One Word That’ll Make Your Day…(With Help from Lucinda Secrest McDowell)
Question from our author: “Where do you dwell—in hurry and exhaustion, or in grace and gratitude?”
Think on that thought-provoking question a minute while I share some good news for all of us:
Friends, between now and June 7th, Lucinda (Cindy) Secrest McDowell’s brand-new devotional, Dwelling Places, is ready for release! Run to your nearest bookstore and grab it!
Cindy encourages us: “A thriving, active faith is as simple as reading one word a day!” Here’s the beautiful cover of Dwelling Places—Words to Live in Every Season:
While I have a collection of devotionals, to me, they’re like purses, you can never have too many. Smile. (I can see Hubster rolling his eyes after that little comment.)
This new book is set up in a very time-efficient manner. Dwelling Places includes, “one word a day (found in a Scripture) on just a two-page spread, with a lesson—usually via an anecdote, concluding with a benediction as though God were speaking directly to you about what we studied.”
Short and sweet. Cindy adds, “My goal in writing such devotionals, is not to just inspire, but to teach….”
The book’s divided into four seasons: Dwell (Fall), Shine (Advent/Winter), Renew (Lent/Spring), and Grow (Summer). Each section is excellent. You can read them at any time. (Don’t get caught up in the seasons, just pick and choose pertaining to a word that catches your eye.)
So far, I’ve been hanging out in the Dwell section, even tho’ it’s about to be summertime! It’s all about abiding with the Lord. Here are a few of the one-word lessons:
This is just half of the lists of words in Dwell Cindy gives us. So far, they’re all my favorite!!!…Here’s another one which really grabbed me:
What do you think of when you hear the word, “refuge”?
Here are a few ideas which immediately pop in my head:
A hiding place
A safe haven
A place where all is well
Protection
No stress
Cindy gives us four fabulous Scriptures to meditate upon. Note where the “refuge” is in each:
Aren’t those beautiful? We learn that “in the original language of the Old Testament, the Hebrew word for ‘to dwell’ sometimes translates as ‘to nest’.” Let’s rest and nest under the shelter of the Lord!!!
In her book, The God of All Comfort, Hannah Whitall Smith sums up this whole concept from Cindy’s teaching:
“The secret of His presence is a more secure refuge than a thousand Gibraltars. I do not mean that no trials come. They may come in abundance, but they cannot penetrate into that sanctuary of the soul, and we may dwell in perfect peace even in the midst of life’s fiercest storms.”
Cindy is a supremely gifted writer and storyteller. She’ll grab you from the first page and you’ll be challenged to only read one entry per day because you’ll want to keep reading!
Her passion for words and for studying God’s Word is contagious. This book includes over one hundred and thirty different words and lessons! You will be blessed!
This book would make an excellent gift as well. Graduations are upon us, so grab more than one when you shop!
Thank you Cindy! Great job! Keep writing!
‘Til next time.