faith

Own Your Life

~ Ann Cuddy-Sullivan ~ Leave a comment

Own Your Life: How to Grow a Legacy of Faith, Love, and Spiritual InfluenceOwn Your Life: How to Grow a Legacy of Faith, Love, and Spiritual Influence by Sally Clarkson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

God has made you with the capacity to live courageously, to have great faith, and to become a person of influence. Will you follow hard after Him and live into your potential? Will you choose today to own your life?

Learn to live each day with spiritual intention—and see how your moment-by-moment decisions add up to a breathtaking life story that shines with God’s love. You’ll come alive with confidence, energy, and purpose as you discover His fingerprints in your most ordinary days. Your life will become a lasting legacy that points others to Him—and He will honor your decisions beyond what you ever imagined.”

“What will be the legacy of your life? What story will the day of your life tell? Will you invest your life for eternity, or spend it, wasting the days on things that do not matter, on issues that will quickly fade away?” (Page xv) Those are the first words in the opening of this book and they are powerful. They are the words that challenged the author, Sally Clarkson, all those years ago. They are the basis for this thought-provoking book, a book written to challenge you to ponder your life, and own it. Own and take responsibility for your own behavior, decisions, and attitudes. Continue reading →

Fight Back With Joy

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Fight Back With Joy: Celebrate More. Regret Less. Stare Down Your Greatest FearsFight Back With Joy: Celebrate More. Regret Less. Stare Down Your Greatest Fears by Margaret Feinberg

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“Great Joy Waits in Life’s Greatest Battles. Joy is stamped on coffee mugs, sewn onto decorative pillows – even displayed on dish soap. But what if there’s a deeper power and purpose to this mighty virtue? Through vulnerable story telling, a difficult diagnosis, and a good dose of humor, Margaret Feinberg revels how joy is more than whimsy. Its’ the weapon you can use to fight life’s battles.”

This is an extraordinary book that will take you by surprise. When I read the first few pages of the first chapter, I though to myself… here we go, another book that is going to try to teach me the how’s and why’s of being joyful. And then came chapter two. Continue reading →

Keep It Shut

~ Ann Cuddy-Sullivan ~ 6 Comments

Do not just read this book….   study it and live it.  This is another on my list of second read 2015.  Truly loved the book.

Keep It Shut: What to Say, How to Say It, and When to Say Nothing at AllKeep It Shut: What to Say, How to Say It, and When to Say Nothing at All by Karen Ehman

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“From Bible times to modern times women have struggled with their words. What to say and how to say it. What not to say. When it is best to remain silent. And what to do when you’ve said something you wish you could now take back. In this book a woman whose mouth has gotten her into loads of trouble shares the hows (and how-not-tos) of dealing with the tongue.

Beyond just a “how not to gossip” book, this book explores what the Bible says about the many ways we are to use our words and the times when we are to remain silent. Karen will cover using our speech to interact with friends, co-workers, family, and strangers as well as in the many places we use our words in private, in public, online, and in prayer. Even the words we say silently to ourselves. She will address unsolicited opinion-slinging, speaking the truth in love, not saying words just to people-please, and dealing with our verbal anger.”

This book – Keep It Shut by Karen Ehman– arrived just before Christmas and so I was able to read it before the onslaught of the holiday madness. Oh am I so ever grateful that this book arrived when it did. While it did require some serious work on my part to Keep It Shut, the madness became a bit less maddening and my need to lash out at the perceived crazy was tempered by Karen’s words that came to mind quite often. Continue reading →

Step Into Your God Given Dream

~ Ann Cuddy-Sullivan ~ Leave a comment

This is another one of those books that you don’t just read and put it away.  This is a book requiring a reread to study and absorb all that it has to offer.  I have added to my “second read 2015”. (complete list coming soon!)  Loved it!

The Joseph Blessing: Change the World with Your God-Given DreamThe Joseph Blessing: Change the World with Your God-Given Dream by Jordan Rubin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“Step into God’s divine blessing and fulfill your dreams! Are you ready to see your dreams go from vision to fulfillment? To see God’s promised blessings revealed in your life? Join Jordan Rubin and Dr. Pete Sulack as you discover how Joseph endured incredible opposition and persecution, only to be elevated to a key position of influence and watch his dream come to pass before his very eyes.

You’ll unlock the powerful secrets that will take your dreams from birth to fulfillment. In this easy-to-follow process, you will learn how to protect your dream during seasons of adversity, resurrect vision when you believe it is dead, have hope even when you feel like your dream is impossible, and watch God miraculously fulfill your life purpose through your God-given dreams.” Continue reading →

Unveiling Heaven’s Agenda

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Hosting the Presence Every Day: 365 Days to Unveiling Heaven's Agenda for Your LifeHosting the Presence Every Day: 365 Days to Unveiling Heaven’s Agenda for Your Life by Bill Johnson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

”The Holy Spirit lives within you. This is a fact for every single Christian. The question is: Are you experiencing the power of the Spirit resting upon you? He lives within you for your sake, but He comes upon you to transform the world around you.

Experience deep intimacy with the Father, catch a fresh vision of Jesus, and discover how you can walk in the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit as your new normal. Transform your world as you begin Hosting the Presence Everyday!”
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Your past does not define you

~ Ann Cuddy-Sullivan ~ 1 Comment

Your Life Still Counts: How God Uses Your Past to Create a Beautiful FutureYour Life Still Counts: How God Uses Your Past to Create a Beautiful Future by Tracie Miles

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“God still has a plan for you–not in spite of your past, but because of it! Do regret and shame over your failures, sins, and shortcomings make you wonder how you could ever be loved, much less used, by a holy God? Tracie Miles felt the same way until she discovered the path to healing, peace, and significance.

She helps you recognize that God not only has a purpose for you, but He has prepared you for your divine purpose based specifically on the experiences of your past. Through her own story and stories from other women who have discovered God’s purpose for their lives because of adverse experiences, Tracie helps you see how God can turn pain into purpose. You will find forgiveness and healing from the troubles of your past, discover the courage to step out of your comfort zone to help others find hope and strength, and be inspired to step into the beautiful future God divinely designed for you.”

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Ignite God’s Vision

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Greater Devotional: A Forty-Day Experience to Ignite God's Vision for Your LifeGreater Devotional: A Forty-Day Experience to Ignite God’s Vision for Your Life by Steven Furtick

My rating:

Recently I became aware of a GodTube video of Pastor Furtick that I, as an evangelical Christian, find truly offensive.  For that reason,  I will not promote any products of Pastor Furtick and have removed my reviews of his books from my blog.

To understand this post, please visit:

http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=FFCM2CNU

Satan’s Deadly Trio

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Satan's Deadly Trio: Defeating the Deceptions of Jezebel, Religion and WitchcraftSatan’s Deadly Trio: Defeating the Deceptions of Jezebel, Religion and Witchcraft by Jennifer LeClaire

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“You’re on your guard for the Jezebel spirit. But did you know that it doesn’t work alone? Just as the holy Trinity works together to deliver, redeem and then guide us day by day, an unholy trinity is doing everything possible to put us in bondage, strip us of our God-given identity and derail our Kingdom purpose.

Satan’s abominable threesome–the spirits of Jezebel, religion and witchcraft–is coordinating its attack. Are you? Veteran spiritual warrior Jennifer LeClaire pulls back the curtain on the calculated and systematic strategies of the enemy while offering practical biblical tactics to combat this deadly trio. Her Spirit-anointed discernment will help you understand the hidden schemes of these spirits and, with God’s help, to resist them.
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The Answer To Our Cry

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The Answer to Our Cry: Freedom to Live Fully, Love Boldly, and Fear NothingThe Answer to Our Cry: Freedom to Live Fully, Love Boldly, and Fear Nothing by Rick McKinley

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“We all long for freedom. Freedom from anxiety, fear, and sin. Freedom to love others completely as God loves us. And yet we are shackled by insecurity, prone to selfishness, and wary of letting down our guard. That’s not the life God designed for his followers. When his people cry out to him for freedom, he hears–and responds.

Now pastor Rick McKinley shows how true freedom–the kind we see as God delivers his people in the Scriptures–is always in the form of relationship with God rather than our popular notion of complete independence. He calls us to look to the Father, Son, and Spirit for the model of perfect, self-giving freedom and shows how that kind of freedom can utterly transform us.”
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The Life You Are Longing For

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Life with a Capital L: Embrace a Bigger Gospel. Experience a Bigger Life.Life with a Capital L: Embrace a Bigger Gospel. Experience a Bigger Life. by Matt Heard

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“What is it that you long for? Dream about? Hunger after? We all desire more than just the endurance of our daily routines. But often we feel limited and stuck — like we’re merely existing instead of living. That’s not the way it was meant to be. God intends the humanity in each of us to be deeply experienced, lavishly enjoyed, and exuberantly celebrated. In fact this is what the gospel is all about.

Yes, the gospel. Contrary to conventional thinking — inside and outside the church — following Jesus is not about denying our humanness but embracing it. Rather than acting more spiritual or being more religious, we’re called and enabled to become more fully human… and alive. Matt Heard escorts us on a journey of discovery: that Jesus didn’t come to save us from our humanity — Christ instead yearns to restore it to what God originally intended. Matt then explores ten key areas where everyday life can become extraordinary Life. Christ promised we could “live life to the full.” He didn’t just mean eventually. Life with a Capital L is the Life you are longing for. Now.”
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