Red Flag

Red Flag, A True Story of Spiritual Abuse and the Lessons Learned, by author Diana Iraheta, reveals that not all Christian leaders conduct themselves with integrity and honesty.  How do we know if we are submitting to godly leaders?  Why do we choose a church if not to learn the Word of God, be empowered to serve and grow in maturity?

Red Flag is a true story of a vulnerable woman who loves God and submits to Christian leadership, but ends up spiritually abused and more broken.  She points out red flags she succumbed to with regret as she tells about how her fears and insecurities, as well as deceptions, kept her bound.  She writes not with malice toward her abuser, but to warn and bring truth out in the open.  I felt relieved when she got back on track with truth and honorable fellowship.  She writes about that, too, bringing balance to her message.

God has his finger on corruption in our nation and He has his finger on his church, too.  He is at work cleaning up and exposing power-hungry leaders.  Red Flag helps us to learn how to follow good Christian leaders in order for us to grow in God’s kingdom principles.

I purchased this book because I respect and admire the woman leader who recommended it.  When she said:  “This book is for every Christian,” I admit, my curiosity piqued.  But now, I too, agree with her.

About the author:

Diana Iraheta is a lover of coffee, music and Jesus.  Her heart burns for the body of Christ to walk in unity, love, and holiness.  Whether she is writing blogs, reading, listening to music, or caring for her children and going on dates with her husband, her desire is to reflect God’s love in all she does.

Book Review: Something Greater

Motivational speaker Paula White-Cain knows how to command an audience and give them hope and direction.  I’m intrigued how she remains confident despite her critics. 

I learned how she does it when I read her latest book, Something Greater.

Her early years are full of pain so it’s understandable that she would make poor choices but Paula owns up to her mistakes and reminds us we can go on because the devil is a liar.  God turns it all around for good for those who love Him.

When God tells Paula to develop a women’s ministry, He tells her three things on his heart:

1.      Fill women with the word of God.

2.     Build godly relationships through fellowship.

3.     Spoil them, pamper them, and shower them with good things.

The name of her women's ministry is Paula Today.  It reaches a potential audience of 5.7 billion people in over 200 countries.  Women identify with her.  She understands divorce, abuse, death and rejection.  She applies God’s Biblical promises with boldness and authority!

Pastor Paula writes like the life coach she is, revealing lessons from two failed marriages.  She chooses to forgive her mother and tells of a healed and restored relationship with her.  Isn’t this the desire of women, to be close to their moms?  Paula, a mom herself, enjoys mothering and grand-mothering and shares about those roles. 

Paula, retired senior pastor of New Destiny Christian Church in ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Apopka, Fla., also works for the White House.  She met Trump in person while teaching Bible studies in New York.  Their relationship is saturated in respect for one another.  The Donald Trump she describes over the past 14 years is not what the public perceives.  Paula enters relationships with people with a goal to lead them to Christ so they can have the benefits of salvation which she enjoys.  If they already know Jesus, she encourages them to go deeper in the faith.  She ministers to President Trump and reminds him he has been raised up by God for such a time as this.  I like the way she prays for Trump before he accepts the nomination for president at the Republican Convention.  Paula decrees:  “We believe in faith, it is time for darkness to be dispelled.  It’s time for this nation to live out its holy calling on the earth.”

I glean from Paula’s story that if you prepare, God sends opportunities to you.  After committing her life to Christ at age 18, she devoured the Bible.  She articulated its wisdom and accepted invitations to teach, to preach, and to minister to the needs of others.  She has a strong gift of encouragement.  She admits that when she walks in the Holy Spirit, this gift of encouragement brings restoration to others.  On the other hand, she learned when she walks in the flesh, she tends to rescue others.

Paula longs to see people through God’s eyes.  She asks God for a word of knowledge and discernment when she meets people so they can know God is real when they hear a nugget of some truth about themselves.   I’m inspired as I read her words because I see how important relationships are to her as well as they are to God.  He has a plan and purpose for every relationship in our lives.  Paula decides to be faithful to that purpose whether it’s popular or not, comfortable or not.  Often in her biography, she says:  “I know that I’m nothing without God.  I know whose I am—who I belong to.  That’s all that counts!” 

Paula ends her book with this same line of thought.  She stands in awe that she, a messed up Mississippi girl that overcame many hurdles in life, could be used for God in so many exciting ways.  She knows it isn’t any brilliant thing about her.  God uses her brokenness.  It’s all God!

Paula’s story encouraged me.  We are all broken and need God.  I thought about the people in the Bible; they were far from perfect, too, but serve as examples to us to live for God nonetheless.  He promises something greater for us when we do.

I highly recommend Paula’s book.

Book Review: Love Like You’ve Never Been Hurt

Jentezen  Franklin’s book,  Love Like You’ve Never Been Hurt, sat on my wish list for months reminding me to read it and, hopefully, love more deeply.  Having now read it, I feel energized to love people more as we start this year.

My new love goal requires a spiritual transplant when I think of how much I need to work on this;  hence, I filled my personal journal with trigger points to keep me in line.  Here are a few snippets of my thoughts:

Franklin writes it takes at least 35 years in marriage to learn the art of dying to self and to love like you’ve never been hurt.  This tells me self focus is too pronounced in our society.  His anointed words spur the reader to let go of much and trust God more.  This results in no-fail loving.  This author challenges us to think less of man caves and more of couple caves.  He teaches “Machpelah” means double so now I want a Machpelah cave!

For balance, Franklin also teaches healthy self love.  Why do we get tripped up with our failures and limitations?  Because we forget we’re Kingdom Kids.  We own righteousness, peace and joy.  Every new day is a fresh start.

No one ever explained the Bible story of Rizpah like this author-pastor.  God does the most stunning work where things seem hopeless!   All relationships get messy but we can fight for what is left.  Perfectionists would benefit from this chapter.

I learned lessons from the Navy Seals in this book.  It takes mental fortitude to survive a strenuous  journey.  In this chapter, a beautiful teaching enfolds of the mental strength needed to achieve my spiritual goals.  The enemy may taunt me on every level, but I’m reminded Jesus cheers me on to victory and no coach will fight for me quite like Him.

Everyone will have a different perspective when Jentzen Franklin talks about “unguarded moments.”  These are the times we react in a fleshy way rather than slowly processing the punches or arrows aimed at us.  The Holy Spirit helped me and I learned a lot about myself which I need to address.  And, I didn’t have to pay a bunch of money for counseling.

I felt convicted when I read his words about kindness.  I like the question, “How holy are you?”  Try being kind and find out.  You will be amazed what he says about kindness.  I think it takes two chapters.

Jentezen Franklin, a humble man, writes with transparency.  He uses applicable examples from his life to clarify his teaching.

I highly recommend this book.  In fact, I will read it again someday.

The Widow Wore Pink

I heard Robyn Dykstra speak at a Women’s Conference and remember thinking to myself how I wish I could hear more of her story.  When she held up The Widow Wore Pink in her closing remarks, I got in line to meet her and purchase a copy of her book.

Robyn’s book reveals her life journey with brutal honesty yet with fashionable humor.  The contents cover a smorgasbord of personal issues that women face:  several marriages, financial stress, abuse, death of loved ones, divorce and single parenting.  After a chain of poor choices, Robyn develops faith in Jesus.  Amazing changes begin!

I felt a kindred spirit with her when she described her journey of self denial in order to love her father-in-law like Jesus.  I’ve been there; it’s not easy.

Robyn’s story relates to my heart and her personality leaps across each page like meeting up with a girlfriend for pie and coffee.

Our society can be snobbish and judge a stay-at-home mom.   I found the chapter intriguing where Robyn seeks her mother’s approval.  She inquires of her mother, a bright accomplished woman with a PHD, if she felt disappointed with her daughter’s life choices.  Robyn’s mom praises her for her loving devotion to her husband, boys and home.  I like this line:  “My generation fought hard for women’s rights so that you could have choices.  Don’t let anyone take that from you.”

I highly recommend The Widow Wore Pink by Robyn Dykstra.  As a speaker, Robyn mesmerizes her audience with keen articulation but as a writer, she writes with a heart of a friend.  She left me wondering how she not only survived her many troubles, but wrote about them with entertainment.  She’s a joyful witness of a life surrendered to Jesus.

Book Review: Rise In Defense of Judeo-Christian Values and Freedom

I heard conservative Author and activist Brigitte Gabriel on a televised talk show and I grew curious when she mentioned her latest book, Rise In Defense of Judeo-Christian Values and Freedom.  I learned that it’s now available in public libraries but not that easy to obtain.  The author stated the wait may be lengthy since the left-leaning government protects the truth from Americans.    I waited a long two months for the book but it may be because it’s full of facts and some chapters are difficult for a reader to digest in one sitting.

The author refers to her childhood in Lebanon where, as a young Christian girl, she lived in fear of bombs as she traveled from her shelter to school in an army tank.  She knows full well the transition from prosperity to captivity under the cruelty of Isis.  Her book, Rise, spells it all out for Americans.  Terrorism is here.  It has infiltrated in our public school system, especially colleges with Marxist ideology.  Our young people are sucked into the lies of romantic images of Sharia Law through social media,Hollywood and activists who motivate young uneducated minds.  Gabriel's book explains Muslim practices of female mutilation, rape of women and even death in the name of religion.  

Gabriel exposes the evils in our government and the lack of protection of our civil rights and constitutional liberties, especially free speech.  She is right; if you disagree with the liberals, you are labeled a racist.    She quotes compelling facts that I never heard in the news and she explains why.  I liked the end of each chapter where Gabriel lists practical suggestions for Americans to act on to protect our country from the evil that has slowly permeated into our society.    

My favorite quote from her book is "America is not made up of immigrants.  America is made up of citizens."  What makes America great is when people come to it with good intentions to assimilate into our society and offer solid work ethics and family values.  This is a stark contrast to liberal lawmakers trying to convince us to open our borders and allow anyone free entry without a vetting process.  Compassionate Americans who think we should allow anyone entry into our country need to read this book.  

Americans need to be educated.  We are warned.  Now is the time to act before it's too late.

Too Many Voices

What happens to a girl who grows up in a strong loving, religious family but feels like an outcast, too different from others due to a God-given gift inside her?  Such is the story of Alane Haynes who heard many voices early on in her youth and decided to follow them not knowing they would lead to a dark, unsafe and lonely place.

From Hippy to Holy

I stopped biting my nails when I got to the chapter of her full surrender to God with her new resolve to read the Bible to know Him better.  Her life took a new pathway, one of light instead of darkness.  I held my breath as I read of her radical determination to trust God fully and listen to only His voice.  Alane began to make wise decisions daily with confidence which opened up a new lifestyle of obedience to God.  He lead her eventually to a prophetic ministry to help others.

I found the message of this book summed up in a nutshell in the chapter, Transition: Out of the Old and Into the New.  Alane writes:

I had not fully realized just how deeply the world system of thinking is embedded within.  It isn’t just living a godly, moral life when you are born again.  To truly be a new creature, our minds have to be transformed.  The real transformation is from being our own god to letting God be God, and trusting Him for everything.

My Personal Preference

Here is what I particularly liked about this book:

1.      The author stresses the benchmark of absolute truth, the Word of God.

2.     The era was my era!  As I read of her hippy antics, I recalled the music of that time and put on my 60’s and 70’s playlists.

3.     Most chapters end with poetic summary which makes this read different and uniquely creative.  The author bares her soul and then sums up lessons learned in lyrical expression.

4.     I like short chapters.  The power-packed succinctly written life lessons framed in short chapters drew me into reflection and then application for my own life.

5.     I like honest believers!  Consequences do not evaporate after conversion.  The author’s recount of past poor choices led to depression, but God rescued her every time.

Alane’s testimony is more, much more, than just a story of darkness to light.  It depicts a loving Father who rescues His daughter and changes her life dramatically from fearful apprehension to confident joy as He transforms her into His own image.

I recommend Too Many Voices.  This book boosts a Christian’s faith with a reminder of how God’s Holy Word brings clarity to our hearing as opposed to the enemy’s voice which brings confusion.

Alane Haynes has written four books.  She is a featured writer on Elijah’s List and Spirit Fuel.  Alane is a public speaker as well as women’s leader at The Rock Church in San Diego.  Her heart’s desire is to see people reconciled to God and filled with His purpose.  She teaches others how to hear and obey God’s voice.  Alane and her husband, Kerry, are commissioned by Limitless Realms International Ministries.  Also, they are founders of Eternal Truth Now Ministry and Golden Vessels.    They live in San Diego and  love the outdoors.  They also enjoy spending time with their family.  You can visit Alane at her website:  www.alanehaynes.com

Great Redemption Story

Those stories, the ones we start to read and can’t put down, reel us in to another place in time with characters who seem alive.  We smell the scenes and visualize their emotions.  We want to shout out to them, to warn them or cheer them on!  Pebbles in my Way felt like a realistic, personal story. 

Author Alice Klies writes beautifully.  Her fiction story revolves around a main character, Karen, who found herself in trials from her past choices.  God puts the right people in her path and her opposition to the true gospel turns around.  This beautiful story of redemption portrayed in the mountains of Scottsdale, AZ, shows that God is a personal God who cares about His children.  No stuffy religious dialogue, this story unveils hope for the downtrodden. 

Karen looks like any woman caught in confusion and grief, but when she finds Jesus her life takes on new adventures!

I highly recommend this novel.

Alice Klies is currently president of Northern Arizona Word Weavers, a chapter of an international writers group.  She has nonfiction and fiction stories published in sixteen anthologies.  She is a seven-time contributor to Chicken Soup for the Soul.  She serves on boards for the PWG (Professional Women’s Group) and Y.E.S. the ARC in her community. She is a deaconess and Stephens Minister in her church.  Alice is a retired teacher who resides with her husband and two Golden Retrievers in beautiful Cottonwood, Arizona.  She prays her stories cause a reader to smile, laugh or cry, and most of all turn their eyes upward to God who loves them.