe that was yesterday.

Consumerism is the god of America’s children. Cultivating contentment is the response. When we are discontent, we are not grumbling about our circumstances, per se. We are actually grumbling, raising our fists against God. Who owns it all? Who provides for our every need? When we complain and practice discontentment, we tell God that He is not sufficient.

Amy and I emailed a few times last month as she and her family are looking to buy some land and relocate. They briefly considered our area in Georgia, but I read today they’ve narrowed it down to Tennessee or Kentucky.

Bummer. I guess I need to keep practicing contentment that one day I’ll have a blogger friend who lives nearby. 🙂

Yesterday, my fifth-grade son asked if he could spend the night with one of his classmates Friday night. “It’s his birthday,” he told me. “And he’s invited all the boys in the class.”

A few years ago, I would have told him no, we don’t do spend-the-night parties. That’s what my husband and I had decided when the future was hypothetical, and we imagined all sorts of nightmarish things for our precious little boy.

Well, we’ve changed our thinking. That’s part of parenting — not being legalistic about things. Instead of making rules that can’t be broken, you have to pray about everything, and pray that you’ll be obedient to God.

He goes to a Christian school this year, and there are four boys in his class. We know all the families of these boys; we cheered on the sidelines together for flag football, and now we’re cheering on the sidelines together for Upward basketball. We know where they go to church; we’ve visited their homes.

So I told him yes — but that doesn’t mean I won’t pray about it. The main concern I have is materialism. We are STILL the only family around who doesn’t own a single video game. My husband doesn’t see the point in having kids stare at flashy pictures on a TV screen that will make them long to sit inside instead of going outdoors to play basketball or run around in the fresh air.

This morning, I told my son, “We wouldn’t let you go to __’s house if we didn’t know his family well.”

“Why not?” he asked me.

“Because, well, they might let you watch a movie that wouldn’t be good for your mind. Like something that’s rated R.”

“What does rated R mean?”

“It’s something that could be violent,” I explained. “Or something that could have adult stuff in it that’s not good for you. The Bible tells us to think on those things that are excellent, things that are pure.”

Here’s where I see the hugest difference in public school and even our homeschool (the way we did it). At their private Christian school, they’re memorizing HUGE passages of scripture in the lovely King James version of the Bible. They say these scriptures every day out loud, in unision, over and over again. There’s something to be said for being with a group of people when you repeat scriptures out loud together.

“That sounds like what we learned in Philippians 4:8,” he said. And he quoted this to me, verbatim, after breakfast, while he dribbled a basketball in the kitchen.

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Thank you Lord that our children are going to a good Christian school this year! They’re encouraging even me to search the Scriptures and find YOU, find YOUR best plan for our family. Please continue to protect their minds and hearts so they can enjoy a few more years of the innocence of childhood. And then give them the weapons they will need to fight the Good Fight in the years to come.

I tell ya, there’s Power in the Word!

P.S. In case our kids’ grandparents are reading this, thank you, thank you, thank you! You’re impacting the next generation through blessing your grandchildren with the gift of Christian education! We couldn’t do it without you unless I went to work outside of the home!

Every week I receive a wonderful parenting tip from Trish Berg. She’s the author of a soon-to-be released book called The Great American Supper Swap. If you’d like to receive a free weekly parenting tip, check out her website to see where you can sign up!

Top 3 Valentine’s Day Tips for Kids

1. Homemade Cards — Instead of spending a fortune on store bought Valentine’s Day cards for your kids to hand out in school, go to the Family Fun Magazine website for simple hand made card ideas, including printable designs your kids can color. All it costs you is the white paper and some crayons – and you’ll gain time spent with your kids, and more giggles than you can imagine!

2. Pink Heart Shaped Pancakes — Use Bisquick or your favorite pancake recipe, and add 3 drops of red food coloring to make the batter pink. To make heart shaped pancakes, you can either: 1) Cook regular round ones on the griddle then cut them into a heart before serving them, or 2) pour the batter into a squeeze bottle (such as a clean chocolate syrup container) and shape the hearts one lobe at a time. (They’re really just a V shape, which spreads out into a heart on the griddle.)

3. Hidden Love Notes — Write 3 love notes to each of your children on cute heart shaped paper. One each write something like, “I love you because…you care for others and always lend a hand.” Hide the loves notes through out your house. After dinner, let your kids hunt around for their love notes. When all are found, sit at the dinner table and have each child read his notes aloud to the whole family! Then share a sweet treat for dessert and watch them all smile!

Top 3 Valentine’s Day Tips for Moms and Dads

1. Dinner on a Dime — Eating out at a nice restaurant is so expensive for moms and dads, factor in paying a babysitter and you could go broke! So, instead, try this neat tip. Feed your kids a simple meal (like pizza) early that evening, around 5, and then put them to bed at 7 or 8. Make your husband’s favorite meal for two, and after the kids are in bed, have a late night candle lit dinner.

2. Top 10 List — Make up your own top ten list for your husband, listing the top 10 reasons you love him. After the kids are in bed, share your list and watch him melt.

3. Love Notes — Write several love notes to your husband. Spray each with a dab of your favorite perfume. Then leave them in places you know he will be on Valentine’s Day like on the seat of his car or on his desk at work. You can even enlist the help of some of his co-workers to deliver some to him for you! When he comes home, I guarantee he’ll be smiling!

Send your great ideas and tips to help moms simplify motherhood to Trish at trish@trishberg.com, and maybe they’ll be in Trish’s next Tip of the Week!

Be sure to check out all the FREE stuff, tips, recipes and more at Trish Berg’s website, where every mom goes to simplify motherhood!

There’s a good discussion today over at Shannon’s blog about great books for Christian parents. She recommended several of her favorites for moms-to-be, as well as new parents. And the list continues to grow in the comment section — so here’s a good link to check out!

If you’re expecting your first baby, your mailbox is going to be bombarded with free magazines, sent by advertisers. I didn’t realize this at the time — it was over ten years ago for me — but very few of those magazines (if any) will have any Bibilical content.

Although you can find plenty of wise pregnancy and parenting advice in secular magazines, watch out for the subtle moral advice that might creep in. Specifically, you’ll see articles that make you feel like you’re not in charge: your child is. Although I don’t have teenagers yet, I know what will happen if I let my children decide everything now — how will they respect me when I suddenly decide I want to be in charge?

If you’re looking for a monthly magazine that offers sound Biblical advice from professional writers, please consider subscribing to HomeLife Magazine or ParentLife Magazine. I’ve never been disappointed with the articles in these magazines — and you can visit Lifeway and see the other resources available (for singles, parents of teens, mature adults, etc.)

ParentLife is a great resource for moms-to-be all the way to moms of kids through age 12. I’m thankful my church orders several copies and hands them out to us busy parents!

I watched this video a few weeks ago and wanted to post it after the new year. It’s a video of Amy of Gentle Whisper giving her first sermon. I “met” Amy through the Carnival of Beauty at some point last year and have enjoyed reading her blog.

This is a 12-minute video, which she bravely posted, and it’s great! She made some really, really good points about getting out of debt — and how to stay out. From a Biblical standpoint. Click here when you can manage to grab 12 minutes of quiet…

If you’re the parent of a teen who uses MySpace, do you know what’s really going on? I read this great article in Today’s Christian Woman called A Mom’s Guide to MySpace that I urge you to read.

We’re not there yet — but I can tell you right now, I’m so glad there are already pioneer parents going before me writing magazine articles and books about this topic.

Also, Stacy of Active Christian Media has launched a new site called Being Safe Online. I urge you to go visit her site and scroll down a bit. She’s very up to date and aware of threats that are out there.

Please be careful about what you put online. You may think it’s fun to post pictures of your precious children and share intimate details of your family life — but don’t forget that you’re sharing with potential predators as well as your blogging friends and family.

Also, if you think you blog anonymously because you only use your first name, remember it only takes one link from another blogger who knows your first and last name — and you’re not anonymous anymore.

I hope you’ll check out Being Safe Online.

I cannot go to this website without getting tears in my eyes. If you’ve never heard of Sacred Harp singing, I hope you can visit the site, Awake, My Soul.

This documentary was made by some friends of my brother-in-law, and it’s one of the best films I’ve ever seen. This unique type of a capello spiritual singing is still popular in a few places in my native South.

From the website:

Awake, My Soul: The Story of the Sacred Harp’ is the first feature documentary about Sacred Harp singing, a haunting form of a cappella, shape note hymn singing with deep roots in the American south. Shape note singing has survived over 200 years tucked away from notice in the rural deep south, where in old country churches, singers break open ‘The Sacred Harp’, a 160 year old shape note hymnal which has preserved these fiercely beautiful songs which are some of the oldest in America. The film offers a glimpse into the lives of this ‘Lost Tonal Tribe’ whose history is a story of both rebellion and tradition. The filmmakers, Matt and Erica Hinton spent 7 years documenting this yet largely unknown art form.

I was able to attend one of the singings that was in the film and blogged about it last year. It was truly amazing to watch it on PBS a few weeks ago.

This is one of those things that’s gotten to me and I know I want to write about someday, but I’m not sure what or how or where. So for now I’ll just link to it and share it with you.

Be blessed!