Find God after Abortion with the Film ‘The Choice’

May 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By Dianne E. Butts:

How can you find God after abortion?  The book Deliver Me and the short film ‘The Choice’ offer hope.

 

Bring up the subject of abortion and discussions get heated. Pro-lifers fight for the unborn. Pro-choicers fight for “a women’s right to choose.” (My short film, embedded below, reveals a different kind of choice.) In the melee, people who are forgotten are those who made the choice, experienced abortion, and now live with that choice. They often suffer multiple symptoms including believing God will never forgive them. But I discovered some find God after abortion.

In my book Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy, I talked with many women (and men) about their decision to have an abortion. Most of them told me that afterwards they struggled with nightmares, depression, fear, promiscuity, anger, anxiety, guilt, alcohol dependency, drug abuse, or suicidal thoughts or attempts. These symptoms can increase around the anniversary of the abortion, the date when the child would have been born, and holidays like Mother’s Day.

These and other symptoms collectively are called Post Abortion Syndrome (PAS).

In February, I participated in the 168 Film Project, which is a speed filmmaking contest to make a short film (11 minutes max) based on an assigned Bible verse in 168 hours (1 week). This year for the first time I headed up my own film team as Producer, Director, and Writer.

This year’s contest theme was “Promises” (from God) and my team was assigned Romans 10:11-13:

 “As the Scripture says, ‘Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.’ For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile —the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”

As I prayed about what story we would make into a film that week, I thought of a story in my book Deliver Me called “The Choice” by Chris Jackman, a singer/songwriter. Chris told me in the years following her abortion she deeply regretted her choice, thought God would never forgive her, and found herself numerous times with a razor to her wrist trying to work up the courage to end her torment. Eventually, at the suggestion of a Christian bookstore owner, Chris wrote and recorded an entire CD about her experience called “The Choice.”

Whether because of shame, guilt, or fear of being found out, many women (and men) live with a hidden secret: they’ve lost a child to abortion. They live with the agony of what they’ve done and the fear that they have committed the one sin God will never forgive. That’s a lie. Don’t listen to the lies anymore. God will forgive you. He loves you.

This Mother’s Day, I want to recognize all those mothers and fathers who have lost a child to abortion. As my Mother’s Day gift to you, here is my film ‘The Choice’. My prayer is that it will find its way to the women and men who need its message of love and hope and forgiveness, and that you will find God after abortion.

The Choice – HD

(Film run time, 10 minutes. Includes the original song The Choice, by Chris Jackman, part of a biographical music story on CD about her abortion recovery journey.)

© Dianne E. Butts. Dianne is a freelance writer, author, and screenwriter. Her latest book, Deliver Me for those in an unplanned pregnancy or with one in their past, just won a “Book of the Year” award. Her next book, Grandparenting through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ, is due out mid-August, 2012, from Pix-N-Pens Publishing. Her first book Dear America has just been republished for Kindle. Follow her writing at www.DeliverMeBook.blogspot.com

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Finding God in the Best Selling Books of All Time

April 30, 2012 By 1 Comment

By Karen O’Connor:

 This week I read a review in The Wall Street Journal of a new book titled, Hit List, written by James W. Hall, on how to make big money in fiction writing. The author of the book talked about many all-time best-sellers including Jaws, Peyton Place, and To Kill a Mockingbird. He also commented on religious works that sell so well that “most bestseller lists shunt them off into a separate category so the mainstream nonreligious books will have some slim chance of survival.” How interesting that finding God in the best selling books of all time actually creates competition for those books that have nothing to do with things spiritual.

Though the focus was on best-selling books, the Bible was not among those featured, even though it is easily one of the best-selling and most widely read books of all time according to the online report, The 21 Best-Selling Books of All Time by Ed Grabianowski. (Wikipedia reports an estimate of 2.5 to 6 billion Bibles sold.)

Finding God in the best selling books of all time may come about in various ways—through a character in a novel or in a true story of redemption, but it’s a sure thing if you turn to the Bible where God is on every page, from Genesis to Revelation. If you’d like to start reading the Bible but aren’t sure where to begin and what to expect, check out this article for practical suggestions: How do I start reading the Bible? posted at intervarsity.org.

And for fun view this YouTube video featuring the top ten best-selling novels of all time. You might be surprised at some of the titles found there.

©Karen O’Connor. Karen is an author, writing mentor, and frequent contributor to the Finding God Daily blog. Visit Karen on the web at www.karenoconnor.com

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Find God in an Interview with Rick Warren (Saddleback Church) on ABC

April 26, 2012 By 1 Comment

By Dianne E. Butts:

 

A few weeks ago on Easter, Jake Tapper, sitting in for George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “This Week,” talked with Pastor Rick Warren about the Christian faith, politics, and more. You may find God in this interview with Rick Warren on ABC (embedded below).

Rick Warren is pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, and author of The Purpose Driven Life: What On Earth Am I Here For? which has sold more than 30 million copies and been translated into more than 50 languages.

When asked about when he has felt unable to trust God, Warren said, “I think a lot of times God takes away your feelings so you have to depend on faith. And faith is kind of like a tide: it rolls in, it rolls out. You keep on going.”

On Mitt Romney’s Mormonism: A ChristianPost.com article recapped Warren’s thoughts: “The ‘key sticking point,’ for many Christians regarding whether Mormons share their faith is the trinity, according to Warren. ‘That’s the historic doctrine of the Church. That God is three-in-one. Not three Gods. One God in Father, son and Holy Spirit. Mormonism denies that.’”

Warren gave the invocation at President Obama’s inauguration.  Tapper asked what’s the state of the union spiritually? Warren said the coarsening of our culture and the loss of civility in our civilization concern him most.

On politics, the Christian Post.com article said Warren “believes in the separation of church and state, but does not believe in the separation of faith and politics.”

“Faith is simply a worldview,” Warren said in the interview. “Everybody has a world view. So we’re saying that only those with religious worldviews aren’t welcome at the table? …I’m in favor of everybody being able to come to the table with a worldview. I do not believe in imposing what I believe on everybody else.”

About  Tim Tebow? “The fact that Tebow would get criticized for kneeling and praying? I could give you 15, or 50, other things you should be more worried about in that coliseum than a kid kneeling down to thank God that he played good.”

Asked by a viewer via Twitter if Warren believes faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, the pastor said, “I do believe that… Jesus said, ‘I am the way. He didn’t say, ‘I’m one of the ways… I don’t think any of us deserve to go to heaven. I think the only way any of us get into heaven is God’s grace… The fact is, it’s available to everybody.”

Listen to the whole interview. You may find God in this  interview with Rick Warren.

Rick Warren from Saddleback Church on ‘This Week With George Stephanopoulos’ interviewed by Jake Tapper

Video interview:

© Dianne E. Butts. Dianne is a freelance writer, author, and screenwriter. Her latest book is Deliver Me, for those in an unplanned pregnancy or with one in their past, just won a “Book of the Year” award. Her first book Dear America has just been republished for Kindle. Follow her writing at www.DeliverMeBook.blogspot.com

 

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Find God in the Structure of Great Stories

March 20, 2012 By 2 Comments

By Dianne E. Butts

Arvind Balaraman / FreeDigitalPhotos.netDid you know there is a certain “structure” to a story? Whether you know that intellectually or not, you sense it. We hear countless stories—from speakers, TV, movies and in books. But if a story doesn’t follow “the structure,” we know something is wrong. That’s because a story needs to resonate with our souls.  The greatest story in history is God’s story (“His story”!), but we can also find God in the structure of great stories elsewhere.

As an author and screenwriter, I’ve studied story structure so I can successfully write stories. One universal story structure,”the hero’s journey” (or monomyth) was first described by Joseph John Campbell (an American mythologist, writer and lecturer) in his nonfiction book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces.

One day more than ten years ago, I was sitting in a workshop at a writer’s conference learning about writing and about stories, and I was absolutely stunned to hear the workshop instructor, Kurt Bruner, use “the hero’s journey” to tell the story of God–that is, the story of the entire Bible–in about five phrases which he called “The Grand Drama of the Gospel.”

I couldn’t believe it! And yet the story Kurt Bruner told rang so true with my soul that I got his permission to re-tell it in my first book Dear America. Here is that story in five phrases, along with a few more sentences of explanation from me. See if you don’t recognize the framework of every story you love in this outline:

 v  Once Upon A Time

In the beginning, God created the heavens and earth.

v  The Villain’s Plot

Because Satan hates God, Satan enters the Garden of Eden to kill Eve and her husband Adam by deceiving them into eating from the tree God forbade them to eat from.

v  The Divine Dilemma

What is God to do? Adam and Eve have sinned. God has already announced that the consequence of sin is death.

v  The Hero’s Quest

So what does God do? God goes on a quest to save mankind. He comes to earth in disguise to 1.) win back the heart of His beloved (people), and 2.) fulfill His own demand for their death by taking their death-penalty upon Himself.

v  The Final Conflict

Satan discovers God-the-Hero has come in disguise and sets out to kill Him before He can save mankind! As Jesus hangs dying on the cross, Satan thinks he has succeeded. However Jesus’ death in fact rescues mankind when three days later Jesus rises from the dead, never to die again, and provides eternal life to everyone who trusts in Him.

Later, Kurt Bruner wrote a book, The Divine Drama and said, “…all great stories follow the same basic pattern and point us to the part we play in the larger drama of life and eternity.”

Now you, too, can be find God in the structure of great stories!

 ©Dianne E. Butts. Dianne is a freelance writer, author, and screenwriter. Her first book Dear America http://amzn.to/DearAmerica, which contains “The Grand Drama of the Gospel”, has just been republished for Kindle. Follow more of her writing at www.DeliverMeBook.blogspot.com

Speaking of creative storytelling, see his video from Igniter Media, see The Bible in 50 Words:

Igniter Media creates videos for use by churches and other groups.  To obtain use of their short films for public use (without the website address embedded) and see more of their films, visit ignitermedia.com.

 

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Drawing Closer to God, Book Review: Finding God in Questions

January 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Everyone is looking for answers—about God, about our relationship with Him, about how to live a life of meaning and fulfillment. God’s Word has the answer to any question we could ever ask; sometimes those answers come in the form of questions. The Bible is full of questions asked by God, His followers, His enemies, seekers, Jesus, Satan, and even a donkey. In Drawing Closer to God: 365 Daily Meditations on Questions from Scripture, author Dianne Neal Matthews shows that even as we look for answers in the Bible, we’ll be finding God in questions.  (At the end of this review, see also a related video on this topic: Questioning God by Sam Burke.)

Some biblical questions express doubts and struggles that all of us wrestle with at some point, but we may be reluctant to verbalize them. David cried out, “Why are you so distant, Lord? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?” (Psalms 10:1) Gideon asked an angel, “If the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?” (Judges 6:13)

Jesus used questions as a powerful teaching tool:

“Can any of you add an hour to your life by worrying?” (Luke 12:25)

 

God uses questions to comfort us:

“Is anything too hard for the Lord?” (Genesis 18:14)

… and to convict us:

“Why do you call me Lord but don’t do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46)

If we read carefully, we’ll see that God has already answered many of our questions before we think of them. Before Pilate asked the universal question, “What is truth?” (John 18:38), Jesus had already answered it earlier that evening: “Your words are truth.” (John 17:17)

Carolyn R Scheidies of Author’s Choice Reviews appreciates the practical nature of the devotions. She writes,“Matthews takes the question she poses from the daily portion of scripture to be read for the day and melds explaining the Scripture with application for today. The devotionals flow from Scripture to the challenges and situations we face today.”

Each meditation in Drawing Closer to God ends with either a question for readers to ask themselves (self-reflection) or a question to ask God (prayer focus). Amazon reviewer M. Hausam agrees that this approach encourages readers to apply the concepts to daily life: “I like the way she encourages the readers as she guides them through the questions. The real-life examples she gives aids in seeking the Biblical truths and applying them in our own lives.”

In her introduction, Matthews notes that writing the book strengthened her conviction that “God is never offended by honest questions”. She also hopes that readers will be finding God in those questions. “Since our human understanding is limited, there are some things we’ll never fully understand during our earthly life. But we can know the One who is the answer to all our questions. I hope these meditations will encourage you as you draw closer to him.”

Here’s an interesting related video, Questioning God by Sam Burke:

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Finding God in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

December 17, 2011 By 4 Comments

By Dianne Neal Matthews

Photo from Wikimedia Commons/Wikipedia.

One of my favorite Christmas traditions is to kick off the month of December by watching TNT’s 1999 movie version of Charles Dickens’ novella, A Christmas Carol.Although many scholars don’t consider the book to be one of Dickens’ important literary works, its popularity can’t be denied. This beloved tale of redemption and a changed heart has spawned countless play and movie adaptations, ensuring that each year more and more people are finding God in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

The short book is packed with memorable characters and poignant scenes that linger in the mind long after the last page is turned. Early in the story, a frightening encounter between Ebenezer Scrooge and a ghost sets the mood and reveals the theme of the book. When Scrooge finally accepts that he’s seeing the spirit of his former business partner who had died seven years earlier, he doesn’t understand why Marley’s ghost is in such misery. He asks why Marley is fettered with a great chain wrapped around his waist. Marley explains that he forged this chain in life, link by link, as he devoted himself to making money rather than helping his fellow man. He informs Scrooge that he also has forged a massive chain—one that was already as heavy and long as Marley’s seven Christmases earlier. Scrooge glances down at the floor but sees nothing.

Like Dickens’ characters, we all have chains that weigh us down. We carry around the burdens of our past mistakes, failures, and disappointments; other links were added when someone hurt us. God doesn’t want us to live like that. He wants to break off our invisible chains so that we will be free to enjoy a life of true fulfillment.

The Bible (New Living Translation) tells us to “pour out” our heart to God (Psalm 62:8) and “give all our worries and cares” to him (1 Peter 5:7).  Jesus explained that he came to the earth so that his followers might live a rich and more satisfying life. (John 10:10)

Thanks to the lessons that Scrooge learned from the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, he became a changed man. The former lonely miser became a friend to mankind, generously giving to all within his reach and enjoying true friendship. Once we have an encounter with God through Jesus Christ, we too become a changed person with a new life. Thanks to the allegories in Dickens’ novella and the many televised productions of it, this December people are sure to be finding God in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

Enjoy this clip from the 1999 TNT version of  the movie, showing Scrooge and Marley’s encounter.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62R8Du6Id1U

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Finding God in an Ebenezer

December 11, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Dianne E. Butts

 

Stone with the word Ebenezer inscribed on it.

Photo by Dean, The Wonder of Creation blog.

Did you think I meant Ebenezer Scrooge from Dickens’ A Christmas Carol? Uh, not exactly. I’m talking about people finding God in an Ebenezer—a real Ebenezer!

Did you even know there was such a thing as an Ebenezer?

If you’ve ever sung the Christian hymn Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing, you may have come across the word, depending on your hymnal. I have two hymnals. The beginning of the second verse in one reads:

“Here I raise mine Ebenezer; Hither by Thy help I’m come…”

But in my newer hymnal, the second verse opens with:

“Hither to Thy love has blest me; Thou hast bro’t me to this place…”

Wikipedia has additional verses. Several contain the word Ebenezer.

Nevertheless, what’s an Ebenezer? If we “raise” our Ebenezer, as the verse suggests, are we lifting Scrooge above our heads?

Actually, Ebenezer is a standing stone, if literally translated, a “Stone of Help.” In the Old Testament, leaders sometimes stood a large stone up to commemorate something extraordinary God did for them at that site. Then when children or others asked why that stone was standing there, those who knew the story could pass along the information to a new group or generation.

Dictionary.com defines Ebenezer as a noun and says this:

male proper name, sometimes also the name of a Protestant chapel or meeting house, from name of a stone raised by Samuel to commemorate a victory over the Philistines at Mizpeh (I Sam. vii.12), from Heb. ebhen ezar “stone of help,” from ebhen “stone” + ezer “help.”

On his web site, Dr. Gregory S. Neal explains about the Ebenezer:

“In 1 Samuel 4:1-11 and 5:1, the Ebenezer is strangely identified with a particular site, about four miles south of Gilgal, where the Israelites were twice defeated by the Philistines and the Ark of the Covenant was stolen. These battles took place, however, before the site was actually named Ebenezer. It was like someone saying that Dinosaurs once lived in Dallas county — they did, but not when this area was called ‘Dallas.’ Likewise, the two battles mentioned in 1 Samuel 4 and 5 took place at Ebenezer, but some time before it was so-named.

“The site wasn’t named Ebenezer until after the Israelites finally defeated the Philistines, and took back the Ark of the Covenant. To commemorate the victorious battle, Samuel set up a marker-stone, named it “Stone of Help,” and thereby the site became identified with the stone and with the place where God’s miraculous help aided them in their victory over the Philistines. The stone, standing up-right, was called ‘Ebenezer,’ and the site naturally took on that name as well.”

The next time you see Ebenezer Scrooge, I hope he makes you think of extraordinary events God has orchestrated in your life. Take the time to tell someone that story. When you do, because of your rock-solid faith standing there for them to plainly see, people will be finding God in an Ebenezer.

Enjoy this rendition of the hymn Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing sung by Lauren O’Farrell, to hear how Ebenezer fits into the song.

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Finding God in an Unplanned Pregnancy

December 9, 2011 By 5 Comments

Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy

Perhaps the most famous unwed mother was Mary, the mother of Jesus, who found God asking her to carry His Son. According to the new book, Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy, by author Dianne E. Butts, both women and men are finding God in an unplanned pregnancy.

In the book, several women and men describe finding Jesus Christ and accepting Him as Savior after they came to grips with crisis pregnancies, some which ended in abortion.

One reviewer of the book, Denise of Ramblings of a California Couponer  wrote, “I had an unplanned teen pregnancy myself. I could completely relate to many of the stories contained in the book and it reminded me of where I’ve been and how far I’ve come with Christ in my life.”

In another review, The Jolly Blogger wrote, “This book is not just for teenagers going through unplanned pregnancies… I had two. …During my first unplanned pregnancy, my fiancé (who was then my boyfriend) had been pressuring me to abort. We went to Planned Parenthood and someone said to me, ‘It is YOUR body. Whatever you decide to do, it is your choice.’ Naturally, most people might have taken that as encouragement to go ahead and abort, but for me, it was encouragement to keep my child because I was totally against the alternative. Now we have a beautiful daughter who will be turning 5 next month.”

The Jolly Blogger knows from her own experience that, “The most important thing for a person experiencing an unplanned pregnancy is a safe and loving environment — a place where no one is going to pressure you to make a certain decision and a place where you won’t be judged. From what I read, the setting for these stories provided that kind of atmosphere. The other important component is resources! It really is amazing how many resources exist within a community — unbeknownst to many! The stigma can be very overwhelming, especially if you’ve never asked for help before.”

On the Amazon.com page for this book, reviewer Kathy S related: “Overall this book is an excellent resource for anyone involved in an unplanned pregnancy including pregnant women, their partners, parents, grandparents, friends, family, and those involved in the work of crisis pregnancy centers.”

If you’re in an unplanned pregnancy and need help or just want to talk to someone, you can find one of these compassionate, confidential, nonjudgmental pregnancy centers near you at www.Optionline.org.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, was not the only unwed mother in the Christmas story. Her cousin Elizabeth was married but, incredibly, was also in her own unplanned pregnancy in her old age. Yet her joy in Mary’s pregnancy gave her strength, as you can see:

 ”At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” (Luke 1:39-45, NIV Bible)

 

Through Mary’s willingness to carry and give birth to God-come-in-the-flesh, we are all finding God in an unplanned pregnancy.

You can find out more about the book  Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy at www.DeliverMeBook.com. The opening text on that webpage captures well the feelings many women have who discover they are expecting a baby, yet feel ill-prepared:

She stares at the test strip…

. . . palms clammy, breathing uneven.

She’s never felt more alone.

Tears blur her vision. Panic edges in.

 

Here’s the book trailer, to help you see how this book can help:

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Finding God in the News

December 3, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Karen O’Connor

Photo by mconnors

When I flip on the evening news I’m tempted to turn it off almost immediately because there’s so much ‘bad stuff.’ But even as I watch and listen I realize I’m finding God in the news, whether it’s directly about Him or not. I don’t have to be tuned to a religious channel to experience God.

News—whether good or bad—does involve the Creator of the universe because He cares about His people and what happens to them. War, murder, theft, and other criminal activity does not escape His notice or His deep care for the perpetrators as well as the victims.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, NIV Bible)

What a powerful piece of ‘good news’ this is. God’s son, Jesus Christ, is ready to forgive, to restore, to assure anyone who asks for it, a second chance to turn away from evil and to live a clean and grace-filled life. And for those who have been victimized by others, He promises to set them free of fear, hurt, and resentment.

How amazing is God’s grace, and that’s why finding God in the news can be a daily experience for anyone who wants to discover and to share with others His redeeming love.

In this video, Good News by Jesse Fisher, imagine God speaking his good news to you personally and with passion.

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Finding God in a Good Novel

November 27, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Karen O’Connor

I love to curl up in bed with a great piece of fiction or sit by the fire after a day’s work and do the same. One of the best parts is finding God in a good novel and it doesn’t have to be a story that is overtly religious. God is everywhere and in everything. When I read prairie romances such as those written by Jeanette Oke or a delightful mystery by Lorena McCourtney or an inspiring and deep story of life in today’s world by Karen Kingsbury, I find God on every page. I see his love and forgiveness displayed in the lives of fictional characters as they fall or sin or make poor choices and then repent and lead changed lives. I am reminded of God’s mercies—new every morning (Lamentations 3:23 in the bible).

I’m grateful to those authors who make it possible for me to connect with the Lord in ways that inspire, motivate, and encourage me to live an honorable life that will be a blessing to those I encounter. Finding God in a good novel is something I look forward to each time I pick up a new book. It could happen for you too.

Enjoy this excellent YouTube video about novelist Karen Kingsbury, now referred to as ‘the queen of Christian fiction.’ She has sold books in the millions and appeared on the cover of Time Magazine.

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Finding God in the Storms of Life

November 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment

According to the new book, When You Can’t Find God, How to Ignite the Power of His Presence (Revell,) not only are people finding God in the storms of life, they are thriving in the midst of those storms. The book’s author, Linda Evans Shepherd, knows the secrets to weathering life’s storms.  She survived a horrific car cash that hurled her baby into the freeway. It was a year later before her baby woke up from coma, only to face a life of severe disabilities.  But despite it all, Linda, her daughter, and family thrive. How is this even possible? Perhaps it’s in the lessons Linda learned about God in her journey through heartache.

Beverly Dillow, in Christian Retailing Today, says, “Many people think it isn’t fair to have difficulties, but Shepherd reminds us that if God’s own son didn’t get through life without pain and difficulties, why do we expect to do so?”


The book’s website, IgniteMyFaith.com says, “Linda shows readers how to see God in any circumstance, even when it’s hard.” 

So what are Linda’s secrets to thriving in the storms of life? Whitney Hopler, summarized them in Crosswalk.com:

    • Give your troubles to God.
    • Stand against evil.
    • Pray against strife.
    • Pray for breakthroughs.
    • Pray for trust.
    • Pray for grace and favor.
    • Pray for hope and healing.
    • Pray for peace.
    • Find joy.
On the point, ‘Find Joy,’ Whitney summerizes Linda’s teaching,  ”Decide to worship God no matter what you happen to go through at any particular moment, because God is worthy of your worship all the time, simply for who He is. The more you focus on worshipping God, the more you’ll become aware of His presence with you, and the  more that will bring you joy so that you can overcome even the most troubling circumstances.”  To see more of Whitney’s summaries of Linda’s teachings, click HERE.

Beverly Dillow in Christian Retailing wrote of When You Can’t Find God, ”This is an encouraging book that can be used in a group, as it contains a “Bible Study and Discussion Guide” in the back.”

Author and reviewer Pamela Sonnenmoser is quoted on the book’s Amazon page as saying, “From the first page to the last, Shepherd’s transparency and heart for the Lord is evident. She speaks directly to the heart of the reader in a tender, compassionate manner, leading us toward hope and peace in our lives. What I love the most about this book, is that Shepherd does not mollycoddle the reader. This is not just another feel-good book, although after reading it, I don’t know how anyone could feel less than great about their walk with Jesus and their life in general.”
So, perhaps the secret of finding God in the storms of life, is to do as Linda says when she encourages, “It’s time to stop striving, it’s time to seek God, cast our burdens on him, follow his lead, and rest in him when it comes to the results.”
To see When You Can’t Find God, How to Ignite the Power of His Presence’s book trailer, watch below:
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Finding God in High School

October 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

 

by Janet Holm McHenry

Finding God in high school isn’t as hard as you might think. He is actually here and there in various textbooks that students read.

I am a high school English teacher in a public school, and my American literature students have been reading about him all quarter.

We’ve been studying the foundational literature of American history under the magnifying glass of our controlling question, which is “What do we do when life isn’t fair?”

Here’s some of what we’ve read and what my students decided:

  • Puritan writer Anne Bradstreet wrote the poem “Here Follow Some Verses Upon the Burning of Our House, July 10, 1666.” While she grieved the loss of all her earthly things, she decided that her treasure in heaven was more important. My students realized that when life sucks, you can turn to your faith for support.
  • Former slave Olaudah Equino wrote “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano,” and my students read an excerpt that told of his kidnap from his family in Africa and his brutal mistreatment. He converted to Christianity, learned to read and write, bought his freedom, and then successfully advocated for the eradication of slavery in Great Britain. My students decided that to bring about racial equality, many people of faith took political action.
  • In “The Declaration of Independence,” written by Thomas Jefferson, my students read, “all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with inherent and inalienable rights.” I was delighted when my students wrote that when life isn’t fair, we can WRITE and even put God’s name in that writing.

God is alive and well in high school…despite what some might think. He has been active in our history and in our writers’ literature over centuries. And later this year when my students read Emily Dickinson and many of the other poets, they will be finding God in those works as well.

Finding God in a high school English classroom: Anne Bradstreet’s poem “Here Follow Some Verses Upon the Burning of Our House, July 10, 1666.”

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Finding God After the Death of the One You Love

October 20, 2011 By Leave a Comment

by Dianne E. Butts

It seems impossible. We fall in love, marry, make a vow to love, honor, and cherish “until death do us part,” and then it happens: death parts us from our greatest love. What do we do? Where is God? How can we go on? How can we ever love again? Some people are finding God after the death of the one you love.

The week of Gina Kell’s tenth anniversary with her husband, Matt, he was diagnosed with cancer. It took three years for the cancer to take him. He died on Christmas, 2005.

Matt had been friends since childhood with a woman named Cathy Spehn. Gina met Cathy during the last year of Matt’s life.

Meanwhile, after Cathy developed a headache that would not go away, her husband Michael took her to the emergency room and doctors discovered she had inoperable brain cancer. Cathy was adamant that Michael, a basketball coach, call Gina Kell and teach her sons how to play basketball. The last day of her life Cathy told Michael, “Call Gina Kell.” Cathy died two months after Matt on February 28, 2006.

Gina felt compelled to attend Cathy’s funeral—at the same funeral home where Matt’s funeral had been. Michael saw her, and, even though he had never met her, guessed who she was, hugged her, and asked if she would sit with him for a few minutes. She did. Michael asked her, “How are you doing? How are your kids? I need to know.”

Gina assured him they were doing fine.

A few weeks later, they connected, along with all their kids (five in all), for pizza. Two years later Michael and Gina married. They’ve recently told their story in the book The Color of Rain.

You can read an excerpt of their book in this article “ ‘The Color of Rain’: Two families start over as one”. Today at MSNBC says, “Michael and Gina Spehn share their remarkable story of faith, hope and love in the wake of tragedy.”

Are you grieving? God cares. He can write a love story just for you, and you can become someone who is finding God after the death of the one you love.

See a video of Michael and Gina Spehn’s heart-warming, hope-filled story here:
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Finding God Daily

October 1, 2011 By 1 Comment

Linda Evans Shepherd

I’ve started a delightful new practice, I’m finding God daily by reading Jesus Calling, a daily devotinal by Sarah Young.

Sarah is a missionary to the Japanese in Australia and over the years, she’s developed the practice of listening for God’s voice, then writing down his messages to her.  Now she’s sharing these delightful messages with over a million readers.

Her readers are wild about her book.  An 80-year-old grandmother recently told me, “You don’t know how this book has helped me.  I’d felt so alone, but now, after reading this book daily, I hear God gently whispering to me, ‘I am with you.’  For the first time in my life I feel close to God.”

CBN reports, that Sarah has explained the process of dialoging with God was a little awkward the first time she tried it, but she did receive a short message. She said, “The content was biblical, and it addressed themes that were current in my life: trust, fear, and closeness to God. I responded by writing in my journal as usual; at that point my journaling changed from monologue to dialogue. Day by day, messages began to flow more freely. This new way of communicating with God became the high point of my day. I knew that my writings were not inspired (as only Scripture is), but they were helping me grow closer to our living Lord.”

But Sarah shares some cautions to others who want to start the practice of listening for God’s voice, “It’s essential to remember that the Bible is the only infallible record of God’s speaking. Always subordinate your personal listening to absolute biblical truth. If something you “hear” is inconsistent with biblical teaching, don’t write it down–it’s not from God. New Christians, especially, need to be cautious about listening to God in this way. I had been a Christian for 20 years before I began this practice.”

That is great advice.  But we also need to remember that it’s okay to listen for God’s voice; after all God taught us to be still and know him. (Psalm 46:10).

And that’s what Sarah always leads the readers to do as they read, pray, and look up the Scriptures she references.  Reading this book will set you on the journey of finding God daily. (Matthew 28:20).

To watch the book trailer for Jesus Calling, click below:

To read the original source of the CBN article, click HERE.

 

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Finding God in the Courage to Follow Him

September 26, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Photo of Francis Chan used by permission from Wikipedia

What would be be like to to do exactly what God is calling you to do? That’s apparently the question megachurch pastor Francis Chan has been contemplating for a while; the question of finding God in the courage to follow him.

Still, when Chan, the best-selling author of Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God, announced his decision to leave Corner Stone Community Church in Simi Valley, California, he shocked his congregation. According to Relevant Magazine (RM), Chan said,

    “Lisa [my wife] and I believe God is calling us out now, that He is sending us out to do something new, something that scares us, something that’s a step of faith,” Chan told his church when he resigned.

What is he going to go? Chan isn’t certain, which is why he’s taken to exploring the innercity of San Franciso, New York, and Los Angelos, trying to discern where God is calling him to minister to the poor. Though he isn’t certain of the details, Chan wants to be faithful to the call. RM reports that Chan said this isn’t a new feeling—it’s a conviction he’s been wrestling with for years, but he’s just recently had the courage to speak up about it.

“There’s always been this core conviction that something’s not right,” Chan says. “Now I want to express it and live it and go, ‘Now I feel like I’m living in congruence with the whole New Testament, like I just feel at peace.’ And maybe I’m dreaming, but I gotta go for it.”

Chan is couragious, and he’s one to not just teach the walk, he’s walking it in faith. He is finding God in the courage to follow him, no matter where that journey should take him.

To see video clip of Francis Chan talk about courage, watch below.

To see original article about Francis Chan in Relevant Magazine, click HERE.

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Finding God in a Discussion of Hell

September 22, 2011 By 1 Comment

Book by Brian Jones

Is there any finding God in a discussion of hell?

Well, there’s certainly a lot of talk about hell these days, and though author and pastor, Ron Bell, has admitted he does not believe in hell, there’s another pastor, Brian Jones from Christ’s Church of the Valley in the suburbs of Philadelphia, who admits repenting from his secret belief that ‘hell is not real’ in his new book, Hell is Real, (But I Hate to Admit It.)

Jones originally lost both his faith and his belief in hell in Princeton Theological Seminary. His faith recovered, but his belief in hell didn’t, at least, not for a while. The Christian Post reports that for four years he led a church, keeping his belief on hell a secret, even from his wife.

And believing in hell has made all the difference in his ministry. In his early years as a pastor, Jones never baptised any new believers into his church. But now that his theology is back on track, he’s seen 1,100 people come to faith in the last four years. When the Christian Post asked Jones what the main point he wanted people to take from his book, he said,

    “The main point I want people to take away is hell is real and it is really hard to stomach, but God loves us with such an amazing love that we have to tell people about that. Hell is not the point, heaven is the point. Loving people into heaven in a gracious and humble way. If this resource can be a wakeup call to get people to understand the logic and framework of hell, to translate that into tomorrow morning getting up and viewing their neighbor differently, viewing their non-Christian husband or wife differently, their kids, their co-workers and actually doing something about it in a gracious, loving, non-creepy way. I would be so thrilled if I can help in some small way contribute that to their spiritual walk.”

So, according to Jones, it appears that people are less interested in coming to God if they don’t believe their faith will make a difference in their eternal destiny. So finding God in a disscussion of hell may be a good start in finding a vibrant relationship with God that will change your life, not only in eternity, but right here on earth.

Here is a video that explains Brian’s position.

For more on this article from the Christian Post, click HERE.

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