“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28 NIV)

I write in my book about how all parents need to claim this verse because of the teen years and how hard it is to keep your sanity.  My husband and I needed rest from three teenage daughters.  I can’t be certain, but it has to be easier to raise three sons!  You may have a differing opinion.  Please let me know if you were not worn out after raising your children.

I also quote James 1:2 where James says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, When you meet trials of various kinds,”  I was just too weary to count my trials “all joy!”  But, then another day dawned.  The weariness faded. And, I could rejoice and count all those teen years with joy.

It is amazing how reflection can help you put things into perspective.  That is why I hope you will read my book.  If you go to Barnes and Noble, have them look it up with the ISBN 9781498459167.  The title is, “A Christian Selfie.”

We do need rest.  Hebrews 4:10-11 states, “For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. (11) Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.”  When we do not rest in the Lord, we become disobedient.  We hurry into matters that we think we have under control, yet we do not.  Are you tired of the rat race you’ve been running?  Even God knew the value of rest.  In Hebrews 4:4b we are reminded that, “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works.”  God is all powerful and does not need rest.  But He chose to show us the value of rest because He knew we would need it.  So, don’t feel guilty.  Rest!  You may think you are too busy and have no time.  Make the time to rest.  God will bless you and you can count your life joy.

It is here!  Many of you wanted to see the cover and back page of the book.  This is my first attempt at publishing a book and I find myself getting the “cart before the horse” continuously!  Please forgive me as I struggle to grasp what it is I need to do!  So, I am publishing this blog with the book cover and back page so you can get a glimpse of what the book is about.

A Christian “Selfie” by Jamie Walters

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A Christian “Selfie”A Pastor’s Wife’s Honest Look At Her Relationship With God

by Jamie Walters

Pages: 168

Dimensions: 6.14 x 9.21

Take your “Selfie!”

You can have joy…
You can rejoice in the Lord, always…
You can overcome selfishness…
We all need to reflect and allow God to show us our value.
Christ’s gift to us was love.  In Ephesians 5: 2, Paul implores the Ephesians to…”walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God…” (NKJV)  You can learn to love others no matter what they do or say.  That is selflessness!

Learn to pray without ceasing.
Learn to identify your God given gifts.
Learn to hide scriptures in your heart.
Learn to overcome selfishness!

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Jamie Walters and her husband, David, live in Kentucky.  The mother of three grown children and “Nana” of seven grandchildren, she loves to visit them every chance she and David can.  As a retired teacher, Jamie continues to minister to the needs of others in her church family and community.

achristianselfie.com

We are 12 days into the new year – how many of you have already abandoned your New Year’s resolutions? In the book, I repeatedly discuss our struggle with slowing down and focusing on God’s plan. There were many times we were lost, but our constant activity made us unaware of this fact.

Some of us have likely said “In 2016, I’m going to slow down…I’m going to focus more on spending time with God, with my family, with my friends.” But 12 days into it, how many of us are running and not holding on to what we promised, what we resolved to do this year?

My book illustrates how God works to find his lost sheep. He longs to break us from the entrapment of living such a busy, worldly life. I relate how God put a halt to my running and how He began working in our lives. My wish to you this New Year is that you slow down to listen to the still, small voice of God.

A Christian Selfie excerpt…

” The louder the noise grew from these activities, the more silent God was for us.  The more we listened to our teams, fans and administrators, the less we listened to God.  Now, I’m not saying you can’t do these things without serving the Lord.  But, we were running nonstop!  We were just on our feet and not on our knees!  Routines turned into motions.  Tasks turned into chaos.  The calendar filled up until the only spot empty was our hearts which had placed God on a back shelf.  There we were—Christians who had stopped listening and were lost at sea.  Do you feel like you are drowning in the affairs of this world?  Are you listening to the still small voice that guides you from right and wrong?  Are you being swallowed by the “whale?”

God retrieves his lost sheep in one way or another…Jonah was swallowed by a whale then spewed out for service to God.  God’s retrieval of David and me came in the form of a Tupperware party…”

Read my book, A Christian Selfie, to discover how God retrieved us as a couple.  There are so many stories I share, yet woven through it all are truths you can relate and grow into a deeper relationship with God.

Praise the Lord!  I have labored over my first book for a year.  It is in the final stages at the publishers.  I pray someone will come to know Jesus when they read it.  I pray others will resolve to have a closer walk with Jesus.  I pray everyone will turn away from selfishness and become selfless.  James 3:16 says it best.  “For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.”  We must learn to depend on God’s help to rid ourselves of self-seeking.  James goes on in the next verse to explain when we depend on God’s wisdom, we are at peace, gentle, willing to yield to others and give mercy to others.  We are without hypocrisy.  Have a blessed day!