#SaturdaySpotlight is on Sandra Bretting & Shameless Persistence!

Good Morning Friends!

I always love a true miracle story. Movies and books like, Breakthrough and Miracles from Heaven do so much to build our faith and trust. That's why today's guest, brought to us from Adams Media is so special. Critically-acclaimed mystery author, Sandra Bretting shares her personal story of a miraculous healing in her new release, Shameless Persistence.

How many times have you been asked to pray for someone and thought, “Here I go again?” Maybe it’s for someone’s physical healing. Or his financial situation. Perhaps someone’s made a bad life choice and now she’s suffering the consequences. (The infamous “unspoken prayer request.”) Whatever it is, sometimes prayer fatigue sets in. What’s the point? What difference does it make? I probably won’t even find out what happens to him or her.
And sometimes that’s exactly what happens.

We pray for days, for weeks, for months, even, but we never see an answer to our prayers. We wonder whether God still hears us, or whether he even cares. Then, he startles us awake. He performs a miracle right before our eyes, at a pace that takes our breath away.

Do you need a shot of adrenaline today to bring your prayer life back into focus? A reason to believe you’re not wasting your time? Some real-life examples to bolster your faith in prayer? I hope you find it here, and more. Because my story shows how God works through the prayers of his people. How he heard their cries over one icy weekend in Houston, when more than a thousand Christians came together to rattle the gates of heaven on my behalf. Sometimes, the people who prayed over me didn’t even know my name.

Excerpt from “Chapter 1: AND SO IT BEGINS” from Shameless Persistence

I never set out to be a medical miracle. I never wanted to be a medical miracle. But sometimes, what we want and what God wants are two very different things.

Like many people mentioned in the Bible, God chose someone perfectly ordinary that day when he reached down from heaven in January 2018.

Just another fifty-five-year-old suburban wife and mother who lived on the outskirts of Houston, Texas, with her family. My posse included a husband of almost thirty years (Roger), two daughters (Brooke and Dana), and a slaphappy rescue dog with more brawn than brains (Chance). Brooke had recently married her college sweetheart and moved to Dallas to pursue a career. Meanwhile, Dana lived at home while she wrapped up her senior year of high school and applied to colleges both near and far. Life was pretty good, to be honest. Ever since I graduated from The University of Missouri School of Journalism in 1985, I’d wanted to be a writer. I’d freelanced for newspapers like the Los Angeles Times, when I still lived in California, and then for the Houston Chronicle, when our family moved to Texas for Roger’s career.

Deep down, though, I wanted to write mysteries; my favorite kind of books. After taking a zillion creative writing classes and reading even more rejection letters, God finally granted me a publishing contract in 2012. I wrote one hardcover mystery, and then another. By 2015, I had a six-book contract with a New York publisher to write something called “cozy mysteries,” which are soft-boiled stories that dial down the sex and violence. I was right in the middle of writing my fifth book in the series when Baby New Year arrived in 2018. In other words, I had a loving husband (check), a job I’d always wanted (check) and two amazing daughters. (Check, check.) Life wasn’t perfect, but it was close enough.

Does that sound familiar? The Bible is full of people like me…ordinary people with everyday lives, who chug blissfully along until God upends everything in one fell stroke.

Consider the prophet Jonah. He lived in a mountaintop village about eight-hundred years before Christ was born. Jonah had everything going for him: a close community of family and friends; access to both the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean Sea; and a respectable career as an oracle for God.

What he didn’t have was a desire to preach to the Israelites’ sworn enemy, the Assyrians. So, when God called him to do that very thing in a city called Nineveh, he balked. Several calamitous detours later, including one inside the smelly stomach of a fish, he finally got with God’s program and got his life back on track.

While nothing quite so dramatic happened to me, I felt very much like Jonah pre-Assyrians: blissfully unaware things could ever change.

Until the morning of January 17, 2018, when I woke up feeling “not quite right.” I’d been suffering from lower back pain for a few days, but I passed it off to a wonky spinal cord that acted up every now and again.

Sandra Bretting is the author of the critically-acclaimed book series, “The Missy DuBois Mystery Series” (Kensington Publishing, New York). A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, she spent two decades writing feature stories for national newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times and Houston Chronicle. She is a long-time member of The Writer’s League of Texas and the national chapter of Sisters in Crime. She lives with her family in a suburb of Houston, Texas. For more information visit www.SandraBretting.com. Connect with Sandra on Facebook and BookBub.

Shameless Persistence can be purchased at Amazon.

Wow, wow, wow! Sounds like a book we can all use to bolster our own spiritual walk. Thanks Sandra for sharing your story!

Hope you enjoyed today's post friends. Let's help get Sandra's story out by sharing this post! Be sure to leave a comment so you can be entered into the drawing for a gift card!

Until next time take care, God Bless and remember.... When the going gets tough, the tough get on their knees!

PamT

#WednesdayWordswithFriends withe Melisa Marzett

Good Morning!

Not a whole lot of new things going on for me so I'll let my guest jump right in......

Everyone should know and understand that certain words that we use when communicating with other people are of no use, and it is advisable to remove them from the vocabulary altogether because they do not make us positive and attractive, but only emphasize shortcomings. That is why it is essential to carefully think through and choose the right expressions since the talking words reflect the inner world of a person and have high power. With their help, we can form thoughts, gain inspiration, or lose hope.

If you want to positively influence others and yourself to look in the best light, try to remove the following words from your vocabulary permanently.

1. I hate

There is no such person in the world who would not use this word at least once in life. The problem is that we use this word too often. Every time people do not like something in their life (even if it is some small thing), they say "I hate" without thinking. Most often, it is due to a bad mood or negative emotions. Of course, sometimes, you need to somehow tell about your dislikes or preferences. Try replacing a negative word with a more positive one.

2. Someday

This word is a clear signal of your uncertainty and confusion. When a person pronounces it, then this person shows low interest and lack of all intentions. If you have a goal, you should go for it, and not put it off "someday," otherwise your dreams and plans will never come true. Usually, we put off important matters and decisions until the time when we are ready, but this time may never come. Act now!

3. I can’t

“I can’t” is a dead-weight expression, a stop expression that prevents us from moving forward. Throwing it out of your vocabulary, you will gain the opportunity to get more motivation, strength, and optimism. Those people who say that they cannot do something that will never be successful. Instead of this expression, you can use the following phrase: "I will learn how to do it." In reality, we can do everything, even those things that at first seem challenging and unattainable. To do this, you only need to be persistent, work, and always believe in yourself.

About the author

Melisa Marzett belongs to the category of persons who thinks positive, make lemonade from lemons, sees glasses as half full and so on. Working as a freelance writer, she writes articles for Writing Help and has a great deal of experience in writing matters. Apart from writing, she loves reading obviously and is a voracious reader and enjoys traveling due to being cannot sit still kind of person.

You are SO right Melisa, I be we ALL can think of a few more words that fit in the category of those we would do well to eliminate from our vocabulary. Thank you so  much for sharing with us today.

Hope you enjoyed the post friends. Be sure to check out Melisa's thoughts and treasures she shared with us last year and stop by weekly for more Wednesday Words with Friends and Saturday Spotlight!

Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT

#SaturdaySpotlight is on Valerie Massey Goree & Day of Reckoning!

Good Morning!

It's another soggy day in SW Louisiana. We've seen very little sunlight this past week and for many, this kind of weather affects their mood. I'm one of those people. I try to do everything in my power to alleviate the sour attitude that accompanies gloomy weather. One of my favorite ways to boost my mood is dancing and I did quite a bit of that last night!

Today's guest is new to the blog but not new to me. Valerie Massey Gorree is a fellow Pelican Book Group author and is sharing her brand new release with us today so please give her a huge, warm WELCOME!

 International Retrieval Organization Agent Lela Ortiz is assigned the kidnapping case of businessman, Chuck Davenport. When her boss allows Jay Vashon, Chuck’s brother-in-law to assist, Lela accepts the help with reservations, especially when Jay prays at the most inopportune times.

Jay would do anything to help bring Chuck home, even work with feisty Agent Ortiz. As Jay and Lela decipher clues Chuck sends to his son with special needs, they are forced to work in close proximity.

Can Jay break through the barrier Lela has constructed around her heart? Will Lela be able to overcome her distrust of men and God?

And Chuck? Can the pair locate him before the ransom deadline?

Excerpt: 

Two hours crouched behind a reeking dumpster on a dead-end San Diego street must be the worst possible way to spend a balmy Saturday night. Private Investigator, Agent Lela Ortiz stretched, and massaged her taut neck muscles.

Heavy-metal music pumped out of the open living room windows of the suspect’s house. When would the rowdy party end?

The raid they’d been working on for more than a week had to go down tonight, or the life of a nineteen-year-old girl with a severe medical condition could be lost forever. If they didn’t rescue her now, she would surely end up bruised, broken. Perhaps dead. The tight burn scars on Lela’s torso pinched as if they had a mind of their own. At a minimum, dead inside. Like Lela.

She stood and slowed her breathing, a Tae Kwon Do technique she’d perfected in recent years. Patience was not one of her virtues, but the exercise lowered her stress level.

According to the last check of her watch, another half-hour crept by before the partygoers stumbled down the front steps of the aged house scheduled for demolition in the morning. In the darkness, Lela pressed her back against the warped clapboard siding of the residence. Peeling paint flaked off in her hand.

She counted the people as they staggered down the street or crawled into vehicles. Four. Five. Six.

Where was the last one? From the shadows, she peeked around the corner and almost collided with number seven. Flattening herself against the wall, she reached for her holster.

Drunk, or high, the burly man squinted at her. The streetlight strobed across his whiskered face. His brow wrinkled and he stepped closer, sucking in a deep draw from his cigarette.

A gust of wind swirled smoke in Lela’s face. The pungent odor roiled her insides, raking up bitter memories. No! She refused to visit the past.

“Why you hiding here?” A puff of alcohol-laced air sprayed out with his slurred words.

American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Award winner Valerie Massey Goree resides with her husband on the beautiful Olympic Peninsula of Washington State.

After serving as missionaries in her home country of Zimbabwe and raising two children, Glenn and Valerie moved to Texas. She worked in the public school system for many years, focusing on students with special needs. Now retired, Valerie spends her time writing, and spoiling her grandchildren.

Novels include: Deceive Me Once; Colors of Deceit; Weep in the Night; and stand-alone sequel Day of Reckoning.

Valerie loves to hear from her readers. Connect with her on her Website or Facebook. Get your copy of Day of Reckoning at Pelican Book Group, Amazon or Barnes and Noble!

Wow, Valerie, thanks for sharing! We certainly wish you the best of luck and God's blessings with your new release.

Thanks for stopping by friends. Be sure to leave a comment if you want to be entered into my monthly gift card giveaway and stop by each week for Wednesday Words with Friends and another Saturday Spotlight.

Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT