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.
I have heard most of my life as a Christian that life is like a race that we are running, towards the prize of eternal life.
I do believe that the race analogy is true. But something in my devotional this morning led me to open my eyes to a different observation about this truth.
Our life is not meant to be a race to the finish line, in my opinion. Rather, we are part of a relay race and are supposed to pass the baton of our faith on to the next generation. They will continue to run the race themselves, sharing the Gospel and spreading the good news that eternal life is the prize at the end of each individual’s race. It puts a smile on my face to know that when my life is over, others will continue to carry the banner of faith that has been shared with them by the saints who went before them. This is not a profound revelation, but it is one that opened my eyes to the kind of race I am running. Life with Jesus is not a sprint, but it is a relay race. The “leg” that I am running is only part of the race and I will one day leave the baton behind for others. That is why it is so important to share the Gospel message, so that the baton of His love, mercy and grace will not be dropped in mid-race, but it will continue to be passed on to the younger generations, those who need to hear and believe.
May you continue to run the race with persistence and consistent faith until the day that the Lord calls you to pass on the baton.
I know that I talk too much, not to strangers, but to friends. I get on the phone with one particular friend and we can talk for an hour or more. The same is true of my chats with our daughter. Recently, the Lord has been telling me to be quiet more and to just listen. I’m not the only one bursting with things I want to share, but I am aware that at times, I ramble and the other person doesn’t get a chance to share what is on their hearts. Imagine if God never listened to us how frustrating that would be!
People do not ask for or desire that I tell them all that I am thinking or my opinion about everything. Mostly, they just want a listening ear. Of course, if they are sharing something that is against my moral code, I will speak up, but my new thing to do is just to listen. Did you know that there are studies about being quiet and letting the other person fill the silence? How much we can learn about what is going on in another person’s life is dependent on our truly listening.
We are repeatedly admonished in the Scripture to listen and to think before we speak. I think it would solve a lot of relationship problems if we would make following this verse a habit. It’s hard to argue with someone who isn’t arguing back but is remaining silent, isn’t it?
May we all be blessed today with the reminder to listen carefully and to just be quiet.
Welcome to the Blog Tour for Explosive Christmas Showdown by Darlene L. Turner, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours.
About the Book
Title: Explosive Christmas Showdown
Series: Crisis Rescue Team #2
Author: Darlene L. Turner
Publisher: Love Inspired Suspense
Release Date: October 25, 2022
Genre: Christian Romantic Suspense
A bomber brings terror to Christmas
as the presents go tick…tick…boom.
With criminal investigative analyst Olive Wells at the center of a bomber’s dangerous game, she’ll do anything to catch the culprit—even work with her ex-fiancé and his K-9 detector dog. But with the Christmas rampage drawing ever closer, Zac Turner’s convinced the attacks are personal. Can they piece together their ties to the bomber…before another gift explodes?
From Love Inspired Suspense: Courage. Danger. Faith.
Darlene L. Turner is an award-winning author and lives with her husband, Jeff in Ontario, Canada. Her love of suspense began when she read her first Nancy Drew book. She’s turned that passion into her writing and believes readers will be captured by her plots, inspired by her strong characters, and moved by her inspirational message.
Connect with Darlene by visiting darlenelturner.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.
My thoughts on the book:
The Jingle Bell Bomber is actively seeking victims to target and the team has to rush from one place to another trying to defuse bombs before they harm people. This is a love story as well an an intriguing suspense tale of bodies piling up and a team of experts stymied about where to go next to stop his vicious attacks. Olive Wells is an analyst and her colleague Zac Turner is an expert at finding and defusing bombs. Zac’s intelligent and intuitive dog Ziva made this book for me! She knew just where to go and when and also knew who needed her gentle presence to calm them. She is a trained bomb sniffing dog as well as a tracker, but she is so much more. Her personality stood out in the book to me and I really enjoyed getting to know her and her people. The characters were all well developed and the pace was fast, with action that was non-stop as the team raced from one place to another, following clues left by the JB, their term for the Jingle Bell Bomber. There are also sub-plots about secrets that Olive and Zac have that eventually have to be revealed for them to try to have a relationship. Faith is also a strong element in the story as the characters who have moved away from God ultimately decide that they need to totally depend on Him to keep them safe and to help them plan a future. The credible characters and their quest to save lives had me mesmerized from beginning to end. I should also note that the weather was almost a character by itself as it kept snowing and interfering with the investigation and the team’s ability to get to places quickly. This was very realistic as the book was set in Canada at Christmas time and added to the emotional turmoil of finding a deadly bomber before he strikes again. Fans of clean romantic suspense will enjoy the story of Zac, Olive and Ziva. I would rate the book with five stars for entertaining and clean content. 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. 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.”
Tour Giveaway
(3) winners will receive a $25 Amazon gift card.
Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight October 24, 2022 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on October 31, 2022. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US/CAN only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
Have you ever thought of how many words you say every day? Ponder that. Then, think about how many of them are kind words, words that build up and encourage.
Encouragement should be as much a part of our being as Christians as reading God’s Word for the encouragement that we get from that. Consider that many do not read His Word (although we are in absolute agreement that they should), and the only encouragement that some may get is from what may come out of your mouth. The clerk is slow and you’re in a hurry. Be gracious anyway. The traffic is backed up and you feel like you’re going to explode with anger. The passengers in your car need to hear gracious words instead. In whatever situation we find ourselves, we can choose to use grace in our words. Give love with your words, not judgment and condemnation. It’s your opportunity that God has given you to represent how He would respond to frustrations and challenges. Just be kind. I saw a sign that had a familiar saying on it, “In a world where you can be anything, be kind.” You don’t have to accept sin. I am not saying that by any means. But no matter what is happening in someone’s life, you can make a difference with a kind word, just noticing that the other person needs your encouragement just as much as you need to take in the manna from God’s Word daily.
May your day be filled with the opportunity to reach out to others with kind words, offering needed encouragement and a picture of what kindness looks like.
I didn’t think it was possible, but the story in this romantic thriller is just as delightfully delicious and inviting as the gorgeous cover! Ava Burch is a corporate lawyer who is new to the small Texas town of Cuervo. She is accompanied by her search and rescue dog Huck, a dog with plenty of intuition and personality. On a SAR mission, Ava becomes aware that women are missing annually from the hostile desert environment around the town and decides to pursue her own investigation. She is kind of, sort of and reluctantly paired with deputy sheriff and lead investigator Grant Wycoff who does not want her endangering herself by getting into the middle of the case he is trying to solve. The two of them don’t see eye to eye about the case, but they do have sparks flying between them. The mystery in the book is what is happening to these women and why. There are many red herrings placed strategically throughout the story and real clues, too. Perfect for a mystery lover like me! The pace races at a breakneck speed as Grant and Ava seek to find the perpetrators before they kill again. When Ava herself is in the crosshairs of the villain, she shows herself to be a strong and worthy opponent. I love strong female protagonists who can be like melted honey in the arms of a strong male protagonist! The energy between these two characters flames occasionally and is almost a relief from the tension building in the case. This is a brilliantly crafted story with an intriguing plot and a propulsive mystery. The clever descriptions of the characters gave me insight into the fascinating characters and the satisfying misdirection had me reading long into the night to find out the real bad guy. The book crackled with tension, not just in the bedroom, but out in the desert where shots are fired and heroes are injured. The plot was intense and captivating, with a story that held me in its magnetic spell from beginning to end. I loved this book and highly recommend it to those looking for a thriller and a romance with some steam to it that is not offensive or over the top. 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. 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.”
For heart-pounding thrills with a beautiful natural setting, get this book today! Many thanks to autor Laura Griffin for the hours of mesmerizing entertainment!
One of the habits that I have tried to cultivate is to count my blessings before I get up in the morning. Of course, I have to be alert enough to do this, but I have found that it starts my day off on a positive note. It only takes a few minutes to tell God how grateful I am for His blessings and for being able to be alive for a new day.
One of my greatest blessings is being able to read and memorize God’s word, hiding it in my heart so that the verses and sometimes scripture songs go through my mind as I fall asleep. This morning was one with this verse front and center. God gives me counsel daily and that is a blessing. He orders my steps, helps me organize my busy days and to take time for Him first every morning. The best news is that after all of my life is done, He has a big plan for me. He will take me to be with Him in glory! I didn’t and couldn’t do anything to earn his mercy and grace, but I am so grateful for it and for His unconditional love for me. Before you head out today, I hope that you will take a few minutes just to reflect on God and His goodness and blessings in your life.
May your day be blessed with the knowledge that you are blessed to be a blessing!
I don’t know how your week has been going, but I have felt as though I have met myself coming and going. Since last Wednesday, I have had an appointment or meeting every day and sometimes in the evening, too. Of course, I didn’t plan it that way, but it turned out to be busier than I expected because several of my regular doctors wanted to check on me and that meant appointments in town. Then, Sunday, a day of rest, I had to get up extra early to get showered and ready for Sunday school and then to help out in children’s church. Oh, my! Sometimes the thoughts overwhelm me, but I have to get hold of those thoughts and let God control my mind. I still have three more appointments and or meetings this week, and then, finally, a blessed “free day.” Finding time to read Scripture has been an absolute must for me, just to get me through the challenges of each day. It’s not that I mind appointments. I mind the interruption to my regular routine, the nagging fear that they may find something more wrong than I already know about and the travel back and forth that is stressful in itself because of the traffic. Nevertheless, God gives me His word, especially when I am afraid.
We hold doctors and other professionals like them in high esteem, but we need to remember that they are only men and women, just like we are. I don’t believe that there is anything that they can tell me that God doesn’t already know about and is already prepared to handle with me. So, I don’t like the heavy daily schedule, added with the problem of persistent insomnia, but I accept that God is with me regardless of the daily sword thrusts that try to attack my faith.
Thus as I start a new day filled with a longing to just sit and be quiet and relax, but knowing that again today, I have things to do and obligations to fulfill, I go out knowing in my heart that God is right beside me and I believe that with all my heart.
As I have aged, I have discovered that the law of gravity seems to be more active in my life. As I told one of my physicians, “I don’t know how or why I fell. I was just walking, and then I wasn’t.” Fortunately, each time I have fallen, I have had the helping hand of my spouse to assist me in getting up.
Did you know that it is possible to fall in other ways, too? When we venture too far from the Lord and the reading of His Word, we have a tendency to “fall away” from Him. I don’t think that this is the law of gravity at work, however, because it is actually that we are moving away instead of toward Him. It is my belief that we are always moving in our relationship with God, either closer to Him or further away and that is based on our own choice. But God doesn’t leave us way out in left field, unable to get up and calling loudly for help.
No matter how far we get from the Lord, He is only a prayer away. We just call on His Name and He lifts us up. That is not to say that confession and repentance may not be necessary. It is saying, though, that God doesn’t just leave us there on the ground unless that is where we want to be, stubbornly refusing to call on Him for help. It is in our actions that we determine how much God will do for us because I firmly believe that He will not come in when He is not welcome. So, if you feel yourself getting further from God, ask yourself honestly who moved. I can assure you that it was not the Lord who moved away from you! Since you are the one who moved, then you can also be the one to move back and press in closer to the one who upholds and lifts you up.
May you be blessed with God’s grace, mercy and peace today and may you always strive to move closer to Him.
I don’t get on scary rides at theme parks very often, but I have a couple of times, once when I was assured that it was a “mild rollercoaster.” Well, mild is not the word I would have used as the ride slung me from one side of the seat to another as I tightly grasped the bar in front of me. My hope was that the bar would hold me in my seat so that I didn’t tumble out into an unknown abyss.
Isn’t that what our hope in the Lord is all about? We hold tightly onto the hope that we have in Him, the sure knowledge that He is bigger than all our problems and that He will be with us through everything we face?
God is always faithful and always keeps His promises. We can count on Him not to move away from us and leave us hanging over the challenges that life tosses at us.
But there is another reason to hold onto hope. Others are watching us and how we react when the storms of life assail us. Do we behave like those around us, kicking and screaming about the unfairness of life? Or do we quietly pray and ask for God’s help to get through the situation or to remove it, whatever is best for us in the long run?
I want others to be glad to see me because they know that I put my hope in the Lord. How do they know that unless I have shown them through the faith that I live out daily? We are a walking testimony, either showing others the faith and hope that God has instilled in us or the fear and anger that man daily inputs into our lives. I choose faith and hope and pray that each of you does the same, knowing that others are always watching.
I screamed on the roller coaster and I even have a photo record of my terror. What would it be like if each time I face a new test in life, a photographer were to capture my reactions? That is certainly food for thought, isn’t it? May my reactions be consistently Godly, representing the Christ whom I serve!
Have a blessed day as you hope in the Lord and give those around you reason to rejoice!
Vickie's Book Nook and Meditation Corner 