Story Warren

Kindling Imagination for Kingdom Anticipation

The Warren & The World Vol 9, Issue 36

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I was outside for most of the day today, with a group of colleagues from the church where I work, learning and growing together. There were many good things about the day, but one I hope I hold onto and remember was a few moments of quiet before prayer, when I listened to the breeze make gentle waves of the leaves on the branches over my head, and I thought of Elijah in his cave listening to a violent wind, and then an earthquake, and then a fire, and then finally a gentle whisper—and that was the voice of God.

Around the Web

The Gilded Girl–A Little Princess Retelling

Carolyn Leiloglou at A House Full of Bookworms recommends this retelling of a classic.

  • I love retellings like The Gilded Girl. Retellings give a us a chance to experience a story we love in a new way. And they can give readers unfamiliar with the original a taste of what they’re missing (and hopefully a desire to try it)!
    The Gilded Girl by Alyssa Colman retells the story of A Little Princess by Frances Hodgeson Burnett with a few essential changes. For one, Colman shifts the setting from England to early 1900’s America. Second, the serving girl, who is a bit flat in the original, is a second viewpoint character with a lot more spunk. Third, and perhaps most importantly, there is magic.
    Read more

Peanut Butter & the Marriage Supper of the Lamb

Milley Sweeney wrestles with her sons allergies and looks forward to the day when all things will be renewed.

  • I bolted up the stairs, heart racing in response to my husband’s call. He was the calm one, the unflappable med student; that level of urgency in his voice froze my blood. Bursting into the bathroom, I saw. Our one-year-old son, his eyes and lips swollen, his perfect round baby belly splotchy with an ugly red rash. My husband, already on the phone with the pediatrician, asking, “Do we give Benadryl, or bring him into the ER for Epinephrine?”
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Looking Behind in The Hobbit

Hayley writes at Redeemed Reader about Tolkien’s classic—as we celebrate Bilbo’s birthday this week.

  • As Bilbo Baggins clings to a barrel, increasingly cold and entirely wet, he wonders if he will die. Quite a predicament, but readers will remember that far before Bilbo ever entered Mirkwood, before goblins and Wargs, and Gollum and trolls, there was another predicament.
    Back, over the Misty Mountains, long ago one morning, Mr. Baggins had: . . . sat down in his hall and put his head in his hands, and wondered what had happened, and what was going to happen, and whether they would all stay to supper.
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21 things that are still true in 2021

I don’t know many people who’ve felt like 2021 has been an easy year. And after 2020, well…but some things are still true in 2021, and it is good to remind ourselves of them.

  • 1. God is still God. He is still on His throne, unshaken by what happens. Nothing takes Him by surprise and nothing is out of His control.
    2. Right and wrong aren’t subjective.
    3. No matter how dark it is, the darkness can never drive away the light. In fact, a tiny flame can more easily be seen when it is shining in the dark than in the light of day.
    Read more

Around the Warren

The Miracle of Imagination

Sharon Monzingo reminds us that we do not need to teach imagination in the first place, but we might need to fight for it.

  • One morning when my granddaughter Easton was three years old, she and her mom and I were driving to get donuts when she said, “A lion!”
    My daughter and I glanced back at Easton in her car seat, then followed her gaze and chubby finger pointing up to white clouds in the blue sky outside of her window. No words were spoken. We drove on, a catch in our throats and tears in our eyes.
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The Sunlit Lands Series by Matt Mikalatos

Carolyn Leiloglou recommends a Young Adult series for kids who have grown up with good books.

  • The Sunlit Lands Series by Matt Mikalatos is my top pick for kids who have grown up reading The Chronicles of Narnia, The Wingfeather Saga, and The Green Ember Series and are now ready to dive into young adult. These books contain the same kind of deeply true and meaningful stories as the above mentioned series. And if you’ve been following me for a while, you know what high praise that is. My teens and I devoured the first two books in the series, The Crescent Stone and The Heartwood Crown. Book three, The Story King, just released June of 2021.
    Read more

Something to Do with Your Kids

Is your family one that doesn’t celebrate Halloween? That doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate fall! Here are some great ways to make fall fun that don’t include ghosties or ghoulies.

Something to Watch

I thought you might like to spend a little time in the woods today, too.

Thanks for reading. We’re on your side. 

–The Story Warren Team

Carolyn Clare Givens
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