Blog

Holly Jolly Christmas Giveaway

Posted by admin on Nov 26, 2018 in Blog | Comments Off on Holly Jolly Christmas Giveaway

Do you love Christmas….especially Christmas books? How about a $50 Amazon gift card?

Celebrate Lit has combined 35+ fantastic Christmas books for this giveaway. To check them out and read about a different author each day, VISIT OUR FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE HERE.

To sign up for the giveaway, VISIT OUR GIVEAWAY PAGE HERE.

Our Christmas Trilogy book, Holly, Ivy, & Intrigue is included in the giveaway. It contains three suspense/mystery stories that you will love, written by myself and two other authors, Denise Weimer and Alexa Verde.  Here is what each story is about:

Christmas Murder Mix-Up by Joanie Bruce

“I have to get rid of her now.”

After four months of a blissful marriage, Paige is devastated to overhear her husband, Cooper, say those words to his best friend. Because of a suspicious Christmas gift, a gas leak, and a home invasion, Paige’s love for Cooper is tested to the limit. Will their marriage survive the Christmas Murder Mix-up?

Holiday Pursuit by Alexa Verde

When Brianna Rockwell’s brother finds himself in danger and disappears three days before Christmas, she does everything to rescue him. Brianna dodges bullets, escapes fire, and even turns to her longtime crush for help. But the closer she gets to solving the mystery and finding her only sibling, the more desperate someone gets to silence her forever…

A Holiday Intruder by Denise Weimer

Kelsey Jordan prefers upcycling junk and refinishing antiques for her store in a Georgia mountains town to being the center of attention. When a robbery and an unknown benefactor shove her in the middle of a decades-old mystery, and a real estate developer and a former baseball star compete for her attention, Kelsey isn’t sure who to trust.

ENTER HERE……and good luck!

A Sweet Savor for God

Posted by admin on Jul 21, 2018 in Blog | Comments Off on A Sweet Savor for God

In the books of the Old Testament, there were different types of sacrifices God required of the Children of Israel in the wilderness: the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the meal offering were only a few. God gave the priests specific instructions how to execute each ritual.

But the thing I noticed most is what God stressed about EVERY offering . . . that it make a sweet savor for the LORD.  It wasn’t the sacrificed animal itself that was as important to God as the sweet savor of the offering.

Even though the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ became atonement for our sins, and we are no longer required to offer sacrifices, I believe we can still offer God a sweet savor offering.

When we sacrifice time to help those in trouble, or sacrificially donate money to someone in need or to missions, or when we sacrificially offer forgiveness to a friend, it’s our attitude during those offerings that matter to God.

Book Review: More Than Meets the Eye by Carrie Daws

Posted by admin on Jun 28, 2018 in Blog | Comments Off on Book Review: More Than Meets the Eye by Carrie Daws

More Than Meets the Eye by Carrie Daws

My Review:

This book was so much fun to read. What an uplifting story!

I especially loved the insights I gained regarding the struggles a military family endures during their service to our country. Knowing this story is the true story … of an actual military couple … made the situations in the book more moving.

I hurt for the mother whose child suffered with childhood asthma and wept with her as her husband struggled through physical and mental illness caused by Sleep Apnea. I also rejoiced with her as she learned to trust God for the strength and guidance she needed to accept, and actually thrive, with God’s presence in her life.

Over all I give this book five stars. I think it would be especially meaningful to any military wife and mother who struggles with military life; However not knowing anything about military life did not stop me from enjoying this book thoroughly.

I highly recommend this book to anyone loving a tender, inspirational story.

I was given a copy of this book. The thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

About the Author:

From Carrie:

Me? A writer? That’s what I would have said before God pushed the issue. I just liked to write devotions and post them online for women to read. But then God introduced me to the Christian Writer’s Guild and I discovered that writing fiction wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be. With the help of an encouraging mentor and friends with a voracious fiction appetite, Crossing Values was completed, followed by the other three books in the Crossing series. Now I’m starting a new series based around military spouses!

Along the way, my husband medically retired from the United States Air Force. After years of constant moving, we settled in North Carolina with our three children. Besides writing novels, I stay busy home schooling and keeping up with our extended family and friends.

I strive to write clean fiction. I love happily-ever-after stories that gently advocate Biblical values and I believe in advocating healing from past hurts and families uniting in difficult circumstances. More than anything, I want the hope of Christ to permeate each of my books. Learn more or connect with me at CarrieDaws.com.

From the back of the book:

Deployment changed him, and she doesn’t know if she can live with it.
After her husband returns from a deployment to Saudi Arabia, Lori Braxton begins noticing little differences in his behavior. He’s withdrawn, moody, and can’t sleep. Could it be the stress of military life after the 9/11 attack on New York? Maybe it’s the new assignment in Montana or the financial problems he ignores. Perhaps it’s forces she can’t see and doesn’t know how to fight, or maybe she’s a bigger part of the problem than she wants to admit.
What is God doing? Is He even paying attention? 
Lori tries to attend church and do what God asks, but the truth is she doesn’t really hear Him speak. Between money strains, pregnancy hormones, and young ones underfoot, Lori spirals into depression.
What good could God possibly bring from the mess surrounding her? 

Buy Carrie’s book HERE

Prayer Boot Camp Tip#2

Posted by admin on May 30, 2018 in Blog | Comments Off on Prayer Boot Camp Tip#2

Remember the post on the “Prayer Boot Camp”? Today I’d like to share tip#2 for feeling the power of God behind us through prayer.

Our first tip for effective prayers was HOW to pray the way Jesus taught us in the Bible. Using the PRAY method. P- praise, R-repentance, A-appreciation, and Y-yearnings.

Today, I’d like to share another tip I learned about prayer. Tip #2:   WHY we should pray.

We all know how human nature works: We pray when we need something, when we are desperate for a change in our lives. Sometimes it’s when a loved one is ill or when we desire something we can’t get for ourselves. But prayer is not only about begging God in the frantic or uncontrollable times of our lives; It is an avenue of worship and fellowship with our God who only wants the best for us. Click To Tweet

Prayer can be a time of renewal. Jesus told us that without fellowship with Him, we are nothing.

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without me you can do nothing.”   –John 15:5  We will wither up and die without Him.

Prayer is important to a Christian because it is actually infusing our life with the power of the God of the universe. Click To TweetWow! We have that power and energy behind us as long as we stay in God’s will and stay in fellowship with Him. To stay in God’s will, we have to be in constant contact with Him and follow His leading.

He loves us and wants the best for us, but when we forget to fellowship with Him, we lose the blessings He longs to give us. We wither up and die.

Why should we pray? Wouldn’t you love to bask in the BEST God has stored up for you? Prayer is the key.

Why do YOU think prayer is important in a Christian’s life?

Impatient? Me??

Posted by admin on May 3, 2018 in Blog | 1 comment

Dear Readers: Are you a patient person? Sometimes I think when God created me, He forgot to give me patience. ( Lol ) …..which is ridiculous, I know, since God makes no mistakes—but I am deficient when it comes to that trait.

The world we live in today which flaunts instant gratification with fast food, instant access, high-speed internet, and speed dial, hasn’t helped my lack of patience at all.

But today, I learned a lesson in patience … from my husband. Ben has a bat-wing mower that he uses to mow down thistles and briers in the pasture so the cows can reach the grass underneath. His mower has seen better days, and one of the mower decks was rusted through, making it impossible to use. So … being the industrious hoarder of junk equipment that he is, he happened to have purchased an older mower to use for parts. He decided to combine the best parts of each and build a serviceable mower.

That’s when he ran into a problem. The hinges on the used mower were so old and rusty, they would not move. He worked for three days … yes, I said three days … trying to break them free by pounding, oiling, heating, cooling, and using any other tactic he could think of, but they refused to budge. And yet, even after all of that frustration, he still came into the house each time with an upbeat “Hey honey,” for me. Even though he was covered in oil, grease, rust and dirt and was tired from the ninety-five degree heat, he still had a smile on his face.

Now that, my friends, is a lesson in patience. My husband provides me continually with perfect examples of long-suffering and forbearance, and this is what I’ve learned from him after all these years:

1) Admit your impatience: Acknowledging I’m irritated with a person or situation is the first step to overcoming those negative feelings. Being patient is a mental skill. If I exercise it, it will get stronger.

2) Agree that patience is a choice:  I can choose to be angry or aggravated, which makes me irritated even more, or I can choose to be calm and tolerant. The choice you make determines your outlook on anything that happens in your life.

3) Accept what you cannot change:  Slow drivers are a nightmare for me, yet I can’t make them go away. I can ride their bumpers, honk my horn, yell out the window, or make faces and hope they see me in the mirror, but chances are, they won’t even notice my behavior. When you can’t change it, accept it. Ben would probably say “Relax. Enjoy the ride.”

4) Analyze the situation, and come up with something positive to say about it:  Being behind a slow car might save me from being involved in a wreck further up the road. If I can change my feelings of pessimism to optimism, I find that I’m much happier.

So, my dear friends, I’m trying to make my life happier and more pleasing to God by living my life with a tolerance for others and without complaint. I’m not saying I will always succeed because I won’t, but I’m trying … and I hope you will as well.

Patience: 1) the quality of being patient, as in the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like. 2) the ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay.

My Son is Getting Married!

Posted by admin on Apr 17, 2018 in Blog | 4 comments

My son is getting married on Saturday. That one statement carries a host of emotions.

First of all, I’m thrilled he will have someone to grow old with … someone to laugh with during the good times, and someone to hold his hand and prop him up when he needs encouragement during the hard times.  I’m also thankful for the young woman he’s marrying, Erin. She is perfect for him in every way. She’s a Christian, which would be my first requirement, (if I was allowed to pick his future mate) and she has a sweet, kind, and caring spirit. I’m looking forward to welcoming her into our family.

On the flip side, I have to admit there is a little bit of sadness in my heart. Sadness because he is my “baby” … the last of my three children to be born and the last to get married.  Sadness because we will miss seeing him every day since he will now live in Virginia. And sadness because I would love to claim my future daughter-in-law as a new “daughter” and learn more about her … which will be hard when they live seven hours away.

Yes, thoughts of the wedding bring tears to my eyes, but they are a mixture of sad tears and happy tears. His marriage is a culmination of years spent in prayer for him … that he would grow up to be a man of God, a man of integrity, and reliable and trustworthy. The happy tears are because he is a man we can be proud of. A man who, I think, will make a good husband … a good spiritual leader and hopefully, one day, a good father.

So most of my tears are ones of gratitude. God has blessed us now with three additions to our family. Two new “sons” we love and are so proud of, and now a new “daughter” whom we can love as well. After our children were born and were growing day by day, we prayed for their character and for the character of their future mates. I can honestly say God has answered those prayers. He has given us perfect mates for our children, and for that I will always be grateful.

So this marriage will finally kick our last little bird out of the nest, and start another new family for us to love. Three children, three news members of the family, and a whole world of blessings … more than we deserve and more than we every hoped for. Thank you, Lord!

Characters NEED Personality!

Posted by admin on Apr 14, 2018 in Blog | Comments Off on Characters NEED Personality!

People ask me where I get the ideas for my characters. First of all, let me say that all my characters are fictional, however, I’ve used character traits from people I’ve met over the years to flavor my characters and give them personality.

My art career has brought me in touch with so many different kinds of clients—some quirky, some exciting, some just plain weird. But, one thing about each of them….they all have smiles on their faces, and they all have some sort of characteristic or story to tell that make them unique.  A kooky neighbor who piles up beer cans in the back yard and uses the pop-tops to line their driveway. (Which, by the way, I used in my book “Alana Candler, Marked for Murder,”) or, someone with a cat who loves to plunge himself into the Christmas tree every year so he can play with the ornaments he knocks off.

The most colorful person I’ve ever met was a woman who thought the police, the sheriff’s department, even the government was spying on her—twenty-four hours a day.  She closed her windows, blinds and curtains immediately when the sun went down, and made sure her cell phone was off before she talked about anything worth hearing. She even moved twice to “throw the hounds off the track.” Now THAT is paranoia! I can’t wait to put that character trait in a book!

What fun to mold and bend one little idiosyncrasy into an intriguing character with a colored personality! And THAT’S what makes writing fiction so exciting!

What Does Easter Mean to You?

Posted by admin on Mar 31, 2018 in Blog | 3 comments

Tomorrow is Easter Sunday. What is the first thing that comes to YOUR mind when you think of Easter? Easter baskets? Easter eggs? The Easter bunny?

So many of our Christian celebrations are being taken over by the secular world, and Easter is no different. Today people think of coloring eggs, hiding eggs, the Easter bunny leaving gifts, a new dress to wear to church (the one they attend for the only Sunday of the year,) but Easter should mean something more to us as Christians.

So many of the contemporary Easter symbols have evolved into what the world wants to think of them. Take for instance the egg. Anyone who has children knows what I mean when I say we spend a frustrating day boiling tons of eggs, mixing dye with vinegar, allowing our children to put on aprons, and watching them make a mess of our kitchen. Why? Because it’s Easter, and that’s what you do on Easter. But for the early Christians, the egg itself was a symbol of the empty tomb after Jesus was resurrected, and the Christians at that time dyed eggs red to symbolize the blood of Christ.

For the early church, the Resurrection meant Jesus Christ had risen from the dead, as He said he would, and the whole week before Easter contained a group of events that gave them a reason to celebrate: The Last Supper, Good Friday, (which commemorates Jesus’ death on the cross,) and finally Easter … when He defied death and rose from the grave.

When I contemplate this holiday, I think of what Jesus Christ did for me. He left His unimaginably glorious home in heaven to be born as a baby, to live his life as a mere human, to be ridiculed, tortured and to die a horrible death … for ME.

In John 1:29b, John calls him the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” That “lamb” was “led as a sheep to the slaughter;” (Acts 8:32a) as a sacrifice for our sins. He did that for us, so that we might have eternal life.

What a wonderful time to celebrate that great love! Easter gives me a reason to love God even more: His holiness, His majesty, His sovereignty, His patience, His mercy, His great knowledge and wisdom, but most of all, His exceptional and unconditional LOVE. 

I hope you truly feel God’s love through the sacrifices He made for us.

Happy Easter, my friends.

“Prayer Boot Camp”

Posted by admin on Mar 29, 2018 in Blog | Comments Off on “Prayer Boot Camp”

Would you like to FEEL God’s power in Your Prayers?

Prayer tip #1:   Jesus taught us HOW to pray:

Do you REALLY believe God answers your prayers? Do you believe we have the power of God behind us when we ask God for things in His will? Would you like to SEE the power of God released in YOUR answered prayers?

Alex and Steve Kendrick (the producers of several inspiring movies, including “War Room”) offer a Bible study on prayer. This study is POWERFUL, and has changed my prayer time and my relationship with the Lord tremendously.

Since I started researching the way to pray, God has blessed me ABUNDANTLY … even more than I could have ever imagine. Click To Tweet      It made such a huge impact on my life that I’m dying to share some of the things I’ve learned … from watching the movie, War Room, from our church lessons on prayer, and through reading the Bible about the power and privilege of prayer. I would love to share what I learned with you, so YOU can feel the power of God behind YOUR prayers. If you apply these principles, I believe you will have specific prayers answered, and your relationship and time with the Lord will become much sweeter.

Our pastor called the study on prayer “Prayer Boot Camp.” Why? Because it teaches us the very basics of prayer. James 4:2b says “yet ye have not, because ye ask not.” We CAN have our prayers answered and have tremendous blessings to go along with it. Click To Tweet

The first thing I learned about praying is that God only answers the prayers of His children. In order to claim God as your Father, you have to believe Jesus came to earth as a baby, was crucified on the cross, died and rose again to become a sinless sacrifice for your sins. Until you repent of your sins and ask God to save you, GOD WILL NOT HEAR YOUR PRAYERS. (John 9:31)

In the book of Matthew, chapter six, Jesus taught His disciples, and us, HOW to pray … in what we know as “The Lord’s Prayer.” If we use the acronym PRAY, it will help us remember the steps Jesus used in His prayer.

P-Praise. Jesus praised God first. Starting my prayers with adoration, reminds me of the One I’m praying to: the creator of the Universe, the God who created ME. I praise Him for His patience, mercy, kindness, His great love, and so much more.

R-Repentance. The Bible says God will not hear my prayers with sin in my life. I ask the Lord to reveal sins in my heart that I need to confess, so He will hear my prayers. (1 John 1:9)

A-Appreciation. Gratitude toward God for what He has done for me honors Him. I thank Him for the specific blessings in my life.

Y-Yearning. This involves asking God to answer my requests:  the salvation of a loved one, blessings in my marriage, my health, our finances, or as intercession for a friend.

P-R-A-Y…….P…Praise, R…Repentance, A…Appreciation, Y…Yearning. This is how Jesus taught us how to pray.

The first step in filling your prayers with POWER is a challenge: I challenge you to pray EVERY DAY using the PRAY acronym. Habits are formed from repetition. If you’re like me, after you pray for several days, you will start looking forward to your time with the Lord in prayer and craving that loving relationship.

I’m praying for you, my friends, because after traveling down the road I’m sharing with you now, I have been so totally blessed. Nothing would make me happier than knowing you’ve been blessed also by drawing closer to our God in prayer.

Pray with the faith of a child!

Book Review: A Chance at Forever by Melissa Jagears

Posted by admin on Mar 7, 2018 in Blog | 2 comments

I would like to warn you … this review contains information that might give away parts of the story.

This book was enjoyable to read because Melissa Jagears is a fantastic author. She drew me into the lives of the characters from the beginning of the book and kept me enthralled to the end.

I think forgiveness is the main theme of this story, and that theme is woven throughout the book through the eyes of multiple characters.

Aaron Firebrook has a past to live down. Bullying everyone around him when he was younger is not something he is proud of, but he is determined to make restitution to those people he oppressed. He returns to his hometown with the express goal of asking for their forgiveness.

Mercy McClain, one of the people Aaron bullied unbearably when they were younger, now has the power to refuse Aaron a position teaching math in their school system. At first, she votes against Aaron, but by the end of the story, she not only finds forgiveness, she finds love.

This story also showcases the conundrum the “ladies of the night” were caught up in during this time in history. They were never forgiven by polite society and not allowed to associate with others even when they moved out of the “red-light district” and reformed from that way of life. No one wanted to hire them, so there were no ways for them to make a living. The lack of tolerance and forgiveness for these women also touched the lives of their children. This story is also about helping those women and children

Over all I give this book 5+ stars. I loved it from the beginning to the end, and I highly recommend it to anyone loving a good historical romance.

I was given a copy of the book by the publisher, but the thoughts and opinions are my own.

Please let me know if you’ve read the book and what you thought about it. 🙂