Flooded by Nicki Koziarz

Flooded by Nicki Koziarz is an amazing look at Noah’s life. Nicki takes you through doubt, faith, hard decisions, listening to God, and so much more in the book Flooded. I have read Nicki‘s work before, and found Flooded just as good, if not better, than previous work.

Nicki journeys with you through the good, the bad and sometimes the ugly of faith. Nicki shares real stories and takes an in depth look at Noah's life. 

Nicki shares on page 60, "You don't have to have the spiritual superpower of making sense of the heard things to do the hard thing." She also shares on page 72, "With Noah, we only see this: God commands, Noah listens."  Time and time again Nicki shares amazing insight from Noah's life.  Flooded is a fantastic book and an amazing read. 

I was given a free copy from the publisher and highly recommend Flooded. 

Intercession Post Script

 And the journey of the prayers continues to be seen. 

In April of 2019 I wrote a 3 part story of the power of prayer and intercession.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Although on this side if Heaven we may or may not be able to see the impact of  prayers, in this such tragedy, I did get to see a little of the impact.

1 Corinthians 13:12 (MSG) We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

You can watch this testimony.

Yes, it's long, but what an Amazing God! What impact those prayers have had. To God be the Glory!

Unknown Threat by Lynn H. Blackburn

Unknown Threat by Lynn H. Blackburn shares the story of US Secret service special agent Luke Powell. Tragedy is running through his department as many of his coworkers have died recently in unusual circumstances. However, FBI Special Agent Faith Malone is investigating the case. The glitch is that the FBI and the Secret Service do not get along. They do not think highly of each other. Who is attacking the Secret Service? Will Faith ever be able to solve the crime? What are her issues with men?

Unknown Threat is a fun, gripping, and captivating story. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. The twist and turns that it takes keep you interested and makes it a fantastic read. You need to hang on until the end to find out what is going on. I was given a free copy from the publisher for my honest review which I was happy to do. I highly recommend.

Facing the Dawn by Cynthia Ruchti

Facing the Dawn by Cynthia Ruchti was definitely a unique read!  I can honestly say I have never read a realistic fiction book like this. And I'm still not sure how I feel about it, but it was truly unique.  Mara (which means bitter) is raising her three children on her own since her humanitarian husband is chasing his passion miles aways helping so many others. Is it worth it, to parent her three children on her own? Will Liam ever return home to help with all the undone house projects and the undone family? The events that follow will challenge you and possible wreck you!

If you are looking for a realistic fiction book that may be a little too realistic this is definitely book for you.  If you are looking for a feel good, get lost in a book, it may be for you. This book will challenge your thoughts and feelings!

I am glad I persevered and completed the book. The author does truly write in a unique way. I would encourage you to check this book out. I was given a free copy from the publisher for my honest review. 

Clutter Decline by God’s Design

 Clutter Decline by God’s Design by Dawnell Yoder is a gift. This book is not your regular “how to declutter your house book”. Rather this book goes to the heart of the issue and supports each issue with scripture. I would describe this as a devotional and a how to declutter book. I’ve read lots of books about decluttering, very few have the practical tips that are shared  by Dawnell. 

Dawnell shares, “When we leave no margin in our lives, and we are always rushing here and there, our homes can quickly fall apart at the seams, and we end up in a place of frustration and ineffectiveness.”   She also shares, “The most ironic thing to me about living with an ‘I will get to it later’ approach is that it almost always creates more work.”  I also enjoyed the thought-provoking questions at the end of each chapter.

Dawnell addresses issues in Clutter Decline by God’s Design that I have not seen addressed in other decluttering books. This book is surely a gift and a gem. Perfect for yourself or as a gift to others around you. This book also serves as a great encouragement. Applicable to people in all stages of life. I highly recommend.

Clutter Decline by God’s Design is available on Amazon! 

A Dance in Donegal

A Dance in Donegal by Jennifer Deibel is the tale of Moira, who recently lost her mother. She has also finished her training to be a teacher at the normal school. As per her mothers arrangements before her death she will be heading to Ireland to teach at the local school. Her mother hasn’t shared  much about her upbringing in Ireland, but when Moira arrives in Ireland she soon realizes there is a deep history that her mother has never shared with her. Moira must learn the customs and ways of those in Donegal. Is this really the life for her? Will she ever fit in? What about her students and those around her who are giving her a really difficult time?

A Dance in Donegal is a delightful tale of a young school teacher, a new country and a new life. I did enjoy the story. I would recommend looking at the glossary in the back of the book to help you understand some of the colloquial language that is used. 

A Dance in Donegal is an enjoyable story! I was given a free copy from the publisher for my honest review. I am happy to recommend this book.

The Lady in Residence

The Lady in Residence by Allison Pittman is a thrilling tale within a tale!  Dini works several jobs including the tour guide for a ghost walking tour. Suddenly a young man joins her tour and is intrigued by the tail she is sharing. The text then flashes back to the tale shared on the tour. It is a ghost tour so there is talk of ghosts and spirits. Finally through much interweaving and captivating, a decades old mystery is solved! Be prepared for how it will end!  Not as you expected.

The Lady in Residence is in entertaining book that I thoroughly enjoyed. Readers will not want to put it down as they go from story to story (past to present and back to the past again). I received a complementary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing  and was under no obligation to post a review. However I am happy to recommend this book!

The Beauty of an Uncluttered Soul by Carla Gasser

The Beauty of an Uncluttered Soul by Carla Gasser is a collection of thoughts and ideas on how to unclutter your soul and allow God’s Spirit to transform your heart focusing on the fruit of the Spirit. This is a beautifully illustrated book illustrated by Vivian Kammel. The illustrations are absolutely stunning. Carla takes you through checking your attitudes, checking your actions, and checking your habits. Each chapter walks you through the why behind the transformation, searching the Scriptures, observing, using, leaning and applying with a time to reflect.

This book would make an excellent gift for yourself or others looking to unclutter their hearts and go back to the basics of a simple soul. I was given a free copy from the publisher for my honest review which I was happy to do.

Make Their Day by Karen Ehman

 Make Their Day by Karen Ehman is a wonderful collection of 101 delightful ideas of ways you can encourage others. Included are ideas such as leaving out treats for your delivery people,  putting together a gift basket of items related around a book, and so many other creative ways to encourage.  Some might think of Karen as the "queen of hospitality" who delights with her simple and practical ideas of showing hospitality to others, wherever it may be!

In Make Their Day, Karen shares ideas to encourage friends, your own family, throughout your day and around your town, across the miles or through the internet, those who are hurting or in need, within the church, through holidays as well at in your home. Karen even offers some fun printables.  

After reading Make Their Day, you will be inspired by not only the ideas Karen includes but inspired to think of other ideas as well!  I was given a free copy from the publisher for my honest review, which I was happy to do. I heartily recommend Make Their Day!

Bless This Mess

I recently saw a post on facebook from a desperate mama about how to organize toys and the constant "war zone" of toys. 

Here is my response.

Dear mamas. My kids are now 22, 20, 17, 14, & 12. My house looked like a constant war zone. The Legos turned the oldest towards mechanical engineering. The farm toys helped #2 become a conservation biology major, the play school area propelled #3 to seek a teaching career. #4 picked up the Legos & Playmobil. And #5 loved baby dolls. It remains to be seen what they will do. But. The clutter/mess is definitely more manageable now. Granted I have lacrosse sticks, track turf bubbles, football gear etc. Not to mention the “I was sent home from college due to Covid at the college” & here’s all my dorm stuff. Trust me mamas. It will get better. Enjoy the mess for now. I’m not going to tell you that someday you will miss it (I don’t). Remember you can have it all just not all at once. Hang in there.

Mommyhood in those years is hard (let's face it, all mommy hood is hard, it just looks different depending on where you are in the journey)!

I looked and look for a photo of my trashed toy room from when my kids were little. And I couldn't find a photo!  So take photos of that mess so you can look back on it and realize you won't miss it!

Here are the photos I did find!

From 2011

From 2009

My house doesn't look perfect now. But it's a different kind of mess!