Stranded with... 3 Books

I'm so excited!!  Y'all may remember last month that I linked up with Shay and Erika's new link up "stranded" and shared three things that I would take from my medicine cabinet. Each month there is a different topic (see below for all of the topics) and today, we're blogging about what three books we would take with us if we were stranded on a deserted island.

Let me be clear. As much as I would like to be on a warm island and visiting happy sandy beaches right now (like one of my favorites, Coco Cay *smiles*) I don't think that I would fair well on a deserted island. Hahaha. Obviously, while I dream of being on the Amazing Race, I am not hoping to be on Survivor which I associate with being stuck on a desert island. Or the movie Castaway. Not fun.*hahaha*

Last September I wrote a post entitled, "the 5 books that have impacted my life the most" and there are definitely going to be a few crossovers today. So here are my 3 books (and narrowing it down to three was hard!)...

(1) My Bible

Without a doubt, the Bible has been the number one book that has impacted my life. On good and bad days I find a love letter from the most important in my life (Jesus) and fall more in love with my precious Savior. On difficult days, scripture shouts to my hurting heart and reminds me of the truth of who Jesus is.

(2) Evidence Not Seen - A Woman's Miraculous Faith in the Jungle of World War II

A couple of years ago I shared here on the blog about this book and the impact it has had on my life. This book tells the story of Darlene who was a young newlywed in the pre-World War II era and her experience as a missionary in the jungles of New Guinea and then her four years in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. The title of this book is perfect because she truly is honest in her experience of the way that the Lord often appeared silent but His hand was continuously orchestrating protection over her each and every day, providing "evidence not seen". There are so many nuggets of truth and encouragement that I have walked away from after reading this book and I have made it a tradition to read this book once a year in the Spring or Summer. Each time I do I am struck again by this woman's faith in God despite her horrific circumstances. You can read more of my thoughts about this book HERE if you are interested!

(3) The Mark of the Lion Series ( A Voice in the Wind, An Echo in the Darkness, and As Sure as the Dawn) 

I picked up the first book in the Mark of the Lion Series at a used book store when I was 14 years old and was looking for some encouraging Christian fiction. From the first sentence of the book (“The city was silently bloating in the hot sun, rotting like the thousands of bodies that lay where they had fallen in street battles.”), to the last, I was transported back to ancient Jerusalem, Germania, Rome, and Ephesus to a time that was frought with war, danger, and the faith of those mentioned in Hebrews 11. The Mark of the Lion series follows the story of a young slave girl (Hadassah) and Marcus, who is the brother of her owner. Hadassah experiences extreme horror and yet struggles to share her faith with the family that she serves as she grows to love each of them. At the same time the book also follows the story of Atretes, who is a captured soldier from Germania who is forced to become a gladiator. I don't want to ruin anything for you, but I can't recommend this series enough. You will be challenged to fall more in love with Jesus no matter what your circumstances are, and challenged to think about how we share the love of God with those we love the most.

So these are my three books if I'm stranded on a deserted island that I would bring! (seriously there could be a ton more!!)  Hahaha!  What books would you bring?  I'd really love to know!!  Comment below (or link up!) and share this with us!  

And to see the other topics for the rest of the year (obviously next month picking out my three books is going to be impossible - hahaha!):

Happy Wednesday friends!