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.
One of the arguments that I have heard for years about the existence of God and the Holy Spirit is that although you cannot see the wind, you see what its effects. Likewise, we don’t see God, but we see His actions on the earth. I am eternally grateful that God sent Jesus to save me, filled me with His Spirit and continues to guard my heart and mind through Him. It is up to me to continue to walk with God. The wind continues to blow, drawing my attention hither and yon. But the blowing wind is not what I should be focused on. I need to focus on the power that created that wind and how much love is behind all of creation.
I cannot explain my salvation or the change in my heart and my life, but I know that it is a fact. Just as the wind blowing through the trees causes the leaves to move, God’s Spirit moving in my heart causes me to draw closer to Him and away from the world.
Sometimes, in the midst of trials or challenges, we just have to take time to remember all that God has already done for us and give Him the glory. It is in the remembering that our faith is built up again and we are then able to press onward with Him through the valley and back again to the mountaintop.
Grace Holloway keeps to herself. Since narrowly escaping death at the hands of the man who kidnapped her, she’s thrown herself into the small inn she runs in Rock Harbor, Maine. It’s quiet, quaint and, in the off-season, completely isolated—the perfect place for Grace to keep her own secrets.
But Grace isn’t the only one with something to hide, and Rock Harbor isn’t just a sleepy vacation town. Someone is taking young women—girls who look an awful lot like Grace did when she was kidnapped so many years ago.
When a surge of disappearances brings the investigation to her door, Grace finds herself unwillingly at the center of it all and doing everything she can to keep her distance. Because Grace knows something…something that could change everything. And when the truth comes to light, getting justice for the vanished might be more than Grace can handle alone…
My Thoughts:
This is a book with a dark and twisted plot and characters with different storylines that merge together slowly and methodically. There is the man whose father has disappeared who returns home to Maine to look for him. There is the mother whose daughter has vanished from the red light district in the small town of Rock Harbor Maine. And finally, there is the woman hiding from the world with a secret past that holds all of the events in the book together. This book is a slow burn, but what a burn it is! I was entranced with the mechanics of finding out how everything fit together, just like a puzzle and the author does a masterful job of weaving the story around the character of Grace, the woman hiding away from her devastating past. I really enjoyed the characterization and the eerie tone of the book that was like reading a novel that I just knew something bad was going to happen soon. Cue the music for the old horror films and move on to the next chapter! This was an amazingly well-written book that drew me into its spider web of secrets and kept me trapped there (albeit willingly) until the satisfying and brilliant conclusion. Having read this author’s former books, I kind of knew what to expect, but THE VANISHING HOUR takes her style and genius to a next level in a way that was magical and completely engaging. My heart was in my throat at times as I waited for the next surprising twist…no disappointment here, just sheer amazement at how sharp and addictive the writing was! 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 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.”
This is adult fiction, in the genre of a thriller. Rated M for mature audiences.
About the Author:
Seraphina Nova Glass is a professor and playwright-in-residence at the University of Texas, Arlington, where she teaches film studies and playwriting. She holds an MFA in playwriting from Smith College, and she’s also a screenwriter and award-winning playwright. Seraphina has traveled the world using theatre and film as a teaching tool, living in South Africa, Guam and Kenya as a volunteer teacher, AIDS relief worker, and documentary filmmaker.
I pray daily, throughout the day. Some days my prayer is a whisper, a hopeful murmuring to the Lord. Other days, my prayer is intense. Yesterday was a day of intense prayer as our grandson was traveling alone to D.C. to start his new internship there. But his trip was delayed due to car troubles, so he ended up having to travel at night. So, my husband and I prayed that God would work out things with the car and get him there safely. God came through for Isaac as he left about 6 p.m., arrived at 9 and missed a lot of the awful traffic on the beltway. Sigh of relief and praise of thanksgiving that he arrived safely in spite of all of the obstacles. Of course, prayers will continue for him and our other loved one in the days ahead. I must admit that sometimes I am ashamed of how little confidence I have that God will answer my prayers. I pray, wait for an answer and hope that it will come but I am not surprised when the answer is delayed or doesn’t take the form that I thought it would. There is a prayer in scripture that addressed that for me this morning.
Knowing that God is the source of hope helps me to trust in His sovereignty. My confidence is in His answering in His timing and in a way that is best for all concerned. Look at the powerful words in this verse: joy, peace, trust, overflow and confident hope. This is a verse that I need to personalize daily and pray over myself as I come before the Lord and present my thanksgiving and petitions. Today, I pray this prayer for each of my readers, with the confident hope that God will completely fill you with His joy and peace as you trust in Him.
When Jesus ascended to Heaven, He reminded the disciples that He would always be with them. He continues to remind us of that today, but we have to take the time to be with Him.
Jesus only spoke of two commandments and both were about love. Love God and love your neighbor. He is with us as we fulfill those commandments and as we spend time with Him seeking the ways we should be showing love to God and to others.
I think that my alone time with God, reading His Word, praying and singing, is the most important part of my day. It sets the tone for the day and allows me to speak freely to God as I go through whatever challenges the day may present. Jesus, God’s own Son, spent time praying to His Father. Following His example, we should feel compelled to spend time with the Lord, not just telling Him our problems, but listening for His solutions and encouragement. Ok;.;.;.;
In 1881, Jacci Reed is only five years old when a man attempts to kidnap her from the steamboat her mother, Irena, works on. Badly wounded during the confrontation, Irena takes Jacci aboard the Kingston Floating Palace, a showboat tied up beside them. There, Jacci’s actor grandfather tends to her mother, and Jacci gets a first taste of the life she will come to lead.
Fifteen years later, Jacci is an actress aboard that same showboat and largely contented with her adopted family of actors, singers, and dancers. Especially Gabe, who has always supported her, and the gruff grandfather she has come to know and love. Jacci’s mother has been gone for years, but the memory of the altercation that ultimately took her life—and the cryptic things Jacci has overheard about her past—is always there, lurking in the back of her mind.
When someone on the showboat tries to kill Jacci, it’s clear her questions demand answers. But secrets have a way of staying in the shadows . . . and the answers she craves will not come easily. (From the author’s website at http://www.annhgabhart.com)
My Thoughts:
Historical in that the story is set on a showboat in the late 1800’s, but mostly mystery, this book captivated me with its fast-paced action and authentic details. I was captured from the first moment that little Jacci was introduced, only five years old and already facing being an orphan. She knows that there is a mystery surrounding her life even as she enthusiastically embraces her life as a performer on the showboat, but that is not at the forefront of her mind all the time. The romance between Gabe and Jacci is predictable and sweet, but it is not the center of the story either. The central focus of the story is secretive background that others are hiding from Jacci, her roots and her heritage that eventually she is determined to uncover. Ann H. Gabhart methodically tells the story in an addictive way, teasingly revealing details slowly and giving the plot multiple layers and great depth. The characters are realistic and relatable, with real tears falling from my eyes over little Jacci’s losses and her dilemma. As the story progresses, the characters change and grow, so they are dynamic and so believable. The plot is clever, with history and faith woven into the main story that is as complex as it is riveting. I learned a great deal about life on a showboat from this book and enjoyed my journey down the river with Jacci and Gabe. This is a satisfying, brilliantly written historical fiction with a compelling mystery in the center of it. 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. 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.”
Rated PG due to content
About the Author:
Ann H. Gabhart caught the writing bug at the age of ten and has been writing ever since. An award winning author, she’s published many books for both adults and young adults. Her books cover several genres from historical to small town family stories to cozy mysteries (mysteries published with author name A.H. Gabhart). Her ideas are sparked by events in Kentucky history and by experiences in her own family. Her first Shaker novel, The Outsider, was a finalist for the ECPA Christian Fiction Book of the Year. Love Comes Home won the Selah Book of the Year award, and These Healing Hills was the Faith, Hope & Love Readers’ Choice Women’s Fiction Book of the Year. Ann lives on a Kentucky farm not far from where she was born. She and her husband have three children and nine grandchildren. Ann enjoys hiking on her farm with her grandkids and her dogs, Frankie and Marley. See more about her books at http://www.annhgabhart.com or join the conversation on her Facebook page, www.facebook.com/anngabhart. (Info from the author’s page on Amazon)
With great appreciation to Revell for the Revell Reads Blogger Program that introduced me to this author to begin with and keeps me in good Christian fiction to read and review.
If you look up, you can see the sky and the clouds, the sun, moon and stars. God made all of them. If you look down, you can see the grass, flowers, trees all of the living creatures. God made all of them. How can anyone deny the existence of God when everything around us shows us His loving care? Even the rain that can be a nuisance when you have planned a beach trip is from God’s loving providence. The rain that annoys you makes the food in the fields grow. I am ever grateful for God’s creation and the way He has set an order to everything. I have only to look around me to see the proof of God’s loving kindness and tender care.
Please go to the original post and follow. Although I had heard rumors about this, it is the first actual censored post that I have seen. This is absolutely censorship but as a private company FB can get away with it.
“Be the light!” the preacher proclaims from the pulpit. “Shine in the darkness,” says the Sunday school teacher. All good advice, but the practicality sometimes escapes us as we hurry away from the darkness and try to stay near the light ourselves. We are missing the point that we are the light and in our haste to move away from darkness, we are missing opportunities to shine His light on a dark world.
We try to stay insulated in our protected group of Christians who all believe as we do when what we are supposed to do is go into the world and shine the light that we have on the people who don’t yet know that they need Jesus. When we are doing what we should be doing, we are going to naturally attract others and need to have an answer for the hope that is in us. Be ready at all times to tell others how Jesus has made a difference in your life! Like a moth is attracted to a flame or any kind of light, so people in darkness need to know that there is a light that they can turn to. At the most unexpected times and from some of the most unexpected sources, you may have people seeking answers from you because they have seen your light and want to know more about what makes you different. Be ready to be that light!
Many times we fear approaching darkness because we are intimidated by just how dark it is and the fact that we cannot see “two inches in front of our face.” That’s okay, Step into the darkness and it won’t be dark anymore because your presence brings the light with you.
The light that is in us comes from the Lord Jesus. When darkness is all around, we can continue to shine and attract others to the beauty of salvation and the peace and hope that it offers.
Are you a fan of lots of blankets? Snuggling down into the warm comfort and resting securely? One of my children used to have a “security blanket” that he carried everywhere. Ragged and threadbare from so much laundering, it was barely a blanket, yet still he carried it, holding it up to his nose and wrapping it around his little neck. I don’t recall when he finally gave up “Blankie” but I do remember being sad at the passing of an innocent age when he thought that the blanket he carried and wore would surround him with security.
We can all have that security today if we just accept that God promises it. It’s not a totem we carry around or wear. It’s not a Bible verse that we memorize and cite each time we need God’s presence (although that is certainly helpful). It is just an awareness of how much God loves you and the feeling that He has His arms wrapped around you.
I had a scary incident happen last week. I was sitting in my recliner getting ready to read when the vision in my right eye went all wonky. It was blurry and wavy, and at the same time I got a tremendous sense of vertigo. I called for my husband, but he couldn’t hear me, so I carefully made my way to the bedroom, told him what was happening, and we prayed. I then proceeded to go to bed. I lay there in the dark for quite a while, with the room spinning around me and my vision in that one eye blurry. I fell asleep for a few hours and when I awakened and got up to go to the bathroom, I was still dizzy and my vision was still weirdly unfocused. So, back to bed I went and prayed and praised God as I drifted back to sleep. The next morning, I seemed fine. On Monday, I called my retina eye specialist, whom I had just seen the day before the incident. The triage team called me back, asked me a lot of questions and told me that if it happens again, I should call the on-call doctor and go to the ER. I also let my cardiologist know, in case there was some kind of reaction to my medication. And, finally, I alerted my neurologist in case the whole thing was a brain glitch. The neurologist called me a few days later and said he is concerned about my blood vessels in my brain so he wants me to have an MRA. I had already had an MRI, CT Scan, EEG and EMG, but apparently an MRA looks at only the blood vessels to see if there is something going on that shouldn’t be. The test is all scheduled now and I think the doctor must have put in an urgent request because it’s on June 12th, only a few weeks away. (I waited months for some of the other tests to be done.) Anyway, I wrote all of that so that you know that I know that I am covered. Is it scary each morning when I awaken and I don’t know whether my eyes will be focused and my head will be spinning? I would be lying if I said it isn’t a little tense for me. But I awaken each day as always, praising God that I slept and woke up again and I go through my day with the praise on my lips that God is taking care of me, regardless of what happens. Am I thrilled to undergo another test and have an unknown possibly happening in my brain? No, of course not! But I know that I cannot learn trust by having everything be nice and smooth in my life, so a few bumps are to be expected as I press in closer to God.
God is sheltering me and He has already provided my protection in His Word. I have to stand on it and believe that He is working it all out for His glory. So, I am covered, not with a security blanket that I can hold in my hands but with one that I hold close to my heart.
Vickie's Book Nook and Meditation Corner 