Cover Reveal: Preying on the Church by Kimberley B. Jones

 

Coming in September is an inspirational Christian fiction novel from Kimberley B. Jones. Today, we're sharing with you the cover of Preying on the Church. You can also enjoy an excerpt to whet your appetite for next month! Be sure to follow the tour for even more. Best of luck entering the giveaway!

Preying On The Church, is an inspiring novel about an African American middle-age woman Margie, who is well-known in her community through her job as a Realtor, serving as a representative on the Rockford Town Council, and giving her portion of life at Rockford Baptist Church.

A tragic accident happens that no one could ever believe. After a church shooting, Margie loses faith as her life is shattered into pieces losing someone close to her that causes her to journey through the five stages of grief.

It takes her to the lowest possible point of survival: isolating herself from friends and family, losing faith, drinking alcohol, almost getting arrested, and losing her job to realize she is on a path of destruction.

Read an excerpt:

The paramedics placed Margie on the stretcher and rushed her outside to the ambulance while the cops placed tape around the church, which is determine a murder scene.

Meanwhile at home, Barry heard the news on television.

Wait, Margie and Jason are at the church. Why did no one call me?

He jumped up, put on his shoes, grabbed his keys, and ran out the door to his work truck.

When he arrived at the church, Barry glanced around the church and noticed red and blue lights blinking from all the police cars. There were crowds of people surrounding the church. He heard the cops telling everyone to move away and go home.

He ran up to the tape and his eyes widened as he realized that something terrible had happened inside. 

Barry started screaming, “Where are my wife and son? Where is wife and my
son? Can somebody tell me where they are?”

“Calm down, sir,” said the detective. “I’m Detective Earl. Four of the victims have been rushed to the hospital, but we haven’t identified the bodies inside yet.”

“I can help you identify some of the victims because I attend this church with my family and I practically know everyone!” yelled Barry.

Barry knew that would be the only way to get inside to see if Jason and Margie were all right.

“Okay, just stay right here, sir, for just a minute.”

The detective went over and talked to the chief of police. They looked back and forth toward Barry and glanced at him sideways with narrow eyes.

Kimberley is a professional early childhood educator and entrepreneur. She was born in the small town of Saint George, South Carolina, on September 12, 1982. Graduated from Woodland High School in 2000, Benedict College in 2004 with B.S., Child & Family Development, and from Ashford University in 2013 with a Masters in Early Childhood Education.

After receiving her education and being a military spouse, she held several jobs as a preschool teacher and a preschool director, but she wanted to her education to use by writing children’s books. She wrote her first book in college for her children’s literature course. She has self-published several children books on Amazon.

Currently, she is branching off into writing fiction YA, NA, and A novels on issues in society. She loves writing and would not change it for nothing in this world She is now published by Rhetoric Askew. Kimberley is the author of Our Friendship Matters and Preying on the Church.

Social Media Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kimberley.jones.3762584/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KimberleyBJones
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimberleybjones/
Website: https://www.kimberleybjones.com/

Kimberley will be giving away a $10 Amazon/BN gift card via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Read an exclusive excerpt from Nature Is Unlimited Broadcasting Station: Flowers She Wore on Her Feet by Bertha & Edward Mkwelele

 

Welcome to the excerpt tour for Nature Is Unlimited Broadcasting Station: Flowers She Wore on Her Feet by Bertha and Edward Mkwelele! I have an exclusive sneak peek inside for you today of this biography of an amazing, inspirational young woman. You can read more excerpts as you follow the tour. Please let the authors know your thoughts along the way. Best of luck in the giveaway!

'Flowers she wore on her feet'.

This is the story of an extraordinary girl and young woman with a brilliant mind, a heart of gold, and who is gone too soon. Neema was a priceless gift to us. Neema was an extraordinary young woman, with joy and wisdom, and remarkably profound and greater understanding about herself and others. She taught us everything worth knowing about life and love, everything about what it means to be a best friend. Neema, outlook for future is something about this book. Neema would have wanted the world to hear the voice of children and young people, girls and young people in particularly young women around the world, their walking sound when they walk wearing their beautiful flowers on their feet. Meaning that those girls and young women around the world have worked hard the same way Neema did, searching for their favorite flowers and they were able to see them and finally finding their ways to broadcast them, and therefore, finding their unique values. This is what Neema would have wanted the world to hear from children and young people saying that we go out and we're asking for help and support, they will wear flower on their feet because they worked hard to get see them and therefore they can now see themselves, and therefore , the walk by itself is a voice and a cry for help and they are saying help us because we would like to contribute to the world and we're read and we know what we love and what we want to do and what we're loving doing and we just want opportunities to let us equip with knowledge and skills then we will all be ready and set to contribute to the world we live in our own unique way happily.

Read an exclusive excerpt:

It was amazing to watch our little girl Neema growing up to become a young confident person and young woman. Neema loved nature and everything around nature since the time she was able to understand what was going around her. We saw this and we saw what was happening to our little girl and stood by her and supported and guided her properly. We’re thrilled as we write this book and share our parenting experience, our parenting story, including our motherhood and our fatherhood, and we’re happy to say that it’s awesome to say that we are proud about our daughter and we continue to be proud of her because she grew up to become the person we dreamed about. What kind of person would she have been, and what kind of a woman would she have been to this world during her short lifetime? One thing we’re sure to talk about is that we watched and observed Neema many times, and we saw her showing her love for nature. She did that at all levels of her life circle, when she was at home and/or playing with other children around the house, when she was at school and when she was out and about enjoying other activities.

We liked and enjoyed everything, and, more important to us as parents, is that we enjoyed the way Neema connected herself with not only her own parents and other human beings on the earth, including her own young brother Michael, but the way she connected herself with nature. We continue to share with the world that it is more important to us to open up about these beautiful memories. More important to us is that the memories about our beautiful young daughter Neema as well as beautiful parenting memories are the reason that we would like to tell this to the world. Neema was an educated person and a young woman, who would go out and educate other children about her knowledge of everything, especially her love for nature. She would do that when playing with her friends and other children. She was also happy to take the lead in any activity she was involved with, and asked others to follow her, and she did that willingly and with great enthusiasm, and she would then tell or show her parents directly, without fear. For example, when she was around the house she would volunteer to water the plants in our house garden.

Neema would talk about her experience, about her love of nature when she was busy watering the plants until the job was done. She would now and then tell her parents that she was going to tell other children and friends as well about what she had experienced at home and what she was excited about. When asked what she was going to tell them, Neema would just say, “I watered the plants today in my parents’ house garden and enjoyed doing it because I love those plants and flowers. I would also tell them that I watched television and enjoyed those cartoons, human beings and animals playing in a beautiful garden.”

PURCHASE LINKS 

AMAZON.COM * AMAZON.CA * INDIGO CHAPTERS * BARNES & NOBLE * KOBO * SMASHWORDS * APPLE BOOKS 

About the author:

Bertha Mkwelele and Edward Mkwelele are co-founders of the Neema Edward Mkwelele Wellness Foundation, where they empower young girls in Tanzania through education. Visit www.neemaedwardmkwelelewellnessfoundation.org to learn more.

CONNECT WITH BERTHA MKWELELE

WEBSITE https://berthamkwelelebooks.com/

FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006661997988

GOODREADS https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19040209.Bertha_Mkwelele

Bertha and Edward Mkwelele will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Read an exclusive excerpt from The Wise One by K.T. Anglehart

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

Welcome to the book tour for The Wise One by K.T. Anglehart, a heartwarming young adult fantasy. I have an exclusive excerpt for you to enjoy today. And if you follow the tour, you will find even more. Best of luck entering the giveaway!

The Wise One

(The Scottish Scrolls #1)

By K.T. Anglehart

Young Adult Fairy Tale, Folklore, Fantasy

Hardcover, Paperback & ebook, 254 Pages

October 25, 2020 by Kat Biggie Press

Worlds collide for both young and mature readers, who will love the fast-paced thrills, chemistry between characters, and interplay of witchy fantasy, mythology, Celtic folklore, and reality in The Wise One—book one of The Scottish Scrolls series.

Mckenna's never thought much of her nightmares, but on her seventeenth birthday, a vivid dream of burning at the stake awakens her dormant abilities, thrusting her into a world where faeries are real, spirits hold a grudge, and a High Priestess obsessed with a 16th-century prophecy is tracking her every move.

Now, her overprotective dads, Seán and Andre, are forced to tell her the truth—they know who her birth mother is, and her life is not the surrogate story she's always been told. Abigail, Mckenna's mom, is some sort of mystic, and Mckenna a Wise One.

Whatever the hell that means.

With the help of a persistent little wren and company of a newfound friend, Mckenna journeys to Ireland in search of her mother and real answers. Along the way, she learns to harness her innate magic and trust her intuition, as best she can anyway—Cillian, a kind and passionate delegate who crosses her path, is proving much harder to read.

Only her mother could truly help her halt her ill fate and prepare her for what's to come . . . before she gives in to the darkness she knows is buried deep within.

Author K.T. Anglehart expertly weaves a story set in Ireland that is both timeless and unique, a perfect cross-market read for those searching for the next endearing urban fantasy classic.

Praise for the Book

"A heartwarming coming-of-age story with characters that resonate, rich European folklore, and enchanting details that tickle the senses long after the last page is read." —V. G. Anderson, author of The Light in the Sound

(Affiliate links included.)

Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Read an exclusive excerpt:

Excerpt Chapter 14—Lessons in Ballycastle

A sulphery scent filled the air, carried by a chill breeze. Pulled by the rushing sound of waves, Mckenna walked to the road’s end. Far below, the sea whispered its calming notes, both melodic and fierce, as though longing to impart wisdom to the land and sky. “I hadn’t realized we drove so high up.”

“Beautiful, isn’t it? Come, we’ve got a wee trek. Hope you’re wearing comfortable shoes.”

She followed Esme about a mile down a red dirt path, which gradually wound downwards to the water’s edge.

“Where are we?” Mckenna said as a rocky landmass came into view.

“Below, where you see the rock formation—that’s the Giant’s Causeway.”

As they drew nearer, Mckenna did a double take at the dramatic sight before her: At the foot of the cliffs lay uneven hills of thousands upon thousands of interlocked black rocks in the shape of hexagons. Like a three-dimensional jigsaw puzzle, the pieces fit together flawlessly. Esme urged Mckenna to walk around the site. She did, stepping up and down from stone to stone.

How could they have formed so perfectly? And why were they all at different heights? How were they floating on the sea?

That was when she realized . . . “Esme, these aren’t rocks, are they? These are columns.”

“Indeed. Forty thousand columns beneath the sea—basalt columns, meaning they’re formed from lava. Some as tall as thirty-nine feet. All of this was the result of a volcanic eruption some fifty million years ago, during the Tertiary period—but of course, there’s also an Irish legend that explains it all.” Mckenna smiled at this. “A Scottish giant, Benandonner, challenged an Irish giant, Fionn MacCool, to a fight. Being very proud, Fionn accepted and built a causeway across the North Channel to Scotland for the two to battle. But when Fionn saw the size of Benandonner, he ran back to Ireland and had his wife disguise him as a baby.

“The funny bit is, when Benandonner saw the size of the baby, he thought, ‘if the baby’s that big, can’t imagine his dad!’ So, he bolted back to Scotland, destroying the causeway along the way. Across the sea to the Scottish isle of Staffa, there are the same columns, made of the same basalt.”

“So, which story is true?” If faeries and ghosts existed, why not giants?

“Which do you believe?”

About the Author

Katrina Tortorici Anglehart is a born and bred Italian-Canadian from Montreal. A devoted academic, she holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism; a graduate certificate in Scriptwriting; and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. After dabbling in TV writing and working as a digital marketing content manager, she left the nine to five to launch her freelance editing and coaching career. Today, she relishes in helping aspiring authors to develop and refine their stories.

Besides English, Katrina speaks French, Italian, and Spanglish. When she's not writing, diving into magical reads, or Netflixing, she's travelling with her favourite human--her high-school-sweetheart-turned-husband, Andy--and obsessing over her pet bunny, Magic, and newly rescued pup, Nessie. Katrina currently lives in Toronto, Ontario.

Website | Goodreads | BookBub | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Tour Schedule

Tour Giveaway

One winner will receive a print copy of The Wise One (open to US, CAN and UK)

Ends August 25, 2021

ENTER HERE

Read an exclusive excerpt from Coming Home to Mercy by Michelle de Bruin

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

Welcome to the book tour for Coming Home to Mercy by Michelle de Bruin! Today I have an exclusive excerpt from this Christian historical romance for you to enjoy before you download your own copy. Be sure to also follow the rest of the tour for even more!

Coming Home to Mercy

(Coming Home Series #1)

By Michelle De Bruin

Christian Historical Romance

Paperback & ebook, 251 Pages

August 17, 2021 by Scrivenings Press LLC

A society woman leaves her comfortable lifestyle so that she can help her daughter adjust to the arrival of twin sons in a small town where the courageous doctor teaches her about taking risks.
 

Wealthy and sociable Margaret Millerson has always thought of her brother’s Chicago mansion as her home. But when she receives the telephone call that her daughter has given birth to twins three weeks ahead of the expected due date, Margaret must leave her comfortable home, her family, and her friends to travel out of state. While she is helping her daughter care for the infants, Margaret becomes reacquainted with the town’s doctor, Matthew Kaldenberg.
 

Dr. Matthew Kaldenberg stays busy caring for the health of the citizens of his small town. His profession offers him daily practice in defeating death, his greatest enemy. During the twenty years since losing his own wife and baby in childbirth, Matthew has saved his money for the purchase of a flying machine. But when Matthew takes Margaret for flights on his biplane, he learns that his dreams of rising above the griefs and losses of his past come with a cost. He doesn’t want to lose the trust of the people he cares about most, or the chance at a relationship with Margaret.
 

Both Matthew and Margaret must make difficult decisions to hold on to the love they have discovered. Will Matthew’s heart recover from sorrow? Will Margaret find her true home?

(Affiliate links included.)

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Target | Book Depository

Read an exclusive excerpt:

Her words should deflate him. They should puncture him with disappointment. Instead, they fueled the burning flame inside of him. She knew who she was and what she wanted. He admired her strength and her honesty. A pursuit that should sink him in defeat brought on a surge of victory. He’d found the right woman to share the rest of his life with. He’d wait for her and he would win her. Love would melt her aversions. Her heart was on his side.

Matthew stood and assisted Margaret to her feet. As soon as she’d gained solid footing, he eased her into his embrace. “I’ll wait.” He whispered the words while searching the depths of her eyes.

Margaret’s arm slid over his shoulder and around his neck as if it followed its own pleasures without any effort from her at all. She returned the serious gaze while an unseen bond drew them together.

Her lips didn’t resist when his own rested on them. The sweet contact lasted for just a few brief moments, but it was long enough to convince him that only a woman willing to consider marrying him would share a kiss like that one.

She pulled away first and stared at him with large startled eyes. Questions and fear lurked on her face. If she was afraid of him or of her own readiness to yield to him, her silence didn’t say. Matthew smiled at her with a large, satisfied grin that stretched across his whole face, the first one of its kind in a very long time.

About the Author

Michelle De Bruin grew up in Southern Iowa and graduated from Eddyville High School. These beautiful memories of childhood spent on her family’s farm are the inspiration to the setting in the books of the Tomorrow series.

After high school, Michelle received an Associate’s Degree in Office Management from Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa. She returned to the family farm and later married Tom De Bruin.

Tom and Michelle and their two teenage sons, Mark and John, live in Pella where Michelle works as the Spiritual Services Facilitator for Christian Opportunity Center. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music and in Religion with a Christian Ministries emphasis from Central College in Pella, Iowa.

In 2015, Michelle began writing and joined the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) where she discovered that the stories she wrote for fun might actually amount to something. She finished her manuscript for Hope for Tomorrow and eventually found a home for it with a small publisher of Christian fiction.

Characters that bring to life the delights of farm and small town living, whispers of Dutch heritage, and Christian faith make Michelle’s stories distinct.

Website | Goodreads | Bookbub | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest

Tour Schedule


Tour Giveaway

One winner will receive a copy of Coming Home to Mercy (print if US, ebook if outside the US) and a $25 Amazon Gift Card (open internationally)

Ends August 25, 2021

ENTER HERE

 

Zandra: My Daughter, Diabetes, and Lessons in Love by Janet Hatch

 

I love reading other people's stories, because we can learn so much from each other. Today you can read an excerpt from Janet Hatch's Zandra: My Daughter, Diabetes, and Lessons in Love and her story of being a writer. Leave questions and comments as you follow the tour. Best of luck in the giveaway!

In this truly inspiring memoir, Janet Hatch shares her compelling story of raising her strong-willed daughter who, at age eleven, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. From the beginning of her life, Zandra experienced being different as a result of dietary restrictions, but nothing would prepare her for the tumultuous feelings that Zandra's diagnosis would bring. Janet's story chronicles the day-to-day life of raising a child through the teen years and into young adulthood, while reconciling her own insecurities.

After experiencing complications and additional illnesses from diabetes, Zandra's life became uncertain and bleak. When she learned of the death of her friend from diabetes, she began to spiral downward. This is a love story between a mother and daughter and demonstrates that although the bond may be challenged, it was created to endure. From travelling to Iceland in support of the Canadian Diabetes Association to receiving her beloved diabetic alert dog, Cinnamon, this story is one that will encourage all those who love a child, to look beyond fear and see beauty in every challenge.

Read an excerpt:

It would take me many years to understand that an ordinary emotion such as empathy was indeed an extraordinary gift. I could feel the emotions of others so deeply and on the same level as my own. I realized that I was different in this way. When friends could laugh at the expense of another, I never could, even as a joke. If I did, I was torn up about it inside to the point I felt ill. I was able to look at a photo and feel the mood in myself. I could walk into a room and know what others were feeling, yet there was no language to understand or express myself. These feelings further isolated me from others. I wasn’t able to be as carefree as I saw others were. I lost myself in the confusion of emotions within my home, school and outside world. I couldn’t separate my own feelings of despair from those I felt around me. I found it impossible to feel happy when I felt that others were not, and as I grew I became a sort of chameleon. Without effort, I knew what was needed. I could fill the gaps and be fun and spontaneous or a quiet listener for whomever needed me. At the best of times I felt I had a purpose and was needed, and at the worst of times I felt disconnected and out of tune with my own feeling.

PURCHASE LINKS

AMAZON.COM -AMAZON.CA - AMAZON KINDLE - BOOKSHOP - INDIGO CHAPTERS - BARNES & NOBLE - BOOK DEPOSITORY -  APPLE IBOOKS 

(The book will be free during the tour.)

“You will never ‘find’ time for anything. If you want time, you must make it” ~Charles Buxton

Everything we do flows with the currency of time. From where we shop to the activities we enjoy, they are all decisions based on our time. When I started writing my book, “Zandra: My Daugher, Diabetes, and Lessons in Love”, I quickly found the cliché’s about time were true. If I were going to seriously commit to writing, I would need to rearrange some things in my life. Luckily for me, it was a short-lived problem, as my world soon arranged itself around the process of my creative thoughts.

As a mother of four, much of my time was spoken for and what wasn’t already earmarked was tenuous at best. At any moment I could get a call that would disrupt anything that I was doing. Countless calls from school, a dog that insisted he couldn’t wait for a walk, or an impromptu call or visit from a beloved friend could derail my plans. This was especially true as much of my writing was during the beginning of Covid and at-home-learning was taking over. As a mother I felt that my quiet time was hijacked already, but I hadn’t really felt the brunt of that until I started writing. For me, the process of just thinking about writing, led to the ideas I wanted to write about and ultimately created a working mind, even while doing dishes or shovelling snow. Ideas that needed to percolate in the background began to take form in the early morning of my sleep, without any effort.

Eventually I began to let go of the frustrations of not having ‘office time’ in the day, to allowing the process to happen naturally. I began to wake up every morning at 2am, without any alarms or effort, bursting with ideas already beginning to form. I carved out a ritual of coming downstairs in my quiet house to be completely alone with my thoughts and surprisingly enough, with a clear mind. As a life-long light sleeper, it wasn’t new to me to be sleepless in these morning hours, but now they were filled with purpose. After fighting with sleep for much of my life, I now learned to use this time to reflect on the life stories I wanted to share and not only put them into words, but also released the emotions that I had been carrying with them. In these early hours, I felt completely able to bring healing to those deep hurts and fears that I didn’t even realize were still lingering with the memories.

Waking up at 2am became effortless and routine. Often I would find myself waking up to my fingers typing the chapter that was waiting to be released. As my mornings began to blend together, I noticed myself heading to bed a little earlier, deciding to forgo the television. at the end of the night and gaining more rest time. This I realize, was the elimination of something in my schedule to make time for writing. What I found most surprising was that after I wrote my final chapter, I naturally stopped waking up so early. In fact, I can say I’ve never slept better.

I like to tell aspiring authors that they will need to ‘find’ the time, but what’s meant to be will flow easier if they allow their heart and soul to lead the way. A little prayer goes a long way and will lead you through a journey where you’ll not only be productive; you’ll experience a personal transformation.

About the author:

JANET HATCH is a mother of four who lives in Camrose, Alberta. She is passionate about using her experience of raising her diabetic daughter to support parents and caregivers through the emotional twists and turns of what can be a difficult journey of having a child with a serious illness. She is a lover of animals and enjoys spending time in nature with her dog, Axel.

WEBSITE - Janet Hatch – Author

INSTAGRAM - Janet Hatch (@janethatch) • Instagram photos and videos

GOODREADS - Janet Hatch (Author of Zandra) (goodreads.com)

Janet Hatch will be awarding a $15 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Say Yes to Life! by Elliott Robertson

 

So many of us are seeking our authentic selves so that we can lead greater lives. In Say Yes to Life, author Elliott Robertson aims to help us along that journey. Read an excerpt from the book, as well as a guest post that addresses a lot of the "What if's." Be sure to leave questions and comments here and as you follow the rest of the tour. Best of luck entering the giveaway!

Say Yes to Life provides you with seven keys to unconditional, abundant living. Each key opens a doorway to experiencing life as a gift.

This book will guide you to the depths of your heart where you long to celebrate life with a wholehearted "Yes!"

You will be led to a place of greater authenticity.
You will be encouraged to take joy in who you are.
Only willingness is needed to embrace yourself with gladness.
With your true Self in the driver's seat and the ego in the back seat, life takes on a new vibrancy.

Now you are present to yourself, to your companions, and the cosmos. The mountaintop appears and beckons you into the fullness that has always been awaiting you.

Read an excerpt:

The opinions we carry about ourselves are not readily identified. They are not easy to spot. We think the opinion (“I can’t handle adult responsibilities,” or “I’m socially awkward and therefore I’ll always be rejected”) is a fair, objective description. We mistake the mask we’re wearing for who we are, and we have no recollection of ever choosing the mask, or putting it on.

To say Yes to life is to bow down to Spirit, to make the “Yes” God utters more important than any other considerations.You may think of yourself as hobbled in certain ways. Your negative self-talk may have convinced you that you are not smart enough to pursue something you dream about. You may have formed unflattering opinions about, say, your artistic abilities, and these opinions may have caused you to leave your art supplies in the attic, untouched for years.

Cling to the negative self-talk no longer. Listen to Divine Intelligence say “Yes” to you, instead.

Buy links:

AMAZON.COM - AMAZON.CA - INDIGO CHAPTERS - BARNES & NOBLE - BOOK DEPOSITORY - APPLE IBOOKS 

(affiliate link included)

The e-book will be free during the tour.

What if God is always whispering, “Hush now, babe, I want one thing. I want only for you to receive my love, hush, hush”? What if God’s nature is to give love, nothing more and nothing less? What if from the highest place in heaven it is clear that there is nothing, truly nothing to be feared?

What if fear impedes our communication with one another? What if we are designed to put fear in the backseat of the car, to blow loving kisses to her from time to time, and to be genuinely grateful to fear for her desire to protect us. What if fear cares deeply about our well-being, yet at the same time hinders our ability to listen? What if fear places obstructive filters that add meanings to what others say, misinterpreting and distorting what has been said?

What if God is a Power that is always looking for us? What if God is like an octopus with infinite arms, each tentacle always looking for unplugged lamps, the tentacle an outlet designed to light up the human soul that plugs in?

What if God is a Game that is always available for all to play, a Game always in the presence of each soul? A Game called “non-resistance” or maybe called “receptivity” or “quantum love”? The rules are simply this: Be who you are and let God do the rest.

What if God is waiting for us, always waiting. The Unchanging One who waits for us to say, “Yes, I shall conform my heart to yours” or “Yes, I shall set my sails now such that I’m available to intimacy with you and with the yellow daisy, the red tulip, and beauty everywhere. Free will has been given us, so what is there for God to do but wait?

What if the Goddess of Playfulness is always eager for us to be clear with ourselves about what we want? What if she is eager for the desires of each participant to be met? She wants us to know that play exists only when the desires of each one are honored. And she knows the deepest longings within each soul are to love and to be loved.

The time has come for us to celebrate who we are. And to rejoice in our relationship with Mystery. The time has come for us to open our hearts to life.

 

Elliott Robertson is a Happiness Coach. He holds an MA in Psychology and has been certified as a Happy for No Reason workshop facilitator. His articles have appeared in several magazines, including Science of Mind and Miracles Magazine.

CONNECT WITH Elliott Robertson
Elliott Robertson | Happiness Coach (elliottrobertsoncoach.com)

FACEBOOK - Pathways to Joy | Facebook

Elliott Robertson will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Read an exclusive excerpt from The Sword in the Haned by J.J. Fischer

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

Welcome to the book tour for The Sword in His Hand by J.J. Fischer! I have an exclusive excerpt for you today from this Christian historical fantasy. Please enjoy and then follow the tour linked above for even more. Best of luck entering the giveaway!

The Sword in His Hand

(The Darcentaria Duology #1)

By J.J. Fischer

Christian Historical Fantasy

Paperback & ebook, 496 Pages

February 9, 2021 by Ambassador International

“One is an opportunity. Two is a threat. Three is an invasion.”

For hundreds of years, strange things have been washing up on the shores of Darcentaria. But when a young foreign woman named El is found unconscious on the beach amidst the burning wreckage of a strange metal craft, the villagers of Odessa are immediately suspicious—is she an agent of the Dalriadan Empire, their cruel oppressors for as long as they can remember? Or does she come from the Outside, the vast and legendary lands beyond their borders from which no man or woman alive has ever returned?

Torsten Eiselher, a talented young swordsman, has spent the last nine years of his life wrongfully imprisoned by his uncle, the Empire’s ruler. Betrayed and deceived at every turn, Torsten has survived by keeping a firm grip on his sword—and by staying well away from anything to do with the Outside. But when his young sister is murdered, Torsten finds himself irrevocably drawn to El despite her Outsider heritage—and he begins to question everything he has been told about her world.

Intrigued by the existence of a powerful and dangerously advanced world within his reach, the Empire’s ruler, Jurien Arminius, launches a hunt for El and the two Outsiders that arrived with her—the ones who could help him win his war against Torsten and the rebellion that threatens to topple his Empire.

Suddenly, Torsten is forced to choose between defeating his long-term enemy or saving the woman he has come to love . . .

(Affiliate links included.)

Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | BookBub | Book Depository | iBooks | Christianbook | Koorong

Read an exclusive excerpt:

A single man stood at the gallows, with the noose already around his

neck. He was tall and exceptionally well-built for his sixty or so years. From

where she stood, El saw the fine cut of his clothes and knew this was no

commoner. Even this close to death, there was a pride and arrogance to his

posture as he looked out unseeingly at the crowd.

It was then that she saw the other man standing beside him. At first, he

seemed a less impressive figure: still muscled, perhaps slightly shorter. But it

was this man’s face that held her.

He was the type of man who would only become more striking as he

aged; at fifty or so years, he was still in excellent health, with an unfurrowed

forehead and high cheekbones and a full mouth. He was not handsome, but

his eyes were dark and compelling, and, unlike the condemned man, he

looked fully at the crowd before him, as if seeking the face of each one and

trying to win him over.

And then he began to speak.

Although she did not perfectly understand the words—he was far away

and spoke quickly in a thick accent—their effect was undeniable, even on her.

His voice was rich and smooth and unquestionably powerful, the kind that

stirred a person to passionate action, even that which would result in his own

death. His voice was the toll of a bell against which all else was measured. It

meant life at the same time that it meant death. It betrayed a mind at once

cautiously hopeful, courageously daring, and righteously angry. She felt the

mood of the crowd change as they were swept along by the man’s honeyed

tones: their murmurs rose and fell with his; their eyes lifted heavenward as

his did, then descended with loathing on the object of his hatred.

Other Books in the Series

The Secret of Fire

(The Darcentaria Duology #2)

By J.J. Fischer

Christian Historical Fantasy

Paperback & ebook, 352 Pages

July 13, 2021 by Ambassador International

Only one can save them.

The Rebellion has fallen.

The door to the Outside has been opened.

And the one who opened it—Jurien Arminius—is now the most powerful man in Darcentaria.

But everything they have known is about to change forever.

Separated by Arminius but fighting to get back to each other, El and Torsten encounter unlikely allies that reveal stunning truths about each other, the Outside, and the very beginnings of Darcentaria itself.

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About the Author

Jasmine (J.J. Fischer) is living proof that it is possible to be addicted to tea and coffee simultaneously. Both made it possible for her to complete her Bachelor degree in English Literature and Creative Writing in 2012.

Jasmine is married to David, and together they are the proud owner-parents of five warring pet chickens who tolerate each others' existence—most days. When tempted away from the keyboard, she enjoys reading, thinking about lasagna almost as often as Garfield the cat, and working towards her black belt in karate. She vows to one day write the perfect fight scene. Jasmine makes her home near Sydney, Australia, where most animals want to kill you and drop bears enforce a daily reign of terror. If you're reading this, please send help.

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Tour Schedule

Tour Giveaway

One winner will receive print copies of The Sword in His Hand and The Secret Fire, a $10 Barnes and Noble gift card and a $5 discount code to Ambassador International's store (US only)

Ends July 21, 2021

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