Prayers & Promises Week #5

For February the verses I will be sharing each Sunday will be on the topic of GRACE. Here is a definition I found:
Grace: favor or good will. mercy; clemency; pardon.
I like to think of graces as getting something from God that I don't really deserve. There are many verses in the Bible talking about grace. Here is this week's verse found in Hebrews 12:15 (NIV):

"See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many."

This seems to me to be a warning in this passage to the people to be careful how they are living. They need to help others not miss out on the grace God is giving to them.

Please join me this week in prayer for these requests:

~ Charlotte in her surgery.

~ Healing for Denise's husband Eddie.

~ Recovery for Michele's grandson, Travis.

~ Recovery of personal friend Claire as she still recovers from her car accident.

~ Safe travel for my husband this week on his short trip for work. Also healing for his ear. He is still have trouble hearing after his ear infection.

Do you have a favorite verse on grace that you'd like to share today? Thank you for visiting me. Join us at Spiritual Sundays!

Have a day of blessings!

2010 Book #6: A Love to Last Forever by Tracie Peterson

I finished listening to A Love to Last Forever by Tracie Peterson. I checked this one out of the library. It is book #2 in the Brides of Gallatin County. I read book #3 and reviewed it previously. I saw this one and enjoyed the other one so I checked it out. This one was good too.

This book is about sister Beth Gallatin. She often reads romance novels and finds herself wishing she could have the kind of love. Nick is interested in Beth, but she of course doesn't seem to realize this at first. Just as they start to have a real relationship, Beth finds out about the secret of Nick's past. Will this secret tear them apart or make them stronger?

I enjoyed this book, even if I did read it out of order. I look forward to reading (or listening to!) more from this author.

Have a day of blessings!

2010 Book #5: I Wish You Enough by Bob Perks

I Wish You Enough by Bob Perks is the latest book I have finished.

Book Description: I Wish You Enough encompasses 8 values needed for true contentment and happiness, and transforms them into 8 wishes—or sentiments—for the reader. Through short, inspirational stories about everyday people, author Bob Perks reopens our eyes and hearts to the abundance all around that we so often take for granted.

My thoughts: This is a nice little gift book that could offer encouragement to a friend. The author includes short stories, quotes, and verses to go with each of the 8 values in the poem “I Wish You Enough.” This is a nice book to pick up and read one story or to read through the whole thing. I found the author brought up some interesting topics about life and making the most out of life.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Have a day of blessings!

Thankful Thursday: The unexpected

Today for Thankful Thursday we are at Lynn's again. Hope you will join us!

Lynn talks about being thankful for the unexpected. This is a good thing to think about. Do you ever see the little unexpected things in your daily life as something to cause you to stop and give thanks? Like someone standing to hold the door open when you have your arms full. Or a parking spot up close to the store. Or a rainbow that appears as you are driving home. What about an email from a friend you haven't heard from lately? Or finding some money in the pocket of a jacket? These kinds of things always make me smile and bring unexpected joy to my day. Look for the unexpected in your day and be thankful for what you find!

This week I am thankful for:

~ my husband willingly taking off work early, even though he's really busy right now, to pick up Caleb from school so I could attend a continuing education class.

~ my son giving me snuggles. Before he went to sleep he made me lean over so he could give me some snuggles. It was so sweet!

~ eating lunch with my sweet friend. We had been meeting pretty regularly each week so I missed not being able to get together the past couple of weeks.

~ sharing Bible lessons together as a family on Wednesday nights. It seems we always learn from each other during this time.

~ God's patience with us.

Thank you for coming by! I appreciate you.

Have a day of blessings!

"How Much" by Mandisa

Just in case you are feeling down today, I have a song that will hopefully remind you just how special and how loved you are by our Father. This is "How Much" by Mandisa. Here are the words for you.

Turn up the volume and be reminded just HOW MUCH God loves you today.



The line that sticks out to me here is the chorus describing God's love for each of us: "Take the best day that you've ever had Try to imagine better than that." Even imagining the best, highest, tallest, greatest thing we can think of in our human minds doesn't compare with how much He loves YOU.

Have a day of blessings!

Calling Texas bloggers!

I saw a post about a new blog for Texas Gals so I signed up. It is a place for Texas bloggers (if you live in Texas now or are from Texas) to connect. I know I have some Texas readers so I wanted to share with you. Click on the button above to check it out!

Have a day of blessings!

Living with Less Contest

I am excited to share a fun opportunity with you!

To celebrate the release of Hearts at Home’s newest book: Living With Less So Your Family Has More, by Jill and Mark Savage, the Hearts at Home blog is launching the Living with Less Contest.

Email Hearts at Home a story or money-saving tip that gives a peek into your daily experiences representing the humor, richness, or spiritual aspects of what it’s like to live with less.

Better yet, blog readers will benefit as many of the money-saving entries will be posted on the Heart’s blog throughout the month of February!

For contest details go here!


Hearts at Home has many wonderful resources. This is a fun contest to promote this new book that I look forward to reading. Hope you will participate.

Have a day of blessings!

Prayers & Promises Week #4

I have enjoyed the weekly verses on thankfulness. Thinking about thankfulness this week, I'm wondering if you ever write thank you notes. We got two in the mail this past week. This is one of the things mentioned in the book I read recently Choosing Gratitude. Many times we do not take the time to write thank yous. Saying thank you is nice when you receive something but going an extra step and jotting a thank you note to acknowledge a gift is especially meaningful. I must say this is something my Mom taught me to do and something I want to teach Caleb to do. It is such a simple thing really and just takes a little time. Think of someone this week that you need to thank and take the time to do that! It will probably make their day!

This week's verse is Psalm 28:7--

"The Lord is my strength and shield; my heart trusts in him and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song."

Do you have any prayer requests to share this week? I realized last week I forgot to post prayer requests. It seems I'm forgetting one right now for this week, but please remember the following in your prayers:

~ Denise and Eddie. Continue to pray for healing as well as their financial needs.

~ Charlotte. She shared about her upcoming surgery and asked for prayers.

~ Steve--recently diagnosed with kidney cancer.

~ continue to remember Haiti and the efforts going on there to help the people.

~ my boys! My son woke up sick Thursday morning. I thought it was allergies but in the afternoon he was running fever. I thankfully was able to get an appointment with his doctor Friday afternoon and he felt he had the flu. He started on Tamiflu and was so much better on Saturday. My husband though woke up in the night with a major ear ache. He went to the clinic and has an ear infection.

Thank you for visiting today on Spiritual Sundays.

Have a day of blessings!

2010 Book #4: Becca by the Book by Laura Jensen Walker

I finished the third book in the "Getaway Girls" series. It is Becca by the Book by Laura Jensen Walker. This is my second book to read by this author. I enjoyed the other one (Turning the Paige), so when the author asked on Facebook if anyone was interested in reading the latest book I was glad to do so.

This book is about Becca who is the only non-Christian in the Getaway Girls book club. In an attempt to prove she's not afraid of commitment she makes a bet with her friends that she will go on 25 dates with whoever asks her out next. Of course the next guy, Ben, is a Christian. Due to a broken leg from a sky diving accident, she must go around with a cast and crutches. Becca is very sarcastic and negative towards Christians. Through the book she sees a variety of Christians and churches and realizes all are not the same.

The book makes a good point. I get what the author is trying to say. What message are we as Christians sending to non-Christians? There are many words we use in church or in daily conversations that just don't make sense to non-Christians. What example of Christ's love are we being to those who are watching?

With that being said, if I had picked up this book in the bookstore or library, I would not have purchased it to read. The first line of the book is taking the Lord's name in vain. This turned me off from the beginning. There were several things in the book that I questioned. The overall attitude of the book seemed to be too lax in my opinion of what is required of Christians. It was more of a "politically correct" view of accepting anything anyone does even if it's sin. Is this how the Bible tells us to live? We are in the world but are told not to be of the world. We love the person but not the sin. While Becca did have a heart change through the book and got to see many examples of how Christians live and show love to others, I still didn't get the feeling that she ever really learned what she would need to do to be a Christian.

Thank you to the author and publisher for providing this book for review.

Have a day of blessings!

Thankful Thursday

Welcome to another week of Thankful Thursday! I posted a review earlier this week for a wonderful book on the subject of gratitude, see that post here.


This week I am thankful for...

~ my sweet husband. I am going through some old things and have found some notes my husband wrote many years ago to me. It still makes me smile to read them.

~ my funny boy. He is always making us laugh with the cute things he does and says. Sometimes he mispronounces words and it is just so funny!

~ a wonderfully relaxing weekend at my Mom's. It was nice to do nothing much plus have her yummy cooking!

~ uplifting music. I have really enjoyed the music on the radio and my iPod lately and I'm thankful for this convenience.

~ peace the Lord gives.

Share your thankfulness today. We are at Lynn's at Spiritually Unequal Marriage.

Have a day of blessings!

"You are God Alone" by Phillips Craig and Dean

I heard this song on the radio yesterday. It is a great one from Phillips Craig & Dean. I hope it blesses you today. The lyrics are on the video.




I particularly like the line that says "And right now In the good times and bad You are on Your throne You are God alone." Whatever is happening in your life RIGHT NOW for you, God is there. He alone is what you need. If it is good or bad, He is God.

Have a day of blessings!

2010 Book #3: Choosing Gratitude by Nancy Leigh DeMoss

I have finished Choosing Gratitude Your Journey to Joy by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. What a wonderful book to read at the beginning of a new year!

In this book Nancy Leigh DeMoss writes of the transforming power of gratitude in our lives. Because of the grace we've been given, gratitude should be evident in us. The purpose of this book is to show how we can have a lifestyle of gratitude and how this will change our lives as we become grateful people. She writes about reasons we need to be grateful and how we can show our gratitude. At the end she also includes a 30 day devotional guide to put into practice the things she talks about in the book.

This book was a pleasure to read and I highly recommend it to you. I really gained a lot by reading it and want to share it with others. I also look forward to reading other books by this author.

Thank you to Moody Publishers for providing this book for review.

Have a day of blessings!

Prayers & Promises Week #3

The verse for this week is II Corinthians 9:12-- (correction! I had the verse wrong!)

"This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.

As I've been reading a book on gratitude (which I plan to post my review of on Monday) I noticed this verse on being thankful. Generosity is tied to gratitude. When we are generous, we give others the opportunity to be thankful and praise to God. We need to remember our generosity is not only our money; we can be generous with our time as well. I encourage you to read this entire passage in II Corinthians 9.

Thank you for visiting me today for Spiritual Sunday.


Have a day of blessings!

2010 Book #2: Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung

I have finished listening to my first book for the Christian Audio review program. It is called Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung. This book covers the idea of “God’s will.”

From the product description: Too often, he writes, God's people tinker around with churches, jobs, and relationships, worrying that they haven't found God's perfect will for their lives. Or—even worse—they do absolutely nothing, stuck in a frustrated state of paralyzed indecision, waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting for clear, direct, unmistakable direction.

My thoughts: Many people say they are searching for God’s will for their lives. It is a phrase I’ve heard and used throughout my life, so it was interesting to hear someone else’s thoughts about this concept. The idea of this book is that God wants us to do something instead of just living life, waiting for Him to reveal His perfect will to us. Too many people make excuses for not doing anything…pursuing a job, dating a woman, or moving for example…because they are waiting to know God’s will. I understood and could relate to many of the author’s points. We need to seek God’s will with our plans and futures, but that doesn’t mean God wants us sitting around doing nothing as we wait to figure out His will. I am not sure I agreed with all that he said regarding marriage and children. Our purpose is to love and obey God. We need to do more of that and less waiting around doing nothing for God. My husband is going to listen to this audio book next and I look forward to discussing it with him.

As for the narrator, I have not listened to many audio books at this point so I don’t have much to use as a comparison. His voice was easy to listen to though.

Thank you to christianaudio.com Reviewers Program for providing a review copy of this audiobook.

Have a day of blessings!

Thankful Thursday

Today we're at Spiritually Unequal Marriage for Thankful Thursday. Join us there!

Today I am thankful for . . .

~ my loving husband. Monday was his day off. We did some errands, ate lunch, and donated blood. By night time I was feeling worn out. (I think this was due to the fact I didn't drink enough water after donating.) He knew I didn't feel right because I went to bed much earlier than normal. He was so sweet and loving. He asked what he could do for me and when Caleb came to our room in the middle of the night, he got up and took him back to his bed so I didn't have to move. It made me smile to have him there to care for me and feel his love.

~ a fun "adventure" with my son. Tuesday was such a pretty day. I was happy to be able to hang clothes on the line after many weeks of not being able to do so due to the weather. He saw a big huge cloud of black smoke in the distance. We decided to go see if we could see where it was coming from and the cause. I think he thought we were walking. I told him we'd just drive and reminded him we probably couldn't get close but we could see if we could find where it was burning. We drove off and on the way a fire truck was coming back the opposite way. By the time we got to a place where I smelled a little smoke, there wasn't much left. It was a fun thing to do anyway because it made my boy excited and happy!

~ learning new things from God's Word. I wrote about this in the previous post.

~ encouragement from books I'm reading. I have two book reviews I'll be posting soon of two great books that are very encouraging.

~ our home.

Thank you for visiting today for Thankful Thursday.
Have a day of blessings!

Bible Reading: Job

I'm reading through the Bible chronologically this year. I'm following the guide I found online. There are several different versions out there. I read a few chapters of Genesis and now I'm in Job. I've found many lessons in the book this time as I've been reading. I came across another of these Tuesday and wanted to share it with you.

Read Job 26. Job talks about God and His power. I particularly liked verse 7--"He suspends the earth over nothing." That verse just made me smile to read. Another version I read (New Century Version) said "God stretches the northern sky out over empty space and hangs the earth on nothing."

This passage made me think of something I heard Monday on the Glenn Beck radio program we were listening to in the car. He was talking to someone who was an atheist. Then later he talked about how some people believe the earth "just happened." He talked about the temperature in space. If it was off one degree, we wouldn't be here he said. How can you think that "just happened" and it "just happened" to be at exactly the correct temperature?

The rest of Job 26 talks about more of God's wonders. Then look at the end (again in the New Century Version) verse 14--"And these are only a small part of God's works. We only hear a small whisper of him. Who could understand God's thundering power?"


I love that! All of this that we see around us and the many ways we see the glory of His creation are just a "whisper of Him." Just think of all that we can't see and understand right now! Amazing! Thank You, God!


Have a day of blessings!

Another day to remember...

I am reposting a post from January 13, 2008. It shares what I am feeling today. Today is the anniversary of the day we went to the emergency room and found out I was having a miscarriage. It's been seven years since that days. Seven years! That seems so long ago but I still remember that time very clearly.

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Here is a portion of what I posted previously:
I'm glad we can remember. I'm thankful for what I learned during that pregnancy, even though it was so brief. I'm thankful for those who supported me in that time....the people I knew cared about us and who offered their prayers and support. I'm thankful for what I learned about being compassionate to others in the same situation.

It was very fitting to read this in a devotional book today. It is one of my favorites and think it is appropriate for this day. God made our first little one. Even though she isn't with us today we still know He created that body and knew all about that little short life. That brings me comfort. Today I will end with this verse:"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous--how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed." Psalm 139:13--16 NLT

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Now it's been seven years since that day. I read something the other day that I knew I wanted to share on this day as I pause to remember. It was printed in a new magazine from Focus on the Family called "Thriving Family" January/February 2010 issue (which I highly recommend). My blogger friend Sheri posted the list of tips a few days ago so I'm going to just link to her and you can read them there. These tips are wonderful for anyone with a friend or loved one facing the loss of any child. I know losing a child to death is not the same as going through miscarriage in many regards, but in some ways the grief and pain are similar. So I share these tips with you from the article "2 1/2 Hours With Audrey."


Be sure to listen to the memorial song linked there as well ("Audrey Caroline"). Here are the lyrics. These lyrics are just beautiful and say so well what I felt so deeply at the time of our miscarriage. I still think of our baby and the things I didn't get to do with her and wonder what she'd be like and what her interests would be. It made me smile as I listened to this song to think of our baby in Heaven that God has been carrying her for me for six and a half years now. (I had a dream at the time of the miscarriage and have always felt that baby was a girl if you are wondering why I say "her.")

Thank you, God, for this day to remember our baby who we never got to meet here on earth. We know she is with you safe in Heaven. Thank You for the way that that time with her, short as it was by our standards, changed our lives forever. Thank You for keeping her safe, for carrying her for me.

Have a day of blessings!

"Peace Be Still" Rush of Fools

For this week's song I'm sharing "Peace Be Still" by Rush of Fools.



This song has been a comfort to me many times. I remember being so nervous and then hearing this song and feeling a calm come over me as I'm reminded of God's presence and His peace. I read a wonderful devotional on Monday at Laced with Grace about peace as well. My husband and I have some prayers we are praying about some upcoming decisions. I know I'll need God's peace as we wait for His answers and timing. I hope you are blessed to hear this song today and be reminded that we can have peace through Jesus that is greater than our human understanding.

(Looking back I see this was a song I shared on a previous post as well!)

Have a day of blessings!

Prayers & Promises Week #2

Thank you for joining with me in prayer last week. I hope the past week was a blessed one for you. I had a story to share about thankfulness that happened to me this week.

On Thursday mornings I go down to a local food pantry to help pass out the sacks of food as the clients come. It was a very cold morning, and everyone had come inside the office area to wait instead of outside like they normally do. I was standing by the desk and as a woman was waiting her turn I asked her "How are you today?" Her answer, "I'm blessed, how are you?" It made me smile to hear her answer. What a wonderful attitude of thankfulness! I thought what a good attitude this is, and I told her I liked her answer.

This week's verse on THANKFULNESS is Ephesians 5:4--
"Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving."

This is another verse about thankfulness. Our world is full of the kind of talk listed in this verse. Imagine if there was more thanksgiving instead of obscenity. Let that difference start with us. Let us speak our thankfulness everyday in all we do.

Do you have any prayer requests to share?

~ I was thankful to read Charlotte's good news regarding her request last week.

~ A man at our church, Ron, had colon surgery this week and had some complications with bleeding.

~ A young Mom, Claire, was in a weather related wreck Friday morning. She had surgery on her leg and I believe has a broken collar bone as well.

~ There is a button in my sidebar now to remember to pray for Denise and Eddie. If you are not familiar with Denise (Shortybear), she is a wonderful encourager and prayer warrior for Jesus that I have "met" through her blog. You can read more about their situation now over at Marsha's Musings.

Thank you for stopping by for Spiritual Sundays.

Have a day of blessings!

Visit me at Laced with Grace today!

As we pray together as a family, I recently noticed our son saying the same or a similar prayer every time. I reminded him that we pray to talk to God and need to speak from our hearts. In the past he had done some amazing prayers that really surprised us to hear coming from someone so young. Back in March as we gathered as a family for a meal after Mammaw’s funeral, we were all touched at his beautiful prayer that seemed to hold such wisdom beyond his years and comfort for us all. Lately though it seemed he was just rushing through to say a few words and be done.

Please visit me over at Laced with Grace today to read the rest of my devotional "God Hears." My Thankful Thursday post is below.

Have a day of blessings!

Thankful Thursday

It's time for Thankful Thursday again. This month we will be meeting over at Spiritually Unequal Marriage.

This week I am thankful for...
~ my sweet husband moving my car into the garage. It got cold and we had frosty windows one morning this week so I asked if he'd mind finishing cleaning out the garage and putting the car inside the next night. He did. :)

~ my sweet boy who has been excited about being back in school after his break. He has been happy and in a good mood. I think the rest helped him plus feeling better with his medications that have helped his allergies.

~ finding out we had a $125 credit at the dentist office. The receptionist told me this news when I called this week about an appointment. She had filed an appeal with insurance. What a surprise blessing!

~ food to eat in our pantry. I know Thursday morning there will more than likely be a line of people waiting for their sacks of food at the local food pantry. Some mornings as I see the people I feel a lump in my throat to see the huge numbers that come month after month needing help.

~ wonderful memories of 2009 and a wonderful start so far to 2010!

Have a day of blessings!

"To Know You" by Casting Crowns

In 2008 I had "Friday Favorite" post where I'd share a favorite song. I missed sharing songs regularly in 2009, so I think I will do that again this year on Tuesday's. I want to share songs I've heard recently that bless me and hope in sharing them they will bless you! If anyone would like to share an idea for a title for this, let me know!

This week I would like to share a new song from Casting Crowns called "To Know You." As I shared yesterday, I want to KNOW GOD this year. This is a wonderful song (as are all the songs by Casting Crowns in my opinion!). Here are the lyrics as well.





May it be our prayer in this new year "to know you is to want to know you more."

Have a day of blessings!

Looking ahead to 2010....

I didn't get to post my goals for 2010 on the 1st so I am now. I will use these through the years to "check up" on myself.

I have a verse that I want to remember this year and focus on through my days. It is Joshua 1:8,9--"Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

I want to focus more on God's word in this year and KNOW GOD more.

Here are my goals, in no particular order!

• Bible Reading--I am going to be reading through the Bible chronologically. I've never done this before. I am not following a "read through the year" program for each day. I am taking it day by day and taking notes as I read. My goal is to know God.


• Prayer--I want to continue praying for others and be more intentional in my prayers. The prayer journal is working well for me right now so I will continue to use it.


• Verses--I will continue to have verses for the week that I will post on Sundays.


• Praise--I want to praise more throughout the day both by myself and with my boys.


• Donate blood--I always said when Caleb started school I wanted to donate blood regularly like I used to do! I have tried a few times and my iron was too low. I want to get back into that habit this year.


• Exercise--I want to have more activity in my daily life.


• Rest--Go to bed earlier (I said this last year too!).


• Declutter/organize--Another goal continued from last year!


• Reading--Maybe this year I will read a classic since I did not do this last year. I plan to continue with my book reviews; however, I am going to be more careful in the books I choose to review so I don't get to feeling like I am behind.


• Family--I want to make sure I take more time to be intentional about doing things with my family. This is something I've done lately, just little things that I do through the day but they make for fun (sometimes funny) memories of something we do together.


• Blogging--In the past few months I have seemed to find a nice balance for blogging. I want to continue this. I hope my posts will be an encouragement to my readers as I seek to follow my mission statement (posted in the sidebar).

That's all I have for now. I wish you a happy, healthy 2010.

Have a day of blessings!

Prayers & Promises Week #1

I'm starting the new year with a new way of doing my weekly verses and prayers and I'm going to call it "Prayers & Promises."

Last year I had a different Proverb every week. This year I am going to choose a theme for each month and each week will have a verse related to that theme. I plan to post the verse on my sidebar of my blog as well as my Facebook page each week after I post it and share a little bit about it with my post on Sunday. I need to buy an index card set on a ring to write the verse on each week. I have found mine in the past at Walgreens and have forgotten to look when I was there.

At this point I don't know if it will be a verse that is necessarily new to me that I post. (Some I may already have memorized in the past.) I just want to use verses that really speak to my heart about something God is showing and teaching me. These are going to be verses to focus on for the week. Join me if you'd like! I'd enjoy hearing your thoughts about the verses as well.

I want to continue to list any prayer requests I know of and if you have anything I can join you in prayer about please let me know by email or in a comment. Most of the time I'll probably do the post and schedule it to appear on Sunday so just add it to the comments if you have a request to share.

The theme for January is Thankfulness! I have started a book for review about gratitude so I've been reading all about thankfulness.

The first verse for 2010 is Colossians 2:6, 7--"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness."

I felt this was a wonderful verse to use to start off a new year. In these instructions, Paul is encouraging the people to continue on living in Christ. He gives a few ways to do this and one of those things is to be "overflowing with thankfulness."

When people describe you would they consider you to be someone who is "overflowing with thankfulness?" We have the greatest reason of all to be thankful as Christians--we have been given a gift of salvation shown by God's grace. That should fill us with gratitude daily to our Father. We should not just be filled though; thankfulness should being overflowing from us. Imagine a cup that you fill too full and the water flows out onto your table making everything nearby wet too. That's how we need to be with our thankfulness. This week I challenge you to be a person who is "overflowing with thankfulness."

Please remember these requests in prayer this week:
~ Denise and Eddie.

~ Charlotte--has been sick and has a surgery scheduled for Jan. 11

I am linking with Spiritual Sundays today and plan to more this year. Join us!

Have a day of blessings!

2010 Book #1: A Dream To Call My Own by Tracie Peterson

I started this book last week (last year!) but really got into yesterday and finished it up this morning. I am very overdue on this review. I requested this book at the same time I requested a couple others from Bethany House. I got very behind in my reading. This is my last one though and I'm starting fresh for 2010!

A Dream to Call My Own by Tracie Peterson is the third book in the Brides of Gallatin County series. I have not read the first two books in the series but picked up pieces of the story of the other two sisters in this book.

This is the story of Lacy Gallatin who is the youngest of three sisters. She is a stubborn, independent woman. Her goal is to find the person responsible for killing her Pa. She realizes that this has actually consumed her and the revenge is eating away at her. The deputy sheriff Dave Shepard has been in love with Lacy for some time but she doesn't see herself as good enough for him because of what she considers her past failings.

It was an enjoyable story and I look forward to others from this author. I found out my library has some audio books by her so I will try those too!

Have a day of blessings!