Is where we introduce listeners to people who have found their way out of the dark shadows of life and back to light and those who lead others on their journey from darkness to light.
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THE EQUALITY OF EASTER 4/17/2019 10:35:00 PM BY Patti Shene
photo acquired from Pixabay.com
THE EQUALITY OF EASTER
by
Patti Shene
How do you know if you are equal to other Christians? Do you look at your fellow parishioners’ clothing and judge whether it is more elegant than yours? Do you measure another’s ability to sing, play an instrument, or teach Sunday school and determine your worth in comparison?
We have all envied someone else’s talent, ability, financial status, or accomplishments at one time or another. Conversely, each of us is guilty of arrogant pride as we claim superiority over others whose social skills, moral conduct, or level of achievement does not measure up to our expectations. We judge ourselves to be either inferior or superior to our fellow Christians, but seldom equal.
One of the reasons Jesus was condemned to death was because He claimed equality with the Father. For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him….he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God (John 5:18 NIV). It is through this very equality with the Father, His power to take away the sins of the world, that the Son made us equal with each other.
No amount of material riches, political power, or number of influential friends can elevate any of us to a higher level in the eyes of God. When Jesus gave Himself in sacrifice on the cross, he died for all our sins. He didn’t divide us into categories that determined the degree of our transgressions.
Easter brings all of God’s children to a state of equality. None of us are worthy of the great gift of salvation that Jesus guaranteed when He claimed victory over death at the resurrection. Yet, we are equally granted the gift of eternal life when we accept His sacrifice.
This Easter, remember the equality you share with your brothers and sisters in Christ, as you await fulfillment of the promise written in Hebrews. …Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him (Hebrews 9:28 NIV).
Prayer: Almighty Father, we thank You for Your son, who takes away the sins of the world. As we fellowship with each other this Easter, help us to remember that we are all equal in Your sight. AMEN.
WELCOME AUTHOR JENNIFER SLATTERY 4/13/2019 12:30:00 AM BY Patti Shene
FEATURED BOOK: Restoring Her Faith
AUTHOR: Jennifer Slattery
PUBLISHER: Love Inspired
GENRE: contemporary romance
SERIES OR STAND ALONE: stand alone
TARGET AGE: adult
IT IS MY PLEASURE TO WELCOME AUTHOR JENNIFER SLATTERY TO PATTI’S PORCH. JENNIFER SHARES HER THOUGHTS ON THE WISDOM OF SEEKING GOD IN TIMES OF TROUBLE.
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HARD
by
Jennifer Slattery
You know those people who are always asking for advice but never seem to follow it? Um … that could be me. I often preface a conversation with, “So, I may not agree with you” – translation, I probably won’t.—“but how do you think I …”
What I’m really saying is, “I want you to tell me what I want to hear, to confirm that my thoughts and ideas regarding this are correct.”
What a fool I must seem to even ask the question!
Then again, my friends are only human, and as such, prone to faulty reasoning. I’d certainly never treat God, the all-knowing, all-powerful, brilliant Creator of the universe that way … right?
If my past responses to difficult situations are any indication …
“Lord, this hurts! I can’t lose my job now/deal with sickness now/walk through this relational issue now! It’s not fair! It’s not right! I. Don’t. Like. This! Please help me!”
To which God often replies: Draw near to Me. Surrender to Me. Don’t run from the pain or the trial; instead, press into Me, and let Me grow you through it.
Except in the middle of the hard, I don’t want to hear that. All I want is for the pain to end, so I repeat my prayers again and again, adding a few more, “Please helps!” Or else I cry, call my closest friends and tell them how terrible my life has become, and maybe pray some more, with my ear bent on my problem rather than God’s voice.
When I do, I’m behaving precisely like the double-minded Christian James, Jesus’ brother, talks about in James chapter one.
“Consider it pure joy,” he says, “whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” And in the middle of the hard, when you feel you’ve lost your strength to endure and don’t know what to do next, ask God, the omniscient One, for wisdom, for His guidance is ever ready and true. “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt—” God’s wisdom or ability to give it. “—because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. … Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do” (James 1:2-8, NLT).
I hate to admit it, but there have been many times when my thoughts have resembled a storm-tossed boat, surging first this way then another, following whatever logic feels right or most comforting in the moment, instead of remaining anchored in truth. When this happens, I become double-minded, having one foot in Christ and one in the “world” of human logic.
But here’s the deal: When we come to God in the middle of our trial, we’re doing more than crying out for help. We’re saying we’ll follow His aid, however He chooses to give it. That may mean plucking us out of the situation, but more often than not, he teaches us how to stand in the throws of it. When, in the middle of our desperate pleas, He pulls us close and whispers to our hearts, “Stay. Remain. And lean on me,” we’re given a choice—we can gravitate toward the most palatable solutions, or we can say, “Okay. I trust You, God. Because you said so, I will.”
Though our friends’ wisdom, on occasion, might fail, God’s never will. When I understand that and all the love tied up in it, I’d be foolish to do anything but obey.
Let’s talk about this! How easy is it for you to follow God’s guidance in the middle of trials? How might remembering who God is—all loving and all knowing—help?
Blurb for Restoring Her Faith:
She left belief behind…Yet this family could change her mind.
With two boys to raise, a fledgling contracting business to run and a family ranch to keep afloat, widower Drake Owens finds his hands aren't just full they're overflowing. When Faith Nichols is hired to help him renovate the church, he's drawn to the beautiful artist, but he can't fall for a woman who isn't a believer. Can love restore her faith and his heart?
Jennifer Slattery is a writer and international speaker who has addressed women’s groups, church groups, Bible studies, and other writers across the nation. She’s the author of six contemporary novels and maintains a devotional blog found atJennifer Slattery Lives Out Loud. She has a passion for helping women discover, embrace, and live out who they are in Christ. As the founder ofWholly Loved Ministries, she and her team partner with churches to facilitate events designed to help women rest in their true worth and live with maximum impact. When not writing, reading, or editing, Jennifer loves going on mall dates with her adult daughter and coffee dates with her hilariously fun husband.
WELCOME AUTHOR GAIL KITTLESON 4/10/2019 7:20:00 PM BY Patti Shene
FEATURED BOOK: All for the Cause
AUTHOR: Gail Kittleson
PUBLISHER: WordCrafts Press
GENRE: historical fiction
SERIES OR STAND ALONE: stand alone
TARGET AGE: adult
IT IS MY PLEASURE TO WELCOME AUTHOR GAIL KITTLESON BACK TO THE OVER 50 WRITER. GAIL SHARES SOME CORE QUALITIES OF THE “GREATEST GENERATION” AND TELLS US ABOUT HER NEWEST WWII NOVEL.
GAIL IS OFFERING A GIVEAWAY! SIMPLY LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW TO ENTER THE DRAWING FOR AN EBOOK COPY OF ALL FOR THE CAUSE.
ALL FOR THE CAUSE
by
Gail Kittleson
What made the “Greatest Generation” so great? We find the answer in our forebears’ actions and attitudes. We could sort the information in various ways, but today I choose trustworthiness and loyalty.
These two characteristics share several elements, but the difference lies in the perspective. Loyalty means faithfulness or devotion to someone or something. Trust means to rely on the strength, goodness or integrity of a person or thing.
Trustworthiness, then, qualifies a person as reliable, and underscores our belief that they will do what they set out to do. George MacDonald points out the significance of this quality in a human being:
To be trustworthy is a greater compliment than being loved.
- George MacDonald
The Greatest Generation put devotion to duty above personal concerns—that’s what facilitated their feats both in battle and on the home front. This attitude nurtured what we call courage. In World War II history, we find courage at every turn.
Our nation entrusted its future—and the world’s—to these men and women, and they performed above and beyond the call of duty. I’ve interviewed some of these folks, and their humble attitudes always disarm me. They did “what they could,” they state. They did what anyone would do.
The hero and heroine of my latest release, All For The Cause, made decisions based on the nation’s need. Stan joined the Wisconsin National Guard before anyone had heard of Pearl Harbor. When President Roosevelt called for more than 35,000 troops to enter training, Stan responded.
“Might as well go now,” he told his mother, who received the news with anything but pleasure. But Stan focused on the call to duty, and when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, he was supporting American troops already in the Philippines.
While the nation reeled at the news from Hawaii, the enemy also rained destruction on the Philippines, and Stan became one of the men surrendered by General Wainwright when Bataan fell on April 9, 1942. The majority of these soldiers ended up in prison camps, but Stan joined an officer who fled to the high country to join guerilla forces.
This decision set his direction for the rest of the war. After he was wounded, evacuated, and recovered, he met our heroine, Twila Fae Bruner, who also answered her call to the Algona, Iowa POW camp, where captured Nazi officers were held.
This makes up the setting of All For The Cause—a hastily built camp in the middle of Iowa cornfields, complete with a hospital.
What excitement could happen here? And how will Stan deal with the voices that call him back to his buddies on Bataan? Can his desire be a part of their liberation possibly be fulfilled—will he return to the jungle teeming with vicious enemy patrols?
Note: ebooks available from all retailers. paperback available now from Amazon, available for pre-order from BN.com. Hardback available for pre-order at all retailers.
DON’T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT TO BE PLACED IN THE DRAWING TO WIN AN EBOOK COPY OF ALL FOR THE CAUSEBETWEEN NOW AND SATURDAY, APRIL 20TH AT MIDNIGHT MDT.
BY LEAVING A COMMENT, YOU GRANT PERMISSION FOR YOUR EMAIL TO BE REVEALED TO THE AUTHOR IF YOU ARE THE WINNER TO FACILITATE RECEIPT OF YOUR BOOK.
When Gail KIttleson is not steeped in World War II research, drafting scenes, or deep in an edit, she facilitates writing workshops, classes and retreats both in Iowa and Arizona, where winters find her enjoying the incredibly gorgeous Ponderosa forest under the Mogollon Rim. The rest of the year, she and her husband of forty years enjoy grandchildren gardening, and visiting WWII sites. Favorites: walking, reading, meeting new people, and hearing from readers who fall in love with her characters. Connect with Gail:
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photo acquired from Pixabay.com
THE EQUALITY OF EASTER
How do you know if you are equal to other Christians? Do you look at your fellow parishioners’ clothing and judge whether it is more elegant than yours? Do you measure another’s ability to sing, play an instrument, or teach Sunday school and determine your worth in comparison?
We have all envied someone else’s talent, ability, financial status, or accomplishments at one time or another. Conversely, each of us is guilty of arrogant pride as we claim superiority over others whose social skills, moral conduct, or level of achievement does not measure up to our expectations. We judge ourselves to be either inferior or superior to our fellow Christians, but seldom equal.
One of the reasons Jesus was condemned to death was because He claimed equality with the Father. For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him….he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God (John 5:18 NIV). It is through this very equality with the Father, His power to take away the sins of the world, that the Son made us equal with each other.
No amount of material riches, political power, or number of influential friends can elevate any of us to a higher level in the eyes of God. When Jesus gave Himself in sacrifice on the cross, he died for all our sins. He didn’t divide us into categories that determined the degree of our transgressions.
Easter brings all of God’s children to a state of equality. None of us are worthy of the great gift of salvation that Jesus guaranteed when He claimed victory over death at the resurrection. Yet, we are equally granted the gift of eternal life when we accept His sacrifice.
This Easter, remember the equality you share with your brothers and sisters in Christ, as you await fulfillment of the promise written in Hebrews. …Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him (Hebrews 9:28 NIV).
Prayer: Almighty Father, we thank You for Your son, who takes away the sins of the world. As we fellowship with each other this Easter, help us to remember that we are all equal in Your sight. AMEN.