God Sees Her by Our Daily Bread Review and Giveaway

About the Book

Book:  God Sees Her

Author: Our Daily Bread

Genre:  Devotional

Release Date: March 3, 2020

Following the overwhelming success and rave reviews of God Hears Her, we’re bringing you another devotional written by women for women to reassure you that God is with you. God Sees Her is a beautifully styled gift book containing 366 meditations with accompanying Scripture that speak to the heart of women.

The title comes from a story in an Old Testament book of the Bible—Genesis—where Hagar is on the run, alone in the desert with nowhere to go. The angel of the Lord finds her and calls her by name. After this encounter, Hagar exclaimed, “You are the God who sees me” (Genesis 16:13). Women today need this same assurance . . . God sees you, God knows you by name, and God cares about every detail of your life.
Let these short Our Daily Bread devotionals written by women like you wash over your soul and remind you each day that God is near. The handy size, ribbon marker, and decorative cover make it perfect for gift giving to your girlfriends too.

 

Click here for your copy.

 

More about God Sees Her

This is a follow up to the successful 365-devotional, God Hears Her. So far, it’s moved more than 200,000 copies.

My Thoughts

Our Daily Bread was always a staple in my childhood home. To this day, my mom still has a copy on her nightstand. It was the first devotion that I started reading daily and I’ve always enjoyed the stories and lessons that could be found in them.

God Sees Her, produced by Our Daily Bread is geared towards women and focuses on God’s love towards us and His presence in our lives. I’m always amazed at how the devotions that I read each day are relevant to my life.

The book contains 365 devotions, one for each day of the year. They begin with a verse from the Bible and then contain a story that relates in some way to the verse. The stories are always touching and enjoyable to read. The devotions are short, only taking about 1-2 minutes to read but that makes them the perfect length for busy mornings before starting the day.

I love the compact size of the book…it’s about the size of a 4×6 photograph so it could easily fit in your purse or glovebox. The design of the cover and end papers are beautiful…watercolor flowers on the cover and yellow and white stripes on the end papers that are very cheery. There’s also a subtle flower design on the corner of each page. Little touches like these make me happy. I also appreciate that there’s a ribbon bookmark attached to the book so that it is always to keep track of where you are.

Overall, this is a great devotional and I would highly recommend it. It would make a great gift as well.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

Blog Stops

Texas Book-aholic, April 28

Girls in White Dresses, April 28

The Avid Reader, April 29

deb’s Book Review, April 29

For Him and My Family, April 30

Lighthouse Academy, April 30

Emily Yager, May 1

She Lives To Read, May 1

Remembrancy, May 2

Lis Loves Reading, May 2

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, May 3

Inklings and notions, May 3

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, May 4

Godly Book Reviews, May 4

Older & Smarter?, May 5

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, May 6

Genesis 5020, May 6

Blossoms and Blessings, May 7

amandainpa, May 7

For the Love of Literature, May 8

Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, May 8

Splashes of Joy, May 9

Hallie Reads, May 9

Artistic Nobody, May 10

Nancy E Wood, May 10

Little Homeschool on the Prairie, May 11

Bookishly Beverly, May 11

Giveaway

To celebrate their tour, Our Daily Bread is giving away the grand prize package of a God Sees Her hardcover, God Hears Her leather-like, God Hears Her journal, God Hears Her CD, God Hears Her pen, and God Hears Her Scripture & Encouragement cards!!

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

https://promosimple.com/ps/f983/god-sees-her-celebration-tour-giveaway

Encountering God’s Heart for You by Diane Stortz Review and Giveaway

About the Book

Book:  Encountering God’s Heart For You

Author: Diane Stortz

Genre:  Christian non-fiction, Devotional

Release Date: September 3, 2019

God put the Bible together for you, and he wants you to understand and know him better. But sometimes you can get lost in the details and miss the big picture. The Bible is more than just a collection of wisdom, instructions, and history. It’s one unified story of the incredible love of God!

Encountering God’s Heart for You takes you on a daily journey through the full narrative of Scripture in a year. And in the process, it will draw you nearer to God as you discover his love and compassion. It won’t cover every verse, or even every chapter, in the Bible, but by the time you’re through, you’ll have a strong grasp of what the Bible is all about.

Reading Scripture isn’t just a way to collect information or check something off a to-do list. Let this book bring you into God’s presence to better understand the Bible’s story of love, sacrifice, and redemption as he draws you to himself.

 

Click here to get your copy!

My Thoughts

I’ve owned and read a lot of devotions in my life but this one was different from all of the ones that I’ve encountered in the past.

This book, geared towards women, takes the reader through the Bible in a year. It almost feels like you are going on a tour of the Bible as you read it. Each day begins with a Bible reference and a verse, then goes into further detail of what was occurring in that verse and a way that we can apply that to our lives. They end with a prayer. Each devotion covers 1 page and takes about 3-5 minutes to read. If the reader wants to delve further into the story, they can do so by looking up the reference at the beginning of the passage.

Each day is numbered (not dated) so that the reader can begin the book at any time of the year. This is important because this is a book that would be best read from beginning to end (Genesis to Revelation).

I highly recommend this devotion if you are intimidated by reading the Bible in a year, or if you are new to the Bible and want an overview of it, or even if you are familiar with it and want a quick daily refresher each morning. It’s truly a good book for everyone.

I received this book from Celebrate Lit and the publisher/author in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

 

About the Author

Diane Stortz is a multipublished author who writes to make God’s wonders known to the next generation. Diane’s books for women, A Woman’s Guide to Reading the Bible in a Year and Encountering God’s Heart for You, both from Bethany House, encourage women to get to know God through His Word, the Bible. Her children’s releases include the best-selling Say & Pray Bible and I AM: 40 Reasons to Trust God, both from Tommy Nelson. Diane and her husband have two married daughters and five grandchildren—all boys! Visit her at www.DianeStortz.com.

 

 

More from Diane

Twenty years ago, I was invited to join a women’s Bible study group planning to read through the Bible in a year to get to know God.

Although I’d been a Christian for many years and had read many parts of the Bible and used the Bible in my work as an editor, I had never actually read the entire Bible.

I joined the group. We read about three chapters a day and met weekly on Monday nights to discuss what we’d read.

I’ve repeated that experience in various forms most years since then, and it has changed my life in so many ways. (Getting to know God does that, right?)

I’m convinced that one of the most loving things we can do for someone else is to invite and encourage her to become a lifelong reader of the Word, and to read it together.

That’s how I view my new devotional, Encountering God’s Heart for You. It’s an invitation to every woman to pick up her Bible, read along with me, and look together for all the ways God teaches us about himself on every page.

Blog Stops

For the Love of Literature, March 21

Through the Lens of Scripture, March 22

Holly Jo Morris, March 22

Inklings and notions, March 23

amandainpa, March 24

deb’s Book Review, March 24

Genesis 5020, March 25

For Him and My Family, March 26

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, March 27

Spoken from the Heart, March 28

Lights in a Dark World, March 29

SPLASHES of Joy, March 29

Texas Book-aholic, March 30

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, March 30

She Lives To Read, March 31

Remembrancy, April 1

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, April 2

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, April 2

Lis Loves Reading, April 3

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Diane is giving away the grand prize package of a journal, a set of Scripture cards, and a set of gel pens!!

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

https://promosimple.com/ps/f6ec/encountering-god-s-heart-for-you-celebration-tour-giveaway

God Hears Her by Our Daily Bread Review and Giveaway

About the Book

Book:  God Hears Her

Author: Our Daily Bread

Genre: Non-fiction / Christian / Devotional

Release Date: September, 2017

Tour Dates: February 1 – 14

When you’re having one of those days, you just want to know that someone is on your side. You have more than just someone  . . . you have your Heavenly Father! He is with you. He is for you. He hears your heart’s cry. And He will reassure you of this through the beautifully designed, hardcover devotional collection, God Hears Her. The personal stories, Scripture passages, and inspirational quotes pulled from Our Daily Bread devotionals will lift you up and remind you that God is bigger than the trials you face.

 

Click here to get your copy!

 

My Thoughts

Our Daily Bread was always a staple in my home when I was growing up…there was always one on my parents’ night stand (I believe that there still is) and also usually somewhere else in the house as well. I began reading them when I was about 12 years old because I liked the shortness of them and the vivid stories that were provided in each devotion.

This book, produced by Our Daily Bread is a bit different from the standard devotions because it is written for women by women. The devotions focus on God’s nearness and the fact that He knows us intimately and always hears us.

I still love the quick reading time of each devotion. They take me about 1-2 minutes to read but still give me something to ponder throughout the day. They are short but still go deep. I also appreciate that each devotion begins with a verse of scripture, as well as the reference that can be delved into further, if the reader wishes to do so.

The compact size of the book is great, it’s the perfect size to slip into a purse or the glove box of your car so that you can grab it whenever you need some “Jesus time”. There are 365 devotions that are dated so it’s easy to keep track of your journey. The cover is beautiful and there is a satin ribbon bookmark attached to keep your place.

This is an excellent devotional book. I always feel that you can’t go wrong with anything by Our Daily Bread. I highly recommend it!

I received this book from Celebrate Lit to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

About the Author

Our Daily Bread Publishing – Our Daily Bread Publishing is a division of Our Daily Bread Ministries. Founded in 1938, the ministry has grown from a small group of dedicated radio listeners to millions of people around the world who use our Bible-based resources, including the beloved Our Daily Bread devotional. Our Daily Bread Ministries is a non-denominational, non-profit organization with staff and volunteers in over 37 offices working together to distribute more than 60 million resources in 150 countries. Regardless of whether it’s a radio or television broadcast, DVD, podcast, book, mobile app, or website, we provide materials to help people grow in their relationship with God.

 

More from Our Daily Bread

‘Feels Like Home’ Winter Recipes

As the weather turns colder, it becomes the time to pull out those tried and true winter-time recipes. You know, the ones that make us (or even keep us) warm on the inside. This is the time for the food that just feels like home.

Kirsten Holmberg and Elisa Morgan from the God Hears Her blog have shared some of their families personal recipes. These are the ones that are good for everyone. Feel free to try them yourself, bookmark them for later, or share them with a friend.

Kirsten Holmberg

In the winter, I’m partial to any slow-cooker soup or stew because I love coming home to it in the evening. My favorite is a Vegetarian Chili with some Italian influences:

2 bell peppers, diced

2 stalks of celery, sliced

2 lb zucchini halved and sliced

1 lb fresh mushrooms, halved

1 large onion, diced

3 cans diced tomatoes (fire roasted or herbed for the most flavor)

1 can tomato sauce

1 small can black olives, sliced (or fresh in any amount desired)

1 can cannellini beans

2.5 teaspoon Italian seasoning

2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced

½ cup water

Toss it all in a slow cooker for a few hours on high, or all day on low. Or, put it on the stove instead and simmer until the veggies are cooked through and the flavors blended (about 45 minutes). Parmesan cheese on top for an extra zing.

Elisa Morgan

A Cranberry Nut Bread recipe handed down by my mom, Paige Lee

2 cup flour

½ tsp salt

1 ¼ tsp baking powder

½ scant tsp baking soda

1 cup sugar

Sift above ingredients together twice. To the juice and grated rind of 1 large orange, add 2 tbs of melted shortening and enough boiling water to make ¾ cup. Mix with dry ingredients and add…

1 beaten egg

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup halved fresh cranberries

Bake in greased loaf pan for 75 minutes at 350 degrees.

If you double the recipe, bake a little less time and use 3 loaf pans. It also makes good muffins and can be frozen.

Blog Stops

The Avid Reader, February 1

deb’s Book Review, February 1

Book Bites, Bee Stings, & Butterfly Kisses, February 2

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, February 2

Texas Book-aholic, February 3

Mary Hake, February 3

God is Love, February 4

Emily Yager, February 4

Genesis 5020, February 5

A Diva’s Heart, February 5

Girls in White Dresses, February 5

Lighthouse Academy, February 6

amandainpa, February 6

For Him and My Family, February 7

For The Love of Books, February 7

Inklings and notions, February 8

Andrea Christenson, February 8

Blossoms and Blessings, February 9

CarpeDiem, February 9

Older & Smarter?, February 10

She Lives to Read, February 10

For the Love of Literature, February 11

Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, February 11

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, February 12

Godly Book Reviews, February 12

Artistic Nobody, February 13

Back Porch Reads, February 13

Little Homeschool on the Prairie, February 14

Kat’s Corner Books, February 14

Giveaway

To celebrate their tour, Our Daily Bread is giving away the grand prize package of  a God Hears Her hardcover, God Hears Her leather-like, God Hears Her journal, God Hears Her CD, God Hears Her pen, and God Hears Her Scripture & Encouragement cards!!

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

https://promosimple.com/ps/f540/god-hears-her-celebration-tour-giveaway

Epic Devotions Review

Description

Epic Devotions: 52 Weeks in the Story that Changed the World is a graphic-novel inspired weekly devotional based on Epic: The Story that Changed the World. Each insightful devotion circles back to the one big story of Jesus and makes biblical events more relevant for today’s youth. The book features familiar yet reimagined art from the One Big Story brand that is perfect for engaging older kids and preteen readers.

My Thoughts

This epic devotion geared towards older children and pre-teens spans the entire length of the Bible, starting with the Creation story and ending in Revelation. There are 52 stories that can be read at once or over the period of a week (each story is 4 pages). The stories are told chronologically and have wonderful illustrations that really bring the stories to life.

One of my favorite things about this book is that it begins by sharing the story but then teaches a lesson about it and provides questions to think about and a verse to memorize for the week. Many children’s Bible story books that I’ve seen tend to lack the application and explanation part, which is very important. Another thing that I noted and really love is that there are places where the Old and New testament are woven together (with Abraham and Isaac, showing a foreshadowing to Christ).

This story is well done and very appealing to the younger crowd. I highly recommend it!

I received this book from the publisher to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My Rating

Be Loved by Emma Mae Jenkins Review

Description

Emma Mae Jenkins, a young writer, has inspired many with the freedom she has to be herself–a dearly loved child of God. In her first book, Be Loved, she invites readers to join her on a journey of life-changing faith and the freedom that comes from knowing the love of God.

She chronicles her own high school journey through starting a new school, navigating the typical pressures of school work and sports, going to prom, and even homecoming. Emma Mae faced each new challenge with the confidence that God was with her and was going to make her uniquely useful in the place he had prepared for her.

For Emma Mae, it all starts with her relationship with Jesus. Because she knows she is loved by him, she is free to be herself and to live out her faith no matter what the cost. As a young, passionate, and intimate lover of Jesus, Emma Mae’s love for her Savior overflows unashamedly into her unconditional, fierce love for people.

Readers will experience the chain-breaking liberty of knowing the Lord’s presence and the freedom to be unique. This full-color, hardback book includes pictures from Emma Mae’s life, along with key Bible verses that God used to strengthen and guide her through the ups and downs of her high school years.

My Thoughts

My first impression of Emma Mae Jenkins is that she is a girl full of joy. Her smile truly lights up her face and she really “lets her light shine”. As a mom of a 13 year old girl, I’m always looking for positive role models in this warped world that we live in…I’m thankful that I found this young lady.

This book is extremely pre-teen/teen friendly…the end papers are full of vibrant colored flowers and each page of the book has photographs. This is a very fun book to read.

Although the book is formatted in a fun way, the content is anything but “fluff”. Emma shares about her high school experience and discusses ways to share God’s love, prayer, being yourself, and so much more.

This is a girl that lives for Christ and not people. I highly recommend this book for the teen and pre-teen girl in your life. They will love it!

I received this book from the publisher to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

My Rating

 

 

Beautiful Word Coloring Bible for Girls Review and Giveaway

About the NIV Beautiful Word Coloring Bible for Girls

Created especially for girls ages 8 to 12, this beautiful Bible provides ample space for young artists to express themselves through coloring and journaling. Girls can get creative with the detailed, ready-to-color line art surrounding the hundreds of inspiring verses in the NIV Beautiful Word™ Coloring Bible for Girls. This Bible is a perfect gift for a special young girl in your life and will become a cherished keepsake full of personalized creative expressions of faith. Features include: Hundreds of verses illustrated in ready-to-color line art Thicker white paper for enduring note-taking Lined, wide margins for notes, reflections and art Complete text of the accurate, readable and clear New International Version (NIV) Easy-to-read black letter text in single-column format Lays flat in your hand or on your desk Ribbon marker Beautifully designed Leathersoft-over-board cover featuring screen-printing and other cover embellishments 8-point type size Using the accurate, readable, and clear New International Version (NIV) text makes the Bible accessible and easy-to-read for kids. The NIV is the result of over 50 years of work by the Committee on Bible Translation, who oversee the efforts of many contributing scholars. Representing the spectrum of evangelicalism, the translators come from a wide range of denominations and various countries and continually review new research to ensure the NIV remains at the forefront of accessibility, relevance, and authority. Every NIV Bible that is purchased helps Biblica translate and give Bibles to people in need around the world.

My Thoughts

This Bible is marketed “for girls”ages 8 and up but I am a 39 year old girl that absolutely loves it! The cover is hot pink with silver polka dots and the end papers are silver. The color combination is very pretty and girly (I love it!) There is also silver stitching around the cover of the Bible. The material is leathersoft and it seems like it will be very durable and hold up well to daily use.

The size is very nice…it’s easy to hold and not too large but also not too small (the text is easy to read and the coloring pages and margins are ample in size).

The Bible is full of beautiful illustrations of verses and pictures. The illustrations range from simple to more intricate. There are also many lined margins for notes and journaling by the owner of the Bible.

The pages are a decent thickness and would work well with colored pencils, watercolors, or gel-pens.

I am thoroughly impressed with this adorable Bible and look forward to spending many hours coloring the beautiful illustrations.

I received a copy of the NIV Beautiful Word Coloring Bible for Girls from Zondervan (HarperCollins Christian Publishing) for this review. This post is sponsored by Zondervan.

Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Download some of the Coloring pages here!

 

 

She Prays by Debbie Lindell Review

Synopsis:

One of the most wonderful things about walking with God is that we can have an intimate and real relationship with him. He wants us to know him so well that we are comfortable talking to him about anything and everything. Yet, there are times when we feel disconnected and insecure. We desire to grow in prayer, but we don’t know where to begin, what to say, or how to listen for his voice.

In She Prays, Debbie Lindell invites you on a 31-day journey to experience a confident and conversational relationship with your heavenly Father. She shows you how to replace the pressure to perform in prayer with a faith-filled expectation–trusting that God is delighted with every conversation and every word we whisper to him. Her desire is that your soul will be transformed as your confidence in prayer grows, and that your faith will be strengthened as you see God work through your prayers in ways you never imagined possible.

My Thoughts

Prayer is something that I would guess most Christians would like to improve upon. I have always felt that my prayer life could use improvement so I was looking forward to this book.

The format is very convenient for busy women…broken down into 31 days, each entry only takes about 5-10 minutes to read. There is space at the end of each entry (with lines for writing) to write notes and the author includes a prompt of reflection for each day. Each day begins with a verse from the Bible, which is extremely important to me.

The lessons learned in this book are very helpful and impactful, yet very accessible. I highly recommend this to all ladies who are looking to improve their discussions with the Lord.

My Rating

I received this book from the publisher to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Lies Girls Believe & The Truth That Sets Them Free by Dannah Gresh Review

Description

You can’t change the world, but you can prepare her for it.

Today’s girls face a number of challenges we never dealt with at their age. From skyrocketing anxiety rates to bullying on social media, the Enemy’s lies are everywhere. How do you help the girl you love walk in freedom?

Equip her with Truth. Dannah Gresh, author of Secret Keeper Girl and Lies Young Women Believe (coauthored with Nancy Demoss Wolgemuth) brings you Lies Girls Believe. This fun, easy-to-read book engages your daughter in the twenty most important truths she needs. She’ll help solve problems using fun sidebars and it’s packed with wisdom, quizzes, games, exploded quotes, and graphics to help her absorb the message. Prepare your daughter for the difficult challenges she’ll face in the world today with sections addressing:

Lies about God
Lies about Friendship
Lies about the Future
Lies about Myself
Lies about Boys

And more! 

Lies Girls Believe is designed to help your daughter fully understand the Truth so she can live the way God meant for her to live—free!

For the best results, use the accompanying Mom’s Guide to Lies Girls Believe which invites you to critically examine the lies girls believe and discover how to set your daughter free. It also helps facilitate discussion between you and your daughter.

My Thoughts

Being a pre-teen/young teenage girl is tough at any time but in this age of social media it’s probably the hardest time in history to deal with changing hormones, emotions, and bodies.

This book discusses 20 lies that the world tells these young ladies and counteracts them with truths from the one thing that never changes, The Word of God. Lies like, “Pretty girls are worth more” and, “Boys and girls really aren’t that different”. Timely and very “tween/young teen friendly”, this book is definitely a great tool to help young ladies as they navigate through these extremely difficult years.

The book is very visually pleasing…full of colorful illustrations and text, it is very fun to look through. The book does not require a lot of writing but it does have some questions in each chapter where the young lady writes her answers. (This book would make a wonderful group study for young ladies).

My 13 year old daughter perused the book and said that she loved the format and cannot wait to read it. She was especially excited to see that Sadie Robertson had contributed a quote on one of the pages (she loves Sadie).

Overall, this is a great resource for young ladies that tackles many difficult topics that they will encounter. I highly recommend it!

My Rating

I received this book from the publisher to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Hagar: Rediscovering the God who sees me by Shadia Hrichi Review and Giveaway

About the Book

Book: Hagar

Author: Shadia Hrichi

Genre: Religion / Bible Study

Release Date: October 10, 2017

You are ”The God Who Sees Me.”

Discover a close relationship with God–no matter the pain or suffering in your life. Witness the depths of God’s compassion through the eyes of Hagar, a runaway slave who meets the living God in a desert of despair, where she gives Him the name El Roi, ”The God Who Sees Me.”

Through this seven week study, you will find that when you surrender your life into God’s hands, your trials and triumphs serve a magnificent purpose: to draw you into the arms of the faithful God Who Sees Me.

”Deep and packed with surprising insights!” Francine Rivers

 

Click here to grab your copy.

 

Click here to download a free sample, explore Shadia’s video teaching sessions, or sign up for the online Bible study.

My Thoughts

I’ve always felt a lot of sadness for Hagar…she was used, abused, and thrown out by the people in her life…but God still looked down on her with love. I was very excited when I found out that there was a Bible study focusing on this lonely woman in the Bible.

The study is 7 weeks long, with 5 days of study per week. Each day took me about 45 minutes to complete. The study goes deep into scripture and causes the person who is studying to really ponder and think about many different things along the way.  Each day starts with a reading by the author, followed by a time of reflection, called “Pause to Ponder”. Then it is time to dig into scripture, with many questions to answer. There is plenty of space in the margins to write answers to questions.
Some of the questions are very straight forward and easy to answer, while others are thought provoking and cause you to look into your life and reflect on your life and experiences.

The content of the study was excellent. I loved the lessons that I learned and the time that I spent with God. I highly recommend this in depth study!

I received this book from the author/publisher to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

About the Author

SHADIA HRICHI is a passionate Bible teacher, author, and speaker who has a heart for seeing lives transformed by the power of God’s Word. She has received a master’s in biblical and theological studies from Western Seminary as well as master’s in criminal justice from the State University of New York. Shadia is the author of several Bible studies, including HAGAR,Worthy of Love, and her latest study, LEGION, comes out in October. Shadia is often invited to speak at churches, conferences, and other events. Her insightful, witty, yet vulnerable teaching style reveals a compassion for the hurting, love for Jesus, and uncompromising commitment to the truth of God’s Word. Visit shadiahrichi.com

 

More from Shadia

Am I known? Am I loved? Am I home?

Every human heart is searching for the answers to these questions. Yet when pain and heartache enter our lives, we feel betrayed and cry out one question: God, do You see me?

The answer is yes. He is Behind the Seen.

Because we live in a fallen world, each of us will inevitably face hard times, even painful ones. Who among us has never seen or felt the fallout of broken homes, broken lives, or broken dreams? Hagar is a great example of someone who discovered God during a difficult time.

Maybe you have never heard of her. Or perhaps you came across her name in a study of the book of Genesis. But how much do you really know about this young slave girl? We often relegate her to the backstage as a minor character in God’s redemptive story. But was she?

As I explored Hagar’s story for another book I wanted to write, God continually amazed me as we journeyed together from the affluence of Egypt, into a life of slavery, to a desert of despair. It seemed the more I studied her life, the more I discovered about God. What began as a chapter evolved into a study all its own.

Two years and several thousand hours of study and prayer later, HAGAR: Rediscovering the God Who Sees Me came to be. Consider this book as your backstage pass to the life of Hagar.

I have never actually gone backstage during a live event, but I know that much more goes on behind the scenes than meets the eye. I invite you to come backstage with me and explore how God was involved in every detail of Hagar’s life. Her story has all the ingredients of a Hollywood tragedy: betrayal, loss, abuse, crisis pregnancy, abandonment . . . any of that sound painfully familiar?

Thankfully, Hagar’s story does not end in despair. God was working Behind the Seen—just as He has in your life and mine—all along. As a matter of fact, Hagar emerges victorious!

Hagar: an unsung hero if there ever was one.

Beloved, is the enemy using anything in your past to try to derail you from God’s plan, or hold you back from experiencing God’s joy to the fullest? Be assured, that is not how your story will end. Just as God did for Hagar, when He enters your story, victory is already assured.

So strap on your sandals and a grab a bottle of water. We’re heading into the desert. A place where we will rediscover the God Who Sees Me.

“The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shone.”
—Isaiah 9:2

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, September 7

Books, Books, and Books., September 7

Inklings and notions , September 8

Stephanie’s Life of Determination, September 8

amandainpa , September 9

Emily Yager, September 9

A Reader’s Brain, September 10

Lights in a Dark World, September 10

Inspired by fiction, September 11

Genesis 5020, September 11

Robin’s Nest, September 11

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 12

Quiet Workings, September 12

Through the Lens of Scripture, September 13

Mary Hake, September 13

Godly Book Reviews, September 14

Rev. Rebecca Writes: Read, Write, Pray, September 14

Moments, September 15

Retrospective Spines, September 16

Batya’s Bits, September 16

Pause for Tales, September 17

CarpeDiem, September 17

Aryn the Libraryan ?, September 18

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 18

For The Love of Books, September 19

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 19

Texas Book-aholic, September 20

janicesbookreviews, September 20

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Shadia is giving away to TWO winners 1 book of Hagar, 1 book of Legion and a $50 gift certificate for leafwoodpublishers.com!!

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

https://promosimple.com/ps/eb32/hagar-celebration-tour-giveaway

ESV Prayer Bible by Crossway Review

 Description:

Let your prayer life be inspired by 400+ prayers of the early church fathers, Puritans, Protestant Reformers, and more, linked to key passages of Scripture in the ESV Prayer Bible. Created to help you reflect on God’s Word through prayer, this volume demonstrates the connection between the words God has spoken to us in the Bible and the words we speak back to him in prayer.

• Single-column, paragraph format
• 400+ historical prayers interspersed throughout the Bible text
• Prayer-related book introductions providing insight into how to use each specific book in prayer
• Introductory essay by professor Donald S. Whitney, author of Praying the Bible, explaining how and why to pray the Bible
• User guide
• Author index featuring bios of historical contributors and relevant page numbers
• Comprehensive index featuring every time prayer is mentioned in the entire Bible
• Concordance
• Reading plans
• Type Size:Bible: 9.25-point; Prayers: 7.5-point
• Sewn Binding
• Book intros
• Words of Christ Black

My Thoughts

My initial impression of this Bible was that I love the size…it’s a bit narrower in width than standard Bibles, which makes it easier and more comfortable to hold.

This Bible has a very classic look…the cover is navy blue with gold lettering and a circle emblem featuring praying hands. It includes one ribbon bookmark, which is a downside for me as I like numerous bookmarks.The end papers are a very pretty gold color and the presentation page is simple but works with the overall looks of the Bible.

What is unique about this Bible is that it has prayers from many church reformers, puritans, authors, and more dispersed throughout the text where the person used scripture to pray. Prayer is something that I have wanted and needed to improve upon and I love the idea of “praying the scriptures”. This Bible shows the reader how to do that and through doing so, their relationship with the Lord will grow.

The margins of the book range from about 1/2″ to 1 1/2″, so journaling in this Bible could sometimes be challenging but it is possible.

The Bible has some nice extra features which include:

• A prayer index that directs the reader to each prayer that’s included in the book
• An author index that explains each author of the prayers, when they lived and who they were in life
• A concordance
• A reading plan for reading the Bible in a year

Overall, I really like this Bible and I think it will really enhance my prayer life. I highly recommend it!

My Rating

I received this to review from the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.