Sunday Words of Encouragement November 6, 2022 - Praise the Lord!

Our Sunday School teacher continued the lesson on the Millennium starting in Revelation 20:1. He noted that part to the purpose for binding Satan is to remove his ability to deceive the people. Until then it is likely we will continue to see people fall to deception in the world, including those in the church.

Our service started with praise and worship including the praise song God is Good. Pastor’s message was based on Psalms 106:1 which opens: "Praise the Lord!" The word hallelujah is an exhortation to the people to praise. We have to be taught to praise and then reminded to continually praise. It is an expression with excitement, an explanation point.
“Praise the Lord!”  Psalm 134:1-2. ‘Singing is pleasant and fitting.’ Psalm 147:1.

In ALL circumstances, we should be praising and giving thanks. Even when we are experiencing trouble, we can praise that He is in control and can handle the situation and seeing us through it.

Our faith is elevated by praise.
"Praise at all times. Let His praise continually be in my mouth." Psalm 34:1.
The earth is full of His Glory. Isaiah 6:3.
God's goodness has nothing to do with our circumstances. In the midst of his troubles, Job blessed the Lord. Job 1:20-22.

The absence of praise says a lot about where our minds are. We are told repeatedly to give praise and thanksgiving. Psalm 95:1-2. The pattern is praise first, then petition.

There's always good among the bad. We stand with Him, or more correctly, He stands with us when we call on Him.

Pastor reminded us of the Life cycle of democracy (Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh 1787. The final phases are when everyone believes they are entitled to abundance. Expressed: “A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury.”

Thanksgiving used to be a big deal. Now it appears that it offends some people and we are moving from Halloween right on to Christmas.

We have reason enough to be grateful without receiving anything new. We were created with uniqueness, we have breath, live, and more belongings that we need. A well-known Psalm of thanks is Psalm 100. ‘Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise!’

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6.

“6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” Colossians 2:6-7.

Some of us have attitudes. Start giving thanks and praise and your attitude will change.
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” 1 Chronicles 16:34.

God is steadfast. God may get mad or disappointed with us, but He still loves us.

This song fits so perfectly today: Ever Be.

A Verse for Today:
Psalm 106:1 NIV
1 Praise the Lord
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.

Oh, my Father, Lord and Spirit – Let Your praise for ever be on my lips! Thank you for creation, salvation, and guidance.

Audible Book Review: Dark of Night, A Joe Ledger Novella, by Jonathan Maberry and Rachel Lavin

This is a good zombie survivors' story that can be read outside of the series.
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Dark of Night
A Joe Ledger Novella
By: Jonathan Maberry, Rachael Lavin
Narrated by: Ray Porter

Series: Dead of Night, Book 2.5, Joe Ledger, Book 8.5
Length: 4 hrs and 59 mins
Release date: 06-21-16
Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Genre: Action, Horror, Zombie
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.5; Narration 4.5.

Publisher's Summary
The dead rose. We fell.
The survivors are trapped in a world of monsters who prey on the helpless. Some of them are zombies...but they are not the only predators who feed on pain and suffering.
Dark of Night is a story of worlds in collision. Three heroes who have survived the apocalypse are in a deadly race to save a busload of children from ravenous zombies and ruthless human scavengers.
This brand new novella brings together three of New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Maberry's award-winning series. Captain Joe Ledger (Patient Zero and Code Zero), Officer Desdemona Fox (Dead of Night and Fall of Night), and Rachael Elle (Bits & Pieces) are caught between an endless wave of the living dead and an army of corrupt men who want to enslave the last human survivors.
©2016 Jonathan Maberry and Rachael Lavin (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Review:
Many years ago the zombie virus started taking over the world. The rare survivors are still struggling to find safe refuge.

Officer Dez Fox is struggling to get a busload of children to a safe camp under control of the National Guard. Then they see the dead passing the bus and realize that these dead are wearing National Guard uniforms. Fox will continue to do whatever it takes to protect these young survivors.

Meanwhile, Rachael Elle is a young woman who has managed to survive the zombie apocalypse in cosplay or LARP gear, fighting the dead “Orcs”. She stumbles upon the bus after Dez has gone out to scout and ends up leading the children by harnessing their superhero inner voices.

Joe Ledger is a career military man who sought to take down Patient Zero. Although he couldn’t stop the virus, he is a legendary warrior against the dead, traveling with the help of a smart warning and killing dog, Captain Joe and Baskerville stumble on the scene and is quick to step into the fray. First he saves a young girl from horrible NKK (New Klux Klan) bad actors. Then he proceeds to fight both enemies, the dead and living, to help the girls save the children.

I’ve read the prequel to this series, so I am aware of the beginnings of Joe Ledger facing the zombie hoard. I enjoyed the startling meeting between Joe and Dez and I appreciated the determination of all three characters to fight the dead and help other survivors. I had not met the two female characters and I will definitely backtrack to find their stories. There is plenty of fast paced action. However, the story is really only about two and a half hours as there is a second, totally unrelated story written by someone else that is tagged on. I am glad I got to listen to this and I will be reading/listening to more in the series. I recommend this to fans of battle action and some snarky character interaction.

Audio Notes: Ray Porter is an excellent narrator. He does such a good job with action and distinct character voices. I would feel comfortable searching out books narrated by Porter, and I could likely enjoy those stories. His narration enhances the story for me.

Source: 3-3-2022 Audible Plus Catalog. This qualifies for 2022Audiobook goal.

Audio Book Review: Night Shift Witch by Cate Lawley

This is another light and fun cozy mystery set in a funeral home.

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Night Shift Witch
Written by Cate Lawley
Narrated by April Doty

Length 3h 32m
Release Date: May 26, 2021
Publisher: Cate Lawley
Genre: Cozy Mystery, Ghost, Woman Sleuth
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.5; Narration 4.25.

Publisher Description
A witch with a side hustle
Star needs another paying gig while she finishes her witch training. Why not at a funeral home? It fits her goth image, and the funeral director is sort of hot…even if he does wear a suit and tie.
Less than a day on the job as makeup artist to the dead, and Star discovers one of their accidental death clients didn’t die accidentally.
Before she knows it, she’s neck-deep in paranormal intrigue and her completely human, way-too-nice-for-his-own-good boss is right there with her.

Review:
Star doesn’t see herself as a strong witch. In fact, she struggles with her training. She takes a job at a funeral home as a makeup artist to the dead. The proper looking funeral director, Ben Kowalski, is sort of hot, but he may think twice about hiring her when he realizes that Star could read his mind if she was so inclined. Then there is the matter that Star is planning to abscond with the latest ‘customer’.

Apparently, the dead body is a golem, a magical construct, rather than a real human. Star has called her former boyfriend, Alex, the area magical enforcer, to deal with the issue. Add to the problem of properly disposing of the golem, there are clear signs the death wasn’t accidental.

As Alex and Star set off to discover the murderer, Ben refuses to be left behind. He is soon exposed to the world of golems, vampires, witches and wizards. Surprisingly he takes it in stride. But now that Ben has seen and heard more about magic than he should have, Star is trying to figure a way to keep Alex from wiping Ben’s memory.

I really enjoyed these characters, their interaction, and the quick mystery. I would love to listen to more, but the regular prices don’t work for such short works. I recommend this fun mystery, especially if you can buy it at a deal price.

Audio Notes: I found the narration by April Doty fit the story well. The male voices aren’t quite distinct, but I didn’t have confusion following the characters. I enjoyed the audio entertainment.

Source: October 27th, 2021 Chirp $0.99. This qualifies for 2022TBR and 2022Audiobook goals.

Audible Book Review: The Werewolf's 15 Minutes by Jonathan Maberry

This is a perfect, quick, fit for October and #Fraterfest.
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The Werewolf's 15 Minutes
By: Jonathan Maberry
Narrated by: Ray Porter, Dina Pearlman

Series: Audible Original Stories
Length: 1 hr and 42 mins
Release date: 10-28-21
Publisher: Audible Originals
Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Werewolf
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.0; Narration 4.0.

About This Audible Original
Gary Bruce is a slacker of epic loserness. Can’t keep a job. His friends are as bad as he is. No girlfriend. No direction.
Gary Bruce is also a werewolf.
Desperate for any kind of success, Gary decides to out himself on YouTube. The moment this ordinary guy goes full-on fur, fangs, and claws, the world can’t get enough of him. He’s the biggest thing on social media, he’s on every talk show, book and movie deals fall in his lap, and for the first time in his life he gets invited to all the best parties.
But celebrity is a special kind of voracious monster. And when Gary’s star begins to lose its luster, he has to decide how far he’ll go to stay relevant in a world that discards has-beens in favor of the next big thing.
Fortunately, Gary has a plan....
The Werewolf’s 15 Minutes is a brand-new short story by New York Times best-seller and five-time Bram Stoker Award winner Jonathan Maberry, author of Bewilderness and V-Wars (Netflix).
©2021 Jonathan Maberry Productions, LLC (P)2021 Audible Originals, LLC.

Review:
Gary and his friends are not particularly impressive young men. They struggle to keep a job, much less a girlfriend, or a sense of career direction. Gary has decided to take drastic steps to get attention, so he outs himself as a werewolf on YouTube. Gary gets his 15 minutes of fame but for the wrong reasons. The audience wants to know the secret to his excellent make-up. It takes another step to really be taken seriously and get an agent with all the star hype.

Of course, that only lasts for a limited time. As his star dims, Gary formulates a plan to renew the interest. But he might carry things a bit too far.

I enjoyed this quick story with an appropriately ironic twist that brings a chuckle at the end. There is a bit of lazy-side male banter that wasn’t my favorite but certainly fit the characters. I recommend this as a good, quick Halloween read.

Audio Notes: Ray Porter and Dina Pearlman share the narration on this. I like Porter’s straightforward narration with good pausing and emphasis. Dina also has fitting energy, and I enjoyed the shared segments. The audio enhanced my enjoyment of the quick story.

10/27-30/2021 Audible Plus Catalog. This qualifies for 2022TBR and 2022Audiobook goals.

Audio Book Review: A Ghostly Undertaking by Tonya Kappes

This is a light, fun cozy mystery.
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A Ghostly Undertaking
Author Tonya Kappes
Narrator: Tiffany Morgan

Duration: 5 h 39 min
Release date: 12-24-19
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Genre: Ghost, Cozy Mystery, Paranormal
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.25; Narration 4.25.

Summary
A funeral, a ghost, a murder . . . It's all in a day's work for Emma Lee Raines . . .
Bopped on the head from a falling plastic Santa, local undertaker Emma Lee Raines is told she's suffering from 'funeral trauma.' It's trauma all right, because the not-so-dearly departed keep talking to her. Take Ruthie Sue Payne-innkeeper, gossip queen, and arch-nemesis of Emma Lee's granny-she's adamant that she didn't just fall down those stairs. She was pushed.
Ruthie has no idea who wanted her pushing up daisies. All she knows is that she can't cross over until the matter is laid to eternal rest. In the land of the living, Emma Lee's high-school crush, Sheriff Jack Henry Ross, isn't ready to rule out foul play. Granny Raines, the widow of Ruthie's ex-husband and co-owner of the Sleepy Hollow Inn, is the prime suspect. Now Emma Lee is stuck playing detective or risks being haunted forever.
Contains mature themes
.

Review:
Emma Lee Raines was hit on the head by a plastic Santa. When she woke up from the knock-out she thought a dead man was talking to her. The doctors, her family, and friends say she is suffering from ‘funeral trauma’ having grown up and now working in the family funeral parlor.

Emma isn’t suffering from a disease, but she is definitely struggling with keeping a quite image while the ghost of Ruthie Sue Payne, local innkeeper, is ranting about those attending her funeral. She is also carrying on about being pushed down the stairs, not accidentally falling. Ruthie was pushed from behind so she doesn’t know who her killer is, but she has some clues to share with Emma. But one of the suspects is Emma’s own Granny, the widow of Ruthie’s ex-husband and part owner of the inn.

Emma determines she must prove her Granny’s is not the killer. She is okay with teaming up with her high-school crush, Sheriff Jack Henry Ross. But what will he think of her if he learns that she is being aided by the dead victim?

This is a cute cozy mystery, with the added fun of ghostly input and a developing romance. The story moves along well, and I liked the clues that help reduce the suspect pool. The story ends with Ruthie taking her leave and another ghost seeking Emma’s help. Yep -- I’ll look to read/listen to more in this series. I recommend this to fans of cozy mystery, especially if you enjoy ghosts in the mix.

Audio Notes: Tiffany Morgan does a nice job with the narration. Her voice is light and totally fitting to a Southern damsel – maybe not something I would want to listen to for a long haul but good for this quick cozy. The narration added to my enjoyment of the story.

Source: 12/12/2021 Audiobooks.com Two for One Credit. This qualifies for 2022TBR and 2022Audiobook goals.