Where Does Beauty Come From

I am posting a friend's link today, because her article met me right where I live. I pray it ministers to you as well. Where Does Beauty Come From?

I have moved my stroke updates to their own blog. Today marks six month since my life took such a dramatic change. I would invite you to follow along at Stroke of Grace.

I'm often asked when I'm going to write my next book. In reality I've been in the process of writing a book on the life of Paul as encouragement for living with chronic pain and illness for probably close to 5 years now. Since Hannah's Hope: Seeking God's Heart in the Midst of Infertility, Miscarriage & Adoption Loss took me about 10 years to write, that may not be such exciting news because it tells you I still have a very long way to go!

What I hope is more exciting, what I would like to ask you to partner with me in prayer about as God continues to unfold His plan, is that two of my other blogs, both this one here on beauty and (now that I've gained more focus for what I want to do with this project) specifically Harvesting Hope from Heartache™, have becoming a launching pads for what I feel God is turning into my "next" book.

Yes, I'm continuing to work on the Given Me a Thorn too, but over the past year God has me focusing more on an exploration of the Fruit of the Spirit (a passage written by none other than Paul himself) through a series of articles I've been writing for Glory and Strength and my InnerBeautyGirlz blog. I've been working on a Bible study related to what He's teaching me and I've written much more than could be presented only in my articles, so I think God's growing a book out of all of this! :)

How does the Fruit of the Spirit tie in with Harvesting Hope from Heartache? I'm glad you asked. ;) It all has to do with sowing seeds, gathering fruit, and ultimately what Source my hope springs from. What better time to look to the Lord for help than in the midst of trials? I'm very excited to see how God is tying so many themes together in my life as He's teaching me through Galatians 5 this year! I pray that this book will be as much of a blessing to you as the journey has been to me.

It is my current goal to have enough of this study written and ready to present to publishers that I can begin the query process around the end of the year or in the very early part of 2012. Will you join me in specific prayer that God will give me His words to write and that this project will unfold according to His will and in His perfect timing?

If you would like to stay updated about my progress, I've just opened a new Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/HarvestingHope and would love to have you "like" me over there. :) If you don't do Facebook or would rather get updates via feeds, please follow my long-standing Harvesting Hope from Heartache blog directly. Feel free to pass these link along to your friends as well.

Patience is a Virtue...

I'm guest blogging on the topic of Inner Beauty as a monthly columnist over at Glory and Strength. This year we are looking together at characteristics that set a woman apart as a Christian, as found in Galatians 5:22-23.

Drop by Glory and Strength and click on "Growing in Glory" to find my latest reflections. This month we are talking about patience. Here's a little taste to get you started. (And don't forget to keep reading to the bottom of this post to grab a great discount and free gifts code for Affordable Mineral Makeup too!)

“Wait” seems to be one of God's favorite words in my life. We waited nearly two years from engagement until our wedding. We waited through years of infertility. We waited to see if we would bring home babies through adoption. We waited through high risk pregnancies. We waited through years of disappointment in effort to buy our house. We've waited for work-related situations to resolve. We are still waiting for answers for my health...

Please come read more about patience this week at http://www.gloryandstrength.com/index_files/GrowingInGlory.htm. In June I'll be tackling Not-so-Random Acts of Kindness. :) I would love to hear what you think "kindness" means as I'm putting together my next article. Won't you please leave my your thoughts in the comment section here?

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Please visit http://www.InnerBeautyGirls.com and click on the "shop" link to get started by viewing our catalog. (I greatly appreciate when my return customers remember to always come back and start at my consultant link so that the computer knows to credit me for your purchases.) If you remember to list my name, Jenni Saake, in the comments section when you place your order, I would appreciate that too. Thank you for your business and support!

My heart is in sharing beauty with women, first heart beauty, but also affordable, healthy ways to care for our physical bodies that God calls the "temple" of His Holy Spirit when we allow Him to live within us through grace. To this end I am happy to represent Affordable Mineral Makeup™ (AMM) as a beauty adviser and to offer this high quality line of pure mineral products to my readers. AMM does NOT contain harmful bismuth or other skin irritants fillers, talc, nanoparticles nor micronized minerals. Our soothing line will not clog pores, contains natural SPF properties, helps calm irritated skin with its zinc content, and is water resistant.

When I Don't Feel Beautiful

I'm not just talking about a "bad hair day" here. I'm talking about that deep dark frustration that I don't measure up. Have you ever been there?

The author of this article knows what I'm saying:

I recently watched the royal wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. Although I enjoyed the pomp and majesty of the surroundings, what struck me most was the couple themselves. They are a stunning couple – physically attractive and in seemingly excellent health. Part of me rejoiced with them and prayed for God’s blessing in their lives. Yet I must admit part of me struggled with envy, not simply for their surroundings, but for their physical health and appearance as well...

So how can I cope when my body fails my hopes and expectations for myself? Please follow the link above to read Bronlynn Spindler's great reminders!

What to Wear...Put on Love

One of my favorite online communities is (In)Courage, a "home for the hearts of women." Today Kristen Welch of "We are THAT family" posted a delightful post about Your Basic All Purpose Garment. She writes:

Before Jesus, we wore ill-fitted, dirty clothes. (Basically a bad episode of WHAT NOT TO WEAR).

After meeting Jesus, we’ve been dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item, custom-made to fit us perfectly, by The Master Tailor. We wear His label. And we look fine, I might add.

But then we have a bad day. The alarm doesn’t go off, we wake up late, we’re rushing around. We go for convenience and ease and slip on our old clothes: impatience, unkindness and judgment. We layer up in jealousy, gossip and low self esteem...

Read the rest and be refreshed over at (In)Courage today!


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Please visit http://www.InnerBeautyGirls.com and click on the "shop" link to get started by viewing our catalog. (I greatly appreciate when my return customers remember to always come back and start at my consultant link rather than on the main company page so that the computer knows to credit me for your purchases.) Thank you for your business and support!

Loveliness

I'm guest blogging on the topic of Inner Beauty as a monthly columnist over at Glory and Strength. For the next nine months we will be looking together at characteristics that set a woman apart as a Christian, as found in Galatians 5:22-23.

Drop by Glory and Strength and click on "Growing in Glory" to find my latest reflections. This month we are talking about love - not the roll-your-eyes mushy, romantic kind, but the real down-to-earth, loving-in-the-midst-of-life's-messes kind. Here's a little taste to get you started. (And don't forget to keep reading to the bottom of this post to grab a great discount code for Affordable Mineral Makeup too!)

Love goes beyond “live and let live,” but takes the next step. When I’ve been wronged (I’m not talking about abuse here, but the daily messes of living life with imperfect people), I can show my friend God’s love by not waiting for her to make the first move. I can offer forgiveness even before she apologizes... Laying down my life for someone means I am actively on the lookout for my friend’s best interest.

Galatians 5:22-23 calls these times when I allow God to lead my decisions, attitudes and actions, the fruit or evidence of God’s Spirit in me... I’m not going to do a perfect job at showing God’s love each time I have the chance. The goal is to keep practicing, keep striving to bloom with time and practice... I can ask God to help me see opportunities to offer love to others because of Him, and then lean on Him for the strength to love even when it’s hard.

Please come read more about love at Love Fruit then tune in again next month to reflect with me on how we can find true joy. :)

For more thoughts on love by By Ida Mundell of "Eat Drink and Be Jesus," check out Love is a Sacrifice on (In)Courage. :)

------- Sponsorship Message and Coupon Code -------

My heart is in sharing beauty with women, first heart beauty, but also affordable, healthy ways to care for our physical bodies that God calls the "temple" of His Holy Spirit when we allow Him to live within us through grace. To this end I am happy to represent Affordable Mineral Makeup™ as a beauty adviser and to offer this high quality line of pure mineral products to my readers.

For a limited time [this offer expired 2/5/2010 - please visit "discount codes" to look for current promotions], take 20% off every Affordable Mineral Makeup™ purchase of $19.95 or greater, placed from www.InnerBeautyGirls.com when you use check out using coupon code:
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With this code, qualified orders (over $19.95 and properly following instruction for submitting freebie requests) will also receive three free gifts with your purchase! Your gifts are one 5-gram sifter jar with your choice of product (up to a $7.79 value) AND two mineral samples of your choice (valued at $2.49 each). To redeem the free gift offer, please list your requested free product selections in your order comments (not added to your cart!) when you place your order. Promotion items cannot be shipped separately.

Please visit http://www.InnerBeautyGirls.com and click on the "shop" link to get started by viewing our catalog. (I greatly appreciate when my return customers remember to always come back and start at my consultant link so that the computer knows to credit me for your purchases.) Thank you for your business and support!

Contentment

An article entitled Can you be chronically ill and still find contentment? may seem like a strange one to link to from a beauty blog, but I would love to invite you to visit this link and find great beauty tips such as:

• God looks at our hearts, not our material possessions and external beauty. “The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7b) External beauty will fade, but inner character will not.

or

• God made us beautiful and in His image. “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” (Psalm 139:14) We were created for a purpose and a plan,even those of us with physical limitations. How exciting!

If you know my story, you know physical struggle and disability have been a big part of my journey, along with all of the emotional issues of doubting and self-worth that come along with a body that isn't all I dreamed it would be. You can read more about my health journey at Given Me a Thorn or on my InfertilityMom blog, and you can find encouragement for your own struggles (maybe divorce, or the death of a child, or infertility, or abuse, or financial struggles?) at Harvesting Hope from Heartache™. Wherever you are in life, please know that God says you are beautiful, right here in the midst of the mess. Even if you can't see the beauty right now, God's still at work and His plan is yet unfolding in you!

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end." Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NIV).

New You

Yup, it's that time of year again, the time when everyone starts saying goodbye to the past year and preparing for a "fresh start," piling up New Years' resolutions that will mostly be shattered before February even gets here. We hope to wipe away past failures and replace them with victories, but my friend, in our own strength, we can never find lasting change.

I know this blog has gotten a little soft in content the past year or so, mostly being a collection of advertising and sales links. I've been rather "burned out" on beauty blogging the past year, focusing on many health issues. Recently I've gotten excited about this blog again and want to breath new life into my posts here. I'm not promising anything spectacular or earth shattering, but I am hoping to refresh my efforts at deeper content this next year. I'm starting by taking this moment to really bring us back to the original heart purpose of this blog, my desire to bring glory to God as we celebrate the beauty He sees in us as His handwork.

As we revel in the joys of womanhood, what real change can we seek in the new year? If anyone reading does not know with certainty where you would spend eternity if you were to die today, let's start right there. This week we have celebrated Christmas, the coming of God to earth as a fragile Baby. If that were the whole story, it would be a sweet tradition and nothing more. Thankfully that Baby came with a purpose. "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost" (Luke 19:10). Do you ever feel lost? He came to bring purpose to your life, and to mine!

Over 2,000 years since His birth, there is still more factual, historical evidence for the person of Jesus Christ than even remains many United States presidents. There is no question that He was (and is!) a real person, the question is what you believe about who He is? If you say He was a "good man" or a "good teacher" then I must challenge your beliefs. He claimed to be God! With this claim there are only three options:
- He either is who He claims to be (and thus, so much more than just a prophet or another good teacher)
- or He was delusional, truly believing Himself to be God and so deceiving not only His followers but Himself (and thus certainly not a "good teacher" I would choose to follow)
- or He was intentionally lying about Himself (and absolutely knocked out of the "good man" category).

Who do you say Jesus is? I say He is my Lord and Savior. The one and only Living God, who was tempted in every way as I am, yet lived a sinless life, being crucified to pay the death penalty for my own sins. Again, if that's the end of the story, it's a sad one indeed, but as promised from the beginning of time when Adam and Eve first made a choice for sin, He has power over life and death and the grave could not hold Him! It is in His resurrection that I find true hope and peace.

Still questioning? Then here's a realistic New Year's resolution for you. Challenge God to make Himself real to you in 2011! He promises, "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13).

If you are looking for real, lasting change for 2011 and beyond, here's your answer. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here" (2 Corinthians 5:17)!

-------------------------------


That's the heart of what this blog is all about ladies, the kind of content I want to bring you more of in the coming year! To keep this blog live, I do have to pay the bills too. So, here's a "word from our sponsor". ;)

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DIVAS of the Divine

I was recently given a copy of the book Divas of the Divine - How to Live as a Designer Original in a Knock-Off World and asked to offer my honest review for this blog. This is a large workbook with a cute cover and fun feel to it, but not "fluffy" when it comes down to content. Scriptural context is very important to me and there were times I felt that the authors, Donna McCrary and Sherri Holbert, could have selected stronger support passages for the points they were making, but overall I found the book to be Biblically grounded and the points about living a Christ-centered life to be spot on.

Something delightful about the book format is how the authors take turns sharing pieces of their own lives, intertwining their personal stories by turn, into the rhythms of the book. I loved the contrast in the author's viewpoints - one a tomboy, the other girlie; one a busy mom, the other finding fulfillment outside motherhood;  one outspoken in personality, the other more reserved - and that I could find something to personally relate to in one or the other's experience in nearly every issue they addressed.


It is my understanding that this workbook is only one portion of a larger ministry, and while it was a delightful study on its own, I wouldn't consider it truly "stand-alone" as there were occasional mentions of group activity events (I'm presuming as presented in a leader's guide) that I did not have access to. In these cases I found myself craving the companionship of a small group I could share the study with and feeling a bit "left out" that I didn't fully understand the activity being referenced. I don't know that this is a bad thing as the book is intended to draw women together into accountability relationships ranging from one-on-one partnerships, to mentorship and topical or situational small group needs (based on my own history, I can imagine an infertility support group fitting nicely here).

If you are looking for a tool to build a close one-on-one accountability relationship with a friend, want  to jump start a women's ministry for your church, or have a study need somewhere in between, this is a book you may want to take some time to investigate for yourself. Want to win a copy? Please leave me a comment by Thursday night (along with your email address so I can notify you if you win) and I'll select one commenter to enter into the blog carnival final drawing.
 

So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering.

Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God.

You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Romans 12:1-2 The Message

Weight Gain & Contentment

I've gained weight the past year and a half. A lot of weight. I was asked three times last week if I was pregnant because I'm carrying most of that weight right out front in my belly. I've dealt with many medical issues and there's no doubt that my hormones are way out of balance. I weight more than 50 pounds more today than I did when I was pregnant with our daughter eight years ago. About 40 of those pounds have been packed on the past 20 months.


I am frustrated. I don't like my body. I don't like getting dressed. I don't like getting undressed even more. I have stacks of clothes I can't get into, some now 3 or 4 sizes too small, that I've been stashing away for when I can get the pound off.


Today I'm choosing a new attitude. Yes, I would still like to shed some weight, for health, for self-esteem, for so many reasons. But the fact is, this is my body right now. The same Holy Spirit lives inside this broken temple who lived here when I was at my healthiest, most fit, most attractive days. I can make choices that will keep this body as well-conditioned as I am able, but honestly some of this is simply beyond my control.


So today I went through all my clothes, those horded away for someday and those still hanging in my closet, many ill-fitting even though I try to still squeeze into them. To my delight I found a few things I honestly didn't think would fit that still work nicely. :) I kept about 5 things that are very near to fitting, just a tiny snug right now, because if I can loose a few pounds and under-grow what I have, I still have a tiny cushion of options before I hit yard sales and consignment stores for smaller sizes.


I sorted and organized all the rest and can walk into my closet and know that absolutely anything I pull off the hanger will fit on this body and I won't have to fight through five or six outfit changes (and accompanying tears and words of self-loathing) just to get dressed in the morning. And as a bonus, I now get to bless some friends with an abundance of clothing that can be enjoyed again, no longer a source of frustration to their owner.


But godliness with contentment is great gain.

- 1 Timothy 6:6



Father, please grant me contentment in my "great gain" that I can have a heart to fully embrace the body you have given me and glorify you with it, just as I am.

Resurrection

I can think of nothing more beautiful than the Resurrection. From the horror of the cross, and the silence or the grave, to Victory and New Life.

May God meet you in the joy of Easter.

What to Wear

I'm posting this verse by my mirror as a reminder that my attitudes are more important to the people in my life than the way I look...

“Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”
Colossians 3:12 (NIV)

Beautiful Servanthood

In reading the story of the last supper this week, something jumped out at me. On the night that Jesus would be betrayed, tried and sentenced to crucifixion, right there in the midst of the culmination of the greatest mission He had been sent to fulfill, then and there He stopped everything to wash the feet of His apostles.

I often serve others in the name of Christ. I often try to accomplish big things for God. But how often am I willing to set my important agenda to the side to simply be a servant right then and there in the middle of my big plans?

Too often I brush aside requests to "play a game with me Mommy" as I'm busy rushing around to get out the door to my "important" meetings. When was the last time I pulled over to help someone with a flat tire even though it would make me late to church?

I am more likely to serve when it's convenient, when it fits in my time frame and well-laid plans without squeezing me uncomfortably. But in looking at Christ's example as he wrapped a towel around His waist just hours before He headed to the cross, I saw with fresh eyes this week that beautiful servanthood is the uncomfortable kind that I "don't have time for" and doesn't fit in my neat little schedule.

I'm praying that God continues showing me such truths, to "makeover" my heart as He helps me put them into practice in my life, blossoming me into a woman of beauty, inside and out.

Most Beautiful Gift

Red-faced Baby, squalling in indignation at being pushed from the comfort of Him mother's womb.

An animal's food dish and some strips of rags, the nursery to welcome the newborn King.

A young mother's heart, trembling in wonder, and maybe a little fear, at all that has happened and all that lays ahead.

Brave Joseph, willingly accepting the name "father" and choosing faith over doubt.

Father in Heaven, heart overflowing with love and anguish for His Son and for all of us, the children He is paying the ultimate Price to call His own through adoption.

Angles splitting the barrier between Heaven and earth with mighty proclamations of joy, peace and praise.

Shepherds, first awe-struck, now giddy, rush to find the Lamb.

Learned men from the East follow a star, kings' journey to humbly bow before a Child.

2,000 years later, it isn't the pile under our tree, but rather the Tree and Empty Tomb that thrill my heart on this Christmas Eve.

Praying that every heart will know the true beauty of the Reason for this season. Merry CHRISTmas!

Thank You

With this post we conclude our Virtual Spa Weekend, but I hope this will not be the last time you visit me here at InnerBeautyGirlz! I will be spending the next few days going back through all your wonderful comments, taking note of questions and suggestions you have posted to gather ideas for future posts, and will continue striving to provide you discount codes, quality beauty information, devotional reflections and additional give-aways from time to time. If you haven't done so yet, please take the time to either "follow" me using the Goggle link on the right-hand side bar, or sign up for my email list in the mailing list box also to the right.

Thank you so much for joining me, for all the great participation and comments (about 300 of them!), for helping spread the word and share the joy with friends, and for making this a memorable Weekend! Thank you also to our many amazing guest bloggers and to all the Weekend sponsors who have so generously donated gifts for our give-aways. Don't forget that any comment on any non-prize thread through our whole Weekend enters you for last Wednesday's "early-bird" prize from Gurrlie Girl Christin jewelry. :)

I will accept contest entries for about three more hours then I will be selecting and contacting prize winners over the next few days. All prize winners should be posted by about Wednesday and contest sponsors will work with you directly to get your prizes to you. If you know any young women who would enjoy similar tips designed especially for them, please pass along my Girlz and Teens Inner Beauty link at Mineralz.blogspot.com where I'm currently offering a teen beauty book give-away through this week. :)

I would like to leave you with the following thoughts from 2 Corinthians 5:14-20 in The Message:

Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.
Because of this decision we don't evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don't look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We're Christ's representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God's work of making things right between them. We're speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he's already a friend with you.

- Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Solomon's Beloved

One of my earliest blog posts here at InnerBeautyGirlz was this video of "Solomon's Beloved" as presented by Vond Skelton. I couldn't let Virtual Spa Weekend pass without pulling it out one more time. The script starts out a little slow, but stick with it and you will soon be laughing! If you can't view it here, watch it on uTube at Solomon’s Beloved at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEmhI8FL_ZI.

Of Solomon's Beloved Vonda writes, "She’s so much fun! (And people think we Christians can’t have fun! A lot they know!)"

(If you are reading this via email and can't view the video, be sure to drop by the Inner Beauty Blog to see this funny, can't miss skit for yourself.

Water

If you ask most beauty experts their number one piece of beauty advice, you will probably hear, "Drink lots of water!" Hydration is so important to ever cell in our bodies. There really is no substitue for water as caffinated, sugary or chemical-laden (such as diet) drinks really rob our body of many of the benefits of pure water.

Sometimes it is hard to drink enough because water doesn't "taste good" to us. Slices of citrus (lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit or some combination of these) floating in your water might give it the kick you need to make it more inviting. Or for an unusual and refreshing alternative, try slicing a chilled cucumber into your water. (Don't forget to save a couple slices for a cooling puffy eye treat!)

Another common reason for not drinking enough is simple business or forgetfulness. Make a habit of drinking you 64+ daily ounces by setting a pitcher out on the counter, lining up 8 glasses as a visual reminder to count down through the day, or by setting a timer for hourly drinks.

As you hopefully have noticed by now, our Virtual Spa Weekend is as much about our souls as our bodies. Just as it is important to train ourselves to stay physically hydrated, it is equally important to make a habbit out of daily refreshing our spirits with Living Water too! What is your plan to make sure you nourish your spirt as well as your body? Please add a comment to share your ideas for getting enough water or Water, be it inviting ways to drink or "quiet time" suggestions or other tips or methods of nurturing your life, both physical and spiritual. I always love learning new ideas!

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as[a] the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

- John 7:37-39 (New International Version)

Agape

Rachelle, a member of Hannah's Prayer, really wanted to participate in our Virtual Spa Weekend. But as she owns a landscaping compnay in Canada, she couldn't think of anyting related to her business to offer as a prize. So she generously decided to gift a copy of the book The Way of Agape, Understanding God's Love by Nancy Missler to one InnerBeautyGirlz reader. To be entered to win this book, please leave a comment on this thread, including a working email address or other means of getting in touch with you should you win. For additional entries, please post this link to your website, blog or through social media outlets such as Twitter or Facebook, then come back and leave me a new comment with a link to each place you have helped spread the word about Rachelle's give-away.

Of The Way of Agape Rachelle writes, "The information in this book has absolutely changed my life and i hope whoever wins it will be touched just as deeply as i have been. In it Nancy tells us what God revealed to her from the Bible about how we can be cleansed vessels, allowing God's love, which is already in every believer in Christ, to flow through us continually. How we can give our hurts and bitterness to God permanently, and be filled with his unconditional love for people. We've probably all heard somebody say, 'Just give it to God.' and still wonder how we are really supposed to do that in a practical way in our lives. This book explains it well. I can't recommend it enough. It's changed my walk with Jesus, my marriage and relationships forever. I pray that for whoever receives it, it blesses their socks off!"

Beauty Secrets of the Bible

I have mentioned this book many times before, and the link to the author's website is in my sidebar, but given that this Virtual Spa Weekend idea was born out of the desire to provide a fun weekend for women who could not attend the Hannah's Prayer Ministries retreat in Ohio this weekend, I think Ginger Garrett and her book Beauty Secrets of the Bible deserve another spotlight today! Ginger is the keynote speaker at the Hannah's Prayer retreat and I am so sad that I am not meeting her in person right now! But I know she will be a blessing to all the ladies at the retreat and if you take the time to explore her website, her resources will be a delight to you as well. :)