THE FAITHFUL SPY - CHAPTERS 1-2 What stuck out to you in this week's reading? The first thing that really struck me about these first 2 chapters was how God was preparing Dietrich at a young age for the life he would live. He asked big questions. (What exactly is the church and Duty to God vs Duty to Country) He desired a real relationship with Christ. Traveling to the U.S. he witnessed racism first hand and was encouraged to ACT and challenge injustice. Second, I was struck with how ripe Germany was for someone like Hitler. I found Hendrix's illustrations a perfect visual for the story. I loved the picture of the fault line on pgs. 14-15 and the rats making their way into the basement of the Reichstag on pg. 25. Vermin, absolute vermin, carrying nothing but disease and destruction. Third, I was fascinated how Hitler not only was working his way into the government but took over the church as well. He dethroned God and set himself up as the absolute authority. How convenient that forgiveness and loving your enemy no longer were options to be considered.

THE FAITHFUL SPY - CHAPTERS 3-4 This week's post is going up a day early, so I can enjoy a day off for Thanksgiving with my family. I hope this book is challenging you to ask BIG QUESTIONS in your life. I hope this book is challenging you that even when you feel the tide of popular thought sweeping around you, that you stop, and think about the direction that tide is taking people and the cause behind it! The radio broadcast really resonated with me. After all, we are quickly approaching the presidential election season, and I found myself asking what makes a good leader? Bonhoeffer gives us a little bit of insight into those thoughts, but it is something to really think and ponder. Most of us hold leadership in some type of area whether it is parenting, work, church, social, etc. How we lead is very important! Coupled with that is the power of effective communication. Dietrich had some very clear thoughts on that as well! I can't pass by the baptizing of the babies to Hitler instead of God without commenting. My heart aches at the caving of the church in this story. I can't begin to imagine God's thoughts on this continual rejection. Bonhoeffer couldn't stand idly by with the rise of the Nazi church. He begins gathering pastoral support in Europe and Scandinavia. Can I pause a moment and just encourage us to remember our brothers and sisters in Christ who are in harm's way? Pray for them. Support them anyway that you are able. How in the world did Hitler and his goons get away with The Night of Long Knives? Then, when he reveals his plans for Germany, to the horror of his generals, how did he politically survive? There are so many places where Hitler could have been dumped off the political train. Oh how history would be different today if that would have happened! Kristallnacht, the night where any hope for the Jews left in Germany as citizens was destroyed. Blame and hatred NEVER accomplishes anything except destruction and the persecution of innocent people. "If the church, in this moment, did not exist to protect the other, it had no right to be called The Church at all." Dietrich knows he cannot serve Hitler. He heads to America for one year, but as he sails past Lady Liberty there she stands, a light in the dark.( Have you ever thought about how much impact this statue has had on thousands of people?) He knows he cannot stay. He must return to Germany. We close our reading on a single question, " Would God forgive the murderer of a tyrant?"

THE FAITHFUL SPY - CHAPTERS 5-7 This book finishes out strong with lots of challenges for us to consider. I certainly can't tell you what God is calling you to in your life, but we certainly see the book circle back to the subject of action vs. inaction that Bonhoeffer was challenged with all the way back during his trip to America. What would he allow himself to do? Was there any difference between helping in the conspiracy and being the person that actually pulled the trigger to take Hitler out? I can't imagine how difficult it was for Bonhoeffer to remain silent on his reasons for joining the Abwehr. So many people he knew must have thought he was betraying them, when in fact, he was digging deeper into fighting against the Nazis and Hitler. Then the failed attempts at taking Hitler out. I had not realized that so many attempts were taken and orchestrated internally. But it was Chpt. 7 and the Epilogue that really gave me pause. Once again we see that Dietrich has the opportunity to escape, but doesn't do so because of the risk it would put his loved ones in. He determines that God has called him to obedience no matter the outcome. His dream tells us what the outcome of his life is going to be. I found myself shaking my head in disbelief that two more weeks and he would have made it and lived. Reading the author's notes at the end I really appreciated the juxtaposition of Hitler and Bonhoeffer. Hitler was so focused on power for himself while Dietrich was moved by the injustice done to others. He never had to act because he was the epitome of the Aryan race. He was a German through and through. However, he could not stand idly by while the innocent were persecuted and the church stood behind it. I really hope this book challenged you in your faith and in your life. While I do believe the United States is the best country in the world to live, there is no doubt we are on a slippery slope to moral decay with no end to the ride in sight. Matthew 5:14-16 reminds us that we are "a city on a hill that cannot be hidden." We are to "let our light shine before men." As our world gets darker, that light is going to shine brighter and be more noticeable as a contrast to the darkness. Shine, my friends, shine!

SLEEPING MURDER - BIO ON AGATHA CHRISTIE I don't know about you, but I am so excited about diving into this fantastic mystery! I grew up watching Agatha Christie's mysteries come to life on the show Mystery on PBS. I was hooked on the elderly spinster, Miss Marple, and the quirky French detective, Hercule Poirot, who were the leading characters in many of her mysteries. Agatha Christie was born on September 15, 1890 (tomorrow would be her birthday!) in the UK to an American father and Irish mother. She was homeschooled by her father and for some reason her mother did not want her to learn to read until the age of 8, but Agatha, who was a precocious child , taught herself to read by the age of 5. The family eventually moved to France and Agatha began writing short stories during a period of illness. A family friend, author Eden Philpotts, gave her some valuable advice during that time. "The artist is only the glass through which we see nature and the clearer and more absolutely pure that glass so much the more perfect picture we can see through it. Never intrude yourself." During the First World War Christie worked in a hospital dispensary back in England. She became very knowledgeable about lethal amounts of drugs as prescriptions were mixed by hand. She also gained an education about poisons which would be invaluable to her writing career. After a quick romance, Agatha married Archie Christie. A daughter they named Rosalind was born. Unfortunately, Archie began an affair with a friend of the family. This led to one of the greatest mysteries of Christie's personal life. One night in December, Agatha left the house. Her car was found several miles away, but Agatha was missing. The entire country began a hunt for the famous authoress. She disappeared for 11 days. Found at a hotel under a different name, Christie never explained to anyone her reasons for the disappearance. With a divorce now settled, Christie began traveling. Eventually, in 1930 while in Ur, she met archaeologist Max Mallowan. They were later married, and Agatha sometimes accompanied him on his trips. This led to even more material for her novels. Christie led a fascinating life. I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea where her material came from to be able to craft the works she did. For more info you can check out www.agathachristie.com .  I'll leave you with this. Christie died January 12, 1976. Her final mystery, the one you are about to read, was published the same year. Her works have sold 1 billion copies in English and 1 billion copies in other languages. She is outsold only by the Bible and Shakespeare. Her works include 80 mysteries and short stories, 19 plays, and 6 novels. And now if we could dim the lights and pull back the curtains, it's time for Agatha Christie's The Sleeping Murder.

SLEEPING MURDER - CHAPTERS 1-3 I am so excited about diving into this book with you all! Fall is creeping into the air with hints of cooler evenings, so cozying up with a good read is in order. Agatha Christie won't disappoint! So without further delay, let's crack this book open and step into the English countryside. Right off we meet Gwenda Reed. Gwenda is young, well-off, newly married, from New Zealand, and an orphan. Actually, she and her new husband, Giles, are both orphans. She has come to the English countryside to buy a house by herself as Giles is traveling for work. Then Christie gives us a fabulous line. "And it was in that moment that she made her decision-the decision that was to lead to such very momentous events." How's that for some foreshadowing? At that moment we are all in, because we are looking for 2 things - a decision and momentous events, right? So what was this decision? A simple one. It was to travel by car instead of by train, and begin her search for the perfect home. I'm going to stop us for a moment here. Can you imagine choosing a home for you and your husband by yourself? I'm sure some of you have had to do that if you have a spouse in the military or one that travels a lot, but I was already thinking about how difficult that would be. But it wasn't for her. She drives into Dillmouth and on the outskirts of town she travels past a drive with a for sale sign. With just a glimpse of the house through the trees she knows this is the place. She visits the home. As she is going around she's mentally thinking about changes that she will make. Then she reaches the top of the stairs and has a wave of "terror." She wonders if someone has died in the house, but she shakes it off, puts an offer in, and becomes the new owner of Hillsdale. Promptly the changes begin to the house. Gwenda hires a carpenter to put in place her plans. Only she encounters something strange. Everything she planned is already there! The wallpaper, the steps in the garden, the doorway to the dining room. As the workers uncover the areas to make the changes, the foundations or parts of them are there from the past. It is very unnerving to Gwenda. It's unnerving to us, the readers, as we try and make sense of what is happening. She asks the questions out loud that we are internally asking. Is she crazy or clairvoyant? (At this moment I am applauding Christie's absolute genius at this stage she has set for us!) Gwenda decides she needs a few days away and goes to visit some uppity relatives. She visits the Wests. (Did you not love the description of Raymond "like a pouncing raven?") More importantly this is where we meet Miss Marple. She's an attractive older woman who enjoys solving things. That evening they attend a play. As the play is coming to an end an actor says, " Cover her face. Mine eyes dazzle, she died young.." Gwenda begins hysterically screaming and runs out. Can you imagine? Later Miss Marple sits down with Gwenda, who thinks she is going crazy, and listens as Gwenda tells the images that her mind unleashed at those words. A body of a woman with her golden hair encircling her blue face. And a pair of monkey hands. Monkey hands? When asked who was dead she mechanically says, "Helen." Who's Helen? Wow! Wow! Wow! Are you hooked already?

SLEEPING MURDERS- CHAPTERS 7-9 Miss Marple and Gwenda "run in" to each other. Gwenda shares that they have put an ad in the newspaper asking for knowledge of Helen Halliday. Her brother, Dr. Kennedy, responds to the ad, and they meet. We begin to add meat to the bones of our mystery. After a year of marriage, Helen ran away with a lover and was never heard from again. Helen's father ended up in a Sanatorium. We later learn that Kevin Halliday believed he murdered Helen. Dr. Kennedy never believed he did. There was never any evidence of the murder. We run into a contradiction about the location of the supposed murder. Gwenda remembers looking through the bannister into the hall, but her father says it happened in the bedroom. All we know is there was a missing suitcase and clothes. Dr. Kennedy later received two letters from Helen. (Are they really from her?) Gwenda was sent to New Zealand to live with family. We have the introduction of an unknown factor - "X." Someone who hasn't shown up yet, but is very much involved. Is it possible that Halliday didn't finish the job and Helen still went away with her lover? Giles and Gwenda know they must visit the Sanatorium. Have you ever regretted being so insistent at getting to the bottom of something only to uncover things you wish you hadn't? I have. Betrayal, wrong motives, etc can be earth shattering. Miss Marple knew, didn't she? She knew pain was going to come from stirring up this "Sleeping Murder" and it has.

SLEEPING MURDER - CHAPTERS 10-12 The image of a father. I keep coming back to this in my mind. Gwenda has very little recollection of her father. She was very young when sent to New Zealand to live. Surely in her mind's eye she had conjured up an honorable, courageous, militaristic type man. Now that image is breaking as she and Giles visit the Sanatorium. Was he a man capable of the murder he believes he committed? Neither Dr. Kennedy nor Dr. Penrose believes so. But Halliday was so sure of it and unable to live with it, that he commits suicide. What about the drugs that he believes Helen was giving him? Was he losing his mind? Was he jealous and acted upon that? Was he a pawn? But the real question is IS HELEN REALLY DEAD? Gwenda reads her father's journal and we can't help but get a glimpse of the dedicated father he was. Protecting his daughter to the end, he gains some assurance that she will never know, and yet here we are! What are we starting to think about Helen and all the men in her life? What type of person is she really? She goes out to marry Fane, can't do it, marries Halliday, but then our mysterious "X" enters in. A romance on the boat on the way to India? If she didn't love Fane why was she going to marry him all the way out in India? Then we meet Lily. Poor Lily who has a husband that hardly pays attention to her. She was employed in the Halliday household the night everything happened and she knows that what was thrown in the suitcase wasn't right. She also remembers a married man that Helen was sweet on.

SLEEPING MURDER - CHAPTERS 13-15 Oh plain, boring Walter Fane. Why in the world did Gwenda board that boat and travel all the way to India to marry you when it's clear she didn't love you? Is it any wonder she couldn't go through with it? But weren't Agatha Christie's descriptions of Fane fantastic? "A house with all the blinds pulled down" and "a dead body in it?" Or how about "the ghost of a spider" that Gwenda notices on her way out of Fane's office? Is it really possible to be as blah as we are finding Fane to be or is there something lurking beneath that "non-descript" countenance? From there we get a deeper look into the Halliday household, a different view of Helen, and another layer of information about the fateful night by way of the cook, Edith Pagett. Who in the world was Helen talking to when she was overheard saying, "I'm afraid of you?" Who was the man that was sweet on her while his wife was shooting eye daggers? And who owns the "flashy car?" Of course the next chapter answers one of our questions. Now we're off to find the Erskines and Lily if possible!

SLEEPING MURDER - CHAPTERS 16-18 I absolutely loved the opening of chapter 16. Can you not picture these two older women (Miss Marple and Fane's mother ) clucking back and forth to each other about their mutual acquaintances and health ailments while properly sipping their tea? More pieces to our puzzle emerge from their conversation. -Fane has 2 brothers. -He is a Momma's boy that makes a one time attempt of escape to India to become a tea-planter. -Obviously Fane and his mother know about Helen's affair. How weird is that? -We are given a flashback in Walter's life of an encounter with his brother that left him so angry he threatened to kill him. Meanwhile Giles and Gwenda go to visit the Erskines, the husband that Helen had her affair with. As one of you mentioned previously you can't help but feel bad for him due to the controlling wife. I then stop myself and ask though, which is the chicken and the egg in this situation - the wife's controlling nature leading to an affair or an affair that then led to her controlling nature? This chapter offers us a beautiful juxtaposition, however, between the bleakness in the Major's voice and the vibrant summer day. It is clear that both Erskines have a clear remembrance of the St Catherine's and Helen Halliday that has left lasting wounds on them both. The last chapter takes us to Bindweed, a very telling symbol of a weed that is hard to remove and chokes the life out of the garden plants. Miss Marple is steadily hacking away at the nemesis when Dr. Kennedy arrives with one of Helen's letters and a sample of her handwriting. Miss Marple asks Dr. Kennedy who his sister was afraid. Dr Kennedy replies no one that he's aware of. He takes his leave and Miss Marple returns to the task at hand, removing the bindweed.

SLEEPING MURDER - CHAPTERS 19-21 I can't hardly believe we are a week away from wrapping another book! Time does fly when you are having fun! Our reading today circles back to Lily (remember the one in service to the Hallidays?). Things still aren't resting easy in her mind. Besides there could be a monetary reward. So she writes a letter to the doctor to see if they can meet. It's time to share her questions and thoughts. Meanwhile a new gardener has come to help out at Giles and Gwenda's home, employed by the ever crafty Miss Marple. Manning has been around a long time and worked in many of the area gardens. He's in the know. He reminisces about Helen and her love of fun. How the tennis court was fixed for her and then someone cut the net to pieces, how she had a foot accident that refused to heal. Poor girl had the worse luck! J.J. Afflick. I don't know about you, but I get a visual of a slimy-type, used car salesman with his hair slicked back when I think of him. Afflick tells us he felt sorry for Helen. That she just wanted to have a bit of fun and was never allowed. But he was punished for his relationship with Helen. He wasn't her caliber. To end the chapter we see how he treats his wife, and you have to wonder if we are starting to get somewhere. After all, he does have a yellow car!

SLEEPING MURDER - CHAPTERS 22-25 Our reading opens up with three big happenings. The first, the letters are REAL. Were you expecting that? The second, we have another murder. Lily is strangled, led "like a sheep to the slaughter." Our murderer is no longer "sleeping." They are on the prowl again. The third, we know where Helen Halliday is buried. Did you suspect? As Giles, Gwenda, and Miss Marple narrow down who was actually on "The Spot" at the time, we find our list of suspects hasn't begun to dwindle yet. Christie holds out on us to the last possible second! I loved the bindweed being brought in again here at the end. As the police are digging the garden up looking for Helen's body and Gwenda is telling the entire story up to this point to the inspector, where is Miss Marple? She's out in the garden battling the choking weed that pushes its roots down deep and "squeezes the life out of the pretty growing flowers." This symbol absolutely ignites are imaginations with the knowledge that this strangling began long before the physical act of the murder occurred. Remember the ripped net of the tennis court, the hurt foot, and Helen's overheard words of being afraid of someone. Choking...choking....choking. Poor, poor Helen Halliday. But then we have the moment of revelation. Dr. Kennedy comes to talk to Gwenda, is blinded and he says words close enough to the quote from the play that caused Gwenda to go into hysterics, "My eyes are dazzled," and suddenly Gwenda knows. She is standing in the presence of the murderer. As he attempts to strangle Gwenda, Miss Marple bursts in and sprays a soapy mixture into his eyes she had been using in the garden. And so we wrap up our mystery with the story of an extremely controlling brother who was losing his power over his sister, and so he ended her life and destroyed the life of the man who loved her. So what do you think Agatha Christie wants us to take away from this story? I think one thing is that murder is rarely simple. Whether it's premeditated or a crime of passion, it is the result of sin that many times has been allowed to take root and grow just like the bindweed. Galatians 5 puts us in mind of a garden when it talks about the fruits of the spirit, but it also lists the acts of the flesh which include jealousy, envy, and hatred. Nothing good ever comes about when these seeds are allowed to grow and flourish. So pull the weeds! Hope you enjoyed the read!!