"Don't Check Your Brains at the Door" by Josh McDowell & Bob Hostetler

“Seven in 10 Protestants ages 18 to 30—both evangelical and mainline—who went to church regularly in high school said they quit attending by age 23, according to the survey by LifeWay Research.” (USA Today)

Don’t Check Your Brains at the Door gives teens answers that make sense, even for the toughest of questions. Internationally known defender of the faith Josh McDowell and co-author Bob Hostetler offer clarity laced with humor to expose common myths about God, the Bible, religion, and life to show how Christianity stands up to the test of fact and reason. Teens will be better equipped to stick with their faith as they begin to understand why they believe and why it’s important to make a lifetime commitment to Christ and the church.

The book, "Don't Check Your Brains at the Door" was a book that was created with teens in mind. These days, so many teenagers have a lot of different questions when it comes to God, religion, and who created what. This book was created to try and target those teens with questions, and get those questions answered in a very fun and biblical way. The book is broken up into bite-size chapters that cover topics such as: Myths about God, Myths about Jesus, Myths about the Bible, Myths about the Resurrection, Myths about Religion and Christianity, and Myths about Life and Happiness. For me personally though, this book was really hard to read through from cover to cover. I would say that if you have a lot of questions, pick up this book at the library and scan through to the sections that you may be wondering about. But I think when this book really comes down to it, it would not really be worth buying. It has good intentions, but I found myself getting annoyed with the layout and just wanting to set the book down. Overall, I would give this book a 3 out of 5 though, because the book was informative, just needed a different way of presenting the information covered. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this ebook free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

God's Love Letters to You: A 40 Day Devotional Experience by Dr. Larry Crabb

"God's Love Letters to You: A 40 Day Devotional Experience" is really an amazing book. A lot of times we really struggle to hear God's voice. Sometimes we just don't seem to hear from Him at all, and we don't know where to turn. When that happens, we should turn to Him, not away from Him. This book is really a great reminder of that. Every devotional is written like a letter, from God, directly to us. You are going to get more out of some devotionals then you do others, because it depends on what part of your life you are currently in at the moment. But I can tell you, if you read this book, you will get one really big message: God loves you!

The actual layout and look and feel of the book is really great as well! The front cover looks old fashioned, similar to an old letter or postcard of some kind. There is even a cool stamp on the cover, that makes it seem even more letter like. The book itself is tiny, but it continues so many amazing messages.

Every devotional contains these special parts:

• a selected Scripture reading
• a short devotional message(or letter from God)
• reflection questions
• a closing prayer

The actual devotional itself is written in a personal, letter like format that is sure to feel personal and in depth. God really speaks to you through these letters, because he allows you to get out of these letters what he wants you to. It really is a beautiful thing. Some devotions, or letters, will not speak to you at all in this point in your life, and others will make you cry.  But for me, this book has been an amazing experience to get closer with God, learn more about him and realize just how much he truly loves me.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Its Not About Me: Rescue From The Life We Thought Would Make Us Happy by Max Lucado

The book, "Its Not About Me" by Max Lucado is best explained as a wake up call. A much needed wake up call, at that. The world these days is so self centered. We seem to have this idea that unless we are getting all the glory, things are not going as planned. Often times, we decide life is going terrible if it is not revolving around us. But have you really stopped to think who life really is all about? It's not about us, its about God. This book provides the shocking revelation that explains that everything in life is all for one purpose: God's Glory, not ours.

In my opinion, this book is a must read for every Christian. Max writes in a simple way that easily captures your heart and mind. Instead of this book being frustrating and hard to read, it provides an easy to read book with a powerful message. I'll admit it, the first few chapters were difficult to read. Why? It was so hard to accept that everything going on in my life, and my existence in general was all for God's glory and not mine. I think as humans we all find it really hard to accept the simple fact that it really is not all about us. But the more and more you read into this book you realize the powerful message that you don't really want it to be all about you, because that would end in disaster. In reality, we really want Him to take control. Luckily, he is willing, we just need to hand him the reins of life. I loved how Max used relative examples to today and different things we struggle with in life. It gave powerful examples to this amazing book. I would give this book 5 stars for sure. This book is a must for your bookshelf!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

You Are Not Your Own: Living Loud for God by Jason Perry of Plus One

The book "You Are Not Your Own: Living Loud for God" is a really awesome book for teenagers to read. The book was written back in 2002 by Jason Perry. At the time he wrote it, he was in a popular Christian boy band called Plus One. You might be sitting here thinking, "Okay... so this book is out dated. Why would I want to read it?" Good question. And I have a good answer for you. :)

 When you first pick up the book, I'll admit, it really does look a little outdated. By quite a few years actually. But the messages that are inside this book actually go way beyond how many years are in between then and now. Have you ever felt like your spiritual life was dull and boring? Or maybe you just feel like the Christian who goes to church on Sundays and acts like everything is fine and you have an amazing relationship with God, only to be partying on the weekends. (Although I doubt any of you do, its an example.) If any of those things explain you, then you need to read this book. But even if those few examples don't strike you, you need to read the book anyway. Why? Because this book will change your life. In short, this book gives you an awesome guideline on how to give your spiritual walk a nice re-charge! When you finish reading this book you will feel excited and ready to go spread the word of Christ to other Christians. There is a place to contact Jason in the back of the book, but because Plus One is no longer together, the site is down and I would assume the email is as well. But if you read this book and want to share with me how this book made an impact on your life, feel free to comment below and let me know. It would be awesome to hear from you! You might be feeling like I have not talked enough about the contents of this book. The reason is simply because I want you to experience this book for yourself. This book goes on the must read list for sure! :)

Paperdoll by Natalie Lloyd

The book Paperdoll by Natalie Lloyd is an amazing book for digging deeper with Christ. Have you ever gone to the mall and see the posters everywhere that scream, "If you get these pants, or that dress, you'll get this guy!"? Or maybe you sit down to watch Tv and all you can see is the really hot models that are trying to sell weight loss pills. Everywhere around us the world is trying to suck us in and cause us to be like them. We want the best clothing brands or the neatest hair style. Sometimes we want the guy. We think that if this guy falls in love with us, life will be perfect. In reality, we all want Jesus.

Personally, this book has really allowed me to grow in my walk with Christ. Natalie writes in such a way that is really easy to relate to and is a lot of fun. The way the book is written, it is easy to imagine sitting there with Natalie in a coffee shop and talking like good friends. There were many times while reading this book, that I would start a chapter and watch as God stopped me. It was as if God was letting me know that I was not quite ready to read that chapter yet. In so many ways this book brought me closer to Christ, cause me to see where my real beauty lies, genuinely love other people, and see what happens when an ordinary girl meets an extraordinary God.

In conclusion, I would strongly recommend this book to every teenage girl out there. It will stretch you, grow you, and cause you to get closer to God. But most of all it will teach you so much. You will maybe cry, laugh and sing for joy as you read through the beautiful pages of this book. But one thing I can assure you of, you will learn where your true beauty lies. Have fun reading!