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24 December 2017

Merry Christmas from OWG Blog



Wishing you all a wonderful joy-filled Christmas and a blessed year ahead!

Isaiah 9:6-7New King James Version (NKJV)

For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Thank you Bible Gateway for the verses and Canva.com for the graphics. Bible Gateway has a free App you can download on your smart phones, too.

I love this scripture! It give me chills and frankly makes me a little tearful. Can you feel His power in these verses?

20 December 2017

Audiobook Review of Ruth Logan Herne's Welcome to Wishing Bridge


Audiobook Review
by Carrie Fancett Pagels

5 Stars *****

Welcome to Wishing Bridge (Brilliance Audio)
Ruth Logan Herne

I'm glad I "won" a Goodreads giveaway of this novel -- even though I never did get notified nor did I get a copy! Because what I did instead was snagged a cheap audiobook version of this absolutely lovely Christmas novel, the first in a new series by Ruth Logan Herne. Ruth was an Overcoming With God blog Angel Award Recipient last year! She has a big heart and an even bigger talent. She's a dedicated professional author, working diligently. She's up early in the morning (Ruthy logs into the 1k1Hr group on Facebook around 5ish most mornings -- when the rest of us are usually sleeping!). But back to this story.

If you're looking for a feel-good story with great narration, lovable characters, and some interesting plot twists and mystery, this is the audiobook for you! Its such a great listen that I plowed through it in about two days! That's unusual for me.

Kelsey is an almost-30 teacher with a master's degree but unable to find permanent work and has set off on a heartbreaking journey at Christmastime. Having lived for two years in Western New York, not far from fictional Wishing Bridge, I have also been caught in a Lake Erie white out. So Ruth's descriptions of driving conditions totally brought back memories! I'm afraid to say much else about this story for fear of spoilers! There's a blurb online you can read but I'd just suggest -- go BUY this story and listen!

Welcome to Wishing Bridge is available in multiple formats.


14 December 2017

Giveaway & Review of Jen Turano's "Out of the Ordinary"



Out of the Ordinary (November 2017, Bethany)

Another Upbeat Confection!

Jen Turano provides the reader with another lovely read in Out of the Ordinary. Gertrude Cadwalader is a funny eccentric character full of life and heart as is her match, Harrison Sinclair. I always find Jen's stories uplifting and Out of the Ordinary was no exception. Gertrude is beside herself chasing after her employer, Mrs. Davenport, who has "sticky fingers" which lands Gertrude in a predicament in this novel.

Harrison is a sweetie. I love his idiosyncrasies.  His family members are also enchantingly unique. This story is full of many characters who will stay with you love after you have finished reading the story.

I teach writing classes about "Why Backstory Matters" and this novel is a great example of revealing why knowing the backstory really does matter in understanding characters. And no, I'm not telling what is revealed in this novel!

Giveaway: A paperback copy of Jen Turano's delightful new novel from Bethany!



10 December 2017

Unfulfilled Familial Expectations - By Lucy Thompson & Giveaway

Author Lucy Thompson
Lucy, welcome to Overcoming With God.  We appreciate your willingness to share your testimony of overcoming with our readers. 

Would you tell us about the one of the most difficult things in your life you have had to overcome, with God’s help?

Unfulfilled Familial Expectations
We all think our family is “normal” until we grow up, possibly even move out, and are challenged by other people’s ‘normal’. Recently, I came across the terms Narcissism and Gaslighting. After reading and researching more on the subject I realized a lot of what is found within those terms described my childhood and first marriage “normal”. There is a short but powerful article here which describes more on this topic and, more importantly, some healthy solutions.

One of the hardest things I found to overcome is unmet family expectations. You know, where we (I!) expect a parent or spouse will treat us (me) one way and instead the reality is totally different. It could be something simple such as:
when I’m married my spouse will never leave his socks on the floor in front of the hamper…
Daddy will always hug me goodnight…
ALL of our family will always love Jesus…

Or, it could be something bigger. Something harder. You fill in the blank with whatever that may be.
But! But…God.
God is so faithful. Jesus truly is my Rock and one steadfast constant through life’s ups and downs. He alone determines my worth and makes my name successful. All this is to glorify Him.

What passages in the Bible have been most helpful to you in those times?

John 14:16a, 18 NLT is a comfort to me. “…I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you…No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you.”
Romans 8:28 NLT “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
When I am tired this verse gives me courage and heart": Galatians 6:9 NLT “S let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.”

What helped you get through or helped you cope with this difficulty?

God doesn’t leave us as orphans. He places HIS family in our lives, stays with us personally, gives us strength when our own gives out.

Disability friendliness: Is this latest release available in audio format or do you have any other works available on audio?  Do your e-books have audio capability? Do you have any in large print? 
No audio formats so far. However, ebooks have the wonderful capacity to be enlarged to a large print standard. Handy! J

In this latest work, “Waltzing Matilda” in The Captive Brides Collection, do you have any topics useful for bibliotherapy, or therapeutic influence through reading about a disorder or situation?  
No disorders in particular. I mainly wrote about trusting God with his plan in the midst of challenging circumstances.

Question you’d like to ask readers:
Do you have a particular song or hymn that has helped you or been a comfort during any of your challenging seasons in life? YouTube links are welcome in the comments. Let’s lift up Jesus’s name. J

BIO:
Lucy Thompson is a stay-at-home mum to five precocious children by day and a snoop by night, stalking interesting characters through historical settings and writing about their exploits. A resident of Queensland, Australia, she loves her sunburnt country and loves to make new friends.

Lucy’s Links:

Book Links:
A Cowboy's Dare (Harding Family Book 2)
Tyrone woke up with a headache—and a wife. And he’s never been so scared in his life. 
$3.99 or FREE with Kindle Unlimited. Christian Historical Fiction.

The Captive Brides Collection: 9 Stories of Great Challenges Overcome Through Great Love

Waltzing Matilda
 by Lucy Thompson - Sydney, Australia, 1821
Henry didn’t plan on a runaway convict masquerading as a shepherd. Or on the woman’s baby. Keeping them safe will cost him his freedom—or will it?


Giveaway: I’m happy to giveaway an ebook copy (open internationally) of either Mail Order Surprise or A Cowboy’s Dare.  CFP: And I'm offering a paperback copy of The Captive Brides Collection (if you're an international reader, if Book Depository ships to your country, you're eligible for the giveaway.)

06 December 2017

Three Little Matchmakers Novella by Susanne Dietze

Three Little Matchmakers in The Regency Brides Collection
By Susanne Dietze

A Trio of Delights!
Review by Carrie Fancett Pagels

I am an unabashed Susie Dietze fan, and I wasn't disappointed! 
5 Stars for this Novella!

Set at Staffordshire, England 1817, this is an adorable story! Miss Caroline Dempsey was close childhood friends with the new Earl of Marsden’s sister. When Caroline’s friend, Esther, and her husband die, their children are left with their uncle Henry Graves and move to Marsden Hall. The daughter of a parson, Caroline grew up nearby and spent a lot of time on the estate. She had a big crush on Henry. But when she becomes governess, she wonders what kind of man he has become.

In the British aristocratic tradition, Henry believes the children would benefit from boarding school. But Caroline has other ideas. She is looking at the needs of the kids. Family needs to be first. The children feel the same way. They take matters into their own hands with disastrous results.

Unfortunately, I did not get to read the rest of the novellas in The Regency Brides Collection yet! But I’m longing to do so as they all look wonderful and by some of my favorite authors! I downloaded my copy from NetGalley and am under no obligation to post a positive review.


This book will be available in large print hard-cover format from Thorndike Press, Gale division, in February 2018. 

Giveaway: Ask your library to pre-order this hardcover book and leave your comment below for a chance to win a copy of any one Barbour book with a story from Susanne Dietze (click here to see her books.)



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