Stephanie Rische

Blogger and Writer: Capturing Stories of God's Grace

Friday Favorites for April

Hi everyone! Happy Friday. Here are a few of my recent favorites for this month. Enjoy!

For anyone whose spring break was lackluster (or nonexistent) . . .

Maybe you can’t enter the pages of a book, but you can visit these real-life places that inspired some famous novels! I can see why Moseley Bog would have sparked Tolkien’s creativity. And anyone else want to visit Ashdown Forest with me? 9 Real Life Places That Inspired Famous Classic Novels

For anyone in need of an extra dose of happy . . .

How happy can a word be? Someone did a study that assigned happiness quotients to some 10,000 words. See if this list doesn’t make you a little happier, just from reading it! The 200 Happiest Words in Literature

For anyone who geeks out about stats or books (or stats about books) . . .

I found this article about author’s favorite words fascinating. Find out which writers gravitated toward mauve, cinnamon, and civility. What’s your word of choice? What Famous Writers’ Most-Used Words Say about Them

For anyone who would have written their story a little differently than it’s playing out . . .

So often I start my story in the wrong place. And I wish I could edit it, even though I don’t have the whole picture: “This story starts with our perfect God. Immeasurable. Incalculable. Incomprehensible. Every story starts with Him. And He is writing each one with the aim of pointing to his glory. Every single one. Even the ones I probably would have written differently.” Perfect Start, Perfect End

For anyone who wonders how to live extraordinary in the middle of ordinary . . .

How do you live out a radical faith right where you are—going to work, mowing the lawn, doing the laundry, raising kids? This book is an authentic, humorous, and inspiring look at how to practice things like simplicity, hospitality, and social justice in the context of real life. Highly recommended! The Year of Small Things

Friday Favorites

For all the pleasers out there…

If you’ve ever struggled with trying to add to grace, wanting to earn a smile from God and other people, I highly recommend this book by Tullian Tchividjian. It has been a game changer for me: Jesus + Nothing = Everything

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For all the teachers out there…

Teaching has to be one of the hardest, most thankless jobs out there. I had some amazing teachers and I know some amazing teachers, so I want to remind all you hardworking teachers out there that you are making a difference. (And you will make it through these last few weeks, I promise!) Dear Teachers Everywhere

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For kids and everyone who loves a kid…

This was a fun list of children’s books—it made me reminisce about some of my childhood favorites and make a trip to the library to check out a few I missed: 25 Books Every Kid Should Have on Their Bookshelf

 

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For Literary Nerds

In honor of Shakespeare’s birthday a couple of weeks ago, here’s a list of words we can thank him for. The world wouldn’t be the same without him, because I don’t think there’s a true synonym for bedazzled! 20 Words We Owe to William Shakespeare

 

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For Moms and Non-Moms Alike…

Mother’s Day can be one of the trickiest holidays to handle. How do we honor moms while acknowledging women who don’t fit the traditional mold? This post by Sarah Arthur offers a compassionate perspective: Are Women Really Saved through Childbearing?