2012 Karen Kingsbury & Friends Cruise Contest Winners

After months of waiting and thousands of entries, the winners of the Karen Kingsbury and Friends Cruise Contest have finally been chosen.  (drum roll) … A HUGE CONGRATULATIONS to:

The Grand Prize WINNERS

* TRINA NIZNIK – bringing her husband, JOHN NIZNIK 

(Entered through the LONGING Review group of readers)

* KELLI ALBERT – bringing her mother, LAURA TRENT

(Entered through the KK Cruise Facebook Page)

Both Trina and Kelli shared stories about the people they are bringing, stories that touched my heart in a unique and unforgettable way. Much prayer and thought went into picking these winners, and I believe God will use their time at sea. They win cruise passage, hotel, and airfare for two.

Please know there were hundreds of you I wanted to bring, hundreds where your stories made me pray for you or cry over my keyboard. For that reason, here is a list of runners up. Each of you on this list will receive an ADVANCE copy of LOVING in the next several weeks.

RUNNERS-UP

If your name is listed below, email me at moc.YRUBSGNIKNERAK@STSETNOC and write RUNNER-UP in the subject line. Send your full name and address, and the moment we have copies of LOVING we’ll send one your way.

Kristina Glover

Eric Douglas Clinton

Carla Dawejko

Sarah Gilbert

Kimberly Reynolds

Stephanie Yvonne Loveday

Vanessa Jacobson

Stacie Eunice Hall

Laura Kirk

Nancy George Swanner

Jennifer Kuzmanovich

Dorothy Day

Brenda Canada

Anne Meyer

Pearl Fry

Elizabeth Rose Steele

Diane Jarbeck

Susan Ashley Edwards

Joel Gary Darling

Darlene Farrell

Sarah Lynn Ortiz

Margaret Anne Billman

Katherine Holly Parrish

Laura Bridgers Reeves

Lauren Caponigro

Sarah Elizabeth Melton

Becky Lynette Fettig

Robyne Clausen

Dalva Peterson

Cindi Louise Hagood

HELPERS

The reader friends selected to have a free cabin and help my team on board are:

Caitlyn Council

Marnie Mount

Cyndi Armstrong.

AROUND THE WORLD

For the purpose of this contest, both entries and winners came from across the globe, proof that God is using the power of story in a way beyond what I could have dreamed. I continue to be amazed at how the Lord puts a story on my heart, but He has your heart in mind. Thank you for being the best reader friends an author could have. I thank God for you!

2011 - Favorite Quote Contest

Congratulations to the following readers! You posted your favorite quotes from Karen Kingsbury novels. 30 winners were picked and will each receive an autographed copy of BRAVE YOUNG KNIGHT - Karen's newest children's book. 

1. Jessykara Blum - "Everyone says goodbye eventually...people come and go...nothing stays except for Jesus." -LEAVING

2. Stephanie Abayomi - "Love happens when you forgive." -OCEAN'S APART

3. Karis Horner - "My dad used to say 'Life is like a pizza crust.'" -TAKE TWO

4. Sarah Alm Weber - "Life is too short for half-hearted connections and meaningless run-throughs." -TAKE TWO 

5. Marcie Hunnell Bronowicz - "Since you were born we've prayed for you. Your father and I. We prayed that God would make you into that one-in-a-million girl who wouldn't be dragged into something you'd regret. We prayed that love wouldn't really awaken in you until it was God's timing. These years are for you and God, so you'll become who he wants you to be." -FOREVER

6. Elissa Rizzo - “Raise them in the way they should go, pray for them, and trust them to Jesus. He loves them even more than you do.” -TAKE ONE

7. Joy Dempsey Jochems - "It's not how we fall that defines us as Christians. It's how we get up again." -UNLOCKED

8. Ashley Munzel - "Sometimes life is so hard you can only do the next thing. Whatever that is, just do the next thing. God will meet you there." -EVER AFTER

9. Jan Kinloch - "This is the love of Christ, Mary. Full and whole, without judgment or reservation. Unconditional. When you fall, Jesus holds out a hand. When you turn away, He stands at the door of your heart, waiting, always waiting." -DIVINE

10. Lori Hudson - "The truth was this: Love is a decision." -REDEMPTION

11. Gerlu van deer Merwe - "Sometimes when you have trouble closing a chapter, it's because there's more to the story." -SHADES OF BLUE

12. Regina Bagwell Boyce - "Let me hold on longer, God, to every precious last." -LET ME HOLD YOU LONGER

13. Andrea Todd - "Three years? That's a thousand tomorrows, ma'am." -A THOUSAND TOMORROWS

14. Anita Felton - "God, tell her I love her." -FORGIVEN

15. Cris-Anette Nicholas - "God is more concerned about our character than our comfort. His goal is not to pamper us physically, but to perfect us spiritually."  -TAKE ONE

16. Kelly Gunter - "A life of faith starts with a single decision."  -TAKE FOUR

17. Kristi Leonard - "You have Jesus Eyes." -DIVINE

18. Erin Harding - "They may not all be lovable, but they all need loving." -FAMILY

19. Monica Horn - "God grows fragrant flowers of hope in the ashes of loss." -HALFWAY TO FOREVER

20. Aimee Addison Kibodeaux - "Will you still pray for me when I'm grown-up and married? I'll need your prayers forever, Daddy." -REDEMPTION

21. Katie Spiros - "Not perfect, but perfectly in love with me." -REMEMBER

22. Angela Brandt - "And if...if he ever asks about me, tell him how much I love him. So much that I gave him to you."  -LIKE DANDELION DUST

23. Traci Carrigan Fox - "God, eternity, and this dinner...that's all the guarantee we'll ever have - even the healthiest of us." -LEAVING

24. Heather Stanley - "They looked for a miracle, and found it in a song." -UNLOCKED

25. Lizzie Thornton – “And remember what I said about fences. The greenest grass is back home.”  TAKE ONE

26. Marilyn Miller McNeil - "I'm here because I still believe in what we have. What we could have. We've got problems, but I believe God can heal us."  -REDEMPTION

27. Phyllis Farish -  "It's not like I'm saving the world. Just spending time with people".  -EVER AFTER

28. Donna S Rabon - "A love that would always protect, always trust, always hope, always persevere. A love that would never fail." -A THOUSAND TOMORROWS

29. Peggy Langley Alexander - "The next time that boy pursues you...he better come like a man looking for water in a desert." -LEAVING

30. Julie Nettleton - "God won't give up on you. I won't either." -DIVINE

2011 - Repost LEARNING Book Trailer - Skype Date

Thank you to everyone for re-posting the amazing book trailer for LEARNING. Congratulations to Tricia Willemsma for winning the re-posting the LEARNING book trailer contest. Tricia has won a Skype date with Karen Sunday evening, June 12. 

2011 - 200,000 Facebook Friends Contest

We did it Friends!!! 200,000 Facebook Friends! Congratulations to the following 200 friends who were chosen because they told Karen how God has used her books in their lives. As always, He gets all the glory!! The following 200 Friends each win a KK FRIEND GIFT PACK...

2011 - Readers' Endorsements

Thank you to the following winners who submitted endorsements for Karen Kingsbury novels. The following winning endorsements will be published in Karen's novel, LONGING, in stores Fall, 2011, and will each receive an autographed copy of LONGING when it comes out.  

1. Your books inspire me to be a stronger follower of Jesus Christ, to be a better wife, mother, sister and friend. Thank you for your faithfulness to the Lord's gentle whisper. -Tamara Bailey Berg

2. It's as simple as this: God's heart comes off these pages-every line, every word. You can feel the love and redemption of Christ through every character's life in each book. The message is a message of hope, hope in the One who has saved us and reigns victorious!   -Brenae Davey

3. Karen's books are like a personal Bible study - there are so many situations that can be applied directly to the truths found in God's word to help strengthen and encourage me...  -Laura Goad

4. Novels are mini-vacations, and Karen Kingsbury's novels are my favorite destination.  -Rachel Sides

5. Karen's books are amazing!! They are inspirational, encouraging, heart touching, and definitely life-changing. Thank you, Karen, for sharing your gift with us. -Lisa Meyer Pierson

6. The best author in the country. -Mary Halls

7. Karen's books are like chocolate - very addicting! You can't just eat one piece at a time, you have to eat the whole thing - you can't just read one chapter at a time, you have to read the whole book! :) -Sarah B. Magnuson

8. Karen, you truly have a God-given talent...I have laughed, cried, and rejoiced with your characters as if they were real people! Please keep writing, Karen...I can't put your books down! God bless you!! -Rebekah Hesketh 

9. Karen Kingsbury's books make a way for God to get a hold of your heart and never let go! -Jessica M Ealy

10. The stories are fiction; their impact is real. -Debbie Lally Rinell

11. It was my lucky day when a friend introduced me to Karen Kingsbury's books! A day without KK isn't complete. -Bette Odell Jeffries

12. My daughter and I "fight" to read your books first. She has even said, "Mom, I'll do dishes. YOU go read the latest Karen Kingsbury book!" -Terry Schutt

13. Karen Kingsbury books are like my best friends, they make me cry, laugh and give me encouragement. God Bless you Karen for using your talent for Him. -Tammy Gill

14. Every time I read one of Karen's books I think "this is the best one yet". Then the next one comes out and I think "no, this is the best one". -April Bussard McNees

15. Karen's Kingsbury's books are fantastic! She always makes me feel like I'm living the story along with the charcters!! -Courtney Moore Goodwin

16. Karen's books speak to the heart. They are timely, entertaining, but, more important, they speak God's love into hungry souls. -Debbie Patrick Kersh

17. Whenever I pick up a new KK book, two things are consistent: tissues; and finishing the whole book in one day. -Nel Li

18. When I was in Iraq, Mrs. Kingsbury's books were like a cool breeze on a hot summer day and they made the hard days a bit easier to bear. By the end of my tour, all the ladies in my tent were hooked!! -Olivia Glaude

19. Karen Kingsbury books are the BEST! I have bought everyone of them. I love getting my friends "hooked" on Karen Kingsbury! -Dana Thorpe Chishlom 

20. Not only do Karen Kingsbury books make you laugh and make you cry ... they will leave you begging for more.... I stay awake all night when a new one comes out reading by flashlight while my family sleeps!! -Hellen Hardin

21. Reading a Karen Kingsbury book is like watching a really good movie. I just can't get enough of her books. -Esther Overton

22. The lady that orders the books for our church library shakes her head and laughs when I tell her, "Ok, Karen Kingsbury has a new book out! I get first dibs when you get it!" -Jeannette Mckean-Butler

23. Each new Karen Kingsbury book is like a visit home. Nothing beats time with family and friends, which is just what Karen's characters are! -Erin Mifflin

24. As someone who has struggled with health issues over the last two years, Karen's books have been such an encouragement to me. They remind me that God is with me, and will never leave me. Please keep writing, I need that reminder. -Carrie Fletcher

25. Pick up a Karen Kingsbury book and I guarantee that you will never be the same again! Karen's books have a way of reaching the deepest parts of your soul and touching places of your heart that are longing for something more. -Becky Stelwagen

26. Karen Kingsbury really brings fiction to life, and I'm "longing" to read the next segment. Real men really do read KK! -Phil Calkins

27. Gods love, mercy and hope shines through every one of Karen Kingsbury's books. She has a passion for the Lord and it shows in every story she writes. She is amazing! -Kristi Comer McDonald

28. It is hard for me to walk out of a bookstore without a Karen Kingsbury book in my possession. I am hooked. -Shilah Norris

29. Karen Kingsbury is changing the world...one reader at a time :) -Lauren Walden

30. Karen writes straight from the heart and touches each of her readers with every new story! Love, loss, family, faith, all the struggles we each face everyday come to life in the characters she creates. -Amber Buffet