Hagar

Hey everyone, I am part of a book launch team for an incredible Bible study, that is being released on October 10!  I have read through the first 3 weeks and I love this and recommend it to anyone looking for a new study.

I will be posting a full review soon!  I have enclosed a link to Shadia's author facebook page.

Shadia Hrichi Author Face book page

Today I am sharing a link to a video of author ShadiaHrichi talking about her new book.   This is a great study that has encouraged me, and has made me think deeper about Hagar and what God wants and has for us as His children.

Author Video

Full Review:

What do you think of when you hear the name Hagar?  Who was Hagar?  When I was invited to do a book launch on the Bible study of Hagar, I was intrigued.  This is one that I really wanted to do. 

We all know that Hagar was a servant given to Sarah, the famous one that gave birth to Abraham’s first son Ishmael. 

This study aptly named “The God Who Sees You”, is exactly what the study is about, God sees who we are and what we need.  As you go through this study you will feel that God loves you for who you are, exactly where you are at this moment.  You will see that He is with you, just as He was with Hagar during her flight into the desert.

This is a study that truly gets you into the word, one that makes you think.

Shadia Hrichi really gets into the scriptures and helps us as readers get into the scripture with her. After reading this, you will see Hagar from a deeper, different viewpoint, and discover that our God is the God Who Sees You, as well.

I did this study alone, but it would make a great study for a women’s group, one that I highly recommend.

 received this book free from the author. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions I have 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 Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Awaken

Choosing is different than choosing a book to read.  This kind of reading is not for reading enjoyment or pleasure, it’s for listening to hear from God, something to pray over.

Once again choosing a devotional is a personal thing, and I believe that this one is a front-runner.  We all know Priscilla Shrirer through her Bible studies and her role in War Room.

This devotional will be a disappointment.  I was thrilled with this devotional.  Priscilla sits you down over 90 days and helps you meditate on a verse and she really makes you reflect about what was read.  She has a unique way of explaining and illustrating the verse so you can absolutely understand what is written and how it applies to your life.  You can really hear what God wants you to hear.   I also love that Priscilla encourages you to journal and put your own thoughts down at the end of every devotional. 

These devotionals will encourage you, challenge you and transform you. 

My favorite one and the one that spoke to me was on day 60, Quiet but not so quiet.  This encouraged me to sit down and find time with God no matter what circumstances are going on around me.

Highly recommended, well written and easy to read, this is one book that will always be open and read on my desk.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions I have 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 Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Becoming Resilient

At some point in our lives, we all will come across some sort of disappointment, hurt, a loss or some tragic event.   But how do we handle it?

What does Resilient mean?  It means to be hardy, strong or tough.  That is hard to do or to be in the times of trouble, tragedy or distress.   Author Donna Gibbs is a licensed professional counselor, who in her book takes the reader through some steps to become resilient.  She shares the secrets of building resilience that will help you in your time of anguish.  She gives hands-on approaches to deal with the things life throws at you, to enable you to move on through the pain and suffering only to come out stronger in the end.

She gives sound, practical advice through the lens of a Christian worldview. 

At the end of each chapter, you will find some “homework” or questions for you to work on which help enable the reader to move on or heal in their grief.

This is a wonderful book for those who just can’t seem to understand why something has happened or seem to be stuck in a period of pain, grief or anguish.

I received this book free from the Author and Revell/Baker Publishing Group.  I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have 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 Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

These Healing Hills

Francine Howard has her life all planned, she would marry her high school sweetheart when he returned from the war, that was until he sends her a letter announcing his plans to bring home an English bride n 1945. Overwhelmed, Francine seeks a fresh start in the Appalachian Mountains, training to be a nurse midwife for the Frontier Nursing Service. Fran heard about the training in Kentucky and went to learn to be a nurse midwife and is taken with the beauty of the hills right away. She had heard about the “hillbillies” where she grew up in Cincinnati but quickly learned the truth about these people who were loyal to their mountains and families and had great common sense and knowledge. Her mother dead set against this tries to dissuade her from going, but Francine had her mind set on going.

Upon her arrival, she meets Woody a local mountain boy who loves to talk.  Through Woody, Francine learns all about his brother Ben who is away fighting in the war.

Affected by the shocks he witnessed at war as a medic, Ben Locke has never thought further ahead than making it home to Kentucky. His future masked and uncertain.  As much as he loves his beloved mountains, he's at a loss when it comes to visualizing what's next for his life.

When Francine's and Ben's paths crisscross, it's immediately clear that they are from different worlds and value different things. But love has a way of turning things around and revealing enticing new possibilities.

This is a very captivating read, and teaches the reader much about the mountain life and ways of living off the land., but most of all their dependency on the Lord.

What I really enjoyed the heroine Francine and her ability to adapt and come to love the area that God placed her.  With this, she earned the love and respect of the mountain people as she exerted herself to learn their ways, and to respect their beliefs.

 I received this book free from the Author and Revell/Baker Publishing Group.  I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have 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 Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Captain's Daughter

London 1879

Rosalynn Bernay finds herself in a quandary.  Running from her employment as a lady’s companion, falsely accused of stealing.  Instead of staying and facing her accusers, Rosalyn decides she has nowhere to run but to her sister Julia in Bristol.

As she is at the train station, she realizes that the train to London is the quickest way to escape.

When she arrives at the station in London, a handsome soldier tries to help her when she is met by an unscrupulous man who tries to get her to leave with him but along comes Mrs. Hurdle who offers a room and a meal and the young man is left doubting Rosalynn’s fate.  It isn’t long before Rosalynn realizes that Mrs. Hurdle’s is more than just a boarding house, and she flees into the night.

After a series of situations beyond her control leaves Rosalyn Bernay alone and penniless in London, she chances upon a job backstage at a theater putting on the most popular show in the city.   A talented musician and singer, she feels immediately at home and soon becomes enthralled with the idea of pursuing a career on the stage. That is, if the shadows from her past don't catch up with her.

After a hand injury forces Nate Moran from his army regiment in India, he returns home to London, a place that holds unpleasant memories. He agrees to fill in temporarily as a stagehand while his brother recuperates from a broken leg, but Nate is counting down the days until he can rejoin his regiment. His future is decided--until he meets a beautiful woman who has found a new lease on life in the very place Nate yearns to leave behind.

But then he meets the beautiful woman he met at the train station and the story recommences on from there. 

Rosalyn is a strong, intelligent, yet whimsical heroine worth cheering for.   An orphan raised by George Mueller, she has learned to rely upon god and I believe this is what gets her through her ordeals in the novel. 

This novel is truly based on scriptures and the main characters are firm believers, who give us a look into what happens when we truly put all our trust in the Lord our God.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions I have 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 Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.