My Favorite Quotes from Calm My Anxious Heart

I love a good quote. I used to have journals just FILLED with quotes, some written by me and lots found on the internet. I recently read and reviewed Calm My Anxious Heart by Linda Dillow and that book was full of amazing, inspiring, encouraging quotes. I highlighted so many different quotes in this book that I knew I needed a whole separate post for them. I hope someone finds encouragement in these!

"What we are on the inside, what we continually think about, eventually shows in our words, actions, and even on our countenances."

"...she had lived a life of contentment when her circumstances would have caused the hardiest to complain."

"Her eyes were fixed on eternity. Her tomorrows belonged to God. She had given them to Him. And because all her tomorrows were nestled in God's strong arms, she was free to live today."

"Because Carol constantly compares her personality to those of the Sallys of this world, she has missed her own individual beauty." ... "She's too busy focusing on what she doesn't have instead of what God has given her."

"If we want to be women of contentment, we must choose to accept our portion, our assigned roles from God."

"When a woman looks for contentment in material possessions, the 'things' she wants pull her deeper and deeper into discontent. That for which she longs gradually becomes that to which she belongs."

"Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least."

"The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith. The beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety."

"When we worry, we're saying 'God can't.'"

"When we spend precious time worry about what might happen, anxiety becomes negative baggage that weighs us down, saps our energy, and leaves us ineffective."

"Worry never changes a single thing except the worrier."

"We are to entrust all our tomorrows to Him and live just today."

"It's when tomorrow's burden is added to the burden of today that the weight is more than a man can bear."

Review: Calm My Anxious Heart by Linda Dillow

Calm My Anxious Heart by Linda Dillow

Publication Date: June 29, 2007

"True contentment is separate from our circumstances. Contentment is a state of the heart, not a state of affairs.

This is a very convicting book. A Bible study friend picked this book out for us to read and I hadn't heard of it before, but dang, it was a great read. I highlighted something on almost every page and plan on doing a whole blog post of my favorite quotes from this book.

Linda has seen a LOT of the world and she shares just a glimpse of her stories. She was a missionary for a very long time and saw the good, bad, and ugly. In this book she dives into contentment and worry and so much more. I personally struggle with contentment and thinking the grass is greener somewhere else. This book really explains WHY we need contentment and HOW we can get it.

This book covers a lot more than just contentment and it has questions at the end for each chapter. It will really make you take a step back and look at your life and thoughts, but it will benefit you to make positive changes! 💗

Review: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

  

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Publication Date: May 23, 2017

★★★★

Wait, what? That's what I found myself asking through a lot of this book. This book was not what I expected at all and for that reason I'm unclear on what to rate it. 🤷🏼‍♀️😂 That's kind of a good thing though, right?

This was a quick, clever read that took me by surprise and had me guessing the whole time. I read some other E. Lockart books in high school and loved them, and as far as I know this book was very different than her other ones, but it was done well! It really gets you thinking and made me start flipping back, trying to get clues and put the whole puzzle together. Definitely check this one out for a quick story where truly nothing is as it seems!

Review: The Matchmakers of Minnow Bay by Kelly Harms

The Matchmakers of Minnow Bay by Kelly Harms

Publication Date: August 9, 2016

★★★★

I love a good small town read, and this book did not disappoint! Lily is a starving artist who realizes she never signed the annulment papers from her one-night-stand-turned-wedding in Vegas 10 years ago. She of course has to track her "husband" down and finds him in Minnow Bay, Wisconsin.

Lily finds more than her husband in Minnow Bay. She finds an adorable town with kind, hard-working people who turn to friends. And not to be cliche, but she finds herself there too. Lily has a very tell it like it is personality, and I liked the banter between her and her friends and her "husband", Ben.

I thought I knew exactly how this story would go based on the title, but there's so many surprises along the way that made for a fun story! If you're like me and love small towns (or just reading about them), definitely check this one out!

Review: The Good, The Bad, and the Grace of God by Jep and Jessica Robertson

The Good, The Bad, and the Grace of God by Jep and Jessica Robertson

Publication Date: June 23, 2015

★★★★

This book surprised me in the best way! I haven't seen all the Duck Dynasty seasons (someday I'll binge them) but I loooooove reading about the Robertsons. I didn't know too much about Jep and Jessica going in to this book, but I loved reading their stories from their upbringings and early married days.

Jep and Jessica are definitely proof that you can't judge a book by its cover. When we "meet" people on TV after they've reached success, it's hard to remember that they started from the bottom. J+J both have been through a LOT in life that I would have never guessed! From health issues to marriage struggles, these two have a ton of experiences to share, and they've come a long way! They really have seen the good and bad in life and I appreciate their transparency.

This is a great, honest read about the youngest Robertson brother and the surprising twists and turns his and his wife's lives took!

Review: The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks

The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks

Publication Date: April 1, 2005

★★★★★

Shoot dang, this was the book I needed to rekindle my love for reading Nicholas Sparks! It had been far too long since I had read one of his books, but it definitely won't be long before I pick up another story of his!

This story is an interesting mix of romance and thriller and I am here for it! 🙌🏻 As always, I'm immediately drawn to the small North Carolina town filled with cute places and good people. Except for creepy stalker Richard, of course. 😝 I felt connected to the main character Julie and felt nervous FOR her throughout the entire story. It kept me on edge the whole time!

As per usual with pretty much all Sparks books for me, I cried while reading this book. 😭 I highly recommend this book if you're in the mood for a good "hiding in plain sight" small town thriller!

Review: Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come by Jessica Pan

Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come: One Introvert's Year of Saying Yes by Jessica Pan

Publication Date: May 28, 2019

★★★.5

This was an interesting read. Admittedly, I was drawn to this book because of the pretty cover and colors 🙈 I would classify myself as a selective extrovert (lolol). Meaning I do get my energy from being around CERTAIN people, not just any group of people. At the same time I love being at home and being with my little family unit.

Ramble over...this book surprised me. I knew the author Jessica was going to work on being more extroverted and saying yes to things, but I feel like her journey was extreme. I did not expect her to do some of the things she tried, like stand-up comedy or having a surprise trip booked for her. Those are two things you will not find me doing. Ever. 🤪

I enjoyed reading about Jessica's experience taking an improv class, and all the people she met during her extroverted year. I love that a common theme throughout her journey was that a lot of people are more introverted than they may present. It kinda makes you think!

I recommend this book just as a funny read about someone stepping out of their comfort zone, just know that some of her experiences are a little unrealistic (at least to this midwest mama!) 🌻

Review: Get Out of Your Head by Jennie Allen

Get Out of Your Head by Jennie Allen

Publication Date: January 28, 2020

★★★★

"The people who stand out to me are the ones who have chosen to trust Jesus more than trusting their ability to make everything work out fine."

This book is great. It makes you think in a totally different way about when our minds wander. I just finished this book but I've already put into practice a lot of what Jennie talks about! This book helped me recognize when the enemy is trying to get to me, putting negative thoughts in my head (it happens more than we realize 😓). Thanks to this book I've been able to reroute my thought process and focus on the good, true things in life. PTL for that! 

Review: The Grumble-Free Year by Tricia Goyer

When Less Becomes More by Tricia Goyer

Publication Date: November 5, 2019

★★★

I'll be honest, I don't think I was in the best mindset for this book. I had a hard time relating to the author who is a mom of 8 (or was it 10? I got confused 🤔) and has littles all the way up to twenty-something aged kids. I liked the idea of reading about a family who tries to stop complaining (we could all try that!) but unfortunately the book as a whole fell short for me. I do think this book would be helpful to people with larger families, or even just people with teenagers in the house!

Review: When Less Becomes More by Emily Ley

When Less Becomes More by Emily Ley

Publication Date: November 12, 2019

"In a world of constant comparison, it's easy to believe we aren't measuring up to everyone else- that our children aren't as well behaved, that our clothes and cars aren't as current, that our homes aren't perfect enough, that our incomes are lacking, or that our aspirations as women and as a family aren't as sparkly or big enough."

What a lovely book! 🥰 I've read Emily's other books and love the truth she speaks in all of them. 🙌🏻 I'm always intrigued by the idea of practical minimalism...that less truly is more but that doesn't mean our houses need to be perfectly clean and boring. Emily provides several different aspects of life where we are running ourselves to the ground (commitments, social media, work, to name a few) and offers ways we can take a step back and simply SLOW DOWN. Being super busy is overrated if you ask me and I loved so much of what Emily wrote about how and why we should stop overwhelming ourselves. Definitely recommend this one!

Book Review: Finding Mr. Better-Than-You by Shani Petroff

Finding Mr. Better-Than-You by Shani Petroff

Publication Date: January 14, 2020

This book is cute as a button! It's a very innocent high school setting, with some "edgy" topics sprinkled in here and there. For a second I found myself thinking the things the characters cared about were silly, but then I thought back to when I was in high school and it all came rushing back. High school IS silly, in the best way! There are a lot of great messages from this book (can't share or I'll give it away! 🤫) and I really think this would be a great read for a high schooler. Especially a boy crazy one!

Review: The Starter Wife by Nina Laurin

The Starter Wife by Nina Laurin

Publication Date: June 11, 2019

My rating: ★★★

This book was completely packed with CRAZY. 😳 With a very unreliable narrator, this book was different than pretty much anything I've read. I found this book to be mentally exhausting, yet I finished it super quick because I needed to know what was going on. I'm giving this book 3 stars simply because even though this is a mystery, it was REAL confusing. I found myself flipping back to earlier chapters to see if I missed something or to refresh myself. I was also left with a couple of questions that I'll never know the answer to, and for that reason I'm bummed. 🤷🏼‍♀️ But if you're looking for a domestic thriller, look no further!

Review: Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

Publication Date: January 29, 2019

My rating: ★★★★

My first thought after finishing this book was "what did I just read?!", but I get a feeling that that's the whole point of this book. This story as a whole, like the character of Bernadette Fox, is a complete puzzle that you never really get figured out. Bernadette is a mysterious woman, and every time I thought I had something figured out the story took a drastic turn that surprised me! I was surpised by the writing style, which is a lot of correspondence between several different combinations of people. With each new document or email I had to remind myself who was who and what their relationship was. 🤷🏼‍♀️ There is a lot going on behind the scenes in this book, so don't get too comfortable thinking you know everything! Three words for this book are quirky, (sometimes) funny, strange.

My 2019 in Books

Even though I'm a total words person, I love statistics! I took a Stats class in college and it was by far my favorite math class I had ever taken. I always get excited at the end of every year when Spotify sends each person their data from the year- which bands/singers you listened to most, how many minutes were spent listening, and lots of other stuff.

On that same note, I get just as excited when Goodreads provides us our "year in books" at the end of every year! There's something about seeing how many pages you read in a year, and all the books that contain those pages, in a pretty way. I thought I would share my 2019 in books with a couple thoughts. Of course if you want to see the full list, click the link in the previous sentence. :)

I'll take it! I had set a Goodreads goal to read 35 books in 2019, so I was happy to pass that! I have decided NOT to set a reading goal for 2020, but I have set a goal for the past several years and it's always fun to reach them! 

I'm not surprised at all that To All the Boys I've Loved Before is the most popular book I read in 2019. The whole series is SO adorable! I also find it fun when my least popular book has less than 100 people who also read it. Just shows I have a wide range of books I like to read (I guess?), ha!

There's more details and a list of all the 2019 books I read here, if you're interested. Make sure to check out your 2019 in books!