Review: Getaway with God

Getaway with God
By Letitia Suk
Kregel, 2016


Summary

What if a simple day away could transform your life?

Does spending time with God sound like just one more thing to check off an ever-increasing to-do list? How are you supposed to fit in anything that threatens to be more time-consuming? Too often there's simply no room to experience the intimacy, grace, and peace that God offers us.

Getaway with God does more than invite you to step away from life's pressures to take a personal retreat. It shows you exactly why you must---for your sake and for your family's.

With grace and warmth, Letitia Suk provides step-by-step guidance and the necessary tools to enable any woman on any budget to plan time away, whether it's a quick, half-day break or a weeklong time of restoration. You'll find detailed steps for preparation, including descriptions of different kinds of retreats and how to choose the best one for you, and you'll learn ways to bring the renewal you experience home with you. Practical appendixes identify retreat centers nationwide and provide exercises and prayers to kick-start your getaway with God.

No matter what your season in life, the time for retreat is now!

Purchase a copy: http://bit.ly/2gCczSG


My thoughts

I really like this book … but more than simply liking it, I found it to be an excellent resource for strengthening our relationship with God, growing closer to Him, and finding spiritual renewal.

Many Christians make time for daily quiet times with God, but Letitia Suk introduces us to something more. The word “getaway” is key here, for it involves removing ourselves from all that would distract us and spending one-on-one time with God. Easy to accomplish? Not really. Necessary and rewarding? Definitely! My church used to encourage its ministers to regularly take a personal retreat day. I don’t know if it still does, but I certainly hope so. This getaway would benefit every Christian, however, not just ministers.

Letitia starts off by asking, “What if you could plug your soul in for a long recharge like you do you phone every night?” Now that’s something that I suspect all of us can relate to. Letitia provides tons of encouragement and practical resources. There’s no “one size fits all” plan for a personal retreat; it can be for a few hours, overnight, or even longer. There’s even a chapter filled with Sabbath retreat ideas.

_________________________

“Most of us don’t need convincing that God speaks to people.

We just aren’t sure he will speak to us.”

_________________________

My favorite chapter is where Letitia talks about the types of personal retreats, giving specific information. For instance, their purpose can be restorative, listening, or goal-setting. I would love to get away for eight hours or so and do a “listening” retreat using the Lectio Divina form of meditation that she describes.

Getaway with God is an important book for everyone. If you want to plan a personal retreat, this is a wonderful resource. If the idea of a personal retreat isn’t even on your radar, reading it just might change your mind.

Highly recommended.

_________________________

Letitia invites women to chase the Intentional life. She writes and speaks of God's renewal and restoration and offers platters of hope to women in each season of life. Tish is also a personal retreat guide and life coach in the Chicago area and moonlights as a hospital chaplain. You might run into her walking by Lake Michigan, browsing resale shops, or making up a new tradition. She blogs at hopeforthebest.org and is also the author of Rhythms of Renewal.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

I was provided a free copy of this book through Litfuse Publicity. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

http://litfusegroup.com/author/lsuk

Review: Dangerous Prayer

Dangerous Prayer
By Cheri Fuller
Barbour Publishing, 2015


Summary

Dangerous prayers happen when you turn your all over to God and offer yourself as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1). They don’t take you to a comfortable, easy place. They test you, stretch you, and take you where you wouldn’t have chosen. They change not only your life but the lives of other people.

Join gifted speaker and award-winning author, Cheri Fuller, as she illustrates—from Bible times to today—what happens when God’s people pray dangerous prayers. Each of the 21 chapters is rooted in scripture and weaves together a beautiful tapestry of lives and kingdoms impacted through the power of prayer.


My thoughts

It’s been years since I’ve read one of Cheri Fuller’s excellent books on prayer, and Dangerous Prayer was a welcome discovery. Interesting, inspirational – but most of all, this collection just might prompt your thinking or cause you to reconsider a quiet whisper of God’s Spirit.

Cheri writes in the introduction that dangerous prayers “start when we turn our efforts over to the Lord and are ready to lay down our agenda for His will.” Following is a moving collection of stories about people who prayed “dangerous prayers” and found themselves and others used or changed in incredible ways. Prayers like . . .

• “God, do whatever you need to do.”
• “Break my heart for people.”
• “Lord, show me the way.”
• “What do you want me to do?”
• “Lord, show me what’s on your heart.”
• “Help me show ____ Your love.”
• “Launch me, Lord, out into the deep with You . . . past all my reservations, my timidity, and my comfort zone. Whatever this means, break me fee from spiritual mediocrity.”

There’s no doubt as to whom the main character is, and that’s God. It’s also wonderful to see the way He specifically worked in each storyteller’s life and to be reminded that this is the same God at work in our lives. I loved how Cheri points out that even praying the Lord’s Prayer – “God, may Your kingdom come” – is a dangerous prayer because you’re surrendering to God’s plans and letting go of your own.

Dangerous Prayer is an inspiring and challenging book. Recommended.

_________________________

        Cheri Fuller is a gifted speaker and award-winning author of more than forty books, including The One Year Women’s Friendship Devotional, the bestselling When Mothers Pray, and A Busy Woman’s Guide to Prayer. Her books have been translated into many languages, and her speaking ministry has provided encouragement to people throughout the U.S. and abroad.
        A former Oklahoma Mother of the Year, Cheri has been a frequent guest on national TV and radio programs. Her articles on family, spiritual growth, relationships, and prayer have appeared in Family Circle, Focus on the Family, Guideposts, and many other publications. Cheri holds a master’s degree in English literature and is executive director of the nonprofit organization Redeeming the Family. She and her husband, Holmes, live in Oklahoma, and have three grown children and six wonderful grandchildren.
        Cheri’s books, Bible studies, and other resources can be found at www.cherifuller.com along with information on her speaking topics and how to schedule Cheri for events. To find out more about the ministry, visit www.redeemingthefamily.org.

Thank you to Barbour Publishing for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Review: The Stress Cure

The Stress Cure
By Linda Evans Shepherd
Revell, 2014


Summary

We live in a world filled to the brim with advice, and when it comes to dealing with stress, there's plenty of advice to go around. Sleep more, eat better, avoid this, seek out that. But more ideas about how to cope are not necessarily what we need if we're stressed and anxious.

What we need is a cure.

The true remedy to stress, Linda Evans Shepherd says, is prayer. In this inspiring book, she shows you how to recognize God's continual presence in your life and yield your troubles to the Prince of Peace. Through captivating stories, explorations of fascinating biblical characters, and examples of deeper-than-ever prayers, she brings within your grasp the peace that passes understanding. If you are overwhelmed by all of the urgent demands on your time, this book offers you a lifeline to true peace.


My thoughts

I enjoyed The Stress Cure by Linda Evans Shepherd and think it offers much of value. Stress is something that I suspect most of us struggle with, and rather than a "quick fix," The Stress Cure offers easily-remembered guidelines which can be practiced over a period of time until they become part of a daily lifestyle.

The 12 chapters are designed for devotional reading or Bible study and journaling, with topics like overwhelmed, frustrated, burdened, anxious, distracted - and ending with peace. Specific prayer guides are provided at the end of each chapter topic. I also found Linda's retelling of some familiar biblical stories very inspiring.

Linda's writing style made me feel like we were sitting across from each other at a coffee shop - easy to follow, applicable personal stories, values clearly communicated, and prayer guides at the end of each chapter. An excellent study guide is also provided here.

The Stress Cure is a book that most any believer would find helpful, and I think new believers would especially benefit from it. Here are just a few quotes that spoke to me:

"Jesus is not offering to make our problems disappear; He's offering to give us rest for our souls while He does our heavy lifting."

"What the enemy uses to distract you from God's presence or purpose, God uses to keep you closer to Him than ever."

"We want to stay focused on Jesus not only because He is powerful, but also because He is our power."

The Stress Cure can be purchased online at CBD, DeeperShopping, B&N, and Amazon.

Linda Evans Shepherd

Linda Evans Shepherd is the author of over thirty books including When You Don't Know What to Pray: How to Talk to God about Anything and When You Can't Find God: How to Ignite the Power of His Presence, and the co-author of the popular series the Potluck Club and the Potluck Catering Club. Linda is an international speaker and media personality and is the creator of RightToTheHeart.tv and appears as a frequent host of Daystar's Denver Celebration.

She's the leader of the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association and president of the nonprofit ministry Right to the Heart, which has seen over 500,000 people come to faith. She's married and has two children.

For more information, visit www.sheppro.com and gottopray.com/prayer-cures-for-stress.

Thank you to Revell for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Organizing Your Prayer Closet

Organizing Your Prayer Closet
By Gina Duke
Abingdon Press, 2013


Summary

Statistics from a Christianity Today survey found that 48 percent of the Christians surveyed were unhappy with their prayer life, 34 percent revealed that they did not know how to pray, while 31 percent were not sure that God ever responded to their prayers. Organizing Your Prayer Closet offers a holistic, new approach to revitalizing this important spiritual discipline. It both inspires and equips with Scripture, inspirational quotes, and space for journaling.

In the first section, author Gina Duke illuminates the importance and power of prayer as the best connection to the source of all strength. Then she breaks down tough spiritual concepts into practical exercises with 52 weekly worksheets that guide and equip you on a yearlong prayer journey. Each week you will be challenged to complete lessons on interacting with scripture, overcoming prayer hurdles, learning to pray authentically, holding yourself accountable, acknowledging answered prayer, and more.


My thoughts

Sometimes I think that with all that has been published on the topic of prayer, do we really need another book? But if the statistics quoted in the summary above are anywhere close to accurate, then obviously there is a need! And then I think of my personal experience in this area - ranging all the way from consistency to only being prompted by need, and most often landing somewhere in the middle. So I decided that Gina's book was worth examining, and I am so glad I did. Sometimes a writer's style will especially "click" with readers, and I think Gina's message in Organizing Your Prayer Closet will do exactly that for many Christians.

This is a book about prayer, a devotional, and a 60-week journal all in one. These are just a few things readers will learn:

• Offer up meaningful worship
• Grow spiritually by overcoming sin
• Hear God with clarity
• Remember prayer requests
• How to pray with scripture
• Develop faith and confidence in the sovereignty of God

Prayer journaling is something I've always wanted to do, but have been unsuccessful at so far. I found Organizing Your Prayer Closet inspirational, logical, simple to follow, and filled with principles that I can easily put into practice. Gina's ideas have already made a big difference in my prayer life.

____________________

 

Four things let us ever keep in mind: 

God hears prayer, God heeds prayer,

God answers prayer, and God delivers by prayer.

- E. M. Bounds

 

____________________

Gina asks this question in the introduction:  "Why wouldn't I record my petitions and God's answers, unless I don't think He answers them?" Then she goes into ten chapters dealing with areas of prayer-closet praying, combining personal stories with a passion and knowledge drawn from years of experience. Her gentle style is conversational, easy to follow, and very motivational. Most people will shy away from something that looks like it will take a lot of time, but that's not the case here at all. This is more of a way to sort out your thoughts before entering into a time of prayer.

Gina addresses the topic of petitions as one would expect, but there were several other chapters that I especially appreciated, like praise and thanksgiving . . . freedom and forgiveness . . . learning to hear God's answers . . . the difference between ask, seek and knock . . . trusting in God's sovereignty. One of my favorite quotes speaks a warning to all of us:  "If you are serious about your spiritual growth, Satan will get just as serious - in a different direction."

I highly recommend Organizing Your Prayer Closet, to seasoned Christians and new believers alike.

Gina Duke

        Author Gina Duke is a direct, point-on, expositor of God’s Word. With helpful, practical words of wisdom, she is able to speak truth in a unique and real way. Her sense of humor and down to earth application of God’s Word has made her a favorite keynote speaker. With over 15 years of leading women’s conferences, she brings a clear word and confidence for Christian living.
        Gina holds a B.S. in Organizational Leadership and is currently completing her A.S. degree in Ministry. She is on staff as the Director of Women’s Ministry at her local church. This “Southern Belle” lives and travels from the Kentucky/Tennessee state line. Gina is the host of a one-minute radio feature, “A Moment of Clarity” on WQKR with a reach of over 97,000 listeners throughout the day. She is also an Executive Board member of the Bledsoe Baptist Association (Tennessee Baptist Convention).
        In addition to her first love of ministry, Gina is the principal of her privately owned consulting firm that specializes in recruiting, training, executive coaching and strategic planning for the private sector, non-profit agencies and government entities.
        Gina is married to her best friend Jamie, and is the mother of two beautiful daughters. She is a proud grandmother of two sweet little grandsons, and has one handsome son-in-law.

Meet Gina online at ginaduke.com, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Thank you to BookFun.org and Abingdon Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.