The Beautiful Wife: Focused on Christ, Fulfilled in Marriage by Sandy Ralya

Kregel Publications (January 18, 2012) 240 pages

About the book:

The Beautiful Wife uses these inspiring stories along with biblical principles to guide and encourage any wife looking for God's best in her marriage. The Beautiful Wife answers serious questions women have about their roles as wives. Discussing everything from romance and money to beauty, communication, and sex, Sandy challenges women to open up and share their journeys so that together they can see God's plan for their marriages. "It is my passion to help women discover God's heart for their marriage, just as the other women helped me," writes Sandy. "When women share with each other the details of their journeys with God as wives, it's a beautiful thing indeed." The Beautiful Wife has two companion resources - Prayer Journal and Mentor's Guide.

My Thoughts:
I rarely ever post my thoughts on a book without actually finishing it, but I haven't finished reading The Beautiful Wife. I am loving it so far! It's exactly what I need to be reading right now, and I'm getting a great deal out of it! Unless things take a drastic turn, I can already tell this is one of my favorite books on marriage. The other one is also from Kregel Publications. They've really earned my respect with their books so far!

I'm not a journaling type of person, but I need it with this book. The questions not only in the book, but in the journal are making me apply what I'm learning to my life. It's not allowing me to just think, "Yeah, I need to do that". It makes me think about what I need(and can) do to apply what I've learned to my life.

The Beautiful Wife is a book I want(and need) to read slowly. It's set up to take a chapter a week. I'm not going that slow, but I'm not just reading straight through. I have a few books on my shelf that I need to constantly re-read, and so far, this is most definitely one of those books. I already have a great deal highlighted and marked up so I can easily come back and re-read passages.

[The help a man] needs most to succeed in life is one that is distinctly feminine. It is a help that receives, admires, nurtures, responds, supports, and loves. A man grows by this kind of help. He matures. He is strengthened to reach higher and do more than he ever could without it. The truth is, every man longs for this kind of help. (Robert Lewis, The New Eve)(page 31)

Pray daily for your husband's needs. Pray that his strength will be used to bring glory to God and that his weaknesses will be strengthened and healed. Ask God to bring him godly friends who will encourage his spiritual growth. Pray for his emotional and physical safety. Thank God for leading and guiding him in his roles as husband, father, and co-worker.(pages 32-33)

I do want to mention that in the first chapter, The Prayer of Salvation is included. I'll let you decide whether or not that bothers you. It's only on a couple of pages, so I wouldn't let that part keep you from reading it. You can include notes if you disagree. This book is set up for groups of women, so I know that would keep some church groups(mine included) from using this book as a Bible study. Again, though, I still highly recommend it from what I've read so far.

If I run across anything that I highly disagree with, I will write my thoughts in another post to let you know.

*I was provided a review copy from Kregel Publications(through Litfuse Publicity) in exchange for my honest opinion.

**The winner from the giveaway I had was Linda K. I've already mailed her books. Her name was picked through Random.org, since I couldn't seem to figure out how to pick the winner through Rafflecopter. I wasted entirely too much time trying to figure it out! :P Congratulations, Linda!

About Sandy:

Sandy Ralya is the founder and director of Beautiful Womanhood, a marriage mentoring ministry based near Grand Rapids, Mich. Her marriage testimony was the focus of a popular three-day interview on FamilyLife Today, TV's Walking by Faith, and Time Out for Women. Sandy is a sought-after speaker, presenting Beautiful Womanhood seminars to hundreds of women each year at MOPS groups, women's retreats, and church leadership conferences across the country and in Canada. Sandy and her husband Tom have been married since 1980, and have a growing number of grandchildren. www.beautifulwomanhood.com

To see what others on the tour are saying, Click HERE.


Win a Kindle Touch and RSVP for FB party 3/8!

Enter Today and Save the Date-3/8!

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(I'm so sorry y'all. My computer isn't acting right and it wouldn't let me copy and paste the whole code about the Facebook party with all the links).

Friday's Fave Five #3

Friday's Fave Five is hosted by Living to Tell the Story. It's a great way for me to stay on the positive side, and remember both the big and little blessings in life.

1. Firefly took his first step without holding on to anything!!!

This is such an exciting time for every mother out there. He's been cruising for awhile now, so we've been expecting it anytime. He's also already let us know about a month ago that he can quickly make his way upstairs on his own when we accidently left the baby gate open. He's growing up SO fast! Grasshopper has been very delayed with everything, so it's strange watching Firefly go through the stages so quickly!

2. My daddy's surgery
It was a simple surgery, especially in comparison to his open heart surgery, but we're glad it's over. He's resting at home now.

3. Blogging friends!

Whether it's recommending a great book or encouraging me to be a better person or motivating me with a new project, I GREATLY appreciate my fellow bloggers! Y'all mean so much to me!

4. Our backyard view
(Look VERY close and you might see all the deer in that picture). :P

Everyday we open up the curtains in our dining room window, and watch deer. They graze pretty much all day, and there's usually at least 9, if not more. As night gets closer, we've been counting 14 lately. After a great deal of trying, Grasshopper now knows what a deer is. He will grab his stuffed Rudolf(only deer we have) when we show him the deer outside. It's fun watching them through the window. :)

5. This big guy.

Before we had children, we got Solomon(our first one, Brinkley, was stolen) to keep us company. He was treated like a child, and spoiled rotten. When children came along, I've started losing appreciation for him. Getting up in the morning to discover I have to immediately sanitize the floor is not fun! He's been a great dog, though, and he is a blessing to our family!

Lit! A Christian Guide to Reading Books by Tony Reinke

Lit!: A Christian Guide to Reading Books ended up being one of those books that I can call "life changing". Really! While there was no need to convince me of the importance of books(because I have a book obsession), Reinke did convince me of so many other things. He opened my mind to many new ideas, and reminded me of many things I already knew. He also made me realize I need to keep books in their place, and never let them become idols!

Lit! is divided into 2 sections. I'm embarrassed to admit that I dragged through most of the first section. I'm embarrassed because that first section enforces that the Bible should come above ALL other books. I agree with that wholeheartedly!!! I had to write a quick review right after finishing the book, and I actually suggested that some people might even want to skip the first section. I take that back!! I did get a great deal out of the first section. It is important! I went back and re-read several parts and highlighted important sections I especially want to remember. But, again, there was a good chunk of it that I dragged through. I tell you that to let you know if you end up like me with the first part, keep going! That second section pumped me up for changes to my life, and in more ways than with just books. That's what I expect from Non-Fiction! I want something that encourages me to change for the better. I definitely got that with Lit!!

About a year ago, I had my reading challenged and I was struggling to make a decision of my own. Someone told me that ALL fantasy and magic in reading was wrong, whether it was The Chronicles of Narnia, Lord of the Rings, or Harry Potter....it didn't matter. It was wrong. I prayed and struggled through my decision for quite awhile. I finally came to the conclusion that I didn't agree with that. If you read my blog, I'm sure you can guess that since I read a good bit of fantasy. Reinke talks about this issue in the first section of Lit!, and I really like the arguments he gave.

I do not encourage you to avoid books that mention evil. Many of the greatest works in literature are written from a perspective that captures the dark realities in life. This makes it impossible to reject books merely because they include bloody violence, illicit sexuality, scornful unbelief, or dark witchcraft. The Bible includes stories of all four.
The more important questions are these: How is the violence, sexual sin, and skepticism presented? Is it presented as evil? Is fornication celebrated, or are the consequences of sin made obvious? Does the book celebrate sin, or leave evil unresolved?

Of course, Reinke writes more on the subject, stressing the importance of following your own conscience. In general, I will not read books with illicit sex (or profanity), because I'm just not comfortable with it.

One of the biggest changes I've started making due to Lit! is computer time. With blogging, that's sometimes hard. Except when I'm writing posts, I've moved my laptop to a more uncomfortable spot. I should probably mention here that I need a new battery, so I have to keep my laptop plugged up anytime I use it. I have to move furniture to plug it up. By moving it to another spot, away from my comfy couch spot, it just doesn't have as much appeal when I have to move things around or sit in an uncomfortable chair. I'm attempting to cut the ties that my computer has on me. This is a lesson that is quickly and easily forgotten!! :)(as I sit here back on my comfy couch) :P I am trying, though! My reading time has greatly improved lately! Lit! is definitely a book that I need to read often to keep the lessons fresh on my mind.


I've never been big on writing in books. There are those special few that when I start reading, I know it's one that I'll come back to, but otherwise, I don't write or highlight in books. Reinke did such a great job of changing my mind.

The emotions displayed in the reading experience can be captured. They should be captured. Those marginal notes are where the mind of the author and the mind of the reader collide. I hope my kids will one day read over my notes and see my responses to a book.

Writing in books is a GIFT to my children!

I could use a blank Moleskin notebook, but that's not as convenient. In the margins of a book my thoughts are directly tied to the original source.

Let me point out the obvious(Reinke does, too): Don't write in library books! ;) I still never write in Fiction. I may possibly for re-reads, but I haven't yet.


There are TONS of slips of paper marking things in this book that I want to share, but it would be so much easier just to tell you to read it. This post was actually very hard to write, but only because I loved this book so much. I actually deleted a great deal! I wanted to capture enough in here to convince you Lit! is a book you NEED to read. If I haven't, check out Carrie's thoughts HERE and her review HERE. She's the one that convinced me to read it and I'm incredibly grateful! :)

*I was provided a review copy through the Amazon Vine program in exchange for my honest opinion.

What's on My Nightstand

What's on Your Nightstand? is hosted by 5 Minutes for Books every 4th Tuesday of the month.

I've ended up with a big stack of review books for this month! As much as I try to control myself accepting reviews, sometimes I forget just how many I've taken on. Then they all come in at once. :P I am excited about each and every one of them, though.

So far, for the month of February, I've read:

(and reviewed)

Sweeter Than Birdsong by Rosslyn Elliot

A Darkly Hidden Truth by Donna Fletcher Crow

The Art of Falling in Love by Joe Beam

Winterling by Sarah Prineas

The Springsweet by Saundra Mitchell

Eye of the Sword by Karyn Henley

Shakespeare's Lady by Alexa Schnee



Read(haven't reviewed yet):

Lit!: A Christian Guide to Reading Books by Tony Reinke
-I'm almost done with this review. Hopefully, I'll post it tomorrow!

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
-So, apparently I'm not a Peter Pan fan. I tried to read Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, too, but I realized there's no sense torturing myself. No offense to anyone who does like Peter Pan! ;) He just wasn't for me.

Heartless by Anne Elisabeth Stengl



I need to finish reading:

Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
-I've been slowly reading on this one. It's ok. :P I do want to finish it, though.

A Love That Multiplies: An Up-Close View of How They Make it Work by The Duggars
-I'm really enjoying reading this one!

The Beautiful Wife: Focused on Christ, Fulfilled in Marriage by Sandy Ralya
-I'm using this one as my Bible study book at the moment.

The Maid of Fairbourne Hall by Julie Klassen
-I just started this one, but I like it so far.

More Beauty, Less Beast: Transforming Your Inner Ogre by Debora Coty
-This one is perfect for grabbing a chapter here and there. It's definitely different than what I'm used to, but it's cute as a quick devotional.



In March, I hope to read:

The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
-I don't know anything about this book, so at the moment I have no idea what I'm getting myself into. We'll see!

Stand by Me by Neta Jackson

By the Light of the Silvery Moon by Tricia Goyer
-I am SO excited to read this one! It will be my first book by Tricia, but I have been hearing great things about her since before I even knew about the whole book blogging world.

Oil by Jeff Nesbit
-This one doesn't look like anything I would ever pick up on my own, but it was sent to me as a surprise, and now I'm actually pretty curious about it.

Growing Up Ziglar: A Daughter's Broken Journey from Heartache to Hope by Julie Ziglar Norman
-I'd never heard of the Ziglars, but I've been hearing pretty good things about the book, so maybe I'll like it.

Blue Moon Promise by Coleen Coble

Almost Amish: One Woman's Quest for a Slower, Simpler, More Sustainable Life by Nancy Sleeth

In anticipation for Moonblood, which releases in April(and I hope Amazon rushes my copy!), I really want to re-read Veiled Rose by Anne Elisabeth Stengl.

I've got a very busy month of reading ahead of me! I'm mostly finished with most of the "finish reading" books, so hopefully I can actually get them all in!