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Tuesday, June 16, 2020

JustRead Tours Blog Tour: Let them Be Kids by Jessica Smartt

Let Them Be Kids Blog Tour

Welcome to the Blog Tour & Giveaway for Let Them Be Kids by Jessica Smartt, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!


Let Them Be Kids by Jessica Smart Title: Let Them Be Kids
Author: Jessica Smartt
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: June 9, 2020
Genre: Christian Living/Parenting

As every parent hopes to raise kids with good manners and values, Jessica Smartt’s practical guide fills the gaps of uncertainty and provides tips on how parents can equip their children in purity, faith, and creativity.
Former English teacher and homeschooling mother of three, Jessica Smartt felt the weight of helping prepare her kids for life, especially with all the outside pressures and influence of the world. She struggled with how she could raise her children with a sense of adventure, self-confidence, manners, faith, and the ability to utilize technology wisely.

Let Them Be Kids is Jessica’s offering of grace and confidence to moms, giving them practical ideas to meet these challenges. Her well-researched, tested methods, woven together with her personal stories and witty humor, deliver wisdom on the tough topics of life, such as
  • family time vs. outside activities,
  • being “cool” or not,
  • boredom,
  • technology usage
  • sexual purity, and
  • showing grace when kids disobey.
Part story and part guidebook, every chapter includes doable strategies and encouragement for the journey.

Let Them Be Kids helps moms feel confident and equipped with ways to provide a safe, healthy, Christ-centered childhood for their children. It leads them to conquer fear and find truth that transforms them and their families as it reminds them how to enjoy and cherish the special memory-making moments of building family values together.

PURCHASE LINKS*: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & NobleBook Depository | Christianbook  

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We are living in  a society where kids are over-scheduled and always on the go. Kids are also living in a Technology world. Families rarely take time to slow down and enjoy life as a family. Let Them Be Kids by Jessica Smartt is a book that will show families how to slow down and enjoy Family Time. 

Let them Be Kids has a Christian Parenting perspective, but the book can apply to Secular Families as well. Kids nowadays are BORED when they are at home, but Jessica Smartt gives ideas on how to show kids how entertain themselves or with their siblings. The book also tackles parenting struggles and things to watch for as kids grow older and keeping their interests age appropriate The book is filled with ideas that will create Family Memories and spending time together as a family. 

The book is similar to some other Christian Parenting books, but I also discovered many new ideas. Family Time and creating memories is very important for my family and I really enjoyed this book!




 

Jessica Smartt

Jessica Smartt is a former English teacher turned homeschooling mama of three. A week after her first baby was born, she began her motherhood blog “Smartter” Each Day. Jessica and her husband live in beautiful North Carolina, where she loves hiking with kids (mostly), steaming coffee in the afternoon, family bike rides, and anything that’s ever been done to a potato.

CONNECT WITH JESSICA: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram  


 
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!
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*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.





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Celebrate Lit Blog Tour: God Did Not Do This To Me by Lisa Stringer



Book:  God Did Not Do This To Me
Author: Lisa Stringer
Genre:  RELIGION / Christian Living/Personal Growth
Release Date: May 4, 2020

Lisa and Doug Stringer were ministering in Massachusetts in March 2015 when a lump in Doug’s throat started to bother him. “I don’t feel well,” he told his wife. “The lump I felt in my throat a few days ago feels larger.” When they were able to see a doctor, they were horrified to learn that Doug had Stage 4 large B-cell lymphoma that was 80 percent aggressive.

Doug spent the rest of the day sitting in his car, alone in prayer. Finally, he called Lisa to tell her that he was on his way home and he wanted a family meeting and communion. Emotionally exhausted and noses still running from crying, Lisa, her mom, and Ashley gathered in the family room as Doug told them about his time with God.

“God did not do this to me—and if He did not do this to me, then it doesn’t belong to me!” he told them emphatically. It was just what they need to hear.

God Did Not Do This to Me is Lisa’s story of the family’s trials and triumphs through a cancer diagnosis. Putting on the armor of God, Doug was determined to turn his battle with cancer into an intercession for the country, even joking that the chemotherapy treatments made him resemble a bald eagle.

By the end of the year, Doug’s cancer was in remission.

“We know that the Great Physician heard the numerous prayers of our friends and spiritual family from all over the world, and blessed us all with a testimony of His healing power,” Lisa says. “We are forever changed through this experience. He has expanded my heart of compassion, taught me to pour out more grace, to be an even bigger giver, and to appreciate the little things all the more.”


Click here to get your copy!


I really LOVE this book! God Did Not Do This To Me is the real life story of Doug Stringer and his Cancer diagnosis. Doug Stringer and his wife Lisa were doing ministry work in 2015 when Doug was diagnosed with Cancer. A Cancer diagnosis usually sees people asking God "why me, God, why me"? So many are discouraged by a a Cancer Diagnosis. Doug didn't let cancer have that affect on him. He knew he was going to be strong and beat cancer and he did within a year! 

I really enjoyed reading this book as it is filled with encouragement. Doug had a cheerful and fighter attitude throughout his battle with Stage 4 Cancer and that encouragement helped his family through the trials of Cancer. The encouragement and truth filled book can be applied to many areas of ones life. The fact that Doug knew that God didn't do this to him and didn't blame God, was such a wonderful perspective during a rough trial of life. 

I was very encouraged by this book and how the family bond grew within the Stringer family during Doug's cancer journey! GREAT BOOK! 





Lisa Stringer is the wife of Doug Stringer, the founder and president of Somebody Cares America/International, a network of organizations impacting their communities through unified grassroots efforts.
Lisa worked in the secular radio and music entertainment industry for seventeen years, becoming the first female program director of a top-40 station in a major market in the United States. Later, she became the vice president of programming and promotions of a radio group. Lisa has received numerous awards, including gold and platinum records for her contribution to the success of many highly recognizable recording artists and entertainers.
She homeschooled her daughter, Ashley, who is now enrolled in dual programs at a local community college and working on the release of her second EP.
Lisa travels with Doug as they minister to many around the globe, ranging from those of the persecuted church to those suffering in the aftermath of human tragedy, such as the Haitian earthquake, the tsunami in Japan, and Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas. Lisa enjoys opportunities where she has been able to interpret for her husband as they minister throughout Central and South America. She and her husband are also regular guests on various television programs that air throughout the world.
Lisa has a heart for the less fortunate, widows, and orphans. She has served on various boards and has traveled to over thirty-four nations.
The Stringers live in the greater Houston area.


More from Lisa

Doug continued to listen to whatever the doctor was telling him. I could tell something wasn’t right because Doug’s countenance had changed. It was obvious he was not receiving good news. Whatever it was, at no time did I ever imagine it to be cancer. Doug would not look at me; his eyes were locked in a forward gaze. That alone had my heart beating a tad faster.
I then heard him say, “How bad is it?” Oh, my goodness, was my heart beating right out of my chest! How bad is it? How bad is what? This can’t be bad! I was not expecting bad! Then I heard the heart-wrenching, horrible “c” word come out of my husband’s mouth. He still had his eyes fixed forward. That in itself was painful, not because he wasn’t acknowledging me, but because he was hurting and I knew that if we made eye contact, one or both of us would break down at this point.
We had been on an emotional roller coaster and we were about to take a drop from one of the scariest peaks on one of the worst rides people can experience. I was struggling with everything in me to not allow tears to stream down my face. After all, I was still only hearing one side of the conversation. I recall Doug getting choked up and his voice cracking as he fought back the natural reaction to bad news. He then asked, “What kind of cancer is it?” My heart stopped. I felt like I had been shot and life was moving in slow motion. I could feel every nerve in my body. A deep pain set in…


Artistic Nobody, June 14 (Spotlight)
Andrea Christenson, June 18 (Spotlight)
Through the Fire Blogs, June 20 (Spotlight)
Library Lady’s Kid Lit, June 22 (Spotlight)
My Devotional Thoughts, June 25 (Spotlight)

To celebrate her tour, Lisa is giving away the grand prize of a $20 Starbucks gift card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

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Monday, June 15, 2020

Celebrate Lit Blog Tour: YellowStone Yondering by Kristen Joy Wilks




Book:  Yellowstone Yondering
Author: Kristen Joy Wilks
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Release Date: January 17, 2020

When a free-spirited wildlife photographer loses her Scottish terrier in a herd of bison, she sets out to rescue her furbaby before he is devoured. But will she succeed when Yellowstone National Park is chock full of boiling, bubbling, and rampaging hazards (both mammalian and geographical) — not to mention a rule-obsessed park ranger whose many rescues thwart her efforts to find her poor pup?

They say opposites attract, and when it comes to Kayla Dineen and Ranger Alexander Brandt, no two people have ever been more opposed…or attractive. Old Faithful isn’t the only thing making noise at Yellowstone this season.



Click here to get your copy!


I really enjoy Contemporary Romance novels and Yellowstone Yondering by Kristen Joy Wilks, was a definite page turner. I was really intrigued by the story line from the beginning and couldn't put the book down. The setting is Yellowstone National Park. I have never been there, but I felt like I was there as I was reading the book. 

The 2 main characters, Kayla Dineen and Ranger Alexander Brandt, are complete opposites. Kayla is a very determined woman who is looking for her Scottish Terrier that ran away and Ranger Alexander likes to protect his "space". The 2 of them don't see eye to eye, but seem to also be getting attracted to one another. The relationship is quite humorous as the relationship grows. Will they allow attraction to win or will their hard hearts win? 

Author, Kristen Joy Wilks is a new to me author, but I thoroughly enjoyed her writing style. GREAT BOOK and I highly recommend it! 






Kristen Joy Wilks lives in the beautiful Cascade Mountains with her camp director husband, three fierce sons, and a large and slobbery Newfoundland dog. She has blow-dried a chicken, fought epic Nerf battles instead of washing dishes, and discovered a stealthily smuggled gardener snake in her sons’ bubble bath. Her stories, devotionals, and articles have appeared in Nature Friend, Clubhouse, Thriving Family, Keys for Kids, The Christian Journal, Splickety, Spark, and Havok. She writes romantic comedies for Pelican Book Group, including Copenhagen Cozenage, The Volk Advent, Athens Ambuscade, Spider Gap, and Yellowstone Yondering. Kristen writes about the humor and Grace that can be found amidst the detritus of life.

More from Kristen

Greetings and Salutations!
My name is Kristen Joy Wilks and I am a mountain woman, married to a camp director, who lives at a remote Bible camp where we don’t have access to electricity, water, or garbage services unless we do it ourselves. Yes, it is totally possible to do all these things. But it does mean some frantic running about when the generator starts making a strange noise or the water inexplicably cuts off. As a girl I did have one or two mountain kid adventures that were perhaps not typical for the average tomboy. Such as when I rode my horse through a herd of 200 elk or when I got together with my brother and cousins to build a homemade snake pit so that we could dangle one another over it by our legs from a tripod made of logs in classic Indiana Jones style. Of course, we caught snakes for our pit!
Why do you ask?


We managed to find over twenty and it was a huge success, except for the tiny issue of me being too tall and all those snakes getting into my hair. As you can plainly see, mountain kids do have more fun. I’m now the mom of three fierce sons, six pet chickens, and a large and slobbery Newfoundland dog named Princess Leia Freyja Wilks. I spend most of my time thwarting my sons’ attempts to smuggle their pet chickens onto their bunk beds and trying to keep my husband from filling another wall of our dinning room with strategy board games. Yes, you would think that 300 would be sufficient, but there is always another one, apparently. Well, he does have a point when he insists that they are great for camp ministry. I spend a great deal of time over at Camas Meadows Bible Camp photographing the daily comings and goings of counselors and campers so that their parents can look online and see that everyone is still alive. During all that photo taking, I have seen many a shy child open up after playing an exciting game of Camel Up, Snorta, or Star Trek Ascendancy. I also write the camp blog, step in as camp mother when homesickness pops up, and volunteer at our local public schools with Princess Leia Freyja who excels at reading therapy … yep, she just flops on the floor next to children while they read, which is definitely her spiritual gift. I can also be found at 4:00AM, with a cup of Jasmine Monkey King tea, tucked under my Star Trek quilt, writing crazy stories that might sound insane, but always have a tiny hint of truth. Thank you for joining me today to see what kind of misadventures I managed to put my unsuspecting characters through.





Quiet Quilter, June 5
Emily Yager, June 10
Holly Jo Morris, June 13
Artistic Nobody, June 17 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)


                    


To celebrate her tour, Kristen is giving away the grand prize of a delicious dark chocolate bar with candied ginger bits!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

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Thursday, June 11, 2020

Celebrate Lit Blog Tour: Forever Music by Hope Toler Doughery





Book:  Forever Music
Author: Hope Toler Dougherty
Genre:  Sweet, inspirational romance
Release Date: May 19, 2020

College history instructor, Josie Daniels is good at mothering her three brothers, volunteering in her community, and getting over broken hearts, but meeting aloof, hot-shot attorney Ches Windham challenges her nurturing, positive-thinking spirit.

Josie longs to help Ches find his true purpose, but, as his hidden talents and true personality emerge, will she be able to withstand potent his charms or will she lose her heart in the process?
Rising star in his law firm, Ches Windham is good at keeping secrets.

He’s always been the good son, following his father’s will to become an attorney and playing the game for a fast track to partnering with a law firm. Lately, though, his life’s path has lost what luster it ever had—all because of his unlikely, and unacceptable, friendship with Josie. He struggles between the life he’s prepared for and the one calling to him now. Opposing his father has never been an option, and spending time with Josie can’t be an option. The more he’s with her, however, the more he wants to be.

When a crisis tarnishes his golden future and secrets are revealed, Ches is forced to reexamine the trajectory of his life. Will he choose the path his father hammered out for him or the path that speaks to his heart?


Click here to get your copy!


I have really come to enjoy books by Author Hope Toler Dougherty, having read a couple other books by her. Forever Music is another GREAT book by Hope Toler Dougherty. 

The main characters in Forever Music are Josie Daniels and Ches Windham. Josie Daniels is a College Teacher and also takes cares of her brothers. Ches Windham is an Attorney. Josie begins to "mother" Ches and wants to help him pursue his dreams and talents, rather then continue to follow his father's dreams for him. Josie and Ches seem to want to not "Fall for Each other" but will they find that they are falling deeply in love with each other? Will Ches follow his own dreams or continue to allow his father's will and opinion of his life "Rule him"? 

I really enjoyed this book so much. The "secrecy" of their relationship and how strong they both are through crisis times, really seems real life rather then from a Fiction book. GREAT writing and the characters really make this book very interesting! 

I was so focused on this over 300 pages book, that I lost track of time and almost forgot to make dinner! FANTASTIC BOOK!






Hope holds a Master’s degree in English and taught at East Carolina University and York Technical College. Forever Music is her fourth novel. Residing in North Carolina, she and her husband enjoy visits with their daughters and twin sons.

More from Hope

We love holidays at our house. A couple of months beforehand, my grown children begin asking, “So who’ve you asked? Who’s coming?” Never mind that with our six, my brother’s seven, my parents, a few aunts, uncles, and cousins, we have at least twenty to begin with. They want a crowd—friends, neighbors, and even strangers.
The bigger the better.
For Thanksgiving 2015, people started rolling in on Tuesday night, including a British friend who’d never experienced an American Thanksgiving. I already had some dishes prepared, but when old high school friends began arriving to visit my home-from-college children, I kicked into high gear.
I felt like I cooked pretty much round the clock from Tuesday through Sunday morning.
And I loved it.
I remember just repeating, “Thank You, God! Thank You, God,” like a mantra as I retrieved another casserole from our oven or stirred another dish. The house vibrated with laughter and conversation and love.
It’s one of my all-time favorite weeks.
Forever Music shares the love story of Josie and Ches, but it’s also a nod to close-knit families. Josie and her three brothers portray a teasing, rollicking, loving family. Whether it’s a full-blown holiday or just a weekend supper, they enjoy time together, sharing jokes and jabs over food, games, or projects.
I am blessed beyond measure with my nuclear and extended family and was grateful to model this fictional family on my real one. I hope readers will love the Daniels family as much as I do!



Batya’s Bits, June 10
Genesis 5020, June 11
Emily Yager, June 13
Pause for Tales, June 20
Artistic Nobody, June 23 (Guest Review from Donna Cline)


              

To celebrate her tour, Hope is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon gift card & a copy of the book!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

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Monday, June 8, 2020

FlyBy Promotions Book Review: Moving Beyond Anxiety by David Chadwick




Do you feel like a cloud of worry follows wherever you go? Do you dread the unknown? In today’s anxiety economy its raising stress levels, it’s no secret that fear is often at the root of our problems.


The key to overcoming your anxiety is found in the person of Jesus. He calls us to trust rather than despair—to “not be anxious” (Matthew 6:25), and to cast all our cares on him (1 Peter 5:7).

Author David Chadwick shares 12 ways you can overcome life’s fears and worries—all of which come straight from Scripture and include…
·         focusing on faith              
·         praying                                
·         caring for your health   
·         remembering God’s promises
·         finding good teammates
·         developing an eternal perspective                       

Moving Beyond Anxiety will equip you to defeat worry and fear by trusting God and exercising your faith daily. As you immerse yourself in God’s truth, you will discover it is truly the most powerful antidote to anxiety.


I come from a family where Anxiety is prevalent for many of my family members. Aunts, Uncles, Siblings, Cousins, the next generation is suffering from Anxiety. It amazes me how many are suffering from Anxiety in my family, from about 4 generations. 

Anxiety is also very prevalent in Society, especially in the times we are living in now. Author David Chadwick tackles a topic that is sometimes thrown to the side by Churches and Christians. Anxiety can really tear apart a person who suffers from Anxiety. David Chadwick takes the reader through Biblical Principles and strategies for dealing with Anxiety. I really like his 12 Strategy focus. 

The 12 Strategies are:
Focus on Faith
Pray
Fast
Cast
Consider Creation
Ponder the Prepositions
Remember
Sing
Remember Your Body
Develop an Eternal Perspective
Get Good Teammates
Realize God Do Not Give You a Spirit of Fear

I really enjoyed the book and I will be using the info from this book to help my Son and I through our Anxiety issues.  Some parts of the book are hard to comprehend due to the writing style, but I was able to overcome those parts. I really appreciate how the book is done in a Biblical Perspective, as many Churches don't tackle anxiety issues. 

VERY good book for those who suffer from Anxiety. I HIGHLY recommend the book! 







David Chadwick is presently the pastor of Moments of Hope Church in Charlotte, N.C.  He has been a pastor for almost 40 years.  He played basketball under the legendary coach, Dean Smith, at the University of North Carolina and was a member of the Final Four 1969 team.  David also has a graduate counseling psychology degree from the University of Florida and an MDiv and DMin from Columbia Theological Seminary.  These post graduate degrees have allowed David to combine therapeutic counseling theories with biblical truth.  David is the author of nine books and hosts a weekly talk show on faith and values on WBT in Charlotte, N.C.  He has been married to the love of his life, Marilynn, for 42 years and has three children, Bethany, David Banner, and Michael.  They have given David and Marilynn seven grandchildren.

A Video Intro for Moving Beyond Anxiety


Where to find Author David Chadwick Online: 


Moments of Hope website: https://momentsofhope.org/









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