Do you remember being a child and asking your caregiver or mama where your daddy was? I do! And the answer was always the same, no matter how many times I asked it. “He’s at work.” Well, as a Christian, sometimes I find myself asking myself, “Where is God when all of this bad stuff is happening?” And the answer is always the same, “He’s at work.” What is He “at work” doing?

He is at work within each of us who call Him our Father. He gives us the desire to please Him in what we do each day, and He follows up by giving us the power to carry through. We can’t change everything that happens in this world, but we can change some things. We can make a difference in someone’s life today. We just have to be open to the Father and ask Him what He wants us to do for Him today. Are you ready to go to work? God is waiting to you to call on Him for the power to make a difference! Blessings for a wonderful day filled with His desires and His power!

My God Is So Big and So Strong and So Mighty

How blessed are you in your life? I am blessed beyond measure…I survived a stroke, have met and played with my grandchildren and have an abundance of love in my life. The greatest love that I have is the love that Jesus showed me when He died for me on the cross.

My sins are covered by the blood of Jesus so that when God sees me, He sees the sacrifice that His Son made for me covering me. Stop and think about that for a moment. We all sing songs about being clothed in all white, guiltless before Him. I recall that when I was a little girl and my grandparents had their side porch painted. When I went to their house that day, nanny warned my sister and I sternly not to go on the porch because the paint was still wet. Well, I didn’t listen and went on the porch to play as I usually did. I had a great time until nanny called me in for dinner and I had to wash up. That is when nanny and I both noticed the brick red colored paint on my hands. Nanny and I both knew that I was guilty of not following her command. Turpentine took the paint off, but I still remember the smell and how ashamed I was as nanny chided me for not listening to her. God sent His Son to wash us clean and to remove all guilt. Just as nanny hugged me and told me that she still loved me after my infraction, God loves us with an everlasting love and His own Son’s blood has washed us clean before God for all eternity. The reason that we can stand spotless before Him is Jesus!

The thing that stood out to me about this verse as I meditated on it this morning is that there is a reward for those who are righteous. Our rewards come daily with our relationship with Jesus. But our real reward is when we stand before Him and all of our sins are washed away. Unfortunately, for those who do not accept Jesus as Lord and Savior of their lives, there is a judgment coming. Yes, they may do whatever they please here on earth, but God is the final judge and He is righteous and judges rightly. I am glad to say that I am a Christian who believes in Jesus as my Savior (He died to save me from my sins) and my Lord (He is the master of my life, the One I turn to for guidance and whom I try to obey daily). My prayer is that those who read my blog also know the freedom that comes with being able to say that you have a relationship with the Lord Jesus. I pray blessings on you all for a good and safe day. Let’s remember to pray for those not as fortunate as we are, especially those affected by the tornadoes recently.

Joey & Rory: “Are You Washed in the Blood?”

This mystery/thriller about a victim of stress-induced amnesia was an original and captivating tale. I was immediately drawn into the tale once the main character says at the beginning that she doesn’t know her name. I loved how the author drew me deeper and deeper into the story until I was so invested in finding out the truth that the book was impossible to put down until I had finished it. Fans of mystery books with a deep sub-plot will no doubt enjoy this book! The characters were mysterious, the identify of the unknown woman was intriguing and the backstory of Jemma Huish, a murderer from a psych ward was mystifying. The author did a masterful job of writing a book that will keep mystery fans reading late into the night!

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

This twisted novel is available TODAY from your local bookseller!

Today is a good day to praise the Lord! In fact, every day is a good day to praise the Lord, and all of us need to get into the habit of awakening each day with praise on our lips. Bad things happen. Praise the Lord! Good things happen. Praise the Lord! God doesn’t cause the bad things to happen, but He will certainly take us through the bad things. I am praising the Lord today for time with our grandchildren. I haven’t seen them for seven months because of my health issues and I am beyond excited to see them again. Can you imagine that is how the Father feels? Oftentimes, we call on Him when something is going wrong in our lives and then ignore Him when everything is going well. Don’t you think that our Father in Heaven gets excited when we call on Him, especially if we haven’t opened up our hearts to Him for a while? He is our Father and He desires a relationship with us, a daily time of communication and of love and just feeling close to each other. I exalt the Lord today just because He is God and deserves our adoration and praise. Won’t you join me today in exalting the Lord? In praising Him for His goodness that never changes? He is worthy of praise, so let’s take time to just worship before Him. Then we can go out and have a blessed day!

Lift Him Up by Ron Kenoly

Yes, today is a day of remembering and being thankful for the sacrifice of all of our brave men and women who have served our country so faithfully. But each day should also be a day of remembering what God has done for us and being thankful for all of His good works. So, that is my focus today.

I recall all of the great heroes of the Bible who depended on God to carry them through. There was Abraham, Isaac, Moses, David, Solomon, the apostles, and Paul. The names are too numerous to remember them all! But there is one I know well. No, her name is not in the Bible, but nevertheless, God has carried her through, too. Her name is Vickie. Yes, me! I am remembering a childhood with what seemed like a lot of emotional abuse. But I also remember going into the small guest bathroom in our home and singing quietly to myself, “Jesus Loves Me.” I remember being on my own for the first time and God sending a God-loving neighbor to tell me about Jesus and salvation. I remember being all alone and pregnant as my husband had been sent with his ship to another state. Since I was fulfilling a teaching contract, I was by myself. But not for long! God sent me a roommate to keep me company and keep me calm. Rhonda became a good friend and was a real Godsend! I remember being pregnant for the second time and being alone again…for the entire pregnancy. Scott was almost two months old before he met his military daddy. Once again, God came through for me. I was attending a Bible believing church and the people there could not have been nicer. I had to move into military housing when it became available…and the men and women from the church got me all moved. I had a good friend who was coaching me for childbirth. Unfortunately, she was too far away when I actually went into labor. God provided a loving neighbor who transported me to the hospital, stayed with me through labor and had her husband watch my two year old. I remember getting a job near D.C., in a school that required me to drive in awful traffic. Once again, God provided for me. A sweet lady with whom I worked agreed to carpool, with her doing all the driving and my helping out pay for gas. I remember so many moves from one base to another…and always, God met me there. I remember many times looking for a new teaching job in a new place and God opened doors for me. In fact, in the state of Maine, there was ONE Spanish teaching job in the whole of Aroostook County, and “coincidentally” the man in that position retired the year that my family arrived. I remember having a stroke and being told that it was a major stroke and the shot that they were giving me could kill me or could help me recover. We prayed…and I recovered. Then recently, I had major surgery. Again, I have recovered, with God’s help, of course. Traveling mercies constantly, as we travel to see grandchildren who live in other states or to visit distant family members. God is real, folks! Now, my challenge to you is to recall what God has done for you…to remember that you are indeed blessed. Is everything in our lives perfect? No, but God carries us through, every time! Blessings for a wonderful, safe Memorial Day!

I lived many years on this earth without really acknowledging the sovereignty of God. Then, one evening, as I was reading the Book of John, insight came to me. I was and I am a sinner. The change that occurred in me that evening is that I became a sinner saved by grace.

I don’t remember ever denying that God existed. I just had a kind of “I will leave Him alone, and He will leave me alone” attitude. I didn’t realize how much God loved me and that my sin was hurting His heart. I know a lot of people today deny God’s existence, many of my family members among them. I pray for them daily. The problem is that they like sinning; they enjoy their pleasures and the life that they have, so they don’t want to admit that there is a Higher Power that will one day judge them. Our world is corrupt. If you don’t believe it, turn on the nightly news. Last night’s news was about MS-13 gang members torturing and killing people. Does anyone believe that they believe in God? No, like many others, they are corrupt fools. They don’t realize that Christ died for them and loves them in spite of their sins.

I am not comparing my sin or yours to that of MS-13, but all sin is just that…sin! God sees our sin every day and it breaks His heart because He already sent His Son to die for us. While I was going about living my daily life, not thinking much about God, He was drawing me to Him. I pray that there are many others who will feel His special love for them today and come to know that they are His children, created for a purpose beyond their understanding. God is good. God is love. God created and God forgives. Those who confess to the truth of a Savior are no longer fools. Like me, they have joined the ranks of those saved by His grace and mercy. Blessings for a wonderful day in which you acknowledge God in all you do and say!

This has been a hard week so far, but no more so that usual really. Our central air conditioner has ceased to function…in other words, it is broken. We don’t know what is wrong with it yet since we haven’t had it checked out by a repairman. But since it is blowing out hot air, there is a good chance that something is definitely wrong! This does not set well with me since I have asthma and allergies and need the AC to breathe well. Nevertheless, God has been with me and I have been making it through the long, hot days without AC. Then yesterday, our daughter called to tell us that she had been in a car accident. The accident was not her fault since she was stopped at the time, but her car was badly damaged and she and our granddaughter are sore and achy. You know, bad things happen. Things that are beyond our control and certainly things that we don’t expect happen. It is our reaction to these things that become a witness to the world.

As long as we live on this earth, our bodies are dying. As my astute son says, “We start dying the day that we are born.” Sounds kind of pessimistic, doesn’t it? But think about it. We are headed towards death. On the other hand, if we know the Lord as our Savior, our spirits are being renewed daily as we draw closer to Him. I assume that you know that to be renewed is to be made new again. That’s what it’s like to be a Christian, to have a spirit in tune with God and to know that His Spirit inside us is renewing us daily. Bad things happen, and we have to “keep on keeping on”!

I want to be an olive tree because according to Google, they can live hundreds, even thousands of years. I am an olive tree in God’s house, with my Spirit living on eternally. No matter what is happening in my life, I am trusting in the Lord’s mercy. I am so thankful that my daughter and granddaughter were not badly injured in the car accident! I am thankful for a fan for my living space and a small window air conditioner in the bedroom to help me sleep! I am thankful for each breath that I take and each step that I take! I depend on the mercy of God! No, the week did not start out well as far as life’s events are concerned. But all is good in my world because I know that God is in control and He loves me. And His love makes ALL the difference.

I pray that you know His love and power in your life so that you, too, can trust in God’s mercy forever. Be an olive tree…gnarled but still rooted and grounded in the Word of God and producing fruit for Him. Blessings!

Photo from the Mother Nature Network

This book had a slow start as the author described a typical middle class neighborhood and all of the various people who live there. This description and background information ended up being absolutely necessary as the story develops because one of the neighbors may be a killer. The neighborhood is wrecked when “those people” move in, the ones you ruin the neighborhood with their loud music and their business run from their home. Ralph, Naomi, Finn, Tess, Ant, Em and Sissy are all united in one front against the invaders, Darren and Jodie. But the interlopers are not easily removed, as the good people of Lowland Way try one maneuver after another, in all of the legal ways available to them. But it doesn’t take long for them to realize that the legal way won’t work, so each of them looks for a method to get Darren and Jodie to move, even if it means hurting them. Someone dies in the story, but I won’t go into details with that since I don’t want to spoil the story for anyone. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the tale of this neighborhood that was upended when one unfit family moves in. My favorite character was Sissy, the divorce older woman who was trying to run a bed and breakfast in the chaos that Darren and Jodie bring with them. I would definitely recommend this book to the fans of Louise Candish and to all who enjoy a good suspense drama. Lots of drama!

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy from the Penguin Random House publishers as well as Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

This mesmerizing book will be available at your local bookseller on June 11, 2019, but you can pre-order it now.

The story of three children growing up in the same town as Jesus and becoming his playmates is an original one and very interesting. This is a short book and is written as if the author is actually telling the story orally. It is my opinion that the author needed a good editor because the run-on sentences and spelling absolutely distracted me from the actual story. The Biblical references are generally accurate although I did find one glaring error. There are notes in the middle of the narrative to make sure the reader understands the Biblical foundation of the story. All in all, the story is a good one but definitely needs work before it is ready for a major publication. It would be a good book for parents to read to their children as a bedtime story, with the warning that there is a lot of literary license here as it is a fictional account of Jesus with playmates.

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

This book is available TODAY from your local bookseller.