Celebrate Colleen Coble’s ‘Mermaid Moon’ with a Mystery e-Reader Prize Pack

Ready for a new murder mystery?  Colleen Coble's newest book, Mermaid Moon, is out!  This book is in the fabulous Sunset Cove series and does not disappoint.  So take some time to read why you should add this book to your book shelf.  And don't forget to enter the fun contest by February 1st.  Details are at the end of this review.

From the Back Cover:

Mallory’s mother died fifteen years ago. But her father’s last words on the phone were unmistakable: “Find . . . mother.”
Shame and confusion have kept Mallory Davis from her home for the last fifteen years, but when her dad mysteriously dies on his mail boat route, she doesn’t have any choice but to go back to Mermaid Point.
Mallory believes her father was murdered and childhood sweetheart Kevin O’Connor, game warden in Downeast Maine, confirms her suspicions. But Kevin is wary of helping Mallory in her search. She broke his heart—and left—without a word, years ago.
When Mallory begins receiving threats on her own life—and her beloved teenage daughter, Haylie—their search intensifies. There’s a tangled web within the supposed murder, and it involves much more than what meets the eye.
As answers begin to fall into place, Mallory realizes her search is about more than finding her father’s killer—it is also about finding herself again . . . and possibly about healing what was broken so long ago with Kevin. She just has to stay alive long enough to put all the pieces together.

My Review:
I enjoyed this thrilling new murder mystery in the Sunset Cove series by Colleen Coble.  I loved that she returned to Folly Shoal, Maine and included familiar characters from her first Sunset Cove novel, The Inn at Ocean's Edge.  There is a lot of mystery concerning the background of Mallory Davis.  It was fun to uncover bits and pieces throughout the story.  The author kept me guessing throughout the book with all her turns and twists in the story.  The last several chapters were like a sprint to the finish line as Colleen wrapped up the ending to this book.  I had to stay up and finish the book once I was so close to finding out who the actual villain was!

Look for the next book in this series, Twilight at Blueberry Barrens in September 2016.

Giveaway Information:

To move forward past a life of shame and confusion, Mallory Davis must go back to Mermaid Point to find out who murdered her father in Colleen Coble's new book, Mermaid Moon. As answers begin to fall into place, Mallory realizes her search is about more than finding her father’s killer—it is also about finding herself again . . . and possibly about healing what was broken so long ago with Kevin. She just has to stay alive long enough to put all the pieces together.

Celebrate the release of Mermaid Moon with Colleen and a mystery e-reader prize pack giveaway!

 

One grand prize winner will receive:

• A copy of Mermaid Moon
• A Kindle Fire
• A mermaid necklace
• A pair of mermaid earrings

Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry! The giveaway ends on February 1st. The winner will be announced February 2nd on the Litfuse blog.

Philippians: Discovering Joy Through Relationship by Sue Edwards (A Discovering Together Bible Study)

 Looking for a fun new Bible study to start out your new year? 
 Have you been struggling with trying to live in community with your brothers and sisters in Christ?  Or, maybe you haven't really seen the need for pursuing relationships beyond Facebook.  Did you know that living in community is a supposed to be a vibrant part of our Christian journey?  Join Sue Edwards as she goes through the book of Philippians and encourages other women to make community a part of their life.

From the Back Cover:
Paul's brief letter to Philippi highlights what strengthens authentic connections--skills like trust, humility, appropriate self-sacrifice, and generosity.  It also sheds light on how to overcome toxic connection-killers like envy, comparison, and a critical spirit.
Join Sue Edwards on this inductive study of Philippians, where you will discover how to find and maintain beloved, organic, healthy community.

My Thoughts:
Right now is this season of life, I'm looking for a Bible study that can give me something to meditate on, but doesn't take a lot of time.  My children are 1, 3 and 7 and finding time can be a daily struggle.  I like that each lesson only requires about 1 1/2 hours.  That means I can divide that time throughout the week and take small sections each day.  There are also video segments included in this study that you can access from a website on your computer, or you can scan the QR code with your smart device to access the videos.  Each video ranges from the shortest being 6 1/2 minutes to the longest being 13 minutes.   You can also go deeper in the study by answering questions and reading more material in the outside margins.  Each lesson also includes an optional memory verse.  Since the study is an inductive Bible study, the lesson begins with a few of Sue's thoughts, but the rest of the lesson is filled with questions to get you thinking.  This study can be done individually or in a group.  If you're looking for a study that will help you get into the Word of God this year and doesn't require a lot of time commitment, pick up Sue Edwards' book and give it try. 

*** I received this book free from Kregel Publications in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions are my own.

What Pro-Life Really Means | Evangelicals for Life

Even if you're not heading to Washington, D.C., January 21–22 for the March for Life event, block out some time those two days because you'll be able to attend some of the events in the comfort of your own home. Focus on the Family and The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission will host Evangelicals for Life, a major pro-life conference held in conjunction with the March for Life event.

The event will take place in Washington, D.C., at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill. Evangelicals from across the country will gather to hear from leading speakers, such as David Platt, Russell Moore, Jim Daly, Kelly Rosati, and others—to be equipped and encouraged to become a voice for life! The event will also be simulcast for FREE so individuals, churches, and organizations from coast-to-coast and around the world can take part.

Speakers will encourage evangelicals to engage the culture on issues of abortion and end-of-life decisions, and the event will affirm the evangelical belief in the sanctity of life, that every life matters to God and is created in His image.

For more information, visit http://evangelicals.life/.

Readers of this blog will receive 15% off their registration by using the code FocusLife.

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What Pro-Life Really Means

By Daniel Darling

It was a flippant comment by the spokesmen for a presidential candidate: “It doesn’t matter. They’re just Muslims.” But it made shudder.

This is how societies begin to dehumanize a people group, and every generation of Christians is responsible to face this thinking and fight it. This is what it means to be a pro-life champion.

We are pro-life because we are pro-human dignity. It is the uniquely Christian message that sees in every soul a person created in the image of God.

When Planned Parenthood and their allies say, “That’s just a fetus,” we say, “No, that’s a baby, a human life, that deserves dignity and respect.”

When corrupt profiteers look at vulnerable young girls and boys and say, “They are just a commodity to be trafficked for money,” we say, “No, they are boys and girls created in the image of God and deserving of dignity and respect.”

When eugenicists look at the elderly and say, “They are just burdens to be managed,” we say, “No, human dignity is not defined by utility, but is a unique gift given by God.”

When politicians look at immigrants and say, “They are a drain on society,” we say, “No, they are created in the image of God and worthy of kindness, welcoming, and respect.”

When ISIS brutally dehumanizes its victims—Christians, Muslims, Jews, and anyone who doesn’t subscribe to their ideology—and they say, “They are just infidels,” we say, by our acts of justice, “No, they are people created in the image of God and worthy of life and respect.”

When the disabled are marginalized, we say, “No, each was created in the image of God and is worthy of our full love and acceptance.”

Even in our discourse, even when we look across the aisle, across the screen, across the table at someone who doesn’t share our beliefs, we say to ourselves, “This person is worthy of respect and dignity because they too were created in the image of God.”

Human dignity, the intrinsic worth of every human soul, is not just a once-every-four-years mantra for voter guides and political scorecards. We live out the imago de as a way of life, and we seek justice wherever human dignity is compromised.

This is why ERLC and Focus on the Family join hands to help raise up a new generation of evangelicals who are passionate about the sanctity of human life. This why you should come to Washington, D.C., this January to the Evangelicals for Life event or participate via the free simulcast at your church or on your computer.

You should join Evangelicals for Life, not simply to make a powerful stand in the nation’s capital. You should come, not simply to be stirred by the gifted speakers. You should come, not only to fellowship and strategize with other champions for life.

You should be a part of of Evangelicals for Life because God is calling you, in this time and in your sphere of influence, to be a voice for human dignity.

Answer for yourself what it means to have a pro-life, whole-life vision. Discover where your gifts and talents best serve the kingdom of God in this way, and send a message to the world that your Christianity compels you to look every human being in the eye and not see what everyone sees. You see in them the image of their Creator.

Daniel Darling is the Vice President for Communications for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention (ERLC), the co-sponsor of the Evangelicals for Life conference. Dan holds a bachelor’s degree in pastoral ministry from Dayspring Bible College and has studied at  Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife Angela have four children and reside in the Nashville area. They attend Green Hill Church in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, where Dan serves as Pastor of Teaching and Discipleship.