A ROMANCE REKINDLED: FORGIVE AND FORGET

Forgive and Forget

By Kimberly Rose Johnson

Mark 11:25

There are many instances in the Bible where we are told to forgive. Sometimes following that command is easy, and other times not so much. I guess it all depends on the reason for the pain.

I am reminded of my character, Susan, in A Romance Rekindled. She had her heart broken without explanation. She held onto the pain for years without even realizing it was still there. Then this person came back into her life and then she needed to find it within herself, and with the Lord’s help, to forgive.

I suppose there’s not a person on earth who hasn’t been emotionally injured by another. If someone has caused you pain, I hope you will be able to forgive this person. I know some rotten stuff happens and forgiveness isn’t easy—not even close to easy. But, it’s possible with the Lord’s help.

There’s a saying that holding a grudge only hurts the person hanging onto the pain. Our hope is in the Lord. He is our comfort and He is there when we call on Him.

I pray today that wherever you are on your life journey, that you may find peace and hope in the Lord and that you will be able to let go of the hurts inflicted by others on you.

 Number 6:24-26

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%206:24-26&version=NIV

Bio:Kimberly Rose Johnson holds a degree in Behavioral Science from Northwest University. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, two teenage sons, and their yellow lab. She writes sweet Christian romance for Heartsong Presents and is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. She enjoys taking long walks with her husband and dog, reading, dark chocolate and time with friends.
You may contact Kimberly via her website at http://kimberlyrjohnson.com/

Blurb:

SUSAN HILL ISN'T READY TO FORGIVE 
The small-town CPA can't forget how Blake Mitchell jilted her and left their hometown without an explanation. But when her first love returns to Leavenworth, the ruggedly handsome writer evokes conflicting emotions, especially when Susan meets the child she assumes is his daughter.
Since his parents' deaths six years ago, Blake's been raising his little sister on his own. But he's never forgotten the woman he left behind. Now, he can't undo the past, but maybe he can change the future…if he can convince Susan to give him one more chance.

Links: Christianbooks.com, Amazon.com, Barns and Noble

JESUS CAME DOWN--THE HOPE FOR AMERICA

By Ada Brownell

      I stood before George Washington’s burial site in a beautiful garden at Mount Vernon. Chills crept over me as I read the inscription in the inner tomb—Jesus’ words: “I am the resurrection and the life, He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.”

Later thinking about our first president and controversies surrounding his faith, I wasn’t sure I’d  sit down and talk to George “over there.” But who knows except God?

The truth is, there is scripture all over Washington, D.C.’s memorial sites. Whether our country’s forefathers lived exemplary Christian lives, documents and much of what they left is filled with references to God and Bible quotes.

I thought about how different the legacies our nation might leave today for the next generation. In our public schools, students are taught they appeared on earth without a Designer, and they are no more than animals. The Ten Commandments are banned, but filthy books assigned. No wonder we have mass killings, millions of babies aborted, thousands of teens infected by sexually transmitted diseases every year, drug and alcohol addiction, suicides, cheaters among students, half the people unable to make a marriage work, and a good percentage of children growing up without two parents.

Instead of teaching children moral values and that they are loved by the God who designed their DNA, Christianity is treated as the nation’s biggest enemy, and the name of Jesus can’t even be mentioned with respect at the same colleges like Yale and Harvard—started by Christian organizations.

Other nations are becoming serious threats to the United States and our economy is in serious danger of collapsing. But instead of falling to our knees in repentance and asking for God’s mercy to heal our land, we saturate our minds with amusements to make us forget. We live for today and forget tomorrow.

In contrast to the foreboding darkness obscuring our future, I think of Easter sunrise services I’ve attended when the church ventures out in the cool morning before daylight and watches the sun rise as it did near a garden more than 2,000 years ago.  We recall the words of the angel who appeared: “He is risen!”

A couple of weeks ago a scripture jumped out at me: “I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me…. And this is the will of him who sent me, that everyone who sees the son and believes in him may have everlasting life” (John 6: 38, 40).

That’s good news! He has come down from heaven to give abundant and eternal life.  The sun still rises over America, and it has risen since the day we joined the Indians on this wonderful continent. I believe there is hope for those who want it.

-Ada Brownell, a retired reporter for The Pueblo Chieftain, is the author of the book, Swallowed By Life: Mysteries of Death, Resurrection and the Eternal.

Amazon Ada Brownell author page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001KJ2C06

© Ada Brownell

Giving Away three Audio copies of Imagine the Future You

To enter the drawing, leave a comment on this blog or send an email to ada@adabrownell.com and sign up for my newsletter. Use this book to build your faith, the faith of your family, or those in a Sunday school class. The book;s Q/A makes it easy to use for a Bible study textbook.

                                  IMAGINE YOUR TOMORROWS

                               By Ada Brownell

What could I imagine I would be like when I grew up?

Here I was, a scrawny freckled-face redhead, poor, wearing my brother’s hand-me-downs. My brother’s union-alls had a button up flap in the back that had to be unbuttoned by one of the big people in the family before I could go to the outhouse. I think I had a flower sack dress or two to wear to church.

We wouldn’t have had enough to eat had we not had a cow, a huge irrigated garden and chickens.               

When I started school, Daddy gave Mama permission to buy me three new little cotton dresses from Montgomery Ward. The new pair of shoes had to last until the next school year.

I always knew my parents didn’t have an extra penny, and being the eighth child I often felt a little guilty for barging my way into the already crowded house, among four sisters and three brothers who weren’t that excited about another mouth to feed.

Yet, that wonderful family helped me to catch an eye for the future at a young age. I watched the excitement in the house when my oldest sister, Marjorie, went to church with a high school friend and became a Christian. One by one all the older siblings, and finally my parents, accepted Jesus as Savior and I soon learned Jesus loved me, too, and God had a plan for my life.

God's love was a little secret I held close to my heart even while being ridiculed by other children because of my freckles and my red hair. The pretty little girls in frilly dresses never wanted to be my friend.

But all this time something wonderful grew inside me: an intense desire to learn in school, to know how to sing and play the piano (all my siblings were musicians), and tell the world the message of John 3:16, “For God so loved the world he gave his only Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Our family squeezed every drop of joy from each day, but we always thought about tomorrow in the backs of our minds. My siblings were all achievers. I saw myself playing the piano for church someday and singing in gospel groups like my sisters did.

I had no grandiose ideas about what else I would do, except someday I would meet my Savior and live forever because He died and rose again. I wanted to tell everybody.

I studied the Bible, listened to our pastor’s sermons and teachings, and found myself in my early teens teaching children, and then leading youth. I hadn’t expected  those opportunities. I prepared. God opened doors.

My writing career started like that. I had no idea I would become a writer, but I had something to say I thought needed sharing and discovered editors thought it was worth reading.

Working as a newspaper reporter showed me there still was much to share. In gathering news a journalist touches almost every aspect of society. We report on the achievers, reveal life’s disasterous complications, and what happens when wickedness grips the heart and threatens to blow apart the hope of the eternal soul.

My burden is for the youth of America. So much potential! So much opportunity! But Satan lurks everywhere seeking whom he may devour.

How can I not show them the path to wonderful tomorrows? How can I not show them how to prepare for the exciting journey of abundant life? How can I not show them how to avoid those who would steal their faith, rob them of their health and talents, and destroy their loved ones and eternal future?

So, I have a book filled with practical helps on developing your talents, being and looking your best, how to make the right connections, guarding your name’s fame, and much more with many inspiring examples and illustrations.

Jesus said not to worry about tomorrow, but we’re told to prepare for what is ahead. The theme of my book is close to Solomon’s advice advice quoted here from The Message: “Don’t for a minute envy careless rebels; soak yourself in the Fear-of-God— That’s where your future lies. Then you won’t be left with an armload of nothing” (Proverbs 23: 17.

                                                           

IMAGINE THE FUTURE YOU: SUMMARY

Will you be the person you dream of being—or someone from your nightmares?

You don’t need a fortune teller to reveal your future. For the most part, you are the person who determines who you will become, what your life will be like, and how your hopes and dreams will be fulfilled.

Today is the time to IMAGINE and to create an action plan for your future.

 Harnessing your will (guiding it) will make you a champion.

 How to make valuable deposits into your mind and avoid brainwashing.

How to look and be your best.

How to connect with Somone who will make a difference in your life—forever.

How who you marry changes everything.

How to avoid traps that jeopardize your future.

Where you want your name to appear.

Why you can believe God created you and loves you.

Examples of people who grabbed their future and held on.

This book will show how to make the right connections, how to grow your talents, and how to believe in yourself and things greater than yourself—for a wonderful future you!

Amazon Ada Brownell author page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001KJ2C06           Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/AdaBrownellWritingMinistries

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If you think you're alone, you're wrong. Author Anita HIgman talks about Where God Finds You

NOTE: Leave a comment. Anita is giving away three copies of her Where God Finds You devotional book. The devotion below is not one of those in the book.

http://www.amazon.com/Where-God-Finds-You-Characters/dp/0784733635/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1405798650&sr=8-1&keywords=Where+God+Finds+You 

 

My Sweaty Little Grasp

By Anita Higman

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5b (NIV)

            Life can be like a pretty yellow kite, soaring and dipping in the breeze, and life can also be like that same kite experiencing an unexpected gust only to plummet to the earth and break into pretty yellow pieces.

            In other words, I can’t fully control the kite. It’s controlled by the currents that are above and far out of reach. The kite string may be in my sweaty little grasp, but its final destination is anyone guess.

That was a lesson I learned when I traveled to Australia to meet my husband who was there working on assignment for his company. I left the house, knowing I wouldn’t be back for three weeks, and that I’d be very far away, so I planned for every kind of troubling scenario. I made sure all the faucets weren’t dripping. Check. Gates closed. Check. Electrical devices unplugged. Check. Windows and doors locked, alarm system armed. Check.

To be honest, my slight case of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder flared up into a blaze. It was so hard to let the house go and breathe again. But I did try to cover it all as best I could, so that when the driver picked me up I felt pretty satisfied that the house was somewhat disaster-proof. Yeah, right. Not even close. There was no way I could have known that my husband and I would have to fly home from Australia early because Hurricane Ike would hit our neighborhood and ruin one of the rooms in our house. It was impossible to plan for everything because I never really had our home under my control. Not even for a minute. I only thought I did.

The spiritual lesson here was hard to miss. Only God was and is in control of our house, my life, this world. We cannot know what tomorrow will bring, whether our pretty yellow kite will soar into the sky or smash into bits, but I do know God has promised never to leave us or forsake us. He will always be right here, holding us and helping us, ever by our sides working things for good no matter what the wild winds of life bring. These are promises that the whole world loves to make, but only God Almighty can keep.

Lord, I thank you that even in this fallen and broken world, you will never leave us or forsake us. Amen.  

BEYOND "I DO?" Guest Jennifer Slattery

Friend, are you growing cobwebs?
Are you spending so much time praying for clarification you’ve become permanently barricaded in your prayer closet?
In other words, are you living by faith or fear?

It’s easy to view divine opportunities through a human lens, one tinted by our limitations. But I believe God wants us to lay our view aside so that we can see His will and power clearly.

Because when it comes to pursuing our calling, our success is not up to us. It’s not about our abilities or failings, our strengths or weaknesses.
It never has been. Instead, it is about saying yes to a mighty God who longs to shine powerfully through us.

When I first began writing—pursuing it as a career and acknowledging it as a calling,

I felt pretty invincible. I was pumping out a novel every sixth months while sending out numerous articles and guest blog posts. I was prolific in drama and study programs, and as an athlete who regularly trained for running races and sprint triathlons, I was at my peak. In short, I felt ready to embrace any and every opportunity I encountered.

Then I got sick, and everything became harder.  I received my first diagnosis in the fall of 2012 and to be honest, it rocked my world. When I signed my first book-length contract a year later, still fighting to remission, I cried to my husband, "Why now? Why couldn't God have opened this door two years ago when I was strong and full of energy?"

A few days later, listening to prayer music and offering up my heart to God in full surrender, I got my answer. I realized, He needed to take me to a place where my feet failed so I'd realize, it wasn’t about me. It still isn’t, and it never will be.

What a relief that is!

As you listen to the following song, ask God to show you areas and ways you’ve been living as if it—whatever it may be—is dependent on you. Then ask Him to help you surrender that area to Him, allowing Him to take you where your faith is without borders.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td3dl87rDjU

 http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=the+ocean+hillsong&FORM=VIRE5#view=detail&mid=8978DD968FC0B56062858978DD968FC0B5606285

Jennifer Slattery writes missional romance novels for New Hope Publishers. Her debut, Beyond I Do, is currently available for pre-order at 26% off!. She also writes Christian Living articles for Crosswalk.com and devotions for her personal blog, JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud; Internet Cafe Devotions; and Takin' it to the Streets', a ministry serving Omaha Metro's working poor and homeless.

When she's not writing, she enjoys reading, hanging out at the mall with her teenage daughter, enjoying her real-life hero husband, or serving in her church or community.

You can find her online at her personal devotional blog, JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud, at InspyRomance.com, Faith-filled Friends, Crosswalk.com, or Internet Cafe' Devotions. You can also connect with her on Facebook.

Beyond I Do:

Marriage . . . it’s more than a happily ever after. Eternally more.

Ainsley Meadow’s encounter with a woman, her child, and their abuser sparks a passion that threatens her engagement. Will seeing beyond the present unite her and her fiance or tear them apart?

Raised by a hedonist mother, who cycles through jobs and relationships like wrapping paper on Christmas morning, falls into a predictable and safe relationship with Richard, a self-absorbed socialite psychiatrist. But as her wedding nears, a battered woman and her child spark a long-forgotten dream and ignites a hidden passion. One that threatens to change everything, including her fiancé.

To embrace God’s best and find true love, this security-seeking bride must follow God with reckless abandon and realize that marriage goes Beyond I Do.

FUN FOR HIRE: THE WATER FIGHT PROFESSIONAL

BY ANGELA STRONG

Summary of The Water Fight Professional

 I, Joey Michaels, am the Water Fight Professional. Basically this means that customers pay me to soak other people. But my super-competitive best friend is sucking all the fun out of summer. All because I made a secret bet with him. Winning the bet wouldn't be so hard if I didn't have the following three problems: 1) My dramatic mother who feels the need to schedule every moment of summer 2) A surfer-dude mailman who can't keep deliveries straight 3) The annoying neighbor girl who all my friends have a crush on If I lose ... ugh, I can't even tell you what I'd have to do. I'd rather lick a slug!

Meet the author and read her spiritually encouraging blog post following this one.

 Angela Ruth Strong didn’t run businesses as a kid, but in 7th grade she did start her own neighborhood newspaper. This childhood interest led to studying journalism at the University of Oregon and having one of her stories reach over half a million readers. To help other aspiring authors, Angela founded IDAhope Writers in Boise, Idaho, where she currently lives with her husband and three children (who always love a good water fight). Find out more at www.angelaruthstrong.com

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/455412

CHOOSING TO BE BLESSED

By Angela Strong

                This morning I sent a text to my husband saying, “You bless me.” This got me thinking about blessings. Because my husband was married once before to a woman who did not consider him a blessing though he probably loved her the same way he loves me. So is being blessed really an action? Or is it a reaction?

                Think about it. Have you heard the same complaints I’ve heard about people who say God blessed them when they avoided a tragedy or got a raise? These complainers are offended that anybody would consider themselves blessed in such circumstances because that would mean the people who were hurt in the tragedy or didn’t get a raise were not blessed by God.

                Is that true? If you get in a car accident with someone else, and they get injured but you do not, are you the only one God chose to bless? Who would want to worship a God like that?

                As I’m pondering this stuff, I open my Bible to 1 Corinthians 4, and it answered my questions. The answer is we are ALL blessed.

                “Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God? So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing? You already have all you need.”

                I love this. Could I be any more blessed? Could you? God has given us all we need!

                What you need and what I need are going to be different. Which makes our God so incredibly personal. He doesn’t give us all the same things because he created us to be unique and have unique needs.

                I find this idea so incredibly freeing. Especially in the writing world where I want my writing to reach millions just like every other author does, I’m sure. But it’s not possible for everyone to have that. We have to trust that God knows exactly what each one of us needs.

For me, that meant the first publisher for my children’s novel went under so that I could release the book years later when my kids were old enough to fully engage in the experience and my husband was able to do the illustrations. Honestly, this is not what I would have planned for myself, but it was what I needed.

If I can believe God gives me just what I need, then I can believe God is doing the same for other authors. If they get a huge sale and I don’t, or if they win awards and I don’t, or if their book gets made into a movie and mine doesn’t, I can rejoice for them without the slightest bit of jealousy because I know that God is giving them what they need. I know that I am as blessed as they are.

So I would suggest that whether the issue is our writing or our love lives, God gives us all exactly what we need.  We are all blessed. We just have to choose to believe it.