Friday, March 23, 2012

The Scent of Cherry Blossoms

Cindy Woodsmall writes another great Amish novel, The Scent of Cherry Blossoms.  It is a romance novel from the heart of Amish Country and we are introduced to Annie Martin who is of the Old Order Mennonite people.  Unfortunately, Annie and her Mom do not get along and it actually surprised me that her Mom "kicks" her out of her house and Annie goes to live with her Daadi Moses in Apple Ridge.

Daadi Moses lives near a restaurant run by the Amish.  The Amish don't believe in using electricity but the Old Mennonite do so because of Daadi Moses, the restaurant is able to have electricity.  While Annie lives with her Daadi Moses she helps out at the restaurant that is run by Aden's family and where Aden works as well.  A relationship builds but when it is found out, both families have huge objections.  Aden's brother is one of them because he was in an accident that left him wheelchair bound and he needs Aden to help him.

Annie and Aden start meeting in the evenings by the cherry trees that are beginning to blossom.  And Annie tells Aden the story behind the cherry trees.  You'll have to read about that story and how the romance turns out when you get the book, The Scent of Cherry Blossoms!

I received this book for free from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Three Hearts DVD

Three Hearts introduces us to Cissie Graham Lynch, granddaughter of Billy Graham and daughter of Franklin Graham, who takes on a life-changing internship with the Children's Heart Project which is under the umbrella of Samaritan Purse.  It documents her journey to help bring three Mongolian children to America for surgery to repair deadly congenital heart defects that would not be able to be done where they live.

I would classify this movie as more of a documentary and I don't mean that in a negative way.  I've just seen alot of documentaries and movies and this seems more like the former to me.  It is a great story about how the Children's Heart Project "finds" these children with heart defects and the process of bringing them to the States to have the surgery done.  One can be very thankful for the team that is committed to this task and this story definitely shows how God works to bring these surgeries about.  If you don't think one life can change anything you need to see this movie because a little boy in Texas had a big heart and was able to make a huge difference in the lives of 3 children.

The movie also portrays what the Mongolian families went through to trust the Children's Heart Project team enough to risk their lives to go to a country far away, be in surroundings completely foreign to them, and allow their children to go through a surgery that could mean life or death for their child.  The movie brings you into the story to see how the Christian people involved use their testimony in words and action to these families.

I would also share that this isn't a "feel good" movie but one to challenge you to reach out to others in need, to be Jesus to them, and to remember that our witness is Global and not just local.

I was given a complimentary copy of this DVD by Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for an honest review.