Glimpses of God: A Winter Devotional for Women
Shirley Crowder & Harriet Michael
Entrusted Books
Winter devotions for any time of year
These devotions focus on winter, but they can be uplifting and offer hope any time of the year.
Authors Harriet E. Michael and Shirley Crowder do a wonderful job weaving their own experiences with scripture, prayer and guidance in each devotion. They address issues we all struggle with: overcoming our busy-ness and making time to sit and spend time with the Lord every day; remembering who and what we are as believers in Jesus Christ; what the foundation of our faith really is.
The authors tie scripture to current events and contemporary things we can all relate to. Not only do they weave scripture throughout the devotions (of course), they explain why it’s important to know what Scripture says and how we can apply it to our lives.
Many of the devotions include lyrics from hymns; reading them will have some wonderful old melodies playing in your mind all day. Also, many of these essays provided wonderful glimpses of missionary life in Nigeria, where both authors were born.
My favorite part of this book was the Thought for the Day at the end of each devotion, but the most important message is: No winter lasts forever. Even if you are going through a symbolic winter in your life, it won’t last. Spring will come.
For this review, I had to read this book differently than I hope you will. I read as many as 14 or 15 of the devotions each day. But I’m going to go back and re-read them right after Christmas, and let these wonderful words take me through winter (such as it is in Florida) to spring.
Disclosure: I received a review copy of this book from the publisher. The opinions expressed are mine.
About the Book
Book: Glimpses of God, A Winter Devotional for Women
Author: Shirley Crowder & Harried Michael
Genre: Non-fiction, Christian devotional
Release Date: November 6, 2019
As Christ-followers we also experience spiritual seasons. These seasons do not come in order like seasons in nature, which come regularly without fail. Each spiritual season we experience is defined by certain features also. In spiritual winter we think of the coldness of our relationship with God; in spring, new growth; in summer, warmth and heat; in fall, shedding the old and preparing for difficult days ahead.
This book is focused on winter—both calendar and spiritual. During our spiritual winters, when it feels as though God is far away or we feel stuck or dormant, we must rest in the truth of God’s sovereign mercy, grace, love, and care for His children. It is the first in the Glimpses of God series.
Click here to get your copy.
About the Authors
Shirley is passionate about disciple-making, which is conducted in and through a myriad of ministry opportunities that include biblical counseling, teaching Bible studies, and writing. She is Biblical counselor commissioned by, and serving on the national Advisory Team for, The Addiction Connection. She is co-host of “Think on These Things,” a Birmingham AL radio/TV program for women; and a freelance writer.
Harriet is a wife and mother to four grown children and grandmother to two precious grandchildren. She has authored a growing number of books, including “Prayer: It’s Not About You”, a finalist in the 2011 “Women of Faith” manuscript contest. She is also a freelance writer with numerous published pieces, including more than a hundred devotions in various magazines.
More from Shirley and Harriet
From Africa to America, Life Long Friends
March 14, many years ago …
In the heart of the African jungle in the Niger River delta of eastern Nigeria, the first cry of a newborn baby echoes from a small jungle hospital. The baby is a girl, Harriet Clarice, the third child of medical missionaries, Alice and Keith Edwards.
Harriet and her family stayed in this remote part of Nigeria for a year until the other family returned from furlough. At that time, they went for another year to Oyo, Nigeria to language school and then on to Ogbomoso in central Nigeria, where they stayed the next ten years. Keith practiced medicine at the hospital in Ogbomoso, and Alice worked with him as a nurse.
October 24 of the same year Harriet was born …
Deep in the Yoruba country of southwestern Nigeria, some 260 miles away from Joinkrama, piercing through the tropical night sounds, the first cry of another newborn baby cries out at a guesthouse in Ogbomoso. This baby is also a girl, Shirley Jeanne, the fourth child of missionaries Jeannie and Ray Crowder.
In 1962 the Crowders moved to Ogbomoso. Ray served as administrator of the 96-bed hospital, and Jeannie taught kindergarten and ministered to the Nigerian women with home visits and Bible studies. Harriet’s parents worked at the Ogbomoso hospital with Ray.
Lifelong friends
Harriet ended up living just up the dirt road from Shirley. They played together nearly every day and formed a friendship that remained, even after years and distance separated them.
Harriet and Shirley, and the others in this unique group of individuals, who shared a common childhood in Nigeria in our beloved tropical homeland half a world away from where most of us live now, grew up calling each other’s parents aunt and uncle. Even as adults, we still feel a kinship as though we are family—cousins perhaps.
Some years ago, at a mission reunion, Shirley handed Harriet a book to which she had contributed. That was the first time Harriet knew she was a writer. Shirley had discovered a few years earlier that Harriet was a writer, too.
Several years ago, Shirley suggested that they prayerfully consider writing a devotional book together. Through that experience, they learned that they work well together. Their similar understanding and views on scripture is a good foundation for the different strengths each of us bring when it comes to writing.
Since that first book, we have worked and continue to work together on other projects. Glimpses of God: a winter devotional for women is the first of a 4-book devotional series. Through our devotionals we want people to see Glimpses of God all around them. Creator God made the world and the seasons throughout the year. By using the seasons in nature, we help readers see correlations to the spiritual seasons Christ-followers experience and to get “Glimpses of God” in and through everything that happens.
So, we guess it could be said that we are once again “playing” with our childhood friend in spite of several decades having passed since they played together happily beneath the shade of mango trees.
Blog Stops
Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, November 9
The Power of Words, November 10
Artistic Nobody, November 11 (Author Interview)
Jacquelyn Lynn, November 11
Abba’s Prayer Warrior Princess, November 12
Sara Jane Jacobs, November 13
Library Lady’s Kid Lit, November 14
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, November 15
For the Love of Literature, November 16
CarpeDiem, November 17
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, November 18
Texas Book-aholic, November 19
janicesbookreviews, November 20
A Reader’s Brain, November 21
Inklings and notions , November 22
Giveaway
To celebrate their tour, Harriet and Shirley are giving away the grand prize package of a copy of the book and a $25 Amazon gift card!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
Jacquelyn's latest book is Christian Business Almanac: The Ultimate Daily Guide for Kingdom-Driven Entrepreneurs and Leaders.
She is the author of the nonfiction books Simple Facts About Self-Publishing (Second Edition), Words to Work By: 31 devotions for the workplace based on the Book of Proverbs and Finding Joy in the Morning: You can make it through the night as well as the novel Choices (A Joyful Cup Story). With her husband, she is the co-creator of several coloring books for adults and the novelty My Book About series.
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This sounds like something that would have been good for me a few years ago when we went through some very hard experiences.
Thanks for your review. May the Lord be glorified in and through our devotions!
I love the cover! What a perfect devotional to start now!
Thank you for sharing this wonderful devotional!
This sounds like a wonderful book.
Sounds inspiring and full of encouragement. Thank you for sharing.