LOVE FINDS YOU IN LAST CHANCE CALIFORNIA
By Miralee Ferrell
What can a woman alone do with a horse rance in 1877? If you’re Alexia Travers you carry on business as usual…well as much as you can. But when the hands are leaving because they don’t cotton to a woman boss, no matter how well versed she is in the ways of running a ranch, you’re in trouble. Even more so when one accident and problem after another plagues the young woman in the wake of her father’s death. Mortgages, horse stealing, missing gold all add up to quite a sum of trouble.
Enter Justin Phillips and his young son, Toby. Before Alex’s father died he’s sent for the young cowboy without exactly explaining a few important things. Mostly, why he thought there was trouble on the ranch, and that Alex wasn’t the man’s son, but in fact his feisty daughter. Burdened with the need to keep his identity secret, Justin finds himself suspect instead of savior. Though the bigger danger seems to be he’s losing his heart…and his head….to his pretty boss, Alex.
Can this unlikely couple find a solution to this snarled mess in time? Or will not just the ranch be lost…but their last chance at true happiness as well?
An exciting read, this story takes you back in time so vividly you feel like you’re there on the trail looking for horse thieves with them. The message that God is with them through the good and the bad is woven subtly throughout the story, reminding us the importance of trusting the one who guides are days. A highly recommended read!
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
The RENEWAL by Terri Kraus
Can something be so broken that even God can’t restore it?
Leslie Ruskin is starting over. She’s left a bad situation and only wants to leave the past behind. Her purchase of the historic Midlands Building is what she hopes to be the key to a new life for her and her five-year-old daughter. To do that though, she needs help. And that comes in the form of another stranger in town, Jack Kenyon.
Jack’s also starting over…and has just as many demons from his past as Leslie does. Together they work to restore the old building. But the past has a way of rearing it’s ugly head as Leslie’s ex-husband suddenly shows up, bringing with him fear and uncertainty. And Jack’s own struggles with depression and alcoholism threaten to destroy everything he’s worked to build.
THE RENEWAL is a compelling story of love and forgiveness. The characters are so quirky and fun you can’t help but wish you could sit down to coffee with them. The storyline is intense and will keep you reading long after you should have gone to bed and leaves you well satisfied when the last page is turned.
But more than that, this book ministered to me in a way I didn’t expect. Leslie’s problems with panic attacks mirror my own, as does her difficult past. Here’s a book that gave me hope and encouragement and strengthened my own walk with God. For those reasons alone, I can’t recommend this book enough. Well done, Terri!
Leslie Ruskin is starting over. She’s left a bad situation and only wants to leave the past behind. Her purchase of the historic Midlands Building is what she hopes to be the key to a new life for her and her five-year-old daughter. To do that though, she needs help. And that comes in the form of another stranger in town, Jack Kenyon.
Jack’s also starting over…and has just as many demons from his past as Leslie does. Together they work to restore the old building. But the past has a way of rearing it’s ugly head as Leslie’s ex-husband suddenly shows up, bringing with him fear and uncertainty. And Jack’s own struggles with depression and alcoholism threaten to destroy everything he’s worked to build.
THE RENEWAL is a compelling story of love and forgiveness. The characters are so quirky and fun you can’t help but wish you could sit down to coffee with them. The storyline is intense and will keep you reading long after you should have gone to bed and leaves you well satisfied when the last page is turned.
But more than that, this book ministered to me in a way I didn’t expect. Leslie’s problems with panic attacks mirror my own, as does her difficult past. Here’s a book that gave me hope and encouragement and strengthened my own walk with God. For those reasons alone, I can’t recommend this book enough. Well done, Terri!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
It's all right here....
I SO don’t want to be here.
Ever stopped to think how that one little thought can influence your health?
This week I’ve seen this more than once. In my kids, in my friends, in myself. Over and over I’ve seen the pattern play out.
“I don’t want to go to school” translates into a stomachache and a couple times now since we’ve moved into an instance of becoming sick in the bathroom at school and needing to come home…and then feeling fine again when the stress (i.e. school) was past.
I have friends right now incredibly stressed…some with the economy and recent layoffs…some with work…some with personal issues. But how did the conversations start with almost each of these people? “I just don’t feel well today….”
Even in myself. I find myself worrying about money, about the amount of work I have to do, about how I’m going to get that work done when my youngest is hanging off my arm (home with an ear infection). How has that translated out in terms of health? Fibro flares, vertigo and massive ringing of ears from Meniere’s.
So it seems to me that to strike at the heart of this problem…to treat more than just the symptoms…the heart needs to change. Negative thinking hurts…then positive thinking can only help. Turn not wanting to be where you are into finding reasons to stay.
I’m not saying to turn into Pollyanna. But frequently what is perceived is a negative can actually BE a positive. What did Edison say when his light bulb failed over and over again? “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
So the fact that my husband is without work still can become an opportunity to explore a new career field. That lack of money can trigger creativity in making things stretch. And that place you didn’t want to be can be thought of as that place where God wants you most to be right now.
Hokey? Maybe…but for the sake of my health I’m willing to give positive thinking a try. How about you?
Ever stopped to think how that one little thought can influence your health?
This week I’ve seen this more than once. In my kids, in my friends, in myself. Over and over I’ve seen the pattern play out.
“I don’t want to go to school” translates into a stomachache and a couple times now since we’ve moved into an instance of becoming sick in the bathroom at school and needing to come home…and then feeling fine again when the stress (i.e. school) was past.
I have friends right now incredibly stressed…some with the economy and recent layoffs…some with work…some with personal issues. But how did the conversations start with almost each of these people? “I just don’t feel well today….”
Even in myself. I find myself worrying about money, about the amount of work I have to do, about how I’m going to get that work done when my youngest is hanging off my arm (home with an ear infection). How has that translated out in terms of health? Fibro flares, vertigo and massive ringing of ears from Meniere’s.
So it seems to me that to strike at the heart of this problem…to treat more than just the symptoms…the heart needs to change. Negative thinking hurts…then positive thinking can only help. Turn not wanting to be where you are into finding reasons to stay.
I’m not saying to turn into Pollyanna. But frequently what is perceived is a negative can actually BE a positive. What did Edison say when his light bulb failed over and over again? “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”
So the fact that my husband is without work still can become an opportunity to explore a new career field. That lack of money can trigger creativity in making things stretch. And that place you didn’t want to be can be thought of as that place where God wants you most to be right now.
Hokey? Maybe…but for the sake of my health I’m willing to give positive thinking a try. How about you?
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