Michelle Lynn Brown's Blog, page 6
December 31, 2015
Review – Miracle at the Higher Grounds Café, by Max Lucado
Miracle at the Higher Grounds Café, by Max Lucado, combines the power of prayer from The War Room with the spiritual warfare of a Frank Peritti novel. The result is a sweet tale of love, redemption and forgiveness.
Recently separated from her NFL superstar husband, Chelsea Chambers inherits her mother’s cafe and the problems that come with it. Chelsea must learn to navigate motherhood and life with these new challenges. However, forgiveness is not on her list of hurdles to overcome – especially when it comes to her cheating husband.
I have read many of Lucado’s non-fiction and children’s fiction books. In my opinion, Lucado is a superb writer. He has the ability to weave hope and beauty into every letter on the page. Miracle at the Higher Grounds Café is classic Max Lucado storytelling, and is sensitive and touching in its delivery. Dynamic characters, a sweet storyline, and hope-filled messages grace every page of this book. While not a deep read, it does teach us the power of prayer and forgiveness. If you are looking for a quick and sweet book to curl up on the couch with, then this book will not disappoint. I give this romantic tale of forgiveness a five-star rating for the storytelling, characters, and message.
(I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.)
September 28, 2015
Review: All the Angels Stood, Laura J. Marshall
This YA Fiction novella by Laura J. Marshall was a great book capturing the tumultuous emotions of a young woman, Staci, who feels like she has nothing left to lose, and nothing left to live for. Until she meets Rush, a young man determined to battle the demons that cling to Staci. He battles them with prayer, obedience to the prompting of the Spirit, and through love.
Book Summary:
This is the last week in Staci Schofield’s life. Her birthday is on Monday, which is also the day she plans to die. Poetic, seeing as her mother disappeared on the night of her own birthday. But when a popular guy from school, Rush, befriends Staci, will her plans change?
Rush sees demons clinging to Staci and nothing has worked so far to help her. What will make a difference in her life? A friend, an intercessor? How do you help someone move from ‘take my life’ to ‘Lord, preserve me’?
My Review:
I loved this book. The story is short, so you wouldn’t expect to get so invested in this story. But you do. You easily and quickly get caught up in the characters. The story line has you in the first few words, and the message stays with you long after you are done.
Review: A Time to Dance, Karen Kingsbury
Karen Kingsbury's, A Time to Dance, is the emotional story of a couple having to come to terms with their failing marriage, the consequences of their choices, and their dying faith.
Book Summary:
John and Abby are ready to call it quits. But is it ever too late to love?
They're the perfect couple—envied by their friends, cherished by their children, admired by their peers. But John and Abby Reynolds know they're just pretending to be happy. In fact, they're waiting for the right time to tell the kids they're going to divorce. But at the family meeting where they plan to tell their children, Nicole shares a surprise of her own: she's getting married. How can they spoil her joy with their announcement?
They can pretend a little longer—until after the wedding. But questions begin to haunt them as the date draws nearer. What happened to the love and commitment that held them together for so long? Is it still there somewhere under all the pain and misunderstanding? And is it still possible, alone in the moonlight on an old wooden pier, to once more find . . . a time to dance?
The first novel in Karen Kingsbury's celebrated series about the resiliency of love, the power of commitment, and the amazing faithfulness of God.
I have heard so much about Karen Kingsbury that I was excited to read one of her books. I was told that she is great at realistically capturing the emotions of individuals in real-life struggles. A Time to Dance didn't fail in this aspect. The story was realistic and really showed the couples struggle and pain. I think their emotional struggle is what kept me reading. I was rooting for the couple, gripped by their pain, and hurting for them.
Unfortunately, I was also skimming the story. The story was page after page of inner thoughts and flashbacks. What made it worse was that these thoughts and flashbacks echoed.
"I can make sure no one ever finds out...no one ever finds out...no one ever finds out."
I did finish the book and I loved the message. However, the way it was written made the storyline drag.
September 7, 2015
God out of the Box
Psalm 46 was part of my devotional reading this morning. The devotional spoke of how we take scriptures, memorize them, quote them, and snuggle up to them when we need comfort and reassurance. While the writer conceded that this was great, he argued that sometimes we skip the more gritty passages. We glaze over them because we are uncomfortable with them. He cited the passage where Elisha curses a group of children who called him bald. The author also pointed out that we turn the story of Noah into nursery theme, when it is a story of God’s tremendous power and judgement.
I loved how the devotional explained why the children were so offensive. On the surface, we think they are kids being kids, teasing an old man. However, studying the passage from the historical and cultural context, and understanding the meaning of the words we see the passage differently.
To “be still and know God” means more than just understanding God and scriptures from our point of view. Adam Clarke’s Commentary of the Bible states that being still means to cease provoking, sinning against, and murmuring about God. It means to stop what you are doing and “deeply reflect on the severity and goodness of God – severity to those who are brought down and destroyed; goodness to you who are raised up and exalted.” The commentary goes on to say, knowing God means understanding that He is, “the Fountain of power, wisdom, justice, goodness, and truth.”
The more I study God’s Word, I realize how much in me that needs to be changed and transformed. WE need to be transformed into the image of God. But how often do we transform God into something we can imagine. We take our understanding of mercy and compassion and try to fit God into that box. Sometimes this means we put limits on His mercy – “I can never be forgiven for this.”
When it suits our needs, we take out our God of justice, ignoring the other facets of His character. Sometimes this means we only reflect one aspect of His character to others. We cry for justice and judgement, missing out on an opportunity to minister to someone.
Our box is way too small to ever contain His glory, His greatness.
Today, take some time to be still. To stop your own understanding, and lean into Him. His whole truth.
August 30, 2015
Trust and Love
This morning, my devotional stated that trusting in God’s love is an expression of our love. It really got me thinking, we easily confess our love for God, but we struggle with our trust. Things happen and we bite our nails, pace our floors, and beg God to remember us – to not leave us in this dark place.
Trust requires that we know the person. We don’t trust strangers. You wouldn’t hand your purse to some you don’t know to watch over.
“Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!””
(Matthew 8:23-27 NLT)
But the more you know a person, the more you know whether they are worthy of your trust. You know their faithfulness, their heart, and how they act and react to things.
The same is true with God. The more we know Him, the more we know how faithful He is. The thing is – at least in my life – the more I know God, the more I trust Him and the more I love Him. The more I know him, the more I want less of me and more of Him.
August 28, 2015
Enter to Win a $50 Amazon Gift Card!
I am so excited to be able to bring this to you all!
The Christian Women Writer's Club has branched off to now include a Christian Women Reader's Club.
The CWRC has a lot to offer
Find out about the latest new releases in Christian Fiction and Non-Fiction
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To kick off our new group, we are giving away a $50 Amazon Gift Card! Want to be a part of this? Just subscribe to our monthly email blast and you will be entered into the drawing. That's right - monthly. Many other sites bombard your email with daily deals. Our club is not about overwhelming you with sales - we just want to connect Christian women with quality Christian books at an affordable price. And the best part - it is FREE to subscribe!
(Christian Women Writer's Club members are ineligible for the giveaway)
July 27, 2015
Kendall’s Secret – A New YA Release by Nora Ballew
The town of Waterville, Pennsylvania is home to Kendall Ross and her friends, Justin, Hannah, Alex, Megan and Owen. Together, they are JOY, the first youth praise ba
nd their church has ever had. “Kendall’s Secret,” the first in The Praise Band Series, is available now on Amazon.com.
From the back cover:
Kendall’s world revolves around her family, the church youth band, and an endless stream of text messages with her friends… until a tragic accident claims her sister’s life and leaves Kendall carrying a painful secret. Her mother, her friends, even the police don’t know what really happened that fateful night on Crooked Hill Road.
Shattered by grief and tortured by her memories, Kendall knows if she tells the truth, she may never be forgiven. But if she doesn’t, someone else will face certain persecution. Will she ever find the courage to reveal how one choice, one word, changed everything?
From the author:
Everybody does it. That’s the battle cry of the teenager, and sometimes it is all too true. Kendall didn’t do anything that her friends and even her mom and other adults weren’t doing. That’s why Kendall didn’t seriously worry about texting while driving. It wasn’t really that big of deal, was it? Perhaps not. Until that last one, that last message that changed Kendall’s life forever and ended Hayley’s. Read her story for just 99 cents until July 31, 2015!
September 16, 2014
Hello world!
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August 29, 2014
Giveaway – Paperback Copy of Rehearsals and Regrets
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August 5, 2014
Excerpt from Rehearsals and Regrets
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