Book Review - The Noticer

A snowstorm on Saturday gave me time to finish some books I had started - snug in my warm house with a blanket, tea/coffee, recliner and books looking out my window overlooking the Allegheny Valley.

I finished The Noticer:  Sometimes, all a person needs is a little perspective by Andy Andrews - an e-book I received from Thomas Nelson. (I like reading on my Kindle better than on my computer - glad it was a short book)

This is one sweet book - in a genre all of its own, described as - a blend of fiction, allegory and inspiration, seasoned with a dash of autobiography. I think I will be buying one for each of my college-age boys. Great advice in it about keeping the right perspective in life, especially during tough times.

The jest of it is - Jones, an older gentleman, shows up in the lives of different people who are struggling. Along with helping them notice the good things around them, he speaks wisdom and hope into their lives that helps them turn their life around. 

Yes, that sounds like a fairy tale, but the truth is - we all go through tough times and we all need wisdom and hope to help us through. Sometimes it comes from others. Sometimes we need to force ourselves to focus on the positive and notice the beauty and/or the potential around us. Here's some of the advice that Jones gave ...

Other people's experience is the best teacher. By reading about the lives of great people, you can unlock the secrets to what made them great. (read biographies)

One way to define wisdom is the ability to see, into the future, the consequences of your choices in the present. (think, think, think about the choices you make) 

Many of life’s treasures remain hidden from us simply because we never search for them. Often we do not ask the proper questions that might lead us to the answer to all our challenges. We are so caught up in fear and regret, that hope seems a foolish endeavor. Proof of hope, however, is not only possible; it is an overlooked law of the universe. 

Proof of hope ... is it possible? 

I've had some dark days when I would have answered - no, don't think it's possible. 

But now I say - yes, it is!

The odd thing about 'proof of hope' is there's no one place, formula, quote or verse that will give us all hope. We each have to find it - in a way that speaks to our unique wiring and the time/place we are at in life. I find hope in some of the same ones mentioned in The Noticer - God's promises, books, outdoors and being intentional about noticing beauty around me. 

Where do you find hope?