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I Recommend “Thin Places” by Mary E. Demuth
Redemptive. That is the primary word that describes this gutsy book. Mary's memoir, Thin Places, is a collection of powerful and skillfully told true stories that relates experiences from her life and then draws God's threads of redemption through them. The stories...
Recommending: Surviving One Bad Year
I'd like to recommend an important book, Surviving One Bad Year: Spiritual Strategies for When Life Goes Terribly Wrong by Nancie Carmichael. As I read her book, I was encouraged by Nancie's vulnerable sharing about her challenging time. It was especially meaningful...
God Is El Shaddai: He is Enough For You
Yesterday, I wrote about reaching the end of my rope in the midst of pain. Today, I was continuing my reading in Catherine Martin's excellent book, Drawing Strength from the Names of God, and the Lord gave me a new insight about how He provides for us when we reach...
The Fruit of Hope
Have you ever been so discouraged that you didn't think life was worthwhile and maybe not even worth living? I've only experienced that depth of despair, helplessness, and hopelessness a few times in my life. And most recently, it was when I was in so much pain from...
Recommending Walking Through Postpartum Depression
Walking Through Postpartum Depression is written by Judy Dippel and I recommend it. It is both an instructional workbook and a write-in Bible study and self-examination to help a new mom deal with feelings of lostness, lack of identity, loss of hope, and a lack of...
Do You Want to Bless a Military Wife?
Faith Deployed: Daily Encouragement for Military Wives is an excellent bookthat covers just about every concern that a military wife could think of. The devotionals compact a lot into pithy, short 2-3 pages on subjects like jealousy, being still and seeking God,...
Reflections on The Perfect Parent
I've spent some of this afternoon reflecting on the life of my mother-in-law Audrey who entered the gates of heaven Friday morning after suffering from Lewy -Body Dementia for the last five years of her 93 years. I'm envisioning her being so thrilled to be loosed from...
Three- Pronged Counter Attack
As we continue our examination of the word “hope” in the Bible, we'll be continuing to see it used a lot in the book of Job. And that certainly seems appropriate. For that Bible book is all about hope: first the hopelessness of Job because of loss and grief and pain....
Lord, Bring Continued Healing
Yesterday I did too much and I have been in more pain today. As a result, I've had a rest day. But as I got up from resting in bed and experienced pain, I got a little scared; afraid I'll slip back into intense pain. Instantly, I had a sense of the Lord's message. I...
Got A Blessing?
My fellow blogger, Rachel Beran (http://beranville.blogspot.com/) recently wrote, "What is your measure of expectation as you approach God for a blessing? Do you expect to receive from God or do you tend to be forgetful like me?" Her blog spoke to me and I wrote to...
Jeanne Anderson, Inspirational Woman of God
I had met Jeanne Anderson several times but never really talked with her. I knew she had cancer and was living beyond the expectations for her survival, b ut I didn't really know much else.Jeanne was called into heaven December 28th and it wasn't until I heard more...
Is There No Hope?
Our next sighting of the word “hope” is in Job 7:6: “My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, And come to an end without hope.” This time there's not much hope around the word hope, because Job, who speaks those sad words is wrapped in a mantle of despair. For the...
When Hope is Disappointed
Have you ever hoped to receive some emotional support from someone and they were only interested in themselves? Have you ever hoped the doctor would have the solution to your illness but he didn't have a clue? Or you dreamed of having new drapes but after they were...
Feeling Helpless or Powerless Today?
Do you ever feel helpless? Maybe someone is gossiping about you and you have no one standing up for you. Maybe you have a loved one stepping farther away from the Lord and your words are ineffectual. Maybe your job position is perilous and you know nothing you do or...
Should We Place Our Hope In Integrity?
We're continuing our survey of the word “hope" in the Bible and now we come to Job 4:6:"Is not your fear of God your confidence,And the integrity of your ways your hope?” (NASB).These words are spoken by Eliphaz to Job, obviously in the book of Job. As Eliphaz speaks,...
Someone Bad Is Hoping
Do you know you have an enemy who is hoping to destroy you? But there's good news! The book of Esther is where we find this truth and it's our fourth entry of the word hope: Esther 9:1 “Now in the twelfth month (that is, the month Adar), on the thirteenth day when the...
Yet! Regardless! In Spite Of! There is Hope!
We are continuing our walk through the Bible hunting out the word “hope.” The third mention is found in Ezra 1:1-3: “Now while Ezra was praying and making confession, weeping and prostrating himself before the house of God, a very large assembly, men, women and...
The Bible Says There is No Hope
We're in our second day of looking at the theme of "hope" and starting from the beginning of the Bible our second selection is found in 1 Chronicles 29:14-16"But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come...