Mercy Triumps

Christian persecution.

Refugees.

Muslims.

Any of these three terms, most people on earth are aware of one or more of them. Did you realize how difficult it is for Muslims who convert from their faith to embrace the salvation of Jesus Christ instead? If they are immediately killed by their family members in order to retain the families honor in their own country, then they are immediate sought after by those who now have labeled them as "infidels" by their own religious standards.

I have had the distinct pleasure to read all the novels by Jana Kelley, based on the true life events of three distinct women who now have to face the foundations of the Christian faith, even if it means being killed. From an American missionary wife and mother, Mia, to one Muslim sister, Halimah, on the run for her very life, and the other Rania, trying to keep her own faith from being discovered by her family, all the while trying to figure out how to get out of the rapidly approaching arranged marriage to a Muslim man. The stakes have never been higher as each of these women will have to face just how strong their Christian faith is while living in a Muslim population where there is no tolerance for those who are trying to convert others to the Christian beliefs.

From Side by Side and then to Door to Freedom, Mercy Triumps is the third novel that has documented the lifestyles of each of these women. From Mia who longs for someone to share her faith with, while trying to share her own testimony with those around her, without subjecting her family to violence, jail or being killed. She and her family are awaiting the approval of their passports to return home for a short while but they remain in the hands of one man who believes that Islam is the only religion. Halimah is faced with working in Nairobi after flying from her family who wanted to kill her. She desperately misses them and loves them but knows she can never return. She must be discreet if she contacts her sister Rania, who has been hiding her own newly found faith in Jesus. Perhaps the greatest reminder of what Christians in other countries face is the opening verse, "Mercy triumphs over judgement." James 2:13. This is the central theme of this novel.

I received Mercy Triumphs by Jana Kelley compliments of New Hope Publishers and Litfuse Publicity. This is so eye opening to those of us that live in America where we still have the freedom to practice our own religious faiths and persecution for us, just might be harassment from co-workers, family or friends who don't agree with our own beliefs. This will not always be the case as we watch the slow erosion of our freedoms beginning to slip away without noticing it is happening. Meanwhile things like persecution of Christians in other countries remains a segment on the news if even they care to report it, but we know it is happening on a daily basis without anyone knowing it is happening. I have LOVED this entire series because it highlights just what it might mean to those who are willing to die for their beliefs might just be the ones we want to embrace the most, including those 12 disciples of Jesus Christ who while spreading God's messages to the world, suddenly found themselves being the first of those who would die for their faith in Jesus Christ. For me, I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars and hope others will find the message of hope, faith and mercy in this book.

For more information about Mercy Triumphs, Jana Kelley or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Mercy Triumphs by Jana Kelley

You can find Jana Kelley on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest books.

To read more reviews on Mercy Triumphs, please visit Litfuse Publicity's book tour page. 

Door To Freedom

"A great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me." 1 Corinthians 16:9.

This quote sums up the entire theme behind Jana Kelley's latest novel Door to Freedom, her sequel to Side by Side in which the Weston's,  a missionary family working for the Keller Hope Foundation in Sudan. For Michael and Mia along with their three children, they truly believe it is God's calling on their life to spend their next two years working for the foundation and offering hope to the Muslim community who wants to know more about Jesus, whom they refer to as Isa. It's not as simple as simply accepting Christ.

For a Muslim to deny their faith often means death, especially when that faith leads them to Jesus. For one family it meant the beating of their oldest daughter Halimah who fled from her family and has no contact with them any longer. They don't even recognize her as being their daughter and any word of her whereabouts would most certainly lead to her death. Now her sister Rania has faced growing up without her sister and now struggles with the Muslim customs of an arranged marriage with any man her father chooses. She finds hope in the New Testament that Halimah left her and told her that this book contained all the answers she would ever need in her life. Could it be so simple that one book held all the answers to whatever she faced in life? If that is the case, then why would so many people be opposed to reading it?

Michael and Mia face their own opposition at work where they can be investigated by the local authorities for even speaking about their Christian faith. It is a death sentence for anyone to attend to convert a Muslim to Christianity. During the Bible Study through Acts, they both believe that whatever the opposition in the community or at work is worth the price to tell others about Jesus, even if it would cost them their very lives.

I received Door To Freedom by Jana Kelley compliments of Litfuse Publicity and New Hope Publishers. This is a remarkable story based on true events that shows readers that the life of a missionary isn't as always as easy as we might think it is. It is dangerous and often times results in the deaths of those simply trying to share the message of hope to those lost in Islam and all the restrictions that family members, especially women face. The best part is the message of hope and salvation that comes to those who find the true light and truth in Jesus Christ. I easily give this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

For more information about Door To Freedom, Jana Kelley or where you can pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Door to Freedom by Jana Kelley

You can find Jana Kelley on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Door To Freedom, please visit Litfuse Publicity's Book Tour page. 

Side by Side

Two women of two very different faiths will realize how great the saving power of Jesus can be when they have to work together to keep them both alive. Based on real events in the Sudan, author Jana Kelley uses her knowledge of missions work in other countries and the struggles Muslim women face when they convert to Christianity. For most it is a death sentence in keeping honor within the family and women are always considered lower than any male living in the family regardless of their age. It is an eye opening look at what is involved for Muslim women to walk away from the life they have always known to follow Jesus.

Mia and Michael have always wanted to live in another country and when the job offer opened for Michael with the Kellar Hope Foundation, in Sudan to aid in missionary work, they decide to pack up their family of five and leave the life they have known in Texas to make a new life in a small town of Khartoum, the capital of Sudan. While things are vastly different, Mia is hoping for an opportunity to share her faith of Jesus with some of the Arabic women living nearby, but she isn't quite certain how. A co-worker of Michael's, Beth offers a suggestion to meet the neighbors using their children as common grounds to get to know one another.

But Mia lacks a broader knowledge of the Arabic language and soon faces her own barriers as she tries to share her faith with her neighbor who becomes distant when it is first mentioned. Mia believes she isn't ready to hear the gospel just yet, and struggles to find a place to fit in, while being at home all day with the children. She wonders if this trip was really God's calling after all.

For Halimah, she is struggling to find time to know the Jesus she is learning about in her Arabic Bible, the truth seems to find a place in her heart where she wants to believe everything she is reading about him. It will take an answer to prayer for Halimah to finally accept that Jesus is real. But if she tells her family, it might mean the end of her life, but she is hoping her family might be open to at least hearing all that she is learning about the Jesus of the Bible.

I received Side by Side by Jana Kelley compliments of New Hope Publishers and Litfuse Publicity for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions contained in this review are strictly my own. What I loved most is how both Mia and Halimah discover God's divine purpose for both of them being precisely where they are despite the odds facing them both. It is difficult at times to fathom how violent a family can be against their own daughter when professing a faith in Jesus contrary to their Muslim upbringing and how degraded women are treated in that culture. Truly eye opening in that it showcases how truly blessed we are in the United States to have the freedom to worship and not face any retribution from our country or our family. I give this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars in my opinion.

For more information about Side by Side, Jana Kelley or where you can pick up a copy of this book today, please click on the links below:

Side by Side by Jana Kelley

You can find Jana Kelley on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest books.

To read more reviews on Side by Side, please visit Litfuse Publicity's book tour page.