Book Review: The Twilight Gospel by Dave Roberts

***This review is part of a LitFuse Blog Tour. I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher, but the opinions in this post are my own.***

As a Christian, I have often sat back in bewilderment at other Christians and the way that some of them sometimes behave. One area that has often amazed me is some of the literature that is taboo among some Christians. My personal feelings regarding many of these books is that God has given us the gift of discernment and we should use that gift to help us differentiate between what is good and what is bad and that includes within works of literature. I am not one that believes in throwing out the baby with the bathwater so to speak and will often read these books for both the entertainment value as well as the literary lessons that they may hold. They are not presented to us as factual and therefore I do not read them believing the story to be true.

One series of books that has recently taken much criticism from some Christians is the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. I admit, I have not read any of the series, but I have enjoyed the first two movies. When I had the opportunity to review The Twilight Gospel by Dave Roberts, I felt it would be interesting to read a book that was designed to serve as a sort of spiritual guide for those who wanted to read/watch the Twilight series or for parents whose children were reading/watching it.

About the book: The blockbuster Twilight Saga is being read by teenager and adult alike. These powerful novels are gaining even more popularity as the movies hit theaters. But what should a Christian response be? And is there a helpful way to approach a teenager or young adult captivated with the books without alienating her?

Dave Roberts read The Twilight Saga and while he appreciated the literary qualities, there were also parts that troubled him. As he considered the books as a whole and spoke to teenagers who read them, he saw the need for a resource. In The Twilight Gospel Dave brings to bear a Biblical lens showing that while there are important moral and spiritual lessons to be learned, there is also a promotion of a non-Christian worldview. He addresses such topics as the cult of beauty, the appeal of the self-disciplined vampire Edward, life after death, the use of myths and legends, sexuality, personal spiritual power, and the lure of materialism.

Crisply written and with a gracious spirit, The Twilight Gospel will help teens, their parents, and their pastors discern what is good from what is unhealthy in the novels and equip them to be biblically literate readers. Read an excerpt here.

About the author: Dave Roberts is a professional journalist, editor and speaker. For more information please visit his website at www.thinkchristian.co.uk.

My take on the book: The Twilight Gospel is an easy read and can be finished rather quickly. It is definitely a recommended read for any parent who has concerns regarding Christianity and the Twilight series, as well as for those teens who are reading Twilight. It does a great job of helping to separate the wheat from the chaff and ensuring that a reader would recognize the difference. It also allows the reader to see the series, especially the Cullen family, from a new perspective. If you are not a Christian and a Twilight fan, you would probably not get much out of this book.

To read more reviews of The Twilight Gospel, visit the blog tour page on LitFuse.

Want to win a $50 Amazon gift card? (I am not affiliated with this giveaway, just sharing it with you): Tweet this: (and be sure to use the hashtag #thetwilightgospel)

Understand cultural and Biblical insights surrounding the Twilight Saga by reading #TheTwilightGospel. Please RT! http://ow.ly/1vjc6p

Mirra Winner

Random.org chose comment #5:
"Tweet:
http://twitter.com/Nelsby/status/10535541754
Thanks!
Aimee"

Congratulations to Aimee for winning the Mirra Beauty Products!

Stand up, or sit, and be counted

Many of you have probably received the "pre-Census" letter last week. While I feel that letter was a waste of money, I do believe the Census itself is very important and that every person, no matter how small, needs to be counted. I encourage all of you be sure and fill out your Census when you get it and mail it back. The information received by the Census Bureau is shared with other government agencies and is used to determine how federal funds are distributed. The funds are used to provide funding for health and education among other services in the community. With the poor economy right now, it is vital that our communities get every penny that they should be getting, to ensure that the necessary programs are able to stay in place. So when the real Census arrives, take some time and sit down to fill it out. Now, I will get off my soapbox. Have a great day.

Mirra Beauty Products and Giveaway

Mirra is a new line of beauty products that combine natural ingredients with proven technologies to bring women no hassle beauty products. The line includes products for hair care and styling, face and skin care lotions and cleansers, eye firming and age-defying creams and cosmetic brushes. The Mirra line carried exclusively by Kroger and Kroger banner stores, including City Market, Dillons, Jay C, Food 4 Less, Fred Meyer, Fry’s, King Soopers, QFC, Ralphs and Smith’s.

I recently had the opportunity to try the Mirra line of beauty products. I received the shampoo, conditioner, face scrub, protective lotion, body wash, micro-remodeling cream and wrinkle reduction eye care. I love that the products contain recognizable ingredients that are natural, such as aloe, ginger, aloe, sunflower, red tea extracts and bamboo. I was a little concerned I would have trouble with the shampoo and conditioner after my last experience with a "natural" shampoo, but I was pleasantly surprised to find these not only cleaned my hair well, but also left it smooth and easy to work with. I also love that these products are paraben-free, and formaldehyde donor-free. The scents of the products are wonderful. I particularly like the lemongrass and ginger scent of the body wash and lotion. Speaking of lotions, they are silky and left my skin feeling soft and supple. The bottom line: I like these products. They did not blow me away, but I was not disappointed by anything either. Unfortunately for me, and my local readers, we do not have a Krogers or a Kroger banner store near us :( For those of you near a Krogers or a Kroger banner store, there is a $5 off 2 coupon available on their website.

Would you like the chance to try these products for free? Kroger and Global Influence Network, are giving away one set of the same products I received. To enter, leave a comment telling me why you are interested in natural products. You can earn bonus entries (one entry for each that you do)by sharing a beauty secret that uses natural ingredients, subscribing to my blog, following my blog, or sharing this giveaway via your blog or other social networking site. Please leave an extra comment for each bonus entry. The winner will be chosen on March 19th and they will have 48 hours to get back to me or a new winner will be chosen. I am not sure what time I will choose the winner on the 19th, but entries will be accepted up until the drawing. Good luck!


***Disclaimer*** I received the above listed products for free in order to write this review. I received no money for this post and the opinions remain my own. Products were provided by The Kroger Company and Global Influence Network.

Another change

After thinking about it for quite a while, I am going to make this blog a little more personal. I will still include deals, reviews, giveaways and other fun stuff and I will still include helpful information, but I also want to let the real me show through. So this is the start of the getting to know me posts.

My name is Danielle and I was born and raised in Rochester, NY. My mom had me 3 months after she turned 16 so we kid of grew up together. She married my dad when I was 7 months old and they had 3 more children together (2 girls, 1 boy). When I was 20, my mom left home for a short time as she tried to find herself. She returned home a few weeks later pregnant with my youngest brother. My parents stayed together through the pregnancy and the baby is legally my father's (NY state law automatically assumes paternity to be that of the father unless otherwise stated). Unfortunately, my mother found she was still unable to deal with my father's mental illness (he is schizophrenic) and they did divorce about 10 years ago. With the exception of my 2st younger brother, all of my father live 5-20 minutes from me. My brother and his wife recently moved from Washington D.C. to State College, PA. Although, my husband and I have lived in several other states through the years, we are currently living in my home city where we bought our first house last April. We have 4 wonderful children Chloe, Yasmin, Janelle, and Cameron.

In the upcoming months, I will share more of my life, but this is my background. I would love to learn more about you as well. Feel free to share your background either in the comments below or by posting a link to a blog post that shares it.

Product Review: Tommee Tippee Sippy Cups

I recently received 2 different sets of Tommee Tippee Explora sippy cups to review through Mom Bloggers Club. Tommee Tippee is the #1 brand of infant and toddler feeding products in Great Britain and now they are available in the US exclusively at BabiesR'Us.


The first set of Explora sippy cups we received are the ones pictured above. These are the stage 5 Explora Drinking Cups for girls. My 3 year old daughter has mastered drinking out of a regular cup, but I much prefer the fact that these are spill-proof so I can relax when she is using them. These cups are 9oz each and sold in a 2-pack with a suggested retail price of $7.99. The cup reminds me sort of like an adult travel mug, in that the child has a small slit in the rim of the cup to drink through, but it also has a valve to prevent leaking.

The second set of cups we received are these:
These are the Explora Stage 2 Sippy Cup in the boy designs. My little guy (20 months old) took right to them without a problem and I love that they have a little flip-top to keep the mouthpiece clean when traveling. These sippy cups hold 11 oz each and are also sold in a 2-pack with a suggested retail price of $7.99.

One of the goals of Tommee Tippee is to help reduce "mom-xiety" and these products certainly help do that. All of the Tommee Tippee Explora cups, Cloer to Nature bottles, and their feeding products are BPA- and Phthalate-free. They all also have a patented valve-design that is unlike any I have ever seen (and I have 4 kids, the oldest being 9 years old). It truly creates a leak-proof and spill-proof cup, yet it allows for the child to easily drink from the cup. The cups are sturdy, well-insulated and cute, too.

There is a complete line of Tommee Tippee products as well to take you straight through the toddler years. Starting with their Closer to Nature line of bottles, pacifiers and accessories and continuing through the 5 stages of their Explora line of sippy cups (Trainer Cup, Sippy Cup, Straw Cup, Water Bottle, and Drinking Cup), as well as their toddler feeding pots, weaning bowls, spoons, bibs, and feeding mats.

We have been very pleased with the cups we received and I definitely plan to purchase more of their products in the near future. I try to include both the good and the bad in product reviews, but I am having trouble really finding any negatives to these cups. Even the designs on the cup seem to be holding up, something I find tends to fade or chip rather quickly on other brands. I highly recommend these for any of you with little ones up through pre-school age.

***Disclaimer*** I did receive the above mentioned cups from Tommee Tippee and Mom Bloggers Club for free in exchange for posting this review. I was not compensated in any other manner and my opinion remains my own.

Over or Under

Have you heard the new debate? Cottonelle wants to know if you belong to Team Over or Team Under, as in does your toilet paper roll from the top (Over) or from the bottom(Under). In my house, it all depends on who changes the roll. I personally like over better, but my husband likes under. The good thing is that it is one of those things that neither of us feels strongly about so we don't really care if it is not our preferred way. I do know some people have strong feelings though and will change the toilet paper roll if it is not "right". What about you? You can participate in the poll by visiting the Cottonelle website. Be sure to leave a comment on this post as well and you will be entered to win 1 of 10 Cottonelle gift baskets from Cottonelle and the Mom Bloggers Club. The random drawing will be held on January 29th from all entries. As a member of the Mom Bloggers Club, I am also entering to win a month's supply of Cottonelle for myself.