Win of the Week

It's Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday...

And around here, while we're getting "down" on Friday, we're also celebrating! We've finally made it through another week. Time to breathe a sigh of relief and take a moment to reflect and remember the ups and downs of this past week.

It's time for us to share our Win of the Week! 

Again, I want to divide this between virtual and real-life, because that distinction is important. So, first off, my virtual Win of the Week would have to be finally getting set up with Amazon Associates!

I'm not sure why I hadn't done it prior to now, but I already made a few pennies, so I'm pretty excited about that. So if you decide you're going to buy something through Amazon, consider clicking through Life Before the Bucket first! It's an easy way to help support the blog while paying money you would already be paying anyway!

My real life Win of the Week could be a number of things. Getting stuck in an elevator made for a great story. It's also the end of the next to last week of our undergraduate program, which I'm stoked about. I'm excited to begin our life in a new place soon! Or it could be getting to go on a great date with my wife earlier this week!

My real Win of the Week, though, is something much simpler. I spent a lot of time this week reading on my Kindle, which I love and don't usually have enough time for. It's an easy way for me to keep track of all of my books and a great medium to receive free and dirt cheap books from. I think my Kindle and I will be spending a lot more time together in the near future!

Also, a bonus win has to be seeing this video. I promise you'll love it - it's hilarious!

What was your Win of the Week in real life? What was your virtual/blogging Win of the Week? Feel free to shamelessly share your own content!

Disclaimer: This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase anything through the link, I will receive monetary compensation for your purchase.

Free Books!

Time for a quick interview!

Can you read English? Oh,  you're reading this? Great!

Do you enjoy reading? Again, another self-answering question. Alrighty, then. Moving right along.

Do you blog? Because everyone's doin' it these days!

If you answered, "Yes," to all three of these questions, then I have a proposition for you. I benefit zero from whether you act on this or not, but I just wanted to get this information out to you, in case you weren't aware.

You see, if you enjoy reading and have a blog of some sort, then you can receive free books! It's any book-lovers dream!

The process is simple, really. I'm currently enrolled in three book review programs. These companies allow you to pick a book to review, and in return, you promise to review the books you're given on your blog and on a website like Amazon. It's simple, really. If you've ever seen my Book Reviews page, you can see that even a monkey could do it - unfortunately, none of the companies offer bananas for blogging, so the monkeys haven't joined in... yet.

The first book review program that I'm a part of is called Blogging for Books, through Waterbrook Multnomah Publishers. I have done the majority (actually, all) of my book reviews so far through this program, and it's wonderful. Some notable authors that I've reviewed books from: David Platt, Bruce Wilkinson, and Leonard Sweet.

The second book review program that I'm a part of is Book Sneeze, through Thomas Nelson Publishers. I just recently received my first book from them, and their process is as simple as Waterbrook's. However, I will note that the first time I applied, I was rejected (I wasn't given a reason why), so you might have to apply more than once. It's a simple process, though. The main author that I may have a chance to review from this program is Ted Dekker, though there are many other great authors offered through this program.

The third book review program that I'm a part of is the Tyndale Blog Network, through Tyndale. So far, I'm still waiting for my first book from them, which I ordered long ago. Their system is a bit more confusing than the other two, but a free book is a free book, so if you want to check them out, I wouldn't stop you.

So there you have it - free books! And I benefit directly from you signing up for these programs in no way. Check them out and sign up for 'em if you're interested!

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Questions: Do you enjoy reading? What is one of your favorite books/authors? Do you review books for a company not mentioned here?

Did you enjoy this post? If so, I'd appreciate you subscribing to Life Before the Bucket and sharing it with your friends. Thanks a million for reading!


image credit - mazwebs - sxc.hu

Win of the Week

If the Monday of Spring Break is the best Monday of the year, then the Friday of Spring Break is the worst.

It's the end of an unusually relaxing week for us, but for those of you with real jobs, it was probably "just another" week.

Or was it?

Around here, there are no "just another" weeks. Why? Because we celebrate every week, regardless of how boring, good, or bad the week was. We share our victories and give each other a much-needed pat on the back.

It's that time, my friends. Let's share our Win of the Week together.

I'm going to be a little greedy here and share two, mostly because it's (most likely) my last Spring Break.

My first win involves Life Before the Bucket. Together, we were able to raise $125 for World Water Day! And even though we weren't able to fully fund a well-worker, we still helped change the lives of over 1,000 people who don't have access to clean water because their well has broken or they didn't have a well to begin with.

Also, the organization we partnered with, The Adventure Project, reached it's goal of raising $25,000, which means that The Prem Rewat Foundation is matching their funds dollar for dollar. This means that we effectively raised $250!

Also, a small added bonus was seeing a few people come out of the woods who don't usually comment! Thanks to everyone who participated - many lives were changed through your generosity.

My second win was more personal. I've managed to almost read 3 books this week, including rereading The Hunger Games, which released in theatres last night. We're seeing it today, which I can't wait for! And yes, you'll probably be reading a blog post about it - if I can come up with something original that someone else hasn't already written.

So what about you? What was your win of the week? 

A Simple Way to Better Yourself Right Now

Alright, my fellow Bucketeers! We have another wonderful guest post this week! Today I'm featuring Seth from Life as Experienced, and I'm really excited about what he has to say! Leave him a wonderful comment or 2 (or 3!) and check out his blog. Dooooo it!

A Simple Way to Better Yourself Right Now

Normally I set a list of goals each year.  I’m one of those guys who loves checking stuff off his to-do list each day, and even my big “To Do In (insert year)” list.  Every year there is one item that always seems to make it onto my annual list, and I’ve become more and more confident that it belongs on everyone’s list.  The item that holds my number 1 spot year after year is… “Read.”  The longer I live, (which hasn’t been too long thus far) the more convinced I am that reading is the easiest way to consistently better yourself.

Through books we have the chance to learn from some of the smartest people: both living and dead.  I can sit down with a cup of coffee and hear from C. S. Lewis or St. Augustine, John Grisham or Shakespeare.  I have the chance to read stories from master storytellers who have been around much longer than television.  I can listen to theological or philosophical arguments from individuals who are way more intelligent than I am. 

Me: Why is there pain and suffering?

C.S. Lewis: “The Problem of Pain”

Me: Tell me about how you experienced God.

St. Augustine: “Confessions of St. Augustine”

Me: Tell me a story

John Grisham: “The Rainmaker”

Me: What about a love story?

Shakespeare: “Romeo and Juliet”

See what I mean?  I can consult leading experts on everything from how to install a toilet to how to build a strong marriage (I’ve read books on both of those things).  Reading can challenge, entertain, encourage, mentor, manipulate, humor, enlighten, or anything else.

If I told you I knew a foolproof way to better yourself, you’d probably be interested, right?  Most people would without a doubt.  Yet I know way too many people who claim they don’t have time to read; they don’t have the patience for reading, or who just aren’t interested in literature.  Self-improvement always takes some work:  exercise, loving others, public speaking, sports, etc.  Take some time today to find a good book and start reading.  If you don’t start now, you’re just putting off improving yourself.

What are you reading right now?  What book would you recommend I read?

A Smidgen of Regret

The internet I'm using right now is being as spastic as a chihuahua on Red Bull. So I apologize for any weirdness that might happen, including the random change in font for this post. Blame the chihuahua.

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 Have you ever done something and immediately regretted it? 

I know I have.

In fact, it happened here, on this very blog.

I wrote something, posted it, and immediately regretted it.

This wasn't the "Crap, I wrote a hateful post about Justin Bieber and need to apologize because that's what Christians are 'supposed' to do," kind of regret.

Nor was it the, "I don't know why I said the death of Osama bin Laden was a good/bad thing," kind of remorse.

It wasn't even the, "Crud, my wife is eventually going to read this," kind of mistake. And that one happens a lot.

And though I felt the sting of regret after hitting the "Publish" button for what I wrote, I definitely know I needed to share it. But that doesn't make me feel any less embarrassed.

So what is it? Well, if you keep reading, you'll find out.

An Ambitious Goal (to say the least): Read Every Book We Own

As you can imagine, this post is going to be about books. It is not, however, going to be about A Critical History of the Mission and Ministry of the Christian Church in Hawaii.

I know, I know. You're disappointed. Unfortunately, my fingers just don't have the stamina to type that title more than once. Plus, I don't have a clue what that book is about - I've never so much as touched it except to put it on the shelf. And herein lies the reason for a life goal I hope to eventually accomplish: I want to read every book we own...