Kathy Carmichael

This is a funny book with a tiny bit of seriousness thrown in. Jill is desperate to find a way to pay for her son's college education, so she decides the best way to do that is to marry someone who can afford the tuition. But he has to be someone who is rarely home, or the marriage will never survive. In the meantime, her son's former teacher keeps showing up, and she's determined NOT to fall for him, because he most definitely can not afford college tuition. It's funny reading about her dealings with her crazy boss, her skillet-stealing ex, and her dating misadventures, but there is also some self-discovery going on in this book.… (mais)

I only began my journey in trying to be a good Christian woman only at the age of 69, after publishing my first two Christian fiction books days before this birthday, which inspired me to become a Christian blogger. One of the first things I discovered is that the desire of practically very Christian is to have a definitive personal relationship with the Lord. They’d love to become the individual that the song In the Garden by Merle Haggard sings about:

And he walks with me and he talks with me
And he tells me I am his own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known.

However, reaching this zenith of one’s faith can and is a spellbinding voyage in that involves discovering all about the Holy Spirit, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And in doing so, individuals need to decipher all of the Lord’s apparent cryptic nature, his divinity and his tenets.

To paraphrase the song from the Kind and I, individuals need to go to the process of getting to know Him, getting to know all about Him, getting love Him and hopes that He likes them too.

In this book, author Kathy Carmichael openly shares with her readers what she has learned about Holy Spirit through her own experiences she had with the Lord and still has in her relationship with Him. The little voice Ms. Carmichael refers to is that of the Lord who is always alongside us, telling us what we need or should do to live our lives.

For wanting her readers to grow in their relationship with the Lord, I’ve given Ms. Carmichael 5 STARS for her endeavor here.… (mais)

I have often said that that I don’t know what God says to others so I can’t say they didn’t hear something specific from Him. This applies to this book. I had a difficult time agreeing with many points the author makes. Forgive me for saying this, but I felt like she rambled and sometimes repeated herself. It frustrated me when she said that because she had over one thousand prayers that she was given a choice whether to remain earthbound or not. Hmm.. I always was taught that God decides our fate, we don’t get to choose at all. I didn’t like that she referred to God and Jesus as They. God is God and I have never heard the term ‘they” in anything I have read. She continues to emphasize because of all the prayers she had received They were giving her a choice to stay or go. Oh how my heart grieves as I read this book. I tried so hard to have an open heart and mind, but when I see things that go against the Word of God, I cannot agree with them at all. One prayer can be just as powerful as many. God doesn’t say “Well since more people are praying for this person, I will save them.”

I do know about signs and wonders and believe that God gives us visions. So to be fair I can’t say that what the author says about this subject is wrong. Again I don’t know what God says to other people. Now comes the hard part for me; I have never heard “Near -Heaven” in the Bible. What is that? I was confused so much during this book and yes I was upset. One thing really struck me as odd. The author describes Near -Heaven in vivid details yet I didn’t know something like that exists. Maybe I’m wrong but where in the Bible does it talk about Near-Heaven? The scripture she references about this subject can be found in John 14:2-3. I suppose this is her interpretation of the scripture. For me I can’t agree that there is a Near-Heaven.

As I end my review I will say that I appreciated the author giving us a glimpse into her journey to become healthy again. It is evident that she trusts God , has faith and turns to Him for help and encouragement.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.… (mais)