Radiant Women

08/23/2024

Meet our new sister in Christ--Tonya, standing next to me. She was invited to the Evangel Chapel women's event in New Jersey by her friend. I shared my story of God's faithfulness and she trusted Jesus as her savior at the closing. PRAISE! God is at work. Next week I’ll share over three days how you can easily share your story of God’s faithfulness.

07/12/2024

Two-minute read to start your day, friends!

Most of us can recall being chosen — or not chosen — on the ball team at recess while in elementary school, for the college team, to help in PTO or vacation Bible school, or not invited to the dinner. And this may have influenced how valuable we thought we were.

Here is the best news: God has chosen us already, and when we say “yes” to Him, we step over to His team. From that moment on, God is on our side.

Mark 9:40 tells us this truth: “For He who is not against us is for us.” This is repeated in Romans 8:31:” If God is for us, who is against us?”

Sometimes, when the storm clouds roll in and prayers go unanswered, we don’t feel like God is on our side.

We may wonder if God’s in the field with the better players.

When we’re chastised with His strong hand of discipline, we may get the impression that God is mad and has turned away. But this isn’t true.

When we were children, we didn’t like experiencing consequences for our actions, but we knew our parents still loved us. As parents or guardians, we don’t enjoy dishing out discipline, but we strive to correct with the hope that our children will become successful, productive adults.

As God shapes us, it can feel like harsh discipline. When God seems to prevent the very things we’re striving for, it can appear He’s against us.

But Proverbs 3:12 assures us, “The Lord corrects those He loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights” (NLT).

God’s correction is helpful, not detrimental. His discipline trains us and brings us closer to Him.

Hebrews 12:7 tells us, “It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?”
God has chosen us, and each of us is a valuable child on His team. He is always on our side — especially during the painful times of correction.

Remember and recite the phrase: God is on my side. Repeat it now. Repeat it often.

Copyright @ www.Deborah Presnell.com

03/20/2024

Only four days to go! I am really thrilled. :)

03/12/2024

Sweet Angel?
I can’t recall the movie I was watching on the Inspirational channel. But I vividly remember my reaction. It was set in Old Testament times. The people were engaged in battle. Chaos ruled. Rapid scene shifts depicted bloodshed and fire. The roar of battle cries, the thunder of galloping warhorses racing into battle, and the screams of the injured echoed through the city.

Then slowly emerging from the smoke and darkness, came two men wearing long red capes. For several seconds, the camera recorded their movement. The battle sounds faded, riveting my attention on the red-caped men. As they studied their surroundings, they moved forward with determination, fully focused on their objective. Suddenly, the scene shifted to fast motion. The battle sounds grew loud again. And just as fast, both men threw back their red capes, to reveal their suits of armor. Their swords rapidly swung at their targets and killed the enemy soldiers.

The men were angels. I stood in the privacy of my home and shouted, “Yeah . . . I want those angels!”
For many of us, an angel is a cute little child sitting on a cloud . . . or the shelf of a gift shop. Or maybe it’s the handsome adult whose hands play soothing music on a harp.

In life’s battles, we don’t need a sweet-talking, harp-strumming, angel whispering to our enemy. We want the angel who fights for us. Psalm 91:11 tells us, “He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways.” One Bible translation uses the word “keep” in pace of “guard.”
The Cambridge English Dictionary defines “keep” as something we have in our possession. “Keeping” means to repeatedly do something without stopping. God has charged His angels with the responsibility of keeping, guarding, and protecting continually — without stopping.

Psalm 34:7 says, “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them.” We cannot identify with certainty the angels among us, but we can see the evidence of their work. We can also take God at His word. His angels are working on our behalf to kill the schemes of the Evil One.

Adapted from, “Shining Through the Psalms,” by Deborah Presnell, 2018. Available on Amazon.

03/11/2024

02/28/2024

Have you ever been to a quiet, private place in your home where it became a refuge — a shelter from the storm? In solitude and maybe darkness, you spilled your thoughts out to God. Perhaps tears were the other thing that spilled. Lots of them. Maybe you refer to this space as your “puddle of tears.”

In most Bible translations, the Hebrew word “Baca” is used in Psalm 84. Baca means weeping or lamenting. It refers to a balsam tree whose sap oozes like tears.

The New Living Translation uses language we can better understand: Valley of Weeping. When overwhelmed with sadness, some may briefly shed a tear; others may weep for long periods of time. Eyelids swell. Vision blurs. Our nostrils cannot take in air. Sometimes heartache fills our soul to the point we can longer feel other emotions. We avoid other activities so we can crawl under the blanket of seclusion and isolation — or a coat in the closet. An overpowering sense of exhaustion engulfs us.

For other people, crying actual tears are difficult. But their heart is crying tears of pain as it breaks. God sees our tears. He pays attention to our weeping in the night. He also hears the silence when we’re numb. Psalm 30:5 tells us, “Weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning.”

God is faithful to His promises. We may be in a season of weeping and mourning and create a puddle of tears in our private place. But these tears — this puddle — will become a pool of blessing.

Adapted from, “Shining Through the Psalms,” by Deborah Presnell, 2018. Available on Amazon.

02/22/2024

Is it a good morning? Are you feeling rejuvenated? Recent research identified anxiety, stress, and depression as some of the most common causes of insomnia. Are you dealing with trouble and anxiety that leads to sleeplessness?

One night I was worried, scared, and confused — a perfect combination for another sleepless night. After tossing and turning a while, I got up and turned on the television. The news was all bad, so I turned it off. Sitting on the bed, I switched on the light on the side table. Weary from crying, I whispered, “God, help.” Hoping to find encouragement, I opened the side table drawer and shuffled through the items in it. At the bottom of the drawer was a wrinkled page from a magazine. On it were the words of Psalm 62:5: “My soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from Him.” I smiled. Focused on that truth, I turned off the light and went to sleep.

Reading Scripture isn’t an instant solution — the problems will still be there when you wake up. But reading the Bible brings peace; we’re reminded to put our hope in God. Why not write the following verses on sticky notes and leave them beside the bed so you can read them before drifting off to sleep?

• Psalm 29:11 “The Lord will bless His people with peace.”
• Psalm 4:8 “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.”
• Psalm 127:2 “He gives to His beloved sleep.”
• Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

You can also do what my mother did — she slept with her Bible. So sleep. Then wake up refreshed and ready for a new day. And if our problems still linger, we can start the nighttime routine all over again. What keeps you up at night? What helps you sleep well?

Adapted from, “Shining Through the Psalms,” by Deborah Presnell, 2018. Available on Amazon.

Is it a good morning? Are you feeling rejuvenated? Recent research identified anxiety, stress, and depression as some of the most common causes of insomnia. Are you dealing with trouble and anxiety that leads to sleeplessness?

One night I was worried, scared, and confused — a perfect combination for another sleepless night. After tossing and turning a while, I got up and turned on the television. The news was all bad, so I turned it off. Sitting on the bed, I switched on the light on the side table. Weary from crying, I whispered, “God, help.” Hoping to find encouragement, I opened the side table drawer and shuffled through the items in it. At the bottom of the drawer was a wrinkled page from a magazine. On it were the words of Psalm 62:5: “My soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from Him.” I smiled. Focused on that truth, I turned off the light and went to sleep.

Reading Scripture isn’t an instant solution — the problems will still be there when you wake up. But reading the Bible brings peace; we’re reminded to put our hope in God. Why not write the following verses on sticky notes and leave them beside the bed so you can read them before drifting off to sleep?

• Psalm 29:11 “The Lord will bless His people with peace.”
• Psalm 4:8 “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.”
• Psalm 127:2 “He gives to His beloved sleep.”
• Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

You can also do what my mother did — she slept with her Bible. So sleep. Then wake up refreshed and ready for a new day. And if our problems still linger, we can start the nighttime routine all over again. What keeps you up at night? What helps you sleep well?

(This post is not about clinical depression. It is about occasional sleeplessness when we have too much on our mind.)

Adapted from, “Shining Through the Psalms,” by Deborah Presnell, 2018. Available on Amazon.

02/21/2024

Good Morning!

02/20/2024

Thirty-three percent.
Research on happiness and satisfaction reveal that in America only thirty-three percent of people say they’re happy.

Do you know anyone who, despite their personal success or wealth, is dissatisfied? Seeking satisfaction in other people, ourselves, or things is dangerous and can lead to all kinds of emotional problems. People who depend on themselves for ultimate satisfaction either become victims or narcissists who boasts about self-sufficiency. They might also become critical of others or demand attention.

We were designed for more than temporary pleasure. Our soul was created to thirst for God. Without Him, there’s a void. Jesus said in John 6:35, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.” We can try to find satisfaction in other people and places. But Jesus tells us in John 4:14, “Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”

God will refresh our weary hearts and satisfy our searching souls. He will fill us to overflowing with living water. We drink of Your lasting refreshment.

Are you dry? Are you thirsty for some kind of satisfaction? God is the only One who can satisfy our thirst and refresh our soul for eternity. Anything else we use to quench the desires of our heart is temporary. Ultimately, they fail and disappoint.

Adapted from, “Shining Through the Psalms,” by Deborah Presnell, 2018. Available on Amazon.

02/19/2024

She waited. Her anticipation lingered a long time. Hope filled her as she fervently prayed.

She believed.

I’m talking about Anna. The gal living in New Testament times. For generations she had heard about the prophecy recorded in Isaiah 11:1, “A shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse.”

She believed.

When Anna was born, about 400 years had passed from the time of the prophecy. Anna, now an older woman about 84 years old, stared into the face of baby Jesus. Prophecy fulfilled.

The timing was perfect. Everything God does is perfect.

I wrote a book about “Believing God.” Now I must practice that… “believing” His timing is perfect when my book launch is delayed until March 24, 2024.

What about you? Are you waiting, praying, and believing?

Let’s believe that God has good for us. Then thank Him for His perfect timing. He loves us!!

Goodness! Can I just say to you my friends how excited I am for my book to be available?? It's still not available for pre-order, but it will be worth the wait. :) Make today a great day! Have a great weekend too!