♥ I’m back to my monthly roundup of links, quotes, books, and more. ♥

🙂 I hope you will visit the growing pages listed above. 🙂

Thank You
to anyone and everyone who recommend
links, books, quotes, etc.

A Personal Story of Loss in the Opioid Epidemic

Angela Kennecke, a local news anchor here in Sioux Falls, lost her daughter from a drug overdose. Angela courageously shares their story, hoping it will help others. She says, “If just one person hears me, if just one person does one thing to save a life, then I don’t care about a million naysayers or a million people who don’t understand.” 

Emily’s Hope

In coping with the loss of their beautiful daughter and sister, Emily’s family has vowed to do everything possible to give others hope of recovery from addiction.

Emily’s Hope will help offset the cost of treatment and allow more people struggling with addiction to get the help they need. Removing financial barriers and getting people suffering from addiction into proper treatment is the first step toward restoration, not only of the addict, but of the addict’s entire family.

ABCs of Jesus’ Love

Visit this page anytime and let me know if you’d like to add to the words describing Jesus’ love along with a verse supporting it. Remember, there is also a print-out of the original list.

 This month I have added another verse for Jesus’ rescuing love.

❤  Rescuing Love ❤

“He has rescued us from the domain of darkness
and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son He loves.“
Colossians 1:13 HCSB

Books

I am not always able to keep up with the abundance of books that promote hope, healing, and freedom, so I haven’t always read every one I post here and on the Books Page. Though many are on my long wish list. 🙂  Many will be from recommendations of online friends. If you ever know of a book that is not listed and that supports this website’s mission, please let me know. 🙂

It’s All Under Control: A Journey of Letting Go, Hanging On, and Finding a Peace You Almost Forgot Was Possible by Jennifer Dukes Lee

“It’s time to get our control under control.
Jennifer Dukes Lee never thought she struggled with control. As long as everything went exactly the way she wanted it to, she was totally flexible.

But then Jennifer discovered what happens when you try to wrap your arms around everything, thinking it’s all on you: You get burned out on hustle. You toss and turn more at night, and you laugh less during the day. You’re so busy―caring, serving, working, and trying so hard―that you can’t even hear God’s voice anymore.

It’s All Under Control is a book for every woman who is hanging on tight and trying to get each day right―yet finding that life often feels out of control and chaotic. Join Jennifer on the journey of learning how to:

• Overcome the anxieties and worries that burden your heart
• Prioritize your busy life so you can make choices that align with God’s best for you
• Find freedom through a new “Do, Delegate, or Dismiss” approach to your daily tasks
• Let go of what God has not asked you to do, so you can shine at what he has

Discover a new way of living that will free you to be you, and finally experience the peace of knowing a God who truly has it all under control.”

(Amazon Review)

Hope Harbor

💞  Links That Inspire Hope and Healing 💞

💞 Stop Minimizing Mental Illness: Worst Things to Say by Natasha Tracy – “Why is it that just because I see a psychiatrist and you see a neurologist your disease is real and mine is not? Why is it you assume I can will my disease away while you can’t? Why is it that you can expect me to bring you chicken soup when you get the flu but when I get sick I can’t even expect that you’ll stick around?

I do understand that people don’t know they are being hurtful. People are trying to help. I get it. But here’s the thing, my illness is just as real as anyone else’s. Please stop forcing me to convince you.”

💞 Truths About Faith and Mental Health by Emma Scrivener – “Having ‘faith’ doesn’t mean going it alone.  Yes, you need prayer, community and the bible.  But you can also use medication, counselling and therapy. If we can use doctors for our bodies, we can use doctors for our brains. When Saul was stressed, David played him soothing music.  When Elijah was close to breakdown, God told him to sleep and eat. So let’s not be ashamed of using the resources we have been given.” (#1 of 8)

💞 Thirteen Reasons for Hope by Lesley – Lesley has a compassion and empathy for those who feel hopeless. I love these thirteen reasons for hope based on God’s Word.

Nature Retreat

“Look at the birds of the air,
that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not worth much more than they?”
Matthew 6:26

Here are some of the beautiful bird photos my brother from Arizona shared with me this summer. Thank you, John! 🙂 (My brother kindly gives me permission to share his photos out of his desire to share the joy of nature with others, but as with all photos, I ask that you please do remember copyright laws.)

🐾 Rosyfinch Ramblings: Finding Birds and Beauty Close to Home – A retired couple, who are avid birders, share beautiful photos on their blog.

🐾 Chasing Bugs: Because Bugs Are Awesome – Danae Wolfe loves to capture the beauty of bugs in her macro photography. Check out her blog and galleries for her spectacular macro photos. Danae is passionate about photography, bugs, conservation, and education.

🐾 Little Big Econ State Forest – A video of beautiful photos of nature and wildlife along with soothing music.

Quotes

New quotes this month are about Compassion.

❤ “Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter into the places of pain. Compassion means full immersion in the condition of being human.” – Henri Nouwen

❤ “Instead of putting others in their place, put yourself in their place.” – Amish Proverb

❤ “It ill becomes us to invoke in our daily prayers the blessings of God, the Compassionate, if we in turn will not practice elementary compassion toward our fellow creatures.” – Mohandas Gandhi