ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS! (and giveaway)

Reading, writing, letting God's love drench me each and everyday. It amazes me how much I still need to learn about His unconditional love. He loves me because He loves me because He loves me because He loves me. That's who He is. Nothing that I can do or not do will ever change the waterfall of love that He has for me!

Literally soaking in this truth, I am splashing my children as well. Isn't this a foundation for everything, to know, dance, and breathe in His love. Imagine my delight when a children's book This Little Prayer of Mine by Anthony DeStefano arrived in my mail. The delightful pictures danced into my heart and I began to read.

Whimsical text, colorful snapshots of childhood complete with tossled hair and puppy kisses adorn the pages. A simple heartfelt prayer of a little one, revealing how our Abba God delights in the details of life and created childhood to delight all of us. Dreams, mistakes, childhood wrapped in words. Sweetness like "But most of all I'm grateful for your love that never ends" made me smile.

This book almost won my heart and was read to my boys, until alas, I turned to the last page. A simple phrase, seemingly harmless "I'd like to ask again. Please love me God, forevermore" cut to my core. Such a simple mistake, but one that would not be read in my home.

We don't ask God to love us, He already does! We cannot plead for Him to love us forever. He IS love. He created it. It is His nature to love us always. He cannot change who He is. Maybe it's because of all I am learning. Maybe it is because of this mommy's heart fighting to only represent the TRUE nature of God to my boys. Maybe it's because I am wrapped in His love and I only want others to be as well. His love that never fails and cannot be asked for because it already exists in such enormous measure, we just need to believe it.

Remember, I started reviewing to give books away. And I still am. I struggled a bit on how to give these books away (I have two) until a hint of creativity bubbled up. I cannot mail the book like it is to any of you, I care for your too much. So, the last page has been a bit doctored. You couldn't give it away as new, but maybe you'll smile each time you read it and feel splashed by God's love.

To enter into this giveaway, simply leave a comment about a cherished childhood memory (from your childhood, children you know, or even an encouragement for those of us with precious little ones at home right now). This book was provided for review by the Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group.