"Hosanna to the Son of David!
'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'
Hosanna in the highest!"
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Sorry this is a little late, but Happy Palm Sunday everyone. I pray that today was a blessed day for you.
"Hosanna to the Son of David! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!' Hosanna in the highest!"
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I think we can all agree this has been a harsh winter. The weather here has been brutal. Bitter cold. Feet upon feet of snow. There has been an abundance of sadness and devastation in the news. I've experienced way too many deaths this winter - both in my own family and in the families of my friends. My grandmother passed away in January, then my mom's cousin died and, just a few days ago, my dad's aunt. I've had friends lose their grandparents, a brother, an unborn child. I've found myself asking God, "How much more, Lord? How much more?" But I'm remind that His mercies are made new each and every morning. And my favorite verse in Jeremiah tells me he has a plan for me. We might not always understand, or see clearly, that plan, but He DOES have a plan for you and for me. We just have to have the faith to look for it. "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11 Have faith, friends. God has a purpose for EVERYTHING in our lives! We just need to look for that purpose and hold on tight to it. “The world was dog-eat-dog and she was nobody’s puppy chow.” Dr. Juliet Ryan is the quality assurance director at Larimar Springs Corporation, a bottled water company based in San Antonio, Texas. She is a hard-core career woman who has fought to get where she is in life. Appearance-obsessed Juliet lives with the knowledge that “ability mattered, but image was everything” and therefore is “training herself to use before she got used.” She is focused on proving herself worthy and top-notch in a male-dominated world — one that includes her father as the director of the North American Food Safety Institute. Butting heads in their professional lives, as well as their personal, Juliet and her father, Dr. Bennett Ryan, just can’t seem to get along. Like ever. But their relationship is put to the ultimate test when both personal and professional storms hit their lives. Juliet is thrown into a whirlwind after both personal lost and corporate disaster strike. Kelli Coates Gilbert tackles many difficult topics in “Where Rivers Part” — trust, forgiveness of others and one’s self, letting go of grudges, the true worth of life, finding proper priorities, finding and accepting true love, and finding the beauty and worth on the inside, not just one’s outer appearance. She takes a character — Juliet — who honestly isn’t very likable at first, and turns her into a beautiful character you can’t help but root for by the end. Juliet eventually becomes quite relatable because, even though she initially seems “perfect” on the outside, we quickly learn she suffers from flaws like the rest of us. This book was fun and interesting and fast-paced and kept me wondering what would happen next. The topic of food safety was an interesting subject to read about — one you don't find often in fiction tales. I truly enjoyed reading “Where Rivers Part.” Five stars out of five. Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review. “Where Rivers Part” (a Texas Gold novel) by Kellie Coates Gilbert “ ‘If you’re asking, do we matter … count? Then, yes, of course I believe that. And I don’t ever doubt that there’s a master plan — a hopeful one. That’s the promise. God, by our side in all things. But …’ He sighed. ‘We don’t get to … know the timing. That’s where faith steps in.’ ” Candace Calvert brings back some characters from her Grace Medical series in “By Your Side,” which takes place in Sacramento, Calif. Deputy Fletcher Holt has moved there from Houston to help keep an eye on his mother, Charly, who is a crisis care chaplain battling leukemia. Macy Wynn is a trauma nurse at Sacramento Hope ER, battling wounds from her past. A former foster kid with a mother who died young, a father who never really wanted to claim her, and a foster sister in drug rehab, Macy must learn to let down her guard and learn to trust others — and more importantly, trust God. Fletcher and Macy are quickly thrown together after a sniper-caused accident on the freeway, and what follows is an intense, action-packed story. Calvert writes an intriguing story, one which you’ll find hard to put down. The characters are fun, yet relatable. Both Fletcher and Macy must deal with their own “demons” and learn to not only trust in God, but to trust in His plan — to let go and let God. As Charly points out to her son at one point: “A ‘fair’ outcome isn’t promised. Despite that, faith requires trust.” “By Your Side” is filled with great secondary characters — little, tap dancing Annie Sims, a foster kid who was hurt in the freeway accident; Dr. Andi Carlyle, an ER doctor who proves great things come in little packages; Taylor Cabot, a widowed nurse and chaplain trainee; Seth Donovan, a widower and California Crisis Care chaplain; and Elliot Rush, Macy’s financial advisor and “friend.” This book is a great read, but can also be hard or uncomfortable to read at times (but in a good way), as it makes the reader ask himself: “How would I react in similar situations and circumstances? Would I reach out to God’s mercy and grace?” So even though “By Your Side” is a fast-paced thriller and a great fiction read, it truly makes the reader think of the greater picture and ponder God’s greater plan. It is a story of faith and trust and hope and mercy and forgiveness and stepping aside and allowing God to work in the way He needs to work. I can’t wait for the next read! Five stars out of five. Tyndale House Publishers provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review. “By Your Side” (a Crisis Team novel) by Candace Calvert |
AuthorWife of Barkley. "Mom" of 2 cats - Bronte & Tiki. Mom to three beautiful African children I sponsor through Compassion International. Christian. Lover of books and all travel Disney! Archives
March 2020
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