“Fear has no power until we give it control, until we decide that what it says is true and we must take action on it. Then fear becomes the captor of our souls. Fear keeps us stuck and small. Fear makes us treat the world with suspicion. Fear makes us doubt God’s goodness. Fear is the little whisper that tells each of us, Look out for yourself. Fear sidles up next to us and says, God doesn’t listen. Fear sneaks in and suggests, You’ll never make it. Fear says, God is against you.”

Nicole Unice offers a lovely tome of encouragement with “Brave Enough.” She works off the premise of what if your worried energy was gone and you could experience a life with more joy and wonder … if the weight of responsibility and failure were gone. 

With “Brave Enough,” she shows women how to experience a life filled with courage — to be brave-enough women filled with Jesus-courage. Unice, who writes openly and vulnerably, offers vignettes from her own personal life, as well as the lives of those she knows to encourage the reader on their path to braveness. More importantly, she offers many excellent examples from the Bible and the life of Christ.

She offers practical steps on how to pursue a brave life — choosing courage in everyday choices, finding grace, and embracing and practicing spiritual survival skills, for example.

Each chapter ends with questions of reflection, as well as a prayer — meaning this book can be read through in its entirety, or one chapter at a time as a daily devotional. The book ends with a sizable appendix on “The Word in Courage,” where Unice arranges Scripture passages by theme — God’s passion for us, His power and protection, and His priorities, promises and provision.

This is an excellent book to help the Christian woman in her battle against fear and anxiety, and finding the courage to be “brave-enough.”

Five stars out of five.

Tyndale House Publishers provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review

“Proverbs Prayers” is a great resource for anyone who would like to add the Proverbs into their daily walk and devotional time. Author John Mason provides a resource that allows the reader to not only read a Proverb each day of the month, but to also focus on a prayer that reflects the theme of that day’s Proverbs.

Spanning 31 days, Mason’s book provides the full text for each Proverb, primarily offered in the New American Standard Bible, followed by a prayer.

If read and prayed genuinely, “Proverbs Prayers” will be a great resource for the reader to grow closer to God and gain a deeper insight into the Bible’s Book of Proverbs and its wisdoms. With each day’s installment fairly short, this book is quick and easy to follow, and won’t bog the reader down.

Mason concludes the book with a section entitled “Proverbs Principles,” where he offers a verse and brief explanation on how Proverbs relates to various topics — like character, compassion, laziness, motivation, temptation and trust.

“Proverbs Prayers” is a great tool to deepen one’s connection to God and will give the reader a nice daily boost in their walk.

Five stars out of five.

Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review

One of my favorite authors, Mike Dellosso, is undertaking a journey with his family to adopt a teen girl. You can be a part of his journey by purchasing his newest book, out Oct. 20, on Amazon. Here's what he has to say:

Folks, the time has come. October 20th I'll be releasing my self-published novel, FEAR MOUNTAIN, in ebook form only. This is how it will work. I have four covers by four accomplished graphic artists. I'm going to release a new book/cover every week for four weeks. Then after a month I'm hoping to be ready to release the paperback version. Don't hold your breath on the paperback version, though. It may take longer than that. We have a log going on right now.

I'm hoping for all of your support with a purchase of the book and a review. It'll be $9.99 but 100% of the proceeds will go toward our adoption.

This is a great story. I love it. I wrote it about seven years ago. I think you'll like it too. Be looking for graphics to share all this week in promotion of the release on 10/20!

Be sure to check it out!

“But from the Redeemer’s position, mercy and favor are stronger forces than all our wreckage and rubble. There are grace notes everywhere, if you have ears to hear them.”

“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” - John 14:18

I’m not normally a non-fiction kind of gal. Usually I struggle to get past the first few chapters. But not so with Lorilee Craker’s “ ‘Anne of Green Gables,’ My Daughter & Me.” This literary memoir is a delightful telling of the adoption stories of both herself and her South Korean daughter, Phoebe, and how those tales interweave with the story of that beloved red-haired Anne Girl as well as Anne’s author, Lucy Maud Montgomery.

As Craker reminds us of the story of Anne, the beloved literary orphan adopted by the Cuthbert siblings on Canada’s Prince Edward Island, she openly and honestly shares her own stories — how she was adopted as an infant by a loving Mennonite couple, and how she and her husband adopted their own daughter from South Korea.

In her very open and honest tellings about the ups and downs of being adopted, Craker helps remind us that we are all orphans in some way or another. This memoir deals with lessons, whether you are adopted or not, that we all struggle with — our search for identity, building friendships and trusts, knowing we all have cracks and what to do with them, finding redemption after we goof up, as well as forgiveness; and, most importantly, God mends the brokenness we all have.

The author provides many valuable nuggets of truths that speak deeply to the heart, like: “Redemption is not always obvious. Not at all. We are often blinded to the ways in which our adoptive Father swaps our wrecking balls for His renovation projects. If only we opened our eyes to see. If only we remembered that even in the dark, in the silence, He is working, salvaging our junkyard scraps, saving us forever.”

“ ‘Anne of Green Gables,’ My Daughter & Me” is funny, serious, thought-provoking and tear-provoking. Even though it is technically “non-fiction,” it reads very quickly and easily, almost like a fiction novel. Fans of Lucy Maud Montgomery and that spunky red-headed orphan girl, Anne, will love this book. Those who have a heart for orphans, or who have found that bit of an orphan in themselves, will find this book lovely and refreshing. 

As a fellow Anne fan who has been blessed enough to travel to Prince Edward Island once and walk in the steps of L.M. Montgomery, I found this book simply delightful.

Five stars out of five.

Tyndale House Publishers provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review.

“The truth is beautiful, like you. The truth is you have been made perfect and are wholly loved. Chosen simply because you breathe, because you exist, because of who created you. … Truth has existed since before time began, and its message is that because you were born, because you grow, because you take steps, because you laugh, you are loved and worth the greatest sacrifice.”

Wow! Just wow! There’s so much to say about Rachelle Dekker’s debut novel, “The Choosing,” but so much I don’t want to say because I don’t want to give away the book’s plot. Dekker has made an incredible entry into the publishing world with her first work.

It’s the year 2257 and Carrington Hale is preparing for her Choosing ceremony. As per law given by God and set into motion by the Holy Robert Carson during the society’s Time of Ruin, if a young woman is not picked by a man for marriage, she is considered Unchosen and must leave her family and become a “Lint” worker — working the lowest-level trade jobs.

When Carrington is unexpectedly not chosen, she is quickly sent off to the Lint Stacks to begin her life of hardship and servitude. She doesn’t anticipate, though, receiving a second chance — but at what cost?

As Carrington develops new relationships — some good, some not-so-good — there are troublesome events occurring in the city. Lint girls are showing up murdered, and the Authority’s CityWatch cannot solve the crimes. And mysterious Aaron is vexingly leading people astray from the Authority and its laws from their holy book by teaching people there is more to their identity than provided by the Authority.

Dekker infuses “The Choosing” was amazing truths, like seeking one’s true identity and beauty and self worth, and finding the sources of these aspects; removing labels; the belief that one can be “beautiful, blameless and chosen”; and stepping above the role or position society may inflict upon you. One constantly asks “What is true beauty? What is true worth?” when reading this novel.

“The Choosing” is also a lovely parable reflecting the teachings of Jesus, and his battle against the religious leaders of his time and their hypocrisy. It reflects the love and identity we can find only through Him.

The book is filled with great and intriguing characters: Carrington, CityWatch guard and stutterer Remko Brant, friend and fellow Lint Larkin Caulmen, and Isaac Knight, Authority member and chief interpreter and keeper of the Veritas (the holy book). And as for plot, Dekker keeps you guessing until the very last page on how Carrington’s story will truly end.

If you like “dystopian” series like “The Hunger Games” and “Divergent,” or even Ted Dekker’s “Circle” series (yes, he’s the author’s father!), then you will like this new series.

I know I can’t wait for the next book!

Five stars out of five.

Tyndale House Publishers provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review.

1. How did you come up with the story for The Choosing?

This is a hard question because it has many answers. I wanted to write a theme-based novel about identity. I wanted to write a dystopian novel. I wanted to write in a world that was familiar, but in a setting where I could change the way the world worked. It actually is several ideas I’d been toying with pulled into one story. Once I landed on Carrington’s core revelation and story arc, I simply fell in love with her as a character and drew the rest of the story around her. That’s usually how it works for me. I come up with a character, good or bad, and create the story from there.

2. You based your main character, Carrington, off of your younger sister. In what ways is Carrington like her?

It’s more the beliefs that Carrington struggles with that remind me of my sister. The idea of worth, of not feeling like you’re enough, or questioning whether anyone would choose you. Carrington came about as I spent time with my sister and her college-age friends and saw that a large majority of them were searching for significance, searching for worth—none more than my sister at the time.

3. Throughout the book, Carrington struggles with understanding her identity and worth and what is true. Why did you decide to write about the theme of identity?

Someone once asked me, If you could leave one message for your younger sisters, what would it be? The answer was always the same: I would pray they knew what they were worth. Identity is everything. There isn’t a theme that doesn’t start with identity, or circle back to identity. Knowing who you truly are is the greatest journey we face. Am I enough; am I worth it? I believe everyone faces these questions, and I sought out to explore them through this story.

4. One of the story’s most significant lines is, “Life is a journey of remembering and forgetting.” What do you mean by this?

It means exactly what you probably think. We have these flashes of clarity where we see so clearly who we are—and our connection to the Father—but then, in a single moment, something pulls our attention away and we forget who we are. This is the journey of life, remembering and forgetting. But I believe the more we remember, the more we set our gaze on the Father, the less often we forget.

5. What do you hope readers will take away from the story?

I hope readers are filled with joy and power as they either realize for the first time who their Father is and what they are really worth, or as they simply remember this truth.

6. The Choosing is the first of a three-book series. What can we expect in the next two books?

More struggles with identity, but in different ways. Familiar characters dealing with fear and worry and forgiveness. We’ll walk with our characters as they continue to understand the true way of Aaron’s Father. More excitement, more romance (of course), and more self-discovery.

7. What is it like being Ted Dekker’s daughter? Did your father help you with the writing process?

Being Ted’s daughter is wonderful! He’s the best, but then I hope many daughters feel that way about their fathers. He is a bit of a mystery, though. Sometimes, even sitting at the dinner table, I can tell he’s lost in thought, and I wonder what it might be like to have his mind.

It’s been a blessing to watch him write and struggle with writing, so that now when I struggle I have an understanding ear to talk off. He is always willing to talk me through the emotional and mental side of writing (which is where the biggest battles lie in wait) but as far as story, for the most part he lets me fend for myself. It’s always been important to me to write through my challenges on my own. To figure out scenes alone. In fact, he didn’t even read The Choosing until I was already in conversations with Tyndale about publication. I think that’s because he wanted me to believe I could do it on my own.

But when I doubt my ability as a writer, and when I forget who I am, he is the one I call. And he reminds me that life is a journey of remembering and forgetting, and helps me in remembering once again.

About the Author — The oldest daughter of New York Times bestselling author Ted Dekker, Rachelle Dekker was inspired early on to discover truth through storytelling. She graduated with a degree in communications and spent several years in marketing and corporate recruiting before making the transition to write full-time. She lives in Nashville with her husband, Daniel, and their diva cat, Blair. Visit her online at rachelledekker.com.

“No one can change another person. That’s up to the individual and God.”

Amanda Cabot brings a lovely romantic tale with great life lessons in her second installment of the Texas Crossroads series, “In Firefly Valley.”

Marisa St. George has returned home to Dupree, Texas, to work as the business manager at the Rainbow’s End resort. She has a bigger problem than giving up her big city dreams though. Marisa has still not learned how to get past the anger and resentment toward her father. You see, Eric St. George was an alcoholic (“the town drunk”) who missed out on much of Marisa’s childhood, and then abandoned her and her mother eight years ago. They don’t even know if Eric is still alive. And for that, Marisa cannot forgive him.

Blake Kendall, who is secretly a bestselling author, comes to Rainbow’s End to escape his writer’s block and move past the issues of anger and disappointment from his life.

As the two quickly fall in love, and several trying circumstances come into their lives, Marisa especially must learn that she is feeling bitter and angry at both her earthly father, Eric, and her heavenly father, and that she must rely on God to get past it. 

“In Firefly Valley” deals with deep emotions and topics like betrayal, abandonment, anger, trust, forgiveness, and having false hope versus believing that God can work a miracle in every situation.

Cabot portrays her characters as very real and very flawed. It’s incredible how long Marisa holds on to her anger toward both her father and Blake, but if we’re all honest, wouldn’t we be exactly the same? We all like to hold a grudge for as long as possible.

Readers will also fall in love with other characters, like her mother, Carmen, cook extraordinaire; Greg and Kate, owners of Rainbow’s End; and Marisa’s best friend, Lauren, who is a widow and mom to 7-year-old feisty, mismatched-sock-wearing Fiona.

“In Firefly Valley” does an excellent job of making us think about the hold anger and betrayal can have in our lives and reminds us of that old expression: “Let go, and let God.”

Even though this is the second book, you can definitely read it as a standalone. I look forward to reading the story of Gillian, Kate’s pianist friend who suffers a crushing accident, in the next installment out Spring 2016.

Five stars out of five.

Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review.

“In Firefly Valley” (Texas Crossroads series, #2) by Amanda Cabot

“For a seed to grow, it must become completely undone. The shell cracks. The insides must spill out, and everything changes forever. What comes next is a miracle, and it happens over and over in the gardens of the earth, as well as in the gardens of our hearts so that love can bloom.”

Lorna Seilstad’s “As Love Blooms” follows the story of the third Gregory sister, Tessa, and her journey in learning about faith.

It is May 1913 and Tessa, a horticulture student, is seeking employment at Como Park in St. Paul, Minnesota. She really needs this job because, well, she has a secret. And if she can get a job designing gardens at the park, she can keep her secret to herself.

Reese King, whose father just happens to be the Chicago park commissioner, has a lot to prove in his position at Como Park. He feels he lacks creativity, but still knows how to put together a lovely garden.

So Tessa and Reese secretly join forces in designing a stunning garden at Como Park so each can achieve their goal — she to obtain a gardening job at the park and he to get the coveted head gardener position for the park’s proposed new conservatory.

What follows is a lovely tale of blooming love, interspersed with lessons on faith and allowing God to move mountains for us; secrets and the repercussions that can come from them; fitting in with others versus just being one’s self; and being rooted in something solid, particularly in God. 

“As Love Blooms” is a great, gentle romance — but it much more than that. It contains some mysterious happenings, including a crazy, good ending. Fun historical facts also find their way into the book — including Oreos and Cokes as favorite treats of the characters; the start of vacant garden lots in communities; the creation of Como Park’s Conservatory, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary in November; and women’s suffrage, soundly led by Tessa’s bloomer-wearing Aunt Sam.

“As Love Blooms” is a fun, sweet, exciting and educational read with a lot of great characters.

Five stars out of five.

Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, provided this complimentary copy for my honest, unbiased review.

“As Love Blooms” (The Gregory Sisters series, #3) by Lorna Seilstad

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!"

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.