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#TestimonyTuesday 5/6/14 - www.zwriteswords.org/ztv

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Tessa: From Fear to Faith by Melissa Wiltrout - Book Review

Tessa: From Fear to Faith by Melissa Wiltrout My rating: 4 of 5 stars Tessa: From Fear to Faith by Melissa Wiltrout is not for the faint of heart. It's a decent story of faith and the power of Jesus Christ to change a life wrought with dysfunction and repeated cycles of failure. It's about life; I suppose and reminds the reader that there's always hope for better things to come. However, the abuse scenes were so graphic I had to put the book down and away after reading the first. I picked it up again and had to put it down a second time. The third time I picked up the book I'd decided I'd skip this chunk containing pages of a beating and be forced to give it a 3 rating because I couldn't read the whole story. But when I returned this time, the cruelty was at its end - for the moment. I know physical abuse happens, the evil of it needs to be exposed and that it may be the writer's experience but I just wonder ... I'll leave it at that. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ I was given a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review posted on my blog. View all my reviews

Book Review: Serenity to Accept by Elizabeth Maddrey

Serenity to Accept by Elizabeth Maddrey My rating: 4 of 5 stars Serenity to Accept, the third installment of the Grant Us Grace series, by Elizabeth Maddrey successfully holds to the traditions of Christian ChickLit. It's clean and wholesome and everything ties up nicely at the end. Maddrey does a great job of seamless transitioning main characters throughout the series from Kevin and Lydia (#1) to Phil and Allison (#2) to Jason and Karin. This book is well written in that makes sense and is easy to follow, but it also has a very typical story line that makes this only a satisfactory read - there's nothing that makes me want to read the fourth if there is one. Admittedly, it wasn't as predictable as I'd originally thought it would be. I actually expected a car accident to keep up with the theme from the first two in the series. Reading this book I thought it'd be best suited for high school seniors and college-aged women. _______________________________________________________________________ I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a written review on my blog. View all my reviews

Priceless Stones: 42 Days of Hebrew Promises for Kingdom Living by James Revoir My rating: 5 of 5 stars Priceless stones is a phenomenal teaching tool as well as devotional. I used this more advanced devotional in place of the kids devotional my son (11) usually reads to start school each day. I learned from reading several different versions of the Bible that we miss much pertinent information in translation, and in Priceless Stones James Revoir fills in holes that we may not even realize we had. While Revoir admits that we'll never possess the full knowledge of all that God is because He is Elohim, we can always go deeper as we develop an intimate relationship with Holy Spirit, and also by beginning to read the Bible from the Hebraic perspective as opposed to a Western-minded one. This book is excellent for middle-age readers and beginning believers to learn to go deeper into the written Word of God. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ I was given a complimentary copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for posting a review on my personal blog or website. View all my reviews

Book Review: A Bride for All Seaons

A Bride for All Seasons by Margaret Brownley My rating: 5 of 5 stars A Bride for All Seasons is a glorious compilation of historical fiction love stories. Set in the post-Civil War 1800s, when western expansion is in full swing, due to varying circumstances several men found themselves in new territories without wives. These stories allow us to encounter the results of four mail-order brides who respond to ads in The Hitching Post and take nothing but their faith, hopes and dreams to a new place to build a family with men they'd meet under somewhat false pretenses. The four authors of these short stories are talented and seasoned writers who weave tales of romance with the substance of solid spiritual truths and leaving the reader feeling blissfully happy and full of joy. I'm a sucker for a good love story, and these four shorts hit the spot. I don't read much fiction in comparison to the amount of non-fiction I read, and A Bride for All Seasons was worth the deviation from my norm. ______________________________________________________________________ I was given a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for posting a review on my blog. View all my reviews

Book Review: Courage to Change by Elizabeth Maddrey

Courage to Change by Elizabeth Maddrey My rating: 4 of 5 stars Courage to Change by Elizabeth Maddrey is an excellent follow-up to Grant Us Grace Series Book 1, Wisdom to Know. Ms. Maddrey did a wonderful job of weaving Allison Vasak and Phil Reid into the the first book so that their transition into the main characters of the second installment is flawless. While the first book covered the very real issue of the residual soul wounds that occur after abortion, Courage to Change is even more real because as it addresses how pasts - divorce, upbringing, soul wounds, etc. - effect dating and marriage relationships. Ms. Maddrey looks very pointedly at the fact that even though forgiveness is readily available from God through Christ, we don't always receive it and that forgiveness does not remove us or our loved ones from natural consequences that result from our choices. I identified more with Courage to Change than I did with Wisdom to Know, and am pleased with Ms. Maddrey's ability to write to various audiences within the same series. I look forward to next book. ____________________________________________________ I was given a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for posting a review on my blog. View all my reviews

Prized! Your Journey as His Daughter by Noelle Toscano My rating: 4 of 5 stars Prized! Your Journey as His Daughter is an excellent teaching utensil for women of all ages, but especially for tweens, teens and young women. Noelle Toscano shares her testimony of emotional trials and discovering where she fits in to the revelation that a love relationship with Jesus Christ is where security and identity are found. In Prized! Noelle is honest and open about the mistakes she made while growing up in choosing friends and boyfriends and the consequences that followed. Young women desperately need to read these types of experiences because - unless trained - their sense of risk versus reward is highly underdeveloped. Often in their present maturity parents find it difficult to really return to that time in their lives in order to properly guide their young people, and Noelle begins this book with a template of how to do just that. Noelle takes readers back to a memory of her childhood and recounts her emotions so successfully that our own gut-wrenching memories, charged with emotion, begin to surface as well allowing us to place ourselves in our children's place once again, and giving us the opportunity to evaluate the condition of their lives and relationships. I love how Noelle wrote, "It was only then that I was able to fall totally in love with the Lord. I committed to God that if it was only He and I forever that would be perfectly fine with me. And then, unexpectedly, I fell in love with the one God chose for me." She gave women (and men) the key to a successful life and discovering their mate. That's huge. I didn't get to that place until I was mid-30s, but she placed it here for this needy to generation to learn immediately. The only reason I rated this first book a 4 is that it read sort of choppy to me and I felt that there possibly should have a been a book before this one. I felt something was missing in the overall 'story layout,' but I have no doubt that as Noelle continues to write she will master the art. I look forward to more from her. _________________________________________________________________________ I was given a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for posting a review on my blog. View all my reviews

Book Review: Wisdom to Know by Elizabeth Maddrey

Wisdom to Know by Elizabeth Maddrey My rating: 4 of 5 stars Wisdom to Know by Elizabeth Maddrey is the story of today's average woman. Lydia Brown, like so many young women, falls for the lie that sex brings power and control over the opposite sex. She believes that giving a man who isn't committed to her what he wants will give her the life she desires. It backfires and leaves her in spiritual, physical and emotional turmoil as she's living out the consequences of the deception she bought into. Wisdom to Know has a somewhat predictable story line, but the accuracy of the events makes it a powerful read. Maddrey did well to point to the spiritual healing that needs to take place when sin is chosen and even mentioned Holy Spirit once. However, believers are falling into the same sins as unbelievers so regularly because those who have the platform to speak omit the truth of the demonic assignments that influence behavior. I was given a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for posting the author’s interview and/or book review on my blog. View all my reviews

#elizabeth maddrey #wisdom to know #grant us grace book one #post abortion stress #abortion #spiritual warfare

In 5 MORE Powerful Tips for Training Unstoppable Children, author, speaker, educator and mom Patti Gibble gives parents and caregivers additional tools for raising successful, godly children. https://www.createspace.com/4095951

A Servant's Heart by Linda Mustelier

A Servant's Heart: Living the Life of a True Servant by Linda Mustelier My rating: 5 of 5 stars A Servant's Heart by Linda Mustelier is a masterpiece. Linda shares some of her testimony - I say some because I believe she has more to share with us over the next year or so - in the context of transformation into a godly woman of wisdom and deep love for others. Stories like hers, stories of inspiration and hope, are invaluable for people because we're constantly in need of encouragement to persevere in this life. So many people give up, but Linda chose to stand on the promises of God and see them through to fulfillment. Get this book and take the necessary steps to receive the promise of God closest to you. View all my reviews

#Linda Mustelier #A Servants Heart #Servant Leadership #Faith #Bible #Jesus Christ

I was about ready to give up on a promise - for now - because of the heavy warfare surrounding it. But, I prayed and God faithfully gave two tools to help me defeat the enemy and receive my promise.

Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe by Sarah Mae My rating: 4 of 5 stars Desperate: Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe by Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson was an eye-opening read. I must admit that I did not identify with the issues of not being proficient at housekeeping or having more children than adults in the home, so it took me a little while to find a rhythm in reading the book. Although I'm a single mother of an only child, I didn't experience the frustration or depression that Sarah seemed to experience the majority of her early years as a mother and wife. I did find a connection on some very poignant and crucial aspects of being a mother, though. For example, I understand and knew before reading that children are a gift from the Lord and as parents we're stewards who won't find peace in child-rearing without submitting the child to their Creator for direct instruction on how they receive love and direction most effectively. I also agreed with Sally's advice to Sarah and all mothers that we have to create the atmosphere in our homes based on our individual family's needs and personalities; an atmosphere that is grounded on your family's mission and beliefs. I appreciated Sally's experience and wisdom included which served to balance out the struggles Sarah expressed throughout the book. It speaks to the importance of being trained by mentors who've successfully navigated the various stages parent-child relationships undergo. I was given a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for posting the author’s interview and/or book review on my blog. View all my reviews

6 Verses That Can Change Your Life by Joe Barnett

6 Verses That Can Change Your Life by Barnett Joe My rating: 5 of 5 stars 6 Verses That Can Change Your Life by Joe Barnett is an accurate title for this book for a couple of reasons. First, the word of God does change lives and I'm a witness to it. Second, Barnett did a phenomenal job of delivering the message of adopting a heavenly perspective. It seems like that's such a simple concept, but one that is often difficult to accept. Barnett uses a series of heart-felt anecdotes mixed with scriptures to prove what we desire to believe deep inside - as believers in Christ Jesus we really do have more hope, life, peace, happiness and overall good and the revelation of that truth will catapult us into the abundance available here on earth. View all my reviews

#Joe Barnett #6 Verses That Can Change Your Life

Sometimes we move ahead of God to have our needs met and forget that's sinning. God is our source and any time we go to anyone other than Him for provision, it's not going to last and He won't bless it.

God's favor made someone who was attacking me one minute, turn and hand me money in the next.

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