Life is what you make it: Seven steps to moving forward
Life is what you make it: Build a better life for you and your family
What’s on the Menu? : Steps to healing and breakthrough
Which book did you find the hardest to birth?
Life is what you make it – seven steps to moving forward was the hardest to birth because it’s based on parts of my life story.
Which book is your current favorite?
Life is what you make it – seven steps to moving forward is my favorite
How would you describe your writing style?
I would describe my writing style as a combination of “inspirational” and “Motivational” ingredients cooking in the same pot.
Do you listen to music while you write? If so, what kind?
No, I prefer silence.
Tell us anything about you as a writer that you think might be interesting or unusual.
I always write three manuscripts at the same time, that way I never get writers block.
What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Just as in everything in life, the more you do it the better you get so write as much as you can and then some more. When writing, never worry about making mistakes or worry about how different parts will sound, you could always go back and correct it. If the thoughts are flowing, flow with it, never break you train of thought by trying to correct while writing
Writers are often encouraged to write what they know. Have you found that to be the case with your writing?
Yes, you could never attempt to write what you don’t know. This will generate problems for you in the long run.
About the Book
Carl Mathis wasn’t prepared for the devastation the loss of his wife would bring to his life. He soon found himself grieving, struggling to make ends meet, and trying to raise his sons, who were also dealing with personal turmoil from the loss of their mother. After months of waiting for someone to rescue him, Carl had to face the inevitable truth–no one was coming. He realized that if he wanted out of the mess his life was becoming, he was going to have to do it himself.
Join new author Carl Mathis in this motivational story about one man’s struggle to put his life back together. Life Is What You Make It will teach you how to overcome any crippling situation you find yourself in and stimulate personal and spiritual growth by accepting the situation, taking responsibility, conditioning your mind, choosing to make right decisions, building a team, believing, and defining the new normal.
When I wrote “He’s the Keeper of My Soul” – I was experiencing a “season”. We all go through them. In this particular season, the economic recession was beginning to grow – and my life was affected. I KNEW that the LORD was still with me, and I was going to have to praise and worship my way out of that very dry and frustrating period. Shortly after this book was released, I was writing for an online Bible study group. And let me tell you, I was writing from a place of pain and experience. I was encouraging God’s people to keep holding onto His Word and His hand – while I was encouraging myself. And all I can tell you is – GOD is faithful!!
About the Book
What would you do if you knew that you could not fail? How would you feel about yourself if you KNEW that the God of the Universe is crazy about you?! How would your life be different?
So many people live their lives thinking if only I were smarter, if only I were thinner, if only I were richer, if only I were more educated, if only, if only, if only.
You fill in the blanks. If only _____, then my life would be better or complete.
In He’s the Keeper of My Soul, Aleysha will walk you through scriptures to show you just how smitten God is with you, and you’ll be able to see how He sees you! It doesn’t matter if the year is 2008 or 8008, the Bible is still relevant in our everyday life. King Solomon said, “There’s nothing new under the sun.” Meaning, any economical, social, political or personal issue that we’re experiencing in our current day, has already been experienced in the past. And the Bible has an answer for it!
Aleysha Proctor is an award-winning Entrepreneur, award-winning Author, and certified Image Consultant (having studied with Color Me Beautiful, Inc., Beauty for All Seasons and Brenda York ImageManagement). She also has a BS degree in Management & Leadership, an MBA in Marketing from Hamilton University, and is a certified Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF). Aleysha is a member of the Fashion Group International (FGI), where she served as the president of the Foundation, which awarded scholarships to area students majoring in fashion related fields. She’s also a member of the NationalBlack MBA Association, Inc. (NBMBAA).
Aleysha has authored three inspirational books: With Style & Amazing Grace (2007), He’s the Keeper ofMy Soul (2008), and Jazz, Java & Jesus (2010). Inc. In 2008, she won Aspicomm Media’s Best Spiritual/Inspirational Book award for her first title, “With Style & Amazing Grace”.
A member of the First Baptist Church of Glenarden, Maryland (FBCG), Aleysha’s passion in life is helping others to live their best lives now by realizing and utilizing their potential. Visit the author online at http://www.aleyshaproctor.com/
A Physician Shows How Our Physical Health Is Impacted By Spiritual and Mental Choices.
Discover the seven lies women believe about themselves and how they can overcome them.
Author Saundra Dalton-Smith, a practicing physician, shows women how to break free from fear, insecurity, and other lies they tell themselves into a life of health and balance in Set Free to Live Free.
Smith shares with readers how one patient reshaped her practice and approach to medicine. One day, a patient entered her office, and as Smith listened, she recognized she would need to work closely with this patient if she was to get better. She could not simply offer the latest medications, but would instead need to walk with the patient and help her become free from the lies that had impacted her physical health. Readers will journey with this patient and others as Smith shares how their triumphs became her motivation to see others free.
Imagine life with unlimited possibility, where fear, misconceptions, and insecurities don't have the power to rob us of our potential or our dreams. Many women have trouble seeing this vision, because they are bound by mental ties that keep them from living free. In Set Free to Live Free, Smith will show women how to break free from seven mental ties that hold them back: perfection, envy, image, balance, control, emotions, and limits. She encourages women to embrace spontaneity, be transparent, nurture their bodies, and cultivate a balanced life through compassionate and inspirational writing.
A study guide is provided at the end of the book outlining each chapter with discussion questions.
Saundra Dalton-Smith MD is a board-certified internal medicine physician who has been practicing medicine since 1999. She treats a predominantly female population and has firsthand experience with the struggles women face trying to imitate the American dream. Dr. Dalton-Smith has been an adjunct faculty member at Baker College and Davenport University in Michigan. She lives in Alabama.
Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, offers practical books that bring the Christian faith to everyday life. They publish resources from a variety of well-known brands and authors, including their partnership with MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) and Hungry Planet.
Set Free to Live Free by Saundra Dalton-Smith MD. Using her unique perspective as a physician, Dr. Dalton-Smith shares her wisdom and experience regarding the impact of spiritual and mental health on a woman’s physical condition. Read the attached press release for more details about this book.
**CONTEST!** Dr. Dalton-Smith is sponsoring the “Set Mom Free to Live Free” Contest in conjunction with her blog tour and Mother’s Day. You can enter to win a $100 VISA card, a bouquet of flowers delivered on Mother’s Day for yourself or your own mom! Find out details by liking Set Free to Live Free Fan Page
Available May 2011at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”
LaShawnda Jones is currently living and thriving in New York City. Her prior work includes an autobiographical devotional, My God and Me: Listening, Learning and Growing on My Journey and an autobiographical volume of poetry, Cliches: A Life in Verse. LaShawnda’s writing and publishing work ranges from poetry, to blogging, to designing an annual full-figured fashion calendar. She was a contributor to a daily political blog during the last presidential election and an anthology of letters addressed to First Lady Michelle Obama.
LaShawnda’s current work is a series of short books, focusing on foundational Biblical principles. The series is called the MeatyWord series. The first volume, The Process of Asking for, Receiving and Giving Love& Forgiveness, will be available January 2011.
LaShawnda’s life is an illustration of transition – constant movement and growth from one point to another. She is ecstatic about moving forward on her journey with the LORD. She continues to grow stronger in her faith, wiser in her knowledge and more loving to people as she seeks to mirror exactly the Christ in her.
Love & Forgiveness is the first of a six volume pocket book series called the MeatyWord Series. Each volume of the series will focus on a very essential Biblical principle and its application in our daily lives.
In Love & Forgiveness, love and forgiveness are defined Biblically and then contrasted with worldly use. The book explores what love is, what love does, how love feels, the importance of repentance and forgiveness and the benefits of both.
Purchase the Book Online at: Ms. Jones' books are available for purchase on her website and blog as well as Amazon.com and http://www.bn.com/. The Process of Asking for, Receiving and Giving Love & Forgiveness is priced at $12.00 plus S/H.
A sought after speaker, certified life coach, minister and author. As an inspirational and motivational speaker, Paulette’s desire is to motive women to reach their God given potential through conferences, workshops and seminars. Combining enthusiasm with an energetic speaking style, audiences describe Paulette’s presentation as inspiriting, enriching and encouraging. She is committed to speaking a message that is always uplifting and edifying. Paulette has authored such books as That Was Then, This Is Now which achieved national recognition by being awarded a finalist in the 2009 Next Generation Indie Book Award and her newest release Completely Whole was published under her own publishing company Thy Word Publishing. She is the co-author of Victorious Living for Women. Her next book For Such a Time as This will be released in 2011 in addition to Victorious Living for Moms.
About the Book
Life’s daily struggles can often leave us perplexed and bewildered on how to cope with hard issues. In COMPLETELY WHOLE, Paulette Harper offers keys to help those who are searching for answers that can lead to a life of complete wholeness: Spirit, Soul and Body. COMPLETELY WHOLE focuses on how to overcome suffering caused by alcoholism, substance abuse, poverty, and other obstacles blocking the path to a life of wholeness.”
KARIA BUNTING is an expository Bible teacher whose mission is to communicate the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ so that people are saved, and disciples are developed. She is the founder of Focused Forward Ministries, a communication and media ministry, and a member of several community and ministry organizations. She also partners with her husband, George, in his management & financial consulting company.
Karia received her master’s degree from Dallas Theological Seminary and a doctorate from Louisiana Baptist Theological Seminary. She’s currently receiving a second doctorate from the University of Texas. She serves as an adjunct professor at Dallas Baptist University and enjoys ministering the Word and its’ principles through her lecture series and power lunches held throughout the year.
Karia and George, her husband of 26 years, live in Dallas, Texas where she teaches the Word weekly in the women’s Bible study at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship. Mother of three children, Karia is also a mentor to many young women. She enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with family and friends.
Daddy’s Delight: Embracing Your Divine Design, is my first published book.
Which book did you find the hardest to birth?
This is my first book, but it was not difficult to birth. I had been taking notes on the subject of Spiritual Authority while I was working on my Doctorate in Theology, and the exegesis I did for that formed the basis for this book.
How would you describe you writing style?
I am an expository Bible teacher, so my writing style is expository. What that means is that the framework, or outline, let’s say of my work is from a thorough exposition of scripture. Then, I apply the Biblical principles to life, and explain the principles through a generous application of anecdote. On occasion I create stories or characters with whom the reader can relate that demonstrate the principle.
I suppose when it comes to the short vignettes, and the limited fiction embedded in the text, that was birthed in academia as well. My second doctoral program is in humanities, and a part of that program is the study of literature, and of course writing plays, screenplays, and that kind of thing. So, because I have practiced so much screenplay writing the creative side of the brain has been well-exercised! Thinking of relevant vignettes just came for me, word after word, I think. I never knew, in those, what the next word I wrote would be. And those stayed pretty much verbatim, even through the editing process.
Do you listen to music while you write? If so, what kind?
Absolutely not! Friend, I cannot stand to have any sound whatsoever around me when I write. I am easily distracted. The click of another keyboard in the room can help me loose a thought. So I like to go to bed and get up really early in the morning before anyone else is up and write. Or write when no one else is in the home at all.
But recently, I have had to learn to do some writing with people are around, and go back and clean it up later. But writing flows when no one is there, and that is much easier for me.
Tell us anything about you as a writer that you think might be interesting or unusual.
There was an old song from, maybe, the 80’s, and the words were, “She’s strange, and I like it. She’s strange – just the way she moves….” I think it was sung by Cameo. My husband sings that song to me. And it probably is true. I probably am strange, but I don’t care, really. I lose everything . I couldn’t organize a closet if you paid me. So when I sit down to write, there is nothing organized about it. After I make my exegetical outline based on the Word of God, I write whatever comes to mind in whatever order comes to mind, bringing into the manuscript whatever additional scripture comes to mind. The structure of the text of the work doesn’t really change from there. And the structure works, it is clear. I think I learned that from academia as well. I have 17 years of graduate study under my belt. So now, no matter what it is, I just sit down and write. I’m trying to download all this stuff in my brain, and put it in a place where it can help someone else.
What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Read everything, and concentrate on something. That way, you have more to say than your area of expertise. You cannot write anything that you are not. So be more.
And then be relevant. Whether you are talking about modern fiction, or canonical works like that of Hawthorn, good fiction is related to what is important to the culture at the time that it is written. It is also sensitive to the constraints and the imagination of the culture. What is the culture thinking that it has not articulated? What are its’ pent up frustrations or fears? In its’ greatest imagination, what would it do, and about what? What does it really want? Really need? Investigate that, and if you are interested, talk about it.
Now in inspirational non-fiction, this is the most important thing: that you love your reader. Love the reader enough, first, not to waste her time. If you don’t have anything to add to what has already been said, wait until you do. Expand your reader’s base of information. Let their life be impacted by reading your book in a way that it can’t be impacted by any other book.
If you don’t love your reader, you can’t help her. As for me, I pray that I love God’s people passionately. You may have your own way. But for me, the book is a means to an end – the end of the reader having a better life.
Love will make me sacrifice my time and sleep. Love will drive me to give people what they need – what they really need. Love makes my life not about me. Being loved by God is how I live – how I get through. And loving God’s people through my work is what I am called to do. It has to be that way for anybody God will use to truly change people’s life through non– fiction. Good non-fiction is love funneled through knowledge by means of language.
Writers are often encouraged to write what they know. Have you found that to be the case with your writing?
Yes. I know the Bible, and that is really all I write about. Communication of the Word is the point of what I do, without regard to genre. And this book, particularly, I know not only epistemologically, but personally. I have lived this book. I know the Word as presented in this book is true, both because I trust the God who gave the Word, but as you will see as you read the book, because I have lived the principles over the course of my life. They work.
About the Book
In Daddy’s Delight, Dr. Karia Bunting reminds women that they are God’s workmanship, His masterpiece, His “poema”. That God has intricately woven together every fiber of their being and created each one special and unique. That God, having completed His work of art, gave her to mankind as a gift.
Evident in this great care God took in fashioning woman is the importance and value of each one. So why do so many women struggle with God’s design, wishing they could change just this or that one thing about themselves?
Dr. Bunting challenges each reader to accept and embrace the truth that, regardless of what season of life she’s in, she is God’s masterpiece-not her own work of art. When God sees her, He sees His beautiful creation. A creation that yes, has some wrinkles needing to be smoothed out and yet, is one in whom is His delight to love to perfection.
View the blog tour schedule and read an excerpt at
Hi, this is Stacy Hawkins Adams, author of Who Speaks To Your Heart? Tuning in to Hear God’s Whispers.
Here’s a question you may never have asked yourself : Who is speaking to my heart? Who is speaking to my heart? Is it my parents? My spouse? My boss? Is it a friend or an enemy? Is it God?
I’m guessing that all of the above could be true, but amid the chatter, or what I like to call “incoming traffic” from your fellow mortals, make sure you are keeping the door to your heart open for the One whose words matters most.
We can’t ignore the instructions, guidance, requests and pleas of our loved ones or our earthly leaders, and the Bible instructs us not to do that. However, amid the clamor of their demands, we need to find a way, and make the time, to be still and open, so that when God taps on our heart’s door, we’ll be prepared to receive Him and embrace His truths and His love.
When we allow God to speak to our hearts, our quest for happiness is replaced by a joy that only He can provide. Our longing for direction is satisfied with His divine guidance. Our need for affirmation and love is covered by his grace and mercy.
The more courage we muster to slow down and truly listen, the more we can hear him speaking through others, through signs and into our very spirits.
In Jeremiah 29:11-12, God reminds His prophet (and us) that He already knows what’s in store for us. All we must do is follow where He’s leading. We can stay on the right path, or get back on track, by looking for Him and listening for Him every day.
Meditate on this Scripture, then ask yourself, What does God want me to give up so I can grow closer to Him?
If I let go of the things that I know aren’t good for me, what’s the worst that can happen? What is the best?
Ask yourself these questions, then listen as God speaks to your heart.
About the Book
With insight, inspiration, and practical ideas in her new book—Who Speaks to Your Heart?—, author Stacy Hawkins Adams shows you and all women—regardless of the labels placed on you—that your best and most important title is the one given by God … chosen vessel.
“I wrestled with whether a God that I couldn’t see or touch would be willing to single me out from the millions of other people who wanted love, attention and help.”
To women all over the country, from all walks of life, this uncomfortable uncertainty is all too familiar. Now—for inspiration, for affirmation, for a divine connection—you have a new place to turn … to this authentic look at what it takes to pursue God with abandon, by acclaimed author Stacy Hawkins Adams.
Offering insight, inspiration, and practical ideas on how to connect more often and more deeply with God, Adams helps give you and women the world over the courage to go deeper and grow deeper in God’s word to hear Him more clearly. Women young and old will be empowered and renewed by Adams’ reminder that—regardless of the labels placed on you by society, your family, your friends, and even yourself—your best and most important title is the one given by God … chosen vessel.
About the Author
Stacy Hawkins Adams is a nationally-published, award-winning author and speaker. Her contemporary women’s fiction novels are filled with social themes and spiritual quests that take readers on journeys into their own souls.
She holds a degree in journalism and served as a newspaper reporter for more than a decade before turning her full attention to penning books, speaking professionally and writing freelance articles.
Stacy lives in a suburb of Richmond, Virginia with her husband and two young children. Visit Stacy online at stacyhawkinsadams.com.
Who I’ve Become is NOT who I AM, is Sonya Visor’s first non-fiction book. Her passion is to minister to the people who hide behind masks. Sonya’s calling is to break and destroy the yokes of bondage, releasing the power of God into the lives of others by the preached Word and prayers of deliverance. When you can find the strength, to step into who you truly are; you can find the strength to BE THE (Tru U).TruU Ministriesis the women’s ministry that God has charged her with to help other’s become free. Sonya shares her heart with her husband, Pastor Tony Visor, who she calls her better half, for nineteen years. She and her husband have ministered effectively in the city of Racine together at NCC since 1999. Sonya is blessed to love two sons, Jason and Tony, Jr. Visit her online at sonyavisor.com.
About the Book
Who are you when nobody’s looking? It’s time to take off what hides who you truly are…the mask! Are you tired of going around family, friends and church folk with a frozen smile and a broken heart? Unmask your true identity and learn your real name as pastor’s wife and playwright Sonya Visor cuts to the heart with dynamic testimony of sexual molestation at a young age. BEING SILENT GAVE POWER to the hands that touched her life. Can hands meant to protect you also have the power to crush your identity? YES! But when we stop allowing a mask of shame to hold us captive with CLOSED mouths, WE CAN let Jesus be real in our lives. Discover who you have become and embrace who you really are in a book that goes past the pews and what other’s think about you — to bring glory to God by being transparent and transformed. It’s time to take off your mask and let the true you show up!
Most couples reminisce about how the person they ultimately married actively pursued them for their time, attention, or love when they were dating. The pursuit to gain the affection of another person is known as courting. This active pursuit should not end just because you are now married. Women have been most noted to complain about their spouse’s lack of time and attention once they were married. All of the special things he once did (romantic dates, flowers, candy, thoughtful cards and gifts) have disappeared into the sea of forgetfulness.
Now, your husband sexually approaches you without even stroking your hair or kissing your neck. If this becomes the norm and you are frustrated by it, be sure to lovingly let your hubby know that you would like to include more romance into your sex life instead of just diving right into the act!
Remind him of all of the wonderful things that he did to get your attention and how this really made you fall in love with him. Married couples should continue to court one another and offer tokens of love and appreciation. You don’t have to spend a lot of money. Even little signs of gratitude and courtship can go a long way in having a great marriage. Ladies, this cuts both ways. Be prepared to be reminded of some things that you may have done or let slip during your time of dating or early in your marriage when things were fresh, new and exciting. Both men and women need to remember how hard they once worked to impress each other. Why not do it now?
Another point that many couples will remember is that while courting and dating, it was difficult for them to keep their hands off one another and resist the sexual attraction they felt toward each other. Although the Scriptures clearly tell us that it is God’s desire that we abstain from sex until marriage, sex inside of marriage is His perfect plan for couples. Sex outside of marriage is fornication. Fornication is a sin against God. It is just like the enemy to entice and put pressure on couples to have sex before marriage. Then once they are married, couples may not find sex pleasurable anymore or they become disinterested. It is also a tactic of the enemy to make sexual intimacy that is sanctioned and blessed by God into something that couples want to avoid. Couples must be vigilant to submit themselves to God (His will) and resist the devil in every area of their lives, including their sexual relationship with their spouse, and he will flee (James 4:7). It is the will of God and His desire for married couples to have sex.
Most couples listened carefully to one another when they were dating. Once married, it may be more difficult to find interest in some of the same stories your spouse shares. However, it is important to put the time and energy into listening to them talk about work, concerns about friends, and their outside interests. No matter how boring this may seem to you now, and how you may tire of hearing them rambling on about things that don’t interest you, this is an important part of making them feel important.
Think back. Remember how glad you were to be allowed into their inner-most thoughts, emotions, and dreams when you first started dating. Well, you got what you were looking for! Now, you are their friend and lover forever! Intently listen to what your spouse has to say and share your feelings and thoughts with them, as well. This verbal intimacy between couples is the preliminary step toward physical intimacy.
The courting process is very different for each couple. If your husband loves a good evening meal, you can court him with his favorite dinner. If your wife loves flowers, buy her flowers for no reason. There are countless ways to “court” each other. Wear the perfume that makes his toes curl. Bring her a small box of her favorite chocolates. Men, washing the dishes for your wife after she has an exhausting day at work or at home with the kids could be the sexiest thing you’ve done in weeks because it demonstrates your care and concern to meet her needs. All of these examples are simple ways of communicating that your spouse is still the most important person to you and that you don’t take them for granted.
If you have realized that you have become lazy in your pursuit of the one you love, pick up the wonderful little things that you use to do for them to communicate your love and affection. If you have forgotten, ask them! By expressing your love and appreciation through small tokens, you set the stage for intimacy and open the door for lovemaking.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR In July of 1992, Jewell met her Prince Charming at a Roy Rogers restaurant. When the couple decided to marry four years later, both were aware of the latest marriage statistics and the legacy of divorce that lay between them. Her parents divorced when she was four, after moving the family to Maryland, leaving her to be raised by a single mother. To circumvent the odds, they went through pre-marital counseling, attended church regularly and felt a strong love for one another. They believed they were ready for marriage. While desiring to have a happily ever after, Jewell found life after marriage anything but a fairy tale. In 2001, she and her husband, Lewis, had been married for five years but were growing apart, after experiencing problems with infertility, sleeping in separate bedrooms and Lewis’s increasing disinterest in going to church. As she searched for answers to her marital troubles, Jewell found herself on a journey, seeking answers to save her marriage. Despite a shaky beginning, the Powells now have a relationship with a strong foundation. After successfully resolving their marital problems, they started the Happily Ever After Marriage Ministry to help others do the same. Her new book,Marriage 101: Building a Life Together by Faith (Revell Books February 2009, ISBN 978-0-8007-3332-2, $13.99), offers hope and guidance to help transform broken relationships through the use of biblical wisdom in a simple workbook format. Jewell serves as co-owner of Antiok Holdings, an emerging full-service management consulting firm, which she owns with her husband. She earned a Bachelor of Science in business from the University of Maryland and is pursuing a Master of Divinity. The Powells reside in southern Maryland with their two daughters. ABOUT THE BOOK Your marriage can be strong, healthy, happy, and blessed. Marriage coach Jewell Powell shows you how in this 8-week plan for marital success. She reveals how God’s truths can transform two individuals into the union he desires. Laying a spiritual foundation is crucial to your marriage. In Marriage 101: Building a Life Together by Faith, you will discover God’s purpose for marriage, how to develop godly character, how to communicate effectively, and much more. With biblical examples, study questions, and Scripture meditations perfect for individuals or couples, you will be challenged to examine areas in your life that may need change so that your marriage can thrive.
One of the most famous scriptures in the bible today is Isaiah 40:31 which says, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (KJV) However, we as a people recite this verse, not truly realizing the extent to what our God is really saying to His people, especially in these last and evil days.
Many of us today are facing a financial crisis that this world as never seen since the Great Depression. People are losing their jobs and their homes, their life savings from 401K’s and stocks and bonds are gone by the close of the day, and sickness and disease has crept up into many a families from the stress of all that’s going on around them. However, if we are children of God and truly living within the body of Christ, we are not a part of the recession. As children of the Almighty King, we shouldn’t have to claim that Egypt mentality. Oh no, we are living in Goshen if we are lined up to the will and power of God! Amen!
God wants us to wait on Him. And not just wait in the literal sense of waiting for Him to respond, which we know he will also do, but also waiting (as the Hebrew Qavah suggests-which means to hope or look for, or have great expectation in receiving His salvation and help in the time of need). We can’t do everything on our own accord and our own will, because it will do nothing but collapse and fail. God calls those people in Isaiah 40:30-youth or vigorous young men because they run like mad men trying to work up something, but fall flat on their faces from weariness and fatigue. Selfishness is something God will not tolerate. But if we are ready to receive all that God has for us, then God will grant us power to withstand-it’s the kind of strength that will move mountains! He will restore us to our rightful positions. Hallelujah! It says in Isaiah 40:28, and I will paraphrase this: Didn’t you know? Haven’t you heard that our Almighty God, who made heaven and earth, never fails, nor gets weary or weak in well-doing? You may not understand Him, in His infinite wisdom, but he’s asking for you to do the impossible! You may complain about the length of your journey, and feel you can’t make it. If you look at God through your circumstances, He will seem small and very far away, as if you can’t get a prayer through, but if by faith you look at your circumstances through God, He will draw very near and reveal His greatness to you. When the devil tries to come against us, with the authority God has given us, we will be able to step on his head, and make him our footstool as we mount up, rise, and fly like eagles, and experience life on a higher plane, a soaring supernatural life which is always available to every believer.
This scripture also takes me to another familiar scripture that’s similar and it’s Hebrews 12:1-4. In it, the Lord tells us to set aside every weight that so easily besets us, or the cares that you might have that you want to hold onto; you know the ones about your children, or your unfaithful spouse, or the boss on your job that’s giving you a hard time. Even though those things are disrupting your thought life, we are still to run this race knowing first, that God is there and will never leave us, but also two-God has been through what we’re going through and more.
2. “Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 3. Just think of Him who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds. 4. You have not yet struggled and fought agonizingly against sin, nor have you yet resisted and withstood to the point of pouring out your [own] blood. (AMP)
See in verse two and three of that chapter, he goes on to explain that he endured the cross, he despised and ignored the shame and endured patiently. He didn’t lose heart; he didn’t give up; he did it all for us! Think about what God had to struggle with each and every day. That should give us hope for a glorious future in His Kingdom! But don’t think for a second that that future couldn’t start today! Oh no! God wants us, while we are in this race, to live victoriously! An abundant life, health, wealth, prosperity, wisdom, peace, and joy are ours, right now! Just speak it, declare your faith towards God, and encourage yourself in this faith walk. Keep pressing Saints of God! We must not be moved. God is in control! Amen.
I do hope you have been inspired by this wonderful devotional. Now, enter for a chance to win an autographed copy of the anthology Have a Little Faith edited by Vanessa Miller, which includes the story “The Breakthrough” by Lily Ratliff.
Trivia Question: In the latest anthology, Have a Little Faith (released May 27th), what is the title of Lily's short story?
Leave your answer to today’s question in the comment section of this post. All correct answers will be placed in a drawing and one lucky person will win an autograph copy of Have a Little Faith from the author!
About the author
Lily L. Ratliff is a writer, educator, entrepreneur and speaker. Lily is the debut author of the Christian autobiography, The Life of a Lily. Lily has taught elementary through high school English and Reading for eleven years. She also owns and operates "Everything That's Lily, LLC," an online book and inspirational jewelry business. Lily is also a dynamic inspirational speaker who has been sought after by churches, writing circles, schools, and community organizations to motivate, encourage, and inspire today's youth & young adults. Lily resides in Lithonia, Georgia, with her daughter, Asia Denise.
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