Author: vicklea

I love to read! I’m a retired teacher with a spouse of 45 years, three amazing children and nine wonderful grandchildren. I am blessed!

Repentance

On By vickleaIn Scripture9 Comments

www.bible.com/1171/jon.3.10.mev

This Scripture verse, of course, refers to Nineveh, but it could just as well refer to the United States of America, or any other nation today. It is not enough to tell God that we are sorry for our sins. We have to TURN from them. True repentance is turning away from the sin and heading in a new direction. This is not an admonition just for believers, but for everyone. Imagine if politicians turned away from lying and started telling the truth. Imagine a world in which everyone you meet is totally genuine and showing love and generosity to each other, really concerned about the eternal destiny of each human being that they meet.

Imagine with me, if you will, a world in which Jesus’s sacrifice is what is foremost in the minds of everyone, so that each and every individual is ready to sacrifice to represent Him to a lost and dying world. Turning away from sin does not just mean a flippant promise that you will “try” not to do it again. It actually means turning your back on that sin and focusing on a totally new direction. We all have hidden sins that we need to turn away from, and my fervent desire is for lost mankind to turn from our sins so that God will not bring the disaster that is surely coming. Yes, His judgment is inevitable, but a true change of heart and a real turning away from sin and toward God can change God’s mind about the timing of His judgment.

I believe that God has held back His judgment on America because of the Christians calling on His Name and asking for mercy. Now we need to turn from sin, call on His Name and pray that the coming disastrous judgment not occur. Possible? Well, God is no respecter of persons and He listened to the call of the Ninevites for mercy. I would like to point out, however, that this repentance in Nineveh started with the ruler. I’m not convinced that our rulers in the U.S. even know God, much less are ready to call out to Him for His mercy. Time will tell, but it’s not looking good these days.

I will close by reminding each of you that you are responsible for your own sin and your own repentance, but you are also responsible to tell others about God’s grace and His Son who gives eternal life. Others cannot repent if they don’t know that they have to. And they need to be told what true repentance is. Sin cost the life of the Only Son of God. True repentance brings us into the fold as His children and whether God holds back His judgment or not, don’t we want as many as possible to know the Gospel and to believe in Him? Pray today and every day for the opportunity to share the Good News with others, because I fear that the days are coming when we will not be allowed to share about Jesus and the salvation that He brings. Pray hard, my friends, for the night of judgment is coming. Turn away from sin and take as many others with you, those who are willing to repent.

Be blessed today that you may be a blessing to others.

Review of WHEN TWILIGHT BREAKS by Sarah Sundin

On By vickleaIn Book Review1 Comment
The cover drew me in, the story kept me there.

The author informs us readers at the end that the character Lisa is named after a Sunday school student who categorized her books are “war-romances.” What an accurate description and kudos to that young lady for being able to come up with that word! This is the story of when Hitler was first taking over Germany and all of the changes in the society, including the beginnings of the purges of Jews from businesses and from German society in general. Evelyn is a newspaper reporter who is like a dog with a bone; she just won’t let go of the story until she finds the truth. Her friend Peter is pursuing his Ph.D. In German while he teaches at a local university in Munich. The meeting of these two main characters was magical and so well-written. The entire story was like a film running in my mind, with such excellent descriptions of scenes and background. I felt as though I could feel the evil of the Gestapo and the traitors against Evelyn and Peter. My heart was in my throat during the most emotional moment that they shared together. This is one of the absolutely best historical fiction books that I have read about the pre-WWII era! I cannot recommend it highly enough. Even if you don’t like historical fiction, try this one. I’m not usually a fan of this genre, but I love Sundin’s books and have devoured all of them since I first discovered her. The research is impeccable, the writing is magnetic and the characterization is dramatic. Loved this book!
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the Revell Reads Blogger Program. 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.”

A totally clean read, rated PG because of content. Historically accurate, so some of the scenes with the Gestapo and their treatment of the Jewish people was more than a little disturbing. Nevertheless, the story needs to be told and Sarah Sundin did a masterful job!
Photo from the author’s website at http://www.sarahsundin.com Additional information about Sarah’s inspiration, her writing journey and her list of amazing books can be found at this website.

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Get your copy of this wonderful book today! Read, Enjoy, Share!

Review of OBSESSION by Patricia Bradley

On By vickleaIn Book Review2 Comments
A totally clean read, rated PG because of content

A fast-paced and intriguing mystery involving a Natchez Trace ranger who is also an historian and her former fiancé who is a law enforcement ranger. Emma doesn’t like it when Sam is assigned to investigate the case after someone shoots at her in the park early one morning. But since Sam is tasked to keep her safe, Emma just has to suck it up and go along with his constant presence. Unfortunately, there is someone else who has Emma in his sights, someone who is totally obsessed with her. Sam can’t keep her safe unless he can figure out what his really happening and the twists and turns in this book are rampant. I enjoyed meeting Emma and Sam and how they interacted with each other. It was apparent from the beginning that Sam was still smitten with Emma, but Emma wanted nothing to do with him. There are several layers of mystery here, including the disappearance of Emma’s twin brother Ryan and the death of Ryan’s girlfriend Mary Jo. The historical part of the story deals with a cemetery for slaves and that in itself was interesting. I loved how the deeper Emma dug into the cemetery, the more that was revealed from past mysteries and the more intrigue about the present. The story was complex but not hard to follow since the clues to the killer were clearly laid out. I did not guess the perpetrator because there were a lot of red herrings, but I did understand all of the clues once the identity was revealed. My kind of mystery! This book gave me just the right amount of chills and thrills and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good mystery. Although the book is part of a series, it can definitely be read as a standalone and it is a good, clean read!
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the #RevellReadsBloggerProgram 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.”

Information about the author can be found on her website at http://www.ptbradley.com

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I’m pleased to be a part of this team that reviews Christian books for discerning readers! I hope that you enjoy my reviews as much as I enjoy the books!

Proverbs 8

On By vickleaIn Scripture2 Comments

www.bible.com/1171/pro.8.19.mev

What can bring something more precious than silver and gold to your life? Wisdom! The knowledge that only comes from knowing and listening to God. I encourage you to read all of this proverb this morning and then ask God for wisdom to handle whatever situation you find yourself facing. He knows just what the solution is to every problem! He is the only wise God and He chooses to give us His wisdom.

May you be blessed today with wisdom that can only come from spending time at the throne of God!

A Promise When We Pray

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

This is a wonderful promise from God’s Word, but did you read it carefully? We have to ask “according to God’s will” in order to receive the answer that we desire. How do we know God’s will? I submit to you that we know it by spending time with Him, reading His Word and just talking to Him. It’s fantastic to be able to pray and have our prayers answered! But what is better is to be able to sit quietly and just talk to the Father.

“Jesus I Believe: by Big Daddy Weave

A Promise for All Times

On By vickleaIn Scripture5 Comments

www.bible.com/111/mat.18.20.niv

When I feel defeated or discouraged, I tell my husband and he prays. Often, I call our daughter and she prays with us, too. When I am ill, or when I fall and get hurt or when I just feel lonely, I ask my husband and daughter for prayer. I used to call or text our pastor, but we are in the middle of changing churches and the new pastors don’t know me well, so I don’t feel comfortable sharing a lot with them yet. Nevertheless, I do have prayer warriors to call. The best news, though, is that when I am totally alone, I can call on the Lord. Jesus is always with me because He has sent His Comforter, the Holy Spirit who is constantly with me. So, when I am driving and get scared (because I don’t drive very much anymore), I send up a prayer and know that the Lord is hearing me. I don’t have to be in a big crowd or even next to a phone to send up a prayer and know that my Father in Heaven hears me and is working on an answer for me. This morning, I awakened with pain in my shoulder and my hip from my physical therapy yesterday. Balancing on one leg is hard for me, even before I broke my foot. But I have to work on strengthening it, so that is one of the exercises I do. Before I even got out of bed, I praised God for a new day and asked for healing for my aching parts. My husband was sleeping soundly next to me, so I didn’t wake him up to join me in prayer. I just prayed, knowing that the Comforter was with me and would help me get out of bed and start a new day. Two or three isn’t many, and with Jesus with you, that means you can pray all by yourself in your prayer closet.

Prayer requests for you prayer warriors out there: Angie, with cancer on her spine and a friend named John who is having open heart surgery tomorrow

Thanks for the prayers and support. If you need prayer, just let me know in the comments and I will pray for you. God bless you in this new day. Expect great things from God!

Review of THE VINEYARD AT PAINTED MOON by Susan Mallery

On By vickleaIn Book ReviewLeave a comment
A cover you can step into!
I would rate this a PG–13. It is almost a totally clean read and was an absolute pleasure for me to escape into!

What a wonderful and magical book! The characters were charming (well, most of them) and the plot was well-written, with just enough foreshadowing to leave me with the desire to continue to read to see if I was right. Mackenzie is a strong female protagonist, a talented winemaker who gets stronger in the face of adversity. Barbara, her domineering mother-in-law, is selfish and short-sighted, two characteristics that lead to her loneliness. Stephanie and Four, Mackenzie’s loving sisters-in-law, are the perfect matches to help Mackenzie through the rough times in her life. I really enjoyed how the plot unspooled itself, one thread or loop at a time. The book was perfectly written to make me ponder the themes: relationships, work v. family, single parenting and selfishness. There were characters that I knew from the beginning that I would not like, like Lori, the other sister-in-law, the one who tries to ingratiate herself with Barbara by disdaining Mackenzie. I honestly did not like Barbara and her manipulations at all, but I did understand that was all that she knew. I loved Bruno and could have just swooned when he appeared on the scene. He was a metropolitan man in a country setting, and he stood out as a super hero tends to do. All of the characters were complex and so well-developed that they have lived with me in my den for the past week or so. Fans of good romance will want to snap up this fantastic book! And the author has included bonuses at the end: wine pairings, recipes and discussion questions. This is definitely a great book to read with a book group!
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.”

More information about the author and her other wonderful books can be found at her website: http://www.susanmallery.com

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This is one of the best romance books that I have ever read, so I highly recommend it and hope that you will get a copy and enjoy it, too!

Rejoicing and Blessings

On By vickleaIn Scripture5 Comments

www.bible.com/1171/psa.21.6.mev

Read and think about this verse. Really think about it. God places blessings on us FOREVER. We are blessed here on earth and we will continue to be blessed in Heaven. Therefore, we can rejoice because God’s presence is always with us, working in us to do His will on the earth. This is a promise that I can relate to since I have felt especially blessed to be alive six years after a massive stroke. I am blessed with a husband who loves me, three children who are strong and healthy and nine grandchildren who are precocious, talented and so lovable! So, I am blessed. Everyday when I awaken, I thank God for a new day to walk with Him here on earth. Are you blessed? If you are reading this, you are blessed!

Be blessed today, my friends, so that you can be a blessing.

Trusting

On By vickleaIn Scripture5 Comments

www.bible.com/1171/psa.20.7.mev

In the United States of America, we have a tendency to trust our might, our power, our strong economy and usually our President. Those things are our “chariot” and our “horse,” but in reality, only God can be trusted. I recall the great Egyptian army that rode fearlessly into the Red Sea, chasing the Israelites, with their chariots and horses. All of them drowned, wiped out when the Almighty God returned the sea to its bed. It is only when we trust in the Lord our God that we can rest easily, knowing that we are truly safe. There is no government that can save us. There is no mighty army, navy, air force or even marine corps that can save us. Most of us also have to remember that we can’t save ourselves, although we are sometimes determined to try and to set ourselves up as our own god. The only Name to remember is that of the Lord God. It is He Who saves us: from our sin, from the temptations of the world and ultimately, from death. Thus this Scripture brings me great comfort and I hope that you find comfort in this promise, too. It is God who is totally trustworthy to take us through the battles of life and to eternity with Him.

I pray God’s blessing on you today, no matter where you go or what you do. Nothing will happen today that you and God cannot handle together!