White donkeys for royalty

Posted on March 14, 2024 by dtopliff

A white donkey on the Mount of Olives.

A white royal donkey is often staked opposite the grove of ancient olive trees that is the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives. They are called creams, have blue eyes, and are extremely rare.

Historically, that special animal was reserved  to carry royalty.  It is believed to be the donkey our Lord rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday as people laid down palm branches crying, “Hosanna in the highest. Welcome to the king of kings!”

Zechariah 9:9 declares, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal
of an ass.”

What cry of welcome would we give the Lord today? Would we gather palm branches and lay down our outer garments to honor Him and mark the road for His kingly advance into Jerusalem and its people?

Reflect on what outer clothes He might ask us to remove to lay before Him? Consider the replacement clothes He offers. What a wonderful exchange!  

Have a most blessed Palm Sunday and Easter. May their joys and celebration be yours every day, all year long!

My newest book, A Traveling Grandma’s Guide to Israel: Adventures, Wit, and Wisdom, is getting rave reviews and presents pearls and insights gleaned through my nine lengthy trips to Israel over the last forty years. It’s on Amazon in print and kindle and on Audible in Audio. Here’s the cover. All authors appreciate readers leaving Customer Reviews on Amazon and other sites. Thank you!

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Broken Bread by James R. Coggins

Posted on March 13, 2024 by jrcoggins

At the Last Supper, Jesus broke bread and passed it around to His followers, saying that it was a symbol of His body, which was about to be sacrificed for the sins of the world (Matthew 26:26-30). This supper was the Passover meal, in remembrance of the time when lambs were sacrificed in Egypt to protect the Israelites from the death that was inflicted on the Egyptians, an event that finally freed the Israelites from slavery. This Old Testament ritual was a symbol and prophecy of Jesus, the Lamb of God, being sacrificed for the sins of the world in the New Testament and of the freeing of human beings from slavery to sin.

But why did Jesus “break” the bread instead of cutting it with a knife? The term “breaking bread” has become so familiar to us, as a common phrase meaning to eat together, that we do not give it a second thought. This expression has come into the English language through the Bible and the observance of the Lord’s Supper in churches. We are so used to it that we take it for granted.

Factory-sliced bread was an innovation of the 20th century. Before that, loaves of bread had to be sliced or broken by the user. In Bible times, bread was baked in large, round, flat loaves. The Passover meal used “unleavened bread” (since there was no time to wait for the bread to rise as the Israelites were about to flee Egypt). It would be hard, like a cookie or cracker. Therefore, it was broken, not cut. Even the more common leavened bread would be broken when people were on the road away from home without knives or cutting boards or plates.

Breaking, of course, symbolizes the violence of Jesus’ crucifixion. Jesus broke the bread, dividing it into pieces to be distributed to His followers at the Last Supper. This meal also reminds us of another meal. Matthew 14 tells the story of Jesus feeding more than 5,000 people with only five loaves of bread and two fish: “Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people” (Matthew 14:19 NIV). In Matthew 15, Jesus did it again, feeding more than 4,000 people with seven loaves and a few fish: “Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people” (Matthew 15:36). At the Last Supper, Jesus broke the bread and distributed it to His immediate followers in the upper room. But the miraculous feedings symbolize that that bread (Jesus’ body) continues to be broken and distributed by His followers beyond that upper room, multiplied to thousands and millions and even billions of people. It goes to every new Christian symbolically and miraculously in the observance of the Lord’s Supper but also spiritually, as Jesus’ forgiveness and promise of life are given to every new follower of Jesus.  

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“We’re Here to Help” by James R. Coggins

Posted on March 6, 2024 by jrcoggins

Our bank was offering a new savings account with a better interest rate than the pitiful amount our current savings account was paying (far less than the inflation rate). This new account had apparently been available for two years, but our bank had not bothered to inform us of this. The bank had informed us about many other new services over those two years but not the one that might actually be useful to us.

So, we phoned our local branch to make an appointment with a financial advisor. Twice. Both times, we reached an automated answering device which said our call was important to the bank and asked us to leave a message. Both times, the automated instructions closed with “We’re here to help.”

When we still had not received an answer by the next day, we decided to go in to the bank. We approached the only teller on duty (the bank prefers customers to use the “automated teller”—ATM—and do the work ourselves). When we finally got to the head of the line, the teller told us to wait in some chairs. We sat down in front of a large poster that outlined some of the bank’s services and then said, “Talk to us today.”

After a few minutes, the teller came back and told us that there would be no one available to talk to until the branch manager returned in an hour or two.

So, we left, delayed lunch, ran some errands, and returned. We found the bank manager. He was dealing with another customer. When he was finished, he asked us what we wanted. When we explained what we wanted, he said that he didn’t have time to talk to us today and we should make an appointment. We said that we had tried that and nobody had called back. He checked his computer and said that the earliest we could make an appointment to talk to someone was later the next week, almost two weeks after we had originally tried to make an appointment. (We wondered if he had also checked our bank balance and realized that we were not among his wealthier customers.) We said that we were not willing to wait that long.

We returned home and phoned the bank’s national phone line. When we got through, we were finally able to transfer our money to the new account. It took more than half an hour to go through all the steps, including listening to a number of recorded messages outlining the bank’s policies. The agent finally told us that the money would be transferred the next day.

We waited two days and checked the account online. The money had not been transferred. So, we phoned the bank’s national line again. This time, the agent explained that the money could not be transferred until we had been informed that only the principal could be transferred but that the “accrued interest” could not be transferred. We asked why not, whether it was a bank policy or a government regulation, but the agent would not answer, just kept repeating that the accrued interest could not be transferred. We then asked that if the bank needed to inform us of this before the principal could be transferred, why hadn’t the bank informed us of this over the previous two days? The agent had no answer. We asked why the first agent hadn’t told us about the accrued interest issue and asked if he had made a mistake. The new agent refused to admit that, just kept repeating that the accrued interest couldn’t be transferred. Finally, we agreed to have the principal transferred but not the accrued interest. We were told that the accrued interest would remain in the old savings account.

The next day, we again checked the accounts online. We saw that most of the money had been transferred out of the old savings account but had not yet appeared in the new savings account.

That same day, we received an email from the bank informing us that the amount in our original savings account had fallen below $100 and that the account had no overdraft protection. The email said that we could leave the money in the account or transfer it.

We waited a few more days and checked again. We discovered that almost all of the money had been transferred to the new savings account, which would leave an even smaller amount in the old savings account. Except that there was no money left in the old savings account. We surmised that the amount had fallen so low that the bank’s computers had decided that the account was dormant and had confiscated the small amount that was left.

We checked again a few days later and discovered that the original small amount had reappeared in our old savings account.

Then we received in the mail an application form that we needed to fill out in order to transfer our money from the old account to the new account. There was another form attached that indicated that the interest rate for the new savings account would be less than we had been told and that it would be harder to transfer money in and out of that account than we had been told.

A week later, we finally managed to secure an appointment to see a financial advisor at a different branch of the bank farther away. He clarified that the interest rate in the new account would be what we had originally been told, and he was able to transfer the small amount of accrued interest in our old savings account to our checking account.

Large institutions often claim that they personally care about us, but the truth is that they are so large and bureaucratic that this is impossible. Large institutions are not people and cannot care about individual people. The claims make good advertising slogans, but they are not backed up by reality.

This makes me wonder about the claims large mega-churches make about caring for people. Can they really deliver what smaller, local churches do? 

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Bad Things Happen. But There’s Hope!

Posted on March 5, 2024 by Author Mary Alford

We live in a fallen world. Through Adam sin entered the world bringing with it death.  

Bad things—unimaginable things—happen in the real world. Most are too painful to read about.   

Listening to the news, it’s easy to lose hope. But our story isn’t over. In fact, the Hero has already come and saved the day.

On March 31st, we celebrate what our Hero—Jesus—did for us all.

He came into a fallen world knowing what waited for him. He didn’t change His mind when greeted with ridicule and anger by those who should have known who He was.

He loved, healed, and forgave even from the cross. That’s a hero. He allowed himself to become the perfect atonement for the sin that entered the world through Adam. He died for everyone. Even those who reject and deny Him.      

As a Christian suspense author, I strive to make my stories as believable as possible while giving the hero and heroine along with the reader hope. And that hope wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for what Jesus did for this fallen world.

No matter how many books I write, or how many the world’s authors create, there will never be a love story like the one Jesus wrote for us when He chose us.     

John 21:25 says, Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

Until next time, dear friends, many blessings!

Mary

http://www.maryalford.net  

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Origin Stories by Tara Randel

Posted on March 4, 2024 by tararandel

In the past ten years or more, superhero movies seemed to have dominated the box office. We become invested in the characters who are in the movies and whose stories overlap. As the movies are hyped, we hear the term origin story. Most popular superheroes come from comic books, but if you haven’t read them, like me, you don’t know their origin stories, which are important in the development of character.

Some of the series of movies start with the inciting incident for the motivations of our heroes. In other cases, a hero might be part of the group, then becomes popular, so their origin story movie is released later. In all cases though, they have to start their journey somewhere.

This is a process I go through when I’m creating a new book series proposal. Generally, I plot four books per series. Knowing that, I need two different origins: the series itself and the hero and heroine of each book.

When I develop a series, I know it will span the four books. The origin story is in book one, the wrap up in book four. I’ll use my last series, The Golden Matchmakers Club, as an example.

I had already introduced a meddling grandmother before this series started. I loved her, so I wondered how much more trouble could she cause if she had a group of like-minded meddlers helping her. The Matchmakers were born.

Their origin story; to match as many single young people in the town of Golden as possible. Their grandchildren were moving out of the small town and the matchmakers decided that the way to increase the popularity of Golden as a tourist destination was to lead the couples to love so they would stay in town and make Golden flourish.

Over the course of the books, the matchmakers interfered quite successfully, since we had four couples get together and decide to stay in Golden. As for the wrap up, the couples were happy, two of the matchmakers fell in love and got married, so they were happy, and the readers who had followed the series to the end were happy to see that the original plan came together in the end.

Once I figured out the series origin, I now had four individual books to plot. Each hero and heroine will have their own origin story, the thing that causes issues in their lives. One of the things we love as readers is how an author will take two people who have wounds, put them together for a span of a book, and, in a romance, see how love heals and makes them better. By the end of each book, we have resolved their issues and the couple looks forward to a future together.

Let me say, this takes time and a lot of heavy thinking. People often ask me where I get my ideas from. Usually, snippets of potential stories are brewing below the surface, so I take those vague glimmers of a story idea and expand on them until I have a cohesive series. It’s challenging, but it’s also like a puzzle, taking the pieces and interlocking them to get a complete picture. It’s probably one of my favorite aspects of writing.

The next time you read a book, you’ll have a little insight into what goes into the process of creating a story. I’ve heard from readers that they love a series, the connected stories and characters. They want to know what’s happened with their favorite characters as the series moves on, and with the space of four books, I can deliver that. I suppose wanting to stay connected to the characters comes from the curiosity of readers. The imagination of the author makes that possible.

Tara Randel is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author. Family values, a bit of mystery and of course, love and romance, are her favorite themes, because she believes love is the greatest gift of all. You can find out more about The Golden Matchmakers Club and her other books by visiting Tara at www.tararandel.com. Like her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TaraRandelBooks. Sign up for Tara’s Newsletter.

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Fiction Finder by Julie Arduini

Posted on March 1, 2024 by juliearduini

Have you heard of Fiction Finder? If not, you’re in for a treat!

Fiction Finder comes from ACFW, American Christian Fiction Writers. If you’re looking for a book to read, Fiction Finder is your source to discover great authors and titles.

Maybe you’re like me and want to recall a book, but you can’t remember the title. Or the author. But you remember it was about divorce. Again, Fiction Finder might be able to help.

I love Fiction Finder as a reader because sometimes I am looking for a topic to read about, but I want the subject matter to come from a Christian author. I search the topic, and I have books to look for as my next read.

Sometimes I read a blog post mentioning an author and I want to find their titles. I’ll search the author on Fiction Finder and learn how many books they have, and their topics,

As an author, I love it because my books are in the database. There might be a reader who has never heard of me but wants to read something with a single parent. My name will pop up with Entangled, Engaged, Restoring Christmas, Anchored Hearts and Repairing Hearts. How cool is that?

When I add a book to Fiction Finder, the list of topics is long. Depression, Small-town, dating, addiction, if you’re looking for it, a Fiction Finder author should be available in the search.

Also, each month there are ACFW authors with active blogs who post the newest releases that month you can find on Fiction Finder. I’ve been participating in this for years. Although I’d love readers to enjoy my books, I want readers to discover other Christian authors as well. More than once I’ve formatted the monthly post to look at a new release and want it for myself. One click takes me to Fiction Finder and that new book.

So if you struggle to find something to read, or want to learn every title a certain author has written, why not check out Fiction Finder? If you click here it will take you to the About page where you can learn more. I hope you search for me, Julie Arduini. I have several books available with various themes that will encourage and entertain you.

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Fear Not

Posted on February 29, 2024 by Patricia Bradley

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

Easy words for God. After all, He’s God. Not so easy for me all the time.

You would think a suspense writer wouldn’t be afraid of much, but that’s not always the case. It’s not that I’m so much afraid, it’s more like…well, maybe it is fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear the words will desert me. Or the plot won’t come together. Or, since it’s just me, what if I don’t have enough money to pay the bills.

Those are all fears that I face one time of another. And when I’m not staring one of them in the face, I almost laugh at myself. Has God ever not come through for me? When I ask for the words, aren’t they there? Or money for the bills? Or new ideas?

What is it about us that makes us so fearful? We listen to Satan, for one thing. Or his minions. He can’t read our minds, but he surely can put those fears in there. And he doesn’t always wait until we’re already down. Sometimes Always when we have a mountaintop experience, he can’t stand it and he attacks.

So how do I combat his attacks? First I make sure I haven’t given him a foothold in my life. You know, disobedience to what God wants me to do. Then I start reciting the alphabet. No, not ABC…well, yes, ABC, but instead of just reciting the letters, I recite them this way:

A is for Almighty God

B is for Beloved

C is for Christ, my Creator

D is for my Deliverer…

You get the idea. I go through the alphabet and find a letter that either describes or glorifies Him. By the time I get to Z, most of the time my fear is gone. If it isn’t, I start over. I keep reciting the alphabet until peace reins in my heart. This simple act of obedience has never failed me.

Obedience? Yes. Paul tells us in Philippians these words:

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:8.

Next time worry or fear has you by the throat, try my alphabet praise.

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Washing by James R. Coggins

Posted on February 28, 2024 by jrcoggins

Years ago, we were living in a big house with a diseased tree standing nearby. Every fall, tiny insects from this tree would plaster themselves all over the screens and walls of the house and stay there until they expired.

When my wife was in the hospital after the birth of our first daughter, I washed the clothes and hung them out on the line to dry. Several hours later, when I went to bring in the clothes, I found they were covered with these little black insects. I tried to brush them off, but they returned as fast as I removed them. In the end, I was forced to do the whole wash all over again. But even then there were so many insects floating in the wash water that every garment I pulled out had at least one dead insect on it.

So it is with those who come to Christ and later reject Him. 2 Peter 2:20 describes those who “have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome,” concluding that “they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning.” 1 Peter 2 is not talking about Christians who fall into sin, but about those who deliberately walk away after knowing the truth. It is aimed at those who deliberately choose a deceitful way of life, often pretending to still be Christians, even Christian leaders, while using the gospel for personal gain and as an opportunity to indulge sinful lusts. Televangelists whose main goal is to amass great wealth and priests who sexually abuse children are examples. It is difficult for them to be cleansed. How can they recommit themselves to Christ when they remember that they failed to fulfill their first commitment? The writer of Hebrews said, “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace” (Hebrews 6:4-6).

Perhaps it is good to remember also that many things are impossible for us, but with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). I did eventually get the wash clean after a further washing.

My experience with the wash also demonstrated a second spiritual principle. After putting my soiled laundry back into the wash water, I saw that it was still covered with insects, but I felt better because I knew that the insects were now dead. So it is when we are washed in Jesus’ blood. We may still be soiled with sin, but we can rest assured that that sin is dead (Romans 6:6-14)—it has no more power. When once it is washed off, it cannot fly back on or breed other sins.

Finally, back then, I was looking forward to the day when our landlord would cut down the tree and there would be no more annoying little black insects to infest our laundry. I am also looking forward to the day when God will bring a final end to sin. On that day, we will be perfectly clean—and we will stay that way forever.

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Beautiful Creation by Nancy J. Farrier

Posted on February 26, 2024 by Nancy J. Farrier

Many years ago, I was tasked with getting a Christmas gift for a person I hadn’t shopped for before. I gave the gift a lot of thought. This person didn’t like any clothing that wasn’t cotton and they preferred neutral colors such as beige or cream. I had the idea to get them a sweater that would be something nice for them to wear out to dinner or for family gatherings.

After several shopping trips, I found the perfect gift. Two different sweaters, both cotton, both cream colored, and lightweight for the warmer climate. As I wrapped them, I was very excited to see how my gift would be received since I’d put so much thought into it.

When the recipient opened the sweaters, they lifted them up and a look of disgust twisted their features. They said, “What do I want with these,” tossed them on the floor and went on to the next gift.

Needless to say, I was very hurt. Something I’d put so much thought and care into had been summarily rejected without even a thank you or any acknowledgement of gratitude. They didn’t care about how I’d put their wants and needs at the foremost of my choices.

Over the years, I’ve thought of this often as I consider my reaction to God’s gifts to me. In the past month, I’ve gone hiking twice and been struck by the beauty and variety of this world God created and made for us. And, I’ve considered how many times I overlook the care He took to prepare this place for me.

“Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth”; and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1: 9-12

God put so much thought into His creation, into where people would live. The beauty and variety of creation shows God’s creativity at its best. From the majesty of mountains to the green valleys to the beaches and oceans, it’s like He made something for each of us, a place we can call home.

Yet how often do we take the time to enjoy the beauty around us? We tend to hurry through life, doing our work, visiting family and friends, and spending our downtime doing what pleases us. We forget to take the time to notice what God has made and the detail and perfection of what He’s done for us.

On our hike yesterday with a church group, I took the time to marvel at the plant life that survives so well in the desert but would not work in a forested area. I noted the striations in the rocks and the variety and beauty of them. And I thanked God for providing this beauty.

I also pondered how much fun God might have had during the creation process. When I shopped for the person I talked about, I had fun trying to figure out what would work. I believe God had fun creating a beautiful world for us. He did everything with us in mind.

We all need to take the time to thank God for His thoughtfulness toward us. Maybe we need to slow down just a bit and fit those times into our schedule so that we aren’t just tossing His creation aside as if saying, “What do I want with this?” 

Notice the world around you. Give thanks to the Creator who cares so much about you.

“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,

And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.

He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;

He lays up the deep in storehouses.

Let all the earth fear the Lord;

Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.

For He spoke, and it was done;

He commanded, and it stood fast.” Psalm 33:6-9

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Advice to a Young Couple Facing a Crisis by James R. Coggins

Posted on February 21, 2024 by jrcoggins

As an older Christian, I offer the following suggestions to those with less experience of the trials of life. When you are facing a crisis:

1. Admit the problem, to yourself and to those you trust. Do so before a problem grows into a disaster. You won’t die of embarrassment, but you might die from the problem.

2. Seek advice from those who are older and wiser. And take it.

3. Ask for help. Be grateful when it comes, and understanding when it doesn’t.

4. Think of the blessings, achievements, and good relationships in your life. And be grateful.

5. Keep working, being productive, and earning money. It will give you a break from worry, productivity contributes to the general welfare of society, it will give you something to feel good about, and money is always useful.

6. Keep looking for practical solutions. Be creative, think outside the box, and consider possibilities you haven’t thought of before.

7. Consider and be willing to accept solutions that might not be ideal, at least temporarily.

8. See this crisis as an opportunity to grow and make improvements.

9. Be patient.

10. Don’t panic.

11. Don’t argue with each other or blame each other.

12. Don’t take your frustration and anxiety out on your spouse, your children, or other innocent bystanders.

13. Love your children (if you have any) and give them extra encouragement and understanding. Consider how the crisis might be affecting them, and look for ways you can help them.

14. Keep the long term in view. Avoid temporary fixes that will create bigger problems in the future.

15. Survive. You can’t always be victorious, and sometimes all you can do is survive, but surviving is important. It makes future possibilities and improvements possible.

16. Don’t do anything stupid—such as taking a high-interest loan that will just postpone a financial problem and make it bigger; gambling; resorting to drugs and alcohol; quitting your job; or abandoning your marriage. These actions will just make things worse.

17. Pray and keep praying.

18. Trust God, no matter what happens

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What’s in Your Way?

Posted on February 20, 2024 by Author Mary Alford
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The Christian life has often been compared to a walk. We walk in faith. We keep moving no matter what stage of maturity we are in as Christians. It’s a marathon of growing and learning and yes, stumbling that lasts a lifetime.  

In the beginning, the new believer is on fire for God and excited to share the gospel with everyone they meet. We don’t want to just walk through the journey we want to run it as a marathon. We can’t imagine anything separating us from God.

Yet as we walk, sin sometimes gets in the way and causes us to stumble.  We love the Lord but we’re like little children taking a walk with our parents. We see a pretty flower or a butterfly, and we chase after it. God in His infinite love for us calls us back and sets us on the right path.

Sometimes the path is easy leading us through peaceful destinations and other times our walk is rocky and all uphill like when we lose a loved one or receive a bad diagnosis. Through each step, each bad thing, God is right there beside us. Sometimes holding our hand. Sometimes carrying us through the storms of life.

As we grow older, that fire that began with salvation can grow dimmer. Everything gets harder including walking. Finding our joy becomes difficult. But if we lift our head, God is there with us just as He has been through every step of our journey.   

Obstacles are always there no matter what stage we are in our walk. Temptation and tragedy are part of life. Satan desires to throw us off our path with God every chance he gets.

No matter what is standing in the way of your walk, know that you are not standing there alone. God is right there with you. In the valleys. In the mountains. Through it all.

Psalm 23 says,

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Until next time, dear friends, many blessings!

Mary

http://www.maryalford.net  

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Implementing Changes by Julie Arduini

Posted on February 16, 2024 by juliearduini

I didn’t set any high goals for 2024, I figured I’d go with my word for the year, Illuminate, pray, and see where the Lord takes me. It’s still early in the year but I thought I’d share a little of what I’m learning and doing about it.

Physically

Last year ended rough. I had bronchitis and a sinus infection that took three months and multiple rounds of steroids to conquer. The high-dose meds made me hungry, and menopause didn’t help. When I felt well enough to exercise it seemed to take me a step back in how I was feeling. It was then I learned I have a list of allergies, the most severe being dust mites and black mold. Fun!

This year I started with a new endocrinologist and he sent me home with a bunch of lab orders. The results are in and they were what I expected. The praise is he is working with me on options to get this turned around. I’m drinking more water, sugar cravings are going away, and I’m eating a lot more protein and less carbs and sugar.

Exercise? I’m not on a regular regiment yet, but I’m giving myself grace. I want this to be a lifestyle. I didn’t get the lab numbers overnight, I won’t improve them in a day, either. It takes time, at least with me.

Emotionally

Last year also had rough patches I didn’t see coming, and they hit harder than I depicted. To recover I had to shut out a lot of noise around me and tighten my boundaries. At first, I felt I had to explain myself, but that’s going away. The choices I made and will most likely tweak as needed were to protect me, and are in no way with a motive to harm anyone else. God is big enough to take care of everyone, and I trust Him.

Spiritually

The call on my life is to encourage others and to pray. When I say “I’ll pray for you” I do not want that to be a cliche statement. Last year was challenging because as odd as it sounds, adopting a reactive puppy took my prayer time away. I was frustrated and exhausted.

He’s doing better, so now it’s time to tack back that time and improve it. I use the app ClickUp and create daily reminders to pray. There are ministries I pray for, situations, and people. Sometimes I drink coffee in the morning, pull it up, and start to pray.

I’m also pulling back on my study time. That sounds weird, but I can get competitive even with myself. I have an all-or-nothing personality. There have been times I get so wrapped up in “It’s Wednesday, you HAVE to read that Wednesday devotion” that I’d do it just to say I checked it off my list. If you asked me what I read, I could not tell you. I didn’t absorb it. If there is a day when my schedule is full from morning til bed, I give myself grace. So I finish the fourth day on a Saturday. It’s okay. That’s new for me. Guess what? I’m learning so much.

Ministry

For years I’ve run into women who confessed they felt like they were writers and/or had a book to finish. Once they shared that with me I told them I’d check in for accountability. Late last year I felt the God nudge to gather these ladies together.

We started in January and the first meeting was introductions, learning what everyone wrote and what their status was, and I shared my journey. This month they asked for writing-related terms, so I provided that, and we discussed that, and the types of publishing that exist. Next month I’ll talk platform. I hope to make it a writing time as well, but so far we seem to talk, so I’m hoping to tweak that.

I also changed up my website/blog. Nothing too fancy, but I think it’s a brighter, cleaner look. Go see and tell me what you think.

With Repairing Hearts out and receiving great reviews, now it’s time to write Hart sextuplet Evan’s story, Building Hearts. As usual, my starts are slow, but I’m excited. To give myself more time I have cut my newsletters from twice to once a month. I believe I still offer the same content with writing and family updates, giveaways, and reader news. If you haven’t subscribed, you’re invited!

My prayer is as 2024 continues, I will improve in all areas of my life and be a trusted vessel God uses to advance His Kingdom. Are there any changes you are making this year? What are they?

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A New Release by Patricia Bradley

Posted on February 15, 2024 by Patricia Bradley

I am preparing to drive to Nashville next week for the National Religious Broadcasters Conference where I will talk to podcasters, radio talk show hosts, and others about Christian Fiction and my books. I’ll also be signing copies of Fatal Witness, Book 2 in the Pearl River Series.

I’ve been reviewing why I write Christian fiction because that’s what I’ll be asked. As I look back over the seventeen books I’ve written, I realize that in a lot of my stories, a character needs to forgive either another person or themselves. In others, the character has lost hope, and the story (set against the backdrop of a crime) details how they find their hope again through Christ, even though it is a subtle message.

Why is my message subtle? Because I have a lot of non-Christians who read my books, and I want to challenge their thinking without preaching to them. Fatal Witness which was released on the anniversary of my first book, is no different. The heroine in the story is Dani Bennett, and she has gone to church all her life, but when she thinks about God, she thinks of him as her uncle’s God. As the story unfolds, the hero, Mark Lassiter, challenges her by telling her maybe that’s her problem, and that nothing will change for her until she makes him her God. The rest of the story is about how that happens as they solve a murder.

So if you happen to think of it next week, I would appreciate prayers as I go to NRB, that God would make divine appointments for me–and all the others who will be there. It’s not a competition. Everyone there will be seeking ways to get their message out to a hurting world.

Here’s the cover and back copy for Fatal Witness:

As a child, artist and potter Dani Bennett witnessed the brutal murder of her parents. With no memory of the incident or her true identity, she was forced to take on a new name and a new life, hidden away in Montana for the past 25 years.

Mae Richmond has spent the same stretch of time searching for her granddaughter, who went missing the night her daughter and son-in-law were murdered. Convinced the woman she saw in a pottery magazine feature is the woman she’s been searching for, she enlists the help of K-9 officer Mark Lassiter of Pearl Springs, Tennessee, who tracks Dani down.

Skeptical but curious, Dani sets out on a journey to uncover the secrets of her past and reclaim her true identity. But someone close to her is determined to keep the truth of what happened all those years ago hidden.

You can find purchase links here.

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Anxieties by James R. Coggins

Posted on February 14, 2024 by jrcoggins

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7 NIV). This verse doesn’t seem to have received much attention in recent years. It was a favorite verse in a previous generation. In our house growing up, there was a needlepoint hanging of this verse. Needlepoint is also now a neglected art form. Women would sew the words of a Bible verse or some other proverb on a white piece of cloth, along with a border or other decoration. The piece would then be put into a frame and hung on a wall. It was a way to practice sewing. It was also a great way to meditate on a Bible verse, both for the one sewing and for those who read it. For a time, I think this particular piece hung in my bedroom.

Meditation on such verses is important because we often forget. They need to be drummed into our subconscious minds.

As people, we live with serious problems—sickness, financial problems, interpersonal conflicts, and many more. In addition to these, the people Peter was writing to were also facing very serious religious persecution, including the threat of execution.

In addition to the problems themselves, we are often anxious. We worry about these problems, even obsess over them. The problems are real, but the anxiety, the worry, can become a problem itself, wearing us down.

This verse invites us to cast or dump all of our problems on God because He can resolve them. More than that, it calls us to dump our anxieties, our worries, our cares, on Him. If we are able to do so, it frees us from a great burden and releases our energies to work on practical solutions to the problems. It is a hard thing to do, which is why we need to be constantly reminded to cast our anxieties on God.

The verse also gives us a reason to do this and a reason to hope—because God cares for us. God loves us. We may have all kinds of problems, but we are loved, deeply and completely, by the all-powerful, all-seeing God, who will ultimately carry us through and make everything all right. That is reason to relax and rejoice.

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A Milestone Birthday by Tara Randel

Posted on February 12, 2024 by tararandel

My mother’s birthday is today. She is 90 years old. I can’t even fathom making it to that age. Some days I don’t think she can believe it either. It makes me wonder where the time has gone, while also reflecting on life.

We’ve had conversations about this birthday. She didn’t want a party or big to-do. Instead, she wanted to have dinner with her family, which includes my brother and our kids. I have another brother who lives out of state, so he wouldn’t have made it, but we would have included him by calling so we were all with Mom at the same time. But due to her health, dinner was postponed. Once we’re through with winter and the weather is nicer, we’ll try again.

Going back to her request to spend time with family, it reminded me that when it comes right down to it, family is important. Yes, I know this because I love my family and love being with them. But how often do we inadvertently allow life to get in the way of quality time? Maybe work or other events we think are important come first and we put family second. When you’re 90, family is everything. All the other distractions of life don’t matter. My mom could have asked for anything, and we would have made it happen, but she chose to be with her family. Why?

Because relationships are important. We see that clearly in the Bible. God wants relationship with His people, and He made a way for that to happen. Start with Genisis and end with Revelation. You’ll see how God had a plan. He created us, loves us, and guides us through this life until we are with Him one day. In the process, God took care of His people, even when they walked out of relationship with Him. He sent His only son to take the sin of the world and die for us, so we could be in right relationship with Him. And now we serve God until we will one day be home with Him for eternity.

In my books, I focus much of the plot around family. It’s a good source of conflict, but in the end, even if they were not close in the beginning of the story, my characters are happy to finally be part of a loving, messy family. As a reader, I’m drawn into these kinds of stories. Family is universal and we can all relate to different scenarios depicting a fictitious family because fiction reflects real life.

In the past few years, I let my career take up much of that family time. It began to bother me and while I was taking a walk one day, I was praying about it. The Holy Spirit spoke to me, telling me to slow down. Get balance in my life, which included making my family a priority. I wasn’t ignoring them or leaving them out of the loop, but I was saying no to outings because I was busy or tired when I should have said yes. Taking that instruction was the best thing to happen. My relationships have been renewed and that has helped me in my general outlook on life.

We shouldn’t wait until we’re 90 to realize what a blessing family is. Perhaps you’ve already figured that out. Good for you. But for those who are so busy building a career and putting family togetherness aside, consider recalibrating. Relationships are what really last. If you sit down to talk with friends or family, what ultimately ends up happening? We reminisce. We talk about those memories that are buried deep inside us. We laugh or cry, or both, but we remember that we were together.

So, I want to say Happy Birthday, Mom. Celebrate the milestone. Thanks for loving your children. May God bless you and keep you healthy until our next family gathering.

Tara Randel is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author. Family values, a bit of mystery and of course, love and romance, are her favorite themes, because she believes love is the greatest gift of all. For more information about her books, visit Tara at www.tararandel.com. Like her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TaraRandelBooks. Sign up for Tara’s Newsletter.

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