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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

In the Presence of God


In God's presence, nothing else matters. Not that phone call or the bill looming over my head or hunger for the things of this world. In a second of time, it all goes away, and I'm caught and held in His beauty. In the presence of God, it feels like I'm in a vacuum of glory with waves of His love rolling over me.

Whenever we experience Him like this, we need to stay put, basking in His love, while He lifts us up to a higher place, heals us, and transforms our minds to become more like Him. Don't rush. Take time to love His presence.

Sometimes it's like we've drilled a hole in heaven's floor with our praises and suddenly, down flows the glory. "Why would I need to drill a hole in heaven?" you might ask. I think it's because faith and action go hand in hand. We can't just sit still, doing nothing, and expect God to pour blessings over us. In some way, we need to take a step in faith, grab hold of the glory or the healing or the filling of the Holy Spirit. It takes stepping out and doing something—praising, worshiping, dancing before the Lord, and believing enough to reach out. Not that we make it happen. But faith and action do bring about change and create an effect in the spiritual realm around us. "On earth as it is in heaven" inspires me to grab hold of the things of heaven and bring them to earth every chance I get.

Oh, how I love God's presence. I want to walk in it all day long, dancing in swirls of glory. If there's a cure-all for every need, it's being in the presence of God. I'm not talking about finding a quiet place to meditate or me telling God all my requests or reciting the Word. While these can be glorious, what I'm talking about is stepping into the stream of the very presence of God, and once I'm there, basking in that other realm for a while.

In His presence, I am changed, no longer the same.
In His presence is where I long to be, realms of glory taking over me.
Heaven is filled with awe and wonder,
And, oh, I've caught a glimpse.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Title: Book Blast: Deep in the Heart, Staci Stallings

Deep in the Heart Cover Final 1-18-2014
by: Staci Stallings

Only 99 Cents... January 28 & 29th!

About the Book

Just out of college and completely alone in the world, Maggie Montgomery has one shot left to save her life from an abyss of poverty and hopelessness. Clinging to the last shred of fuel and hope, she arrives at the mansion of Texas billionaire Conrad Ayer. Although Maggie is clearly not what Mr. Ayer and his wife have in mind for a nanny, they agree to hire her temporarily until they can find someone more appropriate to fill the position. However, Maggie's whole world is about to be up-ended by two way-over-scheduled children and one incredibly handsome hired hand. As she struggles to fit into a world she was never made to fit in, Maggie wonders if she can ever learn to become a perfect version of herself so she can keep the job, or is she doomed to always be searching for a life she can never quite grasp? Keith Ayer despises his life. As the son of Texas billionaire Conrad Ayer and the fiance to a Senator from Texas' daughter, it looks great on the outside, but inside, he is dying. He would vastly prefer to manage and train his father's racehorses. However, everyone else thinks that is beneath him. He needs to get into industry and build on his father's success. Suffocating under the constrictions of his life, he meets Maggie, and she begins to teach him that wealth and power is not everything in this life. But can Keith defy the two most powerful men in Texas to follow his heart?

"Staci Stallings... Christian fiction at its best!"

LINK to KINDLE | LINK to PAPERBACK

Staci Stallings New Headshot 1
Staci Stallings A stay-at-home mom with a husband, three kids and a writing addiction on the side, Staci Stallings has numerous titles for readers to choose from. Not content to stay in one genre and write it to death, Staci’s stories run the gamut from young adult to adult, from motivational and inspirational to full-out Christian and back again. Every title is a new adventure! That’s what keeps Staci writing and you reading. Staci touches the lives of people across the globe every week with her various Internet endeavors including being the co-founder of CrossReads.com and the founder of Grace & Faith Connection.

Follow Staci Stallings Website | Facebook | Twitter

Enter to Win a Kindle, 6" E Ink Display, Wi-Fi

OR

a $50 Amazon Gift Card!

(That's two separate prizes, given to two separate winners!)

Enter below, sponsored by author Staci Stallings!
Drawing on February 4, 2014
This book blast is hosted by Crossreads. We would like to send out a special THANK YOU to all of the CrossReads book blast bloggers!

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Winter's Beauty


As I drove into town in my big pickup truck, my eyes widened in wonder at the glorious scene stretching out before me. It was as if a new dimension of beauty had opened up a door for me to see beyond the normal country road and farm houses I'd grown accustomed to. Immediately to my left and right, branches and roadside trees loomed toward me, looking as if they'd been dipped in thick white paint. Each delicate branch from low-hanging bushes sparkled with winter's frost, making a postcard-perfect view. It was amazing . . . like that touching moment in Anne of Green Gables when Anne sees The Avenue for the very first time. For a moment I wondered, have the trees been like this all winter and I never noticed?

Surely not . . .

But one thing was for certain, I wanted to drink it all in. Slowing the truck down, my eyes feasted on the beauty sparkling around me like a fairyland. I loved it! And for the first time this season, I truly enjoyed the perfect uniqueness and glory of God's artistry in winter. It really is pretty fabulous, isn't it? (Even for someone like me who doesn't like the cold.)

Each season has its magnificence, both in nature and in our lives. It's good for us to slow down enough to see the beauty around us . . . and to rejoice in its splendor. A new season is around the corner, but let's take the time to enjoy God's brilliant handiwork today.



Tuesday, January 14, 2014

CrossReads Book Blast with Sharon A. Lavy

cover pic
Deadly Secret

By Sharon A Lavy

About the Book
The covering on Evalena Davidson’s head invites all kinds of confidences and sharing, a blessing on Denton Community Hospital’s oncology ward. But people expect her to be perfect, which makes living up to the promise of her Old German Baptist uniform a challenge. Pete Neper, head of the sanitation department senses unrest among the employees but finds it a challenge to track down the cause. Danni Wagoner, another oncology nurse is implicated in a drug scam. Old German Baptist Brethren with their adherence to traditional ways do not get involved with the law. But how can Evalena turn her back on a friend? This unlikely trio put their lives and reputation at risk to uncover a deadly secret in an attempt to identify a killer before someone else dies.


Sharon3
Sharon A Lavy Writer of Inspirational Women's fiction with a touch of Suspense. Sharon A Lavy lives with her husband in SW Ohio. When not reading, writing, or sewing for her family, she enjoys traveling with her husband in the German crafted Flight Design airplane they call PaPa. Sharon is best known in the novel writing community, as that German Baptist lady. In the Old German Baptist community she's a dressmaker, a pattern maker, and the sister who writes. And in her own mind she's a wife, a mother, and a grandmother, but above all a child of God. ~~ Her greatest desire is to be a woman after God's own heart~~ Sharon has a heart for hurting women, and writes women's fiction. Because when~~it's all said and done~~It's all about relationships.
Follow Sharon A Lavy
 
Website | Facebook | Twitter

Enter to Win a $50 Amazon Gift Card!

Enter below to enter a $50 amazon gift card, sponsored by author Sharon A Lavy! a Rafflecopter giveaway This book blast is hosted by Crossreads. We would like to send out a special THANK YOU to all of the CrossReads book blast bloggers!

Monday, January 13, 2014

New Year's Promises

Yes, I made some New Year's resolutions.
Yes, I made an agreement with myself that this year I would get moving and eat healthier.
AND I set some big writing goals for myself.

As the hour hand crept closer to midnight on 12-31-13, did you join with me in setting some goals for the new year? Did you tell yourself THIS is my year?? Well, good for you!!! I'm thrilled you've decided to make changes or improvements in your life, and I applaud your personal resolution.

I think we should think big.
We should plan big.
If I set a small goal for myself, I'm much more likely to accomplish it, sure. It's safe. But if I set a giant goal, while I may not achieve it, I will have done more with my big goal, than the little bit I would have finished with a tiny goal.

My God is a big God! I heard someone say His dreams for me are much bigger than the dreams I could imagine for myself. What an encouraging thought! My heavenly Father has big plans for me. And I like that! I'm ready for some big dreams.

This year I'm going to move my body more and eat healthier. And I'm going to write more books, God willing.

Don't be afraid to announce your resolution. Proclaim it. Make it your own.
This is the starting month of a brand new year.
Anything is possible!!