Showing results by narrator "Machelle Williams" in All Categories

Does it seem as though your prayers aren't being answered? Even after praying fervently, do you feel that God isn't listening, that God isn't speaking or acting? Most of us have felt this way. Are there tools and strategies we can implement to break through the barriers? Keying in on two vital areas of spiritual warfare - restoration and retribution - apostle and speaker Venner J. Alston reveals strategies for engaging heaven with the expectation of answers to your prayers.

Before healing can begin for Kelli and Heather, they need to believe they are worth cherishing. As Kelli and Heather awaken to their true worth, they find the freedom to pursue their dreams - and relationships - based on the security of knowing God's unconditional love.

When the organizing committee for her upcoming high school reunion needs a caterer, Halia agrees to help out. Soon she's serving up her signature macaroni and cheese and famous chicken wings to a host of appreciative ex-classmates. Some folks have blossomed since graduation. Others, like manipulative Raynell Rollins, currently married to a former football star, haven't changed nearly enough. When Raynell is found dead the morning after the reunion, the role call of possible suspects could fill the school gymnasium. Extramarital affairs, mega-church scandals and sports secrets...

Once a teenaged mom, Ronessa "Ronne" Brown defeated the odds by stepping over the stereotypes surrounding her to take her family's destiny into her own hands. Ronne's "no excuses" mantra transformed their lives, from being stuck an endless cycle of "jobs" to becoming a millionaire - all by teaching herself how to monetize Instagram. And so can you.

Jane Eyre has no interest in a husband. Eager to make her own way in the world, she accepts the governess position at Thornfield Hall. Though her new employer, Edward Rochester, has a charming air—not to mention a handsome face—Jane discovers that his smile can sharpen in an instant. Plagued by Edward’s mercurial mood and the strange wails that echo through the corridors, Jane grows suspicious of the secrets hidden within Thornfield Hall—unaware of the true horrors lurking above her very head.

Logan Dickerson is an archaeologist who feels she'll always live in the shadow of her famous mother. To prove her worth, she jumps the fence at a federally protected archaeological site. Not such a good idea. Now she's on the run from the FBI. Ending up in a small coastal town in Georgia, she discovers that one resident, Gemma Burke, has been found dead, keeled over in her bowl of bouillabaisse. Logan gets all tangled up in a big mystery (and a little bit of romance), but the fun begins once she falls in cahoots with Miss Vivee, a 90-something, five-foot-nothing Voodoo herbalist.

Imagine a stormy day at sea, your ship yielding to a relentless wind, pummeled by crashing waves, subject to the awesome force of nature. A force that is both fierce and majestic. A power that is nothing short of furious. Such is God's intense, consuming love for His children. It's a love that knows no limits, and no boundaries. A love that will go to any lengths, and take any risks, to pursue us. Renowned author and ragamuffin Brennan Manning presents a love story for the brokenhearted.

For Black Catholic women and girls, embracing the celibate religious state constituted a radical act of resistance to white supremacy and the sexual terrorism built into chattel slavery and segregation. Williams shows how Black sisters—such as Sister Mary Antona Ebo, who was the only Black member of the inaugural delegation of Catholic sisters to travel to Selma, Alabama, and join the Black voting rights marches of 1965—were pioneering religious leaders, educators, healthcare professionals, desegregation foot soldiers, Black Power activists, and womanist theologians.

You don't have to live in your dream house to make your living spaces feel more like home. Home is meant to be a place to belong. A place to gather and connect. A place of beauty. A place to restore your soul. In Restoration House, author and designer Kennesha Buycks will encourage you to embrace your home and your story so you can create mindful spaces that give life to you, your loved ones, and all who enter.

Born into slavery, Rebecca Crumpler became the first Black female physician in America. Stuntwoman Bessie Coleman was the first Black person in the world to obtain a pilot's license. The work of Harlem Renaissance sculptor Selma Burke can be found on the American dime. The calculations of NASA mathematician Katherine Goble Johnson were critical to the success of US manned spaceflight. These Black women and many more overcame tremendous obstacles and prejudices to make their mark on American history.

It is rare that we have all the training we need before we face a life-changing event in our lives. Each of the women whose stories are told in Over, Under, Around, and Through by Jill Tietjen and Ellie Greenberg, demonstrate the strength, creativity, persistence, and fortitude they used to figure out a way forward.

On March 29, 2020, when her church switched to online services because of coronavirus, Dr. La Verne Ford Wimberly couldn't imagine watching the service in her robe. So, she did what she's always done; she put on a beautiful outfit, matching hat, and accessories and got ready for church. Dr. Wimberly, a self-declared social media junkie, thought "it would be fun to snap a selfie and post it on Facebook with a scripture verse and an inspirational message. I'd let folks know I was ready for worship and encourage them to do the same. This was my way to brighten their spirits."

Stephanie London led a life of comfort and ease in St. Louis before feeling inexplicably drawn back to her father’s roots in the tiny Southern town of Hope Springs. Charlotte Willoughby has lived there all her life and longs to make a new life somewhere else. Stephanie doesn’t know exactly what she’s doing there—or how to occupy her time. And Charlotte doesn’t understand why, despite her overbearing family and reminders of her failed engagement, she’s suddenly led to stay.

A must-have anthology of the leading Black women and femmes shaping today’s food and hospitality landscape—from farm to table and beyond—chronicling their passions and motivations, lessons learned and hard-won wisdom, personal recipes, and more.

France Winddance Twine provides the first book by a sociologist that "lifts the Silicon veil" to provide firsthand accounts of inequality and opportunity in the tech ecosystem. With a sharp eye for detail and compelling testimonials from industry insiders, Twine shows how the technology industry remains rigged against women, and especially Black, Latinx, and Native American women from working class backgrounds. From recruitment and hiring practices, to social and educational segregation, to academic prestige hierarchies, Twine reveals how women are blocked from entering this industry.

Her diamond caught the sun’s rays and refracted light across the room. She’d asked herself again and again: How could she be so blessed? Partner at a prestigious law firm and engaged to the man of her dreams . . . there was no doubt. God had smiled on Kendra Woods. But the moment Kendra is diagnosed with terminal breast cancer, her world collapses. Within days, her fiancé backs out of the wedding and the firm suggests a leave of absence during her treatment. Of all the roles Kendra has played over the years, cancer patient seems the most unwelcome in the world.

Aspiring author Dr. Myaisha Douglas joined the Greensboro Women of Color Writing Group hoping to publish her writing, and never expecting to play amateur sleuth in a real-life murder mystery. When someone murders a friend and member of the group, Myaisha believes she can help the police solve the crime. An avid mystery fan, she relies on the skills she gained from those stories to catch the killer. Though determined to get justice for her friend, the amateur detective soon regrets her involvement when the deceased’s corruption and illegal dealings become public.

While Karyn served four years in prison for an unthinkable crime, she embraced salvation through the Crowns for Christ outreach ministry. After her release, Karyn stays strong and confident, despite the stigma society places on ex-offenders. Levi Tolliver, for the most part, is a practicing Christian. One contradiction is he doesn't believe in turning the other cheek. He's steadfast there is a price to pay for every sin committed, especially after the untimely death of his wife during a robbery. Then Karyn enters Levi's life.

We use words like "honor", "loyalty", and "tradition" to talk about our families. But behind closed doors, if you listen closely enough, you can hear the muffled sounds of suffering. If you are one of those people, take heart in knowing you are not alone. The good news is that you have a choice. You can decide to do things differently, even if it means being the first in your family to do so. Join Felicia Harris and unburden yourself of the weight of family ideals, influences, and imperfections by choosing to believe that what you've always known is not all there is.

As it had for generations before her, a heaviness hung over Monica A. Coleman throughout her young life. As an adult, this rising star in the academy saw career successes often fueled by the modulated highs of undiagnosed bipolar disorder, as she hid deep depression that even her doctors skimmed past in disbelief. Serendipitous encounters with Black intellectuals like Henry Louis Gates Jr., Angela Davis, and Renita Weems were countered by long nights of stark loneliness. Only as Coleman began to face her illness was she able to live honestly and faithfully in the world.