Mrs. Cheri L Swalwell

I really enjoyed this beautifully written book. It is written as a daily journal filled with encouragement and grace to help you learn to trust and walk in faith. That is really something I have struggled with all my life. I have such a hard time trusting anyone and it has stalled my walk with Him many times. I always think why would God do anything for me? How can I trust that He will not abandon me? I knew I had a long journey ahead of me with that kind of thinking. All I needed was faith. Now how was I going to have faith in something I couldn't see?

As I started to really study the Bible the verses started to make sense to me. I could feel His presence and felt my heart anxiously ready to trust Him. I loved when the author talks about obeying what God asks you to do. I love to bless people and I love doing it without any recognition. I have heard God say"Pay for that couple's groceries ." Just as the author said, I didn't do it to get a reward I did it to have peace. What if I missed my opportunity to bless someone ? I know I would be thinking about it all day and wonder if I was afraid to obey or too prideful?

We do seem to try to do all these things to please God. We volunteer for ministries and overwhelm ourselves. He isn't looking to see how much work we can do. What He does want is for us to spend time with Him. How many times have we said we are too busy to pray right now, or we need to rush off for a meeting at church? I know I have gotten caught up in doing so many things, I forget about my relationship with God. I loved how the author reminds us to give God our "firsts ." That doesn't just mean our" firsts " from income, but our" firsts " in spending time with Him.

I really liked the examples from the Bible that the author used to show us how to have childlike faith and to trust Him. There are so many people in the Bible that are great testaments to trusting God. What if Noah had ignored God? If the Israelites hadn't trusted God, what would have happened to them? Who would have protected them and provided food ?

I love the idea of a blessing journal. I always take notes as I'm reading so I can go back and reflect on them. What a great idea to write the blessings that God has done in our lives. As you read them, you can see a faithful trusting God who is always there.

Thank you for writing this beautiful book that I will treasure. I will go back to it daily to remind me that God has a plan for me and I choose to live by faith not by fear.

I received a copy of this book from The BookClub Network for an honest review.… (mehr)

Spoken from the Heart: Journey from Fear to Faith by Cheri Swalwell is an encouraging glimpse into the blessing of God in the lives of His children. Written in a daily use format, the author invites readers to join her on this particular journey into faith. One key theme throughout the book is in regards to a change in finances and learning to trust God to meet needs on a daily basis. Readers are encouraged in their own faith as the author shares things she is discovering--the Father's love, His faithfulness, and gracious provision as well as the importance of her own obedience, submission to His will and gratefulness to Him for His blessings. Swalwell uses not only her personal experience but also specific examples from the Bible to remind readers to not hold back in fear, to focus on the big picture, to recognize that God wants a personal relationship with each of us, to have confidence in His provision and to know that He has pleasure in that provision for His children. He is our Guide. He is our Deliverer. He is our Source of blessing. Learning to trust Him is done one day at a time, one foot in front of the other and resting in the knowledge that He has prepared the way ahead as we step out in faith. A heartfelt, scripturally solid book for those who want to take a step further on the journey to complete abandonment to God's adventures for their lives.
I received a copy of this book through The Book Club Network in exchange for my honest review.… (mehr)