Deanna Doss Shrodes

Did you know you can read the right thing at the wrong time? I didn't until recently. The thought never occurred to me to pray about what to read, until this past August. During my time away after my natural mother passed away, I was blessed to spend some time in the home of Kay Zello. Kay is the mother of my dear friend, Bonnie. She's a woman in ministry that I've always looked up to, since the time I was a young girl. I still remember the first time I heard her preach when she came to my home church in Baltimore. I was about twelve years old. I never forgot Kay or her message. I would hear her preach again and again at various events, and her life impacted mine. I never imagined that one day, in what was one of my greatest times of need, I would be waking up in Kay's house. We would sit on her porch in pajamas, eating breakfast and sharing our thoughts.  One morning as she went to refill her coffee, I picked up the book that was beside her bible where she h...

I've often wondered why people read fiction. I can count the number of fiction books I've read in my adult life on one hand. My reading appetite has always been a steady stream of non-fiction with a heavy emphasis on spirituality, self-help, biographies and cooking. Anything else has always felt like a waste of time -- something that wouldn't really apply to my life. Being the consummate time manager, my goals always center on something meaningful that I can use in everyday life. Fiction to me, has always felt like an escape. My thought has been,"If I need to escape my life, I'll just read something that can help me get rid of whatever is so sucky it's making me want to escape my life..." And that's pretty much how I lived until last year when my friend Rich Tatum was talking to me about reading fiction. He encouraged me very strongly that I needed to start reading it. Rich says that for me to go to the next level as a writer  I need to read...

This week brings yet another book here on the blog!  All you have to do to enter is comment anytime today through Thursday on this week's posts here at deannashrodes.net, or on my facebook page when it publishes there.  Each time you comment, your name is added again to the drawing. This week's giveaway is a fiction book, Autumn Song by Martha Rogers.  The book has been provided by Charisma House (www.charismahouse.com). Here's a little about the book and it's author: Why does everyone think a girl’s only lot in life is to find a husband and settle down? Kathleen Muldoon is twenty-three and tired of ranch living. Fiercely independent and determined to become a nurse, she has left her family’s ranch to study medicine under Old Doc Jensen and live in town with her Aunt Mae, who runs a boardinghouse. Daniel Monroe has just arrived in Porterfield to set up his law practice. Sparks fly when he is introduced to Kate at the boardinghouse, but the initial attra...

The winner of this week's book giveaway is Terri Von Wood of Sarasota, Florida! Congratulations, Terri!  The book Tired of Being Sick and Tired by Dr. Michael Berglund will be in your mailbox very soon, so be looking. Thanks to all who commented this past week here on the blog and on facebook when the blog published there.  And thanks to Charisma House for providing the book. On Monday we will feature a new book giveaway here on the blog.  It will be a fiction book, and once again each time you comment your name will be entered in the drawing.  For those who may be wondering how the drawing works, after Thursday at midnight, I type all of the names into this site , (as many times as each person has commented) and then click fruit machine or typewriter which randomly selects the winner. Next week is a brand new opportunity to win!

Are you ready to lose weight, get healthy, and find your energy again? So many people wonder why they constantly deal with a lack of energy. The answer could be a low-functioning thyroid—even when blood tests say otherwise. In Tired of Being Sick and Tired , Dr. Michael Berglund addresses the surprising hidden reasons why you, like so many other people, may be struggling to overcome exhaustion, depression, and weight gain. If your thyroid isn’t working properly, you can eat perfectly, take your vitamins, and still feel sick. What’s worse, the typical blood test to determine low-functioning thyroid doesn’t always give you the whole picture. Dr. Berglund explains the truth that your doctor may not be telling you, including: What tests you should ask for if you suspect your thyroid is the culprit behind your fatigue  How traditional thyroid treatments can lead to the thyroid gland becoming even less productive   How healthy eating and a new approach to nut...

DAWN VISCONTI of Mesa, Arizona is the winner of the book, A Cry for Justice , by Shelly Hundley!   Congratulations Dawn! Be watching your mailbox, Dawn!  You will be receiving the book very soon!  It will come directly from Charisma House . Thank you everyone, for commenting this week.  And thank you, Kimberly Jones and Charisma House , for providing this book.  We will be doing another book giveaway starting this coming Monday. It will be a NEW book, dealing with health.  Can't wait to tell you about it! Just to let you know exactly how I did the drawing ~ I chose this site , and typed in all of the names of people who commented, entering each person's name however many times they made a comment.  Then once all the names were there, I clicked, "Fruit Machine" and it randomly selected the winner.  I thought this announcement deserved it's own post.  I rarely if ever post twice in a day however I will be doing a second post toda...

I said I'm giving something away...for FREE. All you have to do is leave a comment on any post this week including this one  in order to have your name in the drawing which happens at midnight on Thursday.  I will announce the winner Friday morning. Every blog has "lurkers".  I have hundreds on this site!  The majority of people who read here everyday don't comment, you just keep coming back, reading and either silently going, "wow, she's profound," or, "Gosh, that woman is a train wreck.  It's like a bad accident we can't help but watch."  I know you either love me or hate me.  Either way you're thinking one of those two things because if you didn't care either way you'd never click here every day and spend your valuable time reading what I write. I see you, Birmingham!  I see you, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Lakeland, and Beverly Hills!  I see you Brazil, Pompano Beach, Canada, Canton, Columbus, Belgium and all you others w...

Today begins a book giveaway here on the blog!  The more times you comment, the greater chance you have to win! A friend at Charisma House asked if I'd like to review some books and give some away.  What a delightful idea!  We will be giving away several books over the next few weeks.  I do need to let you know that these books have been provided to me free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. So here's how it's gonna work...for every time a reader leaves a comment on any of this week's blog posts today through Thursday, November 3 at midnight, or on the facebook comment thread when the same post publishes there, I will enter your name in the drawing one time.  You can comment more than once a day!  You get your name entered every single time you post.  So, comment away!  Let your voice be heard!    We will draw the winner's name at midnight on Thursday and announce it Friday...

Right now I'm reading a book I'm loving called One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp.  It was recommended by my friend Pastor Tara Sloan .  Anything Tara tells me to read, I read.  Her recommendations are always right on target. This book is a very different kind of book from my usual -- Voskamp has an unmistakable writing style that is truly remarkable.  You can read her blog to get a little taste of it. I've always been a huge fan of gratefulness...especially when I came back from Africa and never more than now. Ann made her list of 1,000 gifts in her life and it was truly transforming.  I did something similar years ago when I started my "Things I love" journal.  You can read about it here and here where I wrote about it in the past and listed many of the things I'm grateful for. She's inviting people everywhere to start their own list of 1,000.  It's a great idea.  I've decided to start a brand new list of 1,000 gifts in my life in a...

I rarely read fiction. In fact, I can count on one hand the fiction that has interested me, with a few fingers to spare. I devour non-fiction faster than most people - usually a few books a week. When someone recommends a fiction book to me I usually don't read it and even when I do it gets put on my reading list and is generally relegated to the bottom. A book called, "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins has been sitting on my nightstand for three months. Dustin put it there. He and Savanna have been begging me to read it. I thought I'd get by without bringing it on vacation but as we were literally shutting the last car door to pull out of the driveway, Dustin says, "Mom, did you bring that book?". ["Drats!" I'm thinking..."I was so close...".]. "No," I reply. He says, "Hold on, Dad..." runs back into the house and gets the book, comes back and puts it on my lap and we shut the doors and pull out. Oh ...

There are ten very common lies that the church tells women.  Lie #1  God's ultimate plan for women is that they serve their husbands.   Lie #2  Women can't be fulfilled or spiritually effective without a husband.   Lie #3  Women shouldn't work outside the home.   Lie #4  Women must obediently submit to their husbands in all situations.  Lie #5  A man needs to "cover" a woman in her ministry activities.   Lie #6  A woman should view her husband as the "priest of the home."   Lie #7   Women are not equipped to assume leadership roles.   Lie #8  Women must not teach or preach to men in a church setting.   Lie #9  Women are more easily deceived than men.  Lie #10  Women who exhibit strong leadership qualities have a "spirit of Jezebel." Have you believed any of these lies?  Sadly many people have been and these false teachings continue to be propagated not o...

Right now while on vacation I’m reading a book called The Intentional Church by Randy Pope. It brings to light some things I’ve thought for a long time, and Pope articulates them so well.  On spiritual maturity he says, “Over the years I have observed a faulty assumption in the church at large regarding maturity. The majority report among Christian seems to be that Christian maturity is measured by the biblical and theological knowledge a person has assembled coupled with his spiritual commitment. Yet I am amazed how little emphasis is give to the observable life change that is brought about the application of scripture to their lives.” This is so true. In pastoring I have experienced that people think maturity is determined by the amount of time you have been a Christian. A woman in one of our churches would take pride often in the “amount of years she had been saved” and thought this should open up many opportunities for her in ministry. However she was probably one of t...

Today My Utmost for His Highest says: "Jesus Christ did not say, "Go and save souls" (the salvation of souls is the supernatural work of God), but He said, "Go . . . make disciples of all the nations . . . ." Yet you cannot make disciples unless you are a disciple yourself. When the disciples returned from their first mission, they were filled with joy because even the demons were subject to them. But Jesus said, in effect, "Don’t rejoice in successful service— the great secret of joy is that you have the right relationship with Me" (see Luke 10:17-20 ). The missionary’s great essential is remaining true to the call of God, and realizing that his one and only purpose is to disciple men and women to Jesus." This is the cry of my heart ~ to be a true discipler of people. I feel like so much gets in the way of that. So much stuff that I never ask for but feel powerless over. I do not mean just tactical work, but I speak of distractions that ca...

The ministry rocket is taking off for the weekend. Today is normally our day off and we try to make it 24 hours of rest, but today it was a 3/4 day off. I eeeked every bit out of this time that I could, being that it's all I have for the week. This morning I got up and was so zonked when that alarm rang. So tired from a busy week. I did not want to get up but had to, to get Savanna off to school. So I did. Then although exhausted, I decided to get a few things done. So I ate breakfast and headed off to do something just for me - nails, make a stop at K-mart to get candles, make a stop at florist to take care of finalizing getting money back for Dustin's flower order. Came home by lunch and by the time I was done with lunch I was so tired. You know I'm tired when it's noon and I am still sleepy because normally even when I get up tired, my day takes off like a rocket everyday and I'm good to go especially after a few cups of coffee. Not today. The bed was beckoning ...

 Larry got the latest Nicholas Sparks book, "At First Sight" it for me (and how sweet of him) while we were away. I was looking forward to delving into it and devouring it. He knows I love most anything by Sparks. I don't normally read too much fiction. Only a few select authors. Most of it is not worth my time and quite honestly I've found truth is stranger (and much more interesting) than fiction. Well, I read the book in 2 days and I was sorely disappointed. What a  crappo ending.!!! Please people, spare yourselves the time and do not read At First Sight . It will needlessly jerk you around for all 277 pages and then leave you with a horrible bang at the end. You just don't need it, trust me.