Winter Ordinary Time 2022: Word on Fire illustrated Bible...

Hello all and happy end of week! It's SUPER chilly in my part of the world, and I'm tucked up cozy with Barney as I write this. 

*blissful sigh*

I get very inspired by the starkness and freshness of winter, and this year is no exception. I'm thinking ahead to Lenten planning (doesn't start until March this year, so still plenty of time!) and getting so excited! In the meantime, I'm enjoying the slowness of this particular part of Ordinary Time and just savoring small joys as they roll in. Related to my last post, I added a Great Feasts icon to my home icon wall, and a small and *adorable* Christ and Theotokos chapel icon set to my desk at work. I'll post photos next time as I forgot to photograph the desk set in particular, and those are just spectacular! 

I've also been allowing myself to read more this winter, and just enjoy some of the books, both fiction and non-fiction, that have been sitting on my Kindle for a long time, awaiting my attentions. One of my New Year's resolutions was to be more active on GoodReads again, keeping track of books that I'm actively reading and those that I would really like to get to in the near future. (I enjoy inspiration romances, romantic suspense, religious non-fiction titles, fitness and dance memoirs). This has helped me to stay focused on making steady progress with books, rather than allowing days to go by without reading at all (or, a single minute of reading in bed on my Kindle before my eyes drift closed). One of the things I'd like to examine for Lent is to select 1-2 non-fiction Catholic titles on my bookshelf and dedicate myself to finishing them before the end of the season. Selecting them will be the most fun!

In that realm, I got an email earlier in the week that the long-awaited new Volume II of the Word on Fire Bible was ready and available for purchase, this year it's Acts, Letters and Revelation:

I learned my lesson from last year (the Gospels) and immediately braced myself for the cost of the leather bound version, because I know now that that is what is want. :-) And there is a GREAT bundle available to purchase both Volume I and II! My order is in, and was shipped yesterday. 🙌

This will be a lifetime project to get through, to be sure, but I'd like to pick it up regularly over Lent. *quiet squee* I cannot wait to structure out my reading plan! I believe that the next volume, for 2023, will be the Pentateuch, so exciting. 

Any other Word on Fire Bible fans here? How have you been approaching reading with yours? Each evening or some other system that you have? I would LOVE some ideas as we approach the start of Lent 2022!

Summer updates, and some big book news! (finally :))

Summer Book Club post is coming tomorrow, don't worry! I actually devoured the book in a few days, so I'm all ready to go for our discussion! Part I is tomorrow, Part II is next week. I even returned the ebook to the library so that the next person on the waiting list could have immediate access to Catholic apologetics goodness.

😇

I'm also busy frantically preparing for our big summer festival this weekend. This year is a whole new level. I'm in something like 500 dances. 😂 I'm not really exaggerating by all that much, unfortunately. It's...a LOT. We're doing pop up dances throughout the festival both days, and then a 90 minute stage show on Saturday, 60 minutes on Sunday. I have many group pieces pervading, and then a solo on both days, a longer one on Saturday. The sheer volume of costumes and accessories that I need to pack is making me increasingly paranoid about forgetting something and/or generally screwing something up majorly. I'll be there close to 6 hours on each day.

😳

Pray for me. :0 I'm certain that I'll be reporting in on all of the amusing details next week!

All right, so the BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!

*trumpet blares*

The book that I've been mentioning for about 2 years now, and working on for well over a year, is now in the printing process, and available for pre-order as part of a scripture study series for Catholic women!

Aren't they STUNNING?! Look at those pretty pastel colors!! My baby is the lavender one 😍:

*heart*

These books are down-to-earth, and easy-to-read, and are designed either for small group study, or from the comfort of your own couch with nothing but comfy clothes and a cup of tea as your companions on the journey. Each book has a different theme: the invitations of Jesus, classical works of Catholic literature, or the gifts of the Holy Spirit. All 3 books are organized into 7 chapters with opening and closing prayers, reflections on the chapter topic (in the case of my book, a different Catholic classic is featured in each chapter), connections to scripture, and discussion questions. These have journal prompts and space built right into the book, so there is plenty of room throughout to record yours/your groups' thoughts and experiences. You can see this below in the delightful interior design!

I could not be more pleased with how these books turned out. I plan to work my through all 3 as scripture studies and journals, and am just about jumping up and down with excitement! If you join the pre-order campaign, you will have your journal(s) in September!

🎉

We are trying to gather initial printing costs for our lovely publisher, Gracewatch Media, and a successful campaign also means more journals will come out in 2019! The pre-order comes with MAJOR discounts for you. Each journal is available for $9 (25% off), or you can buy all 3 for just $25 (30% off). There are also bulk discounts available for each book, so you could also procure 3 copies of any 1 book for 30% off, 5 copies for 38% off, or 10 copies for 50% off! This is *perfect* for a Bible study group to go in on together! Domestic shipping costs are extremely reasonable as well. Ordering during the campaign also means that you'll get your journals way sooner than waiting for the full launch.

🤗

If you'd like to support our humble campaign, I would be most grateful! These are marketed towards Catholic women, but I do truly feel that these journals are quite applicable to men as well! They also make great gifts for the women in your life.

The campaign is open for 20 more days! There WILL be online book clubs for these books as well, keep your eyes peeled, and I will keep you in the know. ;-)

Do you need a daily way to delve into scripture? Are you a journaler? I'd love to hear from you!