I am a Christian, a retired teacher, a mother and a grandmother. I love to read and I love the Lord Jesus Christ! Unless otherwise specified ,all visual illustrations are from the YOU VERSION APP of the Bible.
If you follow my blog regularly, you know that I have been undergoing some cardiac tests because of a few episodes of suddenly passing out. I am delighted to report that my stress test results are back and I don’t have a blockage of any kind in any of my arteries! Praise God!
I am still wearing a cardiac monitor for about another three weeks and have two ultrasound tests at the end of the month. I am confident that no matter the results, God is in control and will continue to take care of me. As I joked with my grandchildren this weekend, “My warranty expired about ten years ago and when I asked God to renew it, He told me that was the first thing He would do when I get to Heaven.”
Have a blessed day and remember that God knows all about you and loves you deeply.
This is a fast ride on a bullet train as the series concludes with the story of Chase and Hope. Introduced in the first book, with Chase transporting a prisoner and Hope remaining behind to provide medical care in the little town of Shadow Ridge, these two characters needed to have a conclusion to their tale and this book not only finishes the story but it also wraps everything in the entire series up in a neat bow. Very satisfying conclusion with some happy surprises along the way as well as some extremely unexpected twists that added to my enjoyment of the story. The characters were well-developed and so realistic that I wanted to comfort Hope as she had a melt down from all of the pressure she has been under since the grid went down. As I read, I kept thinking to myself what a good series this would make, with its lessons on forgiveness and redemption and its story that is heart-wrenching and soul-touching as so many lives have to change to adapt so quickly to a new reality without any electricity or modern conveniences like cars and technology. I cannot recommend this series highly enough. It is scary at the same time as hopeful with an underlying theme that God is always in control no matter what is happening in your world. A clean read with some thought provoking scenes that made me wonder how I would survive under similar circumstances. The series is concluded but the message that it teaches will long stay with me and is a series that I know that I will re-visit in the future as it teaches the eternal lesson of gratitude, family and faith. 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 and all opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guidelines Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”
A clean Christian read that with intense suspense
About the Author:
Photos and Bio are from Lisa’s page at http://www.lisaharriswrites.com Check out her page and sign up for her newsletter to get a free copy of her prequel to the Fallout Series!
The entire series is available to read free on Kindle Unlimited!
The Fallout Series, in order! Read and enjoy a trip to Shadow Ridge where crime and investigation mimics the old west!
If you’re like me, you will want your own copy to keep. Here’s the purchase link for SHATTERED:
As a student of languages, as I meditated on this verse, my attention focused on the tenses used. ”Be strong and do not fear” are all in the imperative form, i.e. they are commands, giving us a directive for how to behave when we are facing an enemy. “God is coming” is the present progressive tense, meaning that it is happening right now. I remember when my children were small and I would call them to the dinner table. I would inevitably get a response from at least one of them, “I’m coming!” But they really weren’t. What they were actually doing was continuing to play, read their book or whatever they had been doing when I called them. They did not let my calling them to dinner interrupt what they were doing at the time. It is good to know that when God says He is coming, He truly means now. It is in the progress of happening, now. His promise to be on the way sustains me until He gets here and ultimately saves me from my enemies, whoever or whatever they may be at the time.
This verse means a lot to me right now because of all of the health issues that I have had recently. God has promised to be right there with me and He assures me that He is coming to defeat my enemies. More than that, He has already defeated our ultimate foe, death, on the cross, so there is no reason to fear. Yes, there are numerous medical tests, some more uncomfortable than others, but God is coming. He will be there right when I need Him, not a minute too early or too late. I hope that each of you has that reassurance that no matter what is going on in your life right now and no matter what enemies you face, God is coming. He is in the process of moving closer to you, to stand between you and your enemies, and to fight for you in whatever battles you face.
May your day be blessed with the knowledge that God is coming and He is never late!
No matter what weapon the evil one and his minions use against us, it will not succeed. We will be able to silence our accusers, and I think that will take much prayer and time with the Lord. These are benefits only enjoyed by the Lord’s servants because He will vindicate us, removing all doubt that we are His and that He is on our side.
This is a beautiful promise from God that is a little hard to grasp unless you have ever been in battle. We do battle daily, but not on a traditional battlefield or in a traditional manner with earthly weapons. Our battles are against the prince of darkness and his weapons are fiery darts that can pierce us if we don’t consistently wear the armor that God had provided for us. With our armor in place, we can go into battle, assured that the weapons of the enemy cannot harm us in any way and that in the end, the battle is totally the Lord’s.
May your day be blessed with the assurance that the battle belongs to the Lord!
The older I get, the more difficult it is for me to hear certain sounds. Sometimes I have to ask my children or grandchildren to repeat things. I’m sure it frustrates them to think that I didn’t hear, but that is one of the results of aging. I have also been diagnosed with a TRACE of macular degeneration in my left eye. I am taking eye vitamins and using eye drops regularly to hold off what seems to be inevitable as long as possible. In the meantime, I am thankful that I can still hear the voice of the Lord clearly and see His beautiful creation all around me, reminding me of the gifts He has given me. These gifts are from the Lord specifically to bless me and I am so grateful for them. My ears don’t hear well, but they still hear. My eyes still see and appreciate the beauty of the world, especially the affection I see in my grandchildren’s eyes and the sparkle of joy when they “play tricks” on me. The senses that God gave us should never be taken for granted but always a source of thankfulness. God is good, all the time.
Look around you today and appreciate the beauty. Listen quietly and appreciate the sounds. God provided them for our enjoyment. May your day be blessed with an appreciation of these marvelous gifts from God!
We took our young grandchildren to a place called Seaquest today while our daughter was touring Liberty University with her oldest. At Seaquest, there were lots of sea animals and fish, but my favorite place there was the aviary, with all kinds of colorful and tweeting birds. These little creatures did not have to worry at all about being fed because people like us were paying tokens to be able to go in and sit with the birds and feed them. The encounter brought to mind the verse about birds and trusting God.
The birds don’t worry at all; they just trust God to provide for them, even in the winter months when all is mostly barren. Sometimes we fact a winter time in our lives and have to remember to trust in God for our provision. He always comes through, not always when or how we expect but He always provides if we trust in Him at all times. Trust is not always easy, but picture the birds and their total confidence in God during the rough times and the times of plenty. We are God’s crowning creation, so why should we worry about His provision?
My husband and granddaughters enjoying the aviary. Look at those brilliant colors on the birds! God is so creative!
May God show you how much He loves you by providing for you in all ways at all times.
God, the One True God, knows exactly who He is and what He does on a daily basis. Sometimes we struggle to find out just who we are and what our purpose on earth is. God had no such problem.
In fact, when He passed before Moses, God called out who He is. He is the Lord! He is the God of compassion and mercy! He is slow to anger and filled with love that never fails and faithfulness to those He created. I am awed at God’s not only passing in front of Moses but also that He revealed Himself to Moses so clearly. And I am thankful to have His Word through which He reveals Himself to me. His promises are there always ready for us to seek and find. This is one that I unexpectedly found during my study of the Old Testament earlier this week. It’s a revelation of God’s character, but it is also a promise that He will show who He is to each of us by the promises that He keeps. The verse clearly says, “I am”, not I was or I want to be or I plan to be. He says “I am” and He is…compassionate, merciful, slow to anger, loving and faithful. God knows who He is and is training us to be more like Him. I praise Him for His patient perseverance with me.
May your day be blessed with the knowledge that God knows exactly who He is and He also knows exactly who He made you to be,too!
These days it seems like the world just constantly wants a piece of me, or at least a piece of my mind. With various medical tests and a cardiac monitor that I have to wear 24/7 for thirty days, I don’t seem to have a lot of time to actually pull away from the chaos and just be. That’s what I need most, to just be with the Lord, telling Him my thoughts, fears and praising Him for all He has done. So, this morning, in my devotional time, God has given me extra time alone with Him so that I have spend time in the quiet place that I need.
Even Jesus needed to withdraw from the demands of life sometimes. Once His reputation for healing people spread throughout the land, there were crowds everywhere He went, pressing in on Him and just wanting to be close to Him. I don’t pretend to know what Jesus was going through, but I do know that His intention was to go to a quiet place away from all of the people. But when He got there, the people had found out where He was headed and met them there. I can honestly say that if that were me, I would have been outraged that I could not find a moment’s peace. But you know what Jesus did? He showed compassion and taught right there, even providing for the people’s hunger by multiplying five loaves and two fish. Jesus did not say, “This is my time! Now go away and come back after I am finished having some peace and quiet.” No, that is what I would have done and probably you would have done the same, too. Jesus needed quiet time just as much if not more than we do, but He put the needs of others over His own. In doing so, He set the example for us.
So, when I am feeling pressured by too many people wanting time from me, I will come back to the Bible and remember that Jesus gave the people time that they needed from Him. He sacrificed everything…family, a home and even His precious time with His Father. Why would He do that? Love, just love. I think He spent plenty of quiet time with the Father in the late night or early morning hours when there was no crowd. I also think that the Father spoke with Him constantly, guiding and directing Him and showing Him the love that only a Father can have for His only Son. Quiet time? Yes, we all crave it. And it is important. But so is meeting the needs of others and putting them above ourselves and our own desires. Jesus showed the way.
I have had my quiet time this morning and I am ready to face the challenges of a new day. We are taking a trip to the mountains of Virginia where we will meet our daughter and her daughters. Harry and I get to care for the “littles” while Hope takes the older girls to tour the local Christian college and to the meetings for prospective students. Will there be a lot of quiet time there? Probably not. But God can still speak to me if I take time to listen. That is a skill that Jesus had mastered…He listened to the Father and then followed through with what the Father wanted Him to accomplish. I want to be like Jesus, don’t you.
May your day be blessed with peace in the chaos and quiet listening to the Father speak to your heart.
One of the things that I most enjoy doing is going on short trips, enjoying my time in a new place and then returning home to all that is safe and familiar. I like visiting others, but I really like being at home, with my comforting things all around me. To put that in a spiritual perspective, God cries out to us constantly to return to Him. There are so many who wander from place to place seeking some kind of peace and acceptance from the world. But the only real peace and acceptance comes from our Father who has created us and knows what is best for us.
God wants to show us mercy and compassion. His desire is not to punish us. I have been asked by non-Christians how a loving God could send people to hell. My answer is always the same. He did not create hell for people. It was created for Satan and his demons. But if man chooses to go the way of sin and turns away from God, refusing to repent, then God has no choice but to allow them to go to hell. It is man’s choice, not God’s. In the book of Joel, God is crying out for His people, all those whom He has created, to repent and turn to Him, to change their hearts. God’s cry is not one of vengeance or waiting for us to mess up so He can punish us. His cry is a heartfelt one of sincerely desiring us to change so that we don’t have to suffer eternal punishment and separation from Him. God provided a way to be with Him always through His Son Jesus Christ, but it up to us to return to God. Just as we find comfort when we are among our familiar things at home, we can find comfort in the arms of our Heavenly Father who made a way for us to return to Him.
May you have a blessed and peaceful Ash Wednesday as you ponder the sacrifice of the Lord and the eternity with Him that is granted by His sacrifice. If you need to do so, may you return to God!
What does it look like to “stand your ground’? I consulted the online dictionary and this is what I found at http://www.idioms.freedictionary.com
Hmm. This made me thing about when I anticipate attacks. And the answer is daily. We have to always be ready to be attacked by Satan and others who do his bidding because they want more power than God. The second part of the definition is equally important: to refuse to compromise. In a world where we are mocked for standing for the truth of God’s Word, we need to learn to stand out ground and not compromise on what God has written. God said it. I believe it. That settles it.
So, in a world that has gone crazy trying to outdo one another in being “open-minded” and “tolerant” so that sin is not only tolerated but encouraged, how do we as individuals stand our ground? First, we put on the belt of truth, the truth that is found in God’s Word. And our body armor is the best that is available anywhere. It is God’s own righteousness that His Son died to make available to each of us. When we stand our ground, we are not standing alone because God is right there with us, providing the words to speak from His Word and the protection we need from His righteousness.
May you be blessed with the knowledge that God has already equipped you to “stand your ground”!
Vickie's Book Nook and Meditation Corner 