Music Monday: {Hello, My Name Is} by Matthew West

Hello friends, and Happy Monday to you!  It's officially Summer, and I hope that you're enjoying yours!  Things are well here, and Summer is in full swing with Bible study, swimming lessons, sleepovers, baseball games, reading, relaxing, and movie watching.  Oh, and I almost forget, I joined the gym two weeks ago!  I've been watching calories, eating healthier, and exercising more than I ever have.  It feels great to be making healthy choices!

Anyway, let's get back to Music Monday.  I don't know where you're at right now, but if you're like me, perhaps the enemy has been whispering (or shouting) lies into your ears.  As a matter of fact, just this morning I found myself actually believing those lies.  I was beginning to feel like my old self again, and I asked myself, "Who am I?"  Well, I'm certainly not the lies that I was listening to, and I wasn't about to listen to it for one more minute.  That's when I stopped dead in my tracks, and said out loud . . . NO, I'm not listening to this anymore!  I am a child of God!

The words of Matthew West's song popped into my head, and it felt amazing to get the devil off of my back!  He was weighing me down, and I have no time for that, because I am . . .

SAVED.  CHANGED.  SET FREE.  A CHILD OF THE ONE TRUE KING.  Can I get an amen?   No more living in defeat.  We have victory through His perfect sacrifice and His amazing grace.  Remember His word, and speak it out loud to the enemy.

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.  Hebrews 4:12 NKJV

I pray that this song would speak mightily into your heart if you're living in a place of defeat and believing the lies.  If you'd like a list of verses that tells each and every one of us who we are in Christ, I've found a great list on Joyce Meyer's website.  Be sure to click here for this fantastic resource. 

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.  1 John 4:4 NKJV

Music Monday: {Hurricane} by Natalie Grant

Hello, and Happy Music Monday!  Today's selection is the brand-new single, Hurricane, by Natalie Grant.  If you like a fun, fresh, pop sound with a great message, then I think you'll really enjoy this song!  Natalie seems to be up to big things these days with her music ministry, and with this new single, I'm hoping that the complete album isn't too far off.  I pray you enjoy this song, and that you have a blessed week!

{Bleeding Heart by Amber Stokes: COVER REVEAL + A GIVEAWAY!}

It's with great enthusiasm that I present the cover of Bleeding Heart by Amber Stokes!  I met Amber years ago in the blogging world at her blog Seasons of Humility.  Perhaps you've met her there as well!  I've always enjoyed her sweet, kind-hearted spirit, as well as her awesome book reviews and devotionals.  Last summer, she gave me the opportunity to be an early reader of the beginning of her upcoming novel, Bleeding Heart, and I jumped at the chance!  Let me say, it was amazing, and I was left wanting to read the entire novel.  Thankfully, I won't have to wait much longer . . . and neither will you!  Bleeding Heart is tentatively scheduled to be published in August 2013!  Please take a moment to find out more about the book, the author, and the book's cover designer.  And be sure not to miss the beautiful, themed giveaway!
 
About the Book:
Five bleeding hearts. One profound journey. Summer 1886

Sally Clay’s livelihood has been snatched away, but in its place arises an opportunity to escape from her sordid past and an unrelenting, unwanted suitor. Boarding a train with a heartsick rancher and an enigmatic miner, she leaves Virginia City behind and heads to Northern California, waiting for the chance to make right what went wrong three long years before.

But the road to revenge is far from smooth. Sally soon learns that the jagged pieces of a broken heart can far too easily wound the hearts of others – and hers isn’t the only heart that’s broken. Tragedy and fear dog her steps as she flees from the redwood forests to the high desert and back again. Will her bleeding heart ever find a way and a place to heal?

A desperate soiled dove. Three men who come to care for her. One man determined to claim her.

All on a journey that will show them what true love really involves.

Inspirational Historical Romance

The Book’s Blog:
In conjunction with the cover reveal, Amber’s doing a “blog reveal,” as well! You can find all the latest news about Bleeding Heart, along with book extras, at the Bleeding Heart blog.

About the Author:
Amber Stokes has a Bachelor of Science degree in English and a passion for the written word - from blogging to writing poetry, short stories, and novels. After her brief time at college in Oregon, she is now back home among the redwoods of Northern California, living life one day at a time and pursuing her passion via freelance editing and self-publishing her debut novel, Bleeding Heart. You can connect with Amber on her blog, Seasons of Humility.

About the Cover Designer:
Lena Goldfinch lives in a scenic small town in Massachusetts with her husband, two kids, and a very spoiled Black Lab. She writes fiction for young adults, mostly light fantasy with a healthy dose of "sigh-worthy" romance. You can visit her online at www.lenagoldfinch.blogspot.com

Teaser from Bleeding Heart:
 
Prologue

Breaking hearts should be considered a crime. That would make Elizabeth Lawson an outlaw and Joe Clifton the victim. And that wasn’t a far stretch in Joe’s mind. She had rounded up his heart, branded her name across it when it should never have belonged to her, and then left him high and dry. Still, he was getting sick of hanging around the scene of the crime. He just didn’t know where else to go.
Lake Tahoe had once been his favorite get-away destination, a place where he could go to just sit back and enjoy the view of water as clear as a shined-up mirror. Now those crystal depths and the unmoving boulders along the water’s edge taunted him, bringing back memories of a happy proposal and a less-than-happy scene where his heart was handed back to him on a silver platter – bruised, broken, and bleeding.
He didn’t want to make any more memories like that. So he made a promise to himself: He would never let anyone break his heart again.

In addition to this amazing cover reveal and book preview, Amber is including a great giveaway!  Check out the beautiful prizes purchased from Cindy Lindgrin and Belle on a Budget!  Be sure to enter using the Rafflecopter form below!

Noted Cards designed by Cindy Lindgren

Teardrop Earrings designed by Belle on a Budget

a Rafflecopter giveaway