Book Review: Hurricanes in Paradise

Written by Denise Hildreth
Reviewed by Nora St. Laurent –

Back Cover: Since starting her new job at a Paradise Island resort, Riley Sinclair feels the pieces of her life finally coming together—until she discovers that some guests arrive with their own demons, fears, and secrets. With a hurricane headed straight for the island, will Riley and three women find healing—and friendship—through the storm?

REVIEW: I was thankful to receive a review copy of this fun, honest, and inspiring book. The story reminded me a little of the TV Shows “Love Boat” and “Hotel”. Each week they’d introduce new characters and their dilemmas. Everyone tried to have fun because they were on vacation. But life doesn’t stop happening just because we’re on holiday!

Denise introduces four very different, interesting, quirky characters that would never have talked to each other under normal circumstances. But, rules are different when you’re on holiday. Time is of the essence, you may never see these people again.

Denise’s main character is Riley Sinclair, a single mom and head of guest relations at the hotel, working hard at her new job. Tamyra, is a beauty queen just finishing up her tour; hiding out from everyone and holding a secret close to her heart. Winnie Harris, Sam’s widow of three years- is stuck in the past with Sam and is afraid to live. Then there’s Laine Fulton, an author on a trip to get ideas for her new novel. She hates to eat alone and invites all of these ladies to dine with her, as she takes notes of their conversations. All of these ladies were in survival mode for one reason or another and life begins to get a little crazy as they all prepare for a Hurricane heading their way.

I loved what Denise said about these women and their struggle. “These women face real-life struggles. Real-life heartache that many of us face every day…this is a story about learning to live. My hope is that as you close the pages, you will be more aware of what real living is all about, more aware that inside your soul is the ability to survive even the toughest storms.”

I couldn’t agree with her more. Denise’s book touched my heart and soul. I enjoyed these ladies, I laughed, I was surprised at what these women shared and my spirit was moved as these characters faced their fears. You can tell this author has faced some fears of her own. Finding Hope Book Club is reading this novel—I can’t wait to hear what this group has to say about Hurricanes In Paradise. It’s more than a great summer read. These ladies and their stories will stir your soul!

Nora St. Laurent
The Book Club Network www.bookfun.org
Finding Hope Through Fiction
www.psalm516.blogspot.com

The Green Iceberg

By Rosemary Flaaten –

Monstrous chunks of ice littered the seascape. Balmy weather had resulted in pieces of the glacier breaking off and drifting into open water creating oversized ice cubes with jagged edges, pinnacle spires and a glossy sheen. Icebergs, though magnificent to behold, create a menacing and deadly reality. If seaman only had to concern themselves with the ice that towers above the water surface, these icebergs would need nothing more than their brief attention. But, it is the enormous mass (almost 90% of the iceberg) that looms below the dark surface which poses the greatest risk and requires serious attention.

There is a matter of the heart that presents itself as an iceberg in our lives. We may show glimpses of it occasionally, but most of the time the bulk of this sin looms deep in the darkness of our hearts and minds. This iceberg has a green tinge to it. This sin that threatens our environment, our relationships and our soul is envy.

The wise King Solomon knew of the disastrous effect when he wrote “envy rots the soul” (Proverbs 14:30 NIV). Socrates called envy the ulcer of the soul, and C.S. Lewis referred to it as “the most odious of vices.” Our propensity to compare ourselves to others produces either a prideful superiority or self-debasement. At times we may verbalize these comparisons, but public scrutiny usually keeps these thoughts deep in our hearts and minds. Unfortunately, the relational effect is not hidden. Envy rips apart friendships, lacerates trust and erodes love for others, self and God.

As Christ followers who desire to have an inner spirit that reflects our Savior, we must melt the iceberg of envy. What’s the best way to get rid of ice? Sunshine and salt. Allow God’s light to expose the rot of envy beneath the surface. Let His word be the salt that directs you to love and respect others. Look for the good in others, celebrating who they are, their uniqueness and accomplishments. This will produce a much safer relational environment.

Beware! Icebergs may look harmless above the water surface, but danger looms below. Comparison may make us feel good, but envy destroys our relationships and soul. Let some sunshine and salt bring about a change.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, You see my heart. Illuminate for me the relationships and situations where envy has taken root and help me to celebrate each person You bring across my path.

“Since this is the kind of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives. That means we will not compare ourselves with each other as if one of us were better and another worse. We have far more interesting things to do with our lives. Each of us is an original” (Galatians 5:25-26 The Message).

Today’s Devotional is by Rosemary Flaaten. Her successful book, A Woman and Her Relationships helps women process their outside-of-work relationships, so now she’s delving into these 9-5 relationships in A Woman and Her Workplace. Her Relationships book won The Word Guild Award, which is Canada’s top Christian literary honor. A dynamic speaker—Rosemary challenges women of all professions to view their work as a calling and their workplaces as opportunities to live out Christ’s love. Rosemary lives with her husband and three children in Calgary, Canada.

God is Calling

By Cheri Cowell –

There are days when my phone simply rings off the hook, and it seems as though everyone I know is calling. On days like these I remember my Mother saying, “I’m going to change my name” in response to my sister and me calling her for the fifteen-millionth time. How many times were you called today? One thing is certain; God was calling you. God is calling each of us every day, and He patiently renews that call day in and day out until we finally hear His voice and answer the call. What is He calling you to? The call is different for each of us. For some, He is calling them to accept Him as Savior; for others, He is calling them into a deeper relationship. He might be calling some, asking whom shall I send, and still for others He may be calling them into a new mission and purpose for their life. And for some, He’s calling them home. God is calling, and He is calling you by name.

Chapter 42 of Isaiah ends with a description of God’s sorrow over Israel becoming blind and deaf to His calling. Then Chapter 43 begins with God saying, in spite of Israel’s great sin, He will show them His grace and love by restoring them to a place of honor—calling them by name as His chosen people. If God can do this for the very people He had chosen to bear His Son’s birthright, and who were turning their back on Him, He can do the same for you. No matter what you have done, God is still calling you by name, making you His own child, and giving you a special purpose to fulfill in His name. Wow! What a call.

PRAYER: I Praise You, God, for Your tender mercy toward me. Thank You for giving me a special role to play in advancing Your kingdom here on earth. Help me hear Your voice more clearly and to answer Your call with a hearty send me!

“But now, this is what the LORD says—He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine” (Isaiah 43:1 NIV).

Today’s devotion is by Cheri Cowell, who writes and speaks on topics of Christian discipleship. In addition to her books and articles, you can learn about her speaking ministry and sign up to receive her daily devotional at www.CheriCowell.com

Die Laughing Anyone?

By Kathi Macias –

Seriously. This is no laughing matter! Well, okay, maybe it is—but only because I chose to make it so. I could just as easily have chosen to cry and whine and…wait, come to think of it, that’s exactly what I was doing before I decided to laugh. Let me explain.

It started when my husband went out of town for ten days. (Figures!) The TV in our room went out, but I figured, so what? There’s one in the family room, and who needs a TV anyway? Apparently my mom does because hers went out the next day, and she was not a happy camper. It was one thing to ignore my non-working set, but quite another to ignore hers—particularly when I was about to leave for Philadelphia to teach at a writers’ conference for several days.

I did some scrambling and found a wonderful old gentleman in the senior park where we live (“old” as in older than the rest of us who live in the park!) who graciously offered to replace Mom’s TV with an extra set from the clubhouse until we could get her a new one. I must admit I was a bit concerned when he was wrestling one set off her TV stand and lifting the other one up onto it, but he made it. What a relief! At least the main fire was put out, and the rest could smolder until I returned from the conference.

Or so I thought. The very next day Mom and I were waiting in our car in the drive-through lane at a fast-food restaurant when my foot slipped off the brake (don’t even ask why I didn’t have the car in park!) and I rolled (very slowly, I might add!) into the car in front of me. The bump was scarcely noticeable, and I was certain there was no damage. The driver of the other car didn’t agree. Admittedly, if I’d had a magnifying glass, I might have been able to see the quarter-inch dent he claimed was in his back bumper, but I didn’t have one so I had to take his word for it. He said his people would contact my people about the damage. Wonderful.

One more day until I flew off to Philly. What else could go wrong? I was about to find out.

I had to call a radio station to do an interview that final morning before leaving, and as I always do before calling in, I turned off call-waiting—nothing more annoying that beeping noises when you’re on the radio! The interview went off without a hitch. Then I noticed something odd. Each time my phone rang, it cut off midway through the first ring and didn’t ring again. After it happened several times, I called the phone company and told them something was wrong and they needed to send out a technician right away. Of course, they couldn’t do that until the next day. Great. Now no one could call in, though I was able to call out.

Midway through the afternoon my cell phone rang, and it was a friend of mine from Nashville. “I’ve been trying to call you all day,” he said, “but I keep getting some radio station in Texas.”

Uh oh. I was beginning to suspect a connection between the phone problem and my morning radio interview. I called the station and discovered they’d been getting calls for me all day. They suggested the possibility that instead of punching *70 to turn off call-waiting before my interview I might have pushed *72, which then forwards all my incoming calls to the station.

Sure enough, that was it! I turned off call-forwarding and called the phone company to cancel the technician and to apologize for my error. The customer service rep laughed and said, “I understand completely. I have days like that all the time. We might as well laugh about it, right?”

Right. I mean, seriously, she was right. But I had to grab myself by the nape of the neck and shake the whining and complaining right out of me before I could get that smile to work. It wasn’t long, though, before I found myself right in the middle of the truth of Proverbs 17:22: “A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.”

We can choose a merry heart—or dry bones. It took me awhile to get there, but I opted for the merry heart, and the rest of the day went much better. (You don’t even want to know about my trip to Philly and how my five-hour flight turned into an 18-hour nightmare! But I was still laughing when I finally landed at two in the morning…!)

Kathi Macias (www.kathimacias.com; http://kathieasywritermacias.blogspot.com) is an occasional radio host (www.blogspotradio.com/communicatethevision) and an award-winning author of more than 30 books. She and her husband, Al, live in Homeland, CA, where they spend their spare time riding Al’s Harley—hence, Kathi’s road name of “Easy Writer.”

What Our Unforgiveness Says To God

By Bruce Hebel –

Are you aware that whether or not we forgive others is a real big deal to God? It is. If you take the time to study scripture, you’ll be hard pressed to find any subject that is more important to Father God than forgiveness. Think about it. In the Lord’s Prayer, forgiveness is the only part of the prayer that has a condition attached to it; forgive us as we forgive others. In addition, forgiveness is the only issue in the prayer that Jesus gives immediate commentary on. In Matthew 6:14-15, Jesus connected the Father’s forgiveness of us with our forgiveness of others. He repeats the connection in Mark 11:25-26.

Have you ever asked yourself why our forgiveness of others is so important to God? Believe me, He really does take it seriously when we don’t forgive. Why? The answer is found at the center of the redemption story. It basically goes like this: God created man for the purpose of enjoying Him forever. Man sinned against God, which required judgment and created a debt owed to God. Man could not pay the price required. Jesus, God’s son, came to earth for the purpose of paying man’s sin debt. When Jesus died on the cross He proclaimed, “It is finished!” thus declaring that, through the shedding of His own blood, He had paid for the sin debt of everyone in the entire world. Three days later, by raising His Son from the dead, the Father declared, “I agree. It is finished. I accept my Son’s blood as payment for the sins of the world.”

When we say, “I know God forgives them, but I can’t,” we are telling God the Father that, although we recognize that He values the blood of His Son enough to pay for the sins of the world, which includes the sins against us, we need something more than that. The blood of Jesus is enough to satisfy God but is not valuable enough to satisfy me.

Can you imagine looking at Father God and saying, “Your Son’s crowning achievement is not good enough. Jesus really didn’t finish His work because the sin against me requires a higher payment then He paid?” Really? Is there any father who would not be angered by that?

Now do you understand why unforgiveness is such a big deal to God?

AUTHOR QUOTE: The blood of Jesus covers all sins, including the ones committed against me!

“For if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins” (Matthew 6:14-15 NET).

Today’s devotional is by Bruce Hebel, Forgiving Forward Seminar Speaker, President of ReGenerating Life Ministries, and Adjunct Professor at Carver Bible College. He is a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and has served in ministry for over 35 years.

« Previous Page — Next Page »