Vote for your favorite

Hey friends I need some help. I need a 'pitch' for my new book Gone Missing. Here are four options pick which one you would buy.

1.) A picturesque little town at the base of the mountains seems so perfect.
When a young mother mysteriously goes missing, the pursuit of the truth will crack Its carefully constructed façade and reveal what lies beneath; a sinister web of deceit and betrayal that will rock the sleepy little town to its very foundation.

2.) The quaint little town of Jasper seems the perfect place for Ana Holms to finish her novel. When a young mother goes missing, Ana’s offer to help with the children turns out to be more than she bargained for. She quickly finds herself embroiled in a dangerous investigation that will crack the facade of this sleepy little town and reveal a sinister web of deceit and betrayal.

3.) The quaint little town of Jasper seems the perfect place for Ana Holms to finish her novel. When Devin Rylan is called home to help find his missing sister, the two of them soon find themselves tangled in a dangerous web of drugs and corruption and the only way out may cost them everything.

4.) Ana Holms and Devin Rylan are looking for his missing sister, but what they uncover is far more dangerous than either could have expected. The ensuing investigation will reveal far more that the whereabouts of the woman.

Presence

The other day it was dreary outside, not uncommon for this time of year. It must have been 100% humidity, it wasn’t actually raining, but the air was so saturated with moisture that when you passed through it you got wet.

It got me thinking; wouldn’t it be great if our lives were like that? If God’s presence so permeated our lives that whoever passed though them; whether by our words or our presence, that they would be covered with the love of Christ? How much more would our written words do, if we were so filled with God that it poured out with our words? How many hurts could be healed, bruised eased and souls filled with joy and laughter?

So often we get busy and put-off our quiet time with God. We use the excuses of the world: we have too much to do. People are counting on us. We have a deadline to meet. We can’t get up early to spend time with God because we need our sleep. We are too tired, have too many responsibilities.
As writers I believe it is even more important to spend time with God. When we write we are pouring out what is inside of us. It needs to be re-filled. I have to intentionally re-fill my soul with God and not the world, so that when someone passes through my world they will get some Jesus all over them.

What part of your life do you need to fill with God?

Taking Our Thoughts Captive

Recently a verse caught my attention…


We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, - 2 Corinthians 10:5


I thought How can we take every thought captive? Apparently there is power in this action. We cannot control the thoughts that “pop” into our heads, but we can control what we do with them. We take a thought and follow it into a line of thinking, but where does that thinking lead? It can lead us to one of two places: it can lead us to the foot of the cross (drawing us closer to God) or it can lead us to the trash-heap of life (I heard that term once and really liked it – isn’t that what life feels like sometimes, a trash heap?).

It is up to us. So before we follow a thought, we first need to decide what direction we are going to let it take us. Is it going to help us heal, help us understand ourselves or others, help us realize the need for a savior? Or is it going to lead us down a path of self destruction, depression, and helplessness? We choose what direction it will take us. How? We take the thought captive and we make it take us toward the cross. We have the control and the power because Christ is in us, it’s His power and He will lead us if we let Him.

What thoughts do you need to take captive today?

An Exciting Life

Today I got my first post published. How exciting. For years I have been writing and hoping that one day I could be a published writer. I write fiction. This last year the Lord has given me some little nuggets of insight and provided an avenue to share them with others. Today seeing my words published on a Magazine’s blog was uplifting to say the least.


I am looking forward to 2012. I have a feeling that it is going to be a great year; but then again every year with the Lord is a great year. Today was just a glimpse of the possibility that my dreams of being a writer might come true, but let’s not get the cart before the horse.

I have been working hard toward this goal, off and on, for many years. Nothing worth having is easy. The Lord has taught me that if I just do the best I can do, He will provide the rest.

For many years I was in a sales field and attended, what felt like hundreds of seminars on how to be successful. Their focus was on worldly success, which is not a bad thing, but through many trials and errors I learned that my success was in the Lord’s hands. He taught me to concentrate on what is important, my clients, and do the very best job I could do and He would handle the rest. I became successful and with that success was the assurance that I was doing it His way not mine.

So this has become my life’s philosophy, to do the very best I can at whatever I am involved in and leave the rest up to Him. Not only is it more profitable, but it’s much less stressful.

A New Year

I have started blogging this year and am finding it a daunting adventure. I am a mystery/suspense writer, so I’m generally lost in a world of my own creation. Even when I am not in my imaginary world, I tend to be quiet, more comfortable observing than participating.

The Lord gives me profound insights but not on a daily basis. Maybe He gives me more insights than I realize, and I just need to be more open to His leading. So my quest is to pay more attention to what He is trying to show me.
I have joined a few writers’ groups this year and have met some great people who I hope will become great friends.

I am going to my first Writer Conference in March. I am so excited at the prospect of meeting people in the literary profession. I am sure that the Lord will connect me with some great people.

I’m going to concentrate on my writing more this year, not quite a “New Year’s Resolution”, (I believe those to be a recipe for failure.) but a goal. We all need goals in our lives to strive toward weather we succeed or not, it’s the journey that counts. Along the road is where God can mold us and direct our paths, if we are not moving how can He direct our path?

And so my new adventure begins. I know from past experience that the following His leading is always and adventure; sometimes scary, sometimes fun, sometimes full of discovery and wonder, sometimes solemn and reflective, but ALWAYS an adventure. So here’s to 2012 let the adventure begin!

What adventure are you participating in this year?

Welcome to my blog

As an aspiring writer it has become clear that I need a blog. I need to enter the social media world we all now live in. So here I go. Just a quick warning : this is a new adventure for me so I make no promises to be entertaining or even thought provoking.

My first thought as I enter into this new adventure is why would anyone want to hear the random musings of my slightly twisted mind? Possibly there are some slightly twisted minds that can relate or it could just be a huge waste of time. But nothing ventured nothing gained.

I woke up today to a beautiful scene, it was snowing. The clean crisp white snow falling gracefully from the sky and attaching itself to whatever it comes in contact with. It is beautiful. I had to run some errands so I was driving and have some difficulty keeping my eyes on the road. The contrast between the white snow and the dark bark of the trees was enchanting. It was like living in a Thomas Kinkade painting.

When the car in front of me skidded a bit on the wet pavement I realized that beneath this enchanting scene lies a treacherous reality. I am warm and dry in my car so I am able to view the scene with wonder and appreciation, but what if I wasn’t in my car? What if I was homeless? Then my view would not be so enchanting. This side of heaven there will never be pure beauty, this earthly beauty must always be accompanied by stark reality.


Today I choose to live in my make-believe world where beauty exists without reality. I have the ability to see only what I want to see, however ridiculous that sounds, sometimes it’s the only way we can face the future. So I will enjoy the wonder and beauty of the snow and choose to not look any deeper.

God Uses Our Mediocrity

Today I saw a picture on Face book; it was of a child in Paraguay receiving a quilt. My heart leapt with joy and God used it to teach me another life lesson.

Last summer I was in Paraguay on a mission trip. One of the pastors we were working with took us to a children’s home that he works with. As we toured the facility and interacted with the children I thought: What can we do to help? When I got back home I started a group at church to make quilts for the children. I’m not an experienced quilter; I had only made a couple of very simple quilts. We took in donations of fabric and dove right in! That is my personality, when I get an idea, I don’t research options or even think through the consequences, I just jump right in and deal with the fall-out later. Not generally a good tendency but occasionally God uses it to His advantage.

Last week our merry little band of quilters went to a quilt show. We were feeling pretty good about ourselves. We had just sent eight quilts to the children’s home in Paraguay. We were accomplished quilters! Once we entered the show it only took a few minutes for my bubble to burst. I suddenly felt like a little girl holding a drawing behind her back because she had just ran up to the front of the class to show her teacher and saw that the drawings of the girls in front of her were much better than hers.

These women were REAL quilters, we were just mediocre. We weren’t in the same league as these women; I’m not even sure we were playing the same sport! I felt alternately awed and deflated as I ogled the incredible creativity on display. Over the next few days the feeling didn’t subside, it settled in a little deeper. Until today. Today I saw the face of a child who had received one of our mediocre quilts. What that child’s face reflected was not mediocrity, it was pure joy.

I dream of being an author. I dream of what it would feel like to be on the best seller list or at a book signing. I think my writing is pretty good until I pick up a James Patterson or Nora Roberts novel and realize how mediocre my writing is in comparison. Then I think this is stupid, I’m just wasting my time pretending to be a writer.

Today God showed me once again that when I take my eyes off of Him and begin to compare myself to others I will always be disappointed. He reminded me that He has never asked me to be James Patterson, or an expert quilter; He has only asked me to use the talents He has given me to do the best I can to show His love to the world around me. God has used my mediocrity to comfort children who have been battered and bruised by life.

Although I don’t know what it would feel like to be an award winning author, I’m pretty sure it would pale in comparison to the feeling of knowing that you made a child smile.

What lessons has God taught you when comparing yourself to others?