Tag Archives: forgiveness

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“Christmas in Snow Valley”: Blog Tour and Review

Christmas Box Set Banner

Christmas in Snow Valley is a boxed set coming out just in time for your Holiday reading. Six “Clean Romances” that are well written and full on Christmas fun.

About the books:
Snow Valley, Montana, is a small community with the tradition of doing Christmas big. Festivities begin with tree lighting in the town square the day after Thanksgiving and continue until the culminating romantic Christmas Ball. From the Polar Express to a Winter Carnival, there’s something for every wonder-filled child—and every couple who’s in love—or about to be.

An Unexpected Kiss by Cindy Roland Anderson
Lucy Phillips doesn’t want to spend her Christmas vacation dodging her ex-boyfriend, so when he turns up at the airport to give her a ride home, Lucy panics and asks a complete stranger to kiss her. Although the kiss is incredible, Lucy never expects to see the guy again. Is it bad luck or destiny when Lucy comes down with a sore throat and the new doctor in Snow Valley is none other than the guy she kissed at the airport?

Feels Like Love by Jeanette Lewis
Christmas in Snow Valley is the perfect way for April Winston to introduce her city slicker fiance, Scott Mecham, to life on a farm. If only Wade Hadley, hometown boy and high school sweetheart, will cooperate! But Wade has no intention of letting April go without a fight. This Christmas, Wade is determined to overcome their painful past and show April that she already has what she’s been seeking all along.

Full Court Devotion by Cami Checketts
Kazlyn is too busy with her schooling and future plans to enjoy life, let alone fall in love with a man who has heartbreak written all over him. Tyrese Hamilton, a college basketball star and major heartthrob, is intrigued when Kazlyn doesn’t pursue him or even seem interested. Ty’s career is in jeopardy, and he needs a miracle and Kazlyn to save him.

The Christmas Eve Kiss by Taylor Hart
When Molly O’Hare gets a prediction that she will kiss her true love on Christmas Eve, she thinks it’s utterly ridiculous. But when she gets teamed up with Kevin Snow, aka her ex-boyfriend, to decorate a Christmas tree, things start to change. Too bad getting over the past is hard and seeing him kiss another girl is even harder. Now Molly is left with a choice—run away from home and heartbreak or let Christmas work out a miracle all of its own.

Risking it all for Love by Award-Winning author, Kimberley Montpetit
Ever since her high school boyfriend’s death from a car accident three years earlier, Jessica Mason and her hometown of Snow Valley, Montana with all its awful memories have NOT been compatible. Running away to New Orleans on a ballet scholarship, Jessica cringes when she thinks about confronting Pastor John and the community church–she doesn’t want to talk about God, not after He took Michael, the boy she was going to marry ever since third grade.

In the local scene of funky New Orleans, Jessica seeks out Madame LaBlanc, hoping Michael will absolve her of her guilt the night of the car accident in a seance, but the spirit world is silent and she fears the grief will drown her.

Finally succumbing to family pressure, Jessica reluctantly returns for Christmas – and the little town of Snow Valley does Christmas BIG. When she visits Michael’s grave in the church yard, Jessica is shocked to meet handsome James Douglas, Pastor John’s nephew, who’s studying for the ministry. No, she is NOT going to be attracted to someone who wants to be a preacher! Definitely not compatible! But James Douglas is unlike any minister-in-training she’s ever met. James can not only dish back Jessica’s finely-tuned sarcasm but understands grief all too well, turning Jessica’s world upside down.

Can Jessica forgive herself for that terrible, fateful night? Can she take another risk on love?

Blue Christmas by Lucy McConnell

As head of Snow Valley hospital’s fundraising effort, Paisley Hackett barely has time to organize the craft show, cookie decorating party, and the annual Christmas Ball. What she doesn’t have time for is falling in love with Clay Jett, the incredibly handsome bass player who sweeps into town. She’s been burned by a tourist romance before and, with everything going on, Paisley will have to work overtime to protect her heart from Clay and his swoon-worthy ballads.

How the project came about:
“It’s amazing how one seemingly small decision can make a huge impact on a person’s life. You see, for whatever reason, five of the authors decided not to order the lunch provided at a local writing conference. This left us standing in the hotel lobby, with growling stomachs, looking for a place to eat. We didn’t all know each other, but we clumped together as if Fate wrapped her arms around us and said, “Pay attention.”

There was a small bakery across the parking lot and we ended up eating delicious bread and brownies and discussing the idea of collaborating on a box set. The next week, we set up a video chat, including Kimberley who lives in New Mexico, and Snow Valley grew from there. During the time we’ve been writing and editing, we’ve all had personal setbacks, be it losing a loved one, personal injury, or work catastrophes; but the books poured out and the anthology turned out better than even we could have foreseen on that fateful day in a Provo bakery.” ~Christina Dymock

My Review: I was given a copy of this set in exchange for an honest review. This is a great set of Christmas Romances. Six books, six couples, six Christmas stories, all set in Snow Valley, Montana. These books are “clean romance” with heartwarming Christmas tales. Each story is by a different author and the main characters are different., but they are all set in Snow Valley, Montana and share a few Characters, like Pastor John, and the same places and events Snow Valley is the place to be if you love Christmas! Parade, tree lighting, gingerbread house competition, Polar Express train rides, carnival, fireworks, and the Christmas Ball all take place during these stories. I give the set four stars. I really liked them!

ebook version of the boxed set can be purchased for a limited time for .99 cents at these locations,
Amazon, iTunes, barnes and noble, smashwords, and kobo!

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Our Testimony

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Revelations 12:11 (Weymouth New Testament), “But they have gained the victory over him because of the blood of the Lamb and of the testimony which they have borne, and because they held their lives cheap and did not shrink even from death.”

It is clear in Revelations that two of our weapons against the enemy are the blood of the lamb and our testimony. The blood washes away our sin, protects us from evil, and made us as right as God, so now we can boldly come into the throne of Grace and we have authority over every power of the evil one.

Why would our testimony be a weapon?

Romans 2:4 (NIV) “Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?”

When we share all the good things that God has done for us, what He has brought us through, we are showing His kindness, some translations say “goodness.” This leads hearts to repent, taking them out of the enemy’s camp and bringing them home to the Father.

Psalm 8:2 (Darby Bible Translation), “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou established praise because of thine adversaries, to still the enemy and the avenger.”

Other versions say “silence”, “destroy”, and “put an end” to the enemy and the avenger. Our testimony is praise to God. Our only form of praise isn’t song. Whenever we share God’s goodness, we are glorifying and praising who He is.
Satan is trying to keep people ignorant of WHO God is.

Hosea 4:6 (ISV), “My people are destroyed because they lack knowledge of me. Because you rejected that knowledge, I will reject you as a priest for me. Since you forget the Law of your God, I will also forget your children.”

Our testimony tells people who God is! They may have heard that God is vengeful, that He makes us sick, that He sends disaster to judge people, but our testimonies of His mercy, His healing power, of His forgiveness shows who He really is.

We all have a testimony. If you have accepted Jesus as your savior, you have something to say.

We just need to remind ourselves of all He has done for us, for all that He is going to do, in fact He already did it all, we just have to accept it and stand on His promise.

Then, tell someone. In fact tell everyone!

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God is Not Done With Israel

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Zephaniah 3:9-17 (NIV), “Then I will purify the lips of the peoples, that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve him shoulder to shoulder. From beyond the rivers of Cush my worshipers, my scattered people, will bring me offerings. On that day you, Jerusalem, will not be put to shame for all the wrongs you have done to me, because I will remove from you your arrogant boasters. Never again will you be haughty on my holy hill. But I will leave within you the meek and humble. The remnant of Israel will trust in the name of the Lord. They will do no wrong; they will tell no lies. A deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouths. They will eat and lie down and no one will make them afraid.” Sing, Daughter Zion; shout aloud, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, Daughter Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy. The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm. On that day they will say to Jerusalem, “Do not fear, Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.”
Even though God’s chosen people have rebelled and turned away from Him over and over during the span of history, He has always kept a remnant, those few who loved Him and were faithful, or those who were lowly and not haughty. He did this for David’s sake. He had promised Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David many things concerning His people and He always keeps His promises. He also did this for His names sake as well. He wants the world to know that He is good, that He is forgiving, and that, no matter what, He loves. He promises to gather them back together as a shepherd gathers His flock. Over the years, many times, it may have looked like God had totally forsaken Israel, but that was never the case. The plans and the purposes that He had for them never changed. His desire for them to be His children and to call Him “Father” always remained the same. He consistently sent deliverers until finally He sent His Son as the final deliverer. They will see Jesus for who He is and they will turn their hearts to the Father. Doesn’t God promise that in His word?

Jeremiah 46:27 (KJB), “But fear not thou, O my servant Jacob, and be not dismayed, O Israel: for, behold, I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and be in rest and at ease, and none shall make him afraid.”

Jeremiah 23:3 (NIV), “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number.”

Isaiah 25:9 (NIV), “In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”

So what do we do as believers? We accept all God has for us, showing the Jews how good God is and what Jesus has done for us. We are to make them jealous enough that they seek after Him.

Romans 11:11 (NLT), “Did God’s people stumble and fall beyond recovery? Of course not! They were disobedient, so God made salvation available to the Gentiles. But he wanted his own people to become jealous and claim it for themselves.”

We also are supposed to be praying for them.

Psalm 122:6 (NASB), “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May they prosper who love you.”

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A Lion or a Lamb?

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The world has issues with who God really is and to be perfectly honest so do a lot a Christians. Sometimes I have to be reminded. We look at the Old Testament and see a God who wiped out whole nations, every man, woman, child, and even their animals. Then we turn to the New Testament and read that “God is Love.”
Is He a lion or a lamb? Is He Master and Ruler, or Servant of all? Is He a vengeful God, or forgiving Savior? Is He so Pure and Holy that He can’t bear to be around sin, or did He pour out His blood to get rid of our sin? The answer to all of these paradoxes is YES! Does it make sense? No, but the wonderful thing about God is that He doesn’t have to make sense. He is God after all. His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts.

So how do we reconcile the God that sent the flood, and Jesus who died for our sins?
Let me first explain one thing you need to know about God. He is Love. No matter what He does, even wiping the human race off the face of the planet, minus the eight He saved, was motivated out of love. Think about this for a minute…what if He would have allowed the human race to continue? There was only one person that God said was righteous. Yes, his whole family was saved, but we don’t know if that was because the shared Noah’s obedience to God, or if it was just God’s mercy and love for Noah. How long do you think it would have taken for there to not be a single faithful follower? God, in His love for His creation, took action while there was still one. Think of Sodom. God would have allowed it to remain if there would have been even five faithful! Evil is like a cancer, it is caused by Satan, and then accepted and propagates in the flesh of men. You can’t cut out part of cancer, you can’t leave just a small cancer cell, you have to do radical surgery and cut it out. That’s what God’s cleansing did.

Through His love and patience, a remnant always remained. Noah and his family, Lot and his daughters, the poor and week who were left in Israel after the enemy took everyone of import captive (after killing thousands). Always, He honored His promise to the founding fathers. For David’s sake, He always made sure to leave an heir. When His own chosen people demanded a king, and the majority of those kings led His people into idol worshipping, even sacrificing their own children, God’s hand, as a loving parent, was forced to discipline His children. Talk about tough love. Don’t ever think it didn’t grieve Him. He lamented over the loss of those He loved. We think we have to make hard choices.

God is the same. Who He was in the Old Testament is still who He is now. He lives outside of time. There is no yesterday for Him. Yesterday, today, and tomorrow are all right now for God. The only difference is that we, who live in time, are in a different state. We live under grace, not under law. Jesus’ shed blood gives us the choice of eternity of Heaven or hell. Just as each new king had the choice to follow after God, or to lead the people in rebellion. We live in the Church age, aren’t you glad, but soon, just as in the Old Testament, God will not spare the world any longer. He will gather up those that are His, and once again, the God who is Just and Holy will deal with evil in this world, once and for all. There will be no more mercy and grace, no “one more chance.”

Isaiah 26:21 (NIV), “See, the LORD is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer.”

Revelation 19:11-21 (ESV), “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.”

Time is winding up like a scroll. Soon and very soon, you will see Jesus coming in the clouds and the Holy Spirit will usher us out of here (if you follow Jesus). Will you be like James and John and ask God to call down fire on the rebellious? Or will you be like Abraham who reasoned with God for Sodom, or like Moses and Aaron who pled for the rebellious group they led, or maybe you will be like Amos who lamented over the loss of the house of Jacob and begged God?

Amos 7:1-6 (NIV), “This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: He was preparing swarms of locusts after the king’s share had been harvested and just as the late crops were coming up. When they had stripped the land clean, I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, forgive! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!” So the Lord relented. “This will not happen,” the Lord said. This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: The Sovereign Lord was calling for judgment by fire; it dried up the great deep and devoured the land. Then I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, I beg you, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!” So the Lord relented. “This will not happen either,” the Sovereign Lord said.”

Do I want Jesus to come back soon? You betcha’! However, I also want to reach as many as possible before that great and terrible day. The finality of “the end” should motivate us! There will be no more grace, no mercy, no more chances for those who have refused Him. Those that are His will spend eternity with Him in the light of His love. Those who are not His will spend eternity in the dark, no God, no love, no light, and no hope. No because God is cruel, but because they chose.

He is Love, He is Just, He is a strong Daddy who takes care of His children. He knows what’s best for each and every person and every decision He makes is for the best!

Can you help them find their way to Him?

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Are You His

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John 13:34-35 (Aramaic Bible In Plain English), “I give a new commandment to you: ‘Love one another; just as I have loved you, you should also love one another.’ Every person will know by this that you are my disciples, if you shall have love one to the other.”

Matthew 5:9 (KJB), “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”

Jesus clearly tells us in these two scriptures how we know if we are truly His. In fact it’s a command of the Father that we love one another, not a suggestion, and not just a good idea.

So you would think that we could take a look around us, in the world, and especially in our own churches, and see who belongs to Him.

Unfortunately, this isn’t true.

Most of the time the only sign that a person is a Christian is their t-shirt or bumper sticker, and then still we doubt what our eyes are telling us. Walk into any church and it won’t take long to see the separation of “us” and “them,” the tension between certain people, or even worse, hostility between the leaders and the congregation. This shouldn’t be so!

Reading through the Old Testament, we see many times where God destroyed the enemy armies by filling them with confusion and they turned on one another, “they all helped to destroy one another..” (II Chronicles 20:23).
When I read that part in II Chronicles this week, I said to the Lord, “that sound a lot like us.” I happen to be going through a time when a member of my church is telling lies about me. The leadership and the Pastor’s are handling it, but it still hurts. I hate division in the church and have done many things, including correcting others, when it tried to come in. I assume that is why the enemy has chosen to attack in that way. Now, before I sound self-righteous and holier than thou, let me say, I have done my share of gossiping and back biting over the years. Thankfully God dealt with me and it isn’t an issue anymore. In fact it makes me sick to think about us behaving this way. Jesus says that He is returning for a bride without spot or wrinkle. This devouring one another is a huge spot, an un-iron-able wrinkle. Why do we want to do the enemies work for him?

Let’s take a look at Paul’s warning to the church in Galatia:
Galatians 5:13-15 (NIV), “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.”

How do we remedy this sickness in the body of Christ? First, love one another! I hear you saying, “but they are so mean…they have body odor…they said this about me…etc.” So what! Love is a choice, not a feeling. The choice can bring great feelings, true, but love is not just an emotion, if it was God wouldn’t have commanded us to love. Love is an action, it’s the way we think about, and the way we treat others. We need to be slow to anger and quick to forgive. We need to not get easily offended. It’s not an option. How can we win others to Christ when we are busy destroying unity in the body? Proverbs tells us only a foolish woman tears her own house down.
Next, we need to be led by the Holy Spirit. He is the one who “shed’s abroad” the love of God in our hearts. That’s how I can still love the person who tried to stir up division in our church, the very one who has lied about me.

Galatians 5 continues on with this:
Galatians 5:16, 22-25 (NLT), “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves…But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.”

We all love hearing about the Fruit of the Spirit. It’s how we expect people to behave, how we want them to treat us, looking at the world and judging them by their lack of fruit. But, Paul was talking to Christians, to us. Taking it in context of how it was written, he is correcting their treatment of one another!

Another thing I have learned over the years is that the best way to get over an issue you have with someone is to pray for them. Not a “God get ‘em” prayer, but really intercede for them. Ask God to forgive them, pray for their well being, and bless them. You may have to ask God to show you His heart for that person. I have had to ask the Father for His love when I couldn’t find any of my own. I still chose to love.

That is how I am still married after thirty years, why I still attend the same church after two splits, and why I continue to love and pray for those who despitefully use me. (Matthew 5:44, Luke 6:28).

Take a look at your life, a real good look, and ask yourself “Am I His?”

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Book Review for “King”-Christian Fantasy

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This was the third book in the trilogy, I loved them all. R.J. Larson is now one of my favorite fantasy writers, and she writes Christian fantasy. Her writing is not “cheesy” and everything faith based is all just part of a wonderfully woven story. Typical fantasy with swords, armies, good versus evil, some romance, and intrigue. I can recommend for teens up. No swearing or sexual content. There is violence and bloodshed. This book finishes up the story of the “Prophet”, the “Judge”, and now we have the “King.” All young adults used by the Infinite to bring about His will. Think Old Testament. 5+ stars for me and am looking forward to reading more from this author.

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Book Review for “Judge”-Christian Fantasy

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Great Christian fiction and fantasy!! I loved both the first book “Prophet” and now book two “Judge.” These allegories tell of the life of a prophet and those who give their lives to the “infinite.” Set in a medieval setting with swords, kings, lords, and servants, “Judge” continues the story of a young prophet and the man who loves her. You will see a retelling, in a new way, of some stories from the bible, such as: Jonah and the fish, and some of Elijah’s, and Jeremiah’s stories. R.J. Larson is one of a new favorites of mine. Fun fantasy, yet still a good message. Great for teens and up, no swearing and no sexual content. I give it 5+ stars.