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.
Whatever abilities we have come from God. I used to teach and was told that I had a talent in the classroom to notice students who needed help and to find a way to help them. That ability, I believe, came from God’s insight that He gifted me with.
It is when we start to think that we don’t need God that we stumble. Our pride takes over and then we forget how far we have come WITH God and try to make our way without Him. God forbid that we leave the place of safety with Him and try to make our own way, but in our ignorance and quest for independence, that is what many have done.
God is my shield, my protector, and when I get ahead of Him or move away from Him, I am leaving my shield behind. That opens me up to the fiery darts of the enemy, the destroyer who only wants to own my soul, not cherish it.
May you have a day blessed with knowing that God is your shield and He has provided you with whatever competence you have in life.
In today’s busy world, with both parents having jobs, kids having numerous activities and all kinds of other things going on, it’s easy to lose sight of what is most important. Following Jesus’s example is the most important thing that we can do and He left instructions on how to do that.
We are to take care of the needs of others, as much as it is possible to do. Look around you. There are needy people everywhere. A lonely neighbor, a widow or a child who seems to be friendless. Reach out helping hands and be the one who makes a difference in their lives. You may say that you are not comfortable entering someone else’s world and interfering. Then, do what you are comfortable with. Smile at people you meet. Say kind words to servers and to helpers in your world. Be the person that God means for you to be. You may have to step out of your comfort zone and do something that challenges you. Golgotha was definitely a challenge for Jesus, but He did not back away from the cross, but He faced it boldly and with the conviction that He was doing what the Father had established for Him to do since the beginning of the world. We cannot sit around complaining about the state of the world and not be willing to make a difference in it ourselves. Pray about what God wants you to do, and then go get started. If you want to be like Jesus, start by serving just as He did.
Have a blessed and safe day, serving others before you think of yourself and your own needs.
After the man who was paralyzed was healed, the people’s reaction was amazement. Daily, God walked among them because Jesus came to earth as a man. But when miracles began to happen, they were amazed. Should we not be constantly amazed at what God has done and is doing? All we have to do is look around us at all He has already created for us to enjoy, look at our own health and well-being and the blessings of family He has given us. We see remarkable things daily, if we just open our eyes.
No one is like our God, the God who sees us, hears us and answers us. He is holy and is to be praised, not just for performing miracles, but for who He is and always has been.
God speaks and things happen. I have difficulty getting my grandchildren to even hear me when I speak because they are so attentive to their television shows. Yet, God spoke and the whole earth was created. Amazing God!
God is omnipresent, meaning He is with each of us at all times. Our finite minds have difficulty conceiving of this idea, but the Bible declares its truth. It’s humbling to realize that I am on God’s mind, even when I am going in my own way and struggling to go on the path He did not intend for me to be on. Still, He thinks about each of us and wants the best for each of us, always. He is loving and merciful at all times and constantly aware of what we are doing, the choices we are making and the desires that He wants for us. He constantly cherishes us, more than we could ever imagine.
Have a blessed day as you ponder the truth that you are constantly on the mind of God and that He always desires what is best for you.
What I am sharing today is from my devotional on the YouVersion Bible App. It made me ponder and I hope it does the same for you and also brings you to the place of realization that God truly loves you.
Since I was a young child, I have preferred light over darkness and I still sleep with a night light nearby. In my childhood, my mother would not tolerate my foolish insecurities and never allowed me to have a night light, but there was a street light that shone brightly into my bedroom every night and with its shining comfort, I was able to sleep. I am not a fan of winter, not just because of the cold, but also because of the darkness that comes earlier and stays later. When we lived in Maine, I went to work in the morning in the wintertime, and it was dark. When I left school in the afternoon, it was already dusk and by the time I got home, it was dark. Darkness doesn’t really frighten me any longer; I just prefer to see clearly and darkness doesn’t allow that.
Jesus came for the specific purpose of saving mankind from darkness, but the darkness wasn’t surrounding them. Instead, it was in them. In fact, the darkness that is the equivalent of sin is in each of us because we were born in sin and only Jesus can lead us to the light of His grace and mercy and ultimate peace.
I cannot imagine Heaven because it boggles my mind that there is no need for the sun or moon there. God and Jesus illuminate the entire new city of Jerusalem. No darkness at all! After all, there is no sin in Heaven. When I think of how dark the world is today, and not just from winter, but from mankind’s evil choices, it gives me hope that one day there will be no darkness. It also makes me sad that so many who are living in darkness and think that they will never pay consequences for their evil choices are doomed to eternal darkness. I can only pray for them, speak truth as I am given the opportunity and wait for them to begin to make right choices, ones led by God. In the meantime, there is a blessed hope for each of us who are believers. One day, there will be no more darkness!
Imagine no more night! When I visited my husband while he was stationed in Iceland, it was amazing to me that the sun didn’t go down while I was there. There were blackout curtains on the windows to allow us to sleep during the brightly lit night. Now, imagine a world in which light is the only thing known. No darkness at all, ever. More importantly, no sin…no cursing, no lying, no killing, and most importantly, no evil in the heart or mankind. No woke culture proclaiming that lies are the truth. No politicians glad-handing and making promises that they never intend to keep. No sin anywhere in God’s New Kingdom, none at all! That is true light, isn’t it?
Have a blessed day and may you be encouraged by the thought that one day the darkness that surrounds us will be no more.
Remember the game we played as children that was called “pass it on.” Someone would tell a secret of some sort (usually foolish things that were not really secrets at all), and say, “Pass it on.” Then we would see how many different people we could tell. The age of technology has given way to a new way to play the game. We are still doing the same thing, but our message reaches a larger audience in a shorter amount to time.
As Christians, each of us is tasked with the mission to “pass it on” and the greatest mission field that we have is first to our own families.
Our lives are the testimony we live before our family members, especially the youngest ones who listen and watch everything the adults say and do. We may not be aware that is happening, but believe me, it is! A case in point is that I am currently in MD watching my youngest grandson. His older sisters spend a lot of time with their other grandmother because she lives nearby, and one of her favorite phrases is OMG. I don’t use that phrase at all and told the girls that it was wrong to say it because you were saying God’s name without any purpose, like a swear word. They still use it because it has become a habit, and I cringe each time they do, but when they see my disappointed face, they change the wording to, “Oh, my goodness” which is what I suggested they do. Children hear and mimic. I have been singing Christian songs with the little one and one of his favorites is “I’m In the Lord’s Army.” I have been here a few weeks now and when he wants me to sing the song while he does the motions, he comes to me and starts “marching.” It is very cute, but it also shows how attentive children are to what we say and do. It is up to us to plant seeds of righteousness rather than seeds of worldliness and rebellion.
I am old now, and the wisdom that I have comes directly from God. So does the witness that I demonstrate to my grandchildren. When I disappear to the basement bedroom weekly to attend church virtually, they know that Nanna is going to church and they hear me singing the worship songs along with the congregation. Sometimes, the curiosity of the older two leads them to come downstairs and listen with me. My desire is for them to attend church again as they did before the pandemic, but I am not sure that will happen. In the meantime, I am going to be the best witness I can and sow as many seeds as I can into their young and fertile hearts.
May each of you be blessed with the knowledge that someone is watching and God has given you a ministry right where you are. So, pass it on!
Working with the son of a serial killer? That’s a first.
FBI Special Agent Grace Billingsley tracks serial killers, using her skills as a psychiatrist and behavioral analyst to get dangerous people off the street and safely behind bars. But prison psychiatrist Sam Monroe knows that just because a killer is incarcerated doesn’t mean they’re not a threat. His own father, Peter, is a serial killer—in prison but certainly not out of Sam’s life, as much as he wishes he was.
When bodies start showing up with Peter’s MO, Sam and Grace are both called in to consult. They’ve met before, and though Grace thought they’d made a real connection, Sam ghosted her. They’ll have to get past the awkwardness and mistrust to solve this case—especially because it’s about to get personal.
My thoughts about CRITICAL THREAT:
The story of Grace Billingsley and Sam Monroe is one that is a fascinating character study as well as a fast-paced suspense thriller. The clever way the author builds the story, with layers and unexpected twists, is absolutely brilliant and addictive. I enjoyed getting to know the characters who were the FBI agents and was intrigued by the personality of the villains. Sam’s father, an inmate in prison and a serial killer, was a complicated character who added to the terror that unraveled in the plot. The plot was tight, with misdirection in just the right places and a satisfying mixture of romance building just as the suspense ramped up. I also enjoyed the signature humor of the author, like the dinner date that seemed to always get interrupted. This is a compelling book to read with edge-of-your-seat action and uniquely complicated relationships that are explained well and thoroughly. The suspense gets intense at times, but that must made the story more enjoyable for me. With well-developed ideas and clues throughout the novel, this book kept me guessing and absorbed. I did not like all of the characters but all of them were fleshed out and made me see them for who they were created to be. I enjoyed the resilience of Grace and her reliance on her faith and her colleagues. And I enjoyed seeing Sam develop into a man who deserved her trust. Unpredictable and heart-pounding suspense make this book the perfect addition to the series! It can be read as a standalone, but I highly recommend the entire series and getting to know all of the characters who are friends and who support each other in their quest for justice. Disclaimer Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell via Netgalley and from the author as part of her launch team. 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.”
A clean read but I would rate it PG-13 because of content concerning a serial killer.
Lynette Eason is the best selling, award winning author of almost forty books including the Women of Justice series, the Deadly Reunions series, the Hidden Identity Series and the Elite Guardians series. She writes for Revell and Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense line. Her books have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists. She has won several awards including the 2013, 2016 and 2017 Carol Award in the Romantic Suspense category. She’s also the recipient of the Christian Retailing’s Best 2017 Award. She placed in the top ten (out of thousands of entries) in the James Patterson 2016 co-writer contest. Her Stolen Past was recently made into a Lifetime Movie Network movie and will air February 2nd, 2018. Lynette teaches at writing conferences all over the country. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), Romance Writers of America (RWA), Mystery Writers of America (MWA), International Thriller Writers (ITW), and Faith, Hope, and Love chapter of RWA as well as the Kiss of Death (KOD) chapter. Lynette can be found online at http://www.lynetteeason.com and http://www.facebook.com/lynette.eason and @lynetteeason on TwitterMany thanks to Lynette Eason for allowing me to be on her launch team and to the Revell Reads Blogger Program for providing an e-copy of the book for me to read and review. Once again, Lynette has outdone herself with plot, characters and suspense and Revell has published a sure bestseller!
