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It’s February already!

Yikes!

Weren’t we just ringing in the New Year? Like usual, time is flying.

Back in December, I had posted about my New Year’s Resolution. Only 1 this year! You can read about it here. Right around this time, a dear friend had reached out to me about getting together for a book study. We both struggle with control issues and anxiety so I searched for something along those lines and found It’s All Under Control by Jennifer Dukes Lee. We decided it would be worth checking out, ordered the book and study guide, and started reading. The timing could NOT have been better! Looking back, this was a total God thing. Had my friend not reached out, I probably would not have picked this book. I have a bookcase and Kindle full of books I’ve ordered and never found the time to read. Shameful, I know!! I broke my own rule of not buying any more books until I read the ones I already have, and I am oh so glad I did!

Immediately I fell in love with this book. It was EXACTLY what I needed to read at that exact moment in my life. I read with a pencil and highlighter in hand. If you’ve never done this before, try it! In the past, I opted for e-books. Super convenient, but for a scatterbrain like me, it’s very hard not to get distracted. Ding – email. Ding – Facebook message. Ding – text message. Ding. Ding. Ding. Plus, there are a lot of verses to reference. Some devices make it hard to swap back and forth between a bible app and a book.

I usually read early in the morning as part of my quiet time. Sometimes I got up before my 5:30 am alarm (crazy, I know) wrapped myself in a blanket, and read. Some days I would stare down the clock, hoping it would slow down so I had more time to read. My book friends will understand what this is like!

In order to let God be in control (as I said before, I know He is in control, but I typically like to pretend I am) I really need to keep myself on track. This book was a great tool for that. I could relate to the majority of the book.

While I don’t want to send out a spoiler alert, I do want to share a few of my favorite parts:

• “True Rest isn’t about your lack of activity; it’s about the state of your soul.” This one spoke to me! I am a busy person (aren’t we all) Work, kids, family, etc.. sometimes feel like there is just nothing I can cut. Maybe sometimes that is ok – if I find rest for my soul. That needs to be non-negotiable. Because without rest for my soul, I just can’t tackle the weekend-long softball tournaments or gymnastics meets or band festival.

• As long as everything goes exactly the way I want, I am totally flexible. Ha. Totally me!

• God cares for your loved ones more than you do. Love this! One of my biggest areas of stress and worry comes from my family. The world is a scary place. I worry about my kids, sometimes in an over the top, unhealthy way. I can reason with myself and know the worry won’t do any good, but still can’t stop. It was a great reminder that God loves them more than me.

• My type A likes to be in charge. Fundraisers, field trip chaperones, travel softball accommodations, you name it, I’ll do it. Until now! I’m starting to pass the baton. I just can’t do it all. I’ve come to realize something has got to give. Sometimes it’s painful because they just don’t do it right. Ha ok I’m joking (kind of) but in the end, it’s done and that’s all that matters.

I would practically rewrite the entire book if I wanted to share all my favorite parts! Had I read this a few years ago, I might not have been so enthralled. I’m telling ya – divine timing!

Here are my two cents on how I got the most out of this book:

• Get the paper copy! This is one of those books I feel like you will want the book in hand. I realize electronic devices make it easy to bookmark, etc… but for me, this was a book I wanted a paper copy of!

• If you follow step 1, have a pencil/pen/highlighter handy. There are so many things I underlined because I could totally relate.

• Use the study guide. I learn best by writing. For me, this was the perfect companion to the book. It had a lot of thought-provoking questions, fill in the blank, and other exercises. I have done studies in the past where the study guide was very redundant of the book, but this was not the case in my opinion.

You can order the book and study guide on Amazon by clicking on the images below.

You can also check out her website which has a lot of other great info. www.jenniferdukeslee.com

I hope you enjoy this book as much as I have! I’m looking forward to meeting with my friends to discuss!