Followers

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

A Reader's Review of No Greater Love



Lucy Adams, herself an author as well as an avid reader, passed along this comment about No Greater Love, and she gave me permission to share it with all of you:

"The winds and the rain and the sunshine of South Africa have not been a part of my life. But I have been there with the glorious messages in Kathi's book NO GREATER LOVE. I felt the hearts of the people I read about. The love story is gentle and powerful at the same time. Chioma's accepting Jesus into her heart was an intricate and awesome experience. I had many tears in my eyes throughout the reading of this book. Also my anger was aroused at the white people who thought they were superior.
I am deeply thankful that the book NO GREATER LOVE has touched my heart"
***Lucy Neeley Adams
Aug. 31, 2010.

Anyone Looking for Some Hope?



"I hope it works out for you!"
"I hope things go as expected."
"I hope things improve soon."
"I hope I find my way out of this mess some day."

We all hope for something, don't we? In fact, we pursue hope and cling to it with every breath, for after all, without it, why go on? People commit suicide because they ran out of hope. But the Bible talks about "the hope that doesn't disappoint," and that's the hope author and cancer survivor Yvonne Ortega refers to in her excellent book, "Finding Hope for Your Journey through Breast Cancer."

Now I know not everyone has breast cancer or even knows someone who does. If you do, then this book is exactly what you need. But if not, you (or someone you love) need a book to strengthen your grip on hope. This practical book of 60 inspirational readings by author and speaker Yvonne Ortega is just the ticket!

Friday, August 27, 2010

The Scriptures as a "Second Language"?

My latest Crosswalk article, "The Scriptures as a Second Language," is now up and available to read, rate, and comment on if you'll go to:

http://www.crosswalk.com/spirituallife/11637050/

Thanks so much!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

My brief testimony on Women Today Radio

Vonette Bright of Campus Crusade and Women Today Radio shares a “Kathi Macias” memory on her August 26, 2010, spotlight today. Would love to have you stop by and listen in:


http://www.womentoday.org/


Just click on August 26 and it will play. (It’s short but sweet!)

Blessings!

Offering Hope to the Hopeless...

Always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason
for the hope that is in you (1 Peter 3:15, NKJV).

Hopeless. Can there be a more depressing word? When our situation is truly hopeless, why go on living? Hopelessness is the most common reason that suicide is contemplated, attempted, or achieved. What point is there to life if we have no hope?
I’ve been reading the prophets again lately, as I do so often, and I see two primary themes stretching throughout. First, God’s judgment on unrepentant sin. Though God called out time and again to His people, begging them to repent of their sin and return to Him, they ignored Him and continued on their own way. The results were disastrous. But the second theme is the hope of restoration. Despite the people’s willful and ongoing rejection of God, the faithful Father promised that restoration would follow judgment. Even in the most dire circumstances, there was still hope because God was greater than the circumstances!
Isn’t that what a world steeped in sin and mired in rejection of God needs to hear? Yes, judgment is coming…but restoration is the final result. And those of us who have already received God’s forgiveness must ALWAYS be ready to explain that fact to anyone who asks. If people living in hopeless situations see hope as the hallmark of our lives, they are going to be drawn to us—and sooner or later, they’re going to ask about the Source of our hope. What a privilege to be able to answer their questions! Will they respond by receiving that forgiveness and hope for themselves? Some will; many won’t. Some will even persecute us for it. But what is that to us? People’s reaction to the reason for our hope does not change the surety of that hope because our hope is not based on the stock market or the headlines or the election results. It is based on the One who cannot lie and whose promises never fail.
May we walk in such a way that our hope is obvious to all who see us—and may be ALWAYS be ready to offer an explanation (“give a defense”) of that glorious hope that is in us!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

A Hero's Welcome

…they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth (Hebrews 11:13).

I just watched the most touching video of a former U.S. President and his wife welcoming home America’s heroes. As these valiant men and women emerged from the jet way to the cheers of their appreciative fellow citizens, their faces registered various degrees of surprise and humility to realize that a former Commander-in-Chief stood among the crowd, waiting to express his gratitude. It’s impossible to view that recorded scene and not be moved to tears.
And yet…have you considered the scene in heaven when heroes of the faith—not just the blessed martyrs but all of us who consider ourselves strangers and pilgrims here on earth—finally step forth from that “jet way” that transports us from our temporal existence to our eternal one, only to see the Father waiting to greet us? I don’t know about you, but because I know me so well, I don’t feel like much of a hero most of the time. But because my true Hero has already gone before me, paying an unthinkable price so that I might one day make that grand entrance into heaven, I too can anticipate a hero’s welcome when I breathe my last and am set free from the tenuous strings that bind me to earth. Oh, how we will soar when that final string is severed and we are loosed into the eternal joys of being in the Father’s presence! Our greatest joy on earth can’t begin to compare to that eternal burst of gratitude that will carry us into God’s presence.
The next time you have an opportunity to welcome home some returning heroes, rejoice that you can be a part of it and shout your gratitude from the rooftops—but know that the joy you feel at that moment doesn’t begin to compare to that which will envelop you when you yourself are at last welcomed home as a hero of the faith!

LEAVE A COMMENT ABOUT YOUR OWN HERO AND WIN ONE OF MY BOOKS!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

First Place in the Golf Tournament!



My hubby, Al (left), and his boss, Bruce, took first place in the company golf tournament yesterday. Pretty exciting stuff, don't you think?

Another Great Review of Valeria's Cross



Please check out this excellent review of my latest release, Valeria's Cross, will you? Thanks so much, dear friends!

http://www.bookpage.com/reviews.php?id=10002691

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Ever need a Friend in the Storm???



I just got back from Philadelphia and went to the mailbox yesterday to see what had accumulated while I was gone. Wow, I was so excited to discover my copies of my dear friend Cheryl Ricker's new book, A Friend in the Storm! In fact, because she sent more than one of these beautiful little gift books, I'm going to give a copy away, so be sure to leave a comment (and contact info), will you? You just might end up with a copy of this lovely yet practical book that will minister to you or someone you know in the midst of one of life's storms. (And who doesn't end up there on occasion--sometimes more often than expected!) This restful and encouraging book is just the right size to carry around, and it's filled with quotes, scripture verses, and poetry, all focused on pointing the reader to "Heaven's healing arms." So leave a comment and then hop on over to www.cherylricker.com to order a copy for yourself--and a couple more for someone who will need it one day soon.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Review of Valeria's Cross



I’d love to have you stop by Peg Phifer’s “purple” blog and leave a comment on the excellent review/interview she did with Susan Wales and me regarding our newest release, Valeria’s Cross:


http://goaheadandwearthepurple.blogspot.com/



Also, watch for details, but here's the basics: If you buy a copy of Valeria's Cross and post a review on Amazon, then let either Susan or me know about it, you will be entered to win an ancient silver coin on a sterling silver necklace. Supply is definitely limited, so get in on it early! Pass the word!


Blessings!

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Win one of the Extreme Devotion books!



Do you pray for your brothers and sisters around the world who pay a great price for their faith? Do you have a story to share about the persecuted Church? Leave a comment on that topic and you're automatically entered to win one of the books in the Extreme Devotion series (No Greater Love or More than Conquerors, already available, or Red Ink, releasing late next month). Please leave your contact info! Thanks so much, and God bless!

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Eternity in Our Hearts...

“He has put eternity in their hearts” (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

This phrase from Ecclesiastes 3:11 has long been one of my favorites. At the risk of pulling it out of context, may I say that it evokes a longing in my own heart, a homesickness of sorts that causes me to yearn for eternity? And isn’t that the purpose of God’s Word—and even of life on earth?
God has placed a longing for eternity in the hearts of all men everywhere. Regardless of culture or geography or generation, each of us is born with a sense that there is so much more than these few temporal years we spend inhabiting this planet. Throughout the ages humanity has dreamed up all sorts of scenarios for what that eternal state of being might entail and how to assure that we will end up there when we’ve breathed our last as physical beings. But God is too loving and faithful and compassionate to leave us here without instruction on how to achieve that universal goal. He not only gave us written instructions in the Bible, but He also sent the Living Word—His only Son, Jesus Christ—to show us the way.
And so He did. “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). An exclusive statement if ever there was one! The same God who birthed a longing for eternity in the hearts of all men came to earth and showed us the ONLY way to achieve it. “Unless one is born again,” Jesus explained, “he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Apart from being born spiritually, which is possible only through receiving Jesus as personal Savior, we cannot even SEE the Kingdom of God, let alone enter into it.
We can choose to waste our entire earthly life trying to outrun, circumvent, or otherwise deny that exclusive truth spoken by the Son of God, or we can accept and rest in it, knowing we are headed home, moving toward that eternal Kingdom where Christ is the Light and the Father sits on the throne, waiting to welcome us into His arms. I’ve chosen the latter; how about you?

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

My grand-niece praying!



I pulled this from the S.M.U.R.F. website so I could introduce you to my niece Andrea's little girl, Annabelle, who will be three in September. Is this adorable or what??? "Except you come as a little child..."

Monday, August 2, 2010

Cowboys Still Ride the Range!




I grew up watching The Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers, and Gene Autrey, and there's still nothing I like better than an occasional journey back along the cowboy trail to recapture that nostalgia of riding the range with those ten-gallon-hat, pistol-packing heroes. Thanks to award-winning author Stephen Bly, we can all still do that--whether you're old enough to remember tuning in to watch The Cisco Kid or not!

Creede of Old Montana and Cowboy for a Rainy Afternoon are two of his latest releases, and not only are they great reads but they're available in large print (for those of us who DO remember those TV cowboy days and need a little extra help focusing in on the printed word). So why don't you mosey on over to www.blybooks.com and shop around a spell? You'll find these two newest offerings, plus a whole lot more to whet your whistle and help you reminisce about the "good old days." See you on the trail!!!

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Hope and Comfort for Every Season



How many times have I wished I had the "perfect gift" to present to someone who was going through a difficult time, struggling with change, or needing some encouragement to stay the course? Probably about as often as you have, right?

Well, now we have the perfect resource: a lovely little hard-cover gift book titled Hope and Comfort for Every Season from our beloved curmudgeon and author extraordinaire, Cecil Murphey (photographs by Nancy J. Locke). Not only is this a lovely little book, but it also handy to carry and filled with thought-provoking vignettes and breathtaking photography. Even if you don't know someone who needs this book right now, I guarantee that you will one day soon, so don't put it off. Order several copies now, and when you need that "perfect gift," you'll already have it, ready and waiting.

To find out more about this prolific author, visit www.themanbehindthewords.com.